Engineering Properties of Aonla (Emblica officinalis Gaertn.) Fruits and Tree Architecture for the Development of a Manually Operated Harvester

Abstract

Aims: This study aimed to determine the engineering properties of NA-7 aonla (Emblica officinalis Gaertn.) fruits and tree architectural characteristics required for the design and development of a manually operated aonla harvester. Study Design: An experimental study involving field measurements of tree architectural parameters and laboratory determination of fruit engineering properties. Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted at ICAR–Central Horticultural Experiment Station and the College of Agricultural Engineering and Technology during the 2025–2026 research period. Methodology: Fifteen randomly selected NA-7 aonla trees were evaluated to determine tree height, canopy diameter, canopy height and canopy volume using a total station. In addition, 100 randomly selected fruits were analysed for their engineering properties, including length, width, thickness, geometric mean diameter, sphericity, fruit mass and bulk density. Standard measurement procedures and established engineering equations were used to determine the required parameters. Results: The average tree height, canopy diameter and canopy volume were 8.19 m, 6.48 m and 176.20 m³, respectively, while the maximum height to the point of maximum canopy spread was 6.14 m. The average geometric mean diameter, sphericity, fruit mass and bulk density of the fruits were 34.76 ± 1.76 mm, 0.97 ± 0.02, 35.76 ± 1.18 g and 599.44 ± 13.99 kg/m³, respectively. Based on the measured tree architecture, the effective maximum telescopic handle length required for harvesting was estimated to be approximately 6 m, enabling access to the major fruit-bearing region of the canopy. Conclusion: The engineering properties of NA-7 aonla fruits and tree architectural characteristics generated in this study provide essential design information for the development of a manually operated harvesting system. The results may also serve as a useful engineering database for future research on harvesting equipment for aonla and other fruit crops with similar canopy architecture.