AU2007100823A4 - Modular irrigation trough - Google Patents

Description

29/08 2007 17:04 FAX COLLISON CO IP AUST CANBERRA 1007/079 57535 DIA:FKD 0

O

ci <i P/00/011 Regulation 3.2

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990

ORIGINAL

INNOVATION PATENT SPECIFICATION FOR AN INVENTION Name of Applicant: LUIGI GAGLIARDI Actual Inventor: LUIGI GAGLIARDI Address for Service: COLLISON CO.,117 King William Street, Adelaide, S.A. 5000 Invention Title: MODULAR IRRIGATION TROUGH The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to us: COMS ID No: ARCS-158883 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:55 Date 2007-08-29 29/08 2007 17:05 FAX COLLISON CO IP AUST CANBERRA 0008/079 2 O MODULAR IRRIGATION TROUGH to FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a modular planter device and system for the Cgrowing of plants therein.

5 In particular, the invention relates to a modular planter apparatus and system that allows plants to grow either in a greenhouse or out in the open with a 0 regulated and controlled watering system that also provides nutrients to the plant and further relates to the collection and recirculation of water and o nutrium products that are not effectively taken up by the growing plants.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART The prior art in this particular field, that is best known to the inventor, is that of hydroponic systems wherein plants are grown in modular systems with the absence of any soil medium. Those skilled in this particular art are well aware of the drawbacks associated with hydroponic agriculture including but not limited to aspects such as reduced growth of plants, restrictions on plant size and yield, and scalability.

Hydroponic systems are typically restricted to only greenhouses due to the complexity of the set-up as well as the difficulty in anchoring plants within the hydroponic system itself. By being restricted mainly to greenhouses, this then effectively restricts the amount of agriculture that can take place per area of land. This leads to quite ineffective use of properties and therefore reduced economic benefits for growers.

There is little contention amongst growers that plants that are grown in a soil medium fair better in terms of both producing substantially more produce per given area than those grown in a hydroponic system. In addition, plants that are grown within soil medium tend to be healthier and more vigorous.

However, there are issues with growing some produce in soil, such as strawberries.

COMS ID No: ARCS-158883 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:55 Date 2007-08-29 29/00 2007 17:05 FAX COLLISON CO IP AUST CANBERRA l009/079 3 It is known that in order to increase the effective yield of strawberry plants, the soil within which the plant is to grow should be sterilised to counter-effect or control soil borne diseases and weeds. Traditionally the strawberry industry ;Z has used metlylbromide as the sterilising agent although this is currently being phased out of use as methylbromide has a deleterious impact on the ozone layer as well as being a potential carcinogen. Alternatives such as methyliodide aid other chemical alternatives have been investigated to determine efficiency and ethicise however it would of course be preferable not 0 to use such chemicals at all in the open field or in greenhouses or S 10 glasshouses.

Conventionally, the plants are also grown in aboveground planters such as household planter pots, which are well known, however, these are deemed to be both inefficient and expensive for commercial agricultural purposes due to a number of factors and limitations such as lack of provision of adequate space for growth of roots, poor drainage and lack of protection for the soil in the planter.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a modular planter apparatus and system that provides an efficient and economical apparatus and arrangement for the growing and cultivation of various types of agriculture.

Another object of the invention is to provide a modular planter apparatus and arrangement that allows water and nutrients to be efficiently reused and recirculated.

A further object of the invention is to provide a modular planter apparatus and arrangement that incorporates an efficient drainage system.

It is an object of the present invention to overcome, or at least substantially ameliorate, the disadvantages and shortcomings of the prior art.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description, taking in connection with the accompanying COMS ID No: ARCS-158883 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:55 Date 2007-08-29 29/08 2007 17:05 FAX COLLISON CO 2 IP AUST CANBERRA Ia010/079 4 drawings, wherein, by way of illustration and example, an embodiment of the 0 o present invention is disclosed.

ci SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, although this should not be seen as limiting the invention in any way, there is provided a modular planter Sapparatus including a longitudinal trough having opposing walls, opposing open end faces, a drainage gutter positioned on a bottom wall, the drainage 00 0 gutter having a cover, wherein the cover has a plurality of spaced apart 2apertures positioned thereon to allow fluid communication between the trough and the drainage gutter and a top cover adapted to be removable secured to the opposing walls further including a plurality of spaced apart apertures through which plants can grow.

In preference, the apertures located on the drainage gutter cover are a series of slits that allow passage of water there through but restrict soil.

In preference, the apertures are fine holes.

In preference, the drainage gutter cover nestingly fits within a top section of the channel.

In preference, the drainage gutter is located at a lowermost level on a floor of the trough.

In preference, the top cover includes means for connecting to the opposing walls of the trough so as to allow it to be removably secured thereto.

In preference, a dripper conduit is attached to an inner face of the top cover.

In preference, the longitudinal ends of the trough further include means for selectable connections to open end faces of adjoining modular planters.

In preference, the adjoining means further includes a sealing means so that when adjoining planters are secured one to the other the join is relatively water tight.

COMS ID No: ARCS-158883 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:55 Date 2007-08-29 29/08 2007 17:05 FAX COLLISON CO IP AUST CANBERRA a011/079 In preference, said sealing means is provided by a rubber seal.

SIn preference, each modular planter apparatus has a back and front section, ;Z the sections adapted to nestingly fit one within another.

In preference, the floor is inclined relative to the horizontal so as to direct fluid to the channel.

SIn another form of the invention, there is a modular planter arrangement that 00 includes a longitudinal trough having opposing walls and open end faces, the trough further ncluding a channel positioned on a floor of the trough.

Sections of the trough can be joined in end to end fashion one to the other to S 10 a desired length, one open end of the trough then being closed off so as to direct water to a collection tank, the other open end being closed off to seal the trough. Water and nutrients are then pumped through the irrigation tube, and any excess that is not taken up by the plants is then collected in the trough and directed to a collection tank that is attached to the pump.

In preference, the collection tank further includes monitoring equipment to monitor both water level and nutrient level and is adapted to adjust such levels as required.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS By way of example, an employment of the invention is described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a persoective view of the invention; Figure 2 is an exploded view of the invention; Figure 3 is a side cut away view of the invention; Figure 4 is front cut away view; Figure 5 is front cut away view as Fig 4, with a plant in position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION COMS ID No: ARCS-158883 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:55 Date 2007-08-29 29/08 2007 17:06 FAX COLLISON 6 CO IP AUST CANBERRA I012/079 6 Figure 1 is a perspective view of a two combined units of the modular planter which is defined by a pair of opposing walls 10 and 12, a floor section 15, a Schannel 17 and a top cover The channel 17 is shown horizontally positioned along the entire longitudinal length of the modular unit 5, positioned substantially in the middle of the floor section 15 however the channel 17 may be located anywhere on the floor en section 15 such as close to one of the opposing walls 10 or 12.

00 The channel 17 is a "C"-shaped section and has a projecting flange 21 2 running the full length of the channel 17, the projecting flange 21 is shaped to engage in a releasable manner the cover 25 via the groove 27.

The cover 25 has a plurality of slits 28 positioned substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal length of the cover 25. The sltie28haped so as to allow the passage of water through it but to restrict particles of dirt. in this way, the channel 17 will not become clogged with material- The top cover 20 has opposing sections 30 and 32 shaped to engage opposing walls 12 and 10 of the modular unit 5 so as to assist in maintaining the shape of the modular unit 5 as well as providing cover for the contents within the trough. The top cover 20 can then be easily snap dash locked onto the trough section and removed as required with ease. Positioned on the top cover 20 are a plurality of apertures 34 through which plants can grow.

As can be easily seen in Figure 3, each modular unit 5 has a front end 36 and a back end 37 each shaped to nestingly fit one within the other so that modular units car! be easily snap locked together to form customized lengths and, if required, customized shapes depending upon the shape of the modular unit In order to effect a relatively water tight seal between the joined modular unit there is, positioned between an interlocked front end 36 and back end 37 a sealing means, such as a solid rubber tube 40 that is held in place by the nesting fit between ends 36 and 37. This then results in a compression of the sealing means 40, which in turn provides the water tight seal. This particular COMS ID No: ARCS-158883 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:55 Date 2007-08-29 29/08 2007 17:06 FAX COLLISON CO 29/0 200 1706 FX COLISN O IP AUST CANBERRA 2~013/079 7 view Shown in Figure 3 only shows the sealing means on the bottom face of the modular unit 5 however this also extends up each of the Opposing walls sides 12 and 10, as seen in Figure 2, to effect a relatively complete sealing ;Z effect.

9 In use, the modular units 5 are interconnected one to the other to an appropriate length and, with the cover 25 in place over the channel 17 a soil medium 46, such as sterile potting mix, is placed within to the required depth.

00 An irrigation line 47 is then placed on the surface of the soil medium 46 and o the top cover 20 is then snap locked onto the opposing wails 12 and lo0 Seedlings or seeds are then inserted through the apertures 34 into the soil medium 46. Water with nutrients can then be provided to the seedling 50 by way of the dripper 47 in a controlled manner. Any excess water and nutrients that is not taken up by the seedling 50 will then begin to travel towards the floor section 15 under normal gravity and then passed through the slits 27 of the cover 25 into the channel 17.

In this manner, by channeling away the excess liquid there is then a dramatic reduction in the chance of the growing seedling 50 from experiencing any root rot and furthermore due to the interconnection of the various channels the resultant excess fluid can then be collected and, if desired, recirculated after nutrient levels have been adjusted to the appropriate mix for the particular plants being grown.

As the seedling 50 grows the top cover 20 also provides protection to the soil medium 46 by prsventing any of the leaves, foliage or fruit of the plant from contacting the soil, thus reducing the chance of the soil becoming contaminated. In addition, the top cover 20 also dramatically reduces the evaporation of the liquid being provided by the dripper 47 and therefore greatly adds to the efficiency of the system compared to those currently in use.

At the end of a growing cycle, or as appropriate, the soil medium can be easily removed by simply removing the top cover 20 and excavating the soil 46. In this manner, with relatively little effort, the soil medium 46 can be maintained COMS ID No: ARCS-158883 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:55 Date 2007-08-29 29/08 2007 17:06 FAX COLLISON CO 2 IP AUST CANBERRA la014/079 8 in a relatively 3lean manner so that produce can be grown in a controlled fashion and with the addition of nutrient and water monitoring equipment in Sconjunction with a pumping means a relatively inexpensive and easy to ;Z assemble modular planter arrangement can be constructed to provide 0 5 economic and efficient plant growth conditions.

The benefits of the invention as described are that there is now a apparatus M and system based on the modular units that can be readily produces in an 00 economic manner that allow for simple and uncomplicated agricultural Spractices. This includes a more efficient use of space by stacking the modular units in arrays, dependant on the plant, as well as more economical and Sefficient watering practices as the nutrient level of the water can be easily monitored as can the runoff collected through the drainage gutter thus to provide an overall nutrient uptake profile for the growing plants.

Furthermore, the use of the top cover eliminates any water loss through evaporation and reduces the chances of soil loss, weeds and spread of diseases by infected plant material.

Although the invention has been herein shown and described in what is conceived to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is recognized that departures can be made within the scope of the invention, which is not to be limited to the details described herein but it is to be accorded the full scope of the appended claims so as to embrace any and all equivalent devices and apparatus.

COMS ID No: ARCS-158883 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:55 Date 2007-08-29

Claims (3)

1. 2. The modular planter apparatus of claim 1, wherein the drainage gutter is located at a lowermost level on a floor of the trough.
2. 3. The modular planter apparatus of any one of claims 1 or 2, wherein a dripper conduit is attached to an inner face of the top cover.
3. 4. The modular planter apparatus of any one of claims 1 3. wherein the longitudinal ends of the trough further include means for 'selectable connections to open end faces of adjoining modular planters and each modular planter apparatus has a back and front section, the sections adapted to nestingly fit one within another. The modular planter apparatus of any one of claims 3 or 4, wherein one open end of the trough is then closed off so as to direct water to a collection tank, the other open end being closed off to seal the trough such that water and nutrients that are then pumped through the dripper conduit, and any excess that is not taken up by the plants is then collected in the trough and directed to the collection tank having a pump to pump the contents of the collection tank back into the dripper conduit. COMS ID No: ARCS-158883 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:55 Date 2007-08-29