Mechanical Asparagus Picker Ready For Market
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As an energetic young man in 1974, Bill Lund asked his dad what he could invent to make some money. “He told me that asparagus growers could sure use a mechanical harvester, so that’s what got me started on the idea,” says Lund, who’s still energized but is now a 65-year-old inventor whose idea is finally gaining traction.
“Early on I teamed up with Geiger Manufacturing in Stockton, Calif. and we built about a half-dozen prototypes until 1984. They worked okay, but they couldn’t quite compete with the plentiful and cheap hand labor, so we stopped working on it,” continues Lund. “Over the years we’d make some improvements and try it out, but it still wasn’t quite right. A few years back we made some dramatic changes and teamed up with Washington State University to prove the economics.”
Lund says WSU researchers compared the quality of hand-harvested product with that from his machine and found there was virtually no difference between the two. “There wasn’t any weight loss, spear tips weren’t feathering, and after two weeks of cold storage, asparagus from both picking methods hadn’t deterioriated. WSU also told us the machine would be a viable economic alternative if it selectively harvested 70 percent or more of what a manual crew could. At the time it was harvesting about 50 to 60 percent of the hand crew harvest,” says Lund.
“Each machine has electronic eyes and mechanical arms with cutting blades to harvest spears the same way humans do,” Lund says. “The machine senses the spears that are tall enough to harvest, then grips, slices and conveys them into a lug box all facing the same direction, all without laborers on the machine.”
Another big benefit of Lund’s machine is its simplicity. “When you’re harvesting you don’t want to break down because asparagus can grow up to 7 in. a day. If our machine does break down it can be fixed in minutes, not hours,” Lund says. The picker runs with tractor electrical and hydraulic power that operates the on-board computer and drives the fingers and conveyor. A gas-powered air compressor drives the cutting knives.
Efficient and tireless, the picker can operate 24 hrs. a day, allowing a 4-row machine to harvest more than 100 acres in that span with only tractor drivers as labor. Lund says it would take a crew of 40 to 50 people to harvest that same amount. “A grower with less than 40 acres can probably replace his field crew with a single, one-row machine,” Lund adds.
The cost of a single-row machine is $75,000 and about $250,000 for a 4-row model.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Geiger Manufacturing, 1110 E. Scotts Ave., Stockton, Calif. 95205 (ph 209 464-7746; www.asparagusharvester.com).
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Mechanical Asparagus Picker Ready For Market CROPS Miscellaneous As an energetic young man in 1974 Bill Lund asked his dad what he could invent to make some money “He told me that asparagus growers could sure use a mechanical harvester so that’s what got me started on the idea ” says Lund who’s still energized but is now a 65-year-old inventor whose idea is finally gaining traction “Early on I teamed up with Geiger Manufacturing in Stockton Calif and we built about a half-dozen prototypes until 1984 They worked okay but they couldn’t quite compete with the plentiful and cheap hand labor so we stopped working on it ” continues Lund “Over the years we’d make some improvements and try it out but it still wasn’t quite right A few years back we made some dramatic changes and teamed up with Washington State University to prove the economics ” Lund says WSU researchers compared the quality of hand-harvested product with that from his machine and found there was virtually no difference between the two “There wasn’t any weight loss spear tips weren’t feathering and after two weeks of cold storage asparagus from both picking methods hadn’t deterioriated WSU also told us the machine would be a viable economic alternative if it selectively harvested 70 percent or more of what a manual crew could At the time it was harvesting about 50 to 60 percent of the hand crew harvest ” says Lund “Each machine has electronic eyes and mechanical arms with cutting blades to harvest spears the same way humans do ” Lund says “The machine senses the spears that are tall enough to harvest then grips slices and conveys them into a lug box all facing the same direction all without laborers on the machine ” Another big benefit of Lund’s machine is its simplicity “When you’re harvesting you don’t want to break down because asparagus can grow up to 7 in a day If our machine does break down it can be fixed in minutes not hours ” Lund says The picker runs with tractor electrical and hydraulic power that operates the on-board computer and drives the fingers and conveyor A gas-powered air compressor drives the cutting knives Efficient and tireless the picker can operate 24 hrs a day allowing a 4-row machine to harvest more than 100 acres in that span with only tractor drivers as labor Lund says it would take a crew of 40 to 50 people to harvest that same amount “A grower with less than 40 acres can probably replace his field crew with a single one-row machine ” Lund adds The cost of a single-row machine is $75 000 and about $250 000 for a 4-row model Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Geiger Manufacturing 1110 E Scotts Ave Stockton Calif 95205 ph 209 464-7746; www asparagusharvester com
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