The pome fruit puree processing lines  is rapidly, however, the current labor shortage, structural difficulties in harvesting and storage, and high operating costs make it difficult to meet demand. Automated processes could alleviate these issues and provide a competitive advantage to producers. However, the search for an appropriate manipulation tool has proven challenging. The robotics industry offers a wide range of customizable and standardized gripping designs, however, no specific design has been optimized for the requirements of pome fruit handling. This paper benchmarks a broad set of gripping principles, considering both customized and standardized tools, based on their ability to successfully grip pome fruits without damaging them. Additionally, energy consumption and general feasibility are evaluated as well.

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Both suction cups showed good gripping success and a good adaptation to the pear shape, however, injuries due to excessive contact force were observed during the four-day storage period. The asymmetrical OnRobot design was particularly susceptible to these problems, as the gripper’s fingers often curled up during the picking process, concentrating all clamping forces on a small area of the pears and thus causing damage. The BBL60’s connector design was also problematic as it caused suction spots on the pears when they were sucked up against it. Modifications to the connector design slightly improved this issue.

After the pome fruit has been processed, the juice is bottled and can be stored anywhere with a shelf life of up to 12 months. A variety of different packaging options are available, from 5-220L aseptic composite bags to aseptic plastic bottles and a variety of secondary packages. This type of product can be stored in any climate and does not require refrigeration or freezing, which makes it an attractive option for international markets.