Apple picking is a labor-intensive and costly part of orchard production. Thus, the mechanization of fresh apple harvesting is an urgent problem to be solved. At present, the commonly used mechanical harvesting method is vibration harvesting, and the traditional vibration mode is based on fixed frequency shaking (FFS). In this study, to improve the efficiency of mechanical harvesting of fresh apples and fruit quality, a new harvest mode using variable frequency shaking (VFS) with a hierarchical fruit catching systems which is suitable for tall spindle tree harvesting. Through the experimental study, the optimal shaking frequency mode was determined, the advantages and disadvantages of VFS and FFS were compared, and the main working parameters of the catching system were optimized. It was concluded that when the shaking frequency changing rate is 8 Hz/s, the VFS could achieve a higher harvesting efficiency and once the frequency exceeded 12 Hz, the harvesting efficiency of VFS is higher than FFS. The results showed that the variable frequency shaking mode with suitable catching system are potential method for apple mechanical harvesting.
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