On-Site Intelligent Grading System for Fruits and Vegetables: Case Studies on Tomato and Apple

With the improvement of people's living standards, fruits and vegetables have gradually become an indispensable part of human daily diet. Eating more fruits and vegetables can maintain good health and prevent diseases. Fruits and vegetables with regular shapes and bright colors are more popular among people, so the needs of consumers can be met through fruit and vegetable grading. In addition, fruit and vegetable grading can also help improve product quality and market competitiveness, reduce costs, and ensure the quality of fruits and vegetables. Traditional manual fruit and vegetable grading suffers from high labor costs, low grading accuracy, and susceptibility to subjective factors. On-site intelligent grading system for fruits and vegetables at the production site is comparatively faster and more efficient than manual grading. It boasts higher precision, significantly reduces labor costs, and greatly enhances production efficiency and economic benefits. This review primarily discusses the research progress of intelligent grading equipment for fruits and vegetables at the production site. Specifically, this paper provides an overview of On-site Intelligent Grading System for Fruits and Vegetables at the production site, including the basic concepts and structural components of grading equipment. Additionally, this paper focuses on the application of machine vision technology in fruit and vegetable grading. It briefly outlines machine vision technology and reviews its research outcomes in fruit and vegetable grading, primarily focusing on common examples such as tomatoes and apples. Finally, the paper provides an outlook on future research prospects. This review primarily emphasizes the existing achievements and immense potential of machine vision technology in intelligent grading of fruits and vegetables.