Patent Application
20050172595
A. Field of the Invention
The field of the present invention relates generally to mechanical harvesters for use in harvesting grapes, raisins and similarly situated crops. More specifically, the field of the present invention relates generally to the mechanical harvesting of dried on the vine raisins. Even more particularly, this invention relates to the mechanical collecting of dried on the vine raisins and pneumatic conveying of the raisins into bins.
B. Background
As is well known, the conventional methods of harvesting grapes, raisins and other vine crops is typically a very labor intensive process requiring a significant number of laborers to separate the crop from the vines. Such methods generally require labor crews to walk through the vineyard and individually cut clusters of fruit from the vine. With regard to harvesting raisins, the economic production of raisins is subject to and substantially driven by such factors as labor availability, ever increasing labor and material costs, and unpredictable weather. The conventional method of growing raisins is to grow grape vines in separate parallel rows utilizing a trellis system that runs along the row producing rows of vines approximately four to six feet high. The method of harvesting raisins predominately in use today utilizes manual labor to cut the grapes from the vines, remove the grapes from the stems and then place the bunches of grapes on paper sheets, commonly referred to as trays, to dry in the sun. Periodically, laborers turn the grapes on the trays to obtain more thorough drying. Once dried, the paper trays are folded and rolled, with the raisins disposed inside, and collected. The raisins are then separated from the trays, placed in raisin bins and delivered to packing houses for final processing. The discarded paper trays are typically burned in the field, which is known to create environmental concerns with regard to air and other pollution. The amount of time necessary for in-the-field dehydration of the grapes into raisins is dependent upon various environmental factors, including temperature and humidity. In the Central Valley area of California, for instance, this typically requires the fruit to lie in the sun for approximately three weeks. The entire raisin harvesting/drying process is at the mercy of the weather. If a rain storm occurs while the raisins are lying on the paper trays the crop can be completely lost or at least greatly compromised by the onset of mold. In addition, rain splashes sand and dirt onto the raisin which becomes embedded in the wrinkles when dried, creating problems and additional cost for processing.
Various procedures and mechanisms have been developed to improve the efficiency of raisin production and to reduce the costs associated with harvesting raisins. Some of these mechanisms are addressed to machines capable of removing the green grapes from the vines and placing them on the paper trays for drying. Some, such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,221,665 to Decker, are for raisin harvesting apparatuses configured for picking up raisin paper trays and depositing the raisins into bins. One mechanical method of harvesting/drying raisins in use requires special soil preparation, namely that the row must be free of weeds and terraced smooth. The canes are hand cut about ten days prior to harvest so that the grape can be removed from the cluster with the stem attached. The grapes are removed from the vines with a mechanical vibration system and simultaneously placed on a continuous tray. This procedure requires a four man crew. After the raisins are dried, they are mechanically removed from the tray and deposited into a bin trailer in the adjacent row using a mechanical conveyor system. This process requires two machines and two operators. Although this method of harvesting raisins has certain advantages over the labor intensive previous methods, it still has a number of limitations, namely: (1) the raisins are still subject to rain damage while laying on the trays; (2) the required soil terracing results in more fine sand and loose dirt being available to blow onto and collect on the raisins; (3) the need for a four man crew and costly special machinery to harvest the raisins; and (4) the complicated machinery used in this system typically requires excessive maintenance.
To reduce the cost associated with harvesting raisins, growers have developed various new methods that are more suitable for reducing labor costs. One relatively recent improvement to growing raisins is referred to as the dried-on-the-vine (“DOV”) method. The DOV method of growing raisins leaves the grape clusters on the vines during the drying process, as opposed to laying them on paper trays for the dried-on-the-ground method. In this method, labor crews go through the vineyard and cut the fruiting canes so that the grapes on those canes will dry to produce raisins. The dried raisins are then removed and collected directly from the vines. An early example of a DOV method is commonly known as the Southside or Sun Maid system after its originator, Sun Maid, which is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,411,561 to Conley. The Southside System utilizes a modified conventional trellis structure that trains the canes into a divided canopy with the fruiting canes primarily on one side (the south side) of the rows and renewal canes on the opposite side. This system requires special trellising stakes at 45 degree angles to support the wires to which the fruit canes are tied. Next year's fruiting canes, which are the present year's renewal canes, are tied to a trellis wire on top of the trellis system. The grapes are dried on the special trellis for a period of approximately six weeks. Harvesting the raisins requires a specially designed cutter that cuts the fruit bearing canes from the vines. Once dried the raisins are mechanically harvested using a specially designed and dedicated machine, such as the harvester described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,557,883 to Walker, that uses rotating and/or oscillating fiberglass rods to dislodge the raisin onto a vibrating tray which conveys the raisins to belt conveyors and then into bins. U.S. Pat. No. 5,355,667 to Scott, U.S. Pat. No. 6,009,696 to Walker and U.S. Pat. No. 6,012,276 to Walker also generally disclose harvesting machines that are either pulled or driven between the rows of vines with a plurality of rods or paddles extending from the side of the harvester such that the rods or paddles engage the plants to dislodge the raisins therefrom. The dislodged raisins are collected on a conveyance system and then, typically, transported up and over the vines into a truck or bin trailer pulled by a tractor in the adjacent row. The Southside system of growing and harvesting raisins also has significant limitations, namely the high initial cost of installing the specially configured trellis system, the initial high cost of the mechanical equipment necessary to effectively utilize the system and the need for a six man crew to harvest the raisins.
Another DOV system is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,144,768 to Hiyama, et al. In the Hiyama system, a modified trellis system is utilized to horizontally segregate the canes that will produce fruit in one year from the canes which are to produce fruit in the following year. Control wires are used to move the renewal canes from the current year's growing row to the next year's growing row. U.S. Pat. No. 6,578,318 to Clark describes a method of growing raisins which vertically separates the fruiting zone from the renewal zone by placing the fruiting canes in an upper zone apart from the renewal canes in the lower zone. This patent also describes a double tunnel harvesting apparatus that allows the upper fruiting zone to be harvested while protecting the lower renewal zone from damage.
Some newer methods for growing raisins utilize an overhead trellis system that allows the vines to be trained such that the canes grow over the trellis wires disposed between rows of upright posts that are placed along the rows of vines. One method of growing grapes and raisins on an overhead trellis system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,711,109 to Pitts. In the Pitts method, the vine plants are separated to form four cordons and trained such that two pairs of cordons grow along parallel courses but opposite each other. Canes produced by the cordons grow substantially perpendicular to the cordons toward the canes produced by an adjacent row of vines over an overhead trellis structure. This method utilizes an alternate bearing system wherein during each growing season one row is a fruiting row and the adjacent row is a renewal row. During the following season, the rows are reversed. This method of growing grapes and raisins is referred to as the quadrilateral, alternate bearing method and has been found to substantially increase production of grapes and raisins. In another method of growing raisins on an overhead trellis system was developed by Lee Simpson of Madera, Calif. In this system, the canes grow from the head of the vine and are placed across the wires such that the crop will grow in a generally vertical downward direction from the canes between the rows. This method also utilizes the alternate bearing system.
Mechanical harvesters for harvesting grapes or raisins grown on an overhead trellis system are also known. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 5,423,166 to Scott is directed to a grape and raisin harvester in the form of a trailer that utilizes a series of spinning rods fashioned into a rotating rolling brush that knocks the grapes or raisins off the plants and into one or more boxes located on the trailer platform. The harvester is pulled along the row by a tractor. The rotating rolling brush, referred to as a shaker head, is raised or lowered by the use of hydraulic cylinders linked to the shaker head. Another apparatus for mechanically harvesting grapes or raisins developed by Mr. Lee Simpson in Madera County, Calif., is a self-propelled harvester that utilizes a rotating tubular mechanism to knock off the raisin clusters below the trellis wires into a hopper and a conveyor system to transport the raisins backward to deposit them into a bin attached to forklift-type tines on the back of the harvester. A hand crew follows behind to remove the raisin clusters above the trellis wires or otherwise missed by the rotating tube. After the bin is filled, the harvester is stopped, backs up and then drops the bin on the ground. The harvester then moves forward to space itself from the dropped bin so that an empty bin can be manually moved over behind the harvester so that it may be picked up by the tines on the back of the harvester. A forklift or other apparatus then picks up the full bin and removes it from the row. This system requires the empty bins to either be previously placed, hopefully strategically, along the row or the row adjacent to that being harvested or delivered to the harvester's stop point by a trailer or tractor. Failure to properly place the empty bins requires additional handling of the bins and the labor associated therewith. Even with strategically placed empty bins, this harvester and method of harvesting still requires a significant amount of labor and results in a certain amount of wasted (i.e., non-harvesting) time for dropping off the bins, moving empty bins and retrieving the full bins. U.S. Pat. No. 6,557,335 to Amaro, et al. describes a harvester having a frame system configured generally in an upside down u-shape with a top portion having crop separating mechanisms to engage the overhead vines and separate the raisins therefrom. The frame is sized and configured to allow crop bins or gondolas to pass under the top portion and through the harvester so that the harvester can continuously harvest an entire row of crops
While the aforementioned DOV raisin growing systems are generally known to provide benefits over conventional raisin growing methods, they typically require significant investment in trellis structures and/or harvesting equipment. What is needed, therefore, is a less expensive and less labor intensive apparatus for harvesting DOV raisins than is presently available. The preferred harvester should be adaptable for effectively removing DOV raisins and conveying the harvested raisins into conventional raisin bins. In addition, the preferred harvester should be adaptable for use with commonly available farm vehicles, such as tractors and the like, so as to not require a high initial investment in trellis structures and harvesting equipment.
The pneumatic raisin harvester of the present invention provides the benefits and solves the problems identified above. That is to say, the present invention discloses a raisin harvester for DOV raisins that is adaptable to being attached to a tractor and pulled through the field so as to effectively remove raisins from the vines and deposit them into a bin. The raisin harvester includes hydraulic-powered harvesting head with beaters disposed therein to dislodge the dried raisins from specially trellised vines and a funnel-shaped raisin collection trough which fees a hydraulic-powered pneumatic conveying and piping system. As a result of the use of the harvester and method of harvesting of the present invention, the grower can more efficiently and effectively harvest raisins, while reducing his or her dependance on manual labor, thereby substantially reducing the cost of such harvesting.
In one general aspect of the present invention, the pneumatic raisin harvester of the present invention is configured for attachment to a field vehicle, such as a tractor, suitable for towing a bin trailer that carries one or more raisin bins thereon so as to harvest DOV raisins from a plurality of vines supported on a trellis wire interconnecting a plurality of support stakes. To effectively utilize the harvester of the present invention, the vines are trained such that the fruiting canes extend outwardly from the vine trunk and are supported by the trellis wire such that the fruit clusters will be at or along the trellis wire. The pneumatic raisin harvester has a head support assembly with a support structure that is mounted to or on the tractor. In the preferred embodiment, the support structure includes a generally vertical mast member pivotally connected to a support arm having a first end positioned generally at the tractor and a second end that extends outwardly from the tractor to support, in a suspended manner, a harvesting head configured to dislodge the DOV raisins from the vines. In the preferred embodiment, the support arm can raise and lower the harvesting head and pivot the harvesting head from one side of the tractor to the other. The harvesting head is configured with a head enclosure that is configured to substantially straddle the trellis wire and the support stakes as the tractor moves along between the rows of vines. The head enclosure has a crop separating mechanism disposed therein for separating the raisins from the plurality of vines and a discharge opening, preferably located at a bottom edge thereof, that is configured to discharge raisins from the harvesting head. In the preferred embodiment, the crop separating mechanism includes a plurality of beater rods that are flexible or flexibly disposed inside the head enclosure. Also in the preferred embodiment, the bottom side of the harvesting head is angled to facilitate movement of the raisins to the head discharge opening and it includes one or more bottom sealing members, such as brush or brush-like members, that are configured to allow passage of the support stakes through the head enclosure while substantially preventing passage of raisins through the bottom side of the harvesting head.
The preferred raisin harvester also includes a pneumatic conveying system, supported on the tractor, that has a blower configured to discharge high velocity air through one or more air tubes that are connected to the blower. A venturi type of inlet interconnects with the air tubes downstream of the source of air (i.e., the blower). A raisin collecting system, which includes a conveyor connected to the tractor and positioned below the harvesting head discharge opening, is configured to receive the raisins discharged from the harvesting head and then convey the raisins to the inlet where the raisins are received into the air tubes. In the preferred embodiment, the conveyor is configured to pivot from one side of the tractor to the other with the harvesting head. Also in the preferred embodiment, a leaf blower mechanism is disposed above the conveyor to remove leaves and other lightweight debris from the conveyor. The high-velocity air from the blower pneumatically transports the raisins rearward of the tractor through the air tubes to the raisin bins on the bin trailer towed behind the field vehicle. In the preferred embodiment, the air tubes include a discharge tube attached to the tractor and a receiver tube attached to the bin trailer above the raisin bins, with the receiver tube configured to discharge raisins into each of the raisin bins. Also in the preferred embodiment, the discharge tube is in spaced apart relation to the receiver tube so the tractor can twist, turn or otherwise move relative to the bin trailer. Preferably, the receiver tube has an enlarged inlet, such as a bell mouth receiver, that is configured to receive raisins blown from the discharge tube into the receiver tube. The receiver tube is also provided with one or more deflector plates disposed therein that are configured to direct the blown raisins through a slotted opening in the receiver tube to the raisin bins on the bin trailer.
Accordingly, the primary objective of the present invention is to provide a pneumatic raisin harvester that provides the advantages discussed above and overcomes the disadvantages and limitations associated with presently available harvesters for harvesting raisins.
It is also an important objective of the present invention to provide an effective and economic harvester and harvesting system for harvesting DOV raisins.
It is also an important objective of the present invention to provide a raisin harvester that comprises various raisin harvesting mechanical components that are configured to be mounted to commonly available farm equipment, such as a tractor or other such vehicles, or which can be configured together as an integral harvesting unit.
It is also an important objective of the present invention to provide a raisin harvesting apparatus and system that reduces the dependancy on labor intensive methods of harvesting raisins, facilitates DOV raisin production (which reduces the potential of weather-related problems during drying of the raisins and eliminates the problems associated with dirt and sand becoming embedded in the raisins) and eliminates the need for special soil preparation.
The above and other objectives of the present invention will be explained in greater detail by reference to the attached figures and the description of the preferred embodiment which follows. As set forth herein, the present invention resides in the novel features of form, construction, mode of operation and/or combination of processes presently described and understood by the claims.
In the drawings which illustrate the preferred embodiments and the best modes presently contemplated for carrying out the present invention:
With reference to the figures where like elements have been given like numerical designations to facilitate the reader's understanding of the present invention, and particularly with reference to the embodiments of the pneumatic raisin harvester of the present invention illustrated in the figures, a preferred embodiment of the present invention is set forth below. The enclosed description and drawings are merely illustrative of one or more preferred embodiments and represent several different ways of configuring the present invention. Although specific components, materials, configurations and uses of the present invention are illustrated and set forth in this disclosure, those skilled in the art will readily understand that a number of variations to the components and to the configuration of those components described herein and in the accompanying figures can be made without changing the scope and function of the invention set forth herein.
A pneumatic raisin harvester that is manufactured out of the components and configured pursuant to the harvester of the present invention is shown generally as 10 in the figures. As shown in
Whether sold as a mount-on apparatus or as a unit with tractor 12, pneumatic raisin harvester 10 of the present invention generally comprises harvesting head 18, head support assembly 20, raisin collecting system 22 and pneumatic conveying system 24. As explained in more detail below and best shown in
Harvesting head 18 is configured to extend outwardly from the side of tractor 12 and be supported by head support assembly 20 attached thereto such that it generally follows trellis wire 36 as tractor 12 moves along the area between rows of vines 28. In the preferred embodiment, harvesting head 18 comprises a head frame structure 42 substantially forming a head enclosure 44 configured to straddle trellis wire 36 and the portion of fruiting cane 30 on which the clusters of DOV raisins 26 are attached, as best shown in
Head frame structure 42 should be sized and configured to substantially encompass the fruiting canopy supporting the DOV raisins 26. In one configuration, harvesting head 18 is four feet across, eighteen inches long (direction of travel) and three feet high. The sides parallel to tractor 12 are substantially closed to prevent loss of raisins after they become dislodged from fruiting canes 30. Although the ends (direction of travel) of harvesting head 18 can be substantially open, in the preferred embodiment a shroud-type of cover, such as a plurality of rubber flaps, is used at both ends to better contain the dislodged raisins inside harvesting head 18. Having both ends generally open (i.e., with or without the shroud) allows the harvesting head 18 to be bi-directional so pneumatic raisin harvester 10 can turn at the end of a row of vines 28 and go along the adjacent row. In the preferred embodiment, the bottom side 50 of harvesting head 18 is angled, as shown in
In the preferred embodiment, as best shown in
Once the DOV raisins 26 are dislodged from fruiting canes 30 and fall through harvesting head 18, they are deposited onto mechanical belt conveyor 76 of raisin collecting system 22 for transport to, ultimately, raisin bins 14. As best shown in
In one embodiment, best shown in
As shown in
In use, the vineyard is configured with support stakes 34 in spaced apart relation to vine trunks 38 and the fruiting canes 30 are trained to grow along trellis wire 36. Once the raisin grapes have grown the appropriate amount, the fruiting cane 30 is shear cut so that the raisin grapes will dehydrate into DOV raisins 26. When it is time to harvest the DOV raisins 26, the user will align harvesting head 18 such that bottom sealing mechanism 54 (i.e., the brush members) will be appropriately aligned with support stakes 34 and trellis wire 36 so that the fruiting canopy having DOV raisins 26 will enter into head enclosure 44 where the crop separating mechanism 46, such as beater rods 48, will dislodge the DOV raisins 26 from the fruiting canes 30. Once dislodged, the raisins will fall to the bottom side 50 of harvesting head 18 and move toward head discharge opening 52 where they will be discharged onto the first end 78 of conveyor 76 and then be conveyed to the second end 80 thereof for depositing into the venturi section inlet 82. Pressurized air from blower 84 traveling through flexible tube 88 and discharge tube 94 will transport the raisins from venturi section inlet 82 to the second end 96 of discharge tube 94. From the second end 96 of discharge tube 94, the raisins are blown across to bell mouth receiver 104 and into receiver tube 102. The deflector plates 110 in receiver 102 are operated to selectively discharge the raisins through slotted section 108 into raisin bins 14 on bin trailer 16. The pneumatic raisin harvester 10 can utilize the hydraulic system of tractor 12 to operate the hydraulic components thereof. Alternatively, a separate hydraulic system can be included with the components of pneumatic raisin harvester 10. As stated above, the pneumatic raisin harvester 10 of the present invention can be provided as an apparatus that attaches, either removably or fixedly, to a tractor 12 already owned or available to the user, or pneumatic raisin harvester 10 can be provided as a pre-manufactured unit already affixed to a tractor 10 or other field vehicle. In either type of configuration, the pneumatic raisin harvester 10 of the present invention can substantially reduce the amount of labor and costs associated with harvesting DOV raisins 26 relative to presently available systems without the need for expensive upgrade or retrofitting of the vineyard or capital investment in expensive harvesting equipment.
While there are shown and described herein certain specific alternative forms of the invention, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that the invention is not so limited, but is susceptible to various modifications and rearrangements in design and materials without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. In particular, it should be noted that the present invention is subject to modification with regard to the dimensional relationships set forth herein and modifications in assembly, materials, size, shape, and use. For instance, there are numerous components described herein that can be replaced with equivalent functioning components to accomplish the objectives of the present invention.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/543,245 filed Feb. 9, 2004.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60543245 | Feb 2004 | US |
