Testing and performance evaluation of tractor mounted hydraulic elevator.
Shinde A. A., Chavan A. J., Kolhe K. P.
Author Affiliation: Department of Farm Machinery and Power, College of Agricultural Engineering and Technology, Dr. Balasaheb Sawant Konkan Krishi Vidyapeeth, Dapoli, Ratnagiri (M.S.), India.
International Journal of Agricultural Engineering 3 : 275-278
Abstract : A Tractor mounted hydraulic elevator (TMHE) powered by tractor PTO was tested for the mechanical harvesting of mango orchards by using digital load cell for stability study. The field performance of the above machine was carried out on plane land on horticultural mango plot, Dr. Balasaheb Sawant Konkan Krishi Vidyapeeth, Dapoli, Dist. - Ratnagiri (Maharashtra, India). This machine was tested for the better stability at maximum reach position during mango harvesting of various mango varities like Alphanso, Totapuri etc. This stability study was carried out by using strain gauge load cell (S-beam) having capacity of 2000 kg. The load cell guiding device was designed and fabricated at College of Agricultural Engineering and Technology Workshop for conducting the above experiments using standard material specifications of American society of testing material. The reaction on rear wheel of tractor was measured by using load cell, which converts the force acting on rear wheel of tractor into electrical signals, which is displayed on the digital control panel. The field capacity of elevator was 0.08 ha/hr for mango harvesting. The net mango harvested by using TMHE was 510 kg/day.