JPH0453486B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention relates to an apparatus for cultivating plants in an artificial environment.

[Prior art]

It is well known that plant growth is highly dependent on the environment. However, the natural environment on earth changes and is not necessarily suitable from the viewpoint of plant productivity. Depending on the region, the period during which conditions are suitable for production may not exist at all, or even if it exists, it may be for a very short period of time. Facility cultivation attempts to maintain productivity as much as possible by artificially compensating for environmental factors that cause a decline in plant productivity. However, even with this facility cultivation, it cannot be said that the cultivation has sufficiently escaped from the natural environment, and therefore there is a limit to productivity.

Therefore, attempts are being made to maximize the growth potential of plants in artificial environments that are completely separated from the natural environment. It is a so-called plant factory. Plant factories are a method of cultivating plants in an environment that can be controlled arbitrarily, and have many advantages such as being able to perform completely controlled production.

However, controlling the environment is by no means a simple matter. The entire cultivation apparatus is generally within an enclosed space. There are heat generating elements such as light sources inside, and it is not easy to adjust the entire space to a desired environment. An air agitator is installed to make the concentration and temperature distribution of air components uniform in the space, but even with this, it is difficult to achieve sufficient uniformity, and at the same time, unnecessary adjustments tend to be made. . These lead to uneven growth and wasted energy. Furthermore, control becomes even more difficult when plants that require different environmental conditions are grown in one space, or when plants that require different environmental conditions at different growth stages.

On the other hand, the nutrient salt solution is supplied by providing a cultivation pot and immersing the roots in the solution, or by providing a sprayer. Therefore, a large butt area and complicated piping are required.

[Summary of the invention]

This invention was made in order to eliminate the drawbacks of the conventional ones as described above. Two sets of pipe bodies stacked on top of each other are arranged in parallel, and both ends of the jig are inserted between the respective spaces, and a guide rail is provided to movably hold the jig, and locking rails are provided at predetermined intervals. A moving device is provided that locks the jig at a stop and moves the plant body in a fixed direction along the guide rail, and the adjusted air is supplied to one pipe and the nutrient solution is supplied to the other pipe. By supplying the air and the nutrient salt solution to the plant body through the openings, the structure is simple, and environmental conditions such as air components and wind speed can be easily and precisely controlled. The purpose is to provide plant growing equipment.

[Embodiments of the invention]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a guide rail and a jig according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 1 is a jig for holding the plant body, 21 is a pipe having openings 3 at predetermined intervals, and 22 is this pipe 2.
The guide rail is a pipe body in which two pipe bodies 22 are stacked vertically at a certain distance.
Both ends 1b of the jig 1 are arranged in parallel to each other.
are inserted between the pipe bodies 22 respectively, and the jig 1 is inserted.
is kept movable. Furthermore, regulated and pressurized air flows through the upper two pipes 21 of the four pipes 21, and this air is blown onto the plant (not shown) through the openings 3. On the other hand, bottom 2
A nutrient solution flows through the main pipe 21 and is sprayed onto the roots of the plant through the openings 3. A portion of the sprayed nutrient solution adheres to and is absorbed by the roots, and the rest is collected by a receiver (not shown) and recycled until the nutrient solution ages. Note that air and nutrient solution are blown continuously or intermittently. 1a is a guide pin provided on the jig 1, and an arrow indicates the moving direction of the jig 1.

FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway perspective view of a plant cultivation device according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 4a to 4c are cultivation beds, to which seedlings 5 of grown plants are automatically supplied, for example, from a sowing and seedling raising device (both not shown).
is held in a jig. Reference numeral 6 denotes a lamp, which is hung from the ceiling, for example, and arranged so as to provide the necessary illuminance to all the cultivation beds 4a to 4c. The cultivation beds 4a to 4c and the lamp 6 are in one closed space and are adjusted to a predetermined environment. Reference numeral 7 denotes a moving device that locks the jig with locking portions provided at predetermined intervals and moves the plant body 5 in a fixed direction along a guide rail, that is, in this example, a belt conveyor with claws, and a plurality of is set up.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing the arrangement of guide rails in one cultivation bed. In the figure, each of the guide rails 2a to 2e is arranged so that the distance between them increases radially in the direction of movement of the plant, and as the plant grows, the angle is set in the horizontal direction so that the plants do not overlap. The rules are set in such a way as to ensure the following distance. Further, the cultivation bed is divided into blocks in the direction of movement of the plants, the number of which is equal to the number of growing days of the plants. In this figure, the food is divided into eight blocks from the first block (I) to the eighth block (), but for example, for leafy vegetables such as salad greens, it is generally considered that about eight blocks are appropriate. Each block (I) to () accommodates the same number of plants, and one block accommodates plants at the same growth stage. The pawl belt conveyor 7 shown in FIG. 1 is energized, and as will be explained below, the distance between the plants in the moving direction is widened depending on the growth stage.

FIG. 4 is a side view illustrating how the plant moves along the guide rail. In the figure, 2
7a is a guide rail, and 7a is a locking portion provided on the conveyor 7, that is, in this example, a pawl having a width comparable to the belt width of the conveyor 7. 7b is a conveyor drive motor. Note that arrows indicate the driving direction of the claw belt conveyor 7 and the moving direction of the plants 5. Furthermore, the intervals d ₁ and d ₂ between the pawls 7a are the same within the same conveyor 7, and are changed for each conveyor so that they widen in the moving direction. The interval is set wide (d ₁ < d ₂ ). This pawl 7a locks the pin 1a of the jig, and the plant body 5 is moved in a fixed direction while maintaining a predetermined interval.

Next, the operation will be explained. In Figures 1 to 4, one or several guide rails 2a~
Seedlings 2 of plants are sequentially supplied from a seedling raising device (not shown) to the first block () of the cultivation beds 4a to 4c having the seedlings 2e, and are driven by a belt conveyor 7 with tabs installed in the first block (). By doing so, it is held and prepared in the jig 1 in the first block ( ). At this time, for example, a rail for moving the belt conveyor 7 with claws is provided so that the conveyor 7 can move between each guide rail 2a to 2e or between each cultivation bed 4a to 4.
If the structure is configured to allow movement in the horizontal direction between c.
Seedlings 2 can be placed on all the cultivation beds 4a to 4c using one conveyor 7. Also, guide rail 2
Adjusted air and a nutrient solution are flowed through each of the pipes 21 a to 2e, and are sprayed onto the plant body 5 continuously or intermittently. The plants 5 gradually grow by absorbing the air and the nutrient solution, and one day after the completion of preparation, the conveyors 7 of the first block () and the second block () are driven simultaneously, and the first The plants 5 in block () are moved to the second block (), and new seedlings 5 are planted in the first block (). At this time, the spacing between the plants 5 in the second block ( ) is wider than the spacing in the first block ( ) in both the movement direction and the lateral direction. The above steps are 1
This process is repeated every day, and when the plants 5 reach the eighth block (), they are harvested the next day. Through the above steps, a certain amount of harvest can be obtained per day.

As explained above, since the guide rail 2 also serves as a supply mechanism for the regulated air and nutrient solution, the structure of the device is simplified, and the environmental conditions of the entire space are not controlled. Since air can be taken in from an appropriate location and supplied to the pipe through a regulator, environmental conditions such as air composition and wind speed can be easily and precisely controlled.

In addition, in the above embodiment, the case was explained in which the pipe body 22 was constructed by stacking two pipes 21 in the vertical direction, but three or more pipes may be stacked in consideration of the size of the plant body 5, etc. The same effects as in the above embodiment are achieved. Also, at this time,
As long as the openings 3 are provided in at least two pipes 21, the holes 3 do not need to be provided in other pipes.

In addition, in the above embodiment, the case where air flows through the pipe 21 above the pipe body 22 and the nutrient solution flows through the pipe 21 below is explained, but for example, when three pipes 21 are stacked, it is possible to The nutrient salt solution may flow through the pipe 21, and the air may flow through the upper and lower pipes 21, respectively.

Further, in the above embodiment, the guide rails 2a to 2e
Although we have explained the case in which the robots are installed so as to spread radially in the direction of movement, the invention is not limited to this.
For example, they may be installed in parallel or at an angle.

In addition, in the above embodiment, each cultivation bed 4a to 4c is divided into eight blocks () to () in the moving direction,
Although we have shown the case where the spacing in the moving direction of the plants 5 is the same within the same block and is changed for each block so that it spreads in the moving direction, even if the spacing is the same without being divided into blocks,
If the interval is appropriate, the same effects as in the above embodiment can be achieved.

Further, in the above embodiment, the belt conveyor 7 with claws has been described as the moving device, but the present invention is not limited to this.

Further, in the above embodiment, the plant body 5 was moved intermittently once a day, but it may be moved every half day or every two days, or it may be moved continuously and gradually.

Further, although the seedlings were automatically planted in the above embodiment, the same effects as in the above embodiment can be obtained even if the seedlings are manually planted.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, according to the present invention, there is provided a jig for holding a plant body, and two sets of pipe bodies in which at least two pipes having holes at predetermined intervals are stacked vertically at a certain distance are arranged in parallel. a guide rail that movably holds the jig by inserting both ends of the jig into the spaces between the two, and a locking portion provided at a predetermined interval to lock the jig. a moving device for moving the plant body in a fixed direction along the guide rail, supplying conditioned air to one of the pipes and a nutrient solution to the other pipe, and supplying the air and the air through the openings. Since the nutrient salt solution is sprayed onto the plant, the structure is simple and environmental conditions such as air components and wind speed can be easily and precisely controlled.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a guide rail and jig according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway perspective view of a plant cultivation apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a plan view showing the arrangement of guide rails in one cultivation bed, and a side view showing how the plants move along the guide rails. In the figure, 1 is a jig, 1b is an end of the jig,
2, 2a to 2e are guide rails, 21 is a pipe,
22 is a pipe body, 3 is an opening, 4a to 4c are cultivation beds, 5 is a plant body, 7 is a moving device, that is, a belt conveyor with claws, and 7a is a locking portion, that is, a claw. Note that the same reference numerals in each figure indicate the same or corresponding parts.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1 A jig for holding a plant, two sets of pipe bodies made by stacking at least two pipes with holes at predetermined intervals vertically at a certain distance are arranged in parallel, and both ends of the jig are A guide rail is inserted between each of the above spaces to movably hold the jig, and a locking portion provided at a predetermined interval locks the jig to move the plant along the guide rail. and a moving device for moving the plant in a certain direction, supplying adjusted air to one of the pipes and a nutrient solution to the other pipe, and blowing out the air and the nutrient solution to the plant body from the openings. A plant cultivation device characterized by: