NZ617033B2 - Method and system for eliminating residue from a flow of harvest - Google Patents
Method and system for eliminating residue from a flow of harvest Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- NZ617033B2 NZ617033B2 NZ617033A NZ61703312A NZ617033B2 NZ 617033 B2 NZ617033 B2 NZ 617033B2 NZ 617033 A NZ617033 A NZ 617033A NZ 61703312 A NZ61703312 A NZ 61703312A NZ 617033 B2 NZ617033 B2 NZ 617033B2
- Authority
- NZ
- New Zealand
- Prior art keywords
- harvest
- flow
- residue
- conveyor
- eliminating
- Prior art date
Links
- 238000003306 harvesting Methods 0.000 title claims abstract description 120
- 235000013399 edible fruits Nutrition 0.000 claims abstract description 32
- 238000003379 elimination reaction Methods 0.000 claims abstract description 31
- 238000004140 cleaning Methods 0.000 claims abstract description 22
- 238000007664 blowing Methods 0.000 claims abstract description 3
- 238000011144 upstream manufacturing Methods 0.000 claims description 27
- 238000000926 separation method Methods 0.000 claims description 10
- 241001125929 Trisopterus luscus Species 0.000 claims description 3
- 238000004080 punching Methods 0.000 claims description 2
- 235000021028 berry Nutrition 0.000 description 19
- 241000219094 Vitaceae Species 0.000 description 18
- 235000021021 grapes Nutrition 0.000 description 18
- 239000000463 material Substances 0.000 description 7
- 239000002023 wood Substances 0.000 description 6
- 241000219095 Vitis Species 0.000 description 5
- 235000014787 Vitis vinifera Nutrition 0.000 description 5
- 235000009754 grape Nutrition 0.000 description 5
- 235000012333 grape Nutrition 0.000 description 5
- 239000010410 layer Substances 0.000 description 5
- 210000000614 Ribs Anatomy 0.000 description 4
- 238000009826 distribution Methods 0.000 description 4
- 230000000694 effects Effects 0.000 description 4
- 230000000295 complement Effects 0.000 description 2
- 239000002245 particle Substances 0.000 description 2
- 230000035515 penetration Effects 0.000 description 2
- 238000011084 recovery Methods 0.000 description 2
- 241001465180 Botrytis Species 0.000 description 1
- 241000196324 Embryophyta Species 0.000 description 1
- 241000207836 Olea <angiosperm> Species 0.000 description 1
- 241000533293 Sesbania emerus Species 0.000 description 1
- 230000015572 biosynthetic process Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000000903 blocking Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000005260 corrosion Methods 0.000 description 1
- 239000000284 extract Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000000605 extraction Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000005755 formation reaction Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000005484 gravity Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000002184 metal Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000005012 migration Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000000203 mixture Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000004048 modification Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000006011 modification reaction Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000000051 modifying Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000001105 regulatory Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000002356 single layer Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000005507 spraying Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000003892 spreading Methods 0.000 description 1
- 238000003860 storage Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000003746 surface roughness Effects 0.000 description 1
- 229920002994 synthetic fiber Polymers 0.000 description 1
Classifications
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A01—AGRICULTURE; FORESTRY; ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; HUNTING; TRAPPING; FISHING
- A01D—HARVESTING; MOWING
- A01D46/00—Picking of fruits, vegetables, hops, or the like; Devices for shaking trees or shrubs
- A01D46/28—Vintaging machines, i.e. grape harvesting machines
- A01D46/285—Vintaging machines, i.e. grape harvesting machines with means for separating leaves and grapes, e.g. pneumatical means like blowing or aspirating devices
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A23—FOODS OR FOODSTUFFS; TREATMENT THEREOF, NOT COVERED BY OTHER CLASSES
- A23L—FOODS, FOODSTUFFS, OR NON-ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES, NOT COVERED BY SUBCLASSES A21D OR A23B-A23J; THEIR PREPARATION OR TREATMENT, e.g. COOKING, MODIFICATION OF NUTRITIVE QUALITIES, PHYSICAL TREATMENT; PRESERVATION OF FOODS OR FOODSTUFFS, IN GENERAL
- A23L19/00—Products from fruits or vegetables; Preparation or treatment thereof
- A23L19/03—Products from fruits or vegetables; Preparation or treatment thereof consisting of whole pieces or fragments without mashing the original pieces
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A23—FOODS OR FOODSTUFFS; TREATMENT THEREOF, NOT COVERED BY OTHER CLASSES
- A23N—MACHINES OR APPARATUS FOR TREATING HARVESTED FRUIT, VEGETABLES OR FLOWER BULBS IN BULK, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; PEELING VEGETABLES OR FRUIT IN BULK; APPARATUS FOR PREPARING ANIMAL FEEDING- STUFFS
- A23N15/00—Machines or apparatus for other treatment of fruits or vegetables for human purposes; Machines or apparatus for topping or skinning flower bulbs
- A23N15/02—Machines or apparatus for other treatment of fruits or vegetables for human purposes; Machines or apparatus for topping or skinning flower bulbs for stemming, piercing, or stripping fruit; Removing sprouts of potatoes
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B07—SEPARATING SOLIDS FROM SOLIDS; SORTING
- B07B—SEPARATING SOLIDS FROM SOLIDS BY SIEVING, SCREENING, SIFTING OR BY USING GAS CURRENTS; SEPARATING BY OTHER DRY METHODS APPLICABLE TO BULK MATERIAL, e.g. LOOSE ARTICLES FIT TO BE HANDLED LIKE BULK MATERIAL
- B07B4/00—Separating solids from solids by subjecting their mixture to gas currents
- B07B4/08—Separating solids from solids by subjecting their mixture to gas currents while the mixtures are supported by sieves, screens, or like mechanical elements
Abstract
method and apparatus to eliminating residue from a flow of harvested produce such as fruit is disclosed. The harvest flow is delivered to an inclined surface (4) that is arranged to allow the flow of harvest (G) to travel over it. The surface includes air passages. Blowing air through the passages ejects residue from the flow of harvest as it is routed over the surface creating two streams, produce and residue, assisted by a deflector plate (15). The invention also concerns a residue elimination system for implementing such a method, a cleaning assembly comprising such an elimination system, and a fruit harvesting machine including such a cleaning assembly or such an elimination system. De-stemming fruit is also disclosed. The inclined surface may be a perforated or woven grill. ejects residue from the flow of harvest as it is routed over the surface creating two streams, produce and residue, assisted by a deflector plate (15). The invention also concerns a residue elimination system for implementing such a method, a cleaning assembly comprising such an elimination system, and a fruit harvesting machine including such a cleaning assembly or such an elimination system. De-stemming fruit is also disclosed. The inclined surface may be a perforated or woven grill.
Description
METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR ELIMINATING RESIDUE
FROM A FLOW OF HARVEST
The invention relates to a method of eliminating residue from a flow of
harvest containing fruit, a residue elimination system for implementing such a
method, a cleaning assembly including such an elimination system, and a fruit
harvesting machine including such a cleaning assembly or such an elimination
system.
The invention applies to the field of the mechanised harvesting of fruit
growing on trees or bushes, such as grapes, berries, coffee beans, olives and
other fruits notably growing in bunches.
Such fruit is conventionally harvested by a shaker system that straddles a
row of plants to detach the harvest. The flow of harvest obtained is then
conveyed in the machine to be stored in at least one hopper provided for this
purpose or in an ancillary trailer.
However, because of the action of shaker system, the flow of harvest
includes, in addition to the detached fruit, notably juice, leaves, stalks, particles
of wood, bunches of fruit of varied sizes.
To eliminate components other than fruit, in particular leaves and pieces
of wood, harvesting machines include a cleaning device that is provided to
eliminate said components from the flow by suction before storage.
Moreover, the search for quality in the field of vinification requires the
elimination of green residue, notably leaf stalks, contained in the flow of harvest.
However, the prior art does not satisfactorily enable such elimination in the
harvesting machine.
The document FR-2 878 172 describes a system for eliminating residue
from a flow of harvested grapes, said system including a sorting enclosure from
which a layer of grapes and residue falls vertically, means for creating an air
blade across said layer to redirect the lighter residue along a trajectory deflected
relative to the trajectory along which the grapes fall, and separation means
disposed downstream of the means for creating an air blade in order to separate
the deflected trajectories of the residue and the falling grapes.
This system is not entirely satisfactory, however, in that a substantial part
of the residue may not be deflected. The air blade is characterised by a large
width and a very small height. Consequently, elongate elements such as leaf
stalks that have assumed a vertical position on passing in front of said air blade
are not deflected relative to the other elements. Moreover, during this passage,
the layer of harvest is in free fall. The speed of the product is therefore too high
relative to the height of the blade to enable satisfactory deflection of the residue.
Finally, the relative position of the falling elements may lead to a leaf stalk being
masked by surrounding grapes with the result that the air blade is unable to
separate them.
The invention aims to improve on the prior art notably by proposing a
method and a system for eliminating residue from a flow of harvest that enable
the quality of said harvest to be significantly improved, or at least to provide the
public with a useful choice.
To this end, and according to a first aspect, the invention proposes a
method of eliminating residue from a flow of harvest containing fruit, said
method comprising:
moving a flow of harvest by a motorized conveyor in a longitudinal
conveying direction between upstream and downstream transverse shafts;
feeding the flow of harvest to an inclined surface positioned in continuity
with the conveyor and arranged to allow said flow of harvest to travel over it,
said surface including an array of air passages; and
blowing air through said passages in order to eject residue from the flow
of harvest as it is routed over said surface.
According to a second aspect the invention proposes a system for
eliminating residue from a flow of harvest by using such a method, said system
including:
a motorised conveyor for moving the flow of harvest in a longitudinal
conveying direction between upstream and downstream transverse shafts;
a separator device including a surface disposed in continuity with the
conveyor in order to be fed with the flow of harvest by said conveyor, said
surface being inclined to enable the flow of harvest to be routed over said
surface, said surface further including an array of air passages in
communication with blower means for ejecting residue from the flow of harvest
as it is routed over said surface.
According to a third aspect, the invention proposes a cleaning assembly
for a flow of harvest including such a residue elimination system and a
destemming device including a screen that is motorised in a longitudinal
direction between an upstream transverse shaft and a downstream transverse
shaft, said screen including openings adapted to allow the fruit to pass through,
said destemming device further including means adapted to interact with the
flow of harvest disposed on a downstream portion of the screen in order to bring
about the separation of fruit attached to the bunch stems, the conveyor being
disposed below an upstream portion of said screen and the machine further
including a conveyor for feeding the flow of harvest onto said upstream portion.
According to a fourth aspect, the invention proposes a fruit harvesting
machine including a motorised support structure and a harvesting assembly
mounted on said structure, said harvesting assembly being adapted to detach
the harvest, said machine including such a residue elimination system or such a
cleaning assembly that is fed with the flow of harvest from the harvesting
assembly.
Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent in
the course of the following description, given with reference to the appended
figures, in which:
Figures 1 and 2 represent diagrammatically in longitudinal section a
residue elimination system of a respective embodiment of the invention;
Figure 3 shows diagrammatically the operation of a residue elimination
system of the invention;
Figure 4 represents diagrammatically in perspective a roller of a conveyor
equipping a leaf stalk elimination system of the embodiments of Figures 1 and 2;
Figures 5a-5c represent diagrammatically the surface of a separator
device showing the air passages in a respective embodiment of the invention;
Figures 6 represent diagrammatically the disposition of an elimination
system and a destemming device above a hopper of a harvesting machine, from
the side (Figure 6a), from above (Figure 6b), and from the front (Figure 6c).
The invention is applicable to a machine for harvesting fruit, in particular
a harvester for the mechanised harvesting of grapes, notably with a view to their
subsequent vinification. A harvester conventionally includes a motorised support
structure that is equipped with a driver station and a harvesting assembly
mounted on said structure.
The harvester is designed to straddle at least one row of vines so that, as
it moves, the vines are introduced successively into the harvesting assembly,
which is adapted to detach the harvest. To this end, the harvesting assembly
includes vine shakers, notably a row of shakers on each side of the space into
which the vines are introduced.
The harvester also includes a system for continuous recovery of the
detached harvest that includes, in addition to the detached grapes G, notably
leaf stalks P, juice, leaves, pieces of wood, bunches of varied sizes. In one
embodiment, the system includes two bucket conveyors adapted to recover the
detached harvest below the introduction space and to convey said harvest into
the upper portion of the harvester in order to be able to store said harvest in at
least one hopper.
In the context of vinification of grapes, it is desirable to eliminate the
residue contained in the flow of harvest, notably green residue such as large
and small stalks P, leaves, branches and pieces of wood in order for said
harvest to be stored substantially free of said residue.
There is described hereinafter a residue elimination system for doing this
that is notably intended to be mounted in the machine in order to be fed with the
flow of harvest from the harvesting assembly. The elimination system may be
fed directly with the flow from the harvesting assembly. Alternatively, the
elimination system may be fed via a cleaning device and/or a sorting device. In
particular, if the flow of harvest is a flow of grapes, the elimination system may
further be fed by a destemming device enabling separation of the grapes G
attached to the bunch stems.
In another embodiment, the elimination system may be installed at a
stationary station in order to eliminate residue from a flow previously harvested,
notably by a harvesting machine, and then stored.
The residue elimination system includes a motorised conveyor 1 for
moving the flow of harvest in a longitudinal conveying direction L1 between
upstream and downstream transverse shafts 2 and 3, respectively, and a
separator device including a support having a surface 4 disposed in continuity
with said conveyor in order to be fed with the flow of harvest by said conveyor.
Referring to the figures, the conveyor 1 includes a plurality of rollers 5
spaced longitudinally, said rollers being driven in rotation to move the flow of
harvest on said rollers in a longitudinal direction L1.
Given that they are brought into contact with the flow of harvest, the
rollers 5 are preferably made from a corrosion-resistant material, notably a
stainless metal or a synthetic material. Moreover, the rollers 5 have a geometry
of revolution which, when they rotate, causes longitudinal movement of the flow
of harvest with limited mechanical loads exerted on the fruit.
Each roller 5 is fixedly mounted on a bar 6 (Figure 3) driven in rotation,
said roller including a bore the geometry of which is complementary to that of
said bar in order to assure the circumferential fixing of said roller to said bar. In
particular, the bars 6 have a polygonal section and each of the rollers 5 includes
a bore of complementary section.
For optimum elimination of residue, the separator system must be fed as
homogeneously as possible by the conveyor 1 and with the best possible
distribution. To this end, each of the rollers 5 has a surface of revolution
including grooves 5a that extend transversely and continuously over its entire
length (Figure 4).
In the embodiment shown, each of the rollers 5 includes a plurality of
grooves 5a each of which has a U-shaped section and which are separated in
the circumferential direction by axial ribs 5b, each of said ribs extending
transversely and continuously over the entire length of said roller and having an
inverted U-shaped section. The shape and the arrangement of the grooves and
ribs between two adjacent rollers are such as not to degrade the grapes G
transferred by the rollers 5.
Such a circumferential distribution of the grooves 5a and the ribs 5b
enables longitudinal movement in the direction L1 of the flow of harvest .
Causing the lower layer of the transferred product to move allows the grapes G
to migrate laterally and to occupy the entire width of the conveyor 1. The
distribution of the flow on the conveyor 1 is therefore the optimum. Thus the
conveyor 1 feeds the separator device with a flow of harvest having a limited
thickness, which enables improvement in the elimination of residue effected by
said separator device. The speed of the conveyor 1 may be modulated as a
function of the quantity of product transferred, enabling this limited thickness to
be preserved.
In particular, the conveyor 1 is conventionally fed with the flow of harvest
by forming on the rollers 5 a swath having a plurality of layers and a limited
transverse dimension.
The rollers 5 enable longitudinal driving of the base of the swaths and
transverse distribution of said swaths so as to obtain after only a few rollers 5 a
spreading of the flow of harvest in substantially a single layer. Furthermore, the
grooves 5a enable evacuation of juice, pulp and small elements such as pips to
assure presorting of the flow of harvest.
In an embodiment that is not shown, the conveyor 1 may take the form of
a smooth belt or any other system adapted to move the flow of harvest. In
Figure 2, the conveyor 1 includes longitudinal rods 20 that extend over an
upstream part of said conveyor, said rods being adapted to limit transverse
migration of the conveyed flow of harvest in the event of transverse inclination of
the conveyor 1, in particular by the inclination of the harvesting machine.
The surface 4 is inclined to allow the flow of harvest to be routed over
said surface and includes air passages in communication with blower means 7
to enable the ejection of residue from the flow of harvest being routed.
In particular, referring to Figure 3, a combination of physical
characteristics enables separation of usable grape berries G and residue. The
usable berries G have a substantially spherical external shape, giving them a
low drag coefficient Cx. This good air penetration feature is all the greater as the
external surface of a grape berry G has an extremely low roughness. Moreover,
the mass of a berry G is high relative to the area of resistance that it offers to the
flow of air. All these elements mean that a controlled flow of air has very little
impact on the trajectory of a moving spherical grape berry G.
The residue likely to be present in the flow of product is of various kinds:
large and small leaf stalks, pieces of leaf, wood, etc. None of these elements
has all of the features cited in the preceding paragraph: good air penetration
(Cx), element surface roughness, mass relative to the area of the element.
Consequently, a flow of product composed of grape berries G and residue
subjected to a flow of air over the surface 4 leads to separation of the
trajectories of each component of the product. The berries G are not impacted
by the flow of air, and their rotation movement as they drop onto the surface 4 is
substantially unchanged. On the other hand, the residue is separated from the
berries G because of the modification of their trajectory by said flow of air.
It has also been experienced that the difference in drag coefficient Cx
between a healthy berry and an infected berry is sufficient to separate the one
from the other. When the berry is covered or partly covered with mould, such as
botrytis, the effect on the surface is such that the Cx coefficient is raised
substantially. A raise in drag coefficient is equally is found in damaged or dried
berries, which no longer have a good spherical shape. Also these are
separated from the healthy berries.
The separator device may include a box 8 that has an upper surface 4
forming a support and an internal chamber that establishes communication
between the air passages and the blower means 7.
In a different embodiment that is not shown, the conveyor may have an
upstream portion over which the flow of harvest moves in a longitudinal direction
L1 and an inclined downstream portion, said downstream portion including at
least one roller with perforations forming air passages over its surface of
revolution, and an internal chamber that establishes communication between
said air passages and the blower means.
In one embodiment the surface 4 is inclined relative to the longitudinal
direction L1 of the conveyor 1 at an angle in the range 30° to 60°, in particular of
the order of 45°. Thus the flow of harvest is routed over the surface 4 with a
speed adapted to enable ejection of the residue and does not accumulate on
said surface. Moreover, the conveyor 1 may include means for regulating its
speed in order for the flow of harvest to be transferred over the surface 4 at an
appropriate speed for said flow of harvest to remain for a sufficiently long time
on said surface.
In the embodiments shown, the elimination system includes an upper
beam 22 disposed above the downstream shaft 3 of the conveyor 1, a flexible
bib 23 being associated with said beam and extending just in front of said
downstream shaft and over substantially the entire transverse dimension of the
conveyor 1 in order to slow down the conveyed flow of harvest before it is routed
over the surface 4. The flexible bib 23 imposes contact of the grapes G with the
surface 4 and prevents any spraying of juice. Thus the flow of harvest is fed
over the surface 4 at a low speed, said flow accelerating on the surface 4 to
increase the overall routing time and thus to improve the ejection of residue.
The inclination of the surface 4 relative to the longitudinal direction L1 of
the conveyor 1 may be adjusted to adapt it to the flow of harvest. Moreover, as
shown in the figures, the surface 4 may be plane. In a different embodiment that
is not shown, the surface 4 may be slightly domed, in particular in a parabolic
manner, to limit the speed of the flow at the start of routing, and then to
accelerate it in order to improve the ejection of residue. Thus the surface 4 may
be adapted to the trajectory of the grapes.
The surface 4 may include a woven grill 12 through which are formed air
passages 13. Figure 5a is an enlarged representation of such a grill 12.
Alternatively, the surface 4 may have an array of perforations 14 forming air
passages. Figures 5b and 5c represent such perforations 14, respectively with
an oblong geometry (Figure 5b) and a circular geometry (Figure 5c).
In particular, the perforations 14 may be produced by punching the
surface 4 from its right side so as to form rounded edges on the surface for
routing the flow of harvest, which improves the exit of air and limits blocking of
the perforations 14.
The oblong holes of Figure 5b may extend along parallel, horizontal lines
and have a length to height ratio of 4 to 1 or greater.
The air passages 13, 14 enable the formation of an air cushion with a
high flow of air. In particular, the passages 14 are distributed over the surface 4,
on the one hand, so that the grapes G cannot block two passages 14 at a time,
in order to prevent their ejection and improve their routing, and, on the other
hand, so that residue with a more extensive geometry is ejected.
In particular, the passages 14 may be disposed in a quincunx
arrangement and have a small longitudinal dimension, for example less than 5
mm, notably in the range 2 mm to 3 mm. Moreover, the percentage of passages
13, 14 on the surface 4 may be in the range 30% to 50%, for example of the
order of 40%.
Moreover, the blower means 7 may be adapted to direct into the internal
chamber of the box 8 a flow of air with a flow rate and/or a pressure sufficiently
high to enable satisfactory ejection of residue. In one embodiment, the air speed
may be in the range 8 m/s to 12 m/s at a distance of 25 mm from the surface 4.
Optimal operation necessitates a uniform flow of air over the entire
surface 4. To obtain this uniformity of the flow, distributor means such as a
deflector may be installed inside the box 8. A deflector of this kind may take the
form of an optimised geometry hood of the type described in the publication
FR-A-2 940 005.
To enable the separation of the respective trajectories of the residue and
the grapes G, the separator device may further include a deflector 15 that is
positioned downstream of the surface 4 to enable the ejection of residue along
an upper trajectory and the fruit G routed over the surface 4 in a lower trajectory
that is separated from said upper trajectory by said deflector.
The position of the deflector 15 relative to the surface 4 may be
adjustable longitudinally and/or in elevation and/or in inclination, notably as a
function of the trajectories taken by the various elements P, G of the flow of
harvest because of the effect of the air cushion.
Referring to Figure 1, the deflector 15 includes a plate 15a carried by a
lower beam 24. Alternatively, the deflector 15 includes at least one rotary
member disposed facing the surface 4. Referring to Figure 2, a plurality of
rollers 15b is disposed above the lower beam 24, said rollers being driven in
rotation in the anti-clockwise direction to force the residue ejected onto said
rollers to follow the upper trajectory.
The separator device further includes an upper deflector 21 that limits the
upper trajectory of the residue, for example with a view to recovery of said
residue. Moreover, the upper deflector 21 isolates the ejection area from
external conditions, notably the wind.
In this embodiment, the upper deflector 21 is associated with the upper
beam 22 and has a downstream area 21a that is slightly concave toward the
surface 4 to encourage guidance of the air in the residue ejection upper
trajectory.
Referring to Figure 6, there is described hereinafter a harvesting machine
including a hopper 30 above which is disposed a cleaning assembly including
the elimination system and a destemming device. In particular, the machine may
include two hoppers 30 equipped in this way. Alternatively, the machine may be
equipped with a elimination system only or the cleaning assembly may be used
independently of the machine, for example in a cellar.
The destemming device includes a screen 31 that is driven in a
longitudinal direction L2 between an upstream transverse shaft 32 and a
downstream transverse shaft 33. The screen 31 includes openings adapted to
enable fruit to pass through and means adapted to interact with the flow of
harvest disposed on the screen 31 in order to bring about separation of the fruit
attached to the bunch stems.
In an embodiment known from the document EP-1 002 467, for example,
to enable separation of the fruit from the bunch stems by an ejection effect, the
destemming device includes a motorised rotary member 34 surmounting an
endless screen 31. The member 34 includes radial destemming fingers adapted,
when rotating, to interact with the flow disposed on the screen 31 in order to
bring about the separation of fruit attached to the stalks, which fruit may then
pass through the screen 31 while the rest of the flow remains on said screen.
The screen 31 has an upstream portion 31a and a downstream portion
31b, the rotary members 34 being disposed only above said downstream portion
to effect the destemming. The machine also includes a conveyor 36 for feeding
the flow of harvest onto the upstream portion 31a.
In particular, the flow of harvest from the harvesting assembly is fed onto
the upstream portion 31a of the screen 31, notably the free fruits of said flow
passing through said upstream portion, and the remainder of the harvest is
conveyed toward the downstream portion 31b to be destemmed. Moreover,
beyond the downstream transverse shaft 33, stalks and other residue disposed
on the screen 31 is ejected outside the hopper 30.
Moreover, the machine includes a device 37 for cleaning by suction the
flow of harvest feeding the upstream portion 31a of the screen 31, said device
being disposed above the conveyor 36, notably to suck up leaves, branches and
pieces of wood from said flow.
The conveyor 1 is disposed below the upstream portion 31a of the screen
31 so as to be fed with the flow of harvest passing across said upstream portion,
said flow then being conveyed toward the separator device 2, notably to
eliminate leaf stalks that may have been able to pass across the upstream
portion 31a of the screen 31.
In particular, the surface 4 is disposed above the hopper 30 to enable its
direct filling with the grapes, the surface 4 being disposed to allow ejection of
residue outside said hopper.
In the embodiment shown, the longitudinal direction L1 of the conveyor 1
is perpendicular to the longitudinal direction L2 of the screen 31. Moreover, the
hopper 30 includes a top opening having a longitudinal dimension that is greater
than its transverse dimension, said longitudinal dimension being that in the
direction of forward movement of the machine and in the longitudinal direction
L2 of the screen 31.
To improve sorting further, the destemming device further includes
means for feeding the conveyor 1 with the destemmed flow of harvest. Thus
even the destemmed flow is sorted before it is stored, notably to eliminate leaf
stalks that may have been able to pass over the screen 31 during destemming.
In one embodiment, the feed means include a deflector 38 disposed
under the downstream portion 31b of the screen 31, said deflector forming a
feed path of the conveyor 1. In particular, the downstream portion 31b and the
deflector 38 are inclined to enable the conveyor 1 to be fed by gravity.
In an alternative embodiment of the invention, not show in the Figures,
the destemming device is shortened by arranging the upstream axis 32 at a
position upstream of the conveyor 36. A conveying and sorting device is
provided in the space freed by the shortened upstream portion 31a of the
screen. The conveying and sorting device is arranged below the outlet of the
conveyor 36 and below the hood of the cleaning device 37 and may comprise a
succession of substantially cylindrical conveyor rollers and separator rollers
having passages between them. The rollers are operable to convey the harvest
to the destemming device. The cylindrical rollers may be of the same type as the
rollers 5 of conveyor 1. The separator rollers may comprises disks between
which the grape berries can pass. The last roller is aligned with the new
upstream portion of the screen 31 of the destemming device.
In use, the conveyor 36 supplies the harvest to the cylindrical rollers,
which spread out the berries and other material and convey them to the
separator rollers. Loose berries, juice, small particles and leaf stalks are
permitted to fall through the openings 10 of the separator system 2 and the
greater harvest material is fed towards the destemming device. The last
separator roller, which is disposed adjacent the shorter moving screen 31,
transfers the bunches and other material onto this screen, which guides them to
the rotary members 34 for removal of the berries from the stems. The loosened
berries migrate through the upper and lower runs of the screen 31 and the
deflector 38 guides them back to the hopper 30. The bunch stalks and other
residue are ejected from the machine at the downstream axis 33.
The cleaning device 37 extracts lighter and greater surface portions such
as leaves from the harvest while they fall from the conveyor 36 to the sorting
device and are conveyed along the sorting device. The rotating rollers 3, 12
shake the material and dislodge any material that might hold the leaves down.
This extraction further is enhanced while the material passes below the hood
and over the openings 10, which allow for a substantial upward air flow.
Claims (26)
1. A method of eliminating residue from a flow of harvest containing fruit, said method comprising: 5 moving a flow of harvest by a motorized conveyor in a longitudinal conveying direction (L1) between upstream and downstream transverse shafts; feeding the flow of harvest to an inclined surface positioned in continuity with the conveyor and arranged to allow said flow of harvest to travel over it, said surface including an array of air passages; and 10 blowing air through said passages in order to eject residue from the flow of harvest as it is routed over said surface.
2. A method of eliminating residue according to claim 1, characterised in that it provides for the ejection of residue along an upper trajectory that is 15 separated from a lower trajectory along which the fruit is routed over the surface.
3. A method of eliminating residue according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that it provides for slowing down the flow of harvest before it is 20 routed over the inclined surface.
4. A system for eliminating residue from a flow of harvest by using a method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, said system including: a motorised conveyor for moving the flow of harvest in a longitudinal 25 conveying direction (L1) between upstream and downstream transverse shafts; a separator device including a surface disposed in continuity with the conveyor in order to be fed with the flow of harvest by said conveyor, said surface being inclined to enable the flow of harvest to be routed over said surface, said surface further including an array of air passages in 30 communication with blower means for ejecting residue from the flow of harvest as it is routed over said surface.
5. A system for eliminating residue according to claim 4, characterised in that it includes a deflector that is positioned downstream of the surface to enable 35 the ejection of residue along an upper trajectory and the fruit routed over the surface in a lower trajectory that is separated from said upper trajectory by said deflector.
6. A system for eliminating residue according to claim 5, characterised in that the position of the deflector relative to the surface is adjustable 5 longitudinally and/or in elevation and/or in inclination.
7. A system for eliminating residue according to claim 5 or 6, characterised in that the deflector includes at least one rotary member disposed facing the surface.
8. A system for eliminating residue according to any one of the claims 5 or 7, characterised in that the separator device also includes an upper deflector that limits the upper trajectory of the residue. 15
9. A system for eliminating residue according to any one of the claims 4 to 8, characterised in that it comprises a flexible bib extending just in front of said downstream shaft and over substantially the entire transverse dimension of the conveyor in order to slow down the conveyed flow of harvest before it is routed over the surface.
10. A system for eliminating residue according to any one of the claims 4 to 9, characterised in that the conveyor includes a plurality of longitudinally- spaced rollers, said rollers being driven in rotation to move the flow of harvest over said rollers.
11. A system for eliminating residue according to claim 10, characterised in that each of the rollers has a surface of revolution that includes axial grooves that extend continuously over its entire length. 30
12. A system for eliminating residue according to any one of the claims 4 to 11, characterised in that surface is inclined relative to the longitudinal direction (L1) of the conveyor at an angle in the range 30° to 60°.
13. A system for eliminating residue according to any one of the claims 4 35 to 12, characterised in that the separator device may include a box that has an upper surface forming a support and an internal chamber that establishes communication between the air passages and the blower means.
14. A system for eliminating residue according to any one of the claims 4 5 to 13, characterised in that the surface has an array of perforations forming air passages.
15. A system for eliminating residue according to claim 14, characterised in that the perforations are produced by punching the surface from its right side.
16. A system for eliminating residue according to any one of the claims 4 to 13, characterised in that the surface includes a woven grill through which are formed air passages. 15
17. A cleaning assembly of a flow of harvest, characterised in that it contains a residue elimination system according to any one of the claims 4 to 16, and a destemming device including a screen that is motorised in a longitudinal direction (L2) between an upstream transverse shaft and a downstream transverse shaft, said screen including openings adapted to allow 20 the fruit to pass through, said destemming device further including means adapted to interact with the flow of harvest disposed on a downstream portion of the screen in order to bring about the separation of fruit attached to the bunch stems, the conveyor being disposed below an upstream portion of said screen and the machine further including a conveyor for feeding the flow of harvest onto 25 said upstream portion.
18. A cleaning assembly according to claim 17, characterised in that the destemming device further includes means for feeding the conveyor with the destemmed flow of harvest.
19. A cleaning assembly according to claim 18, characterised in that, the feed means include a deflector disposed under the downstream portion of the screen, said deflector forming a feed path of the conveyor.
20. A cleaning assembly according to any one of the claims 17 to 19, characterised in that it also includes a device for cleaning by suction the flow of harvest feeding the upstream portion of the screen. 5
21. A cleaning assembly according to any one of the claims 17 to 20, characterised in that the longitudinal direction (L1) of the conveyor is perpendicular to the longitudinal direction (L2) of the screen.
22. A fruit harvesting machine including a motorised support structure and 10 a harvesting assembly mounted on said structure, said harvesting assembly being adapted to detach the harvest, said machine including a residue elimination system according to any of the claims 4 to 16, or a cleaning assembly according to any one of the claims 17 to 21, that is fed with the flow of harvest from the harvesting assembly.
23. A harvesting machine according to claim 22, characterised in that it includes a hopper above which the elimination system and/or the destemming device are disposed. 20
24. A method of eliminating residue according to claim 1 substantially as herein described.
25. A system for eliminating residue according to claim 4 substantially as herein described.
26. A system for eliminating residue from a flow of harvest substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings. 15, 15a
Applications Claiming Priority (3)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
FR1153860 | 2011-05-05 | ||
FR1153860A FR2974705B1 (en) | 2011-05-05 | 2011-05-05 | METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR REMOVING WASTE FROM A HARVEST FLOW |
PCT/EP2012/058319 WO2012150355A1 (en) | 2011-05-05 | 2012-05-04 | Method and system for eliminating residue from a flow of harvest |
Publications (2)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
NZ617033A NZ617033A (en) | 2015-04-24 |
NZ617033B2 true NZ617033B2 (en) | 2015-07-28 |
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