JP2009165455A - Bottom water absorption device in automatic water-supply type flower pot - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a means making a moistening-drying cycle with an easy mechanism without using a large-scaled controller, preventing excessive moistening and drying of culture soil, and raising healthy plants. <P>SOLUTION: A bottom water absorption device has as the constituent elements, a flower pot, a water-supply container, a water storage tank to keep a water level constant, and a water-conveyance part which supplies water to the flower pot. The bottom water absorption device has such a mechanism that water supply to culture soil is intermittently repeated by piercing a water-conveyance element for conveying water from the water-supply container to the flower pot using a capillary phenomenon, into a swelling material which causes swelling by water absorption and shrinkage by drying, and arranging so as to reach a water level of the water-supply container and the culture soil in the water-conveyance part, setting the water-conveyance part between the flower pot and the water-supply container, and disconnecting or connecting the lower end of the water-conveyance element and the water level of the water-supply container, using swelling and shrinkage of the swelling material which contacts the water-conveyance element. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a bottom water absorbing device in an automatic water supply type flower pot.

  In a conventional water supply device for a flower pot, a method of supplying water from the bottom of a flower pot disposed on the upper part of the water supply container using a material exhibiting a capillary phenomenon such as ceramic, non-woven fabric, rope, or string from the water supply container is generally used.

  Even within the hobby of horticulture, watering the flower pots requires daily attention and time. Long-term absence, sometimes inadvertently, the soil in the flowerpots and planters (hereinafter referred to as flowerpots) may be excessively dried, causing the plants to weaken or die.

  In view of this, a means for providing a water supply container under the flower pot and supplying water from the bottom to the culture soil in the flower pot at all times is taken. For bottom water supply, there are a method in which a part of a flower pot is directly immersed in a water supply container, or a method in which water is introduced from the water supply container to the culture soil in the pot using a non-woven fabric, a sponge, a string or the like.

  By the way, some plants prefer that the culture soil is always wet (this is a small number), while others prefer to repeat wet and dry (most). In order to grow a plant healthy, it is important to supply water that matches the nature of the plant. Bottom watering is an excellent method for plants that prefer to keep the culture soil moist at all times. However, for the majority of plants, it is not desirable for the soil to be constantly moist, which is a major cause of root rot. For most plants, it is desirable to repeat the wet and dry conditions, where the culture soil dries from wet to temporarily and then returns to wet. In other words, like a natural open-air, the plant's natural environment is a cycle in which the culture soil is wetted by rain, gradually dried, and then rained again.

  For this reason, the grower adopting bottom water supply needs to observe the state of the culture soil and repeatedly cut off the water supply from the bottom surface.

  In order to create such a water supply and water shutoff cycle, as shown in Patent Document 1, the current situation is that the operation of water supply and shutoff depends on human hands together with large-scale facilities. In an agricultural plant that pursues high yield and quality, it is a natural and reliable method to spend manpower and machinery for that purpose, but water supply for flower pots and planters within the scope of hobby horticulture Regarding management, it is desirable that the method be as simple as possible.

The switching of water absorption and water cutoff according to the present invention is not only a very simple method, but also the water supply path from the water supply to the upper part can be completely shut off at the time of water cutoff. Therefore, like the method shown in Patent Document 1, it is possible to eliminate the problem that the water supply cannot be completely shut off due to the capillary phenomenon even during the period when the water should be cut off.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2006-141374

  The water supply device of the present invention is a means for producing a healthy plant by creating a wet / dry cycle by a simple mechanism without using a large-scale control device, preventing excessive wetting and drying of the cultivation soil. provide.

Means for Solving the Invention

The present invention relates to a plant pot having culture soil and planting, a water supply container for storing water for supplying water to the culture soil, a water storage tank for replenishing water while keeping the water level constant in the water supply container, and the water supply container The water conveyance part that supplies water to the flower pot is a constituent element, and the water conveyance element that causes the water conveyance part to conduct water from the water supply container to the flower pot by using a capillary phenomenon is caused to swell by water absorption and swell to cause shrinkage by drying. It is arranged so as to penetrate the material and reach the water surface of the water supply container and the culture soil, and this water guide part is provided between the flower pot and the previous water supply container, and the amount of water contained in the swelling material in contact with the water guide element is large. Water supply from the water supply container to the swelling material and the culture soil from the water supply container by blocking or contacting the lower end of the water guiding element and the water surface of the water supply container using swelling and shrinkage caused by There is provided a bottom water supply device in an automatic water supply type flowerpot having a mechanism repeatedly intermittently.

The invention's effect

  The water supply apparatus according to the present invention does not always supply water to the culture soil like normal bottom-side water supply, but uses a combination of capillary action such as ceramic and deformation of the swelling material at the time of moisture content. The water supply to the swelling material is cut off from the water storage tank when the condition is sufficient, and a semi-automatic means is provided to supply the water when it is insufficient. Therefore, it is possible to promote the healthy growth of plants by eliminating the need for watering over a long period of time. In addition, since a water supply tank is provided, a constant water level can be stably supplied over a long period of time.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective explanatory view showing a use state of an embodiment of the present invention, in which reference numeral 1 is planting, 2 is a flower pot, 3 is a water guiding portion, 3a is a water guiding element, 3b is a swelling material, 4 is a water supply container, 4a Is the water in the water supply container, 4b is the water surface, and 6 is the water storage tank, and the water level of the water supply container is maintained at a constant height by the hole 6b formed in the lower part thereof.

  FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the bottom surface water absorbing device in the automatic water supply type flowerpot according to the present invention, for explaining the principle of the present invention in detail. 5a and 5b in the figure are fixed seats for keeping the water guide section 3 at a constant height inside the water supply container 4. The water guide element 3a passes through the bottom of the flower pot 2 and is fixed to the flower pot, and a part thereof is inserted into the culture soil 2a. Here, the contact area and the pressure of the water guide element 3a are maintained so that moisture can be exchanged between the culture soil 2a by capillary action. Further, the water guide element 3 a comes into contact with the swelling material 3 b and penetrates the three water guide parts 3 to reach the water surface 4 b of the water supply container 4. At this time, if the lower end of the water guiding element 3a is at a position below the water surface, the swelling material 3b and the culture soil 2a are in a water supply state through the water guiding element 3a, and the swelling material 3b swells. The flower pot 2 and the water guiding element 3a fixed to the flower pot 2 are both pushed upward by the swelling of the swelling material 3b, and the lower end of the water guiding element 3a is eventually separated from the water surface 4b. That is, if the distance between the water surface 4b and the lower end of the water guide element 3a is t, the swelling material 3b continues to shrink when t> 0 and continues to swell when t = 0 or t <0. That is, by repeating these two states periodically at t = 0, excessive drying and overhumidity of the culture soil 2a is prevented.

  FIG. 3 shows changes over time in the distance t between the lower end of the water guide element 3a and the water supply container water surface 4b.

  The water guide element 3a described here includes not only a broad meaning ceramic such as brick, clay, or cement, but also a fiber product, glass, plastic as long as it exhibits a capillary phenomenon and has a certain degree of rigidity. It is also possible to use products, wood products and the like.

  For the swelling material 3b, a water-absorbing polymer was used in the examples, but a highly swellable substance such as peat moss, moss, sawdust, etc. can be used alone or in combination.

An explanatory perspective view showing the use state of the embodiment BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the operation | movement principle of an Example, (A) shows the water stop state while said t has a positive value, (B) shows said t having 0 or a negative value. It shows the water supply status. Explanatory drawing which shows the time change of said t

Explanation of symbols

1. . . . . . . Planting 2. . . . . . . Flowerpot 2a. . . . . . . 2. Culture soil . . . . . . Water guide part 3a. . . . . . . Water guiding element 3b. . . . . . . 3. swelling material . . . . . . Water supply container 4a. . . . . . . Water 4b. . . . . . . Water surface 5a, 5b. . . . . . . Fixed seat 6. . . . . . . Water storage tank 6a. . . . . . Up. Water surface 6b. . . . . . . Water supply hole t. . . . . . . Distance between the bottom of the water guide element and the water surface

Claims (1)

A flower pot having culture soil and planting, a water supply container for storing water for supplying water to the culture soil, a water storage tank for replenishing water while keeping the water level constant in the water supply container, and a flower pot from the water supply container The water supply part for supplying water is a constituent element, and the water supply part penetrates the water supply element for transferring water from the water supply container to the flower pot using capillary phenomenon by water absorption and causing shrinkage by drying. It is arranged so as to reach the water surface of the water supply container and the culture soil, and this water guide part is provided between the flower pot and the water supply container in the previous period, and swelling due to a large amount of moisture contained in the swelling material in contact with the water guide element and Water supply from the water supply container to the swelling material and the culture soil is intermittently interrupted or brought into contact with the water surface of the water supply container by using contraction. Bottom water devices in an automated watering formula flowerpots with chestnut return mechanism

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