JPH11127702A - Complete control type plant growing factory - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce labor in enlarging the scale of a plant growing factory and subjecting it multi-layerization and to eliminate the unevenness of environmental conditions which is found in multi-layerization while intending to grow plants on a large scale by making multi-stage growth trellises, in the plant growing factory for artificially controlling a plant growth environment and growing plants. SOLUTION: Environmental conditions are wholly artificially controlled and a growth area, an operation area and a storage house area are dividedly installed. Each area is provided with an automatically transporting route of a plant culture cell tray, the growth area is equipped with horizontally rotatable trellises at multiple stages and a great number of the plant culture cell trays are installed on the trellises so as to readily take in and out the trays. A zone for carrying in and out a plant culture cell tray, a daytime zone lighting an artificial light, a water supply zone and a night zone for lights out are laid.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a completely controlled plant growing plant in consideration of making the plant growing environment uniform, and more particularly to a fully controlled plant growing plant equipped with a multi-stage shelving type movable horizontally movable shelf.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional fully controlled growth plant is disclosed in
As described in 225420, etc., to create a uniform environment,
We are cultivating on a flat surface. In flat cultivation, profitability is poor due to low space utilization rate. In addition, waste is caused by air conditioning unnecessary space.

[0003] In a completely controlled plant growing factory, the production can be carried out systematically without being affected by the weather, but the cost is extremely high. Therefore, mass production by improving the space utilization rate is a key to cost reduction.

In order to improve the space utilization rate, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 4-40832 and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.
As described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 163253, etc., since the shelves are fixed, unevenness in the environment due to heat accumulation or the like occurs, which may adversely affect the growth of seedlings or cause variations.

[0005] When mass production is performed, a lot of labor is required for loading and unloading cell trays to and from the shelves, and new problems arise such as a method of supplying water to each shelf and monitoring of the state of development. That is,
The problems of the prior art can be summarized as follows.

(1) In some cases, plants are moved according to their growth. However, in general, the plants grow in a fixed place, so that the unevenness of the environment in the space directly affects the growth of the plants, and the plants grow. Leads to irregularities. However, equipment and operation costs are required to make a large space a uniform environment.

(2) In order to monitor the growth status and the like using an ITV or the like in a certain space environment, it is necessary to move the ITV, and the moving mechanism becomes complicated and the moving range is limited. In addition, a plurality of ITVs are required for each shelf, and a large number of ITVs are required particularly in a shelf-type multi-stage cultivation. Cost increases are inevitable.

(3) In addition, if a multi-stage shelf type is used also in the culture supply facility, facilities such as a water tank are required over the entire area of each shelf.

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a completely controlled plant growing plant which can save labor when the plant growing plant is made large-scale and three-dimensional.

A more specific object of the present invention is to provide a plant growth factory for artificially controlling a plant growth environment to grow plants by using multi-stage growth shelves to achieve large-scale growth and multi-stage shelves. An object of the present invention is to provide a completely controlled plant growing factory that can eliminate unevenness in environmental conditions observed when a three-dimensional structure is used.

[0011]

According to the present invention, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the whole factory is divided into several sections so that environmental conditions can be controlled more efficiently. At the same time, in such a completely controlled environment, in order to make the environment even more uniform, the multistage horizontal shelf is made to be of a rotating type, so that the plant growth conditions are the same.

That is, the present invention relates to a completely controlled plant growing factory, comprising a region divided into a growing area, a working area, and a storage area, wherein the growing area is artificially controlled. A multi-stage horizontally rotatable movable shelf as a cultivation floor is provided, and a large number of cell trays in which plants are planted are mounted on the shelf so as to be freely taken in and out, and the horizontally rotatable movable shelf is rotatable through a plurality of divided areas. This is a fully controlled plant growing plant under a uniform environment.

As described above, the present invention provides a "horizontal rotary movable shelf" which enables high-density growth of plants and realizes a uniform environment for growing plants, and divides the inside of a factory into several areas. In the meantime, the present invention is configured by a “transportation device” for saving labor of transporting the plant cultivation tray. According to the present invention having such a configuration, the growth environment is further uniformed, and in the future, a robot By fully introducing it, it is possible to make it completely unmanned by an automatic transfer device.

In the present invention, "growing" of a plant means raising and cultivating a plant, which is simply referred to as "growing".

[0015]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described more specifically with reference to the accompanying drawings. The present invention relates to a plant for growing plants (eg, vegetables and cereal seedlings). However, the present invention is particularly suitable for raising seedlings. I do.

FIG. 1 is a schematic explanatory view showing a typical layout in a completely controlled nursery factory according to the present invention. In the work area, a large number of seedlings are planted or sowed in the cell tray manually or automatically, and the cell tray is automatically opened by the transport device to the loading / unloading area, which is the entrance to the growing area (seeding example, nursery area). The sheet is conveyed by passing through, and is loaded on a predetermined position of the horizontally rotating movable shelf. Loading at this time is preferably performed automatically. Planting is currently done manually, but by introducing robots in the future, planting in large quantities will be possible sooner, and the transfer and loading of cell trays, including planting, can be automated, and further labor savings can be achieved through unmanned operation. Can be expected.

By rotating the shelf accommodating the cell tray in the seedling raising area, the following effects are obtained in each of the divided areas. (1) The length of the daytime and nighttime can be easily set. (2) Since the water supply area can be centralized at one place, a water supply pipe or a water tank is not required in the water supply equipment, so that not only the equipment is compact but also the space utilization rate is improved.

(3) An arbitrary shelf is automatically carried to the carry-in / out area because the shelf rotates, so that it is unnecessary to move the cell tray take-out device. (4) Since the shelves rotate, it is only necessary to fix and install a monitoring camera for monitoring plant growth and abnormalities at one location for each shelf.

In this manner, the seedlings that have grown for a certain period in the seedling raising area are automatically transported again from the carry-in / out area to the work area by the transfer device via the automatic door, where the grown seedlings are taken out and appropriately exposed to the open area. Be transplanted to. The storage area temporarily stores cell trays when there is time before transplanting or shipping.

In FIG. 1, the layout is roughly shown, but depending on the size of the seedling raising area, the layout of other areas,
Although different in size, in the present invention, the point is that these areas are connected by a transport device. Therefore, the environment can be set independently for each area.

The transfer device in the factory used in the present invention is:
For example, by providing a number of shelves on a traveling frame traveling on rails, each shelf can accommodate a cell tray for plant cultivation. The entire frame is run on rails by appropriate means.

In particular, since the seedling raising area is an unmanned area, it is preferable to take in and take out the cell tray into and from the transfer device by automation. As a specific technique, there is a transfer technique for an unmanned warehouse, and by applying this technique, automation in the present invention can be realized.

The specific configuration for that will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the foregoing description. FIG. 2 is a schematic explanatory view showing a horizontally rotating movable shelf installed in a multi-shelf type fully controlled nursery factory according to the present invention. FIG. 2 (a) is a plan view, and FIG. It is the side view seen from the direction of AA of 1 (a). FIG. 2 shows two horizontally rotatable movable shelves.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing how water is supplied to each shelf. First, in the carry-in / out area, a cell tray for raising seedlings is taken out and housed in an adjacent traveling frame. The cell trays of each stage may be shifted to the traveling frame at the same time, or the cell trays of each stage may be shifted to the corresponding shelf of the traveling frame.

The multi-stage shelves 20 shown in FIG. 2 rotate in an oval shape on a horizontal plane around two rotation centers 21 and 22. During the rotation, the multi-stage shelves are, for example, It is configured to sequentially move through the carry-in / out area, daytime area, water supply area, and nighttime area. In addition, what is necessary is just to use what is known in the technology of an unmanned warehouse as such a horizontal rotation type movable shelf itself.

The rotation cycle of the shelf 20 cannot be unconditionally determined by the setting of the area, the number of cell trays, etc.
One day is enough. The growth rate is about 3 to 4 days until transplantation, which is not much different from the usual fixed type flat cultivation equipment. However, since it is a multi-stage type shelf, there is a great difference in the number of seedlings that can grow at a time.

In a normal facility, the lamp is turned on and off for switching between day and night, which leads to a reduction in lamp life. However, in the case of a horizontal rotating shelf, the daytime and nighttime conditions are classified into areas where the lamp passes while rotating. There is no such problem because it becomes possible.

In the daytime region, artificial light (not shown) such as a fluorescent lamp or a high-pressure sodium lamp is turned on to reproduce the natural daytime environment in the natural world. If the spacing between the shelves is small,
By inserting a rod-shaped arc tube between each shelf to the back, a daytime environment may be realized uniformly as a whole.

As shown in FIG. 3, in the water supply area, each shelf 20
The seedlings on the cell tray are supplied with water by a water supply device 33 as appropriate. The form of water supply is not limited to a specific form as long as the seedlings on the cell trays of each shelf can be uniformly supplied with water, but, for example, a tree-like spray pipe protruding in the lateral direction is inserted between each shelf 20. Watering may be performed. Alternatively, water may be supplied by providing water supply trays for storing water in multiple stages, inserting them between the cell trays of each shelf, and immersing the lower part of the cell trays in the stored water of the water supply tray.

Although the nighttime area is indicated by the "hatched area" in FIG. 2, it literally reproduces the night in the natural world. Such an environment is realized by appropriately blocking the surrounding area from the surrounding areas. You do it.

As can be seen from FIG. 2 (a), the shelf 20 actually surrounds a long and short body, and in the daytime according to the plants growing in the area between the two rotation axes 21 and 22, The length ratio at night can be set freely. The work of water supply, carrying in and out can be completed in a short time, and therefore may be provided at a short distance. The cell trays of each shelf rotate at appropriate time intervals.

Therefore, all the cell trays stay in each area for an equal amount of time, thereby eliminating environmental variations. The entire horizontally rotatable movable shelf may be appropriately housed in a housing (not shown) to facilitate setting of the environment in each area.

No major equipment is required for partitioning between the areas,
There is no problem just to install a light-blocking curtain in the partition in the daytime and nighttime areas. Each of the horizontal rotating shelves may be housed in each of the completely divided rooms in order to prevent infection due to the occurrence of pathogenic bacteria. Therefore, each room and each area are completely partitioned by walls, and each partition on the transport route is provided with an automatic door, which opens and closes only during transport.

By making the air pressure in the growing area and the storage area slightly higher than the working area, cleanliness can be ensured even when the door is opened and closed. Here, the area refers to a daytime area, a nighttime area, a water supply area, and a carry-in / out area, and the area refers to a growing area (a nursery area), a work area, and a storage area.

Thus, in the horizontally rotating movable shelf system according to the present invention, shelves can be installed in multiple stages, and the space utilization can be improved. Except when the cell tray is loaded or unloaded, the movable shelf rotates at a low speed and is not continuously exposed to the same atmosphere, so that only certain seedlings are not affected by environmental unevenness due to heat accumulation and uniform environment. Can be achieved.

Further, since the shelves are constantly rotating, the growth condition monitoring device and the water supply equipment can be centrally arranged at one place, and the equipment is simplified. Here, the horizontally rotating movable shelf type has been described, but the same effect can be expected for the vertical movable shelf type.

This process is repeated several times, and finally carried to the storage area for shipping adjustment by the transfer device. Since these transfer devices are automatically controlled, significant labor savings can be achieved.
In addition, the seedling raising area can be made unmanned, and there is an additional effect that the yield of seedlings is improved because the invasion of pathogenic bacteria is suppressed.

Although the present invention has been described for the growth of seedlings, other short plants (eg, vegetables such as salad vegetables)
Has the same effect.

[0039]

The effects of the present invention can be summarized as follows. (1) By moving the plant itself, the growth environment can be made uniform. (2) By moving the plants themselves, it is also possible to divide the area into daytime and nighttime. (3) Monitoring and supplying water to the plants that have moved can be performed at one location, simplifying the equipment.

Thus, according to the present invention, the planned and large-scale economical production of well-grown seedlings or plants is possible at any time and in any region. Therefore, the present invention is one of the powerful means for solving the problem of the declining agricultural population and the problem of food.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic explanatory diagram of a layout of a fully controlled nursery factory according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 (a) is a schematic plan view of a horizontally rotatable movable shelf used in the present invention, and FIG. 2 (b) is a schematic arrow view from line AA in FIG. 2 (a). .

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a state of water supply by a spray nozzle type.

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A completely controlled plant growing factory comprising an area divided into a growing area, a working area, and a storage area for artificially controlling all environmental conditions, wherein the growing area, the working area, and the storage A conveyance route of a plant cultivation cell tray is provided between each of the areas, and a horizontally rotatable movable shelf is provided in multiple stages in the growing area, and a large number of the plant cultivation cell trays are installed on the shelf so as to be freely taken in and out, and the horizontally rotatable movable A fully controlled plant growing plant in a uniform environment, characterized in that shelves are rotatable through a plurality of partitioned areas. 2. The completely controlled plant according to claim 1, wherein the divided area includes a carry-in / out area for the plant cultivation cell tray, a daytime area where artificial light is turned on, a water supply area, and a nighttime area where light is turned off. Growth plant.