Tea harvester

studies about tea harvester

1. TEA HARVESTing PRESENTED BY AJI.E.B 2013-02-004

2. Introduction India and China are the largest producers as well as the consumers of tea 70% of tea produced in India is consumed in India itself. The tea leaves of new tea plant are ready for harvesting in five years. For good quality tea only the buds including the third leaf has to be plucked and processed. An experienced person will pluck around 40kg of tea leaf per day.

3. MECHANISATION Mechanical harvesting was first introduced in Argentina . The shortage of laborers and the increase in wages This resulted in the mechanization of tea leaves harvesting. Mechanized harvesting helps in reducing the man hour. The output For mechanical harvesting is 1000kg/8hr compared to 25-40kg plucked by operator.

4. TEA LEAF HARVESTING

5. PLUCKING /HARVESTING A very vigorous task. 2 types of plucking- Fine plucking Coarse plucking

6. FINE PLUCKING Only the bud, the second and third leaves are harvested. This type of harvesting tea makes very fine and delicate flavoured tea. It is usually lighter and sweeter in taste. COARSE PLUCKING Along with the bud, two or more mature leaves are harvested. This type of harvesting tea produces lower quality tea. It gives a more stronger flavoured tea plucking

7. Petrol/Gas operated machine From the engine , power is transferred to the blower and the cutting blade. Reciprocating movement of the blades which are placed one above the other blower blows these leaves into the bag Once the bag is filled, it is replaces with new bag . capacity 900 kg/day

8. Battery operated harvesting machine Energy is a 12v 7.5 Ah battery. Power is transferred in to Dc motor and it rotates Rotating motion from motor transfer in to bevel gears Fast rotating blades cut the tea leaves Metal plate that is connected to the axis of the blade is responsible for the transferring of cut leaves into the bag attached . capacity 30kg/hr weight 3kg

9. problems Increasing price, fumes and smell, body pain due to overweight are the common complaints about petrol operated machine This machine consumes 600ml of petrol per hour. Damage to tea leaves is the complaint about battery operated machine

10. Tea Plucking Shears/Selective Tea Harvester Selective harvesting leaves immature shoots Works with a scissor-like action. Increases plucker productivity .

11. Enables harvesting in time. Reduces labour requirements by 50% or more. Harvested leaf is less damaged than manually picked leaf. Minimises plucker fatigue. Environment – friendly. Reasonable pay back period of few weeks. Easy maintenance. No additional operating costs.

12. Selective harvesting

13. WILLIAMES UL1000 & UL750 SELECTIVE TEA HARVESTERS

14. FEATURES Light weight Support by the tea bushes eliminates “walking bounce” giving excellent height control Simple Rotary design – no gearboxes “V” belt speed Reduction Sealed for life bearings, no greasing required easy maintenance No grease contamination of crop Reliable Honda 4 stroke engine No mixing of oil with fuel required - no smoke – environment friendly

15. Approximately half the operating cost of comparable two stroke engines. Overhead cam with belt drive gives efficient & exceptionally quiet operating Optional plucking width of 750 or 1000 mm Harvest speed up to 4 k.p.h. High grade rustless Aluminum construction Simple one lever operation Automatic maintenance free clutch “Kill switch” ensures no confusion allowing operation by unskilled workers

16. Tea Harvesting Patented rotary Selective Plucking mechanism harvests up to 4 kms per hour Over 90,000 selective plucks per hour over the full machine width Accurate and even plucking table, giving high quality plucking Ease of maintenance Sealed for life bearings Rotary, no gearbox efficient design. No reciprocating parts

17. Leaf Container Integral with machine No separate leaf bag – no bag to wear out or carry Two person operation QUALITY High quality leaf Minimizes bush damage Quicker bush recovery

18. Conclusions developments…… Different methods of harvesting

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