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Use of EAFRD support for co-operation in the development of new products, processes and technologies to introduce the use of artificial vision technology in an automated process for controlling the quality of harvested grapes in a Spanish winery.

The project is being run by the Vitivinícola do Ribeiro wine co-operative in partnership with the Laboratorio Oficial de Metroloxía de Galicia and the Centro Tecnolóxico de la Carne. It was developed in response to the problems experienced with the existing processes used for the control of grape quality which are i) based upon a subjective visual evaluation carried out by a human operator and ii) prone to various errors depending on the technique used, environmental conditions, lighting etc.

This project aims to automate the process of assessing the quality of harvested grapes received by the Vitivinícola do Ribeiro winery by incorporating machine vision technology into the existing quality control process. This will automate a complex process and reduce subjectivity and human error, whilst in the longer term contribute towards developing a classification system that enables different grape qualities to be processed separately

Main activities for development of the new technology include i) implementing a semi-automatic photo-recording system at the co-operative collection centres; ii) generating databases of grape photographs using the products delivered during the 2008 / 2009 grape harvests; iii) generating a database of evaluations made by co-operative inspectors; iv) generating a database of rapid metabolite analysis of the fungicidal action, and; v) obtaining samples of grape must from the products photographed.

The system developed by this project will provide numerous improvements to the existing grape classification process at the collection centres of Vitivinícola do Ribeiro, including a more reliable system for classifying different categories of grapes collected; an objective and fair tool for determining the price set for grape lots; a machine vision system and related algorithms for evaluating grapes. Overall, wine quality will be improved and the grapegrowers will be rewarded more fairly.

The application of advances in science and technology when applied to the modernisation of farm production can greatly increase the added value of end products. In the long-term it is hoped that this technology will provide a reliable and objective tool for the community of wine growers associated with the co-operative.

Rivadavia, Ourense

Galicia

Galicia

189 252

Manuel Castro González

mcastro@pazoribeiro.com

+34 902 636 466

Spanish