Source: PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY submitted to
INTEGRATED SYSTEMS RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT IN AUTOMATION AND SENSORS FOR SUSTAINABILITY OF SPECIALTY CROPS
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
TERMINATED
Funding Source
HATCH
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1001036
Grant No.
(N/A)
Project No.
PEN04547
Proposal No.
(N/A)
Multistate No.
W-2009
Program Code
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Oct 1, 2013
Project End Date
Sep 30, 2018
Grant Year
(N/A)
Project Director
Heinemann, PA.
Recipient Organization
PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY
208 MUELLER LABORATORY
UNIVERSITY PARK,PA 16802
Performing Department
Agri & Biological Engineering
Non Technical Summary
The steady increase in global competition and the recent decrease in available labor, especially skilled labor, have increased the need for new technologies in specialty crop production. The specialty crop industry in the United States faces significant challenges to remain competitive, and production efficiency is critical to keeping the specialty crop industry thriving. A system-wide approach to developing automation for the specialty crop industry is critically needed to address economic and environmental sustainability challenges. The proposed five-year project will address research and outreach needs for the specialty crop industry in these areas, working with researchers, manufacturers, and producers. Approval of this project will allow researchers and industrial partners to share their results and plan future efforts in a coordinated effort, which will help reduce redundancies and help promote better use of expertise.
Animal Health Component
0%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
10%
Applied
90%
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
4021119202065%
2051119106035%
Knowledge Area
205 - Plant Management Systems; 402 - Engineering Systems and Equipment;

Subject Of Investigation
1119 - Deciduous tree fruits, general/other;

Field Of Science
2020 - Engineering; 1060 - Biology (whole systems);
Goals / Objectives
Study interactions between machinery and crop to provide basis for creating optimal mechanical and/or automated solutions for specialty crop production Design and evaluate automation systems which incorporate varying degrees of mechanization and sensors to assist specialty crop industries with labor, management decisions, and reduction of production costs Develop collaboration and work in partnership with equipment and technology manufacturers to commercialize and implement the outcomes of this project Develop specialty crop architectures and systems that are more amenable to mechanized production Adapt biological concepts associated with specialty crop production, harvest, and postharvest handling into quantifiable parameters which can be sensed
Project Methods
For mechanization and automation to be successful, the crop architecture must enable machinery to easily access the plants. For example, conventional orchard layouts with large, wide (i.e. three-dimensional) trees, make mechanized tasks very difficult. Flattening the structure to a more two-dimensional configuration will make many production tasks simpler. These tasks include thinning, pruning, scouting, and harvest. New and innovative technologies have been proven more successful with the change in structures. An example is mechanical blossom thinning using a string thinner. Proper training and pruning helped to optimize the thinning levels, resulting in reduced labor and higher quality yields. Crop architectures will continue to be investigated and training systems will be further refined. Mechanical or automated harvesting of fruit crops is a critical issue in specialty crop production. Study of how mechanical impact and vibration energies are transmitted through canopies in different types of crop architectures will provide valuable information for developing efficient and effective interfaces for existing mechanical harvesters and to develop new technologies for mechanical and automated harvesting. Study of accessibility of machines to fruits, flowers and branches in different types fruit trees and bushes will be beneficial for improving or developing new technologies for not only harvesting, but also for pruning and thinning. At the same time, study of different types of crop architectures is essential to improve these systems for better accessibility to machines so that practically usable automation and mechanization solutions can be developed. An automated system for specialty crops is much more than an autonomous robot moving along the row of trees or plants. A cost effective system will require information from many sources both on-site and off-site, and autonomous robots or vehicles will require direction and coordination. Hence the efficient gathering of data and control of devices will be an integral part of an automated system. New autonomous orchard vehicles have been extensively tested and proven in the field. Further work can investigate integration of tasks with these vehicles and platforms, as well as fully automating certain operations, which have not yet been successfully addressed, such as autonomous fresh apple harvesting. It is not feasible to replace human labor with automation in all operations. In some operations the cost of replacing human dexterity and complex decision-making capability with equipment is not justified. In these operations, a semi-automated device assisting human labor may be a more optimum solution. Developing a man-machine system requires careful attention to the ergonomic (safety, productivity, comfort and intellectual engagement) needs of the human in the system. Very little research has been done in ergonomic design of specialty crop equipment, and additional research is required to design an optimum man-machine system for specialty crops. Decisions regarding the overall plan and control of an automated system will remain with a human operator. The quantity of operator decision-making information needed for autonomous or semi-autonomous operation of various equipment may potentially be unprecedented and unmanageable. There is a need to develop computer-based data systems which collect, verify, and organize raw data to present information to the operator such as the maturity of the crop, crop stress, and spatial variation. There is also a need to organize predictive models for crop needs such as pesticide application, pruning, thinning and harvesting. Finally, there is also a need to help the operator visualize the most effective use of the automated equipment. Commercialization of many critical automation needs of specialty crop growers will be difficult to justify using traditional business plans because the small size of the market, coupled with potentially high development costs, will result in a low return on investment (ROI). Manufacturers will need help to lessen the cost of development and risk assumed to marketing a new product. Frequent communication between growers, manufacturers and project participants will help to mitigate cost and risk to the manufacturers. We will create opportunities for partnerships between specialty crop growers, manufacturers and project participants. Defining a set of industry standards for the test, operation and components of automated equipment is a necessity. Standards will enable the interchangeability of parts and software, decrease design time, and encourage manufacturers to build component parts such as articulating arms and end effectors. We will work with the standards committees of ASABE and SAE to propose standards related to automation in specialty crops. The design of automation systems is a continually evolving engineering area, and the application of automation design to specialty crops is very new. Scientific findings along with engineering concepts and techniques learned during this project should be shared among practicing scientists, engineers and students. During the project we will periodically collect concepts and techniques learned from among the participants, and disseminate this knowledge through classroom and continuing education venues.

Progress 10/01/13 to 09/30/18

Outputs
Target Audience:Pennsylvania and mid-Atlantic fruit growers Specialty crop producers agricultural engineers with research interest in ag machinery and automation Instruction in Spanish for orchard workers Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Student internships How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Nothing Reported What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Conducted strategic planning with representatives from regional horticultural associations. The RootRobot unit was designed and under construction through DOE ARPA-E funding. The RootRobot will automate the excavation, cleaning, and imaging of corn roots from research plots. Initiated and conducted a new study to evaluate crop sensing in apple trees that were pruned to three levels of severity, with and without prohexadione calcium, a plant growth regulator that reduces current shoot extension growth. Initiated and planted an intensive peach orchard, with four levels of planting density. Once established, this orchard block will be used to evaluate tree density and novel trellis design and components. A sensor-based irrigation system was installed and tested in an apple block. Four irrigation strategies were investigated for scheduling irrigation events: evapotranspiration, crop water stress index, soil water content, and soil water potential. The impact of various canopy depths on machine sensing performances was studied in a tall spindle orchard system. Developed sensing systems measured the size and count of apples at various times from early in the growing season. Various technologies for automated mushroom harvesting have been investigated. A proof of concept for harvesting robot mechanisms that are specifically designed for PA wooden bed system is being developed.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Chen, L., Karkee, M., He, L., Wei, Y., & Zhang, Q. (2018). Evaluation of a Leveling System for a Weeding Robot under Field Condition. IFAC-PapersOnLine, 51(17), 368-373.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Choi, D., & Jarvinen, T. (2018). A video processing strategy using camera movement estimation for apple yield forecasting. Proceedings of the 9th International Symposium on Machinery and Mechatronics for Agriculture and Biosystems Engineering, page 1-5, Jeju, South Korea, May 28-30, 2018.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Feng, J., & He, L. (2018). Tree canopy estimation for mechanical pruning based on 3D Lidar. NABEC Paper No. 18-054. St. Joseph, MI: ASABE.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Fu, H., Duan, J., Karkee, M., He, L., Chen, D., Sun, D., & Zhang, Q. (2018). Quantifying fruit quality affected by mechanical impact for selected apple varieties. IFAC-PapersOnLine, 51(17), 250-255.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: He, L., and J. Schupp. 2018. Sensing and automation in pruning of apple trees: a review. Agron. 2018, 8, 211. http://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/8/10/211/pdf. 18 pp.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: He, L., Zhang, X., Karkee, M., & Zhang, Q. (2018). Fruit Accessibility for Mechanical Harvesting of Fresh Market Apples. ASABE Paper No. 1801007. St. Joseph, MI: ASABE.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Jarvinen, T., Choi, D., Heinemann, P., & Baugher, T. A. (2018). Multiple object tracking-by-detection for apple fruit counting on a tree canopy. 2018 ASABE Annual International Meeting, Paper No. 1801193, page 1-8.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Kon, T. M., J. R. Schupp, K. S. Yoder, L. D. Combs, and M. A. Schupp. 2018. Comparison of chemical blossom thinners using Golden Delicious and Gala pollen tube growth models as timing aids. HortScience 53:1143-1151.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Schupp, J.R., H.E. Winzeler, T.M. Kon, R.P. Marini, T.A. Baugher, L.F. Kime, M.A. Schupp. 2017. A method for quantifying whole-tree pruning severity in mature tall spindle apple plantings. HortScience 52:1233-1240.
  • Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Schupp, J., T. Baugher and P. Heinemann. 2018. Peach Crop Load Management: Blossom Thinning and Fruit Size. Penn State Fruit Times, https://extension.psu.edu/peach-crop-load-management-blossom-thinning-and-fruit-size?j=215664&sfmc_sub=22239605&l=159_HTML&u=4146493&mid=7234940&jb=1
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Schupp, J., B. Wiepz, E. Winzeler and M. Schupp. 2018. Evaluation of Artificial Spur Extinction or 6BA at bloom as Potential Crop Load Management Techniques. Pennsylvania Fruit News 98(1):24-25.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Wang, C., Lee, W. S., Zou, X., Choi, D., Gan, H., & Diamond, J. (2018). Detection and counting of immature green citrus fruit based on the Local Binary Patterns (LBP) feature using illumination-normalized images. Precision Agriculture.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Zhang, X., Fu, L., Majeed, Y., He, L., Karkee, M., Whiting, M. D., & Zhang, Q. (2018). Field Evaluation of Data-based Pruning Severity Levels (PSL) on Mechanical Harvesting of Apples. IFAC-PapersOnLine, 51(17), 477-482.


Progress 10/01/16 to 09/30/17

Outputs
Target Audience:fruit growers spanish speaking orchard managers and workers beginning and next generation growers from diverse backgrounds Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Penn State extension personnel conducted two "Pruning by the Numbers" demos in Spanish and English (90 participants, 56 completed surveys) How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Through Penn State Extension, Fruit Times newsletter, presentations at state horticultural association meetings, and via trade journals. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Conduct long-term studies of apple pruning practices and intensive peach growing systems for mechanized/ automated fruit production. Engage stakeholders in needs assessments and also commercial-scale evaluations of new technologies. Develop a harvest assist platform for an individual picker. Autonomous orchard platform (including UAV) for tree condition monitoring and decision making system, such as crop water/nutrition stress and disease. Mechanical/robotic tree branch management, including tying and pruning. Mechanical harvesting technologies for fresh market apple, and potentially for vegetables such as mushroom. Development of an automated maturity measurement system (mechatronics + sensors) for apple harvest management assistance Development of coordinated smart sensors for mushroom quality evaluation

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Automated pruning project: rules developed for robotic pruning based on heuristics. Limb to trunk ratio worked well for setting severity determined using maximum limb diameter. Removing next largest branch to threshold is ¾ of the required pruning.100% of those who completed the post-program survey said they would try using the pocket guide with simplified rules for pruning (based on Jim Schupp's heuristics for robots). On average, grower participants said use of the sequential pruning techniques would likely cut pruning time by 42% - an estimated savings of $136 per acre. Harvest-assist device for small operations was redesigned by undergraduate student design team, to fit on N.M. Bartlett Chariot two-person platform. This platform was better suited for hilly US orchards than the original platform. The unit was field tested in apple orchards in Fall 2017.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Zhang, Z., P.H. Heinemann, J. Liu, J.R. Schupp, and T.A. Baugher. 2016. Design and field test of a low-cost apple harvest-assist unit. Transactions of ASABE. 59(5):1149-1156.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Zhang, Z., P.H. Heinemann, J. Liu, T.A. Baugher and J. R. Schupp. 2016. Development of mechanical apple harvesting technology  a review. Transactions of ASABE. 59(5):1165-1180.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Zhang, Z., P. H. Heinemann, J. Liu, J. R. Schupp, T. A. Baugher. 2017. Brush mechanism for distributing apples in a low-cost apple harvest unit. Applied Engineering in Agriculture 33(2): 195-201.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Zhang, Z., and P.H. Heinemann. 2017. Economic analysis of a low-cost apple harvest-assist unit. HortTechnology. 27(2):240-247.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Accepted Year Published: 2017 Citation: Schupp, J. R., H. E. Winzeler, T. M. Kon, R. P. Marini, T. A. Baugher, L. F. Kime and M. A. Schupp. 2017. A method for quantifying whole-tree pruning severity in mature tall spindle apple plantings. HortScience 52:1233-1240.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Baugher, T., E. Dugan, M. Basedow, T. Jarvinen, J. Schupp, E. Winzeler and M. Schupp. 2017 Competitive orchard systems and technologies. Pennsylvania Fruit News 97(2):27.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Schupp, J., E. Winzeler and M. Schupp. 2017. Evaluation of artificial spur extinction as a potential crop load management technique. Pennsylvania Fruit News 97(1):74-76.


Progress 10/01/15 to 09/30/16

Outputs
Target Audience:Mid-Atlantic apple and other specialty cropgrowers Agricultural Engineers Next generation new, young, and hispanic specialty crop producers Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Nothing Reported How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?January, 2016 - held a Science of Pruning Demonstration in English and Spanish - 100 participants January, 2016 - held a demonstration for orchard employees from diverse backgrounds on use of laser images of dormant, slender-spindle-trained trees as training aids February, 2016 - held an interactive workshop for Hispanic/Latino growers on innovative orchard technologies - 30 participants What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Harvest-assist device is being redesigned to fit onto a newly developed, two-person platform that is designed for Eastern US orchards. It is commercially available through N.M. Bartlett, Inc.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? A low-cost harvest-assist device for apple orchard platforms was designed and fabricated. Field testing utilizing a redesigned distributor reduced downgrading of apple quality to 5%. Ergonomic analysis showed that the time spent by pickers in awkward positions, which can lead to stress injuries, was significantly reduced by utilizing the harvest-assist unit. Automated pruning: to inform engineers on how to select branches to cut in intensive apple orchards, simplified sequential pruning rules have been developed Moderate pruning produced the highest crop value for Gala. Light pruning or severe pruning reduced crop value by 24% and ≥51% respectively. Within the appropriate range, heavier pruning increased the value of large fruit, while less severe pruning increased the yield of smaller fruit.EndFragment

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Lyons, D.J., P.H. Heinemann, J. Liu, J., J.R. Schupp, and T.A. Baugher. 2015. Development of a selective automated blossom thinning system for peaches. Transactions of ASABE. 58(6):1447-1457.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2016 Citation: Zhang, Z., P.H. Heinemann, J. Liu, J.R. Schupp, and T.A. Baugher. 2016. Design and field test of a low-cost apple harvest-assist unit. Transactions of ASABE. 59(5): (in press).
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2016 Citation: Zhang, Z., P.H. Heinemann, J. Liu, J.R. Schupp, and T.A. Baugher. 2016. Development of mechanical apple harvesting technology  a review. Transactions of ASABE. 59(5): (in press).
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Baugher, Jarvinen, Dugan, Schupp. 2016. Can a Rules-Based Apple Pruning System Improve Labor Efficiency without Affecting Orchard Productivity? PA Fruit News 96 (2):16-17.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Kon, T.M., J. Schupp, H.E. Winzeler, and M.A. Schupp. 2015. The effect of mechanical string thinner spindle rotation speed on apple spur bud removal. HortScience 50(9):S358-S359. (Abstr.).
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Pruning mature trees in a semi-dwarf apple orchard. Penn State Extension Fruit Times. 18 Nov 2015 http://extension.psu.edu/plants/tree-fruit/news/2015/pruning-mature-trees-in-a-semi-dwarf-apple-orchard.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Schupp, James. 2015. Pruning mature trees in a semi-dwarf apple orchard. 19 Nov 2015. http://fruitgrowersnews.com/news/pruning-mature-trees-in-a-semi-dwarf-apple-orchard/.


Progress 10/01/14 to 09/30/15

Outputs
Target Audience:fruit growers research engineers rsesearch scientists Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?undergraduate and graduate students learned design, fabrication, and research methodology in both lab and field How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Field demonstrations during field days included migrant workers who would utilize the new technologies if adopted. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Adapt the harvest-assist device to a new platform called the "Chariot", manufactured by N.M. Bartlett, that is more suitable to Eastern U.S. orchards.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Apple harvest assist: A low-cost harvest-assist device for apple orchard platforms was designed and fabricated. The device had four main components: receiver (where pickers placed the apples), two transport tubes, manifold, and distributor (which distributed the apples into a standard bin). Field testing utilizing a redesigned distributor reduced downgrading of apple quality to 5%. Ergonomic analysis showed that the time spent by pickers in awkward positions, which can lead to stress injuries, was significantly reduced by utilizing the harvest-assist unit. The most hazardous positions, high picking on a ladder, were completely eliminated, as well as all other operations associated with picking from ladders. Further funding from the College of Ag Sciences at Penn State and the Penn State Research Foundation helped to provide market analysis and IP development for the project. Grower surveys showed that small operations (50 acres or less) were more inclined to have interest in such a device if the platform and harvest-assist device total cost was less than $35,000. A patent application was submitted for the harvest-assist device, and discussions with potential licensees has continued. Automated pruning: Studies with tall spindle apple canopies have indicated that pruning rules may not need to be overly complicated to adequately describe optimal pruning. Preliminary results suggest that the number of primary branches emanating from the trunk may be the most important factor, while including additional detail such as secondary, tertiary or quaternary branching patterns adds considerable complexity but may not add significant benefits. Research is continuing to determine the optimum severity of pruning, and these data will be used in algorithms to determine optimal pruning points. An additional study with apple trees trained to a vertical axis tree form indicated that pruning trees according to a set of rules had similar effects as pruning by orchard crews or researchers. The rural sociologists at Penn State made progress on completing the interviews that will inform the future survey design. Currently, they have traveled to 4 states to conduct interviews with apple and wine-grape growers: NY Apple: 9 NY Grape: 6 PA Apple: 9 PA Grape: 5 WA Apple: 7 CA Apple: 7 CA Grape: 2+ Total: 45+ They also interviewed one agribusiness representative who serves fruit growers in Canada and the US, and conducted a small survey of 40 California wine-grape growers. Although the exact operating characteristics of an autonomous apple pruner are unknown, the minimum operating characteristics of such a machine can be estimated. For example, ground speed can be estimated if additional assumptions about the length of the operating season are made. If it is assumed that such a machine could be operated for 12 weeks per season, the minimum speed required to justify the purchase of a $120,000 machine would vary from a low of 2.7 feet per minute to 12.6 feet per minute depending on the pruning cost per tree. If such a machine could be developed that could operate at ground speeds of 4-6 feet per minute, it would be economical for a wide range of high-density plantings.

Publications

  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Zhao, Z., P.H. Heinemann, J. Liu, J.R. Schupp, and T.A. Baugher. 2014. Design, fabrication, and testing of a low-cost apple harvest-assist device. ASABE Paper No. 141839738. American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers. 13 pp.


Progress 10/01/13 to 09/30/14

Outputs
Target Audience: Fruit growers Potential commercial development partners Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Undergraduate students and graduate students have learned planning, design, fabrication, and testing of machinery for agricultural mechanization, particularly in the areas of blossom thinning and harvest assist. Gradaute students have learned to write grants proposals and scientific papers, as well as presented to engineering and scientific peers at professional society meetings. Two graduate students in horticulture, one graduate student in rural sociology, one graduate student in computer engineering, and five student interns have been involved in the pruning automation project. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? A technology transfer workshop was conducted December, 2012, for 125 participants, and technology transfer tours were conducted July 2013 for 325 growers from 25 states and seven countries and in March 2014 for 75 California producers. During these educational programs for specialty crop growers, the science of pruning based on preliminary horticultural investigations was presented along with pruning rules. Orchard employees attended the pruning workshop, which was presented in both Spanish and English. Technology transfer tour participants who completed exit surveys (n=81) indicated that the three main obstacles to grower adoption of automation and precision management technologies were cost, reliability of equipment, and need for highly skilled mechanical expertise on the farm. Decreased employee retention and decreased safety were viewed as minor obstacles. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Continue developing and testing harvest-assist device. Investigate market for harvest-assist device and move towards commercialization (received Penn State funding in support of this effort) For the pruning project,our commercial partner, Vision Robotics Corp, has developed a prototype autonomous pruner for grapevines and for the future, we are leveraging this technology for apples. Horticulturists will continue to develope “rules” that describe optimal pruning for apples, and the engineering team is enhancing laser sensing to collect 3D representations of trees. We aim to apply the rules to the 3D visualizations of trees to develop decision systems that can be used for educational tools for growers. In the longer term we hope to combine sensing and decision systems with robotic arm technology to develop an autonomous pruner for apple.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Mechanized thinning: A 1/4-scale robot was fabricated and tested for selectively thinning peach blossoms. In the lab, using simulated peach blossoms at random positions, the heuristic thinning algorithm accurately controlled the robotic arm and end effector performance, reaching the goal of removing at least 95% of target blossoms. Apple harvest assist: A low-cost harvest-assist device for apple orchard platforms was designed and fabricated. The device had four main components: receiver (where pickers placed the apples), two transport tubes, manifold, and distributor (which distributed the apples into a standard bin). After lab tests on a frame, the device was mounted to an Orsi Eco-pick mobile platform. Field-testing was performed in October 2013. Results showed that the apple receiver and the transport tube did not bruise apples, but the bruising levels were unacceptably high between the manifold and the bin. The manifold and distributor were redesigned in 2014 and were lab tested. Field tests will be performed in October 2014. Ergonomic and efficiency studies comparing the harvest assist device with standard ladder and basket picking began in 2014. Automated Pruning: Pruning of both apples and grapes, once thought to be a mysterious blend of art and science, has been described by a set of rules. These rules have been evaluated and compare favorably with human-pruned trees and vines. We are using these rules to develop automated decision systems, and to educate and train human pruners to prune their crops more effectively and efficiently. Apple pruning rules developed through this project have been published at http://extension.psu.edu/plants/tree-fruit/news/2013/renewal-pruning-for-high-density-apple-plantings. We conducted four experiments at the Penn State field laboratory and the orchard of one commercial partner to develop and refine pruning rules. The data appear to encapsulate optimal pruning with similar effects as human pruning. These rules will also prove valuable as an educational tool to help growers make pruning cuts that result in favorable outcomes. The principle project communication tool is the project website located at http://www.pruningautomation.com. Penn State hosted a project team and advisory panel meeting. Advice from the advisory panel (and other invited industry personnel) were recorded and used in future planning. Whole-farm sustainable demonstration plantings have been established in two Indiana commercial orchards and one Pennsylvania commercial orchard site.Following the pruning workshops, twelve orchard employees agreed to participate in a trial to assess ease of following the pruning rules. They quickly adopted the rules, and the trees they pruned could not be distinguished from trees in the same block pruned by horticulturists involved in the automated pruning project.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Baugher, T.A., P.H. Heinemann, J.S. Schupp, and K.M. Lewis. 2013. Innovations in peach thinning. Compact Fruit. 46(3):23-25
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Caplan, S., B. Tilt, G. Hoheisel, T. Baugher. 2014. Specialty crop growers perspectives on adopting new technologies. HortTechnology 24: 81-87
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Schupp, J., T. Auxt Baugher, P. Heinemann, E. Winzeler, T. Kon and M. Schupp. 2013. Labor efficient apple and peach production. Compact Fruit 46(2):17-19.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Zhao, Z., P.H. Heinemann, J. Liu, J.R. Schupp, and T.A. Baugher. 2014. Design, fabrication, and testing of a low-cost apple harvest-assist device. ASABE Paper No. 141839738. American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers. 13 pp.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Schupp, J.R. and T.M. Kon. 2014. Mechanical blossom thinning of GoldRush / M.9 apple trees with two string types and two timings. J. Amer. Pomological Soc. 68:24-32.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Baugher, T. A., C. Lara, J. Schupp and H. E. Winzeler. 2014. Competitive orchard systems and technologies. PA Fruit News 94 (2): 23.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Schupp, J., T. Kon, E. Winzeler, M. Schupp, P. Heinemann, J. Liu, Z. Zhang, T. Baugher and C. Lara. 2014. Labor efficient apple and peach systems for profitability. PA Fruit News 94 (1): 30-35.
  • Type: Theses/Dissertations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Lyons, D.J. 2014. Experimental investigation of selective automated peach (Prunus persica (L.) Batsch) blossom thinning. Ph.D. Dissertation. The Pennsylvania State University: University Park, PA. 185 pp.