Peach Pitting Machine with Detection and Recycling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing peach pitting machines fail to accurately detect the supporting condition of fruit halves on conveyor lanes and the presence of pits or fragments, leading to inefficient processing and potential misalignment during cutting.
Innovation Solution
A multiple lane machine equipped with a detecting station using cameras to assess the supporting condition and presence of pits or fragments, a control unit to evaluate correctness, and communication means to guide the cutting and separation processes, while a recycling conveyor returns misaligned fruit halves to the loading station.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If traditional pitting machines operate without detection systems, then the processing speed is maintained, but the positioning accuracy and pit detection capability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The detection station performs preliminary detection of the supporting condition and pit presence before the fruit halves reach the cutting station. This advance detection allows the system to prepare appropriate actions (cutting, separating, or recycling) without disrupting the continuous flow of the production line, thus improving measurement precision without significantly increasing operational complexity
Solution Approach 2:
A control unit acts as an intermediary between the detection station and the cutting/separation mechanisms. The control unit receives detection data, processes it, and sends appropriate control signals to the cutting station and separation mechanism, thereby managing the complexity of the detection system while maintaining accurate control over the pitting process
2Productivity
If all fruit halves are processed through the cutting station, then processing continuity is maintained, but energy and time are wasted on fruit halves with incorrect positioning or without pits
Solution Approach 1:
The detection station provides feedback information about the supporting condition and pit presence of each fruit half to the control unit. Based on this feedback, the control unit selectively activates the cutting station only for fruit halves that require pitting, and directs misaligned or pit-free fruit halves to the recycling conveyor. This feedback mechanism eliminates unnecessary processing steps, thereby improving productivity while reducing time loss
Solution Approach 2:
Different processing actions are applied to different fruit halves based on their individual characteristics detected by the detection station. Fruit halves with correct positioning and pits undergo cutting, while those with incorrect positioning or no pits are recycled. This localized quality-based processing ensures that each fruit half receives the appropriate treatment, optimizing productivity and minimizing time loss
3Loss of substance
If misaligned fruit halves are discarded, then processing simplicity is maintained, but material waste increases
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of discarding misaligned or pit-free fruit halves, the system recycles them back to the loading station through a recycling conveyor. The detection station identifies these fruit halves, and the control unit directs them to the recycling mechanism, which returns them to the beginning of the process for re-positioning and re-detection. This recovering approach minimizes material waste while managing the complexity of the recycling mechanism
Data Source
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AI summary
A method for pitting and re-pitting fruit halves, in particular peach halves, has steps of lifting fruit halves from a loading area to a feeding zone, feeding the fruit halves to an advancing lane, moving the fruit halves forward, detecting the supporting condition of each fruit half and a presence of pit or pit fragments, if any, assessing the supporting condition as correct or incorrect, communicating the presence of pit or pit fragments, if any, in the fruit half, pit removing, if any, delivering the fruit halves to their further treatment or bringing them back to the step of lifting the fruit halves, in case their supporting condition is assessed as incorrect. There is disclosed a multi-lane machine having a detecting station (9), a control unit (10), communication means for sending information to a cutting station (8) and to a separating station (13) for delivering the fruit halves to their further treatment or to the loading area of the machine.