1 Development and Performance Evaluation of a Melon Depodding Machine

Manual depodding of melon pods for the purpose of extracting the edible seeds is a time consuming and tedious operation. A melon depodding machine was therefore designed, fabricated and evaluated for performance. The major components of the machine are the frame, hopper, depodding chamber and discharge outlet. The machine is powered by a 1.5 kW, 1420 rpm single-phase electric motor. All materials used for fabricating the components were sourced locally. The performance characteristics of the machine, including Depodding Efficiency, Material Discharge Efficiency (product of Seed Discharge Efficiency and Pulp Discharge Efficiency) and Overall Efficiency, were evaluated at six operating speeds (200 rpm, 250 rpm, 300 rpm, 350 rpm, 367 rpm and 400 rpm) and one clearance setting (10 mm) between the spiked-screw conveyor and the cylinder wall. The Depodding Efficiency varies between 31.8 % and 62.1% while Seed Discharge Efficiency varies between 29.7 % and 74.4%. The Pulp Discharge Efficiency varies between 38.9 % and 82.4%, while the Overall Efficiency varies between 13.1% and 68.8%