Feather picking apparatus

Claim 1

APPARATUS FOR PICKING FEATHERS FROM BIRDS COMPRISING: MEANS FOR CONVEYING A BIRD ALONG A PREDETERMINED PATH OF TRAVEL; A NUMBER OF ROTATABLE ELEMENTS DISPOSED ADJACENT SAID PATH, EACH OF SAID ELEMENTS HAVING A SURFACE INTERSECTING ITS AXIS OF ROTATION; A PICKING BODY FOR EACH ELEMENT RESPECTIVELY, EACH BODY HAVING A LONGITUDINAL AXIS AND INCLUDING A PLURALITY OF ELONGATED, PICKING FINGERS, EACH FINGER HAVING ONE END THEREOF SECURED TO A CORRESPONDING ELEMENT, SAID FINGERS OF EACH BODY EXTENDING LATERALLY FROM THE SURFACE OF THE CORRESPONDING ELEMENT, TERMINATING IN FREE ENDS SPACED THEREFROM AND DISPOSED FOR ENGAGING A BIRD CONVEYED ALONG SAID PATH, SAID FINGERS BEING FLEXIBLE AND SPACED APART WHEREBY, WHEN A BIRD IS IN ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID FREE ENDS, THE FINGERS WILL BE DEFLECTED THEREBY AND THEIR SIDES WILL BE INTERVOLVED WITH THE FEATHERS, THEREBY SPINNING THE LATTER FROM THE BIRD AS THE FINGERS REVOLVE AS A UNIT ABOUT SAID AXIS OF THE BODY; MEANS COUPLED WITH SAID ELEMENTS FOR ROTATING CERTAIN OF THE ELEMENTS IN ONE DIRECTION AND THE REMAINING ELEMENTS IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION; AND MEANS COUPLED WITH CERTAIN OF SAID ELEMENTS FOR TILTING SAID CERTAIN ELEMENTS AND THEREBY SAID FINGERS THEREON RELATIVE TO SAID PATH OF TRAVEL.