upper belt containing boards of cut tuna loins. Beneath would be a 

 second moving belt containing the empty tuna cans which can be slid 

 off the belt on to an adjacent shelf by the packers as needed. Beneath 

 the can belt is a third moving conveyor at work-bench level for de- 

 livery of filled containers. At the end of the packing line is a 

 patching table where cans are usually inspected and where necessary 

 additional fish can be added. About UO hand packers work on one line. 



Most of the tuna industry has replaced hand packing xri-th completely 

 automatic filling machinery, generally using the Carro-thers "Pak-3haper". 

 This machine is the final development of a device originally known as 

 the Pak-Selector, on which work was started in 1940 by Ebin Carruthers. 

 The Pak-Selector, an ingenious though rather cu.mbersome mechanism, gave 

 way to the present more simple and rugged Pak-Shapero This machine 

 molds loins of tuna into a uniform, cylindrical form and cuts off seg- 

 ments, strictly on a voliime basis, and feeds them into the cans. 



Essentially the Pak-Shaper consists of tv;o separate feed chains, 

 each chain link fitted vdth a semicircular steel jilate with each plate 

 overlapping the following plate like fish scales. The two chains lie 

 in a horizontal plane and side by side. The driv^.ng sprockets of each 

 chain operate, one x>dth cloclcwise rotation and the other counter-clock- 

 wise when looking downward upon the feed chains. Thus, the sides of 

 the two chains nearest each other move forviard in the same direction and 

 the semicircular chain attachments, as they approacth the other chain, 

 form a round tunnel which approximates the shape and siae of tha cross 

 section of \he tuna can. The bottom of this tunnel consists of the 

 steel belt upon which the fish rests. The top of the tunnel consists 

 of a moving belt eventually converging into a stationary plate. 



As the chains move forward, the tuna loins are receiA^ed at the en- 

 tering end where the feed chains are widest apart, and the loins are fed 

 into this receiving end on a steel belt. The feeders,, one to three 

 girls, stagger or overlap the loins to fonn a uniform column of fish as 

 it enters the machine. As the chains move forward, the fish is gradually 

 compressed by having the chains approach nearer each other forming a 

 round cylinder approximating the size of the can. This pressing and 

 forming is aided by two tampers on each side of the fsed chains wiiich 

 aid in kneading the fish into the pr-oper shape. The column of fish is 

 extmided through a forming ring which sizes the colu-ran to conform ex- 

 actly to the size of the can. 



As soon as the £5. ah has moved the proper distance oast the forming 

 ring, a circular knife descends and cuts off the in-fill section to the 



298 



