ES1272034U - FRUIT COLLECTOR (Machine-translation by Google Translate, not legally binding) - Google Patents

Abstract

Fruit picker, which being of the type that includes an adjustable belt to the user's waist, with hooking means for picking baskets, is characterized by the fact that in the front part there is a support attached to a padded body. (3) fixed to the belt, made up of a pair of squares (4), which are finished off at their free end in a vertical appendage whose upper end bends backwards, like a hook (5), formally and dimensionally suitable for receive in its bosom the rocking axes (6') of the handle (7) of the basket (8), while at the back the belt incorporates a padded body (3) made up of a pair of brackets (4') that are linked in an articulated manner to a ring (15) with a plan configuration according to the section of the basket at the level close to its mouth, the baskets presenting a divergent configuration in an upward direction and consequently a stackable character. (8) that include a hanging element or hook (13) in the middle area of its handle (7). (Machine-translation by Google Translate, not legally binding)

Description

DESCRIPTION

FRUIT COLLECTOR

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

The present invention refers to a fruit collector, preferably intended for the collection of small fruits, such as red fruits or the like.

The object of the invention is to provide a collector in which a plurality of baskets participate, associated with a carrying device, which is comfortable for the operator to carry and efficient in its function, achieving greater performance and at the same time less fatigue of the subject. in charge of this task.

It is also an object of the invention to allow the baskets to be stabilized at all times during the harvesting tasks, as well as to allow them to be hung on the cables or wires of the greenhouses once they are full, thus preventing them from being deposited on the ground, in order to prevent dirt, leaves or foreign bodies from adhering to them.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

As is known, the collection of small fruits is carried out in small or medium-sized baskets, which are usually transported manually, which means having a busy hand that cannot be used to collect the fruit, which obviously reduces operational performance, since the ideal would be to allow the operator to have both hands free to carry out a simultaneous collection with both hands and consequently faster, being necessary for this to leave the basket on the ground, which obviously means having to constantly bending down to unload the fruits, which entails overexertion that can lead to injury.

Trying to solve this problem, the applicant himself is the owner of the utility model ES 1184334 U, which describes and claims a basket, either made of plastic, wicker, metal or any other material, which has a flat rear sector, to adapt and fix itself to the user's body through a kind of belt, the basket having means of coupling and uncoupling the basket that allow it to be unlinked from the belt, for example , for emptying once full.

Although this solution is much more efficient than the one used to date, it has limitations, including the following:

• The fixing means provided mean that when the subject has to bend down to collect certain fruits arranged at a lower level, the basket tends to disengage when resting on the user's legs.

• As is obvious, the volume of fruits to be harvested is much greater than the capacity of the basket, which means that the operator has to move constantly every time he fills it to the point of emptying it, which means a few times inoperative clearly undesirable.

• Another limitation is that when the fruit is collected in containers not suitable for harvesting, such as buckets, cans or inappropriate containers, the fruit suffers damage from scratches and blows, resulting in a loss of fruit quality.

• Once the baskets are full, they are placed on the ground, which causes them to get stained with dirt, as well as leaves or other foreign elements adhere, clearly undesirable.

• Finally, it should be noted the fact that some fruits are not suitable for harvesting, because they are damaged or in a rotting phase, so that to date they were thrown to the ground, which has as a consequence the attraction of flies, Wasps and other insects that are undesirable, that can be harmful to the fruit already harvested or even on the tree, as well as, annoying for the workers.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The recommended fruit picker fully satisfactorily solves the above-mentioned problem, based on a simple but effective solution.

For this, and based on the philosophy of the aforementioned utility model, the collector of the invention has the particularity that the main collection basket, instead of having pins for coupling to the belt support, it lacks said pins, being attached to the support through the end axes of its handle, for which, the adjustable belt to the operator's waist includes both in its front part and in its back part respective padded and resistant bodies in which a couple are conveniently fixed. of supports.

The front or front support includes a pair of brackets that are finished off at their free end in a vertical appendage whose upper end bends backwards, like a hook, through which the basket is suspended and hung by the axes of tilting of the handle of the same.

This configuration, in the form of an inverted hook, allows the baskets to present a vertical play in their coupling to the belt support, which means that they can move vertically when the user bends down, without the risk of them being accidentally disengaged from each other. the supports, resulting in a much simpler and more efficient coupling means.

At the same time, in the rear part of the collector, a second support has been established, in which a pair of brackets participate, which in this case are linked to a tilting ring.

Said ring will have a plan configuration according to the section of the baskets close to their mouth, so that they can be stacked on said ring.

In this way, several baskets can be stacked at the back and taken by the operator himself as he fills the basket arranged in the front area to place them on the front support.

In this sense, it has been foreseen that the handle of the baskets is finished off in their middle area on a hook, which allows them to be hung once filled on the wires of the greenhouses, preventing them from touching the ground.

The tilting nature of the ring means that the stack of baskets tends at all times to a vertical arrangement, that is to say that it is self-aligning by gravity, regardless of the inclination of the user's body, which prevents the baskets from coming out in said movements.

On the side of the belt itself, a strap or similar has been provided to hold a container, intended to receive the deteriorated fruits or not suitable for consumption, so that they are not deposited on the ground, thus avoiding the concentration of flies, wasps or other insects.

In this way it is achieved that the operator obtains a higher harvesting performance, with less downtime and also minimizing the effort for it.

Regarding the grid of the basket where the fruit is deposited, it will be made with materials of agri-food quality, having rounded edges, mirror or polished finish, thus avoiding the deterioration of the fruit by not having any edge or sharp edge, in addition to have ventilation so that the fruit is cooled by the setting itself, serving in turn the grid to eliminate residues or impurities that may be attached to the fruit itself, such as small leaves, twigs, etc., typical of the same fruit.

The baskets, and in correspondence with their upper rear ends, have a curved-concave shape, which serve as a funnel, allowing a better transfer of the product stored in them in smaller containers such as tubs.

Regarding the means of fixing the baskets to the supporting structure of the belt in its anterior zone, said baskets have button-shaped lateral lugs, the lug of which serves to house the axis of the handle and to be able to be easily attached or uncoupled from the bracket or supporting structure associated with the belt, while ensuring that said pin has a precise oscillation so that the basket remains balanced and in a straight position to prevent the fruit from falling to the ground.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

To complement the description that is going to be made below and with the aim of helping a better understanding of the characteristics of the invention, according to a preferred example of a practical embodiment thereof, a set of drawings is attached as an integral part of said description. where, with an illustrative and non-limiting nature, the following has been represented:

Figure 1.- Shows a perspective view of a fruit collecting device at the level of its front or front support, applied on the waist of an operator.

Figure 2.- Shows a perspective view of the device of the invention at the level of its rear support, a support that appears devoid of baskets.

Figure 3.- Shows a plan view of one of the baskets that participate in the device of the invention.

Figure 4.- Shows a view similar to that of figure 2, but in which a basket appears stacked on the rear support, although a plurality of baskets could be stacked on said support.

Figure 5.- Finally, shows a basket hanging on the corresponding greenhouse cable.

PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION

In view of the outlined figures, it can be seen how the collector of the invention is constituted from a belt (1), adjustable to the operator's waist (2), so that two padded bodies (3) are attached to said belt (1), both in the front and in the back, being defined for the same supports of different configuration.

A pair of squares (4) that emerge from the padded body (3) participate in the front support, which are finished off at their free end in a vertical appendage whose upper end is bent backwards, like a hook (5), to through which the baskets (8) are suspended and hung by the pivot axes (6 ') of their handle (7), which are finished in button-like expansions (6) as retention elements.

From this structuring, and as shown in figure 1, the basket is suspended between each pair of supports or brackets (4), immobilized vertically by the hooks (5), thereby enabling the operator to collect fruit with both hands and deposit them in the basket located at the front.

When the basket is full, it will be hung from the greenhouse cables (14) through a hook (13) that incorporates its handle in its middle area, thus preventing the basket from touching the ground and getting dirty.

As for the rear support, in this a second pair of brackets (4 ') are established that are articulately linked to a ring (15) with a plan configuration according to the section of the basket at the level close to its mouth, so that These being divergent in the upward direction, one can be fitted in said ring (15) and the rest can be spread out on the immediately lower basket.

In this way, and after hanging the full basket on the wire (14), the operator will be able to extract one of the stacked baskets on the rear support of the collector and attach it to the previous support, in order to continue with his task.

The inclusion of a joint (16) for the ring (15), makes the baskets (8) tend to self-orient vertically due to their own gravity, regardless of the degree of inclination of the operator's body, so that a maximum stability for stacking these baskets.

Finally, it only remains to point out that a container (10) will be additionally attached to the belt (1) in which the operator (2) himself is depositing the deteriorated fruits in order to avoid their deposition on the ground, which would attract unwanted insects.

The baskets will be made of agri-food quality material, having rounded edges, mirror or polished finish, thus avoiding the deterioration of the fruit by not having any cutting edge or edge, their ventilation holes being equally rounded (11).

To facilitate the transfer of the harvested fruits, it has been foreseen that in correspondence with their upper rear ends the baskets adopt a curved-concave configuration (12), like a funnel, which facilitates the filling of smaller size containers, such as tubs.

Claims (5)

1§.- Fruit picker, which being of the type that includes an adjustable belt to the user's waist, with hooking means for picking baskets, is characterized by the fact that a support attached to a padded body (3) fixed to the belt, consisting of a pair of squares (4), which are finished off at their free end in a vertical appendage whose upper end is bent backwards, like a hook (5), formally and dimensionally suitable to receive in its bosom the pivoting axes (6 ') of the handle (7) of the basket (8), while at the back the belt incorporates a padded body (3) made up of a pair of brackets (4 ') that are articulately linked to a ring (15) with a plan configuration according to the section of the basket at the level close to its mouth, the baskets presenting a divergent configuration in an upward direction and consequently a stackable character, basket s (8) that include a hanging element or hook (13) in the middle area of its handle (7). 2§.- Fruit collector, according to claim 1§, characterized in that in correspondence with a lateral zone of the belt there is a container (10) that receives damaged or invalid fruits in the collection. 3§.- Fruit picker, according to claim 1§, characterized in that the baskets are made of food quality material, being equipped with aeration holes (11), presenting all their edges rounded. 4§.- Fruit picker, according to claim 1§, characterized in that the baskets (8) include, in correspondence with their upper rear ends, surfaces (12) of curved-concave configuration, like a funnel, as elements for controlled transfer of the fruits lodged in its bosom. 5§.- Fruit picker, according to claim 1§, characterized in that the pivoting axes (6 ') of the handle (7) of the baskets (8) are finished in button-like expansions (6) as retention elements of the same.