The purpose of this research is to formulate a solution for mechanised harvesting which should be economical and suitable for tea gardens of Assam. To accomplish the stated purpose; a combination of research methods featuring literature survey, questionnaire, direct observation, one to one interview for data collection; statistical analysis of the gathered data, work study technique, virtual human modelling and simulation, prototype development and testing has been used.
After gathering necessary information, it was felt that for tea gardens of Assam, a single operator handheld battery-powered rotary type tea harvesting machine with high productivity in comparison to presently available machines with a similar mode of operation will be the best solution.
The prototype of the proposed machine was developed at Department of Design, IIT Guwahati and field trials were carried out at Dolaguri Tea Estate located in Numoligarh, Assam with a participatory approach. Through these field trials, it was found that the newly designed machine was efficient and had higher productivity compared to hand plucking. The Indian tea industry is one of the major foreign revenue earners for the country. It is one of the major employers of women. Many of the activities, especially the tealeaf plucking activity (constituting 40 percent of the total cost of production of tea leaves) performed by the women workers.
The tea industries of Assam, in are facing revenue losses during recent times. One of the main factors is shortage of workforce engaged in field operations. Studies have shown that acute shortage of workforce takes place in the tea plucking activities during peak season due to various socio-economic reasons. Due to the manpower shortage, a considerable quantity of available tea leaves for tea making remains unplucked. This directly affects the overall production of made tea and hence on the revenue earnings by the tea gardens. In this scenario, the only suitable solution to the problem appears to be the adaptation of mechanised harvesting.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1 Tea Industry in Assam: Present Context
1.1 The Indian tea plantations
1.2 Origin of tea in Assam
1.3 Background of the research
1.4 Problem identification
1.5 Pilot study to understand requirement of the tea industries regarding tea plucking activities
1.5.1 Shear plucking
1.5.2 Engine powered mechanised tea harvesting machines
1.5.3 Battery powered mechanised tea harvesting machines
1.6 Research justification
1.7 Research questions (RQ)
1.8 State of the art review on mechanical harvesting of tea
1.9 Hypothesis
1.10 Aim & Objectives of research
1.10.1 Aim
1.10.2 Objectives
1.11 Research paradigm adopted
1.11.1 Ontology, epistemology, methodology
1.11.2 Ontology
1.11.3 Epistemology
1.11.4 Methodology
1.12 Research approach
1.13 The product development lifecycle
1.13.1 Analysis
1.13.2 Concept generation
1.13.3 Design
1.13.4 Development
1.13.5 Testing
1.13.6 Modification / analysis
1.13.7 Retesting
1.13.8 Final release
1.14 The outline of the thesis framework
Chapter 2 Tea Industry of Assam: Socio-economic and Demographic Situation
2.1 Plantations
2.2 Characteristics of plantations
2.3 Plantations in India
2.4 Emergence of the corporate firm
2.5 Size of tea estates
2.5.1 Small growers
2.5.2 Medium and marginal estates
2.5.3 Big estates
2.6 Economic size
2.7 Estate management
2.8 Origin and growth
2.9 Role of managing agencies
2.10 Plantation system and human resource structure in tea plantations of Assam
2.11 Classification of tea plantation employees
2.11.1 Workers
2.11.2 Staff
2.11.3 Managers and Assistant Managers
2.12 Difference between plantation labour and other agricultural labour
2.13 The Plantations Labour Act, 1951
2.14 Other legal provisions
2.14.1 Maternity benefits
2.14.2 Provident fund
2.14.3 Gratuity
2.14.4 Bonus
2.15 Present production scenario of Assam Tea
2.16 Background of tea plantation workers of Assam
2.17 Migration process
2.18 Survival of migrating labourer vs. economía of migration
2.19 Governmental intervention
2.20 Cultural background
2.20.1 Evolution of Ex-Tea tribe
2.20.2 Present scenario: Assimilation with native culture and societies
2.20.3 Social bonding, merger with main stream
2.20.4 Recent turmoil
Chapter 3 Tea Plantation and Tea Manufacturing Process
3.1 Nursery
3.1.1 Propagation from seed
3.1.2 Propagation from leaf
3.2 Pruning
3.2.1 Objectives of pruning
3.2.2 Procedure of pruning
3.2.3 The procedure of checking plant readiness for pruning
3.2.4 Types of pruning
3.2.5 Pruning time
3.2.6 Factors affecting pruning time (Tea Research Institute (TRI), Sri Lanka, 2013)
3.2.7 Cycles of tea pruning
3.2.8 Procedure of choosing correct pruning cycle
3.2.9 Conclusion on pruning
3.3 Skiffing
3.3.1 Deep skiff (DS)
3.3.2 Level off skiff (LOS)
3.3.3 Medium skiff (MS)
3.3.4 Light skiff (LS)
3.4 Tipping
3.5 Plucking
3.5.1 Tea flushes
3.5.2 Method of plucking
3.5.3 Standards of plucking
3.5.4 Plucking interval
3.5.5 The correct time of the year for plucking
3.5.6 Time of day and type of weather suitable for plucking
3.5.7 Types of leaves suitable for plucking
3.5.8 Harvesting guidelines
3.5.9 Guidelines for quality plucking
3.5.10 Fine leaf percentage
3.5.11 Important aspects of plucking
3.6 Pest controlling
3.6.1 Spraying
3.6.2 Types of machines used in spraying
3.7 Transportation of green leaf
3.8 Processing of tea in factory
3.8.1 Various types of tea processing
3.8.1.1 Cut, Tear, Curl (CTC) processing
3.8.1.2 Orthodox processing
3.8.1.3 Green tea processing
3.8.2 Withering
3.8.3 Rotor Vane
3.8.4 Fermentation
3.8.4.1 Fermentation process
3.8.4.2 Continuous fermenting machine (CFM)
3.8.5 Drying
3.8.6 Packaging and sorting
3.9 Major classification of finished product
3.9.1 Black tea
3.9.2 Oolong tea
3.9.3 White tea
3.9.4 Green tea
3.9.5 Fermented tea
3.9.6 Yellow tea
Chapter 4 Mechanical Harvesting of Tea
4.1 The necessity of mechanised harvesting
4.2 Background of mechanical tea harvesting
4.3 Introduction to shear plucking and its outcome
4.4 Motorised plucking machines
4.5 Some common handheld tea harvesting machines
4.5.1 Battery operated tea harvester- single operator
4.5.2 Single operator, gasoline powered tea harvester
4.5.3 Two operator, gasoline powered tea harvester
4.5.4 Two- operator gasoline powered selective tea harvester
4.6 Status of existing machines
4.7 Some common problems associated with motorised tea harvesters
4.8 Performance comparison of various mechanised harvesting processes
4.9 Conclusion on mechanised harvesting of tea
Chapter 5 Concept Generation, Design and Prototyping
5.1 Working principle of single operator battery powered tea leaf harvesting machine
5.2 Expansion of cutting span
5.3 Design conceptualisation
5.4 Rotors
5.5 Drive shaft
5.6 Cutting blades
5.7 Spacers
5.8 Casing
5.9 Assembly of different components of the cutting head
5.10 Selection of prime mover
5.10.1 Mechanical Power (Work done per second)
5.10.2 Calculation for equivalent electrical power
5.10.3 Calculation for the rated current of the motor
5.10.4 Calculation for battery specification
5.11 Details of battery and battery pack
5.12 Motion transmission
5.13 Collection chamber
5.14 Integrated motor assembly and motion transmission system
5.15 Handling
5.15.1 Alternative-1
5.15.2 Alternative-2
5.16 Design for ease of operation of machine while carrying and operation at field
5.16.1 Alternative 1: Single lever mechanism with support from backpack
5.16.2 Alternative 2: Carrying mechanism with adjustable hinge
5.17 Calculation of optimum revolution of the rotor assembly through functional test
Chapter 6 Design Validation of the Newly Designed Machine
6.1 Materials & methods
6.2 The pruning cycles adopted in this section
6.3 Experiment design
6.4 Experiment details
6.5 Findings of experiments
6.5.1 Experiment no.1
6.5.2 Interpretation of Experiment No 1
6.5.3 Experiment no.2
6.5.4 Interpretation of Experiment No 2
6.5.5 Experiment no.3
6.5.6 Interpretation of Experiment No 3
6.5.7 Experiment no.4
6.5.7.1 Test for left hand
6.5.7.2 Test for right hand
6.5.8 Interpretation of Experiment No 4
6.5.9 Experiment no.5: Body part discomfort study
6.5.10 Interpretation of Experiment No 5
6.6 Validation of hypothesis
Chapter 7 Discussions, Conclusion and Recommendations
7.1 Brief summery
7.2 Precautions to be taken for mechanised harvesting
7.3 Guidelines to implement the mechanised harvesting
7.4 Suggestions for successful implementation of mechanised harvesting
7.5 Findings of present study
7.5.1 Battery charging and replacement system
7.5.2 Optimum clearance between rotor assembly and cutting plane
7.5.3 Optimum revolution per minute of the rotor shaft
7.6 Contribution of present research
7.6.1 Benefits for Small tea growers
7.6.2 Cost benefits
7.6.3 Increase in productivity
7.7 Suggestions and recommendations
7.8 Limitation of the current research and future scope
Research Objectives and Themes
The primary research objective is to develop an efficient, single-operator battery-powered tea harvesting machine tailored to the conditions of Assam's tea gardens to mitigate acute labour shortages during peak harvesting seasons and improve overall productivity. The work addresses the socio-economic challenges of tea labourers, current limitations of traditional hand-plucking and existing mechanized harvesters, and establishes a design that balances ergonomic comfort with increased efficiency.
- Socio-economic impact of tea plantation labour in Assam.
- Evaluation of existing mechanical tea harvesting techniques and their limitations.
- Human-centered design and development of a new battery-powered tea harvester.
- Ergonomic validation and field-testing of the prototype to ensure worker safety and comfort.
- Assessment of machine productivity improvements compared to traditional hand-plucking.
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1.4 Problem identification
Assam is one of the leading tea producers in the world, and Assam tea is best-known for its quality. However, due to numerous reasons as mentioned earlier, the tea industries of this state are facing a workforce shortage, and this is directly affecting the production. During person-to-person interviews with the professionals from the tea industry, several factors that have led to this workforce shortage were evident to the researchers. Factors like, various government employment generation schemes like MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act), where the daily wage of a worker is Rs. 181.69 in comparison to Rs. 169.00 of tea industry, have been attracting garden workers to enrole under the different schemes other than the tea industry. Conjointly, today education is also playing a significant role in declining of the workforce (IANS, 2015). In brief, due to low wages and less facility, low standards of living in garden labour lines, youth of the new generation of tea tribe are no longer interested in working as a garden labourer (Rajya Sabha Secretariat, 2012).
During the pilot study, it was observed that most of the Small Tea Growers do not have a permanent workforce. During tea leaf plucking season, they hire pluckers from other big gardens at a higher wage rate.
Because of this, the problem of labourer shortage is rising and has become a significant problem faced by the tea industries. Due to a shortage of workforce throughout peak season, production cannot still be increased in spite of availability of pluckable tea leaves in their plantation, and a substantial area under tea cultivation remains unplucked, and this directly affects productivity. A similar situation was faced by tea plantations in other parts of the world too, and this condition was overcome through mechanisation. For sustaining the tea industries of the state, mechanisation appears to be the only suitable solution (Rajya Sabha Secretariat, 2012).
Summary of Chapters
Chapter 1 Tea Industry in Assam: Present Context: Introduces the background and motivation for the research, highlighting the labour shortage and the necessity for mechanisation in Assam's tea industry.
Chapter 2 Tea Industry of Assam: Socio-economic and Demographic Situation: Reviews the socio-cultural aspects of tea tribes and the current manpower-related challenges within the plantations.
Chapter 3 Tea Plantation and Tea Manufacturing Process: Describes the technical stages of tea cultivation, pruning, and manufacturing in Assam.
Chapter 4 Mechanical Harvesting of Tea: Analyzes the various existing mechanical harvesting machines, their operational methodologies, and their limitations regarding terrain and efficiency.
Chapter 5 Concept Generation, Design and Prototyping: Details the design process, conceptualization, and construction of the battery-powered prototype, including specific mechanical and ergonomic improvements.
Chapter 6 Design Validation of the Newly Designed Machine: Documents the results of field experiments conducted to validate the prototype's performance, productivity, and ergonomic impact on workers.
Chapter 7 Discussions, Conclusion and Recommendations: Synthesizes research findings, offers recommendations for successful implementation of mechanized harvesting, and discusses the limitations and future scope of the work.
Keywords
Product design, tea-harvesting, agricultural engineering, tea plucking, mechanisation, Assam, labour shortage, ergonomic design, battery-powered harvester, field experiment, tea manufacturing, productivity, rural employment, machine prototype, tea garden management.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core purpose of this research?
The core purpose is to address the severe labour shortage in the tea gardens of Assam, India, by designing and developing an efficient, handheld, battery-powered mechanical tea harvesting machine that is suitable for local terrain and plantation patterns.
What are the primary themes covered in the study?
The study covers the socio-economic context of the tea industry in Assam, the history of migration of the tea tribe, traditional vs. mechanized tea cultivation processes, and the ergonomic considerations for developing agricultural technology.
What is the main research question or goal?
The goal is to determine how design intervention can increase tea leaf harvesting productivity without increasing production costs, thereby sustaining the tea industry despite a dwindling and expensive workforce.
Which scientific methods were employed?
The study uses a mixed-method approach, including literature surveys, field observations, personal interviews with stakeholders, work-study techniques, virtual human modeling (Manikin analysis), and statistical analysis through comparative field experiments.
What does the main body of the work focus on?
The main body treats the identification of the labour crisis, the technical requirements for tea harvesting machines, the design and prototyping phases, and the subsequent operational testing and validation of the newly developed device.
Which keywords characterize this work?
Key terms include product design, tea-harvesting, agricultural engineering, tea plucking, mechanisation, labour shortage, ergonomics, and productivity improvement in the context of Assam's plantations.
Why are gasoline-powered machines often rejected in the local tea industry?
The industry reports that gasoline-powered machines suffer from high noise, excessive vibration, pollution that can contaminate tea leaves, high operational costs, and the need for multiple operators to handle the machine and collection bags.
How does the newly designed machine solve ergonomics issues?
The new design utilizes a load-sharing mechanism with an adjustable hinge on a waist belt and a telescopic handle, which compensates for the weight of the machine and transmits it to the waist and arms, preventing the specific physical discomforts (hip/arm pain) observed with previous models.
- Quote paper
- Vikramjit Kakati (Author), 2017, Tealeaf harvesting. Mechanisation and the improvement of productivity and efficiency, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/911777
