Farm style: domestic "smart" combine harvester will harvest a third more berries

Russian engineers have developed an innovative berry harvester. It allows you to quickly and inexpensively harvest a third more fruits from the field than can be done manually. The inventors used artificial intelligence to determine the optimal design and materials. Thanks to this, they managed to significantly reduce the share of the crop that remains in the field, and surpass their Russian and foreign counterparts in this indicator. According to experts, it is really much more profitable to use equipment than to attract staff. However, in order for the development to be in demand by farmers, it is important to ensure high-quality maintenance of the equipment, which would ensure that there is no downtime during the harvesting season.

Berry picking machine

Kazan State Agrarian University engineers, together with INNOSTA employees, have developed a prototype of a trailed combine harvester for mechanized berry harvesting, called "COURANT 1". The device can replace the labor of 200 people. At the same time, up to 40% of the fruits remain in the fields during manual berry picking, and losses when using the development amount to only 10%. Such results were achieved thanks to the help of artificial intelligence, which was used to simulate the conditions of berry separation. This made it possible to choose the optimal softness and flexibility of one of the main parts of the mechanism — the fruit-harvesting element.

Photo: Global Look Press/Danita Delimont Stock Photograph

— The main role in berry picking is played by the hydraulic shaking system, which we have managed to make smoother and more accurate than its counterparts. One of the main components of the system is the fruit—harvesting element. This ring, from which the rays radiate, resembles a star in shape. For him, we have selected the plastic that is best suited for berry varieties popular in the Volga region. It is planned to start using the combine there in the first place," said Rais Sabirov, senior lecturer at the Department of Operation and Repair of Machines at the Kazan State Agrarian University.

According to him, for high-quality harvesting, it is important to provide optimal angles of inclination of branches, rotation intensity, acceleration, speed and tact of individual combine units.

According to the developers, previously similar devices were mainly purchased abroad, however, due to sanctions, supplies have noticeably decreased, and the cost of foreign equipment has skyrocketed several times. There are similar combines that are produced in Russia, but this is a small-scale production that cannot satisfy the entire market. In addition, the percentage of fruit losses in such equipment reaches 20-25%. All this forces agricultural producers to resort to manual labor.

Photo: Kazan State Agrarian University Press Service

The developed combine, in comparison with the best Western analogues, reduces berry losses by another 5%, the authors of the project noted. This is a very significant advantage, as the combine can process up to 30 hectares per season and harvest a large volume of fruits. The machine is designed for harvesting black, red and yellow currants, gooseberries, raspberries and rosehips. At the same time, the cost of berry production is reduced by 25-35%, and harvesting time is reduced by five times, the engineers said.

The demand for a combine harvester for picking berries

The combine harvester works as a trailer for a tractor with a capacity of 30 horsepower and receives energy from its engine through a power take-off shaft. The car moves through the berry rows at a speed of 0.6 to 1.5 km / h, which allows you to harvest carefully without damaging the bushes. In an hour of operation, the combine harvester can process from 0.1 to 0.2 hectares of plantation, the authors of the project said. He collects the berries already cleaned of leaves, stalks and dirt, immediately placing them in a shipping container. This not only saves time on additional processing, but also increases the shelf life of products.

According to the developers, the invention consists entirely of domestic components, and serial production is scheduled to begin in December. The estimated cost of the combine will be about 3 million rubles. In the future, developers want to connect it to unmanned tractors. If interest in the device appears in other regions, they are ready to adapt it to the varieties of berries that are grown there.

Photo: IZVESTIA/Sergey Lantyukhov

As Irina Koziy, the head of the Berry Academy information and educational project, explained to Izvestia, the relevance of the new development among berry producers will depend on the characteristics that it will show during operation. For farmers, the reliability of machinery is of paramount importance, as they need to avoid downtime.

— One of the main difficulties among Russian manufacturers of combine harvesters is their technical support. Any equipment breaks down from time to time. It requires follow-up service and prompt replacement of spare parts. During the berry harvest season, it is very important for farmers to avoid downtime, as each such day leads to a loss of harvest and an increase in the cost of berries. Picking berries with a combine harvester is several times cheaper than the manual method, usually 8-10 times," she said.

Nikolay Lyubavin, head of the educational program "Transport and Industrial Design" at the Higher School of Engineering of the Russian University of Transport, noted that the simplicity of the combine's design provides initial savings, but the lack of industrial design can create risks in the future. Without it, the car is often perceived by customers as outdated, which reduces its market value. Open nodes are more vulnerable to damage, which increases repair costs and the risk of downtime, he concluded.