Citrus Sorting Machines


Citrus Sorting, Grading, and Packing Lines

To Boost Your Fruit's Competitiveness


Orange Sorting Technology


Why Is Citrus Sorting So Important?

Citrus fruits like oranges, mandarins, lemons, limes, and grapefruits are all some of the most popular and highly demanded fruits in the world, which means that they are also some of the most competitive in today's market. After years of market research, engineering, and software development, our team of engineers in Italy have designed the optimal citrus sorting and packing line that translates your specific market requirements into a product that perfectly matches your customer's needs and has a rightful place on the shelf. Our optical sorting machine will select your citrus fruits based on parameters you set for weight, size, shape, color, external quality, and internal quality.


Optical Sorting for Citrus

Watch our machines in action


Our experience in designing turnkey sorting solutions spans over 30 years. Today, we have the expertise in building the most cost-efficient, fully automated citrus packhouses from feeding to packing. Our citrus sorting lines are compliant to the strictest EU standards and can handle with care all your citrus varieties at exceptionally high speeds while maintaining consistent and reliable quality inspection results. Our optical sorting systems for citrus fruits consist of a strictly calculated setup of polarized lighting and high-definition and infrared cameras that capture at extremely high speeds several pictures of each fruit. Consequently, a dedicated vision sorting software inspects the ripeness and brix content of the citrus fruits, the weight and size of each product, and the presence of quality defects such as bruises, blemishes, and irregular shape.



Accurate

Reliable

Cost-Effective

Fast

EU Compliant

Remote Assistance


Technologically Advanced Machines, Very Reliable, 360-Degree Assistance.


Antonio Genovese
President - I Campi del Sole

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Gallery

Citrus Processing Steps

  Dumping & Visual Inspection


Visual Inspection of Citrus

The citrus fruits are emptied in bulk at the entrance of the citrus packing line by means of an automatic dumping system or manually unloaded by workers. The oranges are then visually inspected on a special roller conveyor belt with overhead lights. Laborers will remove the rotten and crushed citrus fruits as they may cause sanitary issues along the line and could disrupt the operations at the facility.

  Washing & Waxing


Citrus Washing Machine

Next, the oranges are cleaned by means of a dedicated washing and brushing machine for citrus fruits. The washing machine sprays water and sanitizing agents on the fruits to reduce mould and bacteria development. Special horsehair brushes polish the oranges and spread the sanitizing solution on their surface. It is also possible to apply protective citrus waxes which: prevent exposure of the citrus to fungicides, prolong their shelf life, and enhance their appearance.

  Drying Tunnel


Citrus Drying Machine

After being washed and coated, the citrus fruits pass through a tunnel dryer with a controlled temperature and humidity. The citrus drying machine blows hot air which helps stabilize the waxing agents on the surface of the fruits and ensures that any moisture and humidity is removed. Simpler drying systems, such as sponge dryers, may be recommended depending on the application.

  Sorting & Grading


Citrus Grading Machine

The citrus fruits are singulated and transported by means of special roller cups to the electronic citrus sorter. The cups rotate the fruits as they are photographed under the high resolution and infrared cameras. The images collected by the cameras are analyzed by our innovative vision software to precisely characterize each product by: Weight, Size, Shape, Color, Ripeness, Brix Content, Acidity, External Quality, Internal Quality.

  AI Quality Inspection


Citrus Quality Inspection

Our patented HDiA technology is a next generation sorting technology internally developed and perfected by our team of experts over decades. Our citrus sorting machines use this intuitive vision technology to detect with minute accuracy the external quality defects on the surface of the citrus fruits such as bruises, blemishes, blackspots, scars, and many more. Additionally, the HDiA is a non-invasive solution for analyzing the sub-surface of the citrus to detect brix content, acidity, degree of ripeness, frost damage, and more. What makes this technology innovative is its ability to understand and learn new defects autonomously as more products are processed through the machine.

  Collection & Packing


Packing Line for Citrus Fruits

After the citrus fruits are graded by size, color sorted, and inspected for quality defects, they are ejected from the cups to different exits based on user-defined parameters. Subsequently, workers at each lane will collect perfectly clean oranges, mandarins, lemons, limes, or grapefruits which are consistent in weight, size, shape, and color and absent from any internal or external quality defects. These citrus fruits can be packed manually in carton boxes, trays, or crates. It is also possible to transport them to flow pack machines which can pack the citrus fruits in pillow bags, plastic trays, or even wrap them individually. Another option is to direct them to net bagging machines which pack the citrus fruits in beautifully finished net bags with a commercially appealing design.

  Automatic Bin Filling


Automatic Bin Filling Machine

At the end of the citrus packing line, we can install bin filling units for stacking the citrus into the large bins. The bin filling system has a carefully engineered exit system which ensures that the citrus are gently deposited into the bins without damaging them. They also come with built-in sensors that detect the fill rate of the bins and ensure that they are not over stacked. Once completely filled, the bins are ready to be transported for further processing or for storage.



Why Choose Quadra?

Citrus Sorting Technology


    Several Fruits on the Same Machine:

Our flexible sorting technology allows you to sort similar fruits such as oranges, lemons, apples, and pears on the same machine. Rather than purchasing several sorting machines for each type of fruit, you can make use of your sorting machine all year long based on the seasonality of your produce.

    Modern Technology for Classifying Defects:

Our patented, industry leading HDiA sorting technology has achieved outstanding results in evaluating all sorts of skin defects and internal properties in citrus fruits like, black spots, bruises, blemishes, ripeness, acidity, and brix content.

    Robustness, Reliability, and Availability of Spare Parts:

Our citrus sorting machines are built to last for decades and only require regular in-house maintenance. Our simple spare parts are easy to replace, inexpensive, and readily available in the market.

    Flexibility in Sorting Parameters:

Our interactive software allows our users to choose and modify sorting parameters on the go for each sorting lane without requiring any technical assistance.

    Remote Assistance:

All our machines are connected to a secure cloud network that enables our specialists to follow the operation of each machine and promptly manage it remotely. This allows us to drastically cut on downtime and to constantly keep our databases up to date to reach exceptional degrees of accuracy.


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