Apparatus for spinning fruit for sorting thereof
US4726898A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jan 29, 1986 |
| Grant date | Feb 23, 1988 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jan 29, 2006 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10S209/939
- WIPO fieldChemical engineering
- WIPO sectorChemistry
Abstract
Several conveyor rollers of singulators are made to rotate by a fruit orientation belt causing fruit carried thereon to rotate in accordance with movement of the belt such that the rotational axes of the fruit, typically lemons, orient themselves along their stem axes, or substantially perpendicularly to the direction of travel of the singulators. Downstream, the rollers contact a rotating spin-accelerating belt to substantially increase speed of rotation of the rollers and oriented fruit thereon in order to permit optical scanning devices to scan a much larger percentage of the fruit surface areas. Fruit rotate in the same direction of rotation during orientation and spin-acceleration, the latter occurring for only a very short duration.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.