Fruitfirm, is a small, hand-held, self-contained device for non-destructive firmness testing of kiwifruit and other produce. FruitFirm allows firmness to be monitored throughout the supply chain. It is robust and simple to use. FruitFirm can be configured to test ripeness and maturity of  a range of fruits - tomatoes, stone fruits, pears and olives. FruitFirm was developed in New Zealand as a research tool.
 

FruitFirm satisfies the need for a QC device that can rapidly and easily quantify firmness, non-destructively. FruitFirm works by measuring the deceleration of a tiny hammer that impacts the surface of a fruit via a small non-bruising and non-penetrating tip.  An in-built processor records the resulting collision, analyses the waveform and displays a value on a digital display.  The data displayed may give individual readings or some degree of fruit or sample averaging.  Alternatively, the sensor output can be connected to a data acquisition/analysis programme enabling easy logging, downloading and more detailed analysis of data.