Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Design, Simulation, and Experimental Testing of a Tactile Sensor for Fruit Ripeness Detection

  • Conference paper
  • First Online:
Transactions on Engineering Technologies

Abstract

The process of pressing mango fruits to check for their ripeness has caused mechanical damages. In order to reduce this damage, two varieties of mangoes namely Totapuri and Tommy Atkins were tested by an advanced universal testing machine (UTM). Each of these varieties had 5 samples of different ripeness levels to test for their elastic modulus. The mangoes were loaded radially and the results of the elastic modulus obtained, which falls between 0.5 and 3.5 MPa. This study aims at presenting a detailed design procedure for developing a tactile sensor that can differentiate between different ripeness levels in mango fruits. The tactile sensor is based on two springs configuration, with each of these springs having different stiffnesses. The performance of the tactile sensor was studied by developing a finite element model using the ANSYS Mechanical ANSYS Parametric Design Language (APDL) software. The simulation results gotten from the performance of the tactile sensor show that the sensor can differentiate between different mango fruits based on their elastic modulus within the specified range of the sensor. Finally, the fabricated sensor was tested with five specimens representing mangoes with known stiffness in the mango stiffness range, thus, the sensor differentiated between the five specimens by giving its own unique sensor output (force ratio).

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 129.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Yossy EH, Pranata J, Wijaya T, Hermawan H, Budiharto W (2017) Mango fruit sortation system using neural network and computer vision. Proced Comput Sci 116:596–603

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Shiddiq M, Fitmawati, Anjasmara R, Sari N, Hefniati (2017) Ripeness detection simulation of oil palm fruit bunches using laser-based imaging system. In: AIP conference proceedings, vol 1801, (Tamil), pp 1–7

    Google Scholar 

  3. Sa I, Ge Z, Dayoub F, Upcroft B, Perez T, McCool C (2016) Deepfruits: a fruit detection system using deep neural networks. Sensors (Switzerland), 16(8)

    Google Scholar 

  4. Praveena SM (2017) Evaluation of fruit ripeness using electronic nose. Int J Adv Inf Sci Technol (IJAIST), 6(June):1–5

    Google Scholar 

  5. Verzhuk VG, Murashev SV, Belova AY (2012) Determination of tissue elasticity of apple, pear, and quince fruits for predicting losses during cold storage. Russ Agric Sci 38(4):272–274

    Google Scholar 

  6. Jarimopas B, Kitthawee U (2007) Firmness properties of mangoes. Int J Food Prop 10(4):899–909

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Cárdenas-Pérez S, Chanona-Pérez JJ, Güemes-Vera N, Cybulska J, Szymanska-Chargot M, Chylinska M, Kozioł A, Gawkowska D, Pieczywek PM, Zdunek A (2018) Structural, mechanical and enzymatic study of pectin and cellulose during mango ripening. Carbohydr Polym 196(January):313–321

    Google Scholar 

  8. Kunpeng T, Cheng S, Xianwang L, Jicheng H, Qiaomin C, Bin Z, Tian KP, Shen C, Li XW, Huang JC, Chen QM, Zhang B (2017) Mechanical properties and compression damage simulation by finite element for kiwi fruit. Int Agric Eng J 26(4):193–203

    Google Scholar 

  9. Dantas A, Barbosa R, Neto AF, Hernández LIN (2017) Mango mechanical compression tests. Rev de Cienc Agrar 40(2):405–410

    Google Scholar 

  10. Nnodim CT, El Bab AM, Bab E, Ikua BW, Sila DN (2019) Estimation of the modulus of elasticity of mango for fruit sorting. Int J Mech Mech Eng 19(02):1–10

    Google Scholar 

  11. Suwanratchatamanee K, Matsumoto M, Hashimoto S (2011) Haptic sensing foot system for humanoid robot and ground recognition with one-leg balance. IEEE Trans Ind Electron 58(8):3174–3186

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Peterlík I, Filipovič J (2011) Distributed construction of configuration spaces for real-time haptic deformation modeling. IEEE Trans Ind Electron 58(8):3205–3212

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Aoyagi R, Yoshida T (2004) Frequency equations of an ultrasonic vibrator for the elastic sensor using a contact impedance method. Jpn J Appl Phys Part 1: Regul Pap Short Notes Rev Pap 43(5 B):3204–3209

    Google Scholar 

  14. Sánchez AM, Prieto R, Laso M, Riesgo T (2008) A piezoelectric minirheometer for measuring the viscosity of polymer microsamples. IEEE Trans Ind Electron 55(1):427–436

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Lee M, Nicholls H (1999) Review article tactile sensing for mechatronicsa state of the art survey. Mechatronics 9(1):1–31

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Cecchi R, Verotti M, Capata R, Dochshanov AM, Broggiato GB, Crescenzi R, Balucani M, Natali S, Razzano G, Lucchese F, Bagolini A, Bellutti P, Sciubba E, Belfiore NP (2015) Development of micro-grippers for tissue and cell manipulation with direct morphological comparison. Micromachines 6(11):1710–1728

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. El Bab AM, Tamura T, Sugano K, Tsuchiya T, Tabata O, Eltaib MEH, Sallam MM (2008) Design and simulation of a tactile sensor for soft-tissue compliance detection. IEEJ Trans Sens Micromach 128(5):186–192

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Nnodim CT, El-bab AMRF, Ikua BW, Sila DN (2019) Design and simulation of a tactile sensor for fruit ripeness detection. In: Lecture notes in engineering and computer science: proceedings of the world congress on engineering and computer science, 22–24 October 2019, San Francisco, USA, pp 390–395

    Google Scholar 

  19. El Bab AM, Eltaib M, Sallam M, Tabata O (2007) Tactile sensor for compliance detection. Sens Mater 19(3):165–177

    Google Scholar 

  20. Fouly A, Nasr MN, El Bab AM, Abouelsoud AA (2015) Design and modeling of micro tactile sensor with three contact tips for self-compensation of contact error in soft tissue elasticity measurement. IEEJ Trans Electr Electron Eng 10:S144–S150

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Fouly A, El Bab AM, Nasr MN, Abouelsoud AA (2017) Modeling and experimental testing of three-tip configuration tactile sensor for compensating the error due to soft tissue surface irregularities during stiffness detection. Meas J Int Meas Confed 98:112–122

    Google Scholar 

  22. Engel J, Chen J, Fan Z, Liu C (2005) Polymer micromachined multimodal tactile sensors. Sens Actuators, A: Phys 117(1):50–61

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Hayes WC, Keer LM, Herrmann G, Mockros LF (1972) A mathematical analysis for indentation tests of articular cartilage. J Biomech 5(5):541–551

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Zhang M, Zheng YP, Mak AFT (1997) Estimating the effective Young’s modulus of soft tissues from indentation tests—nonlinear finite element analysis of effects of friction and large deformation. Med Eng Phys 19(6):512–517

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This work is partly supported by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) through the Pan African University Institute for Basic Sciences, Technology and Innovation (PAUSTI). The authors would like to thank Egypt-Japan University of Science and Technology (E-JUST) for enabling the authors use her resources and facilities to carry out the study.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Landmark University, Omu-Aran, PMB 1001, Nigeria

    Chiebuka T. Nnodim

  2. Department of Mechatronics and Robotics Engineering, Egypt-Japan University of Science and Technology, P.O. Box 179, New Borg El-Arab, Egypt

    Ahmed M. R. Fath El-Bab

  3. Department of Mechatronic Engineering, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, P.O. Box 62000 - 00200, Nairobi, Kenya

    Bernard W. Ikua

  4. Department of Food Science and Technology, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, P.O. Box 62000 - 00200, Nairobi, Kenya

    Daniel N. Sila

Authors
  1. Chiebuka T. Nnodim
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Ahmed M. R. Fath El-Bab
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Bernard W. Ikua
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Daniel N. Sila
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Chiebuka T. Nnodim .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. IAENG Secretariat, International Association of Engineers, Hong Kong, Hong Kong

    Sio-Iong Ao

  2. School of Software Convergence, Daegu Catholic University, Daegu, Korea (Republic of)

    Haeng-Kon Kim

  3. Provost and Senior Vice-President, University of New Orleans, New Orleans, LA, USA

    Mahyar A. Amouzegar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2021 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

About this paper

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this paper

Nnodim, C.T., Fath El-Bab, A.M.R., Ikua, B.W., Sila, D.N. (2021). Design, Simulation, and Experimental Testing of a Tactile Sensor for Fruit Ripeness Detection. In: Ao, SI., Kim, HK., Amouzegar, M.A. (eds) Transactions on Engineering Technologies. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-9209-6_5

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-9209-6_5

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-15-9208-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-15-9209-6

  • eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation