Grassroots Innovation - Pomegranate peeling Machine
For Pomegranates, their seeds are the edible part. Peeling out these red colored, citrus seeds is a testing job. These seeds are fixed in the curved layers of fiber material inside the fruit in such a way that taking out them without any wastage becomes a tiresome and time consuming task. Mr. Uddhav Kumar Bharali from Assam, India has made this task easy with his grassroots innovation - pomegranate peeling machine. The machine can be quite useful for the fruit processing enterprises of small and medium size.
Features and advantages of the pomegranate peeling machine
It is a small agro based processing machine that has the capability for deseeding up to 5 kg of pomegranate within 3 to 5 minutes.
The machine's feeding mechanism is quite flexible. One can feed pomegranates either in batches of 5kg at a time or one fruit at a time continuously. It requires the pomegranate fruits to be cut into two halves first before feeding them into the feeding hopper. The seeds are separated from the peel and other fibrous part in the processing chamber and after which they are collected via a collecting tray whereas the skin and other unwanted parts are ejected through another outlet.
The machine is highly efficient compared to the manual peeling of pomegranates as it separates the seeds from the fruit fiber without much damage or wastage. The efficiency depends on the size and type of pomegranates. The output is also very clean from the dust of peeled skin.
The machine is simple and compact and easy to use. It requires just one person to operate it. The rugged steel construction of the machine means a low maintenance requirement.
Support and recognition of the grassroots innovation
National Innovation Foundation (NIF) a nonprofit autonomous body under the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India has recognized and supported Bharali's pomegranate peeling machine. It has also awarded the grassroots innovation in its biennial competition for unaided green grassroots innovation and traditional knowledge. The innovation also got a mention in a journal from MIT. With the support of NIF, the machine has been exported to other countries as well.
Features and advantages of the pomegranate peeling machine
It is a small agro based processing machine that has the capability for deseeding up to 5 kg of pomegranate within 3 to 5 minutes.
The machine's feeding mechanism is quite flexible. One can feed pomegranates either in batches of 5kg at a time or one fruit at a time continuously. It requires the pomegranate fruits to be cut into two halves first before feeding them into the feeding hopper. The seeds are separated from the peel and other fibrous part in the processing chamber and after which they are collected via a collecting tray whereas the skin and other unwanted parts are ejected through another outlet.
The machine is highly efficient compared to the manual peeling of pomegranates as it separates the seeds from the fruit fiber without much damage or wastage. The efficiency depends on the size and type of pomegranates. The output is also very clean from the dust of peeled skin.
The machine is simple and compact and easy to use. It requires just one person to operate it. The rugged steel construction of the machine means a low maintenance requirement.
Support and recognition of the grassroots innovation
National Innovation Foundation (NIF) a nonprofit autonomous body under the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India has recognized and supported Bharali's pomegranate peeling machine. It has also awarded the grassroots innovation in its biennial competition for unaided green grassroots innovation and traditional knowledge. The innovation also got a mention in a journal from MIT. With the support of NIF, the machine has been exported to other countries as well.
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