To analyze the influencing factors of impact force on potatoes, a mathematical model between the impact peak forceF m , the potato mass m and the drop height h was established as F m ¼ km ffiffiffi h p . A single-factor impact test was carried out, and the models for F m , m and h were presented as F m ¼ 318:36m þ 9:8 and F m ¼ 306:56 ffiffiffi h p. Taking the combination form m ffiffiffi h p of m and h as the test factor, the F m of two potato varieties, namely, Xiabodi and Gaoyuanhong, were tested under the impact materials of steel, steel-soft plastic, steel-rubber and steel-leather. The relationships between F m and m ffiffiffi h p were all F m ¼ k 1 m ffiffiffi h p under the four types of impact materials by the regression analysis of the test results. The range of k 1 was from 980.9 to 1395.7. The effect of potato variety on F m was analyzed. The results showed that under the same conditions, the F m of Xiabodi was 8.03 N smaller than that of Gaoyuanhong on average, which indicated that Xiabodi had a better tolerance to impact force. The effect of impact material on F m was analyzed. The results showed that F m with steel, steel-leather, steelrubber and steel-soft plastic decreased in turn, and the average difference between the maximum and minimum value of F m was 16.6 N.
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