WO1999009804A1 - Harvesting apparatus for horticultural produce - Google Patents

Abstract

Apparatus for harvesting horticultural produce growing close to the ground in the field of cultivation that includes two side conveyors arranged at right angles to the direction of travel of the apparatus at a distance from each other and feeding towards each other, where produce picked by hand from the field can be placed and transported to an area between the side conveyors, from where it is then moved via a further conveyor for the produce to an area where it is set aside. So that such an apparauts can even be used to harvest horticultural produce that requires careful handling, as well as the sorting by size of such produce, it is among other things suggested that the further transportation partly includes a hoisting belt (32) with evenly spaced elevations (34) between which the produce is picked up and transported on the hoisting belt, and partly an adjacent conveyor belt (42) with openings between which produce with a size less than the size of these openings can drop down to a first part of the setting-aside area, while the other produce is transported further along the conveyor belt (42) to a second part of the setting-aside area.

Description

Harvesting apparatus for horticultural produce

The present invention concerns an apparatus for harvesting horticultural produce growing close to the ground in the field of cultivation that includes two side conveyors arranged at right angles to the direction of travel of the apparatus at a distance from each other and feeding towards each other, where produce picked by hand from the field can be placed and transported to an area between the side conveyors, from where it is then moved via a further conveyor for the produce to an area where it is set aside.

An apparatus of this type is previously known for use when harvesting cucumbers, whereby a row of pickers lie prostrate on a platform above the side conveyors and place the cucumbers that they pick from the field below on the conveyors as the apparatus passes over it. Advantages of such a mechanised apparatus over a wholly manual harvest are, among other aspects, that the field and the produce that is to be harvested are not at risk of being crushed and damaged by being stood on by the pickers, plus that the field can be planted in a dense fashion with no need for it to be sown or planted in rows with spaces between - the apparatus has only two wheels that travel in the same tracks as the pulling vehicle - which increases significantly the acreage that can be grown, and thereby the yield from it.

One objective of the present invention is to modify and develop further such a known apparatus so that it can even be used for the picking and the automatic sorting according to size of berries that require handling with care, preferably strawberries. Such extremely fresh produce as strawberries is very sensitive to mechanical damage resulting from careless handling, which results in that they become exposed to shock and become receptive to breakdown processes than in turn make them more or less unsuitable for eating. The wholly manual harvesting of strawberries, that is normally carried out every third day in the same field over a harvesting period of about one month, is very labour intensive and does not usually sort according to size either, i.e. it does not package larger berries with a diameter of at least 22 mm for consumers while leaving the remainder for industrial jam and juice production.

This objective is achieved through the features stated in the characteristics section of claim 1.

Regarding one aspect of the invention, the belt for further conveyance partly includes a hoisting belt with evenly spaced elevations between which the produce is picked up and transported on the hoisting belt, and partly a sorting conveyor belt adjacent to this with openings between which produce with a size less than the size of these openings can drop down to a first part of the setting-aside area, while the other produce is transported further along the sorting conveyor belt to a second part of the setting-aside area.

With an apparatus according to the invention, the picked produce can be kept separate and each one can individually be lifted up on the hoisting belt that, thanks to its evenly spaced elevations, prevents the berries from falling backwards or even moving on it at all. Due to the presence of the adjacent sorting conveyor belt, the produce can be directly assessed for quality and automatically sorted by size for the consumer and industrial raw material markets, which is not normally possible with wholly manual harvesting with many pickers.

With an apparatus according to the invention, even the dense planting of strawberries for the consumer market is possible. A densely planted field becomes completely covered by plants that form tendrils that grow in all directions and take root. Such a completely covered cultivation gives about double the harvest and harvesting period compared with conventional cultivation in rows. The denser foliage also better protects the berries against strong sunlight, so that they do not ripen too suddenly, and against certain diseases, so that the use of chemicals can be minimised. The dense planting of strawberries has previously mainly been employed only for pressing for juices, whereby the berries are harvested once only by the whole plant being cut down and the leaves removed; the harvest takes place when the majority of the berries are ripe, i.e. when both over-ripe and green berries are still in the field.

As the apparatus according to the invention can, without any major modifications, even be used for harvesting cucumbers, whose harvesting period normally follows straight after the harvesting period for strawberries, and that are especially suitable to rotate with strawberry crops, the one and the same apparatus can be used for its intended purpose over a long period of harvesting. In addition, strawberries and cucumbers belong to the crops that give the highest yield per acre in relation to turnover. Embodiments of the invention are described in greater detail below with reference to the enclosed schematic drawings, where FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an apparatus according to the invention; FIG. 2 is a view from above of an apparatus according to the invention coupled to a pulling vehicle; FIG. 3 is a part perspective view of the pick-up end of a hoisting conveyor on an apparatus according to the invention; and FIG. 4 is a part perspective view of a delivery end of the hoisting conveyor according to FIG. 3.

The apparatus according to the invention generally, designated 10 in FIG. 1 and 2, is intended to be pulled in a per se known manner by a pulling vehicle 70 back and forth over a cultivation field for harvesting horticultural produce growing close to the ground, especially strawberries but even other pickable horticultural produce such as cucumbers and the like.

When viewed in the direction of travel of the pulling vehicle, the apparatus partly comprises a rear picking unit 12 that includes two wing-like picking platforms 14, 14 extending at right angles to the direction of movement, and partly a forward facing sorting platform 40 with a setting-aside area for the produce that is attached to the sorting platform by means of a frame construction not shown here. The apparatus is supported in the cultivation field on two wheels 17, 17 suspended on the frame construction and that run in the same tracks as the wheels of the pulling vehicle 70 so as not to unnecessarily encroach on the area available for growth. When the apparatus is to be transported by road, the wing-like picking platforms 14, 14 can be folded up against each other at their innermost ends in a way not shown here.

As suggested by the dotted/dashed lined areas 15 on one of the platforms 12 in FIG. 2, each platform provides space for a crew of several pickers who lie prostrate on soft cushions (not shown) in a row on the platform to pick horticultural produce from the field of cultivation below as the apparatus passes slowly over it. As is also evident from FIG. 2, the apparatus is suitably asymmetrical with reference to a longitudinal line drawn through the centre of the pulling vehicle. The intended purpose of this is to thereby allow a larger area on one side for, for example, pallets of ready-sorted and packed produce, while on the other, less spacious side, provide room for the persons supervising and attending to the sorting and packing of the produce. A conveyor belt 18 is arranged under the rear section of each picking platform 14.

Each belt extends somewhat backwards out from the platform 14 so that the pickers can place the produce picked from the field down onto the conveyor belts 18, 18 in a comfortable manner. Each conveyor belt 18 preferably has a rough surface to prevent the picked produce from rolling about on it. The conveyor belts 18, 18 transport the produce towards the centre of the picking unit 12 where they are transferred to an adjacent conveyor belt 20 running at right angles that in turn transfers the produce to the hoisting conveyor 30.

According to FIG. 2, the conveyor belt 20 running at right angles is located next to one of the apparatus' non-symmetrically positioned support wheels 17 and is thus not exposed to a large oscillating motion that could cause the unwanted movement of the picked produce, which is of major significance for careful handling. In contrast to the conveyor belts 18, conveyor belt 20 has a smooth surface that eliminates the risk of damaging the produce 60 when it drops down from a certain height from conveyor belts 18 to conveyor belt 20 via sloping guide rails (not shown).

As is best evident from FIG. 3, the hoisting conveyor 30 includes a 'belt with fingers" 32 from whose transport surface there emerges finger carriers in the shape of conical fingers or pins 34 made of a soft plastic material, and that are arranged in a regular pattern on belt 32. The conical fingers 34 can be produced by a number of per se well known ways within polymer technology, e.g. they can be formed as hollow elevations in one piece with an outer covering strip that can be glued fast to a conventional smooth conveyor belt. They can even be formed as separate soft fingers and glued directly onto the surface of the belt. In an apparatus 10 adapted for harvesting strawberries, the distance between the centre of each finger 34 in a direction at right angles to the direction of the belt 32 is typically about 28 mm and somewhat greater in the longitudinal direction. The fingers 34 typically have a height of about 25 mm.

The produce 60 is transferred to the finger belt 32 via a transfer plate 24 made of a rubber material and that slopes downwards towards the finger belt 32 to ensure that the produce is transferred safely to the belt. The plate 24 has a number of cut-outs 26 on the side facing the fmger belt 32. The shape of these cut-outs matches the shape of the fingers 34 and allows the fingers to pass through the plate 24 and collect the transferred produce individually and in a gentle manner.

Following this, the produce 60 is transferred on the finger belt 32 to an area above the rear end section of the sorting platform 40, where it is transferred to the sorting device 42 via an additional transfer plate 38 of rubber material and that slopes downwards in the direction of transport so that the produce 60 rolling off the finger belt 32 is collected in a gentle way and can roll on further to the sorting device 42.

Sorting device 42 includes a conveyor belt that comprises a number of narrow belts or belt sections 44 arranged with an equal distance between one another in a direction across the belt and that can even have a rounded cross-section (not shown) to guide the produce 60 to the area between belts 44. For strawberries, the distance is such that slots are formed between adjacent bands in the longitudinal direction with a width of typically about 25 mm so that smaller produce 60a intended as industrial raw material for jam making, marmalade, juices, etc. falls through the belt 44 to a container 48 placed underneath the initial section of the setting-out area, while the larger produce is transported further on top of belt 44 to consumer cartons 50 (FIG. 1) for the fresh produce market that are successively pushed forward for filling at another section of the setting-out area on a table 52 placed at the end of the sorting device 42. The downstream part of the belt sections 44 thus extends out at a distance above the table 52 so that a number of empty cartons can be placed between them, ready to be pushed forward for filling. As is evident from FIG. 1, the lower section of the endless belt 44 runs over a series of linked rollers that delineate a free space under the upper section of the belt 44 in which one or more containers 48 can be accommodated. One or more sloping guide plates (not shown) are suitably arranged immediately beneath the upper section of belts 44 to lead the produce down into the respective container 48. The guide plates can even be displaceable in the direction of the sorting device to allow the smaller produce that falls through to be quickly switched from a full container to a new one placed either behind or in front of the filled container (not shown).

Although the described apparatus 10 is especially suitable for harvesting strawberries, it can, as mentioned above, even be used to harvest other horticultural crops such as outdoor cucumbers. If the cucumbers are to be sorted according to size with the sorting device 42, an accessory arrangement in the form of a rigid guiding device, e.g. a peg-shaped guide, can be mounted above the sorting belt 44 and facing downwards towards it to make contact with the cucumbers lying across the belt and force them to orient themselves in the longitudinal direction of the belt 44 (not shown).

In the preferred embodiment of the apparatus according to the invention, essentially all the mechanical, height adjustment and belt drive functions are attended to by a hydraulic system (not shown) that includes a number of hydraulic motors that are fed by a central hydraulic pump powered by the combustion engine of the pulling vehicle 70. More precisely, each conveyor belt 18, 20, 30, 42 is powered by its own rotating hydraulic motor while the apparatus' 10 height adjustment via the wheels' suspension, the tilting of the platforms 14 to compensate for the uneven nature of the ground, as well as the controlled turning of wheels 17, is powered by forwards and backwards moving hydraulic motors such as hydraulic cylinders. The hydraulic system's valves for all of these functions, except those for powering the conveyor belts 30, 42 that dictate the speed of sorting, are controlled centrally via a control panel 76 by one of the pickers who is located closest to the centre of the apparatus and who thus is at the same time the driver of the whole outfit, including the pulling vehicle. Using the control levers provided on the control panel 76, the driver can infinitely regulate the speed of the outfit, which is normally only a few metres per minute, e.g. via hydraulically influencing the accelerator pedal of the vehicle 70, the speed of the conveyor belts 18, 20, the height of the apparatus over the ground, and the individual tilting of the platforms 14 in relation to the surface below. This adjustment of the angle of tilt is achieved by hydraulic cylinders via lines in the supporting frame construction. Adjustment of the platforms' tilting can even be performed by the picker positioned furthest out on the respective platform 14 via an associated lever. The apparatus is preferably equipped with support wheels (not shown) at the outer sections of the platforms 14. The support wheels ensure that the outer sections are maintained at a constant height above the ground and that these do not cut down into it. The control of the hoisting belt and the sorting belt, 30 and 42 respectively, is regulated by control levers on the sorting platform 40 by the two persons 16 who normally have the task of supervising and assisting with the sorting and filling of produce 60a, 60b in containers 48 and 50 respectively.

The unmanned pulling vehicle's 70 direction of travel is controlled by a per se known means by a boom arrangement 72 that follows the existing wheel tracks in the cultivation field and that, via a steering linkage arm 73 connected to the pulling vehicle 70, causes the wheels that steer the pulling vehicle 70 to follow in these wheel tracks. Strawberries especially have a firmer consistency at night, are less sensitive to damage when handling, have a lower temperature and require less refrigeration - during very hot weather it is not suitable to pick strawberries in the middle of the day as the quality of the berries is then not so good. To take advantage of this and at the same time be able to offer the marketplace freshly picked berries already by the following morning, the apparatus 10 also has a row of lamps 78 (FIG. 2). The row of lamps 78 is not shown in greater detail but is suspended behind and above the rear end of the picking unit 12 and spreads out the light along its length by, for example, a long row of short lighting tubes and suitably shaped reflectors, so that the plants are illuminated from several directions and shadows from the foliage, etc. are minimised during night-time picking. Finally, to protect the crew from strong sunlight and rain, the apparatus is equipped with a superstructure in the form of a woven canopy 80 that can be taken down. The canopy 80 preferably includes a heat reflecting and watertight woven white plastic fabric provided with windows that allows daylight to pass through to the crew during daytime hours.

Claims

Claims

1. Apparatus for harvesting horticultural produce growing close to the ground in the field of cultivation that includes two side conveyors arranged at right angles to the direction of travel of the apparatus at a distance from each other and feeding towards each other, where produce picked by hand from the field can be placed and transported to an area between the side conveyors, from where it is then moved via a further conveyor for the produce to an area where it is set aside characterised in that the conveyor for further transportation partly includes a hoisting belt (32) with evenly spaced elevations (34) between which the produce is picked up and transported on the hoisting belt, and partly an adjacent conveyor belt (42) with openings between which produce with a size less than the size of these openings can drop down to a first part of the setting-aside area, while the other produce is transported further along the conveyor belt (42) to a second part of the setting-aside area.

2. Apparatus according to claim lcharacterised in that the hoisting belt's 32 elevations include rows of soft finger devices (34) extending across the belt.

3. Apparatus according to claim lor2characterised in that the conveyor belt (42) includes a number of belt sections (44) arranged at a distance between one another in a direction across the belt.

4. Apparatus according to any of the previous claims characterised in that the conveyor belt (42) runs in a loop arranged in such a way that the first section of the setting- aside area is located between an upper and a lower part of conveyor belt (42).

5. Apparatus according to any of the previous claims characterised in that a transfer device (24, 38) for the produce with cut-outs (26) through which the elevations (34) on the hoisting belt (32) are arranged to pass to pick up produce from, or lower produce to, the transfer device (24, 38) is arranged at at least one end of the hoisting belt (32).

6. Apparatus according to any of the previous claims characterised in that the further transport also includes a conveyor (20) located between the side conveyors (18, 18) that feed towards one another and arranged to transfer the produce from the side conveyors (18, 18) to the hoisting belt (32).