End effector for fruit harvester

Abstract

To provide an end effector for a fruit harvester in which fruit aimed as a harvesting target can easily be harvested by being reliably disengaged from small stems in release layers.SOLUTION: An end effector 11 for a fruit harvester is used when cherry tomatoes 13 being fruit of the tip of small stems 16 are disengaged and harvested in release layers 17 of the small stems. The end effector includes: a first abutment member 21 provided to come in abutment with cherry tomatoes; a second abutment member 22 provided to come in abutment with fruit axes 15 with base ends of the small stems connected thereto; and a movement mechanism 23 capable of moving at least one side of the first abutment member and the second abutment member in a direction where pulling force acts thereon to the release layers, while maintaining a state where the first abutment member comes in abutment with the fruit and a state where the second abutment member comes in abutment with the fruit axes.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an end effector for a fruit harvesting machine used when harvesting fruits such as cherry tomatoes and strawberries by detaching them from the tip of the small fruit stalk.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, for example, an end effector of a fruit harvesting robot described in Patent Document 1 is known. This end effector is attached to the tip of an arm provided so as to be capable of operations such as telescoping and turning in the robot, and by telescoping the arm, it can move forward and backward with respect to the fruit targeted for harvesting. This end effector has a U-shaped fitting that approaches the fruit to be harvested from below and takes the fruit inside, and a small fruit stalk presser that approaches the small fruit stalk of the fruit taken into the U-shaped fitting from above and presses the small fruit stalk. Then, with the small fruit stalk of the fruit clamped by the U-shaped fitting and the small fruit stalk presser, the fruit targeted for harvesting is detached from the small fruit stalk by abscission by moving the arm in a direction away from the fruit axis at the center of the fruit cluster and harvested.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, in the case of the end effector of Patent Document 1, when the arm is moved in a direction away from the fruit axis while the pedicel of the fruit to be harvested is clamped by a U-shaped fitting and a pedicel holder, the fruit axis may be pulled through the pedicel and swing in the moving direction. Therefore, even when trying to move the fruit with the pedicel clamped in a direction away from the fruit axis of the fruit cluster and apply a tensile force to the abscission layer of the pedicel, since the fruit axis moves along with the fruit in the moving direction, there is a risk that a tensile force cannot be applied to the abscission layer of the pedicel. Therefore, with such a conventional end effector, there is a risk of failure in the operation of detaching the target fruit from the pedicel by abscission and harvesting it.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0005] The end effector for a fruit harvesting machine that solves the above problems is an end effector for a fruit harvesting machine used when detaching and harvesting the fruit at the tip of the pedicel by abscission of the pedicel, and includes a first abutting member provided so as to be able to abut on the fruit, a second abutting member provided so as to be able to abut on the fruit axis to which the base end of the pedicel is connected, and a moving mechanism capable of moving at least one of the first abutting member and the second abutting member in a direction in which a tensile force acts on the abscission layer while maintaining a state in which the first abutting member abuts on the fruit and the second abutting member abuts on the fruit axis.

[0006] According to this configuration, at least one of the first abutting member and the second abutting member moves in a direction in which a tensile force acts on the abscission layer of the pedicel while the first abutting member abuts on the fruit to be harvested and the second abutting member abuts on the fruit axis. Then, the abscission layer is broken by the action of the tensile force, and the pedicel is separated into the tip side and the base end side at the abscission layer. Therefore, the target fruit can be reliably detached from the pedicel by abscission and easily harvested.

[0007] In the end effector for the fruit harvester, the first contact member has a pair of surrounding members configured to be able to approach and separate from each other in a direction intersecting the direction in which the small fruit stalk extends. The paired surrounding members preferably form a surrounding state in which the small fruit stalk is surrounded by approaching each other from a state in which they are spaced apart from each other with a gap on both sides of the small fruit stalk.

[0008] According to this configuration, in a state where the surrounding member surrounds the small fruit stalk of the fruit to be harvested, the moving mechanism moves at least one of the first contact member and the second contact member in a direction in which a pulling force acts on the abscission layer of the small fruit stalk. Then, the fruit to be harvested surrounded by the surrounding member with the small fruit stalk is suppressed from swinging in a direction intersecting the direction in which the small fruit stalk extends. Therefore, the fruit targeted for harvesting can be reliably detached at the abscission layer of the small fruit stalk and harvested without missing the fruit.

[0009] In the end effector for the fruit harvester, the first contact member is a thin plate-like comb-tooth member in which a sandwiching groove for sandwiching the small fruit stalk is formed by a notch from the tip. After passing above the fruit to be harvested, the comb-tooth member is configured to swing the tip side downward with the base end portion of the comb-tooth member as the swing center, thereby sandwiching the small fruit stalk in the sandwiching groove and coming into contact with the fruit.

[0010] According to this configuration, in a state where the small fruit stalk of the fruit to be harvested is sandwiched in the sandwiching groove of the comb-tooth member, the moving mechanism moves at least one of the comb-tooth member as the first contact member and the second contact member in a direction in which a pulling force acts on the abscission layer of the small fruit stalk. Therefore, the fruit to be harvested can be reliably detached at the abscission layer of the small fruit stalk and harvested without escaping from the comb-tooth member in contact with the fruit.

[0011] In the end effector for the fruit harvester, it is preferable that the surface of the comb-tooth member on the side contacting the fruit has a concave curved surface shape. According to this configuration, the comb-like member that functions as the first abutting member has a concave curved surface that abuts against the fruit to be harvested. Therefore, it is easy to separate the fruit that has abutted against this surface from the abscission layer of the pedicel without letting it escape.

[0012] In the end effector for the fruit harvester, it is preferable that the second abutting member has a recess at its tip that guides the fruit axis when approaching and abutting against the fruit axis. According to this configuration, when detaching and harvesting the fruit from the tip of the pedicel, the fruit axis to which the base end of the pedicel is connected can be guided into the recess and held so as not to swing left and right. Therefore, the harvesting operation can be performed reliably.

[0013] In the end effector for the fruit harvester, it is preferable that the second abutting member includes at least one of an upper second abutting member that can pass above the fruit to be harvested and abut against the fruit axis and a lower second abutting member that can pass below the fruit and abut against the fruit axis.

[0014] According to this configuration, other fruits located above or below the target fruit can be pushed aside by at least one of the upper second abutting member and the lower second abutting member, reducing the risk of accidentally harvesting fruits other than the target fruit.

[0015] It is preferable that the end effector for the fruit harvester has a receiving member that moves the fruit that has detached from the pedicel at the abscission layer and falls to a position below the first abutting member at that time and receives it.

[0016] According to this configuration, the receiving member receives the fruit that has detached from the tip of the pedicel and falls without allowing it to fall to the ground at a position below the first abutting member. Therefore, the fruit to be harvested can be harvested without damaging it.

[0017] In the end effector for the fruit harvester, it is preferable that the receiving member receives the fruit that has detached from the tip of the pedicel and falls in a state where it has passed below the fruit to be harvested and abuts against the fruit axis.

[0018] According to this configuration, since the receiving member also functions as the second abutting member, the receiving member and the second abutting member can be combined into one configuration. In the end effector for the fruit harvester, it is preferable that the receiving member moves to the lower side of the fruit to be harvested after the first abutting member abuts against the fruit to be harvested.

[0019] For example, if the receiving member contacts other fruits or the like other than the fruit to be harvested at the start of the harvesting operation and shakes the fruit cluster unnecessarily, there is a possibility that the first abutting member cannot be surely abutted against the fruit to be harvested. In this regard, according to the above configuration, since the receiving member moves to the lower side of the fruit to be harvested after the first abutting member abuts against the fruit to be harvested, such adverse effects can be suppressed.

[0020] The end effector for the fruit harvester preferably includes a pushing member that can push out the fruit from above the receiving member by moving relative to the receiving member so as to rub against the receiving member above the receiving member.

[0021] According to this configuration, when the receiving member that has received the fruit that has detached from the tip of the small fruit stalk and fallen at a position below the first abutting member moves backward, for example, the fruit can be easily pushed out from above the receiving member by the pushing member.

[0022] The end effector for the fruit harvester has a guiding member that slides a part of the receiving member during the movement of the receiving member to guide it in the moving direction. The guiding member has a shape that extends in a spiral shape in the moving direction of the receiving member, and guides the receiving member that slides on the guiding member to move forward and backward in the moving direction while rotating around a horizontal axis. The receiving member is preferably rotatable between a receiving posture in which it moves forward to receive the fruit that has detached from the tip of the small fruit stalk and fallen to a position below the first abutting member and a discharging posture in which it moves backward from the position below the first abutting member and discharges the fruit downward.

[0023] According to this configuration, after the receiving member receives the fruit that has detached from the tip of the pedicel and fallen in the forward receiving posture, it rotates to the discharging posture during the backward movement, so that the fruit to be harvested can be easily discharged from the receiving member.

[0024] The end effector for the fruit harvester preferably includes a receiving member driving unit that is driven when moving the receiving member. According to this configuration, it is possible to arbitrarily move only the receiving member separately from the first contact member and the second contact member.

[0025] In the end effector for the fruit harvester, the moving mechanism includes a first driving unit that is driven when moving the first contact member so as to pass above the fruit to be harvested and when displacing the first contact member so as to contact the fruit, and a second driving unit that is driven when moving the second contact member so as to pass at least one side of the upper and lower sides of the fruit. It is preferable to include.

[0026] According to this configuration, when the first driving unit is driven, the first contact member moves so as to pass above the fruit to be harvested and comes into contact with the fruit. On the other hand, when the second driving unit is driven, the second contact member passes at least one side of the upper and lower sides of the fruit. After that, if at least one of the first driving unit and the second driving unit is driven, at least one of the first contact member in contact with the fruit and the second contact member in contact with the fruit axis after passing through the position of the fruit will move in the direction in which a tensile force acts on the abscission layer of the pedicel. Therefore, the fruit to be harvested can be surely detached from the pedicel at the abscission layer.

[0027] In the end effector for the fruit harvester, when the moving mechanism moves the first contact member so as to pass above the fruit to be harvested, and when moving the second contact member so as to pass at least on one side of the upper and lower sides of the fruit, it is preferable to include a first drive unit that is driven, and a second drive unit that is driven when displacing the first contact member so as to contact the fruit.

[0028] According to this configuration, when the first drive unit is driven, the first contact member passes above the fruit to be harvested and the second contact member passes at least on one side of the upper and lower sides of the fruit stalk. On the other hand, when the second drive unit is driven, the first contact member comes into contact with the fruit. Then, if at least one of the first drive unit and the second drive unit is driven thereafter, at least one of the first contact member in contact with the fruit and the second contact member in contact with the fruit stalk will move in the direction in which a tensile force acts on the abscission layer of the small fruit stalk. Therefore, the fruit to be harvested can be surely detached from the small fruit stalk by the abscission layer.

Advantages of the Invention

[0029] According to the present invention, the fruit targeted for harvesting can be surely detached from the small fruit stalk by the abscission layer and can be easily harvested.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0030]

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Modes for Carrying Out the Invention

[0031] Hereinafter, each embodiment of the end effector for a fruit harvester (hereinafter, may be abbreviated as "end effector") will be described with reference to the drawings. <X - Y - Z Coordinate System> In addition, the X - Y - Z coordinate system shown in each figure shall be as follows. That is, the X direction is the left - right direction when the end effector 11 is viewed from the front, and coincides with the width direction of the end effector 11. The Y direction is the depth direction when the end effector 11 is viewed from the front, and coincides with the forward - backward movement direction when the end effector 11 performs a harvesting operation on the fruit. Further, the Z direction is the vertical direction and coincides with the height direction of the end effector 11.

[0032] For the X direction, when viewing the end effector 11 from the front, the right - hand side in the left - right direction is defined as the +X direction, and the left - hand side is defined as the -X direction. For the Y direction, when the end effector 11 is in the harvesting operation, the back side of the end effector 11 (the side where it retreats) is defined as the +Y direction, and the front side of the end effector 11 (the side where it advances) is defined as the -Y direction. For the Z direction, the vertically upward direction on the upper side of the end effector 11 is defined as the +Z direction, and the vertically downward direction on the lower side of the end effector 11 is defined as the -Z direction.

[0033] (First Embodiment) First, the end effector 11 for the fruit harvester according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 12.

[0034] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the end effector 11 is mounted on a moving body 12 that is movably provided in space. The moving body 12 is composed of a robot arm or the like that can move left - right along the X direction, back - forth along the Y direction, and up - down along the Z direction under the control of a computer (not shown). Then, the moving body 12 moves to a position directly facing one fruit targeted for harvesting by the end effector 11 as it moves.

[0035] <Fruit to be harvested> Incidentally, the end effector 11 in the present embodiment and the following embodiments is configured to perform a harvesting operation with a cherry tomato 13, which is an example of a fruit, as a harvesting target. For example, as schematically shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the cherry tomato 13 is fruited via a separation layer 17 at the tip of a pedicel 16 that extends laterally with its base connected to a fruit axis 15 at the center of a fruit cluster 14. The separation layer 17 refers to a part of the pedicel 16 that becomes a detachment location when a fruit such as the cherry tomato 13 detaches from the tip of the pedicel 16 as it ripens, for example. In other words, the separation layer 17 is a fragile, layered tissue formed at the boundary surface between the tip of the pedicel 16 and the fruit such as the cherry tomato 13 fruited at the tip. Therefore, when a tensile force is applied to the cherry tomato 13 at the position of the separation layer 17 in the pedicel 16, the tissue of the separation layer 17 is broken by the tensile force, and thus the cherry tomato 13 can be detached from the tip of the pedicel 16.

[0036] <End effector> As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the end effector 11 is moved along with the movement of the moving body 12 to a position directly facing the cherry tomato 13 targeted for harvesting in the fruit cluster 14 where one or more cherry tomatoes 13, for example three, are fruited. Then, after being moved by the moving body 12 in this way, the end effector 11 performs a predetermined harvesting operation. To perform such a harvesting operation, the end effector 11 includes a first contact member 21 that can contact the cherry tomato 13 targeted for harvesting, a second contact member 22 that can contact the fruit axis 15 of the fruit cluster 14, and a movement mechanism 23 that can move the first contact member 21 during the harvesting operation.

[0037] The first contact member 21 can contact the cherry tomato 13 targeted for harvesting from the front in the -Y direction during the harvesting operation. On the other hand, the second contact member 22 can contact the fruit axis 15 of the fruit cluster 14 where the cherry tomato 13 targeted for harvesting is fruited from the rear in the +Y direction during the harvesting operation. In the present embodiment, the movement mechanism 23 moves the first contact member 21 in a direction in which a tensile force can be applied to the separation layer 17 in a state where the first contact member 21 contacts the cherry tomato 13 from the -Y direction side and the second contact member 22 contacts the fruit axis 15 from the +Y direction side.

[0038] <Main body part> As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the end effector 11 has a flat plate-shaped main body part 24 supported so as to horizontally extend forward in the -Y direction as a part of the moving body 12. The main body part 24 is a plate material with a predetermined thickness having the left-right direction in the X direction as the width direction and the front-back direction in the Y direction as the length direction, and moves in the X direction, Y direction, and Z direction together with the moving body 12. About two-thirds of the portion from the rear end to the front end side in the length direction of the main body part 24 is the thick part 24a, and about one-third of the portion from the front end to the rear end side in the length direction thereof is the thin part 24b. Incidentally, the thickness of the thin part 24b in the present embodiment is about one-third of the thickness of the thick part 24a as an example.

[0039] A long hole 25 linearly extending for a certain length in the front-back direction is formed at the center in the width direction of the main body part 24. The rear end edge in the length direction of the long hole 25 is located slightly forward of the center of the thick part 24a, and the front end edge in the length direction thereof is located slightly rearward of the center of the thin part 24b. That is, the long hole 25 is formed so as to extend in the front-back direction straddling the thick part 24a and the thin part 24b of the main body part 24. In addition, a pair of guide holes 26 that are line-symmetric in the left-right direction are formed at positions on both the left and right sides of the long hole 25 in the thin part 24b with respect to a straight line extending in the front-back direction at the center in the width direction.

[0040] The guide hole 26 includes a straight hole part 26a linearly extending for a predetermined length in the front-back direction and a curved hole part 26b that is curved and connected forward in the -Y direction from the front end of the straight hole part 26a. The straight hole parts 26a in the pair of guide holes 26 linearly extend forward from positions spaced apart in the left-right direction from the long hole 25 on both the left and right sides of the front end part of the long hole 25. On the other hand, the curved hole parts 26b in the pair of guide holes 26 are curved so as to gradually separate from each other toward both the left and right sides as they go forward in the -Y direction from the connection point with the front end of the straight hole part 26a.

[0041] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the upper surface, which is the surface on the +Z direction side of the main body portion 24, is formed as a flat surface in which the upper surface of the thick portion 24a on the rear end side and the upper surface of the thin portion 24b on the front end side are continuously and uniformly in the horizontal direction. On the other hand, the lower surface, which is the surface on the -Z direction side of the main body portion 24, is formed as a stepped surface in which the lower surface of the thick portion 24a on the rear end side and the lower surface of the thin portion 24b on the front end side are continuous via a vertical stepped surface 27.

[0042] Inside the thick portion 24a of the main body portion 24, a strip-shaped space 29 having a rectangular cross-sectional shape that is long in the left-right direction, which is the X direction, is formed so as to extend from the stepped surface 27, which is the boundary surface between the thick portion 24a and the thin portion 24b, toward the rear side in the +Y direction. The rear end of the strip-shaped space 29 is formed so as to extend to the rear side in the +Y direction beyond the rear end of the long hole 25. And, on the lower surface of the thick portion 24a, a notch groove 28 having a wider width in the left-right direction than the long hole 25 is formed so as to extend from the stepped surface 27 toward the rear side in the +Y direction in a manner that communicates with the strip-shaped space 29 inside the thick portion 24a from below.

[0043] As shown in FIG. 2, inside the strip-shaped space 29, a flat plate-shaped strip member 30 having a length, width, and thickness substantially equal to the length, width, and thickness of the strip-shaped space 29 is slidably inserted in the front-rear direction. At the center in the width direction on the lower surface of the strip member 30 and at a position in the front side rather than the middle in the front-rear direction, a support shaft 31 protrudes downward in the -Z direction. And, a pair of swing members 32 are swingably supported at the tip of the support shaft 31. The pair of swing members 32 are long and strip-shaped plate materials, and are supported by the support shaft 31 so that the tip sides facing the front in the -Y direction can be opened and closed with the base end portions serving as swing centers being overlapped in the vertical direction.

[0044] <First contact member> As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a first contact member 21 that can contact the target cherry tomato 13 during the harvesting operation of the cherry tomato 13 by the end effector 11 is provided at the tip of a pair of swing members 32. The first contact member 21 has a plate-like sliding contact portion 34 that slidably contacts the lower surface of the thin-walled portion 24b of the main body portion 24 when the swing member 32 swings, and a plate-like hanging piece portion 35 that bends downward from the front end of the sliding contact portion 34 and hangs down. A pin portion 36 that is slidably inserted into the guide hole 26 of the main body portion 24 from below is provided protruding on the upper surface of the sliding contact portion 34. On the other hand, on the hanging piece portion 35 of the first contact member 21, when the two swing members 32 swing in the closing direction and the left and right hanging piece portions 35 approach each other, convex portions 37 that overlap the tip portions in the front-rear direction, which is the X direction, are formed along the lower end edge of each hanging piece portion 35 so as to extend horizontally.

[0045] When the belt-like member 30 moves forward and backward in the front-rear direction within the belt-like space 29, the pin portion 36 slides with respect to the guide hole 26 in accordance with the forward and backward movement. Therefore, when the pin portion 36 slides in the -Y direction (forward) in the curved hole portion 26b of the guide hole 26, the pair of swing members 32 swing in the opening direction in which the first contact members 21 provided at the tips of each other are separated from each other on the left and right sides. On the other hand, when the pin portion 36 slides in the +Y direction (rearward) in the curved hole portion 26b of the guide hole 26, the pair of swing members 32 swing in the closing direction in which the first contact members 21 provided at the tips of each other approach each other from the left and right sides.

[0046] When the pin portion 36 slides in the front-rear direction in the straight hole portion 26a of the guide hole 26, the pair of swing members 32 maintain a closed state in which the first contact members 21 provided at the tips of each other overlap the tip portions of the convex portions 37 of the hanging piece portions 35. In such a closed state where the left and right hanging piece portions 35 overlap the tip portions of the convex portions 37, an opening that is rectangular in a front view and through which the small fruit stalk 16 can be inserted is surrounded and formed by the lower surface of the thin-walled portion 24b of the main body portion 24, the opposing side edges of the left and right hanging piece portions 35, and both convex portions 37.

[0047] <Second Contact Member> As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, when the end effector 11 is moved by the moving body 12 to a position directly facing the cherry tomato 13 targeted for harvesting, the thin-walled portion 24b in the main body portion 24 thereof faces the fruit stalk 15 of the fruit cluster 14. Then, when further moved forward in the -Y direction by the moving body 12 from that position, the end effector 11 can have the thin-walled portion 24b pass over the upper side of the cherry tomato 13 targeted for harvesting and abut against the fruit stalk 15 from the rear side in the +Y direction. In this regard, the thin-walled portion 24b of the main body portion 24 in the end effector 11 functions as a second abutting member 22 provided so as to be able to abut against the fruit stalk 15 to which the base end of the small fruit stalk 16 is connected. Also, the thin-walled portion 24b as the second abutting member 22 in this case can be said to be an upper second abutting member that can pass over the upper side of the cherry tomato 13, which is the fruit targeted for harvesting, and abut against the fruit stalk 15.

[0048] Further, the thin-walled portion 24b of the main body portion 24 in the end effector 11 is formed in a concave triangular shape that is recessed rearward in the +Y direction when viewed in plan at the front edge, which is the tip. That is, at the center in the width direction in the X direction at the front edge of the thin-walled portion 24b, a recessed portion 38 is formed that guides the fruit stalk 15 to the center in the width direction of the thin-walled portion 24b when the thin-walled portion 24b approaches and abuts against the fruit stalk 15.

[0049] <Receiving member> As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, on the lower surface of the thick portion 24a of the main body portion 24 in the end effector 11, at a position in the middle in the front-rear direction which is the Y direction, a plate-shaped lower support plate portion 39a and a lower hanging piece portion 39b orthogonal to the front-rear direction are provided so as to hang downward. When these lower support plate portion 39a and lower hanging piece portion 39b are viewed from the front in the -Y direction, the lower hanging piece portion 39b located on the left side hangs downward longer than the lower support plate portion 39a located on the right side. A lower motor 40 is attached to the rear surface which is the +Y direction side surface of the lower support plate portion 39a. The lower motor 40 is attached to the rear surface of the lower support plate portion 39a in a posture where its axial direction is along the front-rear direction which is the Y direction. And, on the front side which is the -Y direction side surface of the lower support plate portion 39a, a screw shaft 41 that rotates with the drive of the lower motor 40 is provided so as to extend forward.

[0050] A nut member 42 which constitutes a ball screw mechanism with this screw shaft 41 is supported on the screw shaft 41 so as to move forward and backward in the front-rear direction with the rotation of the screw shaft 41 due to the drive of the lower motor 40. And, a receiving member 43 for receiving the cherry tomatoes 13 that are separated from the abscission layer 17 of the pedicel 16 and fall is attached to the nut member 42. The receiving member 43 includes a back plate portion 44 attached to the nut member 42 in a manner of hanging downward, and a receiving tray 45 that bends forward and extends from the lower end of the back plate portion 44.

[0051] When the nut member 42 moves forward and backward with the rotation of the screw shaft 41 due to the drive of the lower motor 40, this receiving member 43 moves forward and backward with the front-rear direction as the moving direction together with the nut member 42. In this regard, the lower motor 40 functions as a receiving member driving portion that is driven when moving the receiving member 43. In the back plate portion 44 of the receiving member 43, a circular through hole 46, for example, is formed at a position separated from the position of the nut member 42 through which the screw shaft 41 is inserted in the left-right direction which is the X direction and the vertical direction which is the Z direction.

[0052] <Guide member> On the front side, which is the -Y direction side surface of the lower hanging piece part 39b, at a position below the height position of the screw shaft 41 provided on the front side of the lower support plate part 39a, a single shaft member 47 is provided so as to extend forward in the -Y direction, which is the front direction. The shaft member 47 is a rod-shaped member whose base end part is supported by the lower hanging piece part 39b and whose middle part in the length direction is slidably inserted into the through hole 46 of the receiving member 43. The shaft member 47 has a base end side straight rod part 48 and a tip end side straight rod part 49 each having a constant length in the front-rear direction, and a spiral part 50 whose shape extends in a spiral in the front-rear direction, which is the moving direction of the receiving member 43, between the base end side straight rod part 48 and the tip end side straight rod part 49. And when the lower motor 40 is driven with the spiral part 50 inserted into the through hole 46 of the receiving member 43, the shaft member 47 moves the receiving member 43 forward and backward in the front-rear direction while rotating it around the horizontal axis by the sliding between the spiral part 50 and the hole edge of the through hole 46. In this regard, the shaft member 47 functions as a guiding member that slides a part of the receiving member 43 when the receiving member 43 moves and guides it in the moving direction.

[0053] <Moving mechanism> As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, on the upper surface of the thick part 24a of the main body part 24 in the end effector 11, at a position in the middle in the front-rear direction, which is the Y direction, a rectangular plate-shaped upper support plate part 51 orthogonal to the front-rear direction is provided so as to stand upward. An upper motor 52 is attached to the rear surface, which is the +Y direction side surface of the upper support plate part 51. The upper motor 52 is attached to the rear surface of the upper support plate part 51 in a posture in which its axial direction is along the front-rear direction, which is the Y direction. And on the front side, which is the -Y direction side surface of the upper support plate part 51, a screw shaft 53 that rotates with the drive of the upper motor 52 is provided so as to extend forward. Note that the screw shaft 53 is provided so as to extend in the front-rear direction at a position directly above the long hole 25 of the main body part 24.

[0054] On the screw shaft 53, a nut portion 54 that constitutes a sliding screw mechanism with this screw shaft 53 is supported so as to move forward and backward in the front-rear direction as the screw shaft 53 rotates by the drive of the upper motor 52. As shown in FIG. 1, on the lower surface side of the nut portion 54, a connecting portion 55 is provided that passes through the long hole 25 of the main body portion 24 from above and extends downward. The connecting portion 55 is joined to the upper surface of the belt-like member 30 whose tip is located within the belt-like space 29, thereby connecting the nut portion 54 and the belt-like member 30 so as to move forward and backward integrally.

[0055] In the present embodiment, when the nut portion 54 moves forward and backward as the screw shaft 53 rotates due to the drive of the upper motor 52, the belt-like member 30 moves forward and backward with the nut portion 54 in the front-rear direction as the moving direction. Further, since the pair of swing members 32 move forward and backward together with the belt-like member 30, the first contact members 21 provided at the tips of the pair of swing members 32 also move forward and backward so as to pass above the cherry tomato 13 to be harvested.

[0056] When the pair of first contact members 21 pass above the cherry tomato 13 to be harvested in the -Y direction (forward), the pair of pin portions 36 slide forward in the curved hole portion 26b, so they open so as not to contact the small fruit stalk 16 of the cherry tomato 13. On the other hand, when the pair of first contact members 21 pass above the cherry tomato 13 to be harvested in the +Y direction (backward), the pair of pin portions 36 slide backward in the curved hole portion 26b, so they close so as to be able to contact the cherry tomato 13 from the front. In this regard, the upper motor 52 functions as a first drive unit that is driven when moving the first contact members 21 so as to pass above the cherry tomato 13 to be harvested and when displacing the first contact members 21 so as to contact the cherry tomato 13.

[0057] On the other hand, when moving the thin-walled portion 24b of the main body portion 24 that functions as the second contact member 22 so as to pass above the cherry tomato 13 to be harvested, a moving body drive unit (not shown) that is a drive source of the moving body 12 is driven. In this regard, in the present embodiment, the moving body drive unit (not shown) that is a drive source of the moving body 12 constitutes a second drive unit that is driven when moving the second contact member 22 so as to pass above the cherry tomato 13. Then, the upper motor 52 and the moving body drive unit constitute a moving mechanism 23 that moves the first contact member 21 in the direction in which a tensile force acts on the separation layer 17 while maintaining the state in which the first contact member 21 is in contact with the cherry tomato 13 and the second contact member 22 is in contact with the fruit axis 15.

[0058] <Operation of the First Embodiment> Now, when harvesting the cherry tomato 13 targeted as the harvesting object from the fruit cluster 14, the end effector 11 performs the harvesting operations shown in FIGS. 3 to 12. This will be described in order below.

[0059] As shown in FIG. 3, in the initial state of the harvesting operation, as the moving body 12 moves, the end effector 11 is moved forward in the -Y direction (front direction) from the positions shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. That is, a moving body drive unit (not shown) that constitutes the second drive unit is driven, and the end effector 11 moves forward until the tip of the thin-walled portion 24b of the main body portion 24 passes above the cherry tomato 13 to be harvested and reaches a position in front of the fruit axis 15 of the fruit cluster 14. In this case, the end effector 11 may be configured to move forward until the tip of the thin-walled portion 24b of the main body portion 24 comes into contact with the fruit axis 15 of the fruit cluster 14.

[0060] As shown in FIG. 4, in this initial state, the left and right hanging pieces 35 of the pair of first abutting members 21 are separated from each other in the left-right direction which is the X direction. That is, since the both pin portions 36 provided on the left and right sliding contact portions 34 are respectively positioned at the front ends where the pair of curved hole portions 26b are most separated from each other in the left-right direction, the convex portions 37 formed at the opposing corners of each other are in an open state where they are separated from each other left and right. Therefore, the pair of first abutting members 21 advance to the front of the fruit axis 15 through both left and right sides of the small fruit stalk 16 that extends obliquely downward to the side from the fruit axis 15 with the mini tomato 13 to be harvested formed at the tip. In this case, the convex portions 37 of the left and right hanging pieces 35 are separated from each other left and right at a height position between the base end and the tip of the small fruit stalk 16 in the up-down direction which is the Z direction.

[0061] As shown in FIG. 5, next to the initial state, the left and right hanging pieces 35 of the pair of first abutting members 21 approach each other in the left-right direction which is a direction intersecting the direction in which the small fruit stalk 16 located between them extends. In this case, the upper motor 52 constituting the first driving portion is driven, and the screw shaft 53 rotates so as to retract the nut portion 54 rearward in the +Y direction which is the rear. Then, since the belt-like member 30 also retracts together with the nut portion 54, the swing member 32 swingably supported with respect to the belt-like member 30 also retracts. Therefore, the hanging piece 35 of the first abutting member 21 provided at the tip of the swing member 32 also retracts in the same manner.

[0062] In this case, for both the left and right hanging piece portions 35, the two pin portions 36 respectively protruding from the upper surface of the two sliding contact portions 34 slide from the front ends where the pair of curved hole portions 26b are most separated in the left-right direction to the rear ends where they are closest, so they move backward while approaching each other. Then, when the two pin portions 36 have retreated to the rear ends of the pair of curved hole portions 26b, as shown in FIG. 5, the tip portions of the convex portions 37 of the left and right sides overlap each other in the front-rear direction which is the Y direction. And in this state, the small fruit stalk 16 is surrounded by the lower surface of the thin-walled portion 24b of the main body portion 24, the opposing side edges of the left and right hanging piece portions 35 on both sides, and the two convex portions 37. In this regard, the hanging piece portions 35 forming a pair of the first abutting members 21 function as a surrounding member that forms a surrounding state surrounding the small fruit stalk 16 by approaching each other from a state where they are spaced apart from each other with a gap on both sides of the small fruit stalk 16.

[0063] As shown in FIG. 6, next to the state of FIG. 5, with the backward movement of the pair of first abutting members 21 that have approached stopped, the receiving member 43 moves forward in the -Y direction, which is the front direction, from the position in the initial state in FIG. 3. In this case, the lower motor 40 functioning as a receiving member driving portion is driven, and the screw shaft 41 rotates so as to advance the nut member 42 forward in the -Y direction. Then, the receiving member 43 attached to the nut member 42 via the back plate portion 44 also advances in the same way. At this time, the receiving member 43 advances forward in the -Y direction while sliding the hole edge of the through hole 46 of the back plate portion 44 along the shaft member 47.

[0064] As shown in FIG. 7, at this time, the receiving member 43 rotates about the horizontal axis as the edge of the through hole 46 slides on the spiral portion 50 of the shaft member 47. That is, when the receiving member 43 moves forward and backward while the edge of the through hole 46 slides on the spiral portion 50 of the shaft member 47, the posture of the receiving member 43 changes between the receiving posture in which the tray 45 is horizontal and the discharging posture in which the tray 45 is inclined. The receiving member 43 of the present embodiment rotates from the horizontal receiving posture with the tray 45 to the left and right inclined discharging posture when it moves backward, and rotates from the left and right inclined discharging posture to the horizontal receiving posture when it moves forward. At this time, the receiving member 43 moves forward to a position below the thin portion 24b on the front side in the middle of the main body portion 24.

[0065] As shown in FIG. 8, next to the states of FIGS. 6 and 7, the pair of first contact members 21 are slightly retracted by the drive of the upper motor 52, and the first contact members 21 contact the tip of the mini tomato 13 of the small fruit stalk 16 from the front side at the portion of the hanging piece portion 35 that surrounds the small fruit stalk 16. On the other hand, even at this point in time, the thin portion 24b of the main body portion 24 constituting the second contact member 22 maintains a state immediately before the depression 38 at the leading edge contacts the fruit axis 15 from the rear side, that is, a state having a gap with the fruit axis 15. Therefore, at the point shown in FIG. 8, a tensile force that breaks the tissue of the separation layer 17 has not yet acted on the separation layer 17 in the small fruit stalk 16.

[0066] As shown in Fig. 9, following the state of Fig. 8, the pair of first contact members 21, due to the continued driving of the upper motor 52, slightly retract from the position in Fig. 8 while remaining in contact with the tip of the small pedicel 16 of the cherry tomato 13 from the front side. Then, the cherry tomato 13 retracts together with the first contact member 21, and the small pedicel 16 that has fruited at the tip is pulled backward. Therefore, as shown in Fig. 9, the shaft portion of the fruit axis 15 to which the base end of the small pedicel 16 is connected is pulled backward and bent. As a result, the end effector 11 comes into a state where the tip of the thin-walled portion 24b of the main body portion 24 contacts the bent shaft portion of the fruit axis 15 on the rear side from the rear side. In this case, the fruit axis 15 is in a state of being guided into the recessed portion 38 formed at the center in the width direction of the tip of the thin-walled portion 24b. Therefore, when the cherry tomato 13 is harvested, the fruit axis 15 is suppressed from swinging in the left-right direction.

[0067] Then, from that state, due to the continued driving of the upper motor 52, the pair of first contact members 21 further slightly retract. Then, the small pedicel 16 is in a state of being pulled on both sides in the length direction between the fruit axis 15 where the thin-walled portion 24b functioning as the second contact member 22 contacts from the rear side and the cherry tomato 13 where the vertical piece portion 35 functioning as the first contact member 21 contacts from the front side. Therefore, a pulling force that breaks the tissue of the abscission layer 17 acts on the site of the abscission layer 17 in the small pedicel 16. When the tissue of the abscission layer 17 is broken by the action of the pulling force, the cherry tomato 13 detaches from the small pedicel 16 at the location of the abscission layer 17 and falls downward as indicated by the white arrow as shown by the two-dot chain line.

[0068] As shown in Fig. 10, the cherry tomato 13 that has detached from the abscission layer 17 of the small pedicel 16 and fallen is received by the receiving member 43 that has moved to the receiving position, which is the position below the first contact member 21 at that time, and has stopped. That is, at that time, the cherry tomato 13 targeted for harvesting is received by the receiving member 43 in the receiving posture with the receiving tray 45 in a horizontal state at the position below the first contact member 21 during its fall. Therefore, the cherry tomato 13 that has detached from the abscission layer 17 of the small pedicel 16 does not fall directly from the detachment location to the ground.

[0069] As shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, after the state of FIG. 10, the lower motor 40 is driven, and the receiving member 43 moves rearward in the +Y direction, which is the direction behind the position where the receiving member 43 receives the cherry tomato 13 in FIG. 10. In this case, the receiving member 43 changes its posture from the receiving posture with the receiving tray 45 in a horizontal state to the discharging posture in an obliquely left-right state by retreating while the edge of the through hole 46 slides on the spiral portion 50 of the shaft member 47. Therefore, while the receiving member 43 is retreating in this way and rotating its posture, the cherry tomato 13 as the harvested product is automatically discharged from above the receiving member 43 toward a predetermined storage location.

[0070] <Effects of the First Embodiment> (1-1) In this embodiment, while the first contact member 21 is in contact with the cherry tomato 13 to be harvested and the second contact member 22 is in contact with the fruit axis 15, the first contact member 21 moves in the direction in which a tensile force acts on the abscission layer 17 of the small fruit stalk 16. Then, due to the action of the tensile force, the abscission layer 17 is broken, and the small fruit stalk 16 is separated into a tip side and a base side at the abscission layer 17. Therefore, the cherry tomato 13, which is the fruit targeted for harvesting, can be surely detached from the small fruit stalk 16 at the abscission layer 17 and harvested easily.

[0071] (1-2) In a state where the hanging piece portion 35, which is the surrounding member of the first contact member 21, surrounds the small fruit stalk 16 of the cherry tomato 13 targeted for harvesting, the moving mechanism 23 moves the first contact member 21 in the direction in which a tensile force acts on the abscission layer 17 of the small fruit stalk 16 in this embodiment. Then, the cherry tomato 13 targeted for harvesting, which is surrounded by the small fruit stalk 16 by the hanging piece portion 35, is suppressed from swinging in a direction intersecting the direction in which the small fruit stalk 16 extends. Therefore, the cherry tomato 13, which is the fruit targeted for harvesting, can be surely detached at the abscission layer 17 of the small fruit stalk 16 without being missed and harvested.

[0072] (1-3) When detaching and harvesting the cherry tomato 13 as the fruit from the tip of the small fruit stalk 16, the fruit axis 15 to which the base end of the small fruit stalk 16 is connected can be guided into the recessed portion 38 and held so as not to swing left and right, so that the harvesting work can be performed surely.

[0073] (1-4) The second abutting member 22 that passes above the target cherry tomato 13 and heads toward the fruit axis 15 can push away the other cherry tomatoes 13 positioned above the target cherry tomato 13 to be harvested with the thin-walled portion 24b so as to move away from the target cherry tomato 13 to be harvested. Therefore, the risk of accidentally harvesting other cherry tomatoes 13 other than the target one can be reduced.

[0074] (1-5) Since the receiving member 43 receives the cherry tomato 13 that detaches from the tip of the pedicel 16 and falls without allowing it to fall to the ground at a position below the first abutting member 21, the target cherry tomato 13 can be harvested without being damaged.

[0075] (1-6) If the receiving member 43 contacts other cherry tomatoes 13 or the like other than the target cherry tomato 13 at the start of the harvesting operation and shakes the fruit cluster 14 unnecessarily, there is a possibility that the first abutting member 21 cannot be surely abutted against the target cherry tomato 13. In this regard, according to the present embodiment, since the receiving member 43 moves to the lower side of the target cherry tomato 13 after the first abutting member 21 abuts against the target cherry tomato 13, such an adverse effect can be suppressed.

[0076] (1-7) After the receiving member 43 receives the cherry tomato 13 that has detached from the tip of the pedicel 16 and fallen in the forward receiving posture, the receiving member 43 rotates to the discharging posture during the backward movement, so that the target cherry tomato 13 can be easily discharged from above the receiving member 43.

[0077] (1-8) Since it is provided with the lower motor 40 which is a receiving member drive unit driven to move the receiving member 43, it is possible to arbitrarily move only the receiving member 43 separately from the first abutting member 21 and the second abutting member 22.

[0078] (1-9) When the upper motor 52, which is the first drive unit, is driven, the first contact member 21 moves so as to pass over the upper side of the cherry tomato 13 to be harvested and comes into contact with the cherry tomato 13. On the other hand, when the moving body drive unit, which is the second drive unit, is driven, the second contact member 22 passes over the upper side of the cherry tomato 13. Then, when the upper motor 52 is driven, since the first contact member 21 in contact with the cherry tomato 13 pulls the small fruit stalk 16, the shaft portion of the fruit axis 15 bends and the second contact member 22 comes into contact with the fruit axis 15. And in that state, a tensile force acts on the abscission layer 17 of the small fruit stalk 16. Therefore, the cherry tomato 13 to be harvested can be surely detached from the small fruit stalk 16 at the abscission layer 17.

[0079] (Second Embodiment) Next, the end effector 11 for a fruit harvester according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 13 to 21. For the members that are the same as those in the first embodiment in this embodiment, the same reference numerals will be given to those members in the drawings, and redundant explanations regarding those members will be omitted. That is, in this embodiment, mainly the mechanisms and members whose configurations are different from those in the first embodiment will be described.

[0080] <End Effector> As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, the end effector 11 of this embodiment also moves in the left - right direction (X - direction), the front - rear direction (Y - direction), and the up - down direction (Z - direction) while being mounted on the moving body 12, similar to the first embodiment. Then, after moving to a position directly facing one fruit targeted for harvesting as the moving body 12 moves, a predetermined harvesting operation is performed. That is, at the time of harvesting, the first contact member 21 contacts the cherry tomato 13, which is the fruit to be harvested, from the - Y direction, and the second contact member 22 contacts the fruit axis 15 from the + Y direction. And the moving mechanism 23 moves the first contact member 21 in a direction in which a tensile force can be applied to the abscission layer 17 of the small fruit stalk 16 among the first contact member 21 in contact with the cherry tomato 13 and the second contact member 22 in contact with the fruit axis 15. Also in this embodiment.

[0081] <Main Body Portion> The end effector 11 of the present embodiment has a main body 57 in a three-dimensional frame shape. The main body 57 has a mounting frame portion 58, an upper frame portion 59, a lower frame portion 60, and a protruding frame portion 61. The mounting frame portion 58 is a rectangular flat plate-shaped frame along the X direction and the Z direction, and is attached to the front surface of the moving body 12 along the vertical direction. The upper frame portion 59 is a rectangular flat plate-shaped frame along the X direction and the Y direction, and is provided so as to horizontally extend forward from the upper end portion on the front surface of the mounting frame portion 58. The lower frame portion 60 is a rectangular flat plate-shaped frame along the X direction and the Y direction, and is provided so as to horizontally extend forward from the lower end portion on the front surface of the mounting frame portion 58. The protruding frame portion 61 is a strip-shaped frame in plan view, and is formed so as to horizontally protrude outward from the left and right side edges at the front end portion of the upper frame portion 59 to the left and right outer sides. An upper standing piece 62 in a rectangular plate shape is formed at a position in the middle in the front-rear direction in the Y direction on the upper surface of the upper frame portion 59 when viewed from the front.

[0082] As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, an upper motor 52 as a first drive part that is driven when moving the first contact member 21 in the movement mechanism 23 is attached to the rear surface of the upper standing piece 62 so as to abut on the upper surface of the upper frame portion 59 in the main body 57. The upper motor 52 is attached to the upper frame portion 59 such that its output shaft 63 passes through the upper standing piece 62 and extends forward in the -Y direction. A bevel gear 65 is attached to the tip of the output shaft 63. At the front end portion of the upper frame portion 59, a pair of arm frames 66 are provided on the left and right sides outside the left and right of the bevel gear 65 at the tip of the output shaft 63 so as to form a cantilever beam shape forward. A rotating shaft 67 is rotatably supported between the two arm frames 66, and a bevel gear 68 that meshes with the bevel gear 65 at the tip of the output shaft 63 is attached to the rotating shaft 67. That is, when the output shaft 63 rotates with the drive of the upper motor 52, the rotating shaft 67 is configured to rotate about a horizontal axis along the left and right direction in the X direction by the driving force transmitted through the bevel gear 65 and the bevel gear 68.

[0083] <First contact member> As shown in Fig. 14, the rotating shaft 67 has a plate-like mounting bracket 69 at a position on the side opposite to the side where the bevel gear 68 is located when viewed from the middle in the axial direction thereof. The base end of a comb-like member 70 that functions as the first abutting member 21 is connected to the mounting bracket 69. The comb-like member 70 is a thin plate-like member in which a clamping groove 71 for clamping the pedicel 16 is formed by a notch from the tip to the base end side, and the tip side thereof is provided so as to extend while curving forward. In this embodiment, as an example, four clamping grooves 71 are formed by notches in the comb-like member 70. Further, the comb-like member 70 is composed of a concave curved surface 72 whose surface on the side that abuts against the cherry tomato 13 targeted for harvesting as the first abutting member 21 has a concave curved surface shape.

[0084] <Second abutting member> As shown in Fig. 14, a rectangular plate-like lower upright piece 73 is provided so as to stand upward in the +Z direction from the rear part of the lower frame portion 60. On the front side of the lower upright piece 73, a lower motor 40 as a second driving part that is driven when the second abutting member 22 is moved in the moving mechanism 23 is attached in a posture in which the axial direction thereof is along the front-rear direction which is the Y direction. At a position slightly above the attachment position of the lower motor 40 on the front side of the lower upright piece 73, a screw shaft 41 extending along the front-rear direction is rotatably supported. A spur gear 74 is fixed to an end portion of the screw shaft 41 protruding to the rear surface side of the lower upright piece 73 so as to rotate integrally with the screw shaft 41. On the other hand, a spur gear 75 meshing with the spur gear 74 at the end of the screw shaft 41 is fixed to an end portion of the motor shaft protruding to the rear surface side of the lower upright piece 73 in the lower motor 40 so as to rotate integrally with the motor shaft.

[0085] As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, a receiving member 43 for receiving the cherry tomatoes 13 that detach from the abscission layer 17 of the pedicel 16 and fall is supported on the shaft portion of the screw shaft 41 on the front side of the lower standing piece 73. The receiving member 43 has, for example, a rectangular bottom plate portion 43a on which the cherry tomatoes 13 can be placed, a pair of left and right side plate portions 43b that rise upward from the left and right side edges of the bottom plate portion 43a, and a connecting plate portion 43c installed between the upper end portions of the left and right side plate portions 43b. The connecting plate portion 43c has a female screw hole (not shown) into which the screw shaft 41 is screwed. Therefore, the receiving member 43 moves forward and backward in the front-rear direction as the screw shaft 41 rotates due to the drive of the lower motor 40.

[0086] Further, the receiving member 43 is formed such that the distance between the left and right side plate portions 43b is slightly larger than the lateral width dimension of the horizontal plate-shaped lower frame portion 60 in the main body portion 57. And the receiving member 43 is arranged such that the upper surface of its bottom plate portion 43a is along the lower surface of the horizontal plate-shaped lower frame portion 60 in the main body portion 57. Further, at the front end of the lower frame portion 60 in the main body portion 57, a bent piece portion 79 is provided which is bent so as to intersect the horizontal lower frame portion 60 at an acute angle and extend obliquely upward rearward.

[0087] Further, both left and right side plate portions 43b of the receiving member 43 are shaped like a substantially right triangle having a hypotenuse with a forward-downward slope in a side view. And, near the upper corner where a short side perpendicular to the forward-downward hypotenuse intersects on the outer surfaces of these left and right side plate portions 43b, a pair of left and right support shafts 76 protruding horizontally to the left and right are provided. And, at the tip portions of these left and right support shafts 76, a pair of left and right pivot arms 77 each having a substantially W shape in a side view are supported so as to pivot about the support shaft 76 as a pivot center. The pivot arm 77 has a shape in which the first arm portion on one end side of the support shaft 76 in its length direction extends long in a strip shape obliquely downward in front in a side view. On the other hand, the pivot arm 77 has a shape in which the second arm portion on the other end side of the support shaft 76 in its length direction bends and extends in a zigzag shape upward in a side view. And, between the tips of the first arm portions on one end side of the support shaft 76 in the pair of left and right pivot arms 77, a connecting shaft 78 that can contact the fruit axis 15 as the second contact member 22 during the harvesting operation is installed so as to extend horizontally in the left-right direction, which is the X direction.

[0088] As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, the second arm portion of the pivot arm 77 on the other end side of the support shaft 76 is configured such that a strip-shaped base end portion 77a, a central portion 77b, and a tip portion 77c are bent and continuous in order from the side closer to the support shaft 76. The base end portion 77a is formed so as to intersect at an obtuse angle at the position of the support shaft 76 and continue upward with respect to the first arm portion on one end side of the pivot arm 77, for example, in FIGS. 13 and 14. The central portion 77b is formed so as to intersect at an obtuse angle at the position of the tip of the base end portion 77a and continue obliquely upward to the rear with respect to the strip-shaped base end portion 77a, for example, in FIGS. 13 and 14. The tip portion 77c is formed so as to intersect at a substantially right angle at the position of the tip of the central portion 77b and continue obliquely upward in front with respect to the strip-shaped central portion 77b, for example, in FIGS. 13 and 14.

[0089] The swing arm 77 has a second arm portion that forms a zigzag shape on the other end side of the support shaft 76, which includes these base end portions 77a, central portions 77b, and tip portions 77c, and is configured to be able to contact the rear end edge of the protruding frame portion 61 in the main body portion 57 when moving forward in the -Y direction. Incidentally, the swing arm 77 is configured such that the weight of the first arm portion on one end side of the support shaft 76 in its longitudinal direction is greater than that of the second arm portion on the other end side of the support shaft 76 in its longitudinal direction. Therefore, in the states shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, the swing arm 77 is biased so that the tip of the first arm portion rotates downward, and the connecting shaft 78 at the tip of the first arm portion contacts the front end portion of the lower frame portion 60 from above. As a method of increasing the weight of the first arm portion on one end side of the swing arm 77, any method can be adopted, such as forming the first arm portion longer than the second arm portion or attaching a weight to the first arm portion.

[0090] <Operation of the Second Embodiment> Also in this embodiment, the end effector 11 performs a harvesting operation for harvesting the cherry tomatoes 13 targeted for harvesting from the fruit cluster 14, in the same manner as in the first embodiment. Hereinafter, the description will be made with reference to FIGS. 15 to 21.

[0091] As shown in FIG. 15, in the initial state of the harvesting operation, first, the moving body 12 advances in the -Y direction by the drive of the moving body drive unit. Then, the end effector 11 advances to the front of the fruit axis 15 shown by the two-dot chain line while keeping the comb-tooth member 70, which is the first contact member 21, in the posture shown by the two-dot chain line. When advancing, the comb-tooth member 70 passes above the cherry tomato 13, which is the fruit to be harvested. After passing, the upper motor 52 that constitutes the first drive unit is driven, and the rotary shaft 67 rotates to displace the comb-tooth member 70 from the posture shown by the two-dot chain line to the posture shown by the solid line by the power transmitted through the bevel gear 65 and the bevel gear 68 as the output shaft 63 rotates. Then, the comb-tooth member 70 swings the tip side downward with its base end as the swing center, thereby sandwiching the small fruit stalk 16 into the sandwiching groove 71 and bringing the concave curved surface 72 into contact with the cherry tomato 13 from the front side in the -Y direction. In this case, since the small fruit stalk 16 is pulled by the comb-tooth member 70 that contacts the cherry tomato 13 and further swings, the fruit axis 15 is in a state where the shaft portion where the base end of the small fruit stalk 16 is connected is bent backward.

[0092] As shown in FIG. 16, next to the initial state, the lower motor 40 that constitutes the second drive unit is driven, and the screw shaft 41 rotates to advance the receiving member 43 forward in the -Y direction by the power transmitted through the spur gear 75 and the spur gear 74. Then, since the support shaft 76 also advances together with the receiving member 43, the rotating arm 77 supported by the support shaft 76 also advances. At this time, the rotating arm 77 advances with a clockwise rotation centered on the support shaft 76 until the central portion 77b of the second arm portion on the other end side starts to slide on the rear end edge of the overhanging frame portion 61. Then, the connecting shaft 78 installed between the tips of the first arm portions on one end side of the rotating arm 77 is in a state of passing below the cherry tomato 13 to be harvested toward the front.

[0093] As shown in Fig. 17, following the state of Fig. 16, the driving of the lower motor 40 continues, and the support shaft 76 further advances together with the receiving member 43. Then, the rotating arm 77 supported by the support shaft 76 also further advances accordingly. At this time, the rotating arm 77 advances while sliding the central portion 77b in the second arm portion on the other end side along the horizontal posture in the front-rear direction on the rear end edge of the overhanging frame portion 61. That is, the rotating arm 77 further advances while maintaining the posture in which the first arm portion on one end side thereof extends forward. And by this advancement, the connecting shaft 78 installed between the tips of the first arm portions on one end side of the rotating arm 77 passes below the harvesting target cherry tomato 13 toward the front.

[0094] As shown in Fig. 18, following the state of Fig. 17, the driving of the lower motor 40 further continues, and the support shaft 76 further advances together with the receiving member 43. Then, the rotating arm 77 supported by the support shaft 76 also further advances accordingly. At this time, the rotating arm 77 advances while sliding the tip portion 77c in the second arm portion on the other end side on the rear end edge of the overhanging frame portion 61. Therefore, the rotating arm 77 is pushed in the clockwise direction by the rear end edge of the overhanging frame portion 61 at the tip portion 77c in the second arm portion on the other end side, and further rotates in the clockwise direction with the support shaft 76 as the rotation center while advancing.

[0095] As a result, the connecting shaft 78 installed between the tips of the first arm portions on one end side of the rotating arm 77 moves in an arc-shaped orbit to a position obliquely above and in front of the cherry tomato 13 and the comb-tooth member 70. And by this movement, the connecting shaft 78 comes into contact with the fruit axis 15 of the fruit cluster 14 with a pressing force from the rear side in the +Y direction. In this regard, the connecting shaft 78 in the present embodiment functions as a second contact member 22 that can come into contact with the fruit axis 15 during the harvesting operation. Also, the connecting shaft 78 as the second contact member 22 in this case can be said to be a lower second contact member that passes below the cherry tomato 13, which is the fruit to be harvested, and comes into contact with the fruit axis 15.

[0096] Note that after the comb member 70, which is the first contact member 21, contacts the target cherry tomato 13 to be harvested from the front side in the -Y direction, the receiving member 43 passes under the cherry tomato 13 and moves to the receiving position, which is the position below the comb member 70 at that time. Therefore, before the comb member 70, which is the first contact member 21, contacts the target cherry tomato 13 to be harvested, it is suppressed that the receiving member 43 contacts other cherry tomatoes 13 other than the target to be harvested in the fruit cluster 14 during movement and unnecessarily shakes the fruit cluster 14. Then, the receiving member 43 stops at the position below the comb member 70, which is the first contact member 21, so that it can receive the cherry tomato 13 that falls from above later. Further, the receiving member 43 can be moved to the position below the comb member 70, which is the first contact member 21, by driving the lower motor 40. In this regard, the lower motor 40 as the second driving unit also functions as a receiving member driving unit that is driven when moving the receiving member 43.

[0097] As shown in FIG. 19, after the state of FIG. 18, the upper motor 52 is driven again, and the comb member 70, which is the first contact member 21, swings the tip side further downward a little from the posture shown in FIGS. 15 to 18. That is, the comb member 70 swings the tip side further rearward in the direction in which a pulling force can act on the separation layer 17 of the small fruit stalk 16 while maintaining the state of contacting the target cherry tomato 13 to be harvested from the front. Then, a pulling force that breaks the tissue of the separation layer 17 acts on the part of the separation layer 17 in the small fruit stalk 16. When the tissue of the separation layer 17 is broken by the action of the pulling force, the cherry tomato 13 detaches from the small fruit stalk 16 at the location of the separation layer 17 and falls into the receiving member 43 that is stopped at the receiving position below the comb member 70 at that time.

[0098] As shown in FIGS. 20 and 21, following the state of FIG. 19, the upper motor 52 is driven to rotate, for example, in a direction opposite to the rotation direction in FIG. 19. Then, the comb-tooth member 70, which is the first contact member 21, swings the tip thereof in the clockwise direction in FIGS. 20 and 21, thereby returning to the posture before starting the harvesting operation shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 15. On the other hand, the lower motor 40 is driven to rotate in the direction opposite to that until then. Then, since the support shaft 76 retreats together with the receiving member 43, the rotating arm 77 also retreats similarly. At this time, the rotating arm 77 retreats with the second arm portion on the other end side being separated from the rear end edge of the overhanging frame portion 61. Therefore, the rotating arm 77 retreats while rotating counterclockwise so that the relatively heavy first arm portion on one end side faces obliquely downward forward.

[0099] Also, at this time, the receiving member 43 retreats while placing the harvested cherry tomato 13 that has detached from the abscission layer 17 of the small fruit stalk 16 and fallen on the bottom plate portion 43a. Then, the receiving member 43 relatively moves so as to rub against the bent piece portion 79 at the front end of the lower frame portion 60 while retreating so that the bottom plate portion 43a thereof follows the lower surface of the lower frame portion 60. Therefore, when the receiving member 43 and the bent piece portion 79 rub against each other and relatively move in this way, the cherry tomato 13 is pushed forward from the bottom plate portion 43a by the bent piece portion 79. In this regard, the bent piece portion 79 functions as an extrusion member that can extrude the cherry tomato 13, which is a fruit, from the receiving member 43 by relatively moving with the receiving member 43 so as to rub against the receiving member 43 above the receiving member 43. Then, the cherry tomato 13 pushed forward from the receiving member 43 by the bent piece portion 79 is received and stored in, for example, storage equipment installed below.

[0100] <Effects of the Second Embodiment> In the present embodiment, in addition to the effects of (1-1), (1-5), (1-6), and (1-8) in the first embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.

[0101] (2-1) The connecting shaft 78, which is the second abutting member 22 that passes under the target cherry tomato 13 to be harvested and heads toward the fruit stalk 15, can push away other cherry tomatoes 13 located below the target cherry tomato 13 to be harvested away from the target cherry tomato 13. Therefore, the risk of accidentally harvesting cherry tomatoes 13 other than the target can be reduced.

[0102] (2-2) With the small fruit stalk 16 of the cherry tomato 13, which is the fruit to be harvested, sandwiched in the sandwiching groove 71 of the comb-tooth member 70, the comb-tooth member 70, which is the first abutting member 21, is moved by the moving mechanism 23 in the direction in which a pulling force acts on the separation layer 17 of the small fruit stalk 16. Therefore, the cherry tomato 13, which is the fruit to be harvested, can be reliably detached at the separation layer 17 of the small fruit stalk 16 and harvested without slipping out of the comb-tooth member 70 that abuts against it.

[0103] (2-3) Since the concave curved surface 72 of the concave curved surface shape of the comb-tooth member 70, which functions as the first abutting member 21, abuts against the cherry tomato 13, which is the fruit to be harvested, it is possible to easily detach the cherry tomato 13 that abuts against the concave curved surface 72 from the separation layer 17 of the small fruit stalk 16 without letting it escape.

[0104] (2-4) When the receiving member 43 that receives the cherry tomato 13 that has detached from the tip of the small fruit stalk 16 and has fallen is, for example, moving backward, the cherry tomato 13 can be easily pushed out from above the receiving member 43 by the bending piece portion 79, which is the pushing-out member.

[0105] (2-5) When the first abutting member 21 abuts against the cherry tomato 13 to be harvested by the drive of the upper motor 52, which is the first drive unit, and the second abutting member 22 abuts against the fruit stalk 15 by the drive of the lower motor 40, which is the second drive unit, the upper motor 52 continues to be driven. Therefore, the cherry tomato 13 to be harvested can be reliably detached from the small fruit stalk 16 at the separation layer 17.

[0106] (Third Embodiment) Next, the end effector 11 for the fruit harvester according to the third embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 22 to 27. Note that for the members that are the same as those in the first and second embodiments in this embodiment, the same reference numerals will be given to those members in the drawings, and the overlapping descriptions thereof will be omitted. That is, in this embodiment, mainly the mechanisms and members that are different in configuration from the first and second embodiments will be described.

[0107] <End effector> As shown in FIG. 22, the end effector 11 of this embodiment is also mounted on the moving body 12 in the same manner as in the first and second embodiments, and moves in the left-right direction which is the X direction, the front-rear direction which is the Y direction, and the up-down direction which is the Z direction. Then, after moving to a position directly facing one cherry tomato 13 targeted as the fruit to be harvested, the first abutting member 21 abuts on the cherry tomato 13 from the -Y direction, and the second abutting member 22 abuts on the fruit stalk 15 from the +Y direction. And in this embodiment, the moving mechanism 23 moves both the first abutting member 21 in the state of abutting on the cherry tomato 13 and the second abutting member 22 in the state of abutting on the fruit stalk 15 in a direction capable of applying a tensile force to the abscission layer 17 of the small fruit stalk 16.

[0108] <Main body part> The end effector 11 of this embodiment has a main body part 80 in a box shape with the front-rear direction open. The main body part 80 has a pair of left and right rectangular side plates 81. Between the upper end parts of the left and right side plates 81, a pair of front and rear rod-shaped connecting frames 81a are installed at a distance in the front-rear direction. An upper long hole 82 is formed in the upper part of the side plate 81 so as to extend along the front-rear direction. On the other hand, a lower long hole 83 is formed in the lower part of the side plate 81 so as to extend along the front-rear direction. Further, between the upper long hole 82 and the lower long hole 83 in the side plate 81, a guide groove 85 extending along the front-rear direction is formed by a notch from the front end of the side plate 81 toward the rear.

[0109] Above the space formed between the left and right side plates 81, a moving frame 84 is disposed. This moving frame 84 is a frame member having a horizontally long substantially U-shaped configuration when viewed from the front in the forward direction, and its width dimension in the left-right direction, which is the X direction, is configured to be slightly shorter than the interval between the left and right side plates 81. From the left and right side edges of the moving frame 84, a pair of strip-shaped side pieces 84a are formed so as to stand upward. At the front end side rather than the middle in the length direction of each side piece 84a, plate-shaped wing portions 84b that protrude horizontally toward the left and right outer sides are formed. Then, by inserting these left and right wing portions 84b into the guide grooves 85 of the side plates 81 so as to protrude from the inside to the outside of the main body portion 80, the moving frame 84 is made movable in the front-rear direction inside the main body portion 80.

[0110] <The first abutting member> As shown in FIG. 22, on the upper rear part of the outer surface of the left side plate 81 in the -X direction of the main body portion 80, a first upper motor 52a is attached with its axial direction along the left-right direction which is the X direction. The output shaft of the first upper motor 52a protrudes toward the inner surface side of the side plate 81. And a first upper pinion member 86 is fixed to the output shaft so as to rotate integrally with the output shaft as the first upper motor 52a is driven. Also, on the upper end edge of the left side piece 84a in the -X direction of the moving frame 84, a rack portion 88 that meshes with the tooth portion of the first upper pinion member 86 is formed. Therefore, when the first upper pinion member 86 rotates as the first upper motor 52a is driven, the moving frame 84 having the rack portion 88 that meshes with it also moves forward and backward in the front-rear direction.

[0111] Further, on the outer surface of the rear end portion of the left side piece portion 84a in the moving frame 84, the second upper motor 52b is mounted in a state where the axial direction thereof is along the left-right direction which is the X direction. The output shaft of the second upper motor 52b faces the inner surface side of the left side piece portion 84a in the moving frame 84. And, a second upper pinion member 89 is fixed to the output shaft thereof so as to rotate integrally with the output shaft as the second upper motor 52b is driven. Also, on the upper surface side of the moving frame 84, a slide member 90 in a strip plate shape along the front-rear direction and the up-down direction and having a bent front end portion in side view is arranged in a manner of extending along the front-rear direction. The slide member 90 is configured such that a rack portion 91, which is a tooth portion formed continuously over a certain length from the middle of the length direction thereof to the upper end edge on the rear side, meshes with the tooth portion of the second upper pinion member 89.

[0112] Therefore, when the second upper pinion member 89 rotates as the second upper motor 52b is driven, the slide member 90 having the rack portion 91 meshing therewith slides in the front-rear direction while sliding on the upper surface of the moving frame 84. Also, in the plate piece portion 92 bent upward above the front end portion of the slide member 90 having an L-shaped bent front end portion in side view, a vertical long hole 93, which is a long hole having a certain length in the up-down direction, is formed.

[0113] Also, as shown in FIG. 22, between the front end portions of the left and right side piece portions 84a in the moving frame 84, a horizontal shaft 94 extending in the left-right direction which is the X direction is installed. At the lower end portions of a pair of left and right swing frames 95 extending obliquely upward rearward from the horizontal shaft 94, they are fixed to the horizontal shaft 94. And, between the upper end portions of the left and right swing frames 95, a connecting support shaft 96 connecting the upper end portions of the swing frames 95 is installed in a state of being inserted into the vertical long hole 93 of the plate piece portion 92 in the slide member 90.

[0114] Therefore, when the slide member 90 moves forward and backward in the moving frame 84, the inclination of the swing frame 95 changes according to the position of the connecting support shaft 96 that slides in the vertical long hole 93 in that case. At the lower ends of the left and right swing frames 95 whose inclination changes in this way, the comb member 70 that functions as the first contact member 21 is supported so as to be able to swing about the horizontal axis 94 with the concave curved surface 72 facing downward.

[0115] That is, when the moving frame 84 moves back and forth by the drive of the first upper motor 52a, the position of the swing frame 95 changes in the front-back direction together with the moving frame 84 and the slide member 90. Further, when the slide member 90 moves back and forth by the drive of the second upper motor 52b, the inclination of the swing frame 95 changes. And based on such changes in the position and inclination of the swing frame 95, the position and posture of the comb member 70 which is the first contact member 21 change.

[0116] That is, by driving at least one of the first upper motor 52a and the second upper motor 52b, the comb member 70 which is the first contact member 21 moves above the target tomato 13 to be harvested. Further, when the second upper motor 52b is driven after the comb member 70 which is the first contact member 21 has passed above the target tomato 13 to be harvested in the -Y direction, it is displaced so as to contact the target tomato 13 from the -Y direction side. In this regard, the first upper motor 52a and the second upper motor 52b function as the first drive part that is driven when moving the first contact member 21 to pass above the tomato 13 and when displacing it to contact the tomato 13 in the moving mechanism 23.

[0117] <Second Contact Member> As shown in FIG. 22, on the upper left and right sides of the left and right side plates 81 in the main body 80, movable frames 100 that are paired left and right and are long in the front-rear direction are arranged. The length of the movable frame 100 in the front-rear direction is longer than the length of the side plate 81 in the front-rear direction. At the rear end side rather than the middle in the length direction of the movable frame 100, a pair of horizontal shafts 101 in the front-rear direction are formed so as to protrude inward in the left-right direction which is the X direction. Then, by inserting these horizontal shafts 101 into the upper long holes 82 of the side plates 81 from the outside of the side plates 81, the movable frame 100 can be slidably moved in the front-rear direction which is the Y direction by the drive of a drive unit such as a motor (not shown).

[0118] The front end side rather than the middle in the length direction of the movable frame 100 is shaped to extend with an upward slope toward the front obliquely upward, and a connecting shaft 102 is installed between the front end portions thereof. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 22, the connecting shaft 102 that connects between the front end portions of the movable frame 100 is located above the comb-tooth member 70 which is the first contact member 21 in the up-down direction which is the Z direction. Therefore, when the movable frame 100 moves forward and backward, the connecting shaft 102 can move forward and backward passing above the comb-tooth member 70 which is the first contact member 21. And when the comb-tooth member 70 contacts the target tomato 13 to be harvested from the -Y direction side, and the connecting shaft 102 advances to the -Y direction side which is the side where the fruit axis 15 is located rather than the comb-tooth member 70, the connecting shaft 102 can contact the fruit axis 15 from the +Y direction side with respect to the fruit axis 15.

[0119] In this regard, the connecting shaft 102 at the front end portion of the movable frame 100 functions as a second contact member 22 that can contact the fruit axis 15 during the harvesting operation of the target tomato 13 which is the fruit to be harvested. Furthermore, it can be said that the connecting shaft 102 is an upper second contact member that can pass above the target tomato 13 which is the fruit to be harvested and contact the fruit axis 15. Also, the drive unit (not shown) that is driven to slide the movable frame 100 can be said to be a second drive unit that is driven when moving the second contact member 22 in the moving mechanism 23.

[0120] <Receiving member> As shown in FIG. 22, a receiving member 43 in the shape of a tray is disposed at the lower part of the space formed between the left and right side plates 81 with its concave curved inner surface facing upward. The receiving member 43 is a dish member having a semi-circular cross-section with an open upper side in a cross-section orthogonal to the front-rear direction which is the Y direction, and is configured such that the width dimension in the left-right direction which is the X direction is slightly shorter than the interval between the left and right side plates 81. Plate-like wing portions 43d projecting horizontally toward both left and right outer sides are formed from the upper end edges of the left and right side walls of the receiving member 43. Then, by inserting these left and right wing portions 43d into the lower elongated holes 83 in the side plate 81 so as to project from the inside to the outside of the main body portion 80, the receiving member 43 is made movable in the front-rear direction inside the main body portion 80.

[0121] Also, a lower motor 40 is attached to the lower rear part of the outer surface of the right side plate 81 which is the +X direction in the main body portion 80 with its axial direction along the left-right direction which is the X direction. The output shaft of the lower motor 40 projects toward the inner surface side of the side plate 81. And, as shown in FIG. 22, a lower pinion member 103 is fixed to the output shaft so as to rotate integrally with the output shaft as the lower motor 40 is driven.

[0122] On the other hand, a rack member 104 having an L-shaped cross-section is fixed to the rear end portion of the right side wall of the receiving member 43 in a manner extending horizontally toward the rear side. The rack member 104 is configured such that a rack portion 105 which is a tooth portion formed at its upper end edge meshes with the tooth portion of the lower pinion member 103. Therefore, when the lower pinion member 103 rotates as the lower motor 40 is driven, the receiving member 43 also moves forward and backward in the front-rear direction together with the rack member 104 with which the rack portion 105 meshes. That is, the receiving member 43 can be moved to a position below the comb tooth member 70 which is the first contact member 21 by driving the lower motor 40. In this regard, it can be said that the lower motor 40 is a receiving member driving portion which is driven when moving the receiving member 43. Note that when the receiving member 43 moves forward and backward, the wing portions 43d slide on the lower elongated holes 83 in the side plate 81, so that the receiving member 43 is guided to move forward and backward in a horizontal posture.

[0123] <Operation of the Third Embodiment> Also in this embodiment, the end effector 11 performs a harvesting operation for harvesting the cherry tomato 13 targeted for harvesting from the fruit cluster 14, in the same manner as in the first and second embodiments. Hereinafter, the description will be made with reference to FIGS. 23 to 27.

[0124] As shown in FIG. 23, in the initial state of the harvesting operation, first, the moving body 12 moves forward in the -Y direction by the drive of the moving body drive unit, and the end effector 11 is moved to the front of the fruit cluster 14 where the cherry tomato 13 targeted for harvesting is fruited. Then, next, the first upper motor 52a is driven, and the moving frame 84 moves forward. Therefore, the comb-tooth member 70, which is the first contact member 21 provided on the moving frame 84, moves forward to the front of the fruit axis 15 of the fruit cluster 14 while keeping its tip tilted obliquely upward. During this forward movement, the comb-tooth member 70, which is the first contact member 21, passes above the upper side of the cherry tomato 13, which is the fruit to be harvested, in the same manner as in the second embodiment.

[0125] As shown in FIG. 24, next to the initial state, the second upper motor 52b is driven, and when the slide member 90 moves forward, the swing frame 95 swings the upper end side counterclockwise in FIG. 24 around the horizontal axis 94 at the lower end. Then, the comb-tooth member 70, which is the first contact member 21 with the base end fixed to the lower end of the swing frame 95, is displaced from the posture shown by the two-dot chain line to the posture shown by the solid line as the swing frame 95 swings. Due to this displacement, the comb-tooth member 70, which is the first contact member 21, sandwiches the small fruit stalk 16 in the sandwiching groove 71 and comes into contact with the concave curved surface 72 of the cherry tomato 13 from the front side in the -Y direction.

[0126] As shown in FIG. 25, next to the state of FIG. 24, the lower motor 40 is driven, and the rack member 104 moves forward. Then, the receiving member 43, which fixes the rack member 104 to the rear end portion, also moves forward while sliding the left and right wing portions 43d in the lower long holes 83 of the side plates 81. At this time, the receiving member 43 passes below the cherry tomato 13 targeted for harvesting. Then, the receiving member 43 moves to the receiving position below the comb-tooth member 70, which is the first contact member 21, that is in contact with the cherry tomato 13 targeted for harvesting.

[0127] As shown in FIG. 26, after the state of FIG. 25, when the slide member 90 is advanced slightly by driving the second upper motor 52b, the swing frame 95 swings the upper end side slightly counterclockwise in FIG. 26 with the horizontal axis 94 at the lower end as the swing center. Then, the tip side of the comb member 70, which is the first contact member 21 with the base end fixed to the lower end of the swing frame 95, swings slightly counterclockwise compared to the state of FIG. 25. Along with the counterclockwise swing of this comb member 70, the fruit axis 15 is pulled in the +Y direction (rearward side) through the small fruit stalk 16 at its shaft portion, and deflects and deforms from the posture shown by the two-dot chain line to the posture shown by the solid line in FIG. 26.

[0128] As shown in FIG. 27, after the state of FIG. 26, the movable frame 100 is advanced by driving a driving part (not shown) at the upper part of the main body 80. At this time, the front end of the movable frame 100 passes above the target tomato 13 to be harvested, and contacts the fruit axis 15 in the deflected state shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 27 from the rear side in the +Y direction as the second contact member 22. In this regard, it can be said that the movable frame 100 is an upper second contact member that can pass above the target fruit, the tomato 13 to be harvested, and contact the fruit axis 15. And in that state, the first upper motor 52a is driven to rotate slightly in the opposite direction to before, and the comb member 70, which is the first contact member 21, slightly retreats in the +Y direction while remaining in contact with the tomato 13 from the -Y direction. At the same time, the movable frame 100 is advanced slightly more by driving a driving part (not shown).

[0129] That is, in a state where the comb-tooth member 70, which is the first contact member 21, contacts the target cherry tomato 13 from the front and the connecting shaft 102, which is the second contact member 22, contacts the fruit stalk 15 from the rear, the comb-tooth member 70 and the connecting shaft 102 are moved in a direction away from each other. In other words, both the comb-tooth member 70, which is the first contact member 21, and the connecting shaft 102, which is the second contact member 22, are moved in a direction in which a tensile force acts on the abscission layer 17 of the small fruit stalk 16. Then, due to the action of the tensile force, the tissue of the abscission layer 17 is broken, and the cherry tomato 13 detaches from the small fruit stalk 16 at the abscission layer 17 and falls into the receiving member 43 that is stopped at the receiving position below the comb-tooth member 70 at that time.

[0130] <Effects of the Third Embodiment> In this embodiment, in addition to the effects of (1-1), (1-5), (1-6), and (1-8) in the first embodiment and the effects of (2-2) and (2-3) in the second embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.

[0131] (3-1) In this embodiment, while keeping the first contact member 21 in contact with the target cherry tomato 13 to be harvested and the second contact member 22 in contact with the fruit stalk 15, both the first contact member 21 and the second contact member 22 are moved in a direction in which a tensile force acts on the abscission layer 17 of the small fruit stalk 16. Then, due to the action of the tensile force, the abscission layer 17 is broken, and the small fruit stalk 16 is separated into a tip side and a base side at the abscission layer 17. Therefore, the cherry tomato 13, which is the fruit targeted for harvesting, can be surely detached from the small fruit stalk 16 at the abscission layer 17 and harvested easily.

[0132] (3-2) The connecting shaft 102, which is the second contact member 22, located above the target cherry tomato 13 to be harvested can push away the other cherry tomatoes 13 located above the target cherry tomato 13 to be harvested so as to move away from the target cherry tomato 13 toward the fruit stalk 15 through the upper side of the target cherry tomato 13 to be harvested. Therefore, the risk of accidentally harvesting other cherry tomatoes 13 other than the target for harvesting can be reduced.

[0133] <Modification Example> Note that the above embodiments may be modified as shown in the following modification examples. Also, the configurations included in the embodiments and the configurations included in the following modification examples may be arbitrarily combined, or the configurations included in the following modification examples may be arbitrarily combined with each other.

[0134] (Modification Example of the Second Embodiment) · As in the modification example shown in FIGS. 28 to 31, the end effector 11 may be configured. That is, in this modification example, a part of the main body portion 57 and a part of the rotating arm 77 are different in configuration from those in the second embodiment. First, the protruding frame portion 61 that protruded from both the left and right sides of the main body portion 57 in the second embodiment is replaced with a protruding frame portion 111 having a slightly shorter length in the front-rear direction in this modification example. And, unlike the protruding frame portion 61 in the second embodiment, a notch groove 112 into which the second arm portion 113 of the rotating arm 77 can be inserted is formed by notching forward from the rear end of the protruding frame portion 111 in the protruding frame portion 111 of this modification example. Further, the side view shape of the rotating arm 77 was substantially W-shaped in the second embodiment, but is substantially L-shaped in this modification example, and the second arm portion 113 on the other end side of the support shaft 76 in its length direction is formed in a strip shape instead of a zigzag bent shape. And, the second arm portion 113 that is inserted into the notch groove 112 of the protruding frame portion 111 from the rear side when the rotating arm 77 moves forward has a concave portion 114 formed on the front side edge that comes into contact with the inner back of the notch groove 112 during the insertion.

[0135] As shown in FIG. 28, also in this modification example, when the lower motor 40 is driven as in the case of the second embodiment, the rotating arm 77 moves forward from the position indicated by the two-dot chain line to the position indicated by the solid line together with the support shaft 76. And, the rotating arm 77 has the front side edge of its second arm portion 113 inserted into the notch groove 112 of the protruding frame portion 111 from the rear side and comes into contact with the inner back of the notch groove 112. On the other hand, when the upper motor 52 is driven, the comb-tooth member 70, which is the first contact member 21, swings from the posture indicated by the two-dot chain line to the posture indicated by the solid line and comes into contact with the harvesting target cherry tomato 13 from the -Y direction side.

[0136] As shown in FIGS. 29 and 30, following the state of FIG. 28, the driving of the lower motor 40 is further continued, and the rotating arm 77 further advances together with the support shaft 76. At this time, the rotating arm 77 advances while sliding the second arm portion 113 on the other end side into the inner back of the notch groove 112 of the overhanging frame portion 111. That is, the rotating arm 77 advances while further rotating in the clockwise direction with the support shaft 76 as the rotation center in a state where the recess 114 in the second arm portion 113 on the other end side is engaged with the inner back of the notch groove 112. As a result, the connecting shaft 78 installed between the tips of the first arm portions on one end side of the rotating arm 77 moves while drawing an arc-shaped orbit to a position obliquely upward in front of the mini tomato 13 and the comb-tooth member 70. And by that movement, the connecting shaft 78 comes into contact with the fruit axis 15 of the fruit cluster 14 from the rear side which is the +Y direction with a pressing force.

[0137] As shown in FIG. 31, following the state of FIG. 30, the upper motor 52 is driven again, and the comb-tooth member 70 which is the first contact member 21 is further swung downward a little from the posture shown in FIGS. 29 and 30 at the tip side, and a pulling force is applied to the abscission layer 17 of the pedicel 16. Then, by the action of the pulling force, the tissue of the abscission layer 17 is broken, and the mini tomato 13 detaches from the abscission layer 17 and falls into the receiving member 43 which is stopped at the receiving position below the comb-tooth member 70 at that time. Therefore, also by this modification example, the same effect as that of the second embodiment can be obtained.

[0138] (Modification Example of the Third Embodiment) · As in the modification example shown in FIGS. 32 to 36, the end effector 11 may be configured. As shown in FIGS. 32 and 33, in this modified example, the configurations of the main body 80, the receiving member driving portion, the movable frame 100, and the moving mechanism 23 are different from those of the third embodiment. First, in the third embodiment, the guide groove 85 that was horizontally notched on the side plate 81 of the main body 80 so as to extend rearward from the front edge of the side plate 81 is replaced with a guide long hole 185 that is a long hole similar to the upper long hole 82 and the lower long hole 83 in this modified example. Also, in the third embodiment, the lower motor 40 as the receiving member driving portion provided at the lower rear of the outer surface of the right side plate 81 in the +X direction of the main body 80 is not provided in this modified example. Instead, in this modified example, the first upper motor 52a and the second upper motor 52b are configured to also function as the receiving member driving portion as will be described later.

[0139] Further, in the third embodiment, the rear horizontal axis 101 in the +Y direction among the pair of front and rear horizontal axes 101 provided on the rear end side of the left movable frame 100 in the -X direction is replaced with a long axis 201 in the form of a cantilever beam that is longer than the front horizontal axis 101 in this modified example. The tip of this long axis 201 extends above the left side piece portion 84a in the -X direction of the moving frame 84. And from the tip of this long axis 201, a strip plate portion 202 extending along the front-rear direction and the up-down direction extends rearward in the -Y direction. A rack portion 203 is formed at the lower end edge of the strip plate portion 202. And the upper end tooth portion of the first upper pinion member 86, whose lower end tooth portion meshes with the rack portion 88 formed on the left side piece portion 84a of the moving frame 84, meshes with the rack portion 203.

[0140] That is, in this modification example, a strip plate portion 202 having a rack portion 203 that meshes with the tooth portion of the first upper pinion member 86 is integrally formed with the movable frame 100. Therefore, when the first upper motor 52a rotates in the clockwise direction in FIG. 34, the moving frame 84 that supports the first contact member 21 at the front end via the slide member 90 moves forward, while the movable frame 100 that supports the second contact member 22 at the front end moves backward. Conversely, when the first upper motor 52a rotates in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 34, the moving frame 84 that supports the first contact member 21 at the front end via the slide member 90 moves backward, while the movable frame 100 that supports the second contact member 22 at the front end moves forward.

[0141] Also, in this case, the comb tooth member 70, which is the first contact member 21 supported at the front end of the moving frame 84 via the slide member 90, moves so as to pass above the harvested cherry tomato 13 as the moving frame 84 moves. On the other hand, the connecting shaft 102, which is the second contact member 22 supported at the front end of the movable frame 100, moves so as to pass above the harvested cherry tomato 13 in an upper region than the comb tooth member 70, which is the first contact member 21, as the movable frame 100 moves. In this regard, the first upper motor 52a functions as a first driving unit that is driven when moving the first contact member 21 to pass above the cherry tomato 13 and when moving the second contact member 22 to pass above the cherry tomato 13 in the moving mechanism 23.

[0142] On the other hand, in this modification, when the second upper motor 52b rotates in the clockwise direction in FIG. 34, since the slide member 90 moves forward in the -Y direction, the comb member 70, which is the first contact member 21, swings counterclockwise about the horizontal axis 94 at the base end thereof as the swing center. Therefore, when the second upper motor 52b is driven after the comb member 70, which is the first contact member 21, has passed above the cherry tomato 13 to be harvested in the -Y direction, it is displaced so as to contact the cherry tomato 13 to be harvested from the -Y direction side. In this regard, the second upper motor 52b functions as the second drive unit that is driven when displacing the first contact member 21 in the moving mechanism 23 so as to contact the cherry tomato 13, which is the fruit to be harvested.

[0143] As shown in FIG. 33, a long hole 84c extending along the front-rear direction, which is the Y direction, is formed at the center in the width direction of the bottom plate portion of the moving frame 84 of this modification. Further, between the upper end edges of the left and right side walls of the receiving member 43 located below the moving frame 84, a strip-shaped plate portion 204 extending between the base end portions of the left and right wing portions 43d is installed so as to extend in the left-right direction, which is the X direction. A rectangular through hole 205, for example, is formed at an intermediate position in the length direction of the strip-shaped plate portion 204 and directly below the long hole 84c of the upper moving frame 84. And an elongated plate-shaped hanging portion 90a that hangs downward from the lower surface of the slide member 90 disposed on the upper surface of the moving frame 84 and is inserted into the long hole 84c of the moving frame 84 from above is inserted into the through hole 205 from above.

[0144] Therefore, when the slide member 90 moves forward and backward in the Y direction, the receiving member 43, into which the hanging portion 90a of the slide member 90 is inserted through the through hole 205 of the strip-shaped plate portion 204, also moves forward and backward together with the slide member 90. In other words, when the slide member 90 moves forward and backward together with the moving frame 84 based on the drive of the first upper motor 52a, and when the slide member 90 moves forward and backward based on the drive of the second upper motor 52b, the receiving member 43 moves forward and backward. In this regard, in this modification, the first upper motor 52a and the second upper motor 52b also function as the receiving member drive units as described above.

[0145] As shown in FIG. 34, in this modified example, as in the third embodiment, when the first upper motor 52a is driven to rotate clockwise in FIG. 34, the moving frame 84 advances in the -Y direction, and the slide member 90 advances together with the moving frame 84. As a result, the comb-tooth member 70, which is the first contact member 21 located at the front end of the slide member 90, passes above the cherry tomato 13, which is the fruit to be harvested, while keeping its tip inclined diagonally upward, and advances to just before the fruit axis 15 of the fruit bunch 14. In addition, as the slide member 90 advances, the receiving member 43, in which the hanging part 90a of the slide member 90 is inserted into the through hole 205 of the band-shaped plate part 204, also advances in the same manner. Meanwhile, the connecting shaft 102, which is the second contact member 22 located at the front end of the movable frame 100, retreats together with the movable frame 100 in the +Y direction.

[0146] As shown in FIG. 35, after the state of FIG. 34, the second upper motor 52b is driven to rotate in the clockwise direction in FIG. 35, and the slide member 90 advances, so that the comb-tooth member 70, which is the first contact member 21, swings in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 35. Due to the displacement caused by this swing, the comb-tooth member 70, which is the first contact member 21, clamps the peduncle 16 in the clamping groove 71 and abuts the concave surface 72 against the cherry tomato 13 from the front side in the -Y direction. Furthermore, in this state, the driving of the second upper motor 52b continues, the slide member 90 advances a little further, and the comb-tooth member 70 swings further in the counterclockwise direction. As a result, the axial portion to which the base end of the peduncle 16 is connected in the stalk 15 is pulled by the comb-tooth member 70 via the peduncle 16 and bent in the +Y direction. Also in this case, the slide member 90 advances, and the receiving member 43 advances together with the slide member 90.

[0147] As shown in FIG. 36, following the state of FIG. 35, the first upper motor 52a is driven to rotate counterclockwise in FIG. 36, contrary to before. Since the moving frame 84 retreats in the +Y direction, the slide member 90 also retreats together with the moving frame 84. Therefore, the comb tooth member 70, which is the first contact member 21, moves to the +Y direction side while remaining in contact with the cherry tomato 13 from the -Y direction side. On the other hand, with the counterclockwise rotational drive of the first upper motor 52a, the movable frame 100 moves in the -Y direction. Then, the connecting shaft 102, which is the second contact member 22 located at the front end of the movable frame 100, contacts the fruit stalk 15 in a bent state as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 36 with a pressing force from the +Y direction side.

[0148] Then, both the comb tooth member 70, which is the first contact member 21 moving in the +Y direction, and the connecting shaft 102, which is the second contact member 22 moving in the -Y direction, apply a pulling force to the abscission layer 17 of the small fruit stalk 16. As a result, the tissue of the abscission layer 17 is damaged by the action of the pulling force, and the cherry tomato 13 to be harvested detaches from the small fruit stalk 16 at the location of the abscission layer 17 and falls into the receiving member 43 located below the comb tooth member 70 at that time. Therefore, also with this modification, the same effect as in the third embodiment can be obtained.

[0149] · In the first and second embodiments, the moving mechanism 23 may move the second contact member 22 in the -Y direction side where a tensile force can be applied to the separation layer 17, out of the first contact member 21 in contact with the cherry tomato 13 and the second contact member 22 in contact with the fruit axis 15. Alternatively, the first contact member 21 in contact with the cherry tomato 13 and the second contact member 22 in contact with the fruit axis 15 may each be moved in a direction in which a tensile force can be applied to the separation layer 17. Further, in the third embodiment, the moving mechanism 23 may move only either one of the first contact member 21 in contact with the cherry tomato 13 and the second contact member 22 in contact with the fruit axis 15 in the -Y direction side where a tensile force can be applied to the separation layer 17. In short, during the harvesting operation, the moving mechanism 23 may move at least one of the first contact member 21 in contact with the cherry tomato 13 and the second contact member 22 in contact with the fruit axis 15 in a direction in which a tensile force can be applied to the separation layer 17.

[0150] · As shown in FIGS. 37 to 39, the comb-shaped member 70 functioning as the first contact member 21 in the second embodiment, the third embodiment, and the above modification may have a shape such as the comb-shaped member 70A shown in FIG. 37, the comb-shaped member 70B shown in FIG. 38, and the comb-shaped member 70C shown in FIG. 39. Even with such comb-shaped members 70A, 70B, and 70C, the same effects as those of the second embodiment, the third embodiment, and the above modification can be obtained. Note that bolt holes 115 for inserting bolts for attachment (not shown) are formed in each of the comb-shaped members 70A, 70B, and 70C.

[0151] · In the third embodiment, the receiving member 43 may contact the fruit axis 15 when advancing to the receiving position below the first contact member 21. That is, the receiving member 43 may be configured to receive the cherry tomato 13 that has passed under the cherry tomato 13 to be harvested, is in contact with the fruit axis 15, and has detached from the tip of the small fruit stalk 16 and fallen. In this way, since the receiving member 43 also exhibits the function of the second contact member 22, the receiving member 43 and the second contact member 22 can be combined.

[0152] · The first drive unit, the second drive unit, and the receiving member drive unit that constitute the moving mechanism 23 may be constituted not only by a motor but also by other drive mechanisms such as a cylinder mechanism. · As the shaft member 47 as the guide member in the first embodiment, the entire length direction thereof may be constituted by the spiral portion 50.

[0153] · In the second embodiment, the bent piece portion 79 as the extrusion member may be formed not by bending the front end portion of the lower frame portion 60 but by fixing an inclined plate member to the front end of the lower frame portion 60. · The extrusion member such as the bent piece portion 79 may be omitted. In this case, when the receiving member 43 places the harvested cherry tomato 13 and retreats, it is preferable to change its posture to the payout posture.

[0154] · The receiving member 43 may be configured to pass under the cherry tomato 13 before the first contact member 21 contacts the cherry tomato 13 to be harvested. · Instead of providing the receiving member 43, a net may be stretched below the end effector 11.

[0155] · In the first embodiment, there may be no recessed portion 38 at the front end of the thin-walled portion 24b of the main body portion 24. · The comb-tooth member 70 that constitutes the first contact member 21 may have a flat surface instead of the concave curved surface 72 on the side that contacts the cherry tomato 13 to be harvested.

[0156] · In the first embodiment, the hanging piece portion 35 that constitutes the first contact member 21 may be configured not to have the convex portion 37 for functioning as an enclosing member. · In the modification of the third embodiment in FIGS. 32 to 36, the movable frame 100 that moves forward and backward by the drive of the first upper motor 52a as the first drive unit may have a shape in which the front end side from the middle of its length direction extends downward with a downward slope, for example, obliquely forward. That is, when the movable frame 100 moves forward and backward by the drive of the first upper motor 52a, the connecting shaft 102 as the second contact member 22 located at the front end of the movable frame 100 may be configured to move so as to pass under the cherry tomato 13 to be harvested.

Explanation of Symbols

[0157] 11…End effector for fruit harvester 13…Cherry tomato as an example of fruit 14…Cluster 15…Fruit stalk 16…Peduncle 17…Abscission layer 21…First contact member 22…Second contact member 23…Moving mechanism 35…Hanging piece part as an example of surrounding member 38…Depression part 40…Lower motor as an example of receiving member drive part and second drive part 43…Receiving member 47…Shaft member as an example of guiding member 52…Upper motor as an example of first drive part 52a…First upper motor as an example of first drive part 52b…Second upper motor as an example of first drive part and second drive part 79…Bending piece part as an example of pushing member

Claims

1. An end effector for a fruit harvester used when harvesting a fruit at the tip of a small fruit stalk by detaching the fruit at the abscission layer of the small fruit stalk, comprising: a first contact member provided so as to be able to contact the fruit; a second contact member provided so as to be able to contact a fruit axis to which the base end of the small fruit stalk is connected; a moving mechanism capable of moving at least one of the first contact member and the second contact member in a direction in which a pulling force acts on the abscission layer while maintaining a state in which the first contact member contacts the fruit and a state in which the second contact member contacts the fruit axis; The first contact member has a pair of surrounding members configured to be able to approach and separate from each other in a direction intersecting the direction in which the small fruit stalk extends. The pair of surrounding members surround the small fruit stalk by approaching each other from a state in which they are spaced apart from each other with a gap on both sides of the small fruit stalk. An end effector for a fruit harvester, characterized in that it becomes a surrounding state.

2. An end effector for a fruit harvester used when harvesting a fruit at the tip of a small fruit stalk by detaching the fruit at the abscission layer of the small fruit stalk, comprising: a first contact member provided so as to be able to contact the fruit; a second contact member provided so as to be able to contact a fruit axis to which the base end of the small fruit stalk is connected; a moving mechanism capable of moving at least one of the first contact member and the second contact member in a direction in which a pulling force acts on the abscission layer while maintaining a state in which the first contact member contacts the fruit and a state in which the second contact member contacts the fruit axis; The first contact member is a thin plate-shaped comb-tooth member in which a clamping groove for clamping the small fruit stalk is formed by a notch from the tip. The comb-tooth member is configured to clamp the small fruit stalk in the clamping groove and contact the fruit by swinging the tip side downward with the base end portion of the comb-tooth member as a swing center after passing above the fruit to be harvested. An end effector for a fruit harvester, characterized in that it is configured as described above.

3. The end effector for a fruit harvester according to claim 2, wherein a surface of the comb-tooth member on the side contacting the fruit has a concave curved surface shape.

4. The end effector for a fruit harvester according to claim 1, wherein the second contact member has a recess at the tip for guiding the fruit axis when approaching and contacting the fruit axis.

5. The second abutting member of claim 1 to claim 4, wherein the second abutting member includes at least one of an upper second abutting member that can abut on the fruit axis by passing above the fruit to be harvested and a lower second abutting member that can abut on the fruit axis by passing below the fruit. The end effector for a fruit harvester according to any one of the above claims.

6. An end effector for a fruit harvester used when harvesting a fruit at the tip of a small fruit stalk by detaching it at the abscission layer of the small fruit stalk, A first abutting member provided so as to be able to abut on the fruit, A second abutting member provided so as to be able to abut on the fruit axis to which the base end of the small fruit stalk is connected, A moving mechanism capable of moving at least one of the first abutting member and the second abutting member in a direction in which a tensile force acts on the abscission layer while maintaining a state in which the first abutting member abuts on the fruit and a state in which the second abutting member abuts on the fruit axis, It has a receiving member that moves and receives the fruit that has detached from the small fruit stalk at the abscission layer and falls to a position below the first abutting member at that time, An end effector for a fruit harvester, characterized in that it is provided with a pushing member that can push out the fruit from above the receiving member by moving relative to the receiving member so as to rub against the receiving member above the receiving member.

7. An end effector for a fruit harvester used when harvesting a fruit at the tip of a small fruit stalk by detaching it at the abscission layer of the small fruit stalk, A first abutting member provided so as to be able to abut on the fruit, A second abutting member provided so as to be able to abut on the fruit axis to which the base end of the small fruit stalk is connected, A moving mechanism capable of moving at least one of the first abutting member and the second abutting member in a direction in which a tensile force acts on the abscission layer while maintaining a state in which the first abutting member abuts on the fruit and a state in which the second abutting member abuts on the fruit axis, It has a receiving member that moves and receives the fruit that has detached from the small fruit stalk at the abscission layer and falls to a position below the first abutting member at that time, It has a guide member that slides a part of the receiving member when the receiving member moves and guides it in the moving direction. The guide member has a shape that extends in a spiral in the moving direction of the receiving member, and guides the receiving member that slides on the guide member to move forward and backward in the moving direction while rotating around a horizontal axis. The receiving member is rotatable between a receiving posture in which the fruit that detaches from the tip of the small fruit stalk and falls is advanced to a position below the first abutting member and received, and a discharging posture in which the fruit is discharged downward from a position retreated from below the first abutting member. An end effector for a fruit harvester, characterized in that.

8. The receiving member according to claim 6 or claim 7, wherein the receiving member receives the fruit that detaches from the tip of the small fruit stalk and falls while passing under the fruit to be harvested and abutting against the fruit axis. End effector for fruit harvester.

9. The receiving member according to claim 6 or claim 7, wherein the receiving member moves to the lower side of the fruit to be harvested after the first abutting member abuts against the fruit to be harvested. End effector for fruit harvester.

10. The end effector for a fruit harvester according to claim 6 or claim 7, further comprising a receiving member drive unit that is driven when moving the receiving member.

11. An end effector for a fruit harvester used when harvesting the fruit at the tip of a small fruit stalk by detaching it at the abscission layer of the small fruit stalk, a first abutting member provided so as to be able to abut against the fruit; a second abutting member provided so as to be able to abut against the fruit axis to which the base end of the small fruit stalk is connected; a moving mechanism capable of moving at least one of the first abutting member and the second abutting member in a direction in which a tensile force acts on the abscission layer while maintaining a state in which the first abutting member abuts against the fruit and the second abutting member abuts against the fruit axis; The end effector for a fruit harvester, characterized in that the moving mechanism includes a first drive unit that is driven when moving the first abutting member so as to pass above the fruit to be harvested and when displacing the first abutting member so as to abut against the fruit, and a second drive unit that is driven when moving the second abutting member so as to pass through at least one of the upper and lower sides of the fruit.

12. An end effector for a fruit harvester used when harvesting a fruit at the tip of a small fruit stalk by detaching it at the abscission layer of the small fruit stalk, a first contact member provided so as to be able to contact the fruit, a second contact member provided so as to be able to contact a fruit axis to which the base end of the small fruit stalk is connected, a moving mechanism capable of moving at least one of the first contact member and the second contact member in a direction in which a tensile force acts on the abscission layer while maintaining a state in which the first contact member is in contact with the fruit and a state in which the second contact member is in contact with the fruit axis, and the moving mechanism includes a first drive unit that is driven when moving the first contact member so as to pass above the fruit to be harvested, and when moving the second contact member so as to pass at least one of the upper side and the lower side of the fruit, and a second drive unit that is driven when displacing the first contact member so as to contact the fruit. An end effector for a fruit harvester, characterized by comprising.

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