Mechanical sorter
Automated grape sorting equipment, introduced in the 2000s, has significantly improved performance by effectively eliminating plant debris. These systems enable the grapes to be sorted for quality, optimising separation according to maturity and health. The use of air flow and vibratory systems ensures even distribution of the elements to be sorted. Separation processes using density and vibration further improve sorting quality. These innovations increase the speed and quality of sorting, adapting to the specific needs of winegrowers.
This automation improved sorting performance in the winery by optimising the elimination of certain undesirable elements such as plant debris. Recent developments in this equipment now enable the grapes to be sorted for quality, with separation of different grape qualities. This is an interesting possibility, particularly in the case of mechanically harvested grapes, but also in the event of uneven ripeness or poor health.
The quality of the work done by this equipment and the conditions under which it is used need to be assessed so that it can be optimally integrated into the technological chain as required.
The main mechanical sorters were studied over five 2008-2012 vintages, as part of a study initiated at the Vinopôle by the IFV Pôle Bordeaux-Aquitaine in collaboration with the Gironde Chamber of Agriculture.
High-speed mechanical sorter - Delta RFlow (Bucher Vaslin
Air knife sorting works on the principle of deflecting objects via a flow of air, so separating them according to mass and mass/volume ratio. The conveyor ensures significant speeds of movement of the items to be sorted, of the order of 2.5 m/s. Whole berries can be deflected by the air flow, unlike herbaceous elements, split berries, etc.
The air flow, which is perpendicular to the speed vector at the conveyor outlet, changes the trajectory of these elements, enabling them to be sorted. This process enables the grapes to be sorted at high throughputs (15 to 20 t/h) and is well suited to the throughput of medium to large capacity private wineries. The various elements of the harvest are first accelerated by a high-speed conveyor , giving them high kinetic energy, and are then blown by a blade of air oriented perpendicular to the parabolic trajectory generated at the conveyor outlet. These kinetics enable a high throughput rate to be achieved with a constant quality sorting result. The power of the air knife can be adjusted according to the grape harvest and grape variety.
The air flow, which is perpendicular to the speed vector at the conveyor outlet, changes the trajectory of these elements, enabling them to be sorted. This process enables the grapes to be sorted at high throughputs (15 to 20 t/h) and is well suited to the throughput of medium to large capacity private wineries. The various elements of the harvest are first accelerated by a high-speed conveyor , giving them high kinetic energy, and are then blown by a blade of air oriented perpendicular to the parabolic trajectory generated at the conveyor outlet. These kinetics enable a high throughput rate to be achieved with a constant quality sorting result. The power of the air knife can be adjusted according to the grape harvest and grape variety.
High-speed mechanical sorter - Delta RFlow
High-speed mechanical sorter - Delta RFlow
This sorter combines technologies that were previously used separately for different purposes(belt conveyor for stabilising objects in optical sorting and air knife used for objects that simply fall vertically and by gravity).
By combining these technologies and adapting them to each other, sorting speeds can be increased and the quality of the sorting can be improved by influencing the power of the air knife.
The de-stemmed harvest is fed to the vibrating reception table of the sorter. This table is equipped with a draining system to ensure optimum distribution of the harvest across the sorting width.
The vibrating table in turn feeds a spiked belt conveyor in a cascade. The spiked belt accelerates the harvest and ensures that it is evenly distributed over its surface. As the sorting operation is carried out continuously in order to respect the flow of the grapes, the air knife is effective if the elements to be sorted are distributed in a relatively homogeneous and sparse monolayer . This is achieved by combining a vibrating table with a spiked belt conveyor.
By combining these technologies and adapting them to each other, sorting speeds can be increased and the quality of the sorting can be improved by influencing the power of the air knife.
The de-stemmed harvest is fed to the vibrating reception table of the sorter. This table is equipped with a draining system to ensure optimum distribution of the harvest across the sorting width.
The vibrating table in turn feeds a spiked belt conveyor in a cascade. The spiked belt accelerates the harvest and ensures that it is evenly distributed over its surface. As the sorting operation is carried out continuously in order to respect the flow of the grapes, the air knife is effective if the elements to be sorted are distributed in a relatively homogeneous and sparse monolayer . This is achieved by combining a vibrating table with a spiked belt conveyor.
The harvest received by the vibrating table is spread across the working width. A first draining grid collects most of the free juice generated by the harvesting operations before the sorting phase and eliminates any small plant debris. A second grid separates the small plant debris from the juice and conveys it to a centralised system for collecting the machine's rejects .
The conveyor's spiked belt, located downstream of the vibrating table, accelerates the objects and distributes them across the entire working width. The surface of the conveyor is fitted with spikes that are judiciously distributed to stabilise the objects before they fall parabolically in front of the air knife.
A vibrating separator is positioned downstream of the air knife at the lower limit of the trajectory of the objects to be preserved. This position can be adjusted according to the grape variety, the state of the harvest and the sorting objectives set by the winemaker.
The sorted berries are collected either directly into a pump or into bins. The waste from the air knife is evacuated by a screw integrated into the machine and collected in bins.
The evacuation screw also receives the small plant debris collected upstream by the second grid of the vibrating table, so it acts as a centralised system for collecting the machine's rejects.
At the outlet of the spiked conveyor, the flow of grapes follows a single-layer parabolic trajectory at a relatively high speed (2.5 m/s). The air blade located near the end of the conveyor acts on each of the constituent elements of the harvest, which are thus provided with inertia. The weaker their inertia and the greater their wind resistance, the greater the effect of the air current on their trajectory. This action causes light elements or those with a low weight/volume ratio, such as leaves, pieces of stalk, petioles, pips, skins, verjuice, sultanas, millerandage grains, etc., to deviate from their trajectory
Diagram of high-speed mechanical sorter - Delta RFlow
Video presentation of the equipment
Vibrating hopper sorter - Delta Trio (Bucher Vaslin)
The "Delta Trio" is a mechanical roller sorter fitted with a vibrating feed hopper equipped with a "ski jump" type deflection system. This sorter is designed to sort destemmed grapes from mechanically harvested or destemmed grapes.
The feed hopper receives and distributes the destemmed grapes evenly over the entire working width along an initial oblique trajectory. When it meets the concave "ski jump" type deflection system, the harvest is directed along a tangential trajectory flush with the sorting plane defined by the rollers.
The plant parts are directed to the sorter outlet by the action of the rotating rollers and the sorted berries are recovered under the sorting plane after passing through the openings defined by the arrangement of the rollers. The diversion system allows the destemmed grapes to be conveyed to the sorter in a very horizontal manner (tangentially to the sorting surface), limiting the passage of waste into the reception area at the bottom.
The feed hopper receives and distributes the destemmed grapes evenly over the entire working width along an initial oblique trajectory. When it meets the concave "ski jump" type deflection system, the harvest is directed along a tangential trajectory flush with the sorting plane defined by the rollers.
The plant parts are directed to the sorter outlet by the action of the rotating rollers and the sorted berries are recovered under the sorting plane after passing through the openings defined by the arrangement of the rollers. The diversion system allows the destemmed grapes to be conveyed to the sorter in a very horizontal manner (tangentially to the sorting surface), limiting the passage of waste into the reception area at the bottom.
Vibrating hopper sorter - Delta Trio (Bucher Vaslin)
The pebble sorting system is made more efficient by vibrating the entire hopper and by the ski jump deflection system, which perfects the trajectory of the grapes to be sorted.
Adjustments can be made according to berry size.
It's a fairly affordable sorting system .
It's easy to use (just one setting, operated by an on/off button), easy to install, takes up very little space and is easy to clean.
Delta Trio diagram - Bucher Vaslin
Diagram of the roller sorter - Delta Trio
Video presentation of the equipment
Densimetric sorter - Flotatrie (Trimoltech)
The "Flotatrie" is a densimetric separation sorting system. It is installed on a chassis and can be moved from one harvest site to another. It can be adapted to different reception bays.
The de-stemmed grapes, harvested manually or mechanically, are poured into a stainless steel tank containing juice or sugar water, the density of which is chosen by the winemaker according to the desired sorting objectives and the degree of the grapes to be sorted.
Berries with a density greater than that of the bath sink and are collected by a conveyor belt and transferred either to the grape pump via the reception tank or to a sorting table to eliminate the last waste before vatting
The de-stemmed grapes, harvested manually or mechanically, are poured into a stainless steel tank containing juice or sugar water, the density of which is chosen by the winemaker according to the desired sorting objectives and the degree of the grapes to be sorted.
Berries with a density greater than that of the bath sink and are collected by a conveyor belt and transferred either to the grape pump via the reception tank or to a sorting table to eliminate the last waste before vatting
Densimetric sorting - Flotatrie (Trimoltech)
Berries and debris of lower density float and are recovered using a tool similar to a landing net by an operator and eliminated.
The density of the juice used to separate the elements by densimetry must be adjusted according to the maturity of the harvest to be sorted and the winemaker's sorting objectives. It is advisable to renew the densimetric bath every 4 hours and to add sufficient sulphite (10 g/Hl) to avoid any microbiological alteration.
Video presentation of the equipment
Mistral blower separator (Vaucher-Beguet)
This new equipment, the Mistral blower separator, uses the force of a blade of air adjustable in thickness and pressure to eliminate particles lighter than the harvest. This device is placed after a vibrating table to pre-sort the largest waste and allow the harvest to fall perpendicular to the air blade.
Mistral blower separator (Vaucher-Beguet)
This patented system takes advantage of the fact that grape berries are heavier than the small debris in the harvest (petioles, bits of stalk, etc.).
Initially, a vibrating table is used to eliminate the largest debris by calibration through a grid.
The pre-sorted harvest is then swept by a blade of air of adjustable thickness and power. This deflects the lightest waste into a bin. The sorted harvest falls onto a conveyor belt that can feed a harvest pump or a handling bin.
Video presentation of the equipment
Automatic multi-sort separator - Tribaie (Amos-Triviti)
The 'Tribaie' is an automatic waste sorting system for mechanical harvesting after de-stemming, which also separates the berries in terms of quality. It works on several complementary levels of separation:- separation of foreign bodies, shreds of skin from damaged berries and pips by washing with recycled must on a vibrating table.
- separation of petioles, grappillons and leaves on a vibrating table.
- separation of the berries into three categories, by falling onto a rotating drum.
This is an automatic sorting machine for destemmed grapes. Its function is to extract waste and foreign bodies and to ensure a qualitative separation of the berries, enabling them to be vinified separately if necessary.
It consists of several complementary stages (some of which are optional) using different separation techniques: washing, vibrating, draining, grading, rotating roller, densimetry, etc.
Stage 1: Optional cleaning of the harvest by must circulation
Separation of foreign bodies, shreds of skins (rot) and pips carried along by recycled must on various divergent and vibrating bar separators, which calibrate the waste evacuated.Level 2: Partial removal of plant parts and stalks by vibrating sorting and calibration
Removal of petioles, portions of stalks and leaves on a vibrating table and passage of whole berries through perforations by calibration.
Level 3: Qualitative separation of separated berries by rotating roller and scraper
Separation of berries into three categories, by dropping onto a rotating drum and optionally onto the belt. The berries are differentiated by their consistency, giving three categories :A - whole, formed berries that do not adhere to the roller.
B - crushed berries and debris that adhere to the roller but are loosened by centrifugal force.
C - grains, skins and debris adhering to the roller and removed from the roller by a scraper.
Level 4: Densimetric sorting of berries
Category A can be optionally oriented towards a densimetric bath. The ripest berries fall to the bottom of the tank and are picked up by a grape pump.Less ripe berries and light debris remaining on the surface are evacuated by flotation to category B.
Automatic separator - Viniclean (Scoma)
The 'Viniclean' is a recent sorting machine that is positioned after de-stemming to separate the berries from plant debris and other stalks not removed by the de-stemmer. This small device fits easily into the reception line, where it is designed to replace the manual sorting table.It is an automatic sorting device for destemmed grapes. It is positioned at the end of a vibrating hopper. It consists of three sets of discs with spikes around the edges to act as a rotating sieve, an endless screw to remove the waste and a geared motor powered by an electronic variator.
This equipment enables automatic sorting of the destemmed harvest and can replace manual sorting after destemming.
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Diagram of the automatic separator - Viniclean (Socma)
Diagram of the automatic separator - Viniclean (Socma)
Automatic separator - Viniclean (Scoma)
As the harvest descends from the vibrating hopper, the spikes pull the plants upwards, the berries pass between the discs and descend into the harvest pump or onto another sorting table.
The plants are removed by the flexible auger under the roller.
The flexible plastic discs are gentle on the grapes.
The discs can be adjusted to suit different grape varieties.
The speed of rotation is adjustable.
The other disc supports can be removed.
The auger can be removed for cleaning.
The flexible plastic discs are gentle on the grapes.
The discs can be adjusted to suit different grape varieties.
The speed of rotation is adjustable.
The other disc supports can be removed.
The auger can be removed for cleaning.
Viniclean spikes and auger
video presentation of the equipment
Experiment
See the list of experimentsSee more - [EQUIPMENT TEST] Harvest sorting equipment - 2017
- Results of automated vision-based sorting in the cellar - 2017
- [EQUIPMENT TEST] Harvest sorting equipment - 2012
- [EQUIPMENT TEST] Influence of mechanical sorting on wine quality, le Tribaie - 2007
- Mechanical grape harvest sorter and separator - 2001
- Study of sorting efficiency on different mechanical harvesting reception lines - 2000
- Methodology for quantitative evaluation of grape harvest sorting - 2000