Method of harvesting grapes - separating grapes from bases of vines using pulsed jets of air

摘要

The method of harvesting involves surrounding the vines with an open bottomed tunnel whose upper surface is connected to processing equipment via a flexible suction tube. At the base of the tunnel are series of nozzles which are upwardly directed and are supplied with pulses of air at the rate of several hundred cycles per minute. The jets separate the grapes either individually or as bunches from the vines and direct them towards the upper tube. There is a pair of rows of nozzles on each side of the bottom opening of the tunnel, and air is supplied to each pair alternately.