The present invention relates to the field of mechanical engineering. More specifically it relates to an improved apple seed extractor.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Apples are sold to consumers directly as fruits. However, apart from direct sales, apples are also processed in industry to make slices which are packed or are crushed to extract juice, which is concentrated and packed. During the process, the fleshy central part of the apple, called the 'core' is removed by a process called 'coring'. The core contains seeds of apple. The cores are discarded and constitute 'bio-waste'. During processing, the seeds in the apple cores usually get damaged and suffer from low viability. Also the process of removal of seeds from the apple cores is a very cumbersome and slow process. Seed extractor machines are available but suffer from the following limitations:
i. Seeds get damaged during extraction - The primary drawback of the existing machines is that they are not capable enough for smooth seed extraction from cored apples. They deliver extracted seeds having low viability of about 50% only. ii. Seedlings are not true to type- The seedlings suffer from changes and are not true to
type. iii. Need for maceration of cores makes the process complicated- Requirement of macerating mechanism makes the process complex. Prolonged holding of the macerated mass of apple core lowers germination as well as stratification quality of the apple seeds. iv. Machine cost increased- Maceration mechanism increases machine cost. v. Labor cost is high- Need for dedicated supervision increases machine operational cost.
Problem addressed by the present invention
The present invention has addressed the problem of cumbersome removal of seeds from apple cores and their low viability. It has also eliminated the need for holding of the macerated mass, which damages seed quality. Extractor of present invention makes the removal of seeds easy and fast. Further, the seeds are not damaged, resulting in high germination percentage i.e. good viability (>85%) compared to seeds extracted by conventional methods (50%). Further, the need for pre-treatment of the core to soften the core for easy seed extraction is eliminated. The seedlings produced from these seeds are true to type.

Brief description of present invention
The present invention discloses an integrated machine which processes large quantity of apples by removing their cores and thereafter the cores are mashed, mixed with water and subjected to centrifugation in a specially designed chamber fitted with a mesh, which sieves the seeds without damage. This is owing to presence of water in the chamber, which buffers the seeds against shearing forces and protects them from internal damage.
The apple seed extractor of present invention is designed and fabricated on basis of optimum dimensions of apple fruit and cores.The extractor is having two chambers- milling chamber and seed extraction chamber. The milling chamber is provided with plurality of knives, shafts and water jets (2 inlets) arrangements. Keeping in view the length of the core and placement of apple seeds in the core, the cutting knives and shafts are fitted into the chambers. The milled mass is then automatically shifted by lifting the Lever to seed extraction chamber (Fig.2) provided with plurality of knives, shafts and water jets arrangements. First lever (7) is provided in the first chamber and after slicing and cutting of the cores, this lever is raised manually for movement/shifting of sliced material into the second chamber with flow of water. The second leaver (3) provided in the second chamber is opened manually and seeds are separated in the collecting tray (8). The core milling chamber (6) is a hopper itself where cores are fed. After slicing of cores, the sliced cores get shifted to seed extraction chamber (4) with water flow.
Prior art
Patent number US 9,011,952 B2
The invention pertains to a method and apparatus for separation of seeds from fruit pulp/skin/twigs, in general, coming out from juice producing industry as a waste and in particular from apple pomace. The method involves addition of apple pomace and water in a particular ratio to a vessel, mixing with an agitator at optimum rpm for sufficient period, allowed to stand followed by secondary agitation. In present invention, coring and extraction are integrated. Further, there is no need to allow the mixture to stand, as use of sieve during centrifugation allows seed extraction in an efficient manner without damage to seeds, as evident from high germination rate of the seeds.
Patent number CN1291793C
The invention discloses a method and a centrifugal separator unit in which apple juice is separated during processing of apple seed. During the process, apple pulp is introduced into a

centrifuge to separate the pulp 85 to 95% and the juice. However, the present invention discloses a way of performing seed extraction in a particular way to maximize the viability of apple seeds which is not present in the disclosed prior art.
Kumar, S. and Sharma, P.C. (2017), Process protocol for mechanical separation of fruit core
and seeds from apple fruits, International Journal of Farm Sciences 7(1): 147-153
The disclosed invention consist of multiple compartments each assigned for core crushing and
seed extracting. The addition of water further facilitates the crushing process and seed
separation process. The core so obtained was however found to be very hard and the seed
separation from such hard mass was difficult. Besides, crushing of very hard core for longer
duration resulted in damage to the seeds and accumulation of large amount of fine pulp in the
seed collection pan. Therefore, prior to seed separation core is firstly treated with pectinase and
amylase to soften the fruit to prevent the crushing of seed from hard core. To promote smooth
and intact seed extraction from cored apples, requirement of macerating mechanism becomes
quite necessary and is incorporated to increase the viability of extracted apple seeds from
machine.
The main drawback of the disclosed prior art is that for prolong maceration of apple core leads
to lower the germination as well as stratification quality of seeds. It is not recommended by
experts as it is not a natural process.
Another drawback of the disclosed prior art is that it requires additional pre-treatment
mechanism which increases the cost of machine and requirement of additional supervisor for
monitoring the process for optimized time interval of the treatment exhibiting maximum
softening of the fruit core.
From the above prior art, it is clear that none of the patents anticipates or discloses the machine of present invention which has high efficiency, eliminates maceration and holding and also gives seeds with high germination efficiency. Further, the machine of present invention uses very less water and electricity in contrast to prior art machines which require huge amounts of water and also consume large amounts of power.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
The main object of the present invention is to disclose a mechanical seed extractor which extracts seeds from apple cores in an efficient manner while maintaining germination to more than > 85%.

Yet another object of the present invention is to disclose a mechanical seed extractor which
does not involve use of any holding time for the apple mash or use of any chemicals or
enzymes to soften the apple core mash to release the seeds.
One more object is to disclose a mechanical seed extractor in which removal of seeds is carried
out without damaging the seeds.
A last object is to disclose a mechanical seed extractor which has high efficiency.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention discloses an apple seed extractor which is in the form of an integrated machine which processes large quantity of apples by removing their cores and thereafter the cores are mashed, mixed with water and subjected to centrifugation in a specially designed chamber fitted with a mesh, which sieves the seeds with minimal damage as evident from germination efficiency of > 85%. Presence of water in the chamber buffers the seeds against shearing forces and protects them from internal damage. The extractor is having two chambers-milling chamber and seed extraction chamber. The milling chamber is provided with plurality of knives, shafts and water jets (2 inlets) arrangements. Keeping in view the length of the core and placement of apple seeds in the core, the cutting knives and shafts are fitted into the chambers. The milled mass is then automatically shifted to seed extraction chamber (Fig.2) provided with plurality of knives, shafts and water jets arrangements. First lever (7) is provided in the first chamber and after slicing and cutting of the cores, this lever is raised manually for movement/shifting of sliced material into the second chamber with flow of water. The second leaver (3) provided in the second chamber is opened manually and seeds are separated in the collecting tray (8). The core milling chamber (6) is a hopper itself where cores are fed. After slicing of cores, the sliced cores get shifted to seed extraction chamber (4) with water flow.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
Figure 1- Whole Apple Seed Extractor machine
1. Machine frame
2. MS sheet body
3. 2nd Lever
4. Crushing compartment
5. Crushing compartment cover
6. Milling compartment

7. 1st Lever
8. Seed receiving tray
9. Casing for gear and pulley
Figure 2- Apple seed extractor compartment inner view
3. 2nd Lever
4. Crushing compartment
10. Waste collector compartment
Figure 3- Water sprinkling tube attached to milling compartment 6. Milling compartment
11. Water sprinkling tube
Figure 4- Inner view of milling compartment
12a. First Cylindrical shaft
12b. Milling Cuboidal shafts
12c. Milling Blades
12d. Semi- circular metal sheet Figure 5- Inner view of crushing compartment
13a. Second Cylindrical shaft
13b. Crushing Blades
13c. Crushing Cuboidal shafts
13d. Semi-circular sieve

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The present invention discloses an apple seed extractor which is in the form of an integrated machine which processes large quantity of apples by removing their cores and thereafter the cores are mashed, mixed with water and subjected to centrifugation in a specially designed chamber fitted with a mesh, which sieves the seeds with minimal damage as evident from germination efficiency of > 85%.
Presence of water in the chamber buffers the seeds against shearing forces and protects them from internal damage.
The detailed description of the machine is as below:
Material of the extractor
Cold rolled close annealed (CRCA), Mild steel (MS) & Stainless steel (SS).
Dimensions of the preferred embodiment
(L x B x H) as 900x430x1130 mm (Figure 1) Power requirement of the preferred embodiment
In a preferred embodiment, the apple seed extractor is operated with a 1 HP motor.
Efficiency
The total time taken for manual seed separation as well as the quantity of seed separated from
fruit core was recorded to calculate efficiency and same was compared with mechanical seed
separation. The machine efficiency was found to be 180 kg cores/hr (Table 1, 2).
A Multi-corer consisting of channels and coring tubes which simultaneously remove the cores
of apples is used. The size of channels and the coring tubes correspond to dimensions of the
apples to be cored.
Components of the mechanical seed extractor
The extractor is having two distinct parts viz.
a. Chambers- milling chamber and seed extraction chamber
b. Trays- seed extraction tray and seed receiving tray
a. Chambers- It comprises of a milling chamber and a seed extraction chamber.
Milling chamber- this chamber is for milling of cores (6) provided with plurality of milling blades (12c) and first cylindrical shaft (12a) and flow of water jets (2 inlets). The milled mass is then automatically shifted to seed extraction chamber.

Seed extraction chamber (Fig.5) - provided with plurality of crushing blades (13b), crushing cuboidal shafts (13c) and with flow of water jets. b. Trays- Made of SS. Distinct and separate viz. seed extraction tray and seed receiving tray (8) having a mesh size of 9mm and 2mm respectively.
Mechanism of separation of the seeds
The technical intellect is applied by practical implementing the principle of centrifugal concept in crushing compartment (milling chamber) and choosing the accurate semi-circular shape of stainless steel sieve of mesh size slightly greater than the mesh size of seeds. As a result when rotation of entire bulk mass of milled apple pulp in crushing compartment (milling chamber) takes place, outward force is exerted on apple pulp, due to which only seeds pass through this mesh size, resulting in collection of apple seeds in a fast and efficient manner. Further, the rotation of apple pulp and simultaneous perpendicular direction of water jets facilitates in loosening the adhesiveness of crushed apple pulp, resulting in easy removal of the apple seeds with minimal mechanical damage as evident from high germination efficiency of > 85%. Example 1 Detailed description of various parameters of a preferred embodiment is given below:
Table 1: Dimensions and size parameters of apple seed extractor

S.No. Particulars Manual Extraction Apple Seed Extractor
1. Length of Machine NA 900 mm
2. Width of Machine NA 430 mm
3. Height of Machine NA 1130 mm
4. Weight of Machine (without Motor) NA 53.5 Kg
5. Electric Motor Capacity NA 1HP
6. Material Used NA CRCA, M.S & SS304
7. Seed extraction Efficiency, kg core/hr 1.0 180.0
NA = Not applicable
Table 2: Comparison of existing technologies with system of present invention

Parameter Manual Hand operated corer Present invention-mechanical seed extractor

Seed extraction, Kg 1.00 - 180.00
core/hr
Cost of seed extraction, 667.00 667.00 5.72
Rs/Kg*
* Excluding the cost of raw material
A preferred embodiment of the integrated apple seed extractor machine is shown in Fig. 1. It
shows the inter connectivity of different components of the device.
Machine frame (1) is the fixture or frame which supports the weight of entire compartments.
It is made of mild steel.
The MS sheet body (2) is outer casing to cover all three compartments.
The core milling chamber (6) is provided with plurality of milling blades (12c) which are
attached with first cylindrical shaft (12a) used for slicing of cores. Keeping in view the length
of core and placement of apple seeds in the core, the cutting blades and shafts are fitted in the
chambers.
In the seed extraction compartment (Fig.2), first lever (7) is provided in the first chamber
and after slicing and cutting of the cores this lever raised manually for movement/shifting of
sliced material into the second chamber also known as crushing compartment (4) with flow of
water. In this chamber, continuous spray of water with water jets is applied. The second
cylindrical shaft (13a) and attached crushing blades (13b) arranged according to the core size
and seed placement mesh the pulp portion in order to remove/extract the seeds safely. The
second lever (3) is provided for outward flow of waste material (pulp and twigs) through the
outlet. Again the lever (3) provided in second chamber (4) is opened manually and the seeds
get separated in the collecting trays. The waste gets disposed of by water spray through the
outlet. Fig. 3 is showing the use of water sprinkling tube attached to milling compartment (6)
for preparing the sliced core of apples to transfer in crushing compartment (Fig. 5) for next
level processing.
The core milling chamber (6) is actually the hopper itself, where the cores are fed, while after
slicing of cores the sliced cores gets shifted to seed extraction chamber (Fig.2) with water flow
and first lever (7). The waste shifted to the waste hopper/outlet through waste collector
compartment (10) with water pressure only. Blades in both the chambers rotate simultaneously
and therefore only a single motor is provided with the machine.
ADVANTAGES OFFERED BY PRESENT INVENTION

The present invention discloses an integrated machine which processes large quantity of apples by removing their cores and thereafter the cores are mashed, mixed with water and subjected to centrifugation in a specially designed chamber fitted with a mesh, which sieves the seeds without damage. This is owing to presence of water in the chamber, which buffers the seeds against shearing forces and protects them from internal damage. Further, the machine has solved the problem of heterogeneity and viability of apple seeds apart from complete and direct utilization of fruit to extract seeds, as otherwise the seeds were extracted from apple pomace. The advantages offered by present invention are summarized as below:
i. Efficiency of coring- The machine uses multiple coring of apples due to which
three or more apples can be cored simultaneously. This greatly enhances the
efficiency and output.
ii. Efficiency of seed removal- The entire quantity of seeds is removed in an efficient
and effective manner.
iii. Protection of seed viability- the seeds are protected against mechanical damage
owing to presence of water in the centrifugation chamber, which 'cushions' the
seeds and ensures their gentle removal. The viability of the seeds extracted from
mechanical apple seed extractor is high (89.9 ±5 %.)
iv. Purity of seedlings- The seedlings produced from these seeds are true to type.
v. Elimination of holding time of the macerated mass: Unlike in prior art machines,
where the core is macerated and mixed with enzymes etc. to soften the mass so that the seeds are released easily, in present machine no holding time is needed, as same has been totally eliminated. vi. Low operating cost- the machine is highly compact, uses very less manpower and is quite efficient. Operating cost is very low. It does not require additional pre-treatment mechanism which increases the cost of machine and requirement of additional supervisor for monitoring the process. vii. Easy maintenance- The machine design is overall simple, all parts are easily removable and easy to fit and assemble, thus ensuring easy maintenance.
Novelty, Inventive Step and Industrial Application
Novelty

The integrated apple seed extractor machine which simultaneously carries out coring and seed removal from apples in an efficient manner, without the need for holding of the macerated mass or its treatment with softening chemicals or enzymes, is novel and not disclosed in the prior art. The present invention also overcomes the limitation of seed separation from pomace after juice processing was a cumbersome and uneconomic operation as most of the seeds were crushed during grating and pressing of apple fruits and these seeds were having poor germination potential (45-50%). Therefore, concluding all the above points it signifies the invention novel feature.
Inventive step
The technical advancement of knowledge lies in disclosing an integrated apple seed extractor which can simultaneously carry out coring of apples and extraction of seeds from the cores in an efficient manner without damage to the seeds as evident from germination rate of > 85%. Further, the invention also offers considerable economic advantage in terms of much lower cost of seed extraction as compared to the manual process. The inventors have utilized the concept of centrifugation along with water jets so that least damage is occurred to the seeds while being extracted from core. Industrial application
The invention has application in fruit processing industries and can be easily manufactured on commercial scale.

WE CLAIM:

1.An apple seed extractor machine (Fig. 1) consisting of:
Core milling chamber (6) for slicing of cores;
- Water sprinkling tube (11);
- Crushing compartment (4);
First lever (7) provided near Core milling chamber (6) to manually shift the sliced and cut cores to crushing compartment (4);
- Water jets for continuous spray of water in Crushing compartment (4);
Second lever (3) provided near Crushing compartment (4) for outward flow of waste material (pulp and) through the outlet; Seed receiving tray (8);
- Waste hopper/outlet for waste collection in collector compartment (10)
WHEREIN seeds from the milled apple cores are extracted using centrifugal force
and water jets in crushing compartment (4).
2. The apple seed extractor machine as claimed in claim 1 WHEREIN Core milling
chamber (6) is provided with :
Plurality of milling blades (12c) attached with first cylindrical shaft (12a); Milling Cuboidal shafts (12b); and Semi- circular metal sheet (12d)
3. The apple seed extractor machine as claimed in claim 1 WHEREIN crushing
compartment (4) consists of:
A second cylindrical shaft (13a) to which crushing blades (13b) are attached and arranged according to the core size; Crushing Cuboidal shafts (13c); Semi-circular sieve (13d)
4. The apple seed extractor machine as claimed in claim 1 WHEREIN IST Lever (7) when
pressed, shifts the milled cores from core milling chamber (6) into crushing compartment
(4) and II ND Lever (3) when pressed, shifts the waste collection in collector compartment
(10) through Waste hopper/outlet using water pressure from water sprinkling tube (11).

5. The apple seed extractor machine as claimed in claim 1 WHEREIN first cylindrical shaft (12a) and second cylindrical shaft (13a) rotate simultaneously with the help of a single motor.
6. The apple seed extractor machine as claimed in claim 1 WHEREIN the seed germination rate of extracted apple seeds is more than 85%.
7. The apple seed extractor machine as claimed in claim 1 WHEREIN the method of use consists of following steps:
Apple cores are put in Core milling chamber (6) for slicing of cores; - When the motor is switched on, the first cylindrical shaft (12a) and second cylindrical shaft (13a) rotate simultaneously to rotate the milling blades (12c) and Milling Cuboidal shafts (12b);
Milled apple cores get collected on semi- circular metal sheet (12d); IST Lever (7) is pressed and the milled cores lying on semi- circular metal sheet (12d) in core milling chamber (6) shift into crushing compartment (4); Crushing blades (13b) attached to rotating second cylindrical shaft (13a); Crushing Cuboidal shafts (13c); Semi-circular sieve (13d); and
II ND Lever (3) is pressed which shifts the waste collection in collector compartment (10) through Waste hopper/outlet using water pressure from water sprinkling tube (11).