Automated Flow Control In Secondary Processing Lines Unveiled

The integration of buffer systems in secondary processing lines allows for the organization of a continuous product flow towards the packaging stages. To resolve accumulation and manual positioning, controlled discharge hardware has been developed to regulate the feed automatically within the food industry.

Industrial Challenge And Operational Context
In current secondary processing lines, from deboning to packaging, manual interventions disorganize the layout of items on the belt. The main operational challenge lies in the random reinsertion of meat pieces after trimming or inspection processes, which generates bottlenecks and overlaps. This lack of uniformity requires the presence of additional operators to reposition products before cutting, limiting the efficiency of industrial automation and exposing personnel to ergonomic injuries from repetitive strain due to reaching distances.

Technical Solution And Responsibilities
JBT Marel addresses this technical requirement through the OneFlow platform, a buffer system equipped with an upper storage hopper known as a batcher. The control software continuously tracks the physical position of each piece of meat on the conveyor belt and calculates the available free spaces. Upon detecting a gap, the mechanism retains and then releases the temporarily stored product, orienting it precisely with the long side facing forward. This architecture processes up to 120 fillets per minute, maintaining technical integration with the uninterrupted flow of the main belt.

Deployment And Use Cases
The hardware is deployed at multiple manual handling points throughout the processing network. In deboning systems and trimming stations, operators deposit products directly into the OneFlow feeder adjacent to their station, avoiding direct interactions with the main belt. In sensor inspection modules, such as reprocessing in SensorX, the equipment manages the conditioned items to prevent them from being positioned too close to other fillets, preventing false rejections caused by spatial overlapping.




Results And Expected Impact
The mechanical standardization of separated product output stabilizes the supply for subsequent processing applications, including graders, portion cutters, and packaging machines. Discussing the logic of this integration, Birgir Freyr Ragnarsson, global product manager at JBT Marel, details that OneFlow detects the ideal moment to reinsert a product onto the conveyor belt. At the multiple manual handling points in the post-deboning process, it guarantees a uniform and separated product flow. This technical structuring reduces costs associated with manual repositioning handling, increases food safety parameters by minimizing physical contact, and provides an ergonomically safe working environment.

Edited by Maria Brueva, Induportals editor - adapted by AI.

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