FirmPro: advanced technology for delivering premium quality fruit up to 55mm size

This technology allows the measurement of firmness, caliber, and color for cherries, blueberries, plums, and any small fruit up to 55mm in size.

With more than 12 years in the field of agriculture, the HappyAgro company is recognized for developing, manufacturing and marketing one of the main instruments that the agribusiness is currently using to measure the firmness, size and color of small fruits: the FirmPro.

This innovation has revolutionized the fruit industry, as processes that were previously done manually by people and took a long time can now be automated, improving the processes of fruit production.

Robinson Gálvez, CEO of HappyAgro, explains that the FirmPro was designed as a complete solution, including everything necessary for using the equipment from the moment it is received, freeing users from unnecessary technical complications. “Data output is in an Excel spreadsheet, but it can also be connected to other pre-existing client systems. It captures high-resolution images and processes them to calculate the average color of each individual fruit.

Additionally, each image is stored as a digital sample,” he details. He adds that this tool is highly valued by customers, as it allows them to standardize quality parameters when receiving fruit and obtain real-time reports with the results.

Constant innovation

Another advantage of the FirmPro is its intuitive interface, which is quick to learn and also allows for incorporating new features through software updates. “This is one of its main virtues. At HappyAgro, we wanted to develop an instrument that could be used easily and only meant improvements in processes.

For this reason, our service also includes training and support for our customers. Their feedback is very significant to us, as it helps us adapt to their needs and, if necessary, develop new accessories, such as the Colorimeter,” says the company’s CEO.

Image 1: The Colorimeter is an accessory for the company’s main instrument, the FirmPro. This product allows capturing the color of each fruit in the sample.

The Colorimeter, also developed by HappyAgro, is an add-on for the FirmPro. It allows capturing the color of each fruit in the sample and consists of a mini photographic studio and image processing software, primarily intended for cherries and plums.

Additionally, the company offers the FirmPro Portable, a system for measuring fruit firmness, caliber, and weight. It features a lithium battery, allowing comfortable field use. Its connection to the notebook (included) is via Bluetooth, making it easy to transport and operate wireless.

“The portable version not only provides firmness and caliber classification based on fruit count, but also concludes based on the weight contribution of each fruit to the caliber labels and firmness classifications,” explains Robinson.

Finally, there’s the AtmosFix, a system that controls oxygen and carbon dioxide concentrations within multiple chambers, simulating fruit conditions during ship transport within the 0-20% range and ultra-low oxygen levels using a unique algorithm developed by HappyAgro.

Image 2: AtmosFix enables the monitoring of oxygen and carbon dioxide concentrations within cabins, allowing to simulate the conditions of the fruit on its boat trip.

At the CEPOC (Postharvest Studies Center) of the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences of the University of Chile, they study the postharvest treatment of fruits such as cherries and blueberries. To do this, they use the FirmPro and AtmosFix systems developed by HappyAgro.

Professor Víctor Hugo Escalona, who has been director of CEPOC since 2009, highlights that “now with AtmosFix we have the ability to monitor each camera remotely. We are sure that they meet the requirements we need. They are airtight in the sense that we can maintain the stability of the gas. The system injects gas as the concentration changes, rather than continuously, which results in gas savings.”

Fonte: Happy Agro
Immagini: Happy Agro

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