Automatic weighing of fragile products such as shrimp and mushroom has always been a tricky business -- particularly when accuracy is a must. Denmark''s Cabinplant say they have now developed a series of solutions that make it possible automatically to weigh and pack fragile products just as gently as if it were being done by hand.
The design of the weighing machine has been done so that the length of drop has been reduced to a minimum and the infeed of the product is backed by vibration. Packing speed is adjusted according to the fragility of the product concerned.
Quicker process
By removing the assembling pans from the weighing machine and replacing them with chutes, the first drop which a product would normally have to undergo has been eliminated.
Then, the angle of the subsequent assembling hoppers has been made as flat as possible. To prevent a product from accumulating in the flat-angled assembling hoppers, vibrators have been installed ensuring that the product moves through the assembling hoppers without being damaged.
The angle of the timing hoppers has also been reduced, and vibration is also used to move the product along.
In its press release, Cabinplant says this is the 'gentlest machine to date where the packing of fragile products is concerned. It is so gentle that it packs frozen shrimp without damaging their delicate antennae'.
