To provide an apparatus and a method for nondestructively identifying the presence of a floating coat of fruits and vegetables, such as fruits and vegetables and citrus fruits, such as oranges.
The apparatus for identifying the floating coat of the fruits and vegetables, is provided with a sensor member for abutting against the measured fruits and vegetables at a constant speed; a sensor member driving mechanism for making a sensor disposed so as to have a sensitivity axis aligned to an abutting face of the sensor member and the sensor member abut against the measured fruits and vegetables at a fixed speed; and a floating coat identification controlling section for identifying the existence of the floating coat of the measured fruits and vegetables from a sensor output obtained by the sensor member driving mechanism, for making the sensor member abut against the measured fruits and vegetables in the sensitivity direction of the sensor.
Koji Makimura
Chihata Takahata
Toru Suzuki