Berry Harvester Rake Cleaning via Vibrating Roller
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current mechanical blueberry harvesters face inefficiencies due to berry loss during rake cleaning, as debris accumulation reduces harvesting efficiency and valuable berries are squashed or fall during the cleaning process.
Innovation Solution
A berry harvester design featuring a rake head with spaced teeth and a cleaner system, including a roller and protrusions, that vibrates and slides along the rake teeth to dislodge debris while minimizing berry loss by allowing berries to fall into the collector under gravity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a slidable cleaning bar is added to clean rake teeth during harvesting, then the rake cleaning efficiency is improved, but berry loss increases due to squashing and falling
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a vibrating cleaner that oscillates vertically along the rake teeth. This vibration mechanism gently dislodges debris and berries from the teeth without the crushing force of horizontal sliding, allowing berries to fall safely into the collector while removing accumulated debris efficiently
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the traditional horizontal sliding cleaning mechanism with a vertical vibrating cleaning mechanism. This substitution changes the cleaning approach from forceful horizontal movement that crushes berries to gentle vertical oscillation that dislodges debris without causing berry damage
2Productivity
If the rake is cleaned periodically during harvesting, then the harvesting efficiency is maintained, but time is lost during cleaning operations
Solution Approach 1:
The vibrating cleaner is designed to operate continuously during the harvesting process, allowing debris to be removed from rake teeth in real-time without stopping the harvester. This continuous cleaning action maintains harvesting efficiency while eliminating the need for separate cleaning stops
Solution Approach 2:
The cleaning system is integrated into the harvesting mechanism itself, with the vibrating cleaner automatically removing debris from the rake teeth during normal operation. This self-service cleaning capability eliminates the need for manual intervention or separate cleaning operations, saving time while maintaining efficiency
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution effectively cleans the rake teeth, maximizing berry collection and reducing debris accumulation, thereby optimizing the mechanized harvesting process by minimizing berry loss and maintaining harvesting efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
a roller rotatably mounted to the berry harvester, below the rake head, proximate to the tooth base, and abutting the rake head, at least one of the rake head and the roller having a plurality of notches juxtaposed to the other one of the rake head and the roller to vibrate the rake head when the roller is rotating
Implementation Method 2
Their transfer towards the collector is usually made by tilting up the rake, orienting it substantially vertically so that gravity will pull the berries toward the base of the rake, where the collector can collect them
Data Source
AI summary
A berry harvester movable along berry bushes in a berry field for picking berries includes a rake head having a plurality of spaced apart rake teeth. The rake teeth form a rake having a top face for collecting berries and a bottom face which faces a ground of the berry field in a harvesting position. A cleaner is mounted on the rake head and is juxtaposed to a bottom face of the rake and has protrusions extending in interspaces defined between the rake teeth from the bottom face towards the top face.