In order to separate haskaop berry and leaf during harvest, a vertical separation column was envisaged. The air drag coefficients of berry and leaf were measured to determine the proper air velocity in the separation column. The results show that the air drag coefficient of a berry set horizontally in the air flow was 0.959-2.21, and that of a berry set vertically was 0.322-0.977. The air drag coefficient of the leaves was 0.622-2.36. The minimum terminal velocity of berries (horizontally, 9.1 ms⁻¹ and vertically, 11.0 ms⁻¹) was significantly different from the maximum terminal velocity of the leaves (2.35 ms⁻¹). Therefore, it should be possible to separate the berries and leaves using the air velocity from trial experiments in the separation column.

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The optimum wavelength for measuring pupil reflection in order to estimate serum vitamin A level in slaughtered and live cattle was investigated. A multispectrum camera was used to obtain the eye images. The highest coefficient of determination 0.76 between pupil reflection and serum vitamin A level was obtained at 500 nm. Since the photosensitive pigment rhodopsin has a maximum absorption of about 500 nm, the results suggest that 500 nm could be the optimum wavelength for measuring pupil reflection.

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This study analyzed the vibration of a transporter with rubber crawlers caused by road surfaces, and compared of the performance of rubber crawlers with and without iron cores to assess the human response to vibration (vibration perceptible to human body) and the reduction of vibration.
The human response to vibration was measured using an ISO standard device. Using a walking transporter traveling on an uneven road surface model, three different laden weights, four different road surface bumps dimensions, and four levels of vehicle speed were examined. The frequency-weighted r.m.s acceleration was measured at three locations — the center of gravity of the chassis, the handlebar and the carrying platform. The results revealed that the acceleration properties at each measurement point could be explained using a basic movement model.

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Adigested sludge fertilizer applicator was designed and developed to apply concentrated methane digested sludge in a paddy field. The applicator was mounted on a high-clearance vehicle to apply the fertilizer as top-dressing at panicle initiation of rice. It employs three electric-motor-drive pumps to control the flow rate of the digested sludge. The pumps dispense the concentrated digested sludge at 4-15 kg/min. The rotational speed of the pump is controlled by a proportional-integral (PI) compensator with a feedback based on its rotational speed and a pre-filter of the desired rotational speed. The fertilizer applicator was tested using the concentrated digested sludge fertilizer in actual farm work. The error in the application rate was found to be −4.4%. The developed applicator was able to apply digested sludge fertilizer at a reliably uniform rate in the paddy field.

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An indoor traction measurement system was redesigned to improve the measurement of tractive performance for off-road tires and to compare experimental tire traction results with those of a tire performance simulation. The system comprises a soil bin, a mixing and compaction device, and a single wheel tester with a forced-slip mechanism. The range of available slip is further extensible than that of a conventional system. Tractive performance of four automotive tires with smooth, lug, rib and block tread patterns was tested on sand. Experimental results show that the tire with lug pattern or block pattern exhibited higher drawbar pull than other tread patterned tires for slip greater than 17.8%.

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