Stem-Guided Harvesting Head for Peduncle Cutting and Collection
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing harvesting devices for greenhouse cultivation are inefficient in cutting and collecting horticultural produce, such as tomatoes, bell peppers, and cucumbers, as they are slow, require complex movements, and fail to process cut leaves and side shoots effectively.
Innovation Solution
A harvesting device with a guiding member that surrounds the plant stem, a cutting member to remove peduncles, side shoots, and petioles, and a storage member to collect produce, all configured to move relative to the stem, allowing for efficient cutting and collection without clamping, using gravitational forces and adjustable geometry to handle different types of produce.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the plant stem is clamped to exert upward cutting force onto the tomatoes to effect separation, then the tomatoes can be harvested, but the plant stem is damaged and the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the harmful clamping action from the harvesting process. Instead of clamping the stem to cut the tomatoes, the device guides the stem through a passage and uses a cutting member that moves relative to the stem to separate the tomatoes. This removes the damaging clamping force while maintaining harvesting effectiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention inverts the traditional approach by not clamping the stem to cut tomatoes, but rather guiding the stem and cutting the tomatoes without stem clamping. The relative movement between the cutting member and stem achieves separation without the harmful clamping action that would otherwise be necessary.
2Productivity
If sensors are used to find and follow the plant stem to locate ripe produce, then harvesting can be performed, but the operational speed decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The plant stem is pre-guided through the passage before the cutting action occurs. This preliminary guidance action simplifies the subsequent harvesting operation, allowing the cutting member to simply move relative to the already-positioned stem without requiring complex sensor-based tracking during the cutting process.
3Productivity
If the cutting device surrounds the plant stem and is moved along it, then leaves and side shoots can be cut, but the produce cannot be harvested and processed
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges the cutting function with the produce harvesting and storage function in a single integrated device. The cutting member cuts the peduncles to separate produce from the stem, and the storage member simultaneously collects and stores the separated produce, combining multiple functions into one cohesive system.
Solution Approach 2:
The device is designed with multi-functionality, serving as both a cutting device for leaves and side shoots and a harvesting device for produce. The same guiding member and cutting member structure enables both cutting operations, while the added storage member provides the additional function of produce collection and storage.
4Productivity
If manual intervention is required to catch and move produce to storage, then produce can be stored, but the operational speed decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The device is configured to automatically guide the plant stem through the passage and the cutting member automatically cuts the peduncles to separate produce. The storage member then automatically receives and stores the separated produce without requiring manual intervention to catch and move the produce, making the system self-servicing.
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 device enables rapid and efficient harvesting of horticultural produce by minimizing stem contact, autonomously collecting cut items, and adapting to various plant geometries, reducing operational complexity and improving productivity.
Implementation Method 1
using gravitational forces and adjustable geometry to manage different types of produce
Data Source
Figure 1A~1D
Figure 2A
Figure 2B
AI summary
The present invention relates to a harvesting device for harvesting horticultural produce, the device comprising a guiding member (10), which defines a plant passage (11) being configured to surround the plant stem at least partially in the plant passage during use, and a cutting member (21), which is attached to the guiding member and which is configured to cut peduncles of the produce (102) to separate them from the stems. The plant stems are configured to be guided inside the guiding member upon relative movements of the harvesting device along the plant stem along a longitudinal axis and the cutting member is configured to cut the peduncles that pass the guiding member during movement of the harvesting device. The harvesting device further comprises a storage member (30), which surrounds the guiding member at least partially and which is configured to collect the produce that is separated from the plant stems.