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A mechanical saffron flower harvesting system

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Abstract

This work is concerned with a mechanical system designed to harvest Crocus sativus L. (saffron) flowers. The system is conceived as a shoulder portable device with two main parts: the former is specifically designed to detach the flower containing three stigmas, which are the costly final product, while the second one collects the detached flower through a vacuum collector. This paper describes the operating principle of the device that imitates one of the procedures followed by the pickers but with the peculiarity that it harvests the flower without separating it from its leaves, which is a significant advantage since it simplifies the mechanical detachment of the flower. Experimental laboratory tests were carried out on the gripper prototype in order to investigate the dynamic behaviour of the detaching and harvesting device. The experimental activity is described in the paper and the experimental results are discussed to know the gripper prototype performances and to define the future work.

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Acknowledgments

This research activity was funded by the Italian Ministry of Research (MIUR), by Sardegna Ricerche and by the Provincia del Medio Campidano in Sardinia Region, Italy.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica,Chimica e dei Materiali, Università degli Studi di Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy

    Andrea Manuello Bertetto

  2. Dipartimento di Ingegneria Civile, Ambientale e Architettura, Università degli Studi di Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy

    Roberto Ricciu & Maria Grazia Badas

Authors
  1. Andrea Manuello Bertetto
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  2. Roberto Ricciu
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  3. Maria Grazia Badas
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Correspondence to Andrea Manuello Bertetto.

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Manuello Bertetto, A., Ricciu, R. & Badas, M.G. A mechanical saffron flower harvesting system. Meccanica 49, 2785–2796 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11012-014-0026-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11012-014-0026-7

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