Patent · US Active

Method and apparatus for handling harvested root crops

US11167317B2 · kind B2 · utility

0Cited by

9References

18Claims

0Family size

Assignee

Tomra Sorting GmbH · DE

Inventors

John McGloughlin · Kildare, IE
James Frost · Atlanta, US
Maurice Moynihan · Dublin, IE

Key dates

Filing date	Aug 30, 2013
Grant date	Nov 9, 2021
Priority date	—
Expiry date	Oct 22, 2035

Classification

Technology area (CPC G)Physics
CPC primaryG01N2201/04
WIPO fieldMeasurement
WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

A method for handling harvested root crops such as potatoes. The method includes the steps of optically imaging (i.e., by the hyper-spectral imaging system) a bulk flow of a harvested root crop to produce image data and analysing the image data to identify discrete objects within the bulk flow. Each identified object is categorised as either acceptable or unacceptable based on a comparison with at least one discriminator and objects classified as unacceptable are removed (by the ejector actuator) from the bulk flow to provide a sorted flow of the harvested root crop.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.