JP2017093378A - Plant cultivation apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a plant cultivation apparatus capable of easily attaching and detaching a planting plate, a cultivation bed, and the like and being possible to efficiently carry out maintenance works, such as plant-harvesting and swapping works and cleaning/replacement.SOLUTION: According to the present invention, the plant cultivation apparatus 1 comprises: a rack 2 having placing sections 20A, 20B, 20C; a plurality of transverse gutter-shaped cultivation beds 3 placed in parallel to each other, the cultivation beds being placed on the placing sections such that their lengthwise directions face a horizontal direction and that a downward slope is formed on a bottom wall 31 from one end toward the other end; a plurality of planting panels 4 detachably disposed on the upper portions of the respective cultivation beds so as to cover the upper openings of the respective cultivation beds and provided with a plurality of planting holes 41 at intervals in the horizontal direction; and a cultivation solution-circulating unit 7 including a tank 71 storing a cultivation solution, a first supply pipe 72A for supplying the cultivation solution into one end portion of each cultivation bed from the tank through a pump 74, and a first return pipe 73A for returning the cultivation solution discharged from the other end of each cultivation bed to the tank.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a plant cultivation apparatus, and more particularly, to a plant cultivation apparatus that grows plants mainly by thin film hydroponics (NFT).

  In this specification and claims, the left and right in FIG. 1 are referred to as “left and right”, the right in FIG. 2 is referred to as “front”, and the left in FIG.

Thin film hydroponics (NFT) is a type of hydroponic cultivation in which plants are cultivated while flowing a culture solution little by little through a bed-like cultivation bed with a gentle slope at the bottom.
In the case of a plant cultivation apparatus using NFT, the cultivation bed to be used is relatively small and light, and can be installed at a high position, so that the apparatus can be multi-staged to ensure the yield per installation area. Because it can, it is used in various facilities such as plant factories, vegetable factories and nursery plants.

  As this type of plant cultivation apparatus, one described in Patent Document 1 below is known. This apparatus includes a channel portion in which a plurality of gutters constituting a cultivation bed are arranged in parallel, a leg portion that holds the channel portion, a water supply unit that supplies a culture solution to the gutter, and a culture solution from the gutter. And a fixed planting panel that is placed over a plurality of rain gutters and has a hole for planting a plant.

JP 2006-197843 A

However, in the case of the plant cultivation apparatus of Patent Document 1, since the fixed planting panel is a large one that is placed over a plurality of rain gutters, during maintenance work such as plant harvesting / replacement work and cleaning, It was difficult to remove and install the fixed planting panel, and there was a problem in terms of workability.
Moreover, in the conventional plant cultivation apparatus, cultivation beds such as rain gutters are usually placed on the placement part of the rack, but the piping materials constituting the water supply part and the discharge part for conveying the culture solution are It is fixedly attached to the rack and cultivation bed and cannot be easily removed. Therefore, when removing a cultivation bed and piping materials for maintenance, such as cleaning, or when exchanging piping materials, there existed a problem that the work required time and time.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and can easily attach and remove components such as a fixed planting plate and a cultivation bed. Therefore, the plant is harvested / replaced and cleaned / cleaned. The main purpose is to provide a plant cultivation apparatus capable of efficiently performing maintenance work such as replacement.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention comprises the following aspects.

1) a rack made of an assembly of structural materials including a plurality of support columns and having at least one stage of mounting portion;
A plurality of recumbent ridges that are placed on the placement portion so that the length direction is in the left-right direction and the bottom wall has a downward slope from one end portion to the other end portion and are arranged in parallel to each other A cultivation bed of
A plurality of fixed planting panels that are detachably disposed at the upper part of each cultivation bed so as to cover the upper opening of each cultivation bed, and a plurality of planting holes are provided at intervals in the left-right direction;
A tank in which the culture solution is stored, a first supply pipe that supplies the culture solution from the tank to one end of each cultivation bed by a pump, and a culture solution that flows through each cultivation bed and is discharged from the other end to the tank A plant cultivation apparatus comprising: a culture solution circulation unit including at least a first return pipe to be returned.

2) The plant cultivation apparatus according to 1) above, wherein panel receiving portions are provided on the upper edge portions of the front and rear side wall inner surfaces of each cultivation bed, and the front and rear edge portions of each planting panel are placed on these panel receiving portions. .

3) The 1st supply pipe of a culture solution circulation unit has a plurality of discharge openings provided in the tip downward direction above one end of each cultivation bed, and each discharge opening is a communication opened in the fixed planting panel. The plant cultivation device according to 1) or 2), wherein the plant cultivation device is slidable in the vertical direction between a connection position inserted into the hole and a retreat position positioned above the fixed planting panel.

4) A part of the first supply pipe of the culture solution circulation unit is a header pipe part extending in the front-rear direction and closed at one end, and a plurality of cultivations branched from the header pipe part and placed on the placement part It is constituted by a distribution pipe provided with a plurality of substantially inverted U-shaped branch pipe portions provided with discharge ports at the ends of the beds, and the distribution pipes are detachably attached to rack posts. The plant cultivation apparatus of 3) above.

5) At the other end of each cultivation bed, a discharge port for discharging the culture solution is provided in a hanging manner, and the first return pipe of the culture solution circulation unit is inserted into the discharge port of each cultivation bed. The plant cultivation apparatus according to any one of 1) to 4), which has a plurality of upward connection ports.

6) A part of the first return pipe of the culture medium circulation unit includes a plurality of substantially vertical branch pipe parts having connection ports into which the discharge ports of the plurality of cultivation beds placed on the placement part are respectively inserted. And a header pipe portion having one end closed in the front-rear direction and a header pipe portion to which the lower ends of the plurality of branch pipe portions are respectively connected, and the collector pipe is detachably attached to the rack column. The plant cultivation apparatus according to 5) above.

7) Furthermore, it is provided with an illuminating device arranged on the rack at an interval above the placement unit,
The rack has a virtual rectangular parallelepiped cultivation area surrounded by six virtual walls,
The reflecting plate having the reflecting surface is disposed on the rack with the reflecting surface facing the cultivation area so that the reflecting plate is positioned on at least one of the front, rear, left and right virtual walls,
Vertical grooves are formed on the adjacent struts of the rack so as to face each other.
Both side edges of the reflecting plate are inserted into these vertical grooves, and the reflecting plate is supported by a support fitting that is attached to the column so that the vertical position can be adjusted using these vertical grooves. The plant cultivation apparatus of any one of 6) -6).

8) The rack has two or more mounting parts,
An upper open box-shaped seedling pool is placed on the lowermost placement part,
A seedling panel having a plurality of seedling holes is placed across the upper edge of the plurality of side walls of the seedling pool so as to cover the upper opening of the seedling pool,
The culture medium circulation unit further includes a second supply pipe that supplies the culture liquid from the tank to the seedling pool by a pump, and a second return pipe that returns the culture liquid discharged from the seedling pool to the tank, 1) ~ 7) any one plant cultivation apparatus.

  According to the plant cultivation apparatus of 1) above, the fixed planting panel is composed of a plurality of pieces arranged detachably on the upper part of each cultivation bed so as to cover the upper opening of each cultivation bed. Since it is small and can be easily attached and detached, maintenance work such as plant harvesting / replacement work and cleaning can be easily performed.

According to the plant cultivation apparatus of 2), since the front and rear edge portions of each planting panel are placed on the panel receiving portion provided on the upper edge portion of the front and rear side wall surfaces of each cultivation bed, Removal can be performed while sliding in the left-right direction, and the operation is simple.
Moreover, according to the plant cultivation apparatus of said 2), positioning of a fixed planting panel is easy, and there is no possibility that a fixed planting panel may shift | deviate and remove | deviate carelessly.

According to the plant cultivation device of 3) above, the first supply pipe of the culture solution circulation unit slides up and down between the connection position and the retreat position as a discharge port for discharging the culture solution to one end of each cultivation bed. Because it is equipped with something that can be freely adjusted, if the discharge port is pulled up to the retracted position, the fixed planting panel can be easily removed from the cultivation bed, and the cultivation bed itself can also be easily moved from the rack mounting section In addition, when the fixed planting panel is attached to the cultivation bed, after setting it to a predetermined position, it is only necessary to lower the discharge port and insert it into the communication hole of the fixed planting panel, and the connection work is very simple.
Moreover, according to the plant cultivation apparatus of 3) above, since the discharge port is connected through the communication hole of the planting panel, it is possible to completely cover the upper opening of the cultivation bed with the planting panel, Invasion of various bacteria can be prevented more reliably.

According to the plant cultivation apparatus of 4) above, a part of the first supply pipe of the culture solution circulation unit is constituted by a distribution pipe having a header pipe section and a plurality of branch pipe sections. Since it is detachably attached to the column, the distribution pipe can be easily cleaned and replaced.
Moreover, according to the plant cultivation apparatus of said 4), since a culture solution is supplied to each cultivation bed via a reverse U-shaped branch pipe part from a header pipe part, the supply amount of the culture solution to each cultivation bed is equal Can be held in.

  According to the plant cultivation apparatus of 5), the first return pipe of the culture solution circulation unit has a connection port into which the discharge port is provided in a hanging shape at the other end of the cultivation bed, and the discharge port is inserted. Since it has, the connection with each cultivation bed and the 1st discharge pipe can be performed very easily, and also the operation | work which mounts the cultivation bed in the mounting part of a rack and can take out can also be performed easily. .

  According to the plant cultivation apparatus of 6) above, a part of the first return pipe of the culture medium circulation unit is constituted by a collecting pipe having a plurality of branch pipe sections and a header pipe section, and this collecting pipe is a rack. Since it is detachably attached to the column, the collecting tube can be easily manufactured and exchanged.

According to the plant cultivation apparatus of the above 7), the artificial light irradiated from the illuminating device can be efficiently reflected on the plant planted on the fixed planting panel by reflecting it with the reflecting surface of the reflector.
Moreover, according to the plant cultivation apparatus of said 7), the reflector is inserted in the vertical groove | channel formed in the support | pillar which the both sides edge part adjoins a rack, and the support metal fitting attached to the support | pillar so that vertical position adjustment was possible. Since it is attached to the rack, it can be easily attached and detached, and the attachment position can be easily changed and adjusted.

  According to the plant cultivation apparatus of the above 8), since the fixed planting and the raising seedling are simultaneously performed in one rack, the installation space and the apparatus components can be used more effectively.

It is a vertical sectional view of a plant cultivation device concerning an embodiment of this invention. It is a left view of the plant cultivation apparatus. It is a right view of the plant cultivation apparatus. In the plant cultivation apparatus, it is a horizontal sectional view showing a plane form of a cultivation bed or the like placed on a placement unit. In the plant cultivation apparatus, it is a horizontal sectional view showing a plane form of a seedling pool or the like placed on the placement unit. It is a partial expanded vertical sectional view which shows the detailed structure of the cultivation bed of the plant cultivation apparatus. It is a left view which decomposes | disassembles and shows the piping structure of the 1st supply pipe and 2nd supply pipe of the culture solution circulation unit in the plant cultivation apparatus. It is a right view which decomposes | disassembles and shows the piping structure of the 1st return pipe and the 2nd return pipe of the culture solution circulation unit in the plant cultivation apparatus. It is a horizontal sectional view which shows the structure of the tank of the culture solution circulation unit in the plant cultivation apparatus. In the plant cultivation apparatus, it shows the connection structure between the first supply pipe and the cultivation bed, and is an enlarged vertical sectional view showing a state in which both are connected. In the plant cultivation device, the connection structure between the first supply pipe and the cultivation bed is shown, and is an enlarged vertical sectional view showing a state in which the connection between the two is released. In the plant cultivation device, the connection structure of a cultivation bed and the 1st return pipe is shown, and it is an expanded vertical sectional view in the state where both were connected. It is a horizontal sectional view which follows the XIII-XIII line of FIG. In the plant cultivation apparatus, it is the partial abbreviation horizontal sectional view which shows the state by which the illumination board was attached to the rack. In the plant cultivation apparatus, it is a partial omission vertical sectional view showing a state where a lighting plate is attached to a rack.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
1 to 15 show a plant cultivation apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. The plant cultivation apparatus (1) shown in the figure has a plurality of (2) racks (2) having three stages (20A), (20B) and (20C), and upper and middle stages (20A) (20B). Here, 4) each is placed in a detachable manner on the upper part of each cultivation bed (3) so as to cover the upper opening of each cultivation bed (3) and the horizontal cultivation bed (3) placed A plurality of planting panels (4), an upper opening box-shaped seedling pool (5) placed on the lower placement part (20C), and a seedling pool (5) so as to cover the upper opening of the seedling pool (5) 5) a seedling panel (6) placed on the upper edge of the side wall, a culture solution circulation unit (7) for circulating the culture solution to each cultivation bed (3) and the breeding pool (5), And an illuminating device (8) disposed in the rack (2) at an interval above the mounting portions (20A), (20B), and (20C).

The rack (2) is an assembly of structural materials including a plurality of support columns (21), and has a virtual rectangular parallelepiped cultivation region surrounded by six virtual walls.
More specifically, the rack (2) has four columns (21) arranged at the corners of the virtual rectangular parallelepiped as structural members of the assembly, and three columns between the upper end level and the middle of the column (21). At the level and the bottom level, each of the left side beam (22) and the right side beam (22), which connect the columns (21) adjacent to each other in the front and back, respectively, and the middle level between the top level and height of the column (21) In the three levels, there are four front horizontal bars (23) and rear horizontal bars (23) respectively connecting the columns (21) adjacent to each other on the left and right.
An intermediate crosspiece (24) extending in the front-rear direction is blocked between the central portions of the front crosspiece (23) and rear crosspiece (23) located at the first to third heights from the top. It has been. In addition, there are three intermediate horizontal rails (24) extending in the front-rear direction between the front horizontal rail (23) and the rear horizontal rail (23) located at the fourth height from the top. It is stopped at predetermined intervals in the left-right direction.
A horizontal support frame (25) projecting short inward in the left-right direction is attached to the lower ends of the four columns (21). A triangular mounting plate (26) is mounted across the left and right horizontal rails (22) and the support frame (25) at the four corners of the bottom of the rack (2). Support legs (27) are attached to (26). Each support leg (27) is composed of a bolt having a grounding bracket at the lower end and is screwed into a screw hole formed in the mounting plate (26). Level adjustment of (2) can be performed.
The struts (21), the cross rails (22), (23), (24), and the support frame (25), which are the structural materials of the rack (2), may be made of a metal material or the like that can obtain a desired strength. However, in this embodiment, it is formed of an aluminum profile material having an internal enlarged groove (211) (221) (241) extending in the length direction on the four outer surfaces, having a substantially rectangular cross section.
The connection between the support post (21) and the left and right horizontal rails (22), the front and rear horizontal rails (23) or the support frame (25), and the connection between the front and rear horizontal rails (23) and the intermediate horizontal rail (24) (Not shown) may be performed by screw joining or by welding or the like.
The upper and middle placement portions (20A) and (20B) are constituted by left and right lateral rails (22) and intermediate lateral rails (24) positioned at the second and third heights from the top.
Further, the lower stage mounting portion (20C) is configured by three intermediate crosspieces (24) positioned at the fourth height from the top.

Each cultivation bed (3) includes a bottom wall (31) extending in the left-right direction, a pair of front and rear side walls (32) rising from the front and rear edges of the bottom wall (31), a bottom wall (31) and both side walls ( 32) having a substantially U-shaped cross section provided with two left and right end walls (33) that close the opening defined by the left and right ends (see FIG. 6 and the like). The left and right length of each cultivation bed (3) is slightly larger than the left and right width of the rack (2). The bottom wall (31) has a step where the front and rear width intermediate portion of the top surface is recessed downward, and the culture solution flows mainly in the recess (311) in the middle of the bottom wall (31). It has become. The front and rear side walls (32) are inclined so as to spread slightly outward as they go upward. An upward horizontal step is formed on the upper edge of the inner surface of the front and rear side walls (32), and these steps constitute a panel receiving portion (321). The left and right end walls (33), as shown in FIGS. 10 to 12 and the like, are inclined so as to spread slightly outward as they go upward, and the upper edges of the inner surfaces of the left and right end walls (33) An upward horizontal step is formed, and these steps constitute a panel receiving portion (331).
The cultivation bed (3) is made of, for example, a synthetic resin such as polyethylene resin, polypropylene resin, or polyvinyl chloride resin, or a metal such as aluminum, stainless steel, or copper. Further, the cultivation bed (3) may be formed using a commercially available rain gutter (Yokohama).
A horizontal upper reflector (10) is placed on the upper surface of the rack (2) and the upper and middle placement portions (20A) (20B). The upper reflecting plate (10) is for reflecting light emitted upward from the illuminating device (8) in the cultivation area located below by the reflecting surface provided on the lower surface thereof. As the upper reflector (10), for example, polycarbonate resin, polyethylene resin, polyvinyl chloride resin, ABS resin, acrylic resin and other synthetic resin sheets, aluminum plates, steel plates coated with resin on the surface, and metal on the surface A vapor-deposited synthetic resin plate is used.
On the upper surface of the upper reflector (10) placed on the upper and middle mounting portions (20A) and (20B), a belt-like slip extending in the front-rear direction on the left edge, the left and right length center, and the right edge. Stopping and height adjusting members (11A), (11B), and (11C) are attached. The three anti-slip and height adjusting members are a member (11A) that is attached to the left edge of the upper surface of the reflector, a member (11B) that is attached to the center of the left and right length, and a member that is attached to the right edge. In the order of (11C), these thicknesses (heights) are reduced stepwise. The anti-slip and height adjusting members (11A), (11B), and (11C) are made of, for example, polyethylene resin foam, urethane resin foam, synthetic rubber, silicon rubber, fluorine rubber, or the like.
A plurality of cultivation beds (3) are placed in parallel on the upper and middle placement portions (20A) and (20B) with a slight gap in the front-rear direction. Each cultivated bed (3) placed is slipped carelessly by the three anti-slip and height adjusting members (11A), (11B) and (11C) on the upper surface of the upper reflector (10) and does not cause misalignment. The bottom wall (31) is inclined downward from the left end to the right end. The slope of the bottom wall (31) is usually about 1%.
Note that at least one anti-slip / height adjustment member may be provided, but it is preferable to provide two or more anti-slip / height adjusting members in terms of the anti-slip effect.

The planting panel (4) is long in the left-right direction, and is about half the length of the cultivation bed (3) so that the upper opening of each cultivation bed (3) can be covered with two pieces on the left and right. It is supposed to have. Moreover, the planting panel (4) has a front-rear width that allows its front and rear edges to be placed on the panel receiving part (321) of the front and rear side walls (32) of the cultivation bed (3). The planting panel (4) arranged on the left side of the upper part of the cultivation bed (3) has its left end placed on the panel receiving part (331) of the left end wall (33) of the cultivation bed (3) ( (See FIG. 10). The right end of the planting panel (4) arranged on the right side of the upper part of the cultivation bed (3) is placed on the panel receiving part (331) of the right end wall (33) of the cultivation bed (3) (Fig. 12).
The fixed planting panel (4) is provided with a plurality of circular planting holes (41) having a predetermined diameter at predetermined intervals in the left-right length direction.
As shown in FIG. 6, the plant (P2) is inserted into each planting hole (41) of the planting panel (4), its leaves and stems are arranged above the planting panel (4), and the root is the planting panel. It is held so as to be arranged below (4). Although illustration is omitted, a seedling sponge is interposed between the peripheral surface of the planting hole (41) and the plant (P2).
The planting panel (4) is composed of, for example, a polyethylene resin plate, a polypropylene resin plate, a polyvinyl chloride resin plate, or the like.
With the above configuration, each planting panel (4) can be easily placed by simply placing the front and rear edges thereof on the panel receiving portions (321) on the inner surfaces of both sides (32) of the cultivation bed (3). In addition, the entire upper opening of the cultivation bed (3) can be completely covered without any risk of displacement. Moreover, when removing the fixed planting panel (4) from the cultivation bed (3) for harvesting or cleaning, it can be slid in the left-right direction, so that the removal work is simple.

As shown in FIG. 5, the nursery pool (5) is an upper open box having a rectangular shape that is long to the left and right when viewed from the plane. For example, a synthetic resin such as polyethylene resin, polypropylene resin, or polyvinyl chloride resin is used. Molded from.
The seedling pool (5) is placed across the three intermediate crosspieces (24) constituting the lower placement portion (20C).

For example, as shown in FIG. 5, the seedling raising panel (6) has a rectangular shape slightly larger than the upper opening of the seedling pool (5) and covers the entire upper opening of the seedling pool (5). It is placed across the upper edges of the four side walls of the pool (5).
In the seedling raising panel (6), a large number of circular seedling raising holes (61) having a predetermined diameter are formed so as to be arranged in a plurality of rows in the vertical and horizontal directions.
Each seedling hole (61) is inserted with a plant (P1) in a small seedling stage before planting, its leaves and stems are placed above the seedling panel (6), and the root part is the seedling panel It is held so as to be arranged below (6). Although illustration is omitted, a seedling sponge is interposed between the peripheral surface of the seedling hole (61) and the plant.
The nursery panel (6) is formed of, for example, a polyethylene resin plate, a polypropylene resin plate, a polyvinyl chloride resin plate, and the like, similar to the planting panel (4).

  The culture medium circulation unit (7) includes a tank (71) containing the culture medium, and a first supply for supplying the culture liquid from the tank (71) into the left end of each cultivation bed (3) by the pump (74). A pipe (72A), a first return pipe (73A) that returns to the tank (71) after flowing right in each cultivation bed (3) and discharged from its right end, and a pump ( 74), a second supply pipe (72B) for supplying the culture solution into the seedling pool (5), and a second return pipe (73B) for returning the culture solution discharged from the seedling pool (5) to the tank (71). It has.

The tank (71) includes an upper opening box-shaped tank body (711) and a lid (712) that covers the upper opening of the tank body (711) in an openable and closable manner, as shown in FIGS. Therefore, it is placed on an installation surface such as a floor surface so as to be positioned below the placement unit (20C) on the lower stage of the rack (2).
A submersible pump (74) is installed in the tank body (711). One end of a delivery pipe (75) is connected to the submersible pump (74). The delivery pipe (75) penetrates the side wall of the tank body (711) and extends outside the tank body (711). The outer piping part of the delivery pipe (75) constitutes a header pipe part (751). A reintroduction pipe part (752) extending through the side wall of the tank main body (711) and extending into the tank main body (711) is connected to the tip end side of the header pipe part (751) via a valve. By re-introducing the culture solution from the reintroduction tube section (752) into the tank (71), the culture solution in the tank (71) is agitated. The liquid concentration is kept constant.
The lid (712) is provided with a return pipe introduction hole (712a). And the filter unit (76) is installed in the upper part which faces the return pipe introduction hole (712a) in the tank body (711).

The first supply pipe (72A) is configured to supply the culture solution to the cultivation bed (3) placed on the upper stage placement unit (20A) and the cultivation bed placed on the middle stage placement unit (20B). Two are provided independently so that the supply of the culture solution to (3) is performed separately. The two first supply pipes (72A) are provided so as to branch from the header pipe part (751) of the delivery pipe (75) via a valve (see FIG. 9). Therefore, it is possible to individually adjust the supply of the culture solution to the cultivation bed (3) at each stage according to the growth state of the plant, the timing of harvesting / maintenance, and the like.
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 7, each first supply pipe (72A) has one end connected to a header pipe section (751) of a delivery pipe (75), a flexible pipe (721), and a flexible pipe And a distribution pipe (722) connected to the tip of (721).
The flexible tube (721) is constituted by a resin hose such as a rubber hose or polyvinyl chloride resin, for example.
The distribution pipe (722) includes a header pipe section (722a) extending in the front-rear direction and a plurality of cultivation beds (3) branched from the header pipe section (722a) and placed on the placement sections (20A) (20B). ) A plurality of (four in this case) substantially inverted U-shaped branch pipe portions (722b) each having a discharge port (723) provided at the tip. A drooping pipe part (722d) is provided at the rear end of the header pipe part (722a) via a connecting pipe part (722c) that extends to the right. The distal end portion of the flexible tube (721) is externally fitted and connected to the lower end of the drooping tube portion (722d). At the front end of the header pipe part (722a), a rising pipe part (722f) is provided via a connecting pipe part (722e) that extends to the right. The upper end of the rising pipe portion (722f) is closed by a cap (722g).
The distribution pipes (722) of the first supply pipes (72A) are slightly above the upper and middle mounting parts (20A, 20B) on the front and rear struts (21) on the left side of the rack (2). It is detachably attached by a mounting bracket (12) so as to be positioned.
The distribution pipe (722) is formed by connecting, for example, a straight pipe material, a curved pipe material, a joint pipe material, etc. made of polyvinyl chloride resin, which are generally used as a material for a water supply pipe, in an appropriate combination.

As shown in detail in FIGS. 10 and 11, the discharge port (723) at the tip of each branch pipe portion (722b) of the distribution pipe (722) is provided above the left end portion of each cultivation bed (3) so as to face the tip downward. ing. More specifically, the discharge port (723) includes a cylindrical discharge port member that is slidably fitted to the tip of each branch pipe portion (722b). The distal end portion of the discharge port member (723) has a smaller diameter than the proximal end portion. With the above configuration, the discharge port (723) has a connection position inserted into the communication hole (42) opened at the left end of the planting panel (4), and a retracted position located above the planting panel (4). It is possible to slide up and down between. The communicating hole (42) of the planting panel (4) is provided separately from the planting hole (41), and one of the planting holes (41) may be used as it is.
As shown in FIG. 10, in the state where the fixed planting panel (4) is arranged at a predetermined position on the upper part of the cultivation bed (3) and the plant (P2) is grown, the discharge port (723) is directed downward. It is in a connection position where it is slid and inserted into the communication hole (42) of the planting panel (4).
In addition, as shown in FIG. 11, when removing the fixed planting panel (4) from the cultivation bed (3) during maintenance such as harvesting and cleaning of the plant (P2), the discharge port (723) is slid upward. Then, it is moved to a retracted position located above the planting panel (4). In this state, if the planting panel (4) is slid to the right, it can be easily removed from the cultivation bed (3).

The second supply pipe (72B) has a flexible pipe (721) provided in a branched shape from the header pipe section (751) of the delivery pipe (75) via a valve, and a distal end of the flexible pipe (721). And a discharge pipe (724) connected thereto.
The flexible tube (721) is configured by a resin hose such as a rubber hose or polyvinyl chloride resin, similarly to the flexible tube (721) of the first supply tube (72A).
The discharge pipe (724) includes a horizontal bent pipe part (724a) bent in an L shape when viewed from the plane, a first drooping pipe part (724b) extending short from the left end of the horizontal bent pipe part (724a), And a second drooping pipe portion (724c) extending downward from the right end of the curved pipe portion (724a).
The distal end of the flexible tube (721) is externally fitted and connected to the lower end of the first drooping tube portion (724B).
Further, the lower part of the second drooping pipe part (724c) is inserted into a communication hole (not shown) formed in the seedling raising panel (6) to constitute a discharge port. Although not shown in the figure, the second drooping pipe part (724c) has a lower part inserted into the communicating hole of the seedling panel (6) and a separate part from the upper part leading to the horizontal bent pipe part (724a). The two may be configured to be plugged in. With this configuration, when the seedling panel (6) is placed on the top of the seedling pool (5) or removed from it, the second supply pipe (72B) can be connected and disconnected quickly and easily. This can be done and the workability is improved.

The first return pipe (73A) discharges the culture solution from the cultivation bed (3) placed on the upper placement portion (20A) and the cultivation bed placed on the middle placement portion (20B). Two are provided for the purpose of performing the discharge of the culture solution from (3), respectively, but since the culture solution is returned to the common tank (71), they are connected and integrated on the way.
Here, as shown in detail in FIG. 12, each cultivation bed (3) is provided with a discharge port (34) for discharging the culture solution in a hanging shape at the right end of the bottom wall (31). Yes. The discharge port (34) is formed by attaching the upper end portion of the substantially cylindrical discharge port member to the right end portion of the bottom wall (31) of the cultivation bed (3) in a penetrating manner. The discharge port (34) is provided with a step so that the diameter of the lower part is smaller than that of the upper part.
Each first return pipe (73A) has a connection port (732) into which the discharge ports (34) of the plurality of cultivation beds (3) placed on the upper and middle placement portions (20A) (20B) are respectively inserted. A plurality of vertical branch pipe portions (731a) having a top end thereof and a header pipe portion (731b) extending in the front-rear direction and closed at the front end and connected to the lower ends of the plurality of branch pipe portions (731a). It is constituted by the collecting pipe (731).
A rising pipe part (731d) and a drooping pipe part (731e) are connected to a rear end of the header pipe part (731b) of the collecting pipe (731) via a T-shaped joint pipe part (731c).
Then, the collecting pipe (731) of each first return pipe (73A) is slightly below the upper and middle mounting parts (20A, 20B) on the front and rear struts (21) on the right side of the rack (2). It is detachably attached by a mounting bracket (12) so as to be positioned.
Further, the lower end of the drooping pipe portion (731e) of the collecting pipe (731) of the first return pipe (73A) corresponding to the upper placement portion (20A) is the first corresponding to the middle placement portion (20B). It is connected to the upper end of the rising pipe portion (731d) of the collecting pipe (731) of the return pipe (73A), and thereby both are integrated.
The upper end of the rising pipe portion (731d) of the collecting pipe (731) of the first return pipe (73A) corresponding to the upper mounting portion (20A) is closed by a cap (731f).
The collecting pipe (731) is also formed by connecting, for example, a straight pipe material made of polyvinyl chloride resin, a curved pipe material, a joint pipe material, and the like as appropriate.
According to the above configuration, simply placing the cultivation bed (3) on a predetermined place of the placement part (20A) (20B) of the rack (2), the discharge port (34) of the cultivation bed (3), The pipe connection is completed by being inserted into the connection port (732) provided in the branch pipe portion (731a) of the collecting pipe (731) of the first return pipe (73A). In addition, when removing the cultivation bed (3) from the placement part (20A) (20B) of the rack (2) during maintenance such as cleaning, it is only necessary to lift the right end of the cultivation bed (3). Since the outlet (34) is disengaged from the connection port (732) of the first return pipe (73A), the connection can be easily released and the workability is extremely high.

As shown in FIGS. 3, 5, and 8, two overflow pipes (51) are provided on the right edge of the bottom wall of the seedling pool (5) in a standing manner so that the culture solution in the seedling pool (5) The liquid level is kept constant. The number of overflow pipes may be one or three or more.
The second return pipe (73B) is connected to the lower ends of the two upstream and downstream overflow pipes (51) in the seedling pool (5), and the two vertical extraction pipe sections (733a) before and after taking out the overflowed culture solution. And the header pipe part (733b) with the front end extended in the front-rear direction and the lower end of both extraction pipe parts (733a) connected, and the tip of the header pipe part (733b) extending downward from the center. The connecting pipe (733) includes a hanging return pipe portion (733c) inserted into the return pipe introduction hole (711a) of the lid (712) of the tank (71).
This connecting pipe (733) is also formed by connecting, for example, a combination of a straight pipe material made of polyvinyl chloride resin, a joint pipe material, and the like.
At the rear end of the header pipe part (733b) of the connecting pipe (733), the lower end of the droop pipe part (731e) of the collecting pipe (731) corresponding to the middle mounting part (20B) is an L-shaped joint pipe ( 734) and a flexible tube (735). The culture solution flowing down from the upper and lower collecting pipes (731) is returned to the tank (71) through the header pipe part (733b) and the return pipe part (733c) of the connecting pipe (733).

12 and 13 show details of the mounting bracket (12) for mounting the collecting pipe (731) (first return pipe (73A)) to the column (21) of the rack (2). These mounting brackets (12) have the same structure as the mounting bracket (12) for mounting the distribution pipe (722) of the first supply pipe (72A) to the column (2).
The mounting bracket (12) includes a connecting saddle (121), and a nut (122) and a bolt (123) that fix the connecting saddle (121) to the support post (21). The connecting saddle (121) has a vertical plate piece-like base portion (121a), and protrudes from both sides of the base portion (121a) in the shape of both arms, and a part of the collecting pipe (731) inside (in FIG. 12, the rising pipe portion ( 731d) and the drooping tube portion (731e)) are provided with a holding portion (121b) having a substantially C-shaped cross section that is elastically fitted and held. A bolt insertion hole is formed in the base (121a) in a penetrating manner. The nut (122) is a substantially plate-shaped member that is inserted from one end into the internal enlarged groove (211) of the support column (21) and can slide in the internal enlarged groove (211) in the length direction. 123) has a screw hole into which it is screwed. As the nut (122), a so-called spring nut having a ball that is elastically pressed against the bottom surface of the internal enlarged groove by the biasing force of the spring on the back side is preferably used. According to this spring nut, since it can be easily positioned at an arbitrary height of the internal enlarged groove (211) of the support post (21), the position adjustment work can be performed more easily.

Although detailed illustration of the illuminating device (8) is omitted, for example, a frame-shaped horizontal frame and a plurality of straight tubular LED lamps that are detachably attached to the horizontal frame extending in the left-right direction and spaced in the front-rear direction. The provided LED lighting device is used.
Each lighting device (8) has left and right L-shaped cross sections provided on the rack (2) so as to be positioned on the left and right virtual walls of the cultivation area above each mounting portion (20A) (20B) (20C). A pair of support frames (28) are secured to the horizontal portion. The means for fixing the support frame (28) to the rack (2) is not particularly limited. For example, the support frame (28) is suspended from the left and right horizontal rails (22) via hanging suspension brackets (not shown). Can be attached to. Further, if the vertical mounting position of the support frame (28) to the hanging metal fitting can be changed, the installation height of the illumination device (8) can be adjusted.

As shown in part in FIG. 14 and FIG. 15, each of the front and rear virtual walls and the left and right virtual walls of the cultivation area provided above each placement portion (20A) (20B) (20C) in the rack (2). The reflecting plate (9) having the reflecting surface (91) is arranged with the reflecting surface (91) facing the cultivation area.
As the reflector (9), for example, polycarbonate resin, polyethylene resin, polyvinyl chloride resin, ABS resin, acrylic resin or other synthetic resin sheet, aluminum plate, steel plate coated with resin on the surface, metal deposited on the surface A synthetic resin plate is used.
Each reflector (9) is inserted into the internal enlarged grooves (vertical grooves) (211) of the columns (21) adjacent to the front and rear and the left and right sides of each reflector (9). It is supported from below by support brackets (122) and (123) that are attached to the column (21) so that the vertical position can be adjusted.
The support bracket is constituted by a nut (122) and a bolt (123) that constitute a part of the mounting bracket (12). Specifically, the lower edge of the reflector (9) is received by the upper end portion of the nut (122) fixed at the required height position of the internal enlarged groove (211) with the bolt (123), so that the reflector (9) is held at the required height position. It is preferable that the nut (122) constituting the support metal fitting is also composed of the above-described spring nut, so that the position adjusting operation can be performed more easily.
If the mounting structure of the reflector (9) to the rack (2) is as described above, it is extremely easy to insert and remove the reflector (21) from the internal enlarged groove (211). This makes it easy to harvest, observe, and clean plants (P1) and (P2), and change and adjust the fixing position of the mounting bracket (12) to the column (21) as appropriate. Thus, the height position of the reflector (9) can be easily changed according to the growth of the plant (P2).

  The plant cultivation apparatus according to the present invention is a plant cultivation apparatus for cultivating plants by thin film hydroponics (NFT), and is suitable for plant factories, vegetable factories, nursery factories, etc. that use artificial light sources such as LEDs and fluorescent lamps. It is used for.

(1): Plant cultivation equipment
(2): Rack
(20A) (20B) (20C): Placement part
(21): Prop
(3): Cultivation bed
(31): Bottom wall
(32): Side wall
(321): Panel receiver
(34): Discharge port
(4): Fixed planting panel
(41): Planting hole
(5): Nursery pool
(6): Seedling panel
(61): Nursery hole
(7): Culture medium circulation unit
(71): Tank
(72A): 1st supply pipe
(722): Distribution pipe
(722a): Header pipe
(722b): Branch pipe
(723): Discharge port
(72B): Second supply pipe
(73A): First return pipe
(731): Collecting pipe
(731a): Tributary pipe
(731b): Header pipe
(73B): Second return pipe
(74): Pump
(8): Lighting device
(9): Reflector
(P1) (P2): Plant

Claims (8)

A rack made of an assembly of structural materials including a plurality of support columns and having at least one stage of mounting portion;
A plurality of recumbent ridges that are placed on the placement portion so that the length direction is in the left-right direction and the bottom wall has a downward slope from one end portion to the other end portion and are arranged in parallel to each other A cultivation bed of
A plurality of fixed planting panels that are detachably disposed at the upper part of each cultivation bed so as to cover the upper opening of each cultivation bed, and a plurality of planting holes are provided at intervals in the left-right direction;
A tank in which the culture solution is stored, a first supply pipe that supplies the culture solution from the tank to one end of each cultivation bed by a pump, and a culture solution that flows through each cultivation bed and is discharged from the other end to the tank A plant cultivation apparatus comprising: a culture solution circulation unit including at least a first return pipe to be returned.   The plant cultivation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein panel receiving portions are provided on the upper edge portions of the front and rear side walls of each cultivation bed, and the front and rear edge portions of each fixed planting panel are placed on these panel receiving portions.   The first supply pipe of the culture solution circulation unit has a plurality of discharge ports provided downward at the top end of one end of each cultivation bed, and each discharge port is connected to a communication hole opened in the planting panel. The plant cultivation device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the plant cultivation device is freely slidable in the vertical direction between a connection position to be inserted and a retracted position located above the fixed planting panel.   A part of the first supply pipe of the culture solution circulation unit extends in the front-rear direction and is closed at one end, and a plurality of cultivation beds branched from the header pipe part and placed on the placement part And a plurality of substantially inverted U-shaped branch pipe portions provided at the tip of the discharge pipe. The distribution pipe is detachably attached to a rack column. 3. The plant cultivation apparatus according to 3.   At the other end of each cultivation bed, a discharge port for discharging the culture solution is provided in a hanging manner, and the first return pipe of the culture solution circulation unit is directed upward at the tip into which the discharge port of each cultivation bed is inserted. The plant cultivation apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, which has a plurality of connection ports.   A part of the first return pipe of the culture solution circulation unit includes a plurality of substantially vertical branch pipe parts having connection ports into which upper discharge ports of the plurality of cultivation beds placed on the placement part are inserted, and front and rear And a header pipe portion having one end closed in the direction and a plurality of branch pipe portions connected to lower ends thereof, and the collector pipe is detachably attached to a rack column. The plant cultivation apparatus according to claim 5. Furthermore, it comprises a lighting device arranged in a rack at an interval above the placement unit,
The rack has a virtual rectangular parallelepiped cultivation area surrounded by six virtual walls,
The reflecting plate having the reflecting surface is disposed on the rack with the reflecting surface facing the cultivation area so that the reflecting plate is positioned on at least one of the front, rear, left and right virtual walls,
Vertical grooves are formed on the adjacent struts of the rack so as to face each other.
The both sides of the reflecting plate are inserted into the vertical grooves, and the reflecting plate is supported by a support fitting that is attached to the support column so that the vertical position can be adjusted using these vertical grooves. The plant cultivation apparatus as described in any one of 1-6. The rack has two or more mounting parts,
An upper open box-shaped seedling pool is placed on the lowermost placement part,
A seedling panel having a plurality of seedling holes is placed across the upper edge of the plurality of side walls of the seedling pool so as to cover the upper opening of the seedling pool,
The culture medium circulation unit further includes a second supply pipe that supplies the culture liquid from the tank to the seedling pool by a pump, and a second return pipe that returns the culture liquid discharged from the seedling pool to the tank. The plant cultivation apparatus as described in any one of -7.

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