Design and Performance Evaluation of a Cherry Tomato Calyx Remover

Yeongsu Kim,Seokho Kang,Hyunggyu Park,Seungmin Woo,Daniel Dooyum Uyeh,Yushin Ha

doi:10.3390/app112211016

Abstract

A prototype for the remover of cherry tomato calyxes was designed and manufactured. The tap remover was designed and manufactured considering the conveyor transport speed, brush length and clearance, and diameter. These were adjusted in three levels to determine the optimal design factor. Performance tests were conducted using Icon 513, a circular-shaped cherry tomato variety, and Minimaru, a jujube-shaped cherry tomato variety. Conveyor transport speeds were set at 210, 280, and 350 mm/s; brush lengths at 70, 80, and 90 mm; brush clearances at 20, 22, and 24 mm; and brush diameters at 0.8, 1.0, and 1.2 mm. The two varieties showed a similar damage rate during calyx removal. However, Minimaru showed a higher calyx removal rate than Icon 513, indicating that it is most suitable for the calyx removal mechanization process.

Highlights

The conveyor-type cherry tomato calyx remover was manufactured in a hopper-type conveyor-type cherry tomato calyxbox remover was manufactured in a hopper-type to putThe cherry tomatoes packaged in a bulk or pack
The cherry tomatoes were supplied and moved by the conveyor rotator while passing through tomatoes were supplied and moved by the conveyor rotator while passing through the the point where the brush was installed, and the calyx comes into contact with the brush point where the brush was installed, and the calyx comes into contact with the brush and and falls off
This study designed and manufactured a device to remove cherry tomato calyxes using a brush during transport using a conveyor system

Summary

Introduction

Sci. 2021, 11, 11016. https://doi.org/Recently, along with industrialization, the food sector has rapidly developed [1,2,3].Cherry tomatoes are vegetables with high production and consumption rates because they can be consumed fresh or processed according to consumer preferences [4,5,6,7,8].A cherry tomato, Solanum lycopersicum var. cerasiform [9], is a vegetable with high sugar content, 90% moisture content, and high vitamin A, C, B1, and B2 content [10,11].Cherry tomatoes are an essential component of diets, and their quality is important.fresh fruit is susceptible to mechanical damage, and quality can be significantly reduced due to poor distribution and pre-and post-processing processes [10,11,12].Once damaged, fruits and vegetables deteriorate quickly due to physiological effects depending on the distribution period, resulting in considerable deterioration in the quality of fruits and vegetables during distribution [13,14]. Cherry tomatoes are vegetables with high production and consumption rates because they can be consumed fresh or processed according to consumer preferences [4,5,6,7,8]. Cherry tomatoes are an essential component of diets, and their quality is important. Fresh fruit is susceptible to mechanical damage, and quality can be significantly reduced due to poor distribution and pre-and post-processing processes [10,11,12]. Most of the circular shaped cherry tomato varieties are cultivated in Japan and exported at a high cost. The cultivation quantity of jujube-shaped cherry tomatoes developed in The Republic of Korea has been increasing recently [15]

Methods

Results

Conclusion