Onion end trimmer

Claim 1

AN ONION TRIMMER, INCLUDING IN COMBINATION: AN INTERMITTENTLY MOVED HORIZONTAL CONVEYOR HAVING A SERIES OF LONGITUDINALLY SPACED ONION-RECEIVING APERTURES THERETHROUGH IN WHICH ONIONS MAY BE PLACED VERTICALLY, WITH ONE PART TO BE TRIMMED LYING ABOVE THE CONVEYOR AND ANOTHER PART TO BE TRIMMED LYING BELOW THE CONVEYOR, SAID CONVEYOR STOPPING DURING THE TRIMMING WITH AT LEAST ONE APERTURE THEN IN A PREDETERMINED TRIMMING POSITION, A PAIR OF TRIMMING ASSEMBLY FRAMES MOUNTED FOR RECIPROCATING VERTICAL MOVEMENT, ONE ABOVE AND ONE BELOW SAID CONVEYOR, MOVING MEANS FOR SIMULTANEOUSLY MOVING BOTH SAID FRAMES TOWARD SAID CONVEYOR WHEN SAID CONVEYOR IS STOPPED IN SAID TRIMMING POSITION AND FOR RETRACTING SAID FRAMES THEREFROM AFTER THE TRIMMING, A CAGE RESILIENTLY SUPPORTED BY EACH SAID ASSEMBLY THROUGH SAID SPRING MEANS AND EACH HAVING AN ANNULAR FOOT-PLATE FOR BEARING GENTLY AGAINST THE BODY OF A STATIONARY ONION TO BE TRIMMED, SAID SPRING THEREUPON YIELDING TO FURTHER MOVEMENT OF SAID FRAME TOWARD SAID CONVEYOR, AND A PAIR OF CUTTING MEANS COMPRISING DRIVING MEANS MOUNTED ON EACH SAID FRAME FOR MOVEMENT THEREWITH AND A ROTATING BLADE MOUNTED FOR MOVEMENT WITH SAID CAGE AND SPACED A CONSTANT DISTANCE FROM SAID FOOT-PLATE AND DRIVEN BY SAID DRIVING MEANS, WHEREBY WHEN SAID CONVEYOR IS STOPPED WITH AN ONION IN TRIMMING POSITION, TWO FOOT-PLATES COME GENTLY AGAINST THE OPPOSITE END OF SAID ONION AND HOLD IT WHILE SAID BLADES TRIM SAID ONION, THE POINTS OF TRIMMING THEREBY BEING DETERMINED BY EACH ONION REGARDLESS OF ITS SIZE AT A SET DISTANCE FROM THE AREA WHERE SAID FOOT-PLATES ENGAGE THEIR BODY, AND WHEREBY THE TRIMMING IS ACHIEVED WITHOUT SCRAPING OR RUBBING THE BODY OF SAID ONION.