Design and research of intelligent strawberry sorting robot based on machine vision technology

• A Delta parallel robot was developed for automated strawberry sorting. • The robot features a soft, flexible claw for non-destructive fruit handling. • Trajectory and path planning enabled stable and efficient strawberry sorting. • The integrated system combines mechanics, vision, and control seamlessly. • The sorting system achieved 96% accuracy in classifying large strawberries. With the rapid development of automation and computer intelligent control industries, intelligent robots have found widespread applications in various fields. In China, the sorting of soft fruits such as strawberries still relies heavily on manual labour, mainly because they are vulnerable to mechanical damage. To address this issue, this paper proposes the design of an intelligent strawberry sorting robot based on advanced machine vision technology. The robot integrates a Delta parallel arm, flexible robotic gripper, and intelligent control module, utilizing visual recognition technology to achieve path planning for strawberry sorting, identification of ripe strawberries, and analysis of strawberry ripeness. Experimental results indicate that the designed sorting robot achieves a sorting accuracy of 96.4–96.7% and an average sorting time of approximately 0.71 s per strawberry, combining visual recognition technology with a Delta parallel arm robot, and exhibits stable, efficient, and reliable performance during operation. This innovative strawberry sorting robot not only significantly reduces the labor costs in strawberry production but also enhances the accuracy and efficiency of sorting, providing a viable solution for the sustainable development of the strawberry industry.