Development of a Plum (Japanese Apricot) Seed Remover for Multipurpose Plum Flesh Processing

Purpose: Japanese Apricot, a type of plum, has various medicinal and economical applications. Plums are quite popular worldwide, but their deseeding remains a serious impediment to their processing. Therefore, a plum (Japanese Apricot) seed remover (PSR) was developed that can use various types of cutters according to the purpose of the plum processing, and its performance was evaluated. Methods: The proposed PSR, which allows multipurpose cutters, namely, zero-, two-, and four-blade cutters, to be installed, was first designed and manufactured. To identify appropriate parameters related to the cutting pressure, plums were harvested from three regions during three harvesting periods, and their geometrical and mechanical properties were measured. After application of the parameters related to the cutting pressure, a performance test was carried out on both fresh and frozen plums by identifying the ratios of the flesh recovery, seed recovery, seed breakage, deseeding efficiency, and machine efficiency. Results: The results show that, using the proper calculation of the processing parameters, 100% deseeding efficiency was facilitated regardless of the type of cutter used. However, in the case of a four-blade cutter, there are significant differences in the flesh recovery ratio according to the plum setting angle. Between the fresh and frozen plums, all cutters showed a significantly better flesh recovery ratio for the case of fresh plums. Conclusions: This machine will advance the plum processing technology, and eventually help the plum industry flourish.