Abstract Every apple destined for the fresh market is picked by human hand. Despite extensive research over past four decades, there are no mechanical harvesters commercially available, which a significant concern because of increasing uncertainty about availability manual labor and rising production costs. The highly unstructured orchard environment has been major challenge to development viable robotic harvesting systems. This paper reports design field evaluation harvester. approach...

Abstract. Fresh market apple harvesting is a difficult task that relies entirely on manual labor. Much research has been done the development of mechanical techniques. Several selective robots have developed for studies, but there are no commercially available robotic systems. This article discusses design and novel pneumatic 3D-printed soft-robotic end-effector to facilitate separation. The was integrated into system with five degrees freedom designed simplify picking sequence reduce costs...

There are no mechanical harvesters for the fresh market apple industry commercially available. The absence of automated harvesting technology is a critical problem because rising production costs and increasing uncertainty about future labor availability. This paper presents preliminary design robotic harvester. approach adopted was to develop low-cost, `undersensed' system modern orchard systems with fruiting wall architectures. A machine vision fuses Circular Hough Transform blob analysis...

This paper reviews recent developments in energy harvesting technologies for structural health monitoring applications. Many industries have a great deal of interest obtaining technology that can be used to monitor the machinery and structures. In particular, need autonomous structures has been ever-increasing years. Autonomous SHM systems typically include embedded sensors, data acquisition, wireless communication, systems. Among all these components, this focuses on technologies. Since...

As the world’s population continues to rise while agricultural workforce declines, farmers are increasingly challenged meet growing food demand. Strawberries grown in U.S. especially threatened by such stipulations, as cost of labor for a delicate crop remains bulk total production costs. Autonomous systems within sector have enormous potential catalyze and land expansions required demands feeding an increasing population, well heavily reducing amount waste experienced open fields. Our team...

This paper presents an adaptive sliding mode control (ASMC) scheme based on strain gauge position feedback for compensating motion errors in a piezoelectric nanopositioning stages and ensures precise reliable tracking control. The innovation of this lies calibrating the relationship between voltage actual stage displacement. Thus, calibrated displacement is directly used as signal ASMC scheme. Adaptive rules are employed to adjust gains, thereby eliminating requirement determine upper bound...

This paper presents an analysis of the energy generating performance in a pressure-loaded system using piezoelectric transducer technology. The harvesting device this study is partially covered, simply supported unimorph circular plate to convert from fluctuating pressure into electrical energy. includes comprehensive modeling and parametric provide design primer for specific application which frequency well below natural harvester. An expression total power output given applied shown, then...

This paper investigates the deflected behavior of unimorph circular piezoelectric diaphragm actuators under electrical loading. Among many other factors that affect actuators' performance, effects boundary conditions, thickness ratio to substrate layers, and radius layer bonded metallic on resulting deflection are examined. Analytical models presented with which optimize ratio, for various conditions. Experimental results two different coverage also demonstrated validate models. The measured...

This article presents a unimorph lead zirconate titanate cymbal structure as an energy harvester. The harvester was designed to be able sustain higher mechanical loads by replacing the monolayer with titanate/steel composite between metal end caps. Theoretical analysis first carried out predict energy-harvesting performance of new design. A parametric study also performed on two key geometric parameters reveal trends that affect energy-generating for structure. dominant are thickness cap,...

<abstract> <sc>Abstract.</sc> A key task in robotic harvesting is collection of the picked fruit a container. The usual method reported literature pick-and-place technique where harvester deposits stationary bin. This paper demonstrates concept dual robot coordination for as an approach to potentially reduce overall cycle time (average per fruit) tree harvesting. kinematically redundant picking manipulator with eight degrees freedom was developed apple Rather than displace bin, system, which...

This paper presents a comprehensive theoretical model for predicting the energy generating performance of an harvesting device that uses piezoelectric circular membrane subject to pressure fluctuation. PVDF (polyvinylidene fluoride) film is adopted membrane. In order predict power due stretching and bending membrane, total stress on rather than at center point determined using method. Analytical results indicate theoretically predicted generated under normal blood variation close...

The fresh market apple industry currently relies on manual labor for all harvesting activities. lack of mechanical technologies is a serious concern because rising costs and increasingly uncertain availability. Researchers have been working several decades to develop harvesters tree fruit. two fruit removal methods considered include mass selective with robotics technology. Whereas demonstrated unacceptable damage rates, robotic systems limited by insufficient speed robustness. This paper...

A great amount of research has been done to develop piezoelectric material-based energy harvesting devices as power generators for a variety portable and low consuming devices. Among the possibilities harvesters, 31 type cantilever benders have generally used. In this work unimorph beam with an interdigitated electrode pattern was examined. The focus paper is model propose design parameters improve generating performance harvester.

Additive Manufacturing (AM) is an emerging field with rapid growth. Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM), as AM method, becoming increasingly popular. With the ability to create parts from a wide range of thermoplastics, it necessary understand effects FDM process on printed part's mechanical properties for given material. This paper investigates 3D TPU created by typical low cost desk-top machine. was first extruded into filament suitable and samples tensile tests according ASTM 3039 standard....

Energy harvesting is a research area that has seen greatly increased interest in recent years. This paper presents experimental efforts to validate analytically predicted energy generating performance of piezoelectric harvesters for use pressure-loaded system. The adopted this article are simply supported, partially covered unimorph circular diaphragms designed capture from fluctuating pressure and convert it into electrical energy. design itself been presented earlier work; however there...

This paper presents a comprehensive three-dimensional isotropic numerical simulation for thermo-mechanical constitutive model of shape memory polymers (SMPs). In order to predict the behavior SMPs, one-dimensional rheological is adopted, translated into form and time discrete then presented. Numerical this was developed using UMAT subroutine capabilities finite element software ABAQUS. Evolution analysis conducted by making use backward difference scheme, which applied all quantities within...

The paper defines a full model of the fluid dynamics that characterize hydraulic semiactive vibration absorbers (SAVAs) developed for structure application. A flow is established indicates SAVAs are able to both store and dissipate energy. work demonstrates effect compressibility (at piston at valve) variation bulk modulus with pressure can be important design implementation an SAVA system civil structures. also describes laboratory procedures used identify parameters. then performance when...