Defoliation system for removing leaves from plant stems, such as cut flowers.

Abstract

Installation (1) for removing leaves (21) from stems (20) of plants (22) comprising a defoliating station (2) with an inlet (3) of plants to be defoliated and an outlet (4) of defoliated plants and a system (5) for holding plants (22). The station (2) comprises one or more pairs of cavities (61, 62). The cavities (61, 62) of a pair of cavities are mounted to move between a position close to and a position far apart from each other. When close to each other, said cavities (61, 62) are mounted, over at least part of their travel, to move along a straight-line defoliation direction (D). When close to each other, said cavities (61, 62) form a succession of through orifices (7), each closed around its periphery. The succession of orifices (7) is arranged along a line (L1) transverse to the defoliation direction (D). Figure for the abbreviation: Fig. 2

Description

Title of the invention: Defoliation installation for removing leaves from plant stems, such as cut flowers

[0001] The present invention relates to a defoliation installation for the removal of leaves from plant stems, such as cut flowers.

[0002] It relates in particular to a defoliation installation for the removal of leaves from plant stems, such as cut flowers, said installation comprising at least one defoliation station with an entry for plants to be defoliated and an exit for defoliated plants and a system for holding plants with stems.

[0003] Such a defoliation system is known. Removing the leaves from the stems of cut flowers before making bouquets is necessary to prevent the plants from rotting. A defoliation system that removes leaves from plants by brushing is available on the market. However, this solution is not suitable for plants with flexible stems. Damage to the stems or incomplete defoliation can occur.

[0004] An object of the invention is to propose a stripping installation whose design makes it possible to solve the problems observed in stripping installations of the prior art.

[0005] To this end, the invention relates to a defoliation installation for removing leaves from plant stems, such as cut flowers, said installation comprising at least one defoliation station with an inlet for plants to be defoliated and an outlet for defoliated plants and a system for holding plants with stems, characterized in that the station comprises one or more pairs of impressions, in that the impressions of a pair of impressions are mounted to move between a position close to each other and a position far apart from each other, in that said impressions are, in a position close to each other, mounted, over at least part of their travel, to move along a straight line of movement called defoliation, in that said impressions form, in a position close to each other, a succession of through orifices each closed on its periphery,in that the succession of openings is arranged along a line transverse to the direction of leaf removal.

[0006] The presence of through-holes, each closed around its perimeter, in close proximity to the impressions of a pair of impressions, with the succession of holes arranged along a line transverse to the direction of leaf removal, allows, when surrounded by a stem through a hole, leaf removal by displacement of said hole along the direction of leaf removal. This results in efficient leaf removal without risk of damage to the stem.

[0007] According to one embodiment of the invention, each imprint of a pair of imprints is, for its movement between a position close to and a position far from the other imprint of the pair, coupled to an endless element, such as an endless chain, for a loop movement of said imprint.

[0008] According to one embodiment of the invention, at least one of the endless members is a driving member equipped with a motor drive, and the other endless member is a non-motorized driven member, said driven member being configured to be driven by contact between a groove of the driving member and a groove of the driven member. This results in simple installation and reliability in terms of synchronizing the movement of the grooves of the pair of grooves.

[0009] According to one embodiment of the invention, in the installation comprising several pairs of impressions, the endless element to which one impression of a pair of impressions is coupled is common to the endless element to which at least one impression of another pair of impressions is coupled. This arrangement increases the efficiency of the installation without compromising its simplicity.

[0010] According to one embodiment of the invention, at least a portion of the holding system extends in a plane referred to as the holding plane, passing through the series of orifices and parallel to the direction of defoliation. The plant holding system is configured to at least temporarily hold the plants in the defoliation station in a position in which the plant stems extend in a plane referred to as the holding plane, passing through the series of orifices and parallel to the direction of defoliation, to allow, in the state surrounded by a stem by an orifice, defoliation by displacement of said orifice along the direction of defoliation.

[0011] According to one embodiment of the invention, the holding system comprises at least one moving part, and the speed of movement of the moving part of the holding system is preferably lower than the speed of movement of the impressions. The moving part of the plant holding system, configured to hold the plants and move them through the defoliating station from the entrance towards the exit of said station, is mounted to move along a direction orthogonal to the direction of defoliation and substantially parallel to the line formed by the succession of holes in the impressions of a pair of impressions in close proximity to said impressions. This arrangement improves the handling of the plants.

[0012] According to one embodiment of the invention, the moving part of the holding system comprises a train of plant holding stations in a suspended state for a vertical positioning of plant stems and a train drive device at least between the entry and exit of the defoliating station in a direction of movement called horizontal for maintaining the plant stems in an upright state, at least part of the train extending in the plane of support.

[0013] According to one embodiment of the invention, the moving part of the holding system comprises a belt conveyor parallel to an endless belt to form two support surfaces spaced apart from each other and each extending into the holding plane.

[0014] According to one embodiment of the invention, for one or at least one of the pairs of impressions, each impression is in the form of a plate delimited by edges, one of the edges of the plate constituting one of the impressions of the pair being shaped to, in cooperation with one of the edges of the plate constituting the other impression of the pair of impressions, form a series of through holes closed around their periphery in a position close to said impressions of the pair of impressions. This design is characterized by its simplicity and robustness without compromising the effectiveness of the defoliation.

[0015] According to one embodiment of the invention, at least one of the impressions has the shape of a comb.

[0016] According to one embodiment of the invention, the impressions of the or a pair of impressions are, in the close position in which they form a succession of through holes, arranged with at least partial overlap.

[0017] The invention further relates to a defoliation method for removing leaves from plant stems, such as cut flowers, using a defoliation installation comprising at least one defoliation station with an inlet for the plants to be defoliated and an outlet for the defoliated plants, and a system for holding the stemmed plants. The method is characterized in that, the defoliation installation being of the aforementioned type, the method includes a step of driving the cavities of a pair of cavities positioned close to each other along the straight-line defoliation direction to allow, when surrounded by a stem through an opening, defoliation by moving said opening along the defoliation direction. Brief description of the drawings

[0018] The invention will be better understood upon reading the following description of exemplary embodiments, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

[0019] [Fig-1] represents a partial perspective view of a stripping installation according to the invention;

[0020] [Fig.2] represents a partial perspective view of a stripping installation in accordance with the invention;

[0021] [Fig.3] represents a partial perspective view of a stripping station of a stripping installation according to the invention;

[0022] [Fig.4] represents a partial perspective view of a stripping installation in accordance with the invention;

[0023] [Fig.5] represents a schematic view of a pair of footprints illustrating cases of plant positioning at the entrance of the defoliation station.

[0024] As mentioned above, the invention relates to a defoliating installation 1 for removing leaves 21 from the stems 20 of plants 22, in particular cut flowers, such as peonies, for example, to allow the making of flower bouquets from these cut flowers whose stems are free of leaves.

[0025] This stripping installation 1 comprises one or more stripping stations 2. In the examples, only one stripping station 2 is shown. When the installation comprises several stripping stations 2, these stripping stations 2 are similar. Consequently, only one stripping station 2 will be described below.

[0026] This defoliating station 2 includes a structure delimiting an entrance 3 of the plants 22 to be defoliated into the defoliating station 2 and an exit 4 of the defoliated plants 22 from the defoliating station 2.

[0027] The installation further includes a plant support system 5 with active stems 2 at least at the defoliation station 2 to allow the plants to be supported during the defoliation phase. Ideally, each defoliation station 2 and the plant support system 5 are configured to allow the plants to pass through the defoliation station 2 while the plants are supported by the support system 5.

[0028] The support system 5 and the defoliation station 2 can be configured to ensure continuous passage of the plants through the defoliation station 2. Alternatively and / or in addition, the support system 5 and the defoliation station 2 can be configured to ensure discontinuous passage of the plants through the defoliation station 2. The defoliation station 2 can be mobile and the support system fixed, or vice versa.

[0029] In the example in [Fig. 1], a continuous power supply to the defoliating station 2 is shown. The same applies to [Fig. 4].

[0030] The stripping station 2 comprises one or more pairs of impressions 61 and 62, as illustrated in [Fig. 3] where six pairs of impressions are provided. The impressions 61 and 62 of a pair of impressions are mounted to move between a position close to and a position far apart from each other. The impressions 61 and 62 are in a position close to each other, mounted, over at least part of their travel, to move following a straight-line direction of movement, called the direction of defoliation, and represented in D in the figures.

[0031] This straight-line defoliation movement direction D can be a vertical direction as illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, or a horizontal direction as illustrated in [Fig.4] or other.

[0032] The impressions 61 and 62, in a position close to each other, form a succession of through holes 7, each closed around its periphery. The succession of holes is arranged along a line L1 transverse to the direction of defoliation to allow, when surrounded by a plant stem by a hole, defoliation by displacement of said hole along the defoliation direction D.

[0033] Each imprint 61 or 62 of a pair of imprints is, for its movement between a position close to and a position far from the other imprint of the pair, coupled to an endless element for a looped movement of said imprint. In the examples shown, the endless element is an endless chain.

[0034] One of the impressions, namely impression 61 of the pair of impressions, is therefore coupled to the endless organ 81, while impression 62 of the pair of impressions is coupled to the endless organ 82, said endless organs 81 and 82 being distinct.

[0035] Each imprint 61 or 62 moves along a loop path. The endless members 81 and 82 delimit two parallel loops with each endless member carrying one of the imprints of the pair of imprints.

[0036] In [Fig. 1], each loop has a forward strand moving vertically upwards towards the plant's head and a return strand moving vertically downwards towards the root tip of the plant's stem when the plant is held in the upright position by the support system 5. The close proximity of the impressions occurs at the return strands. In [Fig. 4], each loop has a forward strand moving towards the plant's head and a return strand moving towards the root tip of the plant's stem when the plant is held in the upright position by the support system 5. The close proximity of the impressions occurs at the return strands.

[0037] In the examples shown, one of the endless members, namely that shown in 81, is a driving member equipped with a motor drive 9. The other endless member, shown in 82 in the figures, is a non-motorized driven member. The driven member is configured to be driven in displacement by contact between a groove 61 of the driving member and a groove 62 of the driven member.

[0038] This provision avoids having to provide a system for synchronizing the moving impressions of a pair of impressions.

[0039] When the installation comprises several pairs of impressions, as is the case in the figures, the endless organ to which an impression of one pair of impressions is coupled is common with the endless organ to which an impression of another pair The imprints are coupled. Thus, the six pairs of imprints in [Fig. 3] are carried by two endless organs 81 and 82, with six imprints per endless organ. Each imprint is positioned at a distance from the other imprints on the endless organ to allow the formation of a succession of imprint pairs as the leading and led endless organs move.

[0040] In the examples shown, each impression 61 or 62 of a pair of impressions is in the form of a plate 611 or 621 delimited by edges. This plate is rectangular here. The plate is coupled by one of its edges to the endless member and comes by its opposite edge, represented as 6111 for impression 61 and as 6211 for impression 62, to delimit, with the other impression of the pair, the succession of through orifices 7 closed on their periphery in position close to the impressions 61 and 62 of the pair of impressions.

[0041] The impressions 61 and 62 of the or a pair of impressions are, in the close position in which they form a succession of through holes 7, arranged with at least partial overlap as can be seen in [Fig.3].

[0042] In the examples shown, the impression, represented in 61 of the pair of impressions, has the shape of a comb, that is to say that the edge 6111 of the plate 611 constituting the impression 61, used to delimit the through holes 7, is formed by teeth.

[0043] The impression, represented in 62, of the pair of impressions, has the shape of a plate with a straight edge, that is to say that the edge 6211 of the plate 612 constituting the impression 62 used to delimit the through holes 7, is straight.

[0044] When the impressions 61 and 62 are in a position close to each other, the teeth of the impression 61 partially overlap the right edge of the impression 62 to form, between this right edge and the bottom of the hollow space separating two teeth, each time a through orifice 7 closed on its periphery inside which a plant stem is able to take place.

[0045] To ensure that the plants are held in place during their passage through the defoliation station 2, the defoliation installation 1 includes a holding system 5. This holding system 5 can take different forms depending on whether the plants are held vertically, as illustrated in [Fig. 1], or horizontally, as illustrated in [Fig. 4].

[0046] In the examples shown, the retaining system 5 includes at least one moving part 10. The speed of movement of the moving part 10 of the retaining system 5 is preferably less than the speed of movement of the impressions 61 and 62 for their passage from a position separated from each other to a position closer to each other and vice versa.

[0047] In other words, the speed of movement of the endless organs 81 and 82 is preferably greater than the speed of movement of the moving part 10 of the holding system 5.

[0048] Generally, at least part of the holding system 5 extends in a plane called the holding plane P passing through the succession of orifices 7 and parallel to the defoliation direction D. This holding system is configured to hold at least temporarily the plant stems in a position in which they extend in a plane called the holding plane P passing through the succession of orifices 7 and parallel to the defoliation direction D to allow the state surrounded by a stem by an orifice to defoliate by displacement of said orifice along the defoliation direction.

[0049] In the example of [Fig.1], the movable part 10 of the holding system 5 comprises a train of posts 11 for holding the plants in a suspended state for vertical positioning of the plant stems 20 22 and a device 12 for driving the train of posts 11 at least between the inlet 3 and the outlet of the defoliating station 2 in a direction of movement called horizontal for holding the plant stems 22 in an upright state. At least a part of the train extends in the holding plane P.

[0050] In this embodiment, each holding station 11 is formed by a V-shaped or U-shaped clamp positioned horizontally. A plant stem is inserted between the arms of the U or V with the plant head above the V or U. Each clamp is coupled to a loop conveyor that forms the drive device for the train of stations. At least a portion of the loop path of this conveyor extends above the defoliating station 2 to allow each plant stem held by a holding station to travel through the defoliating station 2 from the entrance 3 of said station towards the exit 4 of said station 2 in a position in which it extends over at least a portion of the path in the holding plane P.

[0051] In the embodiment of [Fig.4], the movable part 10 of the holding system 5 comprises a belt conveyor 13 parallel to an endless belt 14 to form two support surfaces 15 spaced apart from each other and each extending into the holding plane P.

[0052] Each time, and regardless of the embodiment, the direction of movement of the moving part 10 of the holding system 5 is, at the level of the stripping station 2, parallel to the line L1 transverse to the stripping direction, along which is arranged a succession of through holes 7 formed by the impressions 61 and 62 of a pair of impressions in a close position.

[0053] In view of the above, generally, a defoliation cycle comprises the following steps:

[0054] The plant, held and moved by the holding system 5, enters the defoliation station 2 and positions itself in support on the edge 6211 of the imprint 62 coupled to the endless organ 82 driven, this edge 6211 of the imprint 62 being opposite to the edge coupling the imprint 62 to the endless organ 82 driven.

[0055] A groove 61 of the endless organ 81 comes into contact with and partially overlaps the groove 62 to form with said groove 62 a series of through-holes 7, each closed around its periphery, with one of the through-holes 7 housing the plant stem, which rests on the edge of one of the grooves of the pair of grooves. This through-hole 7 surrounds the plant stem. The grooves of the pair of grooves, thus arranged in a position close to each other, are moved along the straight-line defoliation direction to allow, when surrounded by the plant stem by a groove 7, defoliation by displacement of said groove 7 along the defoliation direction D. The defoliation direction D is transverse to the line L1 formed by the series of through-holes 7.

[0056] The movement of the impressions 61 and 62 continues until the endless driving organ carries the associated impression in the direction of a separation from the other impression of the pair of impressions. The separation is complete.

[0057] The separation of the imprints releases the plant stem, which is still held by the holding system 5, which has continued its movement between the entrance and exit of the defoliating station 2. The plant is then carried out of the defoliating station 2. It should be noted that the free end of each plant stem can be cut by means of a cutting station 16 located at the entrance or exit of the defoliating station 2.

[0058] The leaves removed from the plant stem can, for their part, fall by gravity onto a mobile conveyor belt 17 positioned under the defoliating station 2 before being evacuated by transporting said conveyor belt 17.

[0059] A new defoliation cycle can be carried out. During this defoliation cycle, the plant may arrive too early at defoliation station 2 and position itself on an edge of the imprint 62 coupled to the driven endless organ adjacent to the edge of the imprint opposite the one coupled to the driven endless organ. This case is illustrated in [Fig. 5]. In this situation, the plant waits for the next defoliation cycle to be defoliated.

Claims

Demands

1. A defoliating installation (1) for removing leaves (21) from stems (20) of plants (22), such as cut flowers, said installation (1) comprising at least one defoliating station (2) with an inlet (3) for plants to be defoliated and an outlet (4) for defoliated plants and a system (5) for holding the stemmed plants (22), characterized in that the station (2) comprises one or more pairs of impressions (61, 62), in that the impressions (61, 62) of a pair of impressions are mounted to move between a position close to and a position far apart from each other, in that said impressions (61, 62) are, in a position close to each other, mounted, over at least part of their travel, to move along a straight line of movement referred to as the defoliating direction (D), in that said The impressions (61, 62) form, in close proximity to one another, a succession of through orifices (7) each closed on its periphery,in that the succession of orifices (7) is arranged along a line (L1) transverse to the defoliation direction (D), in that at least a portion of the holding system (5) extends in a plane (P), referred to as the holding plane, passing through the succession of orifices (7) and parallel to the defoliation direction (D), in that the holding system (5) comprises at least one movable portion (10), in that the movable portion (10) of the holding system (5) comprises a train of posts (11) for holding the plants in a suspended state for vertical positioning of the plant stems (20) (22) and a device (12) for driving the train of posts (11) at least between the inlet (3) and the outlet (4) of the defoliation station (2) along a direction of movement referred to as horizontal for holding the plant stems (22) in an upright state, at least a portion of the train extending in the maintenance plan (P).,

2. A leaf-removal installation (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that each imprint (61; 62) of a pair of imprints is, for its movement between a position close to and a position far from the other imprint of the pair, coupled to an endless element (81; 82), such as an endless chain, for a looping movement of said imprint.

3. A defoliating installation (1) according to claim 2, characterized in that at least one (81) of the endless components (81, 82) is a component leading equipped with a motor drive (9) and in that the other (82) of the endless members is a non-motorized driven member, said driven member being configured to be driven in movement by support contact of a footprint (61) of the leading member on a footprint (62) of the driven member.

4. Leaf-removing installation (1) according to claim 3, characterized in that the installation (1) comprises several pairs of impressions (61, 62), the endless member (81; 82) to which one impression (61; 62) of a pair of impressions (61, 62) is coupled is common with the endless member (81; 82) to which at least one impression (61, 62) of another pair of impressions (61, 62) is coupled.

5. A stripping installation (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the speed of movement of the moving part (10) of the holding system (5) is less than the speed of movement of the impressions (61, 62).

6. Planting (1) of defoliation according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the moving part (10) of the holding system (5) comprises a belt conveyor (13) parallel to an endless belt (14) to form two support surfaces (15) separated from each other and each extending in the holding plane (P).

7. A peeling device (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that, for one or at least one of the pairs of impressions (61, 62), each impression (61, 62) is in the form of a plate (611, 621) delimited by edges, one (6111, 6211) of the edges of the plate (611, 621) constituting one of the impressions (61, 62) of the pair being shaped to, in cooperation with one of the edges (6211, 6111) of the plate (621, 611) constituting the other impression (62, 61) of the pair of impressions, form the succession of through-holes (7) closed around their periphery in a position close to said impressions (61, 62) of the pair of fingerprints.

8. Stripping installation (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that at least one (61) of the impressions (61, 62) has the shape of a comb.

9. A stripping installation (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the impressions (61, 62) of the or a pair of impressions are, in the close-up position in which they form a succession of through orifices (7), arranged with at least partial overlap.

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