A new method of high speed sorting using retractable conveyor system

Sorting of packaged products is an essential process in a packaging cycle. In the meat packaging industry manual sorting was commonly used because of the high cost of automatic sorting machines. In the era of computer automation, manual sorting is becoming more costly and uneconomical compared to having an automatic machine to perform the same task. We have designed and developed a new controller for a sorting conveyor system that works in synchronism with vacuum-seal packaging machines. The sorting conveyor system can be used for several different types of products. Currently, the system is applied for sorting beef jerky, a product that is comparatively lighter than most other packaged beef products. The speed of the sorting conveyor system can be adjusted by the user for synchronized operation with several different types of packaging machines.