Patent Application
20100303596
The invention relates to methods and systems for transporting containers. More particularly, the invention relates to methods and systems for collecting and transporting fruit and vegetable bins.
Conventional produce-collecting machines are standard-sized tractors and trailers drawn behind those tractors. Standard-sized tractors and trailers can navigate standard-sized field cultivation and orchard rows with ease, however, they may be unable to navigate between narrow rows used for dwarf varieties of fruit trees or for high-density row planting. Many crop plants may be planted in rows with less space between each row to increase the density of plants, thereby yielding a larger amount of produce from each crop. The same holds true for dwarf variety apples and other dwarf fruit trees, which may be planted in closely spaced rows to maximize the size of the harvest. Conventional tractors and trailers are too wide to navigate these closely spaced plant rows. The widely spaced rows required to accommodate conventional farming equipment results in a loss of efficiency from the perspective of space usage and plant density as well as reduced harvest size.
A need exists for a narrow bin carrier machine so that crops picked in fields and orchards having closely spaced rows may be quickly and efficiently transported out of the field or orchard by mechanical means.
The machine and methods described herein can utilize a tractor having a frame and maximum width that are more narrow than those of standard-sized tractors. The tractor can include a storage compartment that features an air cushion ride installed on a frame of the tractor. The tractor can also feature an operator compartment containing steering and other controls for the tractor. The operator compartment can be collinearly aligned with and behind the storage compartment or the operator compartment may be elevated above the storage compartment. The storage compartment can include a front portion that is vertically adjustable and a rear portion that can be fixed in a horizontal position. The front portion of the storage compartment can include at least two prongs that can be lowered and raised to lift bins containing produce into the storage compartment. The prongs and other portions of the storage compartment can include chain rollers that may be mechanically controlled and operated. The chain rollers may be connected to a motor that is reversible so that the direction of movement of the chain rollers can be controlled by a user. The chain rollers may circulate in a direction toward the rear portion of the storage compartment when bins are being loaded into the storage compartment. When bins are being unloaded from the storage compartment, the direction of movement of the chain rollers can be reversed so as to circulate toward the front portion of the storage compartment.
The bin carrier machine can be manufactured with a maximum width that enables the tractor to navigate narrow rows or fruit trees, e.g., dwarf apple or dwarf citrus trees, or other narrowly spaced rows of produce such as vegetables between which conventional tractors are unable to move.
Accordingly, the invention features a bin carrier machine that can include a tractor, which has a storage compartment into which a plurality of bins can be loaded. The maximum width of the tractor can enable the tractor to navigate between closely spaced rows of plants.
In another aspect, the invention can feature the storage compartment including a front portion that is vertically adjustable and a rear portion.
In another aspect, the invention can feature the front portion of the storage compartment being vertically adjustable in height from a lowered position to a raised position.
In another aspect, the invention can feature the front portion of the storage compartment being vertically adjustable via hydraulic means.
In another aspect, the invention can feature the front portion of the storage compartment including at least two prongs.
In another aspect, the invention can feature the storage compartment including at least two front chain rollers installed on a floor of the storage compartment.
In another aspect, the invention can feature the front chain rollers being mechanically reversible in direction.
In another aspect, the invention can feature the rear portion of the storage compartment being fixed in a horizontal position.
In another aspect, the invention can feature the bin carrier machine including at least one elevated platform.
In another aspect, the invention can feature the bin carrier machine including at least one sensor.
In another aspect, the invention can feature the plants being fruit trees.
In another aspect, the invention can feature the fruit trees being of a dwarf variety.
In another aspect, the invention can feature the bin carrier machine including a plurality of tires and an operator compartment.
In another aspect, the invention can feature the operator compartment being aligned collinearly behind the storage compartment.
In another aspect, the invention can feature the operator compartment being elevated above the storage compartment.
In another aspect, the invention can feature the operator compartment being positioned offset to one side of the storage compartment.
In another aspect, the invention can feature the bin carrier machine further including a camera to facilitate loading of bins.
In another aspect, the invention can feature the bin carrier machine further including a frame comprising an air cushion.
In another aspect, the invention can feature the bin carrier machine further including a hydraulic suspension system.
The invention also features a method for planting and harvesting crops. The method can comprise the steps of: (a) planting produce crops in a first location in rows spaced about 10 feet apart or less; (b) picking produce and placing the produce into a plurality of bins; (c) navigating a bin carrier machine with a maximum width of about 72 inches between the rows; (d) collecting the plurality of bins by placing the plurality of bins into a storage area of the bin carrier machine; and (e) transporting the produce to a second location.
Another method of the invention includes the first location being an orchard or a field.
Another method of the invention includes the second location being selected from among a sorting facility, a washing facility, and a packaging facility.
Unless otherwise defined, all technical terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. Although methods and materials similar or equivalent to those described herein can be used in the practice or testing of the present invention, suitable methods and materials are described below. All publications, patent applications, patents and other references mentioned herein are incorporated by reference in their entirety. In the case of conflict, the present specification, including definitions will control.
The invention provides systems and methods for collecting and transporting harvested produce in fields and orchards having substandard-sized row widths. Specifically, the invention relates to a bin carrier machine 10 capable of navigating between rows of plants where the rows include widths less than standard-sized rows. The bin carrier machine is particularly designed to navigate rows of dwarf variety fruit trees such as, for example, dwarf variety apple trees, in orchards.
As shown in
The bin carrier machine can include a plurality of tires such as, for example, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, or 9 tires. The bin carrier machine 10 can also include an operator compartment 16 and at least two front chain rollers 18a and 18b installed on a floor 20 of the storage compartment 12. In one embodiment, the floor of the storage compartment may comprise a solid horizontally planar surface extending the width and length of the storage compartment. In an exemplary embodiment, the floor of the storage compartment can be two or more support rails disposed longitudinally and collinearly across the length of the storage compartment. The operator compartment can be the same in width as the frame of the bin carrier machine. The front chain rollers may be passive or may be actively controlled by mechanical means to move produces bins to a rear part of the storage compartment. In an exemplary embodiment, the chain rollers are mechanical in nature and may be reversible in direction so that the bin carrier machine can both load and unload bins stored within the storage compartment.
A front portion 24 of the storage compartment 12 can include at least two prongs 22a and 22b that are vertically adjustable and used to lift bins into the storage compartment. Once lifted by the prongs, which may feature hydraulic or mechanical lifting mechanisms, a bin can be moved into a horizontally fixed rear portion 26 of the storage compartment by the chain rollers. The chain rollers can be reversed in direction to move a bin out of the rear portion to the front portion of the storage compartment where the bin can be unloaded from the bin carrier machine.
The bins may be specially designed featuring two or more channels or grooves on a bottom surface of each bin for receiving the prongs of the bin carrier machine. The operator may maneuver the bin carrier machine to align the prongs with the channels of a bin. The prongs may slide into the channels and, as the prongs are lifted vertically, the bin can also be lifted and moved toward the rear portion of the storage compartment by the chain rollers or other mechanical or manual means.
In an exemplary embodiment, the operator compartment can be positioned so as to be aligned collinearly behind the storage compartment. By centrally aligning the operator compartment behind the storage compartment, the maximum width of the bin carrier machine can be reduced further as opposed to other embodiments in which the operator compartment can be positioned offset, and thus protrude, to one side of the storage compartment.
In another embodiment, the operator compartment can be elevated above the storage compartment by a plurality of support elements. This embodiment can be useful for positioning the user or operator of the bin carrier machine above a canopy of the fruit trees so as to avoid contact between the branches of the fruit trees and the operator as the bin carrier machine moves between rows in an orchard.
The bin carrier machine 10 may also include an air bed ride 28 and four-wheel suspension to stabilize the machine and bins contained therein as the machine moves across rough terrain such as a plowed field. In one embodiment, the bin carrier machine can include a hydraulic suspension system to reduce the bouncing and movement of produce carried by the machine. In another embodiment, the bin carrier machine can include an air cushion system to soften the movement of produce during transportation by reducing the impact caused by bouncing of the produce within the bins.
The bin carrier machine can further include a camera to facilitate the loading and unloading of bins into and out of the storage compartment. The camera may be linked to a monitor installed in the operator compartment so that the machine's driver or operator can control the alignment of the machine's storage compartment and front chain rollers with a bin in a field, vineyard, or orchard that is to be loaded.
The bin carrier machine can also include an automatic steering system that enable the machine to move along straight and curved rows of plants in a predetermined course or at a predetermined angle. The automatic steering system can include a global positioning system (GPS) capable of receiving a signal from global positioning satellites in order to calculate the machine's position in a field or orchard.
As shown in
In another embodiment, as shown in
In one embodiment, the bin carrier machine can be manufactured in multiple sizes, shapes, or versions of three pieces (the frame, the body, and the motor) that can be interchanged or recombined depending upon the user's need. The body can include the storage compartment and operator compartment. The frame can be an axle frame. For example, the manufacturer may produce several versions of the body frame that can be connected interchangeably to the chassis.
The plants can be fruit trees, vegetables, fruit bushes or low-growing fruit or vegetable plants. In an exemplary embodiment, the plants can be a dwarf variety of fruit trees. For example, the fruit trees can be dwarf variety apples. In another embodiment, the bin carrier machine may be used to collect and transport grapes from a vineyard.
The invention also relates to methods for planting and harvesting crops. In one embodiment, the method can include the step of planting produce crops in a first location in rows spaced about 10 feet apart or less. The first location can be an orchard or a field in which produce plants such as, for example, vegetables or fruit bushes or other low-growing fruit plants are grown. Next, the method can include the step of picking produce and placing the produce into a plurality of bins. The method then can include the step of navigating a bin carrier machine with a maximum width of about 72 inches between the rows. In another step of the method, the plurality of bins can be collected by placing the plurality of bins into a storage area of the bin carrier machine. Finally, the method can include the step of transporting the produce to a second location such as, for example, a sorting facility, a washing facility, and a packaging facility.
The bin carrier machine and method can be used to load and unload about 500-700 bins per day, although this number may be lesser or greater depending upon the number of hours worked, road/terrain conditions, and length of transport from field to loading dock.
It is to be understood that while the invention has been described in conjunction with the detailed description thereof, the foregoing description is intended to illustrate and not limit the scope of the invention, which is defined by the scope of the appended claims. Other aspects, advantages, and modifications are within the scope of the following claims.
This application is a nonprovisional of and claims priority from U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 61/182,146 filed May 29, 2009. The foregoing application is incorporated in its entirety herein by this reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61182146 | May 2009 | US |
