Harvesters – Fruit gatherer – Berry strippers
Reexamination Certificate
2001-08-01
2003-01-07
Pezzuto, Robert E. (Department: 3671)
Harvesters
Fruit gatherer
Berry strippers
C056S340100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06502380
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a machine for harvesting fruits, berries and the like, from fruit trees and bushes planted in rows, of the type including a straddling chassis or frame capable of moving across a field, a shaker assembly mounted on the chassis and including at least one pair of elongate shaker members which have active parts extending in a first direction, broadly speaking in the longitudinal direction of the machine, and which are spaced transversely from each other and situated on respective opposite sides of the longitudinal median axis of the machine, each shaker member consisting of a flexible material rod, and a drive mechanism connected to the rods to drive them synchronously with a reciprocating motion in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction and defining therewith an oscillation plane for each rod.
The invention relates in particular, although not exclusively, to harvesting grapes and it will be more particularly described in connection with this type of harvest. However, the machine of the present invention is equally capable of being used for harvesting other fruits and berries, for example blackcurrants, gooseberries, raspberries, or coffee beans and olives.
BACKGROUND ART
Most conventional grape-picking machines use practically the same principle for harvesting grapes. The principle consists in beating or shaking the vines by imparting sinusoidal or pseudo-sinusoidal motion thereto with an amplitude and at a frequency suitable for detaching the grapes or the bunches of grapes. This motion is transmitted to the vine via shaker or beater members disposed in such a manner as to act either on the vinestock or stem or else on the vegetation, i.e. on the fruit-bearing portion of the vine, depending on the type and number of shaker or beater members used.
The shaker or beater members usually have active parts which broadly extend in a horizontal direction (first direction) in the longitudinal direction of the machine and said sinusoidal to-and-fro motion is effected in a horizontal direction (second direction) perpendicular to the first direction. However, for some types of fruit-bearing bushes, it can be judicious, in a known manner, to dispose the shaker members so that their active parts are inclined to the horizontal at a greater or lesser angle, as appropriate, and/or so that their sinusoidal to-and-fro motion is effected in a second direction that can also be inclined to the horizontal at a greater or lesser angle.
The percentage of bunches and/or individual grapes which are detached from the vine depends on the number and the amplitude of the oscillations to which a given bunch of grapes is subjected. The more energetic the shaking to which a given bunch of grapes is subjected, and the more frequently it is shaken, the more likely said bunch is or its individual grapes are to become detached from the vine.
The number and the amplitude of the oscillations to which a given bunch of grapes is subjected themselves depend on various parameters that can be chosen, in particular the amplitude and the frequency of the drive mechanism associated with the shaker members, the length of the active area of said shaker members, the stiffness or the flexibility thereof, and the speed at which the machine advances, together with other factors which are imposed by the vine itself, in particular the way it is trained, its shape and its resistance to the motion of the beater members.
However, while detaching bunches of grapes or individual grapes, the shaker members may damage the vine, which may be detrimental to the health of the vine and to the crop itself It is therefore generally necessary to find a compromise between the various parameters mentioned above in order to obtain an acceptable percentage of harvested grapes or bunches of grapes without giving rise to unacceptable damage to the vine. For more details of the prior art in this regard, see patent FR-A-2.605.487, which is hereby incorporated herein by way of reference.
In most prior art harvesting machines, the shaker members, if they are designed to act on the vegetation of the vine, consist of circular cross-section rods which are flexible to a greater or lesser degree. The rods are made either from a single material, such as glassfiber-reinforced resin, polyamide, spring steel, etc., or of two materials.
In the latter case (FR-A-2.159.250 and FR-A-2.313.859) each rod is made of fiberglass and its active portion intended to come into contact with the vegetation of the vine is provided with a metal tube or sleeve intended to avoid wear or cracking of the fiberglass rod because of rubbing and/or repeated impacts of said rod on the vegetation and/or on the stakes supporting the vine. The presence of the metal tube or sleeve increases the weight of the active region of the shaker rod and modifies how it bends under static and dynamic conditions. In particular, for a given frequency of oscillation, the amplitude of the oscillatory movement and the speed of the active part of the rod are increased, especially in the case of rods with a free rear end, and this can aggravate the damage caused to the vine.
Although a compromise may be found between the various parameters mentioned above to obtain an acceptable percentage of grapes or bunches of grapes or other berries harvested without causing excessive damage to the vine or other fruit-bearing bushes carrying the berries to be harvested, with shaker members consisting of circular cross-section rods it is difficult to prevent unwanted vertical movement of the rods in use, i.e. in a third direction perpendicular to the first and second directions mentioned above, in addition to their horizontal (second direction) oscillatory movement, which is the only one which is beneficial in terms of shaking the fruit-bearing bushes and thus of harvesting the fruit. The disadvantage of these unwanted vertical movements is that they detach leaves which are mixed with the harvested fruit and therefore complicate cleaning of the crop.
Also, the side of the shaker rods in contact with the vegetation of the fruit-bearing bushes to be shaken is worn by abrasion in use. As a result the flexibility of each rod in a horizontal oscillation plane, i.e. in the plane defined by the first and second directions mentioned above, increases as the rod wears away, making shaking less effective. This is because, as the rod becomes more flexible, it becomes less capable of entraining with it, during its oscillatory motion, the vegetation of the fruit-bearing bush to be shaken. Consequently, the rod must be replaced with a new rod after a period in service or following a degree of wear.
OBJECT OF THE INVENTION
The principal aim of the present invention is therefore to provide a harvesting machine of the type defined in the preamble whose shaker members in the form of flexible rods, are in use less subject to unwanted movement in the third direction.
A subsidiary object of the present invention is to provide a harvesting machine of the type defined above in which the shaker members also have an increased service life.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a machine for harvesting fruits, berries and the like, from fruit trees and bushes planted in rows, said machine including a straddling chassis capable of moving across a field, a shaker assembly mounted on the chassis and including at least one pair of elongate shaker members which have active parts extending in a first direction, generally in the longitudinal direction of the machine, and which are spaced transversely from each other and situated on respective opposite sides of the longitudinal median axis of the machine, each shaker member consisting of a flexible material rod, which has a required flexibility characteristic, and a drive mechanism connected to the rods to drive them synchronously with a reciprocating motion in a second direction generally perpendicular to the first direction and defining therewith an oscillation plane for each rod, char
Le Neve Daniel H. A. M.
Merant Jean-Camille
Miller Larry W.
New Holland Braud S.A.
Petravick Meredith C.
Pezzuto Robert E.
Stader John William
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