Granted Patent B2

US 7,951,409 · App. 11/333,580 · Granted May 31, 2011

Abstract

Claims (36)

1. A system for processing eggs and providing information relating to eggs that are processed by the system, the system comprising:

at least one processing station configured to perform a processing of an egg and to transmit information comprising one or more operating conditions of the at least one processing station during the processing of the egg;

a marking station for applying radiant energy to a shell of the egg to cause localized discoloration of the shell, the localized discoloration forming a marking comprising a human-readable manifestation of a traceability code; and

a first central processing unit configured to provide to a data store and store therein historical information regarding the egg in association with the traceability code, the historical information obtained, at least in part, from at least one of the one or more operating conditions of the at least one processing station during the processing of the egg transmitted by the at least one processing station,

at least some of the historical information in the data store being accessible through a web site by providing the traceability code.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the marking further comprises a freshness date.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the historical information regarding the egg comprises an identification of a producer of the egg.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the historical information regarding the egg comprises information regarding a facility at which the egg was produced.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the historical information regarding the egg comprises a location at which the egg was processed.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the historical information regarding the egg comprises a date on which the egg was processed.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the historical information regarding the egg comprises an identification of the at least one processing station.

8. The system of claim 1 , wherein the processing station is a washing station, a candling station, or a grading station.

9. The system of claim 1 , wherein the operating condition of the at least one processing station comprises a temperature under which the egg was washed.

10. The system of claim 1 , wherein the radiant energy is applied by one or more laser beams emitted from a laser device as the egg moves through a proximity of the laser device.

11. The system of claim 10 , wherein each of the one or more laser beams has a radiant power between 25 watts and 200 watts.

12. The system of claim 10 , wherein the shell of the egg is affected by the one or more laser beams to a depth between 50 micrometers and 90 micrometers.

13. The system of claim 10 , wherein the laser device comprises a beam movement unit to cause motions of the one or more laser beams relative to the egg as the egg moves through the proximity of the laser device, and wherein the motions are coordinated to produce the marking comprising the human-readable manifestation of the traceability code.

14. A method for processing eggs and providing information relating to eggs that are processed, comprising:

washing an egg at a processing station;

measuring a temperature under which the egg is washed at the processing station;

marking the egg by applying radiant energy to a shell of the egg to cause discoloration of the shell, the discoloration forming a marking comprising a human-readable manifestation of a traceability code; and

providing to a data store historical information regarding the egg in association with the traceability code, the historical information comprising the temperature under which the egg was washed at the processing station,

wherein at least some of the historical information comprising the temperature under which the egg was washed at the processing station is accessible through a web site by providing the traceability code.

15. A method for collecting and providing information relating to an egg, comprising:

obtaining historical information regarding the egg and a traceability code associated with the egg, wherein the historical information comprises one or more measurements of environmental conditions at a processing station during processing of the egg, and wherein a manifestation of the traceability code is formed on a shell of the egg by one or more laser beams;

storing the historical information regarding the egg in a database in association with the traceability code;

retrieving the historical information regarding the egg from the database upon a request that comprises the traceability code; and

providing the historical information regarding the egg to an entity that issues the request.

16. The method of claim 15 , wherein the historical information regarding the egg comprises a temperature under which the egg was washed at the processing station.

17. The method of claim 15 , wherein the entity is a web site associated with a retailer that sells the egg.

18. A method for retrieving and providing information relating to an egg, comprising:

providing a web site configured to receive a traceability code associated with the egg, wherein a manifestation of the traceability code is formed on a shell of the egg by one or more laser beams;

using the traceability code to retrieve historical information regarding the egg from a database, the historical information comprising one or more operating parameters of the at least one processing station during processing of the egg; and

displaying, through the web site, the historical information regarding the egg.

19. The method of claim 18 , wherein the historical information regarding the egg comprises a temperature under which the egg was washed at the at least one processing station.

20. The method of claim 18 , wherein the web site is provided by a retailer that sells the egg.

Assignments (10)