DK200400106Y6 - Appliance for sorting seafood - Google Patents

Description

DK 2004 00106Y6

FIG. 1 in iDK 2004 00106Y6

Apparatus for Sorting Shellfish The scope of the invention

The invention relates to an apparatus for sorting seafood according to the preamble of claim 1. Background of the invention Λ

Seafood, for example, mussels, mussels, scallops, oysters, etc. are caught and / or grown and are usually used for food purposes. For such purposes it may be necessary to perform some sort of sorting or separation. For example, it is common practice to sort seafood by size and machinery has been developed for such sorting processes.

However, it often happens that when fishing for seafood, there may be seafood of two or more different types, for example species, in a single catch, and for some purposes it will be necessary or advantageous to separate these types from one another or to separate one type of seafood from one or the other types.

As mechanical separation processes for sorting seafood by type, such as species, etc. are not available, it has been necessary to perform some sort of manual sorting or separation when a portion of seafood containing two or more different types is to be processed for example for food purposes for humans. This inevitably leads to higher costs, thereby avoiding the use of such portions of seafood containing different types of seafood, and / or thereby minimizing revenue from such portions.

Thus, there has been a need to provide an efficient and, in particular, a cost-saving way of carrying out such a sorting process.

Recently, it has been proposed to use an electronic sorting or separation process based on an electronic color separation process. However, experiments have not been promising, as some discoloration of the shellfish shells may be present, for example stemming from algae growth or other forms of coating that give rise to a far from satisfactory quality in the result. The electronic separation process will further incur relatively large additional costs, making the process less advantageous.

Furthermore, an apparatus for separating shellfish, such as shrimp, from a mixture of objects is described in WO 99/53771, wherein the particular mixture of objects may be shrimp mixed with other small fish species and fish fry. An upwardly sloping conveyor belt is used in this prior art to separate shrimp from fish. The different surface affinity characteristics of shrimp and fish, for example, the tendency to stick to a surface, for example caused by the mucus on the surface of a fish as opposed to the hard shell of a shrimp, will cause the shrimp to slide downward, whereas the fish adheres to the conveyor belt. This prior art is not related to the problem of sorting seafood by type, for example by species, etc.

As mentioned, the function of this prior art device is based on the affinity of the workpiece to the surface of the conveyor belt, that is, its ability to "adhere" to the surface, thus defining a reference affinity slope by which a given item will just slide down from the surface For small fish, fry, etc., a relatively large reference slope will apply, as these items have a relatively soft and slimy surface, while a relatively small reference slope will apply to shrimp as they have a relatively hard outer shell. known apparatus is set with a slope greater than the reference slope for shrimp, but less than the reference slope for small fish, fry, etc. These small fish, fry etc. will be transported with the tape upwards, while the shrimp will slide down the band. Note that the speed of the conveyor belts can be increased or decreased, as is the case slope.

3 3DK 2004 00106Y6

The invention

It is thus an object of the invention to provide an apparatus by which seafood can be sorted according to the nature of seafood in an efficient and cost-saving manner.

It is a further object of the invention to provide such a sorting or separating device with which a high quality product can be obtained, for example a portion / portion or a flow of seafood containing no or only a few seafood of another type or types.

These and other objects are achieved by the invention, as explained below.

As set forth in claim 1, the invention relates to an apparatus for sorting seafood from a portion or stream of seafood comprising seafood of different species into different fractions of seafood, comprising: - a conveyor belt having a sloping surface arranged with a slope in a range of 5 ° - 35 °, - means for applying shellfish to the inclined surface of the conveyor belt, - means for exerting a force on the shellfish on the surface in a direction at least partially inclined and at least partly parallel to the inclined surface exerted by the surface of said conveyor belt which is moved in the upwardly inclined direction at a speed within a range of 20 m / min - 100 m / min, which conveyor has such materiality and friction ability that the shellfish are fed a movement upwardly of the conveyor belt and means for collecting shellfish leaving said surface at or near a f an upper end and at or near a lower end of the surface.

4 4GB 2004 00106 Y6

There is thus provided an apparatus by which seafood different from the species will behave differently on the sloping surface under the influence of the force exerted on the seafood and under the influence of gravity.

5 Upon production, all of the items are shellfish, including especially bivalve molluscs, completely enclosed by a hard shell. Thus, there is no difference in the ability of the blanks to remain on / "adhere" to a sloping surface as utilized by the prior art of WO99 / 53771, the blanks, i.e. the shellfish, at substantially the same angle of inclination, will begin to move down a sloping surface.

However, it is quite surprising in the present invention that when seafood is transferred to a conveyor belt inclined at least at a given angle and moved upward at a given speed, the seafood will, since the conveyor belt, in general, will prevent the seafood from in sliding downwards and will affect the shellfish with an upward force, begin to roll or roll down the belt at a rate and movement pattern which depends on the nature of the shellfish, the slope of the belt and the speed of the belt. It is further realized that by a combination of a band slope of 5 ° - 35 ° and a speed of 20 m / min - 100 20 m / min, a sorting of the shellfish is achieved when two (or more) different species of seafood in the items transferred to the ribbon.

This is because some species of seafood, under the influence of the moving conveyor belt due to its frictional ability, affect the seafood, and under the influence of gravity, will be more likely to roll or roll down the belt while other species will tend to roll or roll, which is why they usually only roll a limited number of times after which they remain lying. Hereby, the species which is more likely to roll will roll down the belt and reach down to the lower end where it leaves the belt, while the species which is not inclined to roll or roll only hesitantly will remain relatively quickly. motionless on the tape and being led up to the top of the tape.

5 5GB 2004 00106Y6 In this way it has been found that a separation of the different species, ie. a sorting in species will be achieved by means of the apparatus, the shellfish being separated, at least to some extent, into two different fractions by means of the apparatus.

As the apparatus comprises a conveyor belt whose surface constitutes the said inclined surface, the force exerted on the shellfish will be produced in a surprisingly simple and effective manner whereby the sorting or separating apparatus can be designed in a cost-effective manner.

When the apparatus as claimed in claim 2 comprises at least two, for example, two, three, four, five or six conveyor belts arranged with inclined belt portions, and wherein said conveyor belts are arranged in succession, for example where shellfish, leaving a first conveyor belt, transferring to a second conveyor belt, etc., an even further advantageous embodiment is obtained. Hereby an improved quality can be achieved in the sorting process carried out with the apparatus, since a certain part of the seafood to be separated from the main flow can be separated with the first conveyor belt. With the next conveyor belt, a further portion of the remaining number of seafood of the type to be separated from the main flow can be excreted, etc., until a satisfactory result is reached.

When, as stated in claim 3, said at least two conveyor belts can have individually adjusted slopes and / or said at least two conveyor belts can be operated at individually adjusted belt speeds, a further advantageous embodiment is obtained. Hereby, the sorting process carried out by the apparatus can be fine-tuned step by step, thus producing an even further improvement in the quality of the sorting process.

In one convenient embodiment, as set forth in claim 4, the apparatus may comprise six conveyor belts arranged with inclined belt portions, said conveyor belts arranged in succession, and the sixth belt disposed with a lower slope than the other belts.

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In a particularly convenient embodiment, as set forth in claim 5, a guide plate may be arranged at or near an upper end of a conveyor belt to guide shellfish to the subsequent conveyor belt.

Further, as mentioned in claim 6, said baffle may be adapted to guide shellfish in the opposite direction of the driving direction of the subsequent conveyor belt.

In yet another advantageous embodiment, as claimed in claim 7, said means for transferring seafood to said inclined surface may comprise a substantially horizontal conveyor belt comprising means for distributing seafood, said means being arranged in the form of distribution wheels. above said conveyor belt.

Further, said distribution wheels, as stated in claim 8, may comprise distribution elements, for example finger elements.

The invention can, as mentioned, be used to separate different species of seafood ffa a portion or stream of seafood containing, for example, heart clams (e.g. Cerastoderma edulis) and blue mussels (e.g. Mytulis edulis). Obviously, this is just one example of seafood that can be sorted by the invention.

List of Figures

The invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings, in which fig. Fig. 1 is a side view of a schematic drawing of some of the main components of an apparatus according to the invention; Figure 2 is a side view of a further embodiment of a sorting apparatus according to the invention; 3 is a sorting apparatus according to the invention seen from the feed end; FIG. 4 is a sorting apparatus as illustrated in FIG. 3 and 4 from above, and 7 7 GB 2004 00106Y6 fig. 5 is a side view of a modified embodiment of an apparatus according to the invention.

Embodiments

An apparatus according to an embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to the illustrative side view of FIG. 1. It will be appreciated that this illustration covers only the essential parts of the apparatus and is not a comprehensive drawing of a sorting apparatus.

Seafood from a portion of seafood is delivered to the apparatus in a continuous or non-continuous stream 1 as shown. This portion or stream of seafood may comprise two or more different species, species, sizes, shapes, etc. of seafood such as mussels, mussels, scallops, oysters, etc. In the example shown, the seafood stream comprises essentially two different types of seafood 1a. and 1b, which are illustratively illustrated as a substantially round type 1a and a substantially elongated type 1b. As will be explained later, there may be more than two different types of seafood in the portion to be sorted.

The seafood stream 1 is transferred to a conveyor belt 2 driven by a conveyor belt conveyor system with two drums 3 and 4. One or both of these may be an electric drive motor or the belt may be driven by other appropriate means. It is further obvious that more than two drums can be used, for example in a triangular arrangement. However, in the arrangement shown, the conveyor belt 2 will define two substantially parallel planes or surfaces 2a and 2b. Of these, the upper 2a will be driven in an upwardly inclined direction as shown by the arrow. Due to the friction of the surface 2a of the belt 2, the shellfish on the surface 2a will be affected by a force whereby the shellfish will be pushed upwards towards the upper end of the conveyor belt 2.

The inclination of the conveyor belt 2 as determined by an axis line 6 of the conveyor belt 2 and a horizontal line 7, whereby an inclination angle 8 is defined, can vary from a very small angle, for example 5 °, to an angle which gives a very steep slope 8 8GB 2004 00106Y6 for example 45 ° or more. Preferably, slopes within the range of 5 ° to 35 ° can be used, and later even more specific preferred values for the slope angle will be given. The angle of inclination chosen will have the effect that some of the shellfish on the surface 2a will slip or roll down the surface due to gravity rather than being transported up to the top of the conveyor belt 2. The probability of a given shellfish falling down, e.g. rolls and / or slides, at a given slope and at a given belt speed, will depend on the shape, size, weight etc. of the shellfish and thus also the nature of the shellfish. In addition to the angle of inclination, the velocity of the conveyor belt will influence the probability of a given seafood falling downward. Further, the belt material, for example friction characteristics, and / or the shape of the belt surface will be important in this connection. The point along the conveyor belt where the seafood is fed to the conveyor belt will also have an effect on the chance that a given shellfish reaches the top of the conveyor belt. Thus, there are a number of parameters that can be varied and adjusted in relation to each other to achieve a preferred or desired result of the sorting process.

As can be seen from the above, a number of shellfish transferred to the conveyor belt 2 will fall from the belt and be collected on, for example, a conveyor belt 5 which will transport these shellfish for further processing, packing, additional transport etc. As illustrated, the conveyor belt 2 is arranged such as, for example, with such a slope, such a belt speed, such a choice of belt material, etc. that all shellfish falling on the collecting belt 5 will be of the same type 1a, for example the same species, size, weight or shape, etc. The seafood collected on the collecting tape does not need to be sorted further before further processing.

The shellfish transported to the top of the conveyor belt 2 may be of various shapes, species, sizes, etc. and may therefore need further sorting, as illustrated. Thus, the flow of seafood 10 leaving the top of the band 2 contains seafood of both types 1a and 1b. This flow or current is delivered to another conveyor belt 12, This belt corresponds to the previous belt 2 and thus comprises two drum 13, 14 and upper 12a and lower 12b belt surfaces. The second conveyor belt 12 will be arranged at an angle of inclination defined by the angle 16 between the axis line 15 of the conveyor belt and the horizontal line 7. This angle of inclination may be different from or equal to the angle of inclination of the previous conveyor belt and the belt speed of the second conveyor belt 12 may also be different from or equal to the belt speed of the previous conveyor belt 2.

As described in connection with the first conveyor belt 2, shellfish of the type la will, for the most part, fall from the belt surface 12a and down onto the collecting belt 5, while the shellfish of the type 1b and a smaller amount of shellfish of the type la will be transported to the top of the second conveyor belt. 12, where they will fall in the form of a flow or stream 17.

As illustrated, the seafood flow 17 is transferred to a third conveyor belt 22 corresponding to the first and second conveyors. This third conveyor belt may be arranged with a belt velocity and / or a slope equal to or different from the same parameters of the first 2 and / or the second conveyor belt 12, for example with an inclination angle smaller than that of the previous conveyor belts, such as illustrated.

The parameters of the third conveyor belt, for example, the angle of inclination, the belt speed, the choice and / or the surface of the belt material, the point for transmitting the flow 17 of shellfish, are selected in such a way that the remaining part or substantially the remaining part of the shellfish of the type 1a will fall onto the collection belt 5, while the type 1b shellfish will be transported to the top of the conveyor belt 22, from which they will fall onto or in the collection or discharge means, for example in the form of an exit conveyor belt 28.

It will be appreciated that more than three conveyor belts 2, 12 and 22 may be arranged in the sorting process and apparatus and that they may be of uniform construction, size and shape, or that they may differ from one another in the design. It will be further understood that all these conveyor belts may be adjusted individually or individually with respect to inclination, belt speed etc. It will also be understood that such an arrangement may be static or set, for example by the user, depending on the user. the combination of types of seafood contained in a given portion, of the preferred or required sorting process, of the content of fractions generated by the sorting process, etc.

In FIG. 2a, a side view of a sorting apparatus according to a further embodiment of the invention is illustrated. Here, a plurality of sorting conveyor belts, generally designated 30, 31, 32, 33, 34 and 35, are arranged one after the other in a common frame referred to as 40. These sorting conveyor arrangements each have a conveyor belt designated 30a, 31a, 32a. etc., and two drums named 30b and 30c, 31b and 31c, 32b and 32c, respectively. Finally, these sorting arrangements are provided with shielding means 30d, 3d, 32d etc. at each side of the sorting conveyor belts in the illustrated embodiment of to prevent the seafood from falling off the side of the tapes.

The conveying devices 30 - 35 are arranged as independent structures, each attached to the frame 40 and especially to frame posts 41, 42, 43, 44 and 45 at two positions on each side of each conveying device. These two positions are at the lower part of each conveyor belt and at a position between the two drums, respectively. For example, the first conveying device may be attached to the frame near the drum 30b and at a center portion to the frame post 45, the second conveying device may be attached to the frame post 45 near the drum 31b, and at a center portion to the frame post 44, etc. In this way, the inclination may of each of the sorting conveyor belt assemblies is adjusted by lowering or raising the attachment position of the intermediate part of the frame posts 41 - 45. It is obvious that other means of supporting the adjusting conveying devices may be used.

Under the conveyor belt conveyors, a pickup belt 36 is provided, and below the upper end of the last conveyor belt conveyor 35, is a discharge belt 37 capable of transporting the portion of the shellfish leaving the sorting apparatus, to the right or left of the the apparatus, as illustrated by the embodiment. Instead of a conveyor belt 37, other means of transport and / or collection means may be arranged.

Finally, delivery means for seafood are provided at the end of the illustrated sorting apparatus. These comprise a substantially horizontal conveyor belt 47 arranged on two drums and supported by a plurality of frame posts 46, in the example shown two at each side. The conveyor belt 47 is operated at a relatively slow speed in the direction of the arrow, with shellfish being delivered to the right end of the conveyor belt 47 by, for example, a sludge, a feed conveyor belt or the like (not shown), being conveyed to the left end of the conveyor belt 47 from which they are overturned. down on the first sort conveyor belt assembly 30. A pair of side shielding means 48 is disposed as shown to prevent shellfish from falling over the side of the delivery belt 47.

Since the sorting apparatus has a substantial width, for example a width in the range of approx. 1 meter to 2 meter or more to achieve high efficiency and to achieve a satisfactory sorting process, special means are advantageously arranged to distribute the delivered seafood over the entire width of the bands. These means comprise a pair of distribution wheels 50 arranged in a horizontal plane at a certain distance over the upper surface of the conveyor belt 47. These distribution wheels 50 comprise a plurality of distribution elements 51, e.g., feeding elements which may have a certain degree of flexibility, and which can be evenly distributed on the distribution wheels. The distribution wheels 50 are driven at a relatively low speed by, for example, electric motors 52 or other suitable means. More than two distribution wheels may be used, and it is obvious that the wheels may be different from the illustrated form.

The operation of the apparatus shown will now be described. As explained, seafood will be fed to conveyor belt 47 in a more or less continuous stream, or perhaps even in small portions. The conveyor belt 47 will move the shellfish toward the first sorting belt 30, while the distribution wheels 50 will rotate slowly at the same time, preferably opposite to one another, whereby the finger elements 51 will distribute the shellfish in an even distribution over the entire width of the conveyor belt 47. Thus, it is not essential. that the seafood is directed to the conveyor belt in a specially arranged manner.

When the shellfish reaches the left end of the conveyor belt 47, they will fall onto the first sorting conveyor belt 30a, for example, as shown on an intermediate portion of the belt. As explained in connection with FIG. 1, some of the shellfish will fall onto the collection conveyor belt 36, while the rest of the shellfish will be transported to the top of the conveyor belt 30a and fall onto the next sorting conveyor belt 31a. This process will be repeated for the second 31, the third 32, the fourth 33, and the fifth 34 sorting conveyor belt assembly. However, on the fifth conveyor belt, the shellfish leaving the conveyor belt 34 at both the upper and lower portions will be guided to a sixth sorting conveyor belt device 35. As shown, this may have a smaller slope than the other conveyor belts, an increased length and, of course, be operated at a different speed and / or include a band of other characteristics.

The shellfish leaving the upper portion of this sixth sorting band 35a will be exclusively shellfish of a particular predefined or required type, for example 20 species, shape, size, weight, etc., although a small number of shellfish of another type may be tolerated. and these can be removed manually, for example, by the person controlling the quality of the sorted seafood. Likewise, the shellfish leaving the lower portion of this sixth sorting belt 35a and the lower portions of the other sorting belts falling onto the collection conveyor belt 36 will be exclusively shellfish of a particular predefined or required type, e.g., species, shape, size , weight, etc. Also, a small number of seafood of another type or types can be tolerated and these can be removed manually, for example by a person controlling the quality of the seafood sorted according to the invention.

The ability of the apparatus to perform a sorting of a portion of shellfish containing, for example, 50% of a first type of shellfish, for example 1a, and 50% of a second type of shellfish, for example 1b, will be theoretically demonstrated in the following.

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Under certain circumstances, for example at a certain belt speed and at a certain angle of inclination, a sorting conveyor belt device has been found to drop 70% of the contents of the first type of shellfish at the lower end of the conveyor belt. Assuming that five sorting devices are used in sequence and are substantially similar, the shellfish leaving the fifth conveyor belt at an upper end will only contain a 0.24% (approximately) proportion of the first type of seafood (== 0.3 X 0.3 X 0.3 X 0.3 X 0.3 X 0.5 / 0.5). The sixth conveyor belt 35 will further reduce this amount, resulting in a virtually 100% sorting rate or sorting result that will only require a minor check work and / or manual removal of remaining seafood of various types.

The apparatus shown in FIG. 2 will now be explained in further detail with reference to FIG. 3 and 4, wherein FIG. 3 shows the apparatus from the feed end, and FIG. 4 shows the apparatus from above.

In FIG. 3, the frame 40 is shown, which frame 40 supports the collecting conveyor belt 36 in the vicinity of the lower part. Over this belt 37, guide means 55, for example funnel-shaped, are arranged to guide the shellfish falling from the lower part of the sorting conveyor belts down onto the collecting conveyor belt 36.

At the top of the sorting apparatus are illustrated seafood delivery means which comprise the substantially horizontal conveyor belt 47 supported by frame posts 46. In addition, shielding means 48 located at each side of the belt 47 are shown. shown the two distribution wheels 50 with the distribution elements 51 driven by drive means 52, as shown, in opposite directions of each other. Finally, the lower part of the first sorting conveyor belt device 30 is shown. It is clear that the upper part of this device will project in part behind the means for providing seafood, for example the conveyor belt 47 and the distribution devices, but for the sake of clarity this part is omitted on this drawing.

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FIG. 4 shows the top view of the sorting apparatus showing the delivery conveyor 47 at the outermost right side supported by the frame posts 46. Above this conveyor 47 is shown the distribution device comprising two distribution wheels 50 driven by motors 52. To the left of this there is shown in sorting conveyor belt devices 30 - 35 in succession, supported by frame posts 46-40, respectively, as explained above in connection with FIGS. 2nd

In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4, the conveyor belts involved have substantially the same width. As explained above, this width can be in the range of 1 to 2 meters (approx.) Or more. However, it is clear that a width of less than 1 meter can be used, depending on the current use and purpose. In a preferred embodiment, a width of 1.75 meters (approx.) Is used. However, it will be obvious to one skilled in the art that the width of the individual conveyor belts may be different from one another.

FIG. 5 shows a further embodiment of a sorting apparatus according to the invention. This embodiment is similar to the embodiment shown in FIG. 2. The same reference numerals as used in FIG. 2 to denote the elements. However, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, guiding means in the form of a guide plate 60 at the left end of the machinery, located between the output end of the fifth sorting conveyor device 34 and the sixth sorting conveyor device 35. The guiding plate 60 is arranged to prevent shellfish from falling directly from the output end of the fifth sorting conveyor device 34 on the conveyor belt 37, and more importantly, to provide the shellfish guided down the sixth sorting conveyor belt assembly 35 with an initial velocity which is opposite to the conveying direction of the upper surface of conveyor belt 35a. Hereby, an improved sorting or separation process is achieved, with the remaining (small) number of seafood of the type being fed to the collection band 36, for example the type of seafood more likely to roll (and / or slide) downward, will tend to continue to scroll downward, whereas the other type of shellfish will be relatively immobile in the relation to the conveyor belt relatively quickly and thus will be transported to the upper end of the belt.

As has been explained above, a method and apparatus according to the invention can be used to separate two different types of seafood contained in a portion or stream of seafood. As explained, this can be achieved by adjusting the band speed and / or slope of the band, which can be done individually for each sorting step and depending on the species involved: the shape, size, weight and / or characteristics of the seafood in question. In addition, other 10 parameters can be changed, for example the band structure, the material etc., the point of delivery of seafood to the respective sorting bands etc. However, these parameters are usually not changed under normal procedures.

In a preferred embodiment, similar to the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, the 15 settings may be as shown below for the six bands involved.

Tire No. Tilt Angle Tape Speed Interval Optimum Interval Optimum 1-4 16 ° - 22 ° 18 ° 25 - 60 m / min 41 m / min 5 16 ° - 25 ° 19.5 ° 25 - 60 m / min 53 m / min 6 9 °. 17o 12 ° 25 - 60 m / min 59 m / min

It has further been found that setting the tape speed to approx. 6m / min for the conveyor belt 47 used in the distribution of seafood before the 20 separation process takes place will yield beneficial results.

It is to be understood that the invention can also be used to separate more than two different types of seafood etc. For example, portions containing three different types can be sorted by first separating a first type of seafood using a set of separation conveyor belts set to separate the first type of seafood from the other types. The remaining portion or stream, which will now essentially comprise two different types of seafood, may then be subjected to a further set of separation conveyor belts set to separate the two types involved.

5

Alternatively, the first set of separation conveyor belts can sort two types of shellfish, whereby the portion or stream collected on the conveyor conveyor belt is subjected to a further sorting process comprising a further set of separation conveyor belts.

10

The inclined surface can also be defined by a plate-shaped element which can serve as a support for the sorting process and for means for exerting a force on the shellfish. These means for exerting a force on the shellfish may be in the form of a (thin) band or similar means drawn along the surface of the plate-shaped element. Other means which will be apparent to one skilled in the art may also be used.

Furthermore, it should be mentioned that two or more sorting machines may be located in parallel, thereby increasing the capacity of the sorting machinery while at the same time gaining the advantage that delivery and / or collecting means such as conveyor belts 20 can be used jointly for the separated separation machine.

In the above the invention has been explained in detail with reference to specific embodiments and as illustrated in the drawings. As will be apparent to those skilled in the art, the invention may be practiced in many other forms and variations and is not limited to the examples of the invention illustrated above. The scope of the invention will be defined by the claims.

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Use model requirements 1. Apparatus for sorting seafood from a portion or stream of seafood comprising seafood of different species in different fractions of seafood, characterized in that the apparatus comprises - a conveyor belt (2, 12, 22) with a sloping surface (2a) provided with a slope in a range of 5 ° - 35 °, - means for applying shellfish (1) to the inclined surface of the conveyor belt (2,12, 22), - means for exerting a force on the shellfish on said surface in an at least partially upwardly inclined direction and at least partially parallel to the inclined surface exerted by the surface of said conveyor belt (2, 12, 22) moving in the upwardly inclined direction at a velocity within a range of 20 m / min - 100 m / min, which conveyor belt (2, 12, 22) has such materiality and frictional ability that the shellfish are moved up the conveyor belt, and - means (5, 28) for collecting aldaries leaving said surface at or near an upper end and at or near a lower end of the surface.

Apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the apparatus comprises at least two, for example, two, three, four, five or six conveyor belts (30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35) arranged with inclined belt parts. , wherein said conveyor belts are arranged in succession, for example, where shellfish (1b) leaving a first conveyor belt are transferred to a second conveyor belt, etc.

Apparatus according to claim 2, characterized in that said at least two conveyor belts can have individually adjusted slopes and / or said at least two conveyor belts can be operated at individually adjusted belt speeds.

Apparatus according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that the apparatus comprises six conveyor belts (30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35) arranged with inclined belt portions, wherein the conveyor belts are arranged in order and wherein the sixth belt (35) is arranged with a smaller slope than the other belts (30, 31,32, 33, 34).

Apparatus according to claim 2, 3 or 4, characterized in that a guide plate (60) 5 is arranged at or near an upper end of a conveyor belt (34) for directing seafood to the subsequent conveyor belt (35).

Apparatus according to claim 5, characterized in that said baffle (60) is arranged to guide seafood in the opposite direction of the driving direction of the subsequent conveyor belt (35).

Apparatus according to one or more of claims 1-6, characterized in that said means for transferring seafood (1) to said inclined surface comprises a substantially horizontal conveyor belt (47) comprising means for distributing shellfish, which means are in the form of distribution wheels (50) arranged over said conveyor belt (47).

Apparatus according to claim 7, characterized in that said distribution wheels (50) comprise distribution elements (51), for example finger elements.

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FIG. 1 00 DK 2004 00106Y6

Fig.2 DK 2004 00106Y6

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FIG. 5