Research Status and Prospects of Sweet Potato Harvesters’ Conveying and Separation Mechanisms

With the advancement of technology and the national effort to promote the development of agricultural mechanization, sweet potato harvester technology is continuously evolving. To solve the problems related to high skin breakage rates and high damage rates during sweet potato harvesting, it is necessary to develop a conveying and separation mechanism that facilitates low skin breakage rates, low injury rates, good potato–soil separation, and smooth transport. This paper elaborates on the working modes of mechanized sweet potato harvesting, focusing on the current state of research on the conveying and separating mechanisms of sweet potato harvesters both in China and elsewhere. The functions of different types of conveying chains are summarized, the conveying and separating technologies used for the mechanized harvesting of other root crops that can be applied to sweet potato harvesters are analyzed, and an outlook on the development trends regarding sweet potato harvesters is provided.