AU737912B2

AU737912B2 - System for holding plant containers

Info

Publication number: AU737912B2
Application number: AU46884/97A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Bryan Jackson
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1996-12-06
Filing date: 1997-12-05
Publication date: 2001-09-06
Anticipated expiration: 2017-12-05
Also published as: AU4688497A

Description

t 4 P/00/011 Regulation 3.2

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990

ORIGINAL

COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT Invention Title: Applicant: SYSTEM FOR HOLDING PLANT CONTAINERS BRYAN JACKSON The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me: 1 C:AWNWORDVAARJORIEUOHNJACKF1 IDOC 2 SYSTEM FOR HOLDING PLANT CONTAINERS This invention relates to a system for holding plant containers, as well as to a plant container and a support for plant containers. It relates particularly but not exclusively to a system for holding plant containers while allowing access to the bottoms of the plant containers for watering purposes, as well as to plant containers and supports suitable for use in such a system.

The system of the present invention is particularly suitable for use with capillary 0io watering systems and systems of the type described in my copending Australian Provisional Patent Application PO 3891 entitled "Liquid supply apparatus and process" filed on 29 November 1996, the contents of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference.

15 Numerous different types of plants are grown, stored, transported and distributed in plant containers arranged in trays. Although the eventual purchaser may purchase only one or a small number of plants in the plant containers, the growing, storing and distributing of large quantities of identical plants in this manner enables the plant grower to take advantage of economies of scale. The plant containers used may be circular or approximately square or rectangular in shape, allowing for efficient packing on trays.

If the trays are of a size which accommodates exactly a predetermined number of plant containers, the plant containers can be held in place in a relatively stable manner, abutting up against each other, and making it unlikely that the plant containers will be knocked or blown over. However, there is sometimes a requirement to hold plant containers of different sizes on the same tray, and sometimes the space taken up by the plant containers on the tray does not exactly match the available space on the tray.

As plants grow, it is frequently necessary to provide greater spacing between them.

This is typically done by removing every second plant container from the tray. However, this, and each other type of spacing irregularity, means that each plant container is no longer supported by abutment against its neighbouring containers, with the result that the plant containers can, and frequently do, get knocked over by wind or movement.

3 One type of system which avoids problems associated with individual plant containers falling over consists of a specially shaped vacuum formed holder with individual compartments for individual plant containers. These vacuum formed container trays are sometimes referred to as "scuttle trays", and consist of a structure with several spacedapart well-shaped indentations. Each well-shaped indentation corresponds with the shape of a plant container which is inserted into it. An advantage of these vacuum formed trays is that they allow precise relative positioning of plants and automated treatment processes such as soil filling, planting and watering. However, a vacuum formed tray of this sort is in general suitable only for particular types of plants, as the spacing between individual plant containers is fixed by the configuration of the tray structure. Moreover, the vacuum formed tray is suitable in general terms only for smaller types of plant containers.

oo 15 Another type of plant holder is a rack provided for plant containers placed on capillary matting or sand beds. A sand bed is a method for automatically watering plants in containers. The sand bed is filled to the top of the level of the sand with water, and plant containers with holes in or near their bottoms are placed on the sand, so that water can filter up through the soil in the plant containers to the plants.

A typical rack holding system for plant containers on sand beds consists of a lattice-like framework oriented horizontally and held several centimetres above the level of the sand bed by means of legs. Each of the holes in the lattice accommodates snugly a plant container, so that the bottom of the plant container touches the sand bed and the sides of the plant container are held against falling over by the lattice. However, the lattice arrangement does not allow for variable spacing between plant containers. A plant container can be placed in every lattice hole, but this may result in plants being too close together as they grow up. To create more space for each plant container, every second container can be removed; however, this may result in inefficient use of area if the necessary separation between adjacent plants is not a full container width.

4 According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a system for holding plant containers while allowing access to the bottoms of the plant containers for watering purposes, including: a support having an array of support members; a plurality of plant containers, each container having in its bottom surface indentations complementary to support members of the support; wherein configuration of the support and the bottom surface indentations on the plant containers is such that: when a plant container is placed on the support in an appropriate orientation l0 (hereafter described as a "retention position"), support members engage with the container's bottom surface indentations to provide the plant container with some stability against falling over; (ii) when a plant container is placed on the support in a retention position, the lowest parts of the container protrude below or almost below the support members, enabling 15 water from below the support members to enter the plant container through one. or more holes in or near the bottom surface of the container; and (iii) there are a number of different retention positions for plant containers, enabling the spacing between containers on the support to be varied.

o 20 The number of retention positions provided by the array of support members may be any suitable number. It is preferred that the number of retention positions be greater than the total number of containers which can be accommodated simultaneously by the support. It is especially preferred that the support members be spaced regularly with 'a separation of approximately one third of a lineal dimension of a typical plant container which is to be used with the support, thereby allowing the spacing distance between adjacent plant containers to be approximately a multiple of a third of a lineal dimension of the containers.

The support and the array of support members may have any suitable configuration. It is especially preferred that the configuration of the support members and the configuration of the bottom surface indentations on the plant containers is such that plant containers can be placed on the support either in retention positions or not in retention positions, and when the containers are placed on the support otherwise than in retention positions the tray merely acts as a normal tray with the plant containers resting on the top surface of the support.

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a plant container including: a bottom surface; one or more holes in or near the bottom surface, enabling water from below to enter the container; and indentations in the bottom surface for receiving and engaging with support members to provide the plant container with some stability against falling over.

Accordingly to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a support for plant containers, including an array of support members, each member being capable of 15 cooperating and engaging with a complementary indentation in the bottom surface of a plant container when the plant container is in a retention position, to provide the plant container with some stability against falling over, the configuration of support members being such that they allow the bottom surface of a plant container to protrude or almost protrude below the support members when in a retention position, and further providing 20 a plurality of retention positions, enabling variable spacing of plant containers on the support.

The invention will hereinafter be described in greater detail by reference to the attached drawings which show example forms of the invention. It is to be understood that the particularity of those drawings does not supersede the generality of the preceding description of the invention.

Figure 1 is a schematic arrangement of a suitable form of support, shown co-operating with a complementary bottom surface of a plant container.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of a plant container according to an embodiment of the invention.

Figure 3 is a bottom elevation of the plant container of Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a side elevation of a plant container according to another embodiment of the invention.

Figure 5 is a bottom elevation of the plant container of Figure 4.

Figure 6 shows an extended support suitable for a bench-top embodiment.

Io Figure 7 is a top view of a support showing locations for tops and bottoms of plant containers.

:i Figures 8A to 8H show various different configurations of plant containers on trays 15 incorporating supports according to the invention.

Figures 9A to 9C show broken side elevations of trays according to the invention in different configurations.

o 20 The invention comprises a system for holding plant containers while allowing access to the bottoms of the plant containers for watering purposes. The system includes support 1 having an array of support members 2. The system further comprises a plurality of plant containers 3, each container having in its bottom surface 4 indentations complementary to support members 2 of support The configuration of support 1 and bottom surface indentations 5 on plant containers 3 is such that, when a plant container 3 is placed on support 1 in an appropriate orientation (herein described as a "retention position", and shown at the bottom left hand corner of Figure support members 1 engage with the container's bottom surface indentations 5 to provide the plant container with some stability against falling over.

The configuration of support 1 and bottom surface indentations 5 on plant containers 3 also provides that when a plant container is placed on support 1 in a retention position, the lowest parts of container 3 protrude below or almost below support members 2, enabling water from below support members 2 to enter the plant container 3 through one or more holes 6 (not shown in Figure 1, but shown in Figures 2 and 3) in or near bottom surface 4 of container 3. Moreover, support 1 provides a number of different retention positions for plant container 3, enabling the spacing between containers on support 1 to be varied.

As has previously been indicated, it is preferred that the number of retention positions be greater than the total number of containers which can be accommodated on the support at any one time. The embodiment illustrated shows a regular array of support members, with the spacing between support members being approximately one third the maximum width of plant container 3. As can be seen from comparing Figures 2 and ooo° 15 3, the maximum width in the plant container illustrated is given at top lip 7 of container 3. It will further be seen from Figure 1 that, if a plant container is placed on support 1 in the position indicated, and another plant container is placed on the next adjacent available retention position, the area of support 1 between support members 9 and will be free from the bottom surface of any container, although the top lips of the S: 20 adjacent containers will be touching or almost touching. Each plant container effectively takes up three adjacent sets of support members.

This is shown in more detail in Figure 7. On the right hand side of Figure 7, the outlines 14 represent the area of the support covered by the bottoms of plant containers when in retention positions. On the left of Figure 7, outline 15 represents the area covered by the top of a plant container, and shaded area 16 represents the total area covered by a plant container. Outlines 17 in the bottom right hand corner show comparative top and bottom outlines for a plant container.

By moving adjacent plant containers along support 1 by one set of support members at a time, the spacing between adjacent plant containers can be increased by increments of one third of the maximum width of the plant container. This is best illustrated by Figures 8A to 8H. Figure 8D shows a plant container tray 19 with ten plant containers side by side filling every available retention position. Figure 8A shows a side view of this. Figure 8B shows tray 19 with every second plant container removed, and with three sets of support members between adjacent containers. Figure 8C shows the tray with a staggered arrangement, and inter-container spacing reduced to one third of a plant container width. Figure 8F shows a staggered arrangement with spacing set to one-and-a-third plant container widths. Figure 8G shows a staggered arrangement with two-thirds spacing. Figure 8H shows a non-staggered arrangement with one-third spacing. Figure 8E shows a side view of the arrangement of Figure 8H.

The particular configuration of support members illustrated in Figure 1 is essentially arbitrarily chosen. However, one advantage of the configuration is that there is only one orientation of plant container bottom 4 relative to a set of support members 2 in which plant container bottom 4 will locate a retention position. If plant container 3 is rotated S. 15 from a retention position orientation about a vertical axis, no other retention position is located until the container has been rotated about 3600. If a plant container is placed on support 1 in any orientation other than a retention position orientation, support 1 functions as a normal tray, and the plant containers can be moved about on the tray at .will (although, not being in retention positions, they are liable to fall over). This feature is 20 not essential to the invention, but may be useful in providing versatility in display, sees particularly where a plant retailer does not utilise a watering system which provides water from below.

Figure 9B illustrates a tray filled with plant containers, each in a retention position.

Lowermost part 18 of each plant container protrudes below bottom 20 of the tray.

Figure 9A shows the containers oriented on the tray in non-retention positions. No part of the containers protrudes below tray bottom 20, and the containers are free to move about as if on a normal flat-bottom tray. Of course, individual containers would be prone to falling over if spaced apart as shown in Figure 9C without being in retention positions. (The containers in Figure 9C are shown in retention positions.) An alternative embodiment of a plant container according to the invention is shown in Figures 4 and 5. In this embodiment, bottom surface indentations 5 are provided substantially symmetrically on plant container 3. A container in a retention position with this configuration has alternative retention positions when rotated through 900, 1800 and 2700. A support (not shown) for this embodiment of plant container need only have two projections on either side of the container, co-operating with the two bottom surface indentations on each side. However, in order to achieve the same resistance to falling over as is achieved by the embodiment of Figures 1 to 3, the indentations and cooperating support members need to be deeper. Moreover, this embodiment does not io permit the flexibility of using the support as a normal tray when the plant containers are not in retention positions.

Figure 6 shows a larger support 8, of a type suitable for covering a bench or a table. As illustrated, support 8 comprises a series of longitudinal rows of support members (the 15 centre line of each being marked 11), held between separators 12. In practice, a bench can be covered with capillary matting, and the support can be laid on top of that. This is particularly suitable for automated plant growing and storage facilities, where plants are placed on benches which are moved into position on rails. Alternatively, supports can be laid directly across parallel arrays of capillary-matting-topped water conduits of the 20 type described in my co-pending Australian provisional patent application PO 3891 entitled "Liquid supply apparatus and process" filed on 29 November 1996. Benches and/or supports can of course be arranged in layers of different levels.

In one preferred arrangement, the maximum width of the plant containers is about 112 mm, and the spacing between sets of support members is about 37 mm. The depths of indentations in the bottom surfaces of the plant containers are about 9 to 10 mm, and the depth of the support members is about 8 mm. In this particular preferred embodiment, the support is open below the support members, so that the support may be placed on a water source such as capillary matting or a sand bed in such a way that the bottom surfaces of the plant containers are touching or almost touching the water source.

In another embodiment, a water source such as capillary matting may be provided as part of support 1, and a bottom surface may be provided underneath the capillary matting or other water source. It has been found that such a system works well in practice, but has the disadvantage that the capillary matting may retain moisture when the support is not in use, which may lead to hygiene difficulties.

The configuration illustrated in Figure 1 has been found to produce a firm engagement between support members 2 and bottom surface indentations 5, thereby reducing the likelihood of a plant container falling over or being blown over. In designing a io configuration for support members 2, it is desirable to provide a means of engagement which maximises resistance to falling over while at the same time keeping the depths of bottom surface indentations 5 and support members 2 relatively small, and also keeping it relatively easy to insert and remove plant containers from retention positions.

o *o 5 .is The support and the plant containers for use according to the invention can be manufactured from any suitable materials or combinations of materials. It has been found that moulded plastics are particularly suitable for both supports and plant containers. Other types of suitable materials include other types of plastics, mouldable metals and wood.

o ~The particular type of plant container illustrated in Figures 2 and 3 is an example only. It will be appreciated that the invention applies to plant containers of many different shapes and varieties including substantially rectangular plant and punnets, and hexagonal and octagonal containers. The particular relative height of the plant container does not affect the applicability of-he invention.

It is to be understood that various alterations additions and/or modifications may be made to the parts previously described without departing from the ambit of the invention.

Claims

1. A system for holding plant containers while allowing access to the bottoms of the plant containers for watering purposes, including: a support having an array of support members; a plurality of plant containers, each container having in its bottom surface indentations complementary to support members of the support; wherein configuration of the support and the bottom surface indentations on the plant containers is such that: io when a plant container is placed on the support in a retention position, support members engage with the container's bottom surface indentations to provide the plant container with some stability against falling over; (ii) when a plant container is placed on the support in a retention position, the lowest parts of the container protrude below or almost below the support members, enabling water from below the support members to enter the plant container through one or more holes in or near the bottom surface of the container; and (iii) there are a number of different retention positions for plant containers, enabling the spacing between containers on the support to be varied. 20

2. A system according to claim 1 wherein the number of retention positions is greater than the total number of containers which can be accommodated simultaneously by the support. 4 0

3. A system according to claim 2 wherein the support members are spaced regularly with a separation of approximately one third of a lineal dimension of a typical plant container which is to be used with the support, thereby allowing the spacing distance between adjacent plant containers to be approximately a multiple of a third of a lineal dimension of the containers.

4. A system according to any one of claims 1 to 3 wherein the configuration of the support members and the configuration of the bottom surface indentations on the plant containers is such that plant containers can be placed on the support either in retention 12 positions or not in retention positions, and when the containers are placed on the support otherwise than in retention positions the tray merely acts as a normal tray with the plant containers resting on the top surface of the support.

5. A support for plant containers, including an array of support members, each member being capable of cooperating and engaging with a complementary indentation in the bottom surface of a plant container when the plant container is in a retention position, to provide the plant container with some stability against falling over, the configuration of support members being such that they allow the bottom surface of a plant container to protrude or almost protrude below the support members when in a retention position, and further providing a plurality of retention positions, enabling variable spacing of plant containers on the support. 15

6. A system for holding plant containers substantially as herein described with reference to the drawings.

7. A plant container substantially as herein described with reference to the drawings. coo*

8. A support for plant containers substantially as herein described with reference to the drawings. S:DATED: 11 July, 2001 PHILLIPS ORMONDE FITZPATRICK Attorneys For: BRYAN JACKSON JMN W:UJOHMNSPECJCG46884-97.d