Theses and Dissertations

ORCID

https://orcid.org/0009-0001-8860-0929

Advisor

Gharakhani, Hussein

Committee Member

Chen, Dong

Committee Member

Patiballa, Sree Kalyan

Date of Degree

5-15-2026

Original embargo terms

Visible MSU Only 6 months

Document Type

Graduate Thesis - Campus Access Only

Major

Biosystems Engineering

Degree Name

Master of Science (M.S.)

College

James Worth Bagley College of Engineering

Department

Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering

Abstract

Robotic fruit harvesting demands precision and gentle picking and handling to ensure high fruit quality while improving efficiency. This study presents the design, development, and evaluation of an integrated robotic manipulator for fruit harvesting that combines a 5-degree-of-freedom (DOF) multi-functional end-effector mounted on a 3-DOF arm with prismatic joints. The end-effector employs two pivoted belt-driven fingers, as well as a wrist joint, making it capable of in-hand manipulation, picking a fruit in various methods (bending, twisting, pulling, or a combination of them), and transferring it to the back of the end-effector continuously. A custom control algorithm was developed to manipulate and align the fruit for perfect picking. Experimental results demonstrated high positioning and manipulation success, stable fruit holding and orientation control performance, and efficient harvesting. The developed system provides a promising step toward fully automated and gentle fruit-harvesting operations, reducing dependency on manual labor and enhancing productivity in agricultural automation.

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