The present invention relates to a tool device for rotary knives particularly for cutting animal meat.
In the field of animal meat butchering and processing it is known to use manual knives provided with variously shaped blades in order to perform, for example, cutting, fat removal and boning of the meat.
However, the use of these knives forces the operator to perform considerable efforts, especially in view of the fact that the meat to be processed is stored in refrigerating rooms at low temperature and therefore offers considerable resistance to cutting.
As working hours go by, the increasing tiredness of the operator causes an increase in the risk of injury, slows down work and distinctly reduces the productivity of the operator.
Moreover, the use of manual knives requires considerable experience and skill on the part of operators in order to contain the production of waste caused for example by imperfect cuts and in order to reduce the danger of accidents at work.
In order to obviate these drawbacks it is also known to use rotary knives that are substantially constituted by a handle, which is provided with a circular support for the application of a circular tool and is associated with actuation means that are adapted to actuate said tool with a rotary motion about an axis that lies transversely to the handle.
The actuation means are constituted by motor means that are associated with the tool by interposing a gear-type drive; the motor means can be of the electrical or pneumatic type.
The tool is constituted by a sort of sleeve, which is provided with a toothed edge for coupling to a driving pinion that is accommodated in the handle and is associated with the motor means and has a sharp opposite edge.
The size of the tool and of the corresponding support varies according to the type of process to be performed.
In use, the operator grips the handle and moves the tool, which is actuated so as to rotate and is arranged so that its sharp edge is directed toward the piece of meat to be processed, tangentially thereto, in order to perform fat removal or boning, or longitudinally through said piece of meat.
However, said rotary knives do not allow to slice pieces of meat, i.e., to perform transverse cuts and form slices.
To perform these processes, pneumatically-operated knives are also known which are provided with one or more straight blades that are actuated with a reciprocating rectilinear motion with respect to a support that is rigidly coupled to a handle.
However, these pneumatic knives also are not free from drawbacks, including the fact that the high rate at which the blades perform the cutting stroke can cause unpleasant aching and tingling in the hand and arm of the operator and that their overall weight, particularly for knives with a plurality of blades, makes them awkward to use for prolonged periods.