Flexible Wire Fruit Harvesting Guide for Young Trees
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fruit harvesting devices are complex, unsuitable for young fruit trees, and fail to collect small fruits like blueberries effectively due to clearance between collecting plates and excessive force on the stem, leading to manual picking or missed harvests.
Innovation Solution
The device employs wirelike, flexible elements extending from one longitudinal side to the other, allowing for gentle contact with the stem, eliminating clearance and reducing force, with adjustable length, thickness, and angle to ensure reliable fruit collection and easy production.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If rigid collecting plates are used to guide fruit, then fruit collection reliability is improved, but forces on the plant stem increase and young trees cannot be harvested
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces rigid collecting plates with flexible wire elements that can adapt to the stem diameter. These wire elements form a flexible guiding structure that maintains fruit collection reliability while accommodating variations in stem size without exerting excessive force on young or delicate trees.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the physical parameters of the guiding structure from rigid plates to flexible wires with specific diameter ranges (0.3-2 mm). This parameter change allows the structure to be sufficiently flexible to protect young stems while maintaining enough structural integrity to reliably guide and collect fruit.
2Strength
If rigid collecting plates are used, then structural strength is improved, but clearance remains between plates allowing small fruit to escape
Solution Approach 1:
The flexible wire elements can conform to the stem surface and close gaps between guiding elements that would exist with rigid plates. This flexibility allows the structure to adapt to the stem's shape and eliminate clearances where small fruit like blueberries could escape, while maintaining sufficient structural strength through proper wire selection.
3Extent of automation
If complex mechanical mechanisms are used for fruit dislodgment, then harvesting automation is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the complex mechanical fruit dislodgment mechanism from the harvesting device. By using simple flexible wire elements for fruit guidance and collection, the system achieves effective harvesting without requiring complicated dislodgment mechanisms, thereby reducing overall device complexity while maintaining automation capability.
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 provides reliable fruit collection with reduced force on the stem, suitable for young trees, and adaptable to various fruit sizes, ensuring efficient harvesting with minimal manual intervention and reduced waste.
Implementation Method 1
fruit being dislodged will slide from the higher, second longitudinal side to the lower, first longitudinal side and the adjoining fruit collecting device under the influence of gravity
Data Source
AI summary
A device which is suitable for harvesting fruit hanging from a plant at least having a mobile frame, which frame at least comprises two opposite, longitudinal sides for guiding fruit. The frame further comprises fruit collecting devices adjoining the first longitudinal side. At least one longitudinal side is provided with wirelike, flexible elements extending from the first longitudinal side, over which elements the fruit can be guided.