JP2015126710A - Plant cultivation apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve a light condition of a plant growing on a cultivation bed of each stage in cultivating plants on a multistage by using lighting devices.SOLUTION: In the present invention, light reflection members 40 are provided on side areas of a cultivation bed 50. Therefore, light of a lighting device 60 above the cultivation bed 50 reflects on the light reflection members 40, and easily hits onto side leaves A which are positioned below a plant growing on the cultivation bed 40. According to the present invention, without directly stimulating growing points, light stimulation can be given to the side leaves positioned in lower areas, so that photosynthesis becomes active, and growth of the growing points can be promoted as a result.

Description

  The present invention relates to a plant cultivation apparatus that grows plants using an artificial light source.

  Conventionally, a system is known in which a cultivation bed is supported by a plurality of upper and lower stages, and a plant is cultivated by placing an illumination device as an artificial light source above each cultivation bed. As the lighting device, a fluorescent lamp or an LED with low power consumption is used. However, in any case, it is difficult to secure the amount of light necessary for the growth of the plant with the lighting device as compared with sunlight. For example, in Patent Document 1, in order to obtain efficient light conditions, fluorescence is obtained. The structure which arrange | positions the illuminating device which combined the reflection sheet and the light-diffusion sheet | seat with the lamp | ramp above a cultivation house is disclosed.

  Further, in Patent Document 2, the lighting device is provided so that the height can be adjusted, and the lighting device is moved up and down according to the growth stage of the plant, so that the distance between the lighting device and the plant is appropriately maintained and the illumination light is efficiently used. And reducing power consumption.

JP 2003-235353 A JP2013-153691A

  In the case of Patent Document 1, heat is easily trapped because the light source such as a fluorescent lamp is covered with a reflective sheet or the like as much as possible. Moreover, although the light quantity irradiated from the upper direction of a plant increases, there exists a problem that it is difficult for light to hit the side leaf located in the lower part behind the upper leaf. This point is also the same in Patent Document 2, and even if the lighting device is moved up and down in accordance with the growth of the plant, the light on the side leaves is hardly affected. In addition, since LEDs used from the viewpoint of power saving have high directivity, the number of arrangements must be increased when supplying light in various directions, and heat tends to be concentrated in the vicinity of the lighting device from this point.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and when cultivating plants in multiple stages using an illuminating device, it is possible to improve the light conditions for the plants that grow on the cultivation bed of each tier, and It aims at providing the plant cultivation apparatus which can reduce the influence of heat.

In order to solve the above-described problems, the plant cultivation apparatus of the present invention is
A plant cultivation device in which a cultivation bed in which plants are planted and a lighting device arranged above the cultivation bed are arranged in multiple stages,
A light reflecting member capable of reflecting and supplying light from the lighting device is provided on a side leaf of the plant on a side of the cultivation bed.

  The upper end portion of the light reflecting member is provided so as to be lower than the height of the light source lamp located at the bottom of the light source lamps constituting the lighting device, and is formed above the upper end portion of the light reflecting member. It is preferable that the gap formed is a ventilation portion that allows air flow. The light reflecting member is preferably provided so as to be movable in the vertical direction. A cooling means for cooling the vicinity of the illumination device may be further provided.

  According to the present invention, the light reflecting member is provided on the side of the cultivation bed. Therefore, the light of the illuminating device above the cultivation bed is reflected by the light reflecting member and easily hits a side leaf located below the plant growing on the cultivation bed. In general, it is desirable that the plant grows with a lot of light. However, according to the present invention, light stimulation can be applied to the side lobe located below without directly stimulating the growth point, so that photosynthesis becomes active, resulting in growth of the growth point. Can be urged.

  On the other hand, the vicinity where the lighting device located above the cultivation bed is arranged is a structure that is not covered with a light reflecting member and ensures air permeability, and reduces the influence of heat on the plant by the lighting device. Can provide a favorable environment for plant growth.

FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing a configuration of a plant cultivation apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail based on embodiments shown in the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a plant cultivation apparatus 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the plant cultivation apparatus 1 has a support frame 10.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 1, the support frame 10 includes a plurality of (three in FIG. 1) shelf members 11 to 13, and the cultivation bed 50 is supported on each of the shelf members 11 to 13. Moreover, the illuminating device support members 14-16 are arrange | positioned so that it may be located above each cultivation bed 50, and the illuminating device 60 is attached to each.

  The cultivation bed 50 is, for example, about 0.1 to 0.5 m in width and filled with a medium or the like in a cultivation container 51 having a length (depth direction in FIG. 1) of about 0.5 to 5 m, and an appropriate plant is planted. It has been. And it is instruct | indicated that the upper edge part made to protrude outward on the both sides of the cultivation container 51 which comprises the cultivation bed 50 is hooked on the shelf members 11-13. As shown in FIG. 1, the cultivation container 51 may have a substantially inverted triangular cross-sectional shape, but may have a substantially quadrangular or substantially U-shaped shape. Moreover, the raw material which comprises the cultivation container 51 is not restricted to a hard plastic, You may make it fill a culture medium in the inside by providing a film like a cross-sectional substantially U shape. In any case, as long as the cultivation bed 50 can plant a plant, its structure, form, etc. are not limited at all.

  The light source lamp 61 of the illumination device 60 may be a fluorescent lamp, but it is preferable to use an LED to reduce power consumption. However, since the LED has high directivity, as shown in FIG. 1, it is preferable to dispose the LEDs substantially radially with the virtual center of the width direction of the cultivation bed 50 positioned below as a virtual center.

  A guide wire 20 is provided in the vertical direction on the side of the support frame 10 and at a position away from the cultivation bed 50 and the lighting device 60 by a predetermined distance. A take-up shaft 31 is disposed in the vicinity of the upper portion of the guide wire 20, and a string member 32 wound or unwound on the take-up shaft 31 is suspended along the guide wire 20. The guide wire 20 and the string member 32 are disposed at an appropriate interval in the depth direction of FIG. A weight pipe 32 a is attached to the lower end of the string member 32.

  The string member 32 and the guide wire 20 are provided with a light reflecting member 40 along the longitudinal direction of the cultivation bed 50 (the depth direction in FIG. 1) so as to be located on the side of each cultivation bed 50. Preferably, on the side of each cultivation bed 50, at a position slightly above the upper edge of each cultivation bed 50, corresponding to the height of the side leaf A located below the upper leaves. It is provided so as to exist at least in the corresponding range. Thereby, the reflected light becomes easy to hit the side leaf A of the plant growing on each cultivation bed 50.

  The light reflecting member 40 is made of a flexible sheet or film, and has an upper edge engaged with the first clip 33 and a lower edge engaged with the second clip 34. Both are connected to the guide wire 20. For example, the first clip 33 and the second clip 34 located at the end in the depth direction are also connected to the string member 32. Also, as shown in FIG. 1, adjusting the distance between the first clip 33 and the second clip 34 and arranging the light reflecting member 40 so as to sag slightly inward helps to secure the amount of light toward the side lobe. For example, when the string member 32 is wound around the winding shaft 31, the weight pipe 32 a is lifted and pushed upward from the light reflecting member 40 side positioned below. When the weight pipe 32a is wound up to the uppermost position, all of the light reflecting members 40 at each stage are located in the vicinity of the winding shaft 31, and the side portion of the cultivation bed 50 is opened. When it is rewound, it operates in the opposite direction to the above, and the light reflecting member 40 is in a developed state (in this embodiment, it is in a state of being slightly slacked inward). The light reflecting member 40 is made of a flexible sheet or film as described above. For example, a member having a light reflectance of 90% or more is used.

  The means for expanding the light reflecting member 40 up and down is not limited to this. For example, a plurality of winding shafts (three in this embodiment) are arranged corresponding to each step, and each winding shaft is provided with each winding shaft. It is good also as a structure which winds up or rewinds the light reflection member 40, respectively. However, for work, it is preferable that there are no obstacles on the side of the cultivation bed 50, and as described above, it is preferable to have a structure in which the light reflecting members 40 of all the stages are wound upward during the work. Moreover, if the reflected light is applied to the side leaf A of the plant that is arranged on the side of the cultivation bed 50 and grows on the cultivation bed 50, the light reflecting member 40 is used in the expanded state. And may be configured not to be folded or rewound.

  However, it is preferable to use a structure that is folded or rewound because it can be adjusted during plant care.

  In this embodiment, it is the structure which arrange | positions the light reflection member 40 to the side of the cultivation bed 50 as mentioned above, and is not arrange | positioned to the side of the illuminating device 60 located in the upper part of the cultivation bed 50. Therefore, there is no shielding on the side of the lighting device 60. More specifically, the position of the upper end portion of the light reflecting member 50 is set to be lower than the height of the light source lamp 61 arranged at the lowermost portion of the light source lamps 61 of the lighting device 60. Thereby, a gap 55 is always formed above the upper end of the light reflecting member 50.

  Here, in plant buildings and some greenhouses that actively use artificial light from the lighting device 60, air conditioning equipment is provided, and air flow is formed in the building or greenhouse by the air conditioning equipment. The Since the light reflecting member 40 is disposed on the side of the cultivation bed 50, the air flow is blocked by the light reflecting member 40. However, the gap 55 is formed on the side of the lighting device 60 as described above. Since the gap 55 is formed, the gap 55 becomes a ventilation portion, and air flows through the gap 55. As a result, the lighting device 60 is arranged in an environment that easily comes into contact with the air flow, and is easily cooled.

  In the present embodiment, the winding amount is adjusted by the winding shaft 31, and the light reflecting member 40 is on the side of the cultivation bed 50, preferably on the side of each cultivation bed 50, and the upper edge of each cultivation bed 50. Adjust so that it is in a range corresponding to the upper position. Thereby, the light of the illuminating device 60 is not only supplied to the growing point of the plant growing on the cultivation bed 50 but also reflected by the light reflecting member 40 and actively applied to the side leaf A located below. Supplied. In particular, in the case of an LED, since the directivity of light is high, by providing such a light reflecting member 40, the light going to the outside is reduced and light is not wasted. Moreover, since the stimulation by the light to the side leaf A located below is related to the change in the stomatal density of the newly developed upper leaf, in addition to the growth point, the side leaf A located below as described above is also applied. Sufficient application of light has the advantage that plant growth can be further promoted.

  Moreover, although the light reflection member 40 covers the side of the cultivation bed 50, the side of the illuminating device 60 is not covered as described above, and the gap 55 is formed, and the air flow (cold wind) by the air conditioning equipment is formed. This makes it difficult for the heat of the lighting device 60 to affect the plant. Although this point is as described above, when the light reflecting member 40 is cooled, the light reflecting member 40 itself is cooled. As a result, although the heat of the plant is deprived by the light reflecting member 40 by radiation, the temperature change and the humidity change are gentle because the light reflecting member 40 covers the heat.

  Depending on the number of light source lamps 61 used in the lighting device 60, the heat of the lighting device 60 may become too high. In this case, a cooling unit that actively cools the illumination device 60 may be provided in the vicinity of the light source lamp 61, for example. Alternatively, the light reflecting member 40 may be provided up to the side of the lighting device 60, and a plurality of ventilation holes may be provided in a portion of the light reflecting member 40 located on the side of the lighting device 60. However, the light reflecting member 40 has a side leaf A (plant type, growth) located near the side of the cultivation bed 50, preferably from the height corresponding to the bottom surface of the cultivation bed 50. Depending on the degree or the density of the leaves located above, it should be provided between the upper edge of the cultivation container 51 of the cultivation bed 50 that tends to be shaded from it and the vicinity of the leaf (about 30 cm high). Is preferred. If it is higher than that, it becomes difficult to perform maintenance work on the plant.

(Test example)
From the height corresponding to the bottom surface of the cultivation bed 50 away from the upper edge of the cultivation bed 50 to the side of the side leaf A located below the cultivated plant (this test example) Then, from the upper edge of the cultivation container 51 of the cultivation bed 50, “Tyvek” (registered trademark) made of DuPont made of a nonwoven fabric of ultrafine polyethylene fibers was suspended as the light reflecting member 40.

As shown in FIG. 1, the illuminating device 60 was installed 30 cm above the upper edge of the cultivation bed 50 so that the four LEDs become radial. When the light reflecting member 40 made of non-woven fabric is not disposed (“no sheet”), when the light reflecting member 40 is disposed on one side of the cultivation bed 50 (“sheet one side”), light is reflected on both sides of the cultivation bed 50. When the member 40 was disposed (“sheet both sides”), the photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) was measured. As a result, it was as follows.

  The percentages in the table are the rate of increase / decrease when “no sheet” is used as a reference. In addition, the “growth point portion” is a value measured by placing the PPFD meter in an upright posture with the sensor portion at the top, as illustrated in the middle cultivation bed 50 of FIG. "As measured in the cultivation bed 50 in the lower part of FIG. 1," is a value measured with the PPFD meter placed horizontally so that the sensor part is in the vicinity of the side leaf A.

  From Table 1, the PPFD of the growth point portion was not significantly different regardless of the presence or absence of the light reflecting member 40. On the other hand, in the side lobe portion, both “sheet one side” and “sheet both sides” are more than doubled with respect to “no sheet”.

(Comparative example)
Next, as a shade covering the upper part of the lighting device 60, PPFD is measured for the case where the same material as the light reflecting member is disposed (with a sheet) and when the material is not disposed (without a sheet), and the growth point portion is measured. Compared with the side lobe part. The results are shown in the following table.

  From Table 2, neither the growth point portion nor the side leaf portion was significantly different between “with sheet” and “without sheet”.

  From the above, it can be seen that according to the configuration of the present invention, the amount of light to the side leaf portion can be increased, and a favorable environment for the growth of plants can be created.

  In addition, in the test example and the comparative example, the temperature in a growth point part and a side leaf part was measured, respectively. In the growth point portion, the temperature of the comparative example was higher than that of the test example. In the side lobe portion, there was almost no difference in temperature between the test example and the comparative example. This is because in the case of the test example, air permeability is ensured without surrounding the lighting device 60 where the temperature becomes high with the light reflecting member 40, and in this respect, the test example is more suitable for plant growth. I found out that

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Plant cultivation apparatus 10 Support frame 40 Light reflection member 50 Cultivation bed 60 Illumination apparatus

Claims (4)

A plant cultivation device in which a cultivation bed in which plants are planted and a lighting device arranged above the cultivation bed are arranged in multiple stages,
A plant cultivation apparatus, wherein a light reflecting member capable of reflecting and supplying light from the lighting device is provided on a side leaf of the plant on a side of the cultivation bed.   The upper end portion of the light reflecting member is provided so as to be lower than the height of the light source lamp located at the bottom of the light source lamps constituting the lighting device, and is formed above the upper end portion of the light reflecting member. The plant cultivation device according to claim 1, wherein the gap formed is a ventilation portion that allows air flow.   The plant cultivation device according to claim 1, wherein the light reflecting member is movably provided in the vertical direction.   The plant cultivation device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising cooling means for cooling the vicinity of the lighting device.

Images