HortiKey, a subsidiary of Berg Hortimotive, launches the Plantalyzer at Fruit Logistica. This innovative system is a unique tool for accurate estimation of vine tomato crops. The Plantalyzer counts the supply of vine tomatoes on the plant in the greenhouse and provides reliable information for an accurate estimate of the harvest. The system is developed in close collaboration with Wageningen University & Research (UR). This development was made possible by Rabobank.

The Plantalyzer uses special cameras to measure the bottom two to three, leaf-free, hanging trusses. The system maps the trusses per stem, the number of fruits per truss and the colour of each fruit. The Plantalyzer thus provides insight into numbers and colour stages. Linking this information to practical data from the greenhouse makes an accurate estimation of the harvest possible.

As Andreas Hofland, General Manager HortiKey tells us, ‘With the Plantalyzer the grower gets a better grip on his business. The Plantalyzer is able to measure large areas of tomatoes, counting both quantity and maturity. The system does that tirelessly every day, and always in exactly the same way.’ The Plantalyzer works fully automatically, and the images are made and analysed on the spot. The system then displays the results on the grower’s screen. This makes the Plantalyzer the ultimate sensing instrument for tomatoes.

Processing the latest technology

Another novelty of this system is that the Plantalyzer is the Tesla in the greenhouse. It drives completely autonomously, without induction. The Plantalyzer is equipped with the Greenhouse Positioning System, so that it always knows the location. Thanks to this latest technology from Berg Hortimotive, the grower gets clear insight into the stock of tomatoes at each specific location in the greenhouse. The Plantalyzer also uses BergDrive, the new operating system that coordinates all logistics movements in the company.

Official launch

Visitors to Fruit Logistica 2018 in Berlin can meet the innovative Plantalyzer for the first time at the Steenks Service and Berg Hortimotive stand (Hall 4.1 stand B11). The system’s official launch will be during a symposium at GreenTech, which takes place in Amsterdam in June of this year.