Omron RFID application stories

Episode 3: Fruit sorting systems

The current problem for fruit suppliers is selecting, sorting or delivering fruit using mechanical flags for variety discrimination. At present they use special pallets which give rise to complicated mechanical parts resulting in frequent malfunctions and loss of production. In addition having to create new mechanical flags to deal with the different varieties coming through uses up time and money.
Furthermore the system is often unreliable because water and dirt can cause reading errors in bar code systems.

To overcome these costly difficulties the solution is to store the information obtained by a sorting machine, such as size, grade, and sugar content, in the data carriers (ID tags) mounted to the pallets. Positioning the intelligent flags at the sorting stations that read the information from the data carriers means the fruit can be sorted according to size, grade, or sugar content.

The benefits of using ID technology is that it does not depend on mechanical parts and thus enables very stable, trouble-free sorting. The cost per station is a fifth of the cost for systems using mechanical flags and so less investment is required. The additions of new fruit varieties can be handled simply by rewriting the information in the data carriers and unlike bar code systems, the RFID system is not affected by water and dirt, ensuring reliable control. If required any batch information can then be sent to a pallet tag then transferred to a bar code for the end customer.

This system uses the V670 series, which is ideal for high-speed sorting lines. The three important features of this set up is first, the intelligent flags (tags) enable the simple creation of low-cost systems that can handle up to 256 varieties. Secondly the data carriers have high resistance to the environment and water, and thirdly no maintenance is required because the do not have batteries that need replacing.

Micromech is the systems integrator for Omron RFID systems, if you wish to find out more contact Stirling Morley on 01376 333311 or stirling@micromech.co.uk

'Micromech, keeping track with Omron'