Product Description

PROTEC – Optical sorters for grapes and other fruit

Established just over 30 years ago, as the Italian manufacturer of optical sorting equipment for the fruit & vegetable industries, PROTEC has made its mark globally and is regarded as a market leader in multiple industries. Already well established in France, PROTEC has partnered with Château Lafite Rothschild, Château Mouton Rothschild, Joseph Drouhin, Château Haut-Brion, Château Léoville-Poyferré, Château Léoville-Las Cases, and Château Mont-Redon as their official suppliers of optical sorting equipment.

PROTEC is regarded as a ‘’top’’ manufacturer of optical sorting equipment for wine grapes through the development of its X-Tri machine. The X-Tri optical sensor detects various defects that can be pre-set via touch screen which are rejected while the good product continues on for further processing. X-Tri capacity varies, relative to many factors including the type of grape, the degree of ripeness, the quantity of defects, and can process up to about 15 tons/hour of grapes in the X-TRI 150 model.

How does X-Tri function?

Upon entering the X-TRI sorter, grapes/berries are distributed on the shaker table/conveyer in preparation for feeding the optical sorter. Following this, X-Tri’s optical sensors filter out the various defects, including rachises, leaves, stems, insects, unripe or off-colour grapes/berries, and other foreign bodies, rejecting them with a jet of air, while the optimum fruit discharged from the unit for subsequent processing. In other words, the sorting process operates by looking at the ‘’bad’’ rather than the ‘’good’’. The PROTEC X-Tri can be equipped with up to 3 different cameras that use infrared light: One that screens for MOG (material other than grapes/berries), one red light camera identifying chlorophyll (the pigment present in unripe grapes/berries), and a white light camera responsible for rot detection. All parameters can easily be adjusted depending on customer specifications. PROTEC offers the X-Tri in three models including 5, 10, and 15 tons per hour options.