EP0151153A1 - Samenkeimvorrichtung - Google Patents

Samenkeimvorrichtung

Info

Publication number
EP0151153A1
EP0151153A1 EP84902764A EP84902764A EP0151153A1 EP 0151153 A1 EP0151153 A1 EP 0151153A1 EP 84902764 A EP84902764 A EP 84902764A EP 84902764 A EP84902764 A EP 84902764A EP 0151153 A1 EP0151153 A1 EP 0151153A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
trays
seed
tray
support surface
seeds
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Withdrawn
Application number
EP84902764A
Other languages
English (en)
French (fr)
Inventor
William Lloyd Smith
Robert Bullock Whitson
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Individual
Original Assignee
Individual
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Individual filed Critical Individual
Publication of EP0151153A1 publication Critical patent/EP0151153A1/de
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

Links

Classifications

    • AHUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A01AGRICULTURE; FORESTRY; ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; HUNTING; TRAPPING; FISHING
    • A01GHORTICULTURE; CULTIVATION OF VEGETABLES, FLOWERS, RICE, FRUIT, VINES, HOPS OR SEAWEED; FORESTRY; WATERING
    • A01G31/00Soilless cultivation, e.g. hydroponics
    • A01G31/02Special apparatus therefor
    • A01G31/06Hydroponic culture on racks or in stacked containers
    • AHUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A01AGRICULTURE; FORESTRY; ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; HUNTING; TRAPPING; FISHING
    • A01GHORTICULTURE; CULTIVATION OF VEGETABLES, FLOWERS, RICE, FRUIT, VINES, HOPS OR SEAWEED; FORESTRY; WATERING
    • A01G31/00Soilless cultivation, e.g. hydroponics
    • A01G2031/006Soilless cultivation, e.g. hydroponics with means for recycling the nutritive solution
    • YGENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
    • Y02TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
    • Y02PCLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PRODUCTION OR PROCESSING OF GOODS
    • Y02P60/00Technologies relating to agriculture, livestock or agroalimentary industries
    • Y02P60/20Reduction of greenhouse gas [GHG] emissions in agriculture, e.g. CO2
    • Y02P60/21Dinitrogen oxide [N2O], e.g. using aquaponics, hydroponics or efficiency measures

Definitions

  • This invention relates generally to seed sprout ⁇ ing devices and more particularly to seed sprouting devices with multiple seed support trays which are periodically wetted to sprout the seeds.
  • Various devices have been proposed for sprouting or germinating various seeds such as beans, alfalfa, grass, and the like.
  • Such devices have a housing or cabinet into which trays are positioned which carry the seeds. Water or nutrient sprays are used to periodically wet the seeds to permit them to germinate and grow.
  • the housing or cabinet has transparent sections in it to allow light to reach the sprouted seeds to green the sprouts or an appro ⁇ priate growing light is provided within the cabinet itself.
  • SUBSTITUTE SHEET lend themselves to assembly line operations for har ⁇ vesting, cleaning, sanitizing and reseeding. Another problem is that it is difficult to eliminate shadows within the sprouting chambers so that uniformity of sprout growth Is difficult to achieve. III. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
  • the seed sprouting device includes a base on which a plurality of seed carrying trays are stacked on top of each other. The trays cooperate with each other to form a substantially enclosed growing chamber In each tray without requiring a separate cabinet. This design exposes all of machine for easy cleaning and sanitizing when the trays ar.e unstacked.
  • the trays are made with a one piece molded design so that cracks and seams which can harbor bacteria and fungus are avoided.
  • This design further minimizes labor costs in seed sprouting operations since the trays can be unstacked to permit the steps of labor involved in harvesting, cleaning, sanitizing and reseeding to be set up in an efficient assembly line operation with the unstacked trays moving from one station to the next and finally restacked at the end of the line to again make up the machine.
  • This design also minimizes the manufacturing cost thereof.
  • the elimination of the need for a separate cabinet or housing inherently reduces overall machine cost.
  • the use of the stackable trays permits the use of high production plastic molding techniques and inexpensive plastic materials to further
  • SUBSTITUTE SHEET minimize manufacturing costs.
  • the trays are cons ⁇ compted of a light transmitting material to trans ⁇ mit light into the growing chambers to green the sprouts. This material also diffuses the light transmitted therethrough to. eliminate shadows within the growing chambers and promote even sprout growth.
  • a mister assembly is provided with nozzles removably connected to each of the trays to spray a liquid onto the seeds yet can be quickly detached to permit the trays to be unstacked for sprout configurations for the abuttments to support the trays on top of each other so that a space is provided at each corner of the trays to promote air circulation in the growing chambers.
  • An offset is provided in the tray side walls in which the misting nozzles are removably mounted to provide an opening into .the growing chamber through which the misting liquid is sprayed. This serves to induce air into the growing ' chamber and promote air circulation therethrough.
  • the openings provided by these offsets also permit the nozzles to be visually checked, permit access to the nozzle of a wrench to adjust the mist pattern, provide ventilation to the growing chamber, and provide hand clearance to facilitate tray handling.
  • Fig. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a sprouting machine incorporating the invention
  • Fig. 2 is a rear elevational view of the base unit
  • Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken generally along line 3-3 in Fig. 2;
  • Fig. 4 is a side elevational view of one of the growing trays;
  • Fig. 5 is a top view of the tray;
  • Fig. 6 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the stack of trays taken generally along line 6-6 in Fig. 5;
  • Fig. 7 is a horizontal cross-sectional view taken generally along line 7-7 in Fig. 6;
  • Fig. 8 is a horizontal cross-sectional view taken generally along line 8-8 in Fig. 6;
  • Fig. 9 is a vertical cross sectional view taken generally along line 9-9 in Fig. 5.
  • the sprouting machine 10 includes a base unit 11 which supports a plurality of open top trays 12 stacked on top of each other.
  • a mister assembly 14 is provided which is removably connected to the trays 12 so that the seeds can be wetted for growing.
  • a top cover 15 is also provided to cover the uppermost tray 12 in the stack.
  • a layer of seeds is placed in the trays 12 while they are un- stacked.
  • the trays 12 are then stacked on the base unit 11 and on top of each other as seen in Fig. 1.
  • the mister assembly 14 is connected to the trays 12 so that the seeds are periodically wetted and allowed to sprout. After the seeds have sprouted and grown to the desired size, the mister assembly 14 is dis ⁇ connected from the trays 12 and the trays unstacked so that the sprouts can be unloaded.
  • the base unit 11 seen in Figs. 2 and 3 serves to support the stack of trays 12, catch the excess liquid drained from the trays 12, house the various components needed to control the wetting of the seeds and as a dolly to roll the trays between the growing and processing areas.
  • the base unit 11 includes a housing 20 which defines a rectilinear peripheral support ledge 21 around the top thereof sized to engage and support one of the trays 12 about the periphery of its bottom as will become more apparent.
  • the support ledge 21 lies in a plane which angles with respect to the horizontal at an inclination angle A, so that the bottom of the tray 12 supported thereon will lie along this angle A, . While the angle A, may be varied as required, an angle A, of 10-15° is typical.
  • the top of the housing 20 is recessed within the ledge 21 to form a sump 2 ' 2.
  • the sump 22 serves to catch the excess
  • each corner of the housing 20 is provided with an outwardly projecting upstanding reinforce ⁇ ment 25 which serves to reinforce the corners of the housing and also retain the bottom of tray * 12 on the support ledge 21.
  • the upper ends of the reinforcements 25 project above the ledge 21 and form a right angle retainer 26 at each corner of the ledge 21.
  • the legs of retainers 26 are long enough to engage the bottom corners of the lower ⁇ most tray 12 In the stack as will become more apparent and keep the tray in place.
  • the trays 12 are made out of a plastic mat ⁇ erial which has the ability to transmit light therethrough so that the sprouts can be greened when the machine is placed in a lighted area. While any number of plastics may be used, best results are achieved where the plastic has the ability to diffuse the light transmitted there ⁇ through so that the light density Is about the same throughout the growing cavity.
  • the plastic must be stabilized against ultraviolet degradation either in Its natural state or through the use of appropriate additives. It has been found that natural polyethylene with an appropriate ultra ⁇ violet stabilizing additive but without opaque additives is ideal for such diffusion. For dura- bilityand rigidity, high density polyethylene is used. Polyethylene is not only an inexpensive plastic but is also easy to work with. The polye ⁇ thylene Is also not hydroscopic which enhances drainage of the water.
  • Each of the trays 12 includes upstanding
  • peripheral wall 42 integral with the edges of wall 41 to define an open top growing cavity 44 therein.
  • the trays are designed for the bottom wall 41 to be * supported at the inclination angle A, of the ledge 21 on the base unit 11 and is illustrated at about 10° from the horizontal.
  • the upper edge of the peripheral wall 42 has a reinforcing lip 45 formed therein so that lip 45 lies in a plane parallel to the bottom wall 41.
  • the liquid coupling 35 is connected to the supply pipe 36 seen in Fig. 1 to the mister assembly 14 via a solenoid valve 38 shown by dashed lines in Fig. 2.
  • the solenoid valve 38 as well as pump 30 is controlled by a timer 39 also shown by dashed lines in Fig. 2.
  • the pump 30 is typically operated while the seeds are being wetted.
  • the timer 39 can be set for the desired wetting duration and frequency as will become more apparent.
  • the supply pipe 36 is also equipped with a quick dis ⁇ connect coupling 40 as seen in Fig. 1 so that the mister assembly 14 can be readily disconnected before the trays 12 are unstacked.
  • the trays 12 seen in Figs. 1 and 4-9 serve to support the seeds while being sprouted, to position the mister assembly 14 for wetting the seeds and to confine the misting liquid used to wet the seeds. All of the trays 12 have the same general overall configuration but with alternate spacing abutt ent configurations as will become more apparent.
  • Casters 28 are provided at the corners of the bottom of the housing 20 as seen in Figs. 1
  • the drain 24 in sump 22 may be connected directly to an appropriate drain hose for gravity drain or a drain pump 30 as seen in Fig. 3 may be provided.
  • the outlet hose 31 from pump 30 is connected to a quick release coupling 32 seen in Fig. 2 on the back wall of housing 20.
  • An appro ⁇ priate drain hose (not shown.) is releasably connected to the coupling 32 to direct the liquid to the desired discharge location.
  • the back wall of housing 20 is also provided with an electrical plug 34 to be releasably connected to a conventional power cord (not shown) to supply electrical power to the machine and a quick release liquid coupling 35 to be releasably connected to a liquid supply hose (not shown) to supply liquid under pressure to the machine.
  • a liquid supply hose not shown
  • the peripheral wall 42 is substantially vertically oriented as will become more apparent so that the trays 12 will be vertically aligned when stacked.
  • the wall 42 does taper inwardly enough for the bottom of each tray to fit in the top of another of the trays.
  • the tray 12 has a generally parallelogram shape.
  • the peripheral wall 42 has a front end section 46 integral with the highest end of bottom wall 41, a rear end section 48 integral with the lowest end of the bottom wall 41 and opposed side sections 49 integral with the angled side edges to the bottom wall 41 and joining -the front and rear end sections 46 and 48.
  • the corners where the sections 46, 48 and 49 join have spacing abuttments 50 formed there ⁇ in which project out into the growing cavity 44.
  • Each abuttment 50 has an upstanding wider wall 51 and an upstanding narrower wall 52 integral with each other along an upstanding corner together with a top wall 54 which joins the upper ends of walls 51 and 52.
  • the top wall 54 is oriented parallel to the bottom wall 41 and lip 45 but spaced a prescribed distance below the top edge of lip 45 so that the bottom of one tray will just fit in the open top of another tray and the upper tray will substantially close the open top of the growing cavity in the lower tray. It will also be appreciated that the abuttments 50 are hollow so that each defines an outwardly opening recess thereunder. If all of the abuttments 50 were oriented the same way, the top wall 54 of each abuttment in one tray would fit within the recess under the abuttment in the tray stacked on top of this tray.
  • the abuttments 50 are oriented so that the wide wall 51 extends along the sides of the tray while the narrower wall 52 extends along the ends of the tray. In the set
  • the bottom wall 41 in each tray 12 has a sub ⁇ stantially flat primary section 60 which forms the planar primary seed supporting surface 61 on the top thereof.
  • the seed supporting surface 61 is at the angle A,.
  • Raised ridges 62 extend along the higher front edge of section 60 and along the side edges thereof to help retain the seeds and sprouts on the primary growing surface 61 and also channel any excess liquid from the mister assembly 14 that strikes and runs down the peripheral wall 42.
  • the ridges 62 along the side edges of the tray channel the excess liquid down the sides of the tray avoid ⁇ ing the seeds and sprouts while the ridge 62 along the front edge of the tray spreads out the excess liquid before it seeps over the ridge to minimize disturbance of the seeds and sprouts.
  • the bottom wall 41 also has a secondary section 64 therein spaced forwardly of the rear end section 48 of wall 42 and joining with the primary section 60.
  • the section 64 defines a secondary seed supporting surface 65 thereon which joins with the rear edge of surface 61 and extends rearwardly thereof.
  • the surface 65 is at a greater angle A 2 than that of the primary support surface to promote draining of the lowermost portions of the seed bed as will become more apparent.
  • the angle A ⁇ is illustrated at about 10-15° greater than angle A, , or about 20-25°.
  • the bottom wall 41 also defines a drain section 66 between the rear edge of the secondary section 64 and the rear end section 48 of wall 42.
  • the drain section 55 depends below the bottom of the tray and defines a pair of spaced apart drain openings 68 therethrough at its lower end so that liquids floxving down the primary and secondary support surfaces 61 and 65 will flow out through the drain openings 68. It will also be seen that the liquids draining from the drain openings 68 in each tray will fall into the drain section 66 of the tray therebelow so that the liquid drained from each tray will not contaminate the seed on the tray therebelow,
  • a separator member 70 is removably mounted over the bottom wall 41 just forwardly of the drain section 66 which serves as a splash guard for the liquids drained from the tray thereabove and also to prevent the seeds in the tray from being washed into the drain section, especially after the seeds have sprouted * .
  • the separator member 70 is removable for cleaning. This eliminates any seams or cracks in the tray at this position to facilitate cleaning.
  • the separator member 70 has a central section with an upstanding wall 71 and a bent lip 72 integral with the upper edge thereof to maintain the wall 71 flat. Opposite ends of the wall 71 is provided with a bendable extension 74 which does not have a lip.so that the- extensions can be bent to effectively vary the overall length of the member 70. The outboard ends of the extensions 74 are shaped to conform to the side sections 49 of the wall 42.
  • the "A" trays 12 support the member 70 in an upright position between the abuttments 50 and retainers 75 as best seen in Figs. 6 and 8.
  • the "B" type trays 12 are provided with beads 76 formed in the side sections 49 of wall 42 to hold the separator member 70 in an upright position as seen in Figs. 6 and 7.
  • the trays 12 vary slightly dimensionally due to the molding processes and materials used.
  • the extensions 74 which can be bent, the members 70 can be made of a standard size and the extensions 74 bent to adjust to each tray.
  • the bottom wall 41 in the tray 12 is formed to support opposite ends of the separator member 70 so that the bottom edge of the wall 71 is spaced above the secondary surface 65 to provide a small opening between the member 70 and surface 65 to allow the liquid to drain therethrough.
  • This opening may be slightly larger than the seeds being sprouted since the seeds tend to cling to the sur ⁇ faces 61 and 65 when wetted.
  • the opening is small enough to. prevent the passage of sprouts therethrough. As the sprouts grow, they get heavier so that the force of gravity over ⁇ comes any surface tension in the liquid holding the seeds in place.
  • the separator member 70 serves to keep the sprouts along the rear edge of the growing surface from falling over into the drain section. At the same time, the separator
  • EET OMPI member 70 serves as a splash guard to keep the liquid draining from the tray above from splash ⁇ ing into the seeds in the tray and washing them out of the tray.
  • the side sections 49 of the wall 42 are each provided with an offset section 80 therein in the upper portion thereof and at about the midpoint of the length of the sections 49.
  • the offset section 80 projects outwardly of the side sections 49 to define an inwardly opening recess 81 therein that extends upwardly through the lip 45 as best seen in Figs. 5 and 9.
  • the wall 42 of the upper tray will extend down into the top of the growing cavity 44 in the lower tray to span the recess 81. Because the recess 81 opens up ⁇ wardly through the lip 45, however, a ventilating passage 82 is formed between the offset section 80 and the wall 42 of the upper tray. This allows air to pass down into the growing cavity 44 of the lower tray.
  • the outer wall 84 of the offset section 80 is generally parallel to the side section 49 of wall 42.
  • a mister mounting hole 85 is provided therethrough to receive a nozzle unit of the mister assembly 14 as will become more apparent.
  • the hole 85 tapers inwardly from its outer end to its inner end so that the nozzle unit can be press fitted therein.
  • a pair of handles 85 are mounted on the lip 45 so that they span the recesses 81 formed by the offset sections 80 on opposite sides of the tray. Since the recess 81 opens upwardly through lip 45, sufficient hand clearance is provided under
  • EET the handle 85 to permit the handles to be easily grasped. It will be appreciated that the offset 80 interrupts the lip 45. The handles 85 span the offset to reinforce this interruption in the lip.
  • the mister assembly 14 includes a pair of side subassemblies 90 with each subassembly 90 adapted to be connected to one side of all of the trays 12.
  • the lower end of one of the subassemblies 90 is fitted with a connector hose 91 and a connector 92 adapted to be removably connected to coupling 40 on the base unit 11.
  • the upper ends of the subassemblies 90 are connected by a cross-over hose 94 so that the liquid from the supply pipe 36 passes up one subassembly 90 and then down the other subassembly 90.
  • Each of the subassemblies 90 includes a plurality of nozzle units 95, one being provided for each tray 12 in the stack, and hoses 96 connecting each of nozzle units 95 with adjacent nozzle units 95. While the units 95 are connect ⁇ ed in series by the hoses 96 to form a string of units, the nozzles on the units 95 are connected in parallel with each other as will become more apparent.
  • Each nozzle unit 95 includes a T-connector 98 with the two inline nipples and a cross nipple 99.
  • Each of the inline nipples is connected to an inline nipple on an adjacent nozzle unit 95 by one of the hoses 96 so that the liquid from the supply pipe 36 passes serially from nozzle unit to nozzle unit along the subassemblies 90.
  • the cross nipples 99 in the nozzle units 95 are all con- nected in parallel to each other.
  • the cross nipple 99 threadedly receives a stepped bushing 100 thereover where the smaller diameter section of bushing 100 can be press fitted into the tapered hole 85 in the offset section 80 in the tray 12.
  • the bushing 100 provides a quick disconnect mounting for the nozzle unit 95 on the tray 12. Once the bushing 100 is press fitted into the hole 85, the nozzle unit 95 is fixedly located on the tray 12 so that no separate mounting is required for the mister assembly 14.
  • the cross nipple 99 is internally threaded to threadedly receive a spray nozzle 101.
  • the bushing. 100 Is press fitted into the hole 85 until the larger diameter section abuts the wall 84 on the offset ⁇ section 80, the nozzle axis will be substantially parallel to the primary seed support surface 61.
  • the spray nozzles 101 illustrated produce a fan shaped pattern so that the nozzles 101 on opposite sides of the tray 12 give uniform coverage over the seed supporting surfaces 61 and 65 without enough spraying force to dislodge the seeds and/or sprouts.
  • the force of the spray from the nozzle 101 passing out of the recess 81 under the upper tray closing the top of cavity 44 servies to induce air into the growing cavity 44 to help with air circulation within the cavity.
  • the nozzles 101 need to be periodically inspected to insure that they are not clogged while the seeds are being sprouted since growth is depen ⁇ dent on the seeds being wetted.
  • the ventilating passages 82 formed by the offset sections 80 in the tray walls also serve as visual inspection openings to permit each nozzle 101 to be inspected
  • the nozzle unit 95 uses a commercially available tee for the connector 98 which is then internally threaded to receive the nozzle 101.
  • the bushing 100 is fabricated to be press fitted into the hole 85 and internally threaded to be screwed down on the cross nipple 99. It Is to be understood, however, that the connector 98 and bushing 100 can be molded as a single unit.
  • the sprouting machine 10 may be used to sprout any of a variety of seeds such as alfalfa, beans, grains, vegetables, grass and the like.
  • the type of wetting liquid used typically depends on the height to which the sprouts are to be grown. Sprouts for the food industry typically only require water since the seeds contain all the re ⁇ quired nutrients to grow the sprouts to the height required.
  • the wetting liquid should also contain appropriate nutrients to maintain sprout growth.
  • the trays 12 are loaded with seeds while they are unstacked.
  • the seeds are typically wetted and then spread on the primary and secondary seed support surfaces 61 and 65 to the desired depth.
  • the support surfaces 61 and 65 Illustrated have a surface area of about 4-4.5 square feet per tray.
  • a typical loading for alfalfa seeds is about 1 1/8 pounds of seeds per tray and yields about sixteen pounds of sprouts when properly grown.
  • the seeding may be carried out in an assembly line
  • the subassembly 90 is positioned so that it extends up along the side of the stack of trays and one of the nozzle units 95 is positioned in the offset section 80 on one side of each tray by pressing the bushing 100 into the hole 85.
  • the cross-over hose 94 is looped over the top of the stack of trays and the nozzle units 95 in the string of the other subassembly 90 are plugged into the offset sections 80 on the opposite sides of the trays 12.
  • the nozzles 101 are oriented in the connector 98 so that the plane of the fan shaped spray there- from is generally normal to the common axis of the inline nipples on the connector. This allows the spray to be generally rotationally oriented about its axis by observing the position of the inline nipples on connector 98.
  • the spray from the nozzles 101 can be further oriented by rotating the units 95 in the holes 85 while visually inspecting the spray through the passage82 provided by the offset section 80.
  • An electrical power cord is connected to - the connector 34, a drain hose is connected to the connector 32 and a liquid supply pipe is connected to the connector 35.
  • a conventional mixing valve (not shown) is used to mix hot and cold water to supply the desired temperature water under typical line pressure to connector 35.
  • the water temperature is usually cooler than the temperature at which the growing cavity 44 is to b * e maintained.
  • a typical growing cavity temperature is about 70- 72°F.
  • the water temperature has to be low enough to cool the seeds and sprouts when they are being wetted and typically ranged from about 60-70°F.
  • the timer 39 is then activated to control the wetting operation.
  • a typical setting has a wetting frequency of about every 30 minutes with a duration of about 1 minute each.
  • the nozzles 101 typically have a flow rate of about 1/8 gpm.
  • OMPI surface 61 is sufficient to promote drainage • of the water from the seeds, especially since the tray material is hydrophobic. Because the cohesiveness of the water makes it harder to dislodge from the lowermost edge of the seedbed, the greater angle of the secondary support surface 65 causes gravity to exert a greater drainage force on the water along this lower edge of the seedbed to promote good drain- age therefrom.
  • the support surface 65 extends about 1/2-1 inch forward of separator member 70. Any overspray from nozzles 101 that strikes the side sections 49 of the wall 42 flows down these sections and is channeled along the sides of the seedbed by the ridges 62 to help reduce any tendency to wash the seeds.
  • the water draining from the seedbed passes under the separator member 70 and into the drain
  • the water then drops through the drain openings 68 from each tray down into the drain section of the tray therebelow.
  • the separator member 70 in each tray also serves as a splash guard to keep the water draining into the drain section 66 from the tray above from splashing onto the seedbed in the lower tray. This not only prevents washing of the seeds out of the lower tray but also prevents contamination ⁇ f the seedbed from the above tray by the water.
  • the water drains from the lowermost tray into the sump 22 to be discharged by the pump 30. Where cross contamination is not a problem, the water in sump 22 may be re- circulated.
  • the machine 10 is typically kept in a darkened room or area while the seeds are initially sprouted. Where the sprouts are to be greened, the machine 10 is moved to a lighted area or room so that the light is transmitted through the peripheral wall 42 of each tray 12 and diffused into each growing cavity 44. Typi ⁇ cally, alfalfa seeds are started in the dark for about two days and then transferred to the light for about one day.
  • the various connections to the base unit 11 are disconnected and the machine rolled to a processing site.
  • the nozzle units 95 are unplugged from the trays 12 and the trays unstacked so that the sprouts can be harvested. This reduces a tall machine into a series of easily handled and processed trays.
  • the trays 12 are cleaned and then sanitized. The trays 12 can now be reseeded and the growing cycle repeated. The harvesting, cleaning, sani ⁇ tizing and reseeding steps lend themselves to assembly line operations to minimize labor costs.

Landscapes

  • Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • Environmental Sciences (AREA)
  • Cultivation Receptacles Or Flower-Pots, Or Pots For Seedlings (AREA)
EP84902764A 1983-07-11 1984-07-11 Samenkeimvorrichtung Withdrawn EP0151153A1 (de)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US51222683A 1983-07-11 1983-07-11
US512226 1983-07-11

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP0151153A1 true EP0151153A1 (de) 1985-08-14

Family

ID=24038212

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP84902764A Withdrawn EP0151153A1 (de) 1983-07-11 1984-07-11 Samenkeimvorrichtung

Country Status (3)

Country Link
EP (1) EP0151153A1 (de)
AU (1) AU3109684A (de)
WO (1) WO1985000269A1 (de)

Families Citing this family (8)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
NZ211107A (en) * 1985-02-13 1988-07-28 Murray Colin Cameron Stackable modular components with rooting substrate for hydroponic system
KR900005990B1 (ko) * 1988-06-16 1990-08-20 박영근 콩나물 재배방법 및 그 장치
AU603540B3 (en) * 1989-07-25 1990-09-26 Holgar & Holgar Pty. Ltd. Planter assembly
AUPM492694A0 (en) * 1994-04-11 1994-05-05 Ma, Kee Wai Super efficiency sprouts growing system
TW331069U (en) * 1997-07-28 1998-05-01 wen-qi Lai Automatic watering control means for a gemmaceous vegetable growing box
IT201700094360A1 (it) * 2017-08-18 2019-02-18 Fabio Fumi Germogliatore
IT201700118921A1 (it) * 2017-10-20 2019-04-20 Travaglini S P A Struttura per la coltura e movimentazione di prodotti agricoli, particolarmente per vertical farm
IT201800004649A1 (it) * 2018-04-18 2019-10-18 Sistema di coltura fuori suolo dotato di una struttura di contenimento di tipo modulare

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Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US242267A (en) * 1881-05-31 Drier
US2928211A (en) * 1958-05-07 1960-03-15 Ivan Z Martin Hydroponic apparatus
US3328912A (en) * 1965-05-21 1967-07-04 Poon Yull Gunn Process and apparatus for growing bean sprouts
US3616560A (en) * 1969-09-12 1971-11-02 Henry C Mun Bean sprout growing machine
US3643376A (en) * 1969-10-08 1972-02-22 Everton G Poindexter Production of seed sprouts
US4250661A (en) * 1979-08-23 1981-02-17 Sekisui Kagaku Kogyo K.K. Agricultural covering multilayer film or sheet structure and method for thermal insulation

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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Title
See references of WO8500269A1 *

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
AU3109684A (en) 1985-02-07
WO1985000269A1 (en) 1985-01-31

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