Mapping Yield and Quality using the Mobile Fruit Grading Robot

• Published in: Biosystems engineering Vol. 90; no. 2; pp. 135 - 142
• Main Authors: Qiao, Jun, Sasao, Akira, Shibusawa, Sakae, Kondo, Naoshi, Morimoto, Eiji
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier Ltd 01.02.2005; Elsevier
• Subjects: Agricultural machinery and engineering; Agronomy. Soil science and plant productions; Biological and medical sciences; fruit quality; fruits (food); Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Generalities. Biometrics, experimentation. Remote sensing; product grading; robots; spatial variation; sweet peppers; yield mapping; yields; Cartography; Fruit vegetable; Real time; Biological system; Engineering; Vegetable crop; Dicotyledones; Angiospermae; Capsicum annuum; Spermatophyta; Agriculture; Yield; Solanaceae; Robot
• ISSN: 1537-5110; 1537-5129
• DOI: 10.1016/j.biosystemseng.2004.10.002

Localised crop output measurement is the principal requirement in determining profit on a spatially variable basis. Quality of agricultural products immediately affects the market value. Therefore, quality maps should be obtained as well as yield map. In this research, a database of spatial yield and quality information was created for sweet pepper by using the mobile fruit grading robot. Then a real-time mapping method was developed from the database. Three hundred and seventy-two sweet pepper fruits harvested from 300 plants were utilised for the experiment in laboratory. Information such as plant location, harvesting time, fruit index (number of fruits from a plant), fruit size, colour, shape, defects and grade also mass was obtained. Based on these information sources, a database was established to create both a yield map and a quality map. Results indicated that the database is adequate to represent the spatial variability of yield and quality in a field as yield and quality maps, the developed mapping program is effective and practical, and that the system can be applied in real time.