KR102221092B1 - Measurement Apparatus for Estimating Nondestructive and continuous fresh weight of crops grown in soilless culture - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an apparatus, a system, and a method for estimating the fresh weight of a crop and, more specifically, to an apparatus, a system, and a method for continuously estimating the fresh weight of a hydroponic crop by a nondestructive method. The fresh weight estimation apparatus for a crop comprises: an outer frame; a cultivation podium to load a culture medium receiving a nutrient solution to grow a crop thereon; a sensor which is loaded on the cultivation podium and senses culture medium moisture content information; a lower inner frame on which the cultivation podium is installed; an upper inner frame connected to the lower inner frame by a wire, and separated and arranged above the lower inner frame; at least one tensile load cell connecting the upper inner frame and the outer frame to separate the lower inner frame from the ground; and a processor to acquire a correction value based on the culture medium moisture content information acquired through the sensor and a load cell value acquired through the tensile load cell, and predict the fresh weight of the crop.

Description

[Measurement Apparatus for Estimating Nondestructive and continuous fresh weight of crops grown in soilless culture}

The present invention relates to a live weight estimation apparatus for estimating the live weight of a crop. Specifically, the present invention relates to an estimation apparatus for continuously estimating the live weight of a hydroponic crop through a non-destructive method.

Since the live weight of a crop is the weight of the crop as it is alive and is a value that directly represents the growth state of the current crop, it can be used as a major index in predicting the growth and yield of crops. In order to measure the change in the live weight of a crop, it is necessary to destroy the crop to be measured every time, so there is a problem that a lot of time and effort are required. In addition, by destroying the crop to be measured, there is a problem that it is impossible to continuously measure the live weight of the crop.

Accordingly, there have been studies for non-destructive live weight measurement of crops. Meanwhile, the weight of the crop cultivation system for measuring the live weight in hydroponic cultivation conditions includes the fresh weight of the crop, the weight of the medium and the cultivation system, and the weight of moisture in the medium. Since the root region of a crop develops in the medium, it is necessary to exclude the weight of moisture in the medium from the weight of the crop cultivation system to derive the live weight of the crop. In order to indirectly measure the amount of water in such a medium, it is common to measure the volumetric water contents using the difference in permittivity between the medium and water, and a representative sensor for measuring the volume water content is FDR (Frequency domain). reflectometry) sensor.

However, the moisture content that appears in this FDR sensor is a value for the volume of moisture, and the moisture content of this FDR sensor varies depending on the electrical conductivity (EC) of the nutrient solution and the developmental state of the roots of the crop. It needs to be calibrated between its weight.

Meanwhile, a technology for estimating the moisture content of the medium and the amount of transpiration using a load cell has been developed and widely used. This conventional load cell-based crop root area measurement device is limited to the load applied in the downward direction using a compressive force load cell that can measure the weight of the crop and the medium at the same time. Are doing. However, in the case of high-growth crops such as paprika, tomatoes, etc., a support is installed at the height of the greenhouse and lowered from the support to support the crop. In the case of crops using such pull lines, there is a limitation in that it is impossible to measure the tension applied to the pull lines by measuring the load using a compression type load cell.

The present invention is in accordance with the above-described necessity, and provides an apparatus, a system, and a method of operating the same for accurately estimating the daily change of the live weight of a hydroponic crop using a load cell, a sensor, and a moisture weight correction algorithm. The purpose.

In addition, an object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for simultaneously measuring a tension supported by a maneuvering line and a load applied in a downward direction in order to accurately measure a change in the weight of a crop.

However, these problems are exemplary, and the scope of the present invention is not limited thereby.

An apparatus for estimating live weight of a crop according to an embodiment of the present invention includes an external frame; A cultivation group in which a medium on which a crop is grown is mounted by supplying a nutrient solution; A sensor mounted on the cultivation stage and sensing information on the moisture content of the medium; A lower inner frame on which the cultivation stage is installed; An upper inner frame connected to the lower inner frame by wire and spaced apart from the upper inner frame; At least one tensile load cell connecting the upper inner frame and the outer frame so that the lower inner frame is spaced apart from the ground; And a processor configured to obtain a correction value based on the medium moisture content information obtained through the sensor and the load cell value obtained through the tensile load cell, and predict the live weight of the crop. Includes.

In addition, the sensor includes at least one of a Time Domain Reflectometry (TDR) sensor, a Time Domain Transmissometry (TDT) sensor, a Frequency Domain Reflectometry (FDR) sensor, and a tensiometer for measuring the moisture content of the medium. .

In addition, the medium moisture content sensor is mounted through the medium so as to contact the cultivation stage.

In addition, the processor obtains a moisture content correction coefficient based on the medium moisture content information before and after the first irrigation and the load cell value before and after the first irrigation.

In addition, the processor calculates an error between the actual moisture content contained in the medium and the moisture content calculated based on the media moisture content information based on the moisture content correction coefficient, and predicts the live weight of the crop based on the error.

In addition, the upper inner frame has a guide line installed in the ground direction, and the tensile load cell measures a tension applied to the upper inner frame through the guide line.

Other aspects, features, and advantages other than those described above will become apparent from the detailed content, claims and drawings for carrying out the following invention.

According to an embodiment of the present invention made as described above, by non-destructively measuring the live weight of the crop to be measured, it is possible to continuously measure various environmental factors and cultivation techniques, and collect big data on crop growth information. It may be possible to do.

In addition, according to the present invention, by continuously measuring the live weight of hydroponic crops non-destructively, it is possible to significantly reduce the time and space costs required for the development of a growth model and an environmental control algorithm, which are the core parts of a smart farm. have. Furthermore, the present invention may be applicable without disturbing the greenhouse situation of a farmhouse being cultivated industrially due to the above-described effect, and without additional equipment.

Of course, the scope of the present invention is not limited by these effects.

1 is a system diagram illustrating a system for predicting and monitoring live weight of a crop according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2A and 2B are views for explaining an apparatus for estimating live weight of a crop according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a perspective view illustrating an apparatus for estimating live weight of a crop according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 shows a graph showing the change in the weight of the cultivation system and the moisture content of the medium over time.
5 shows a graph showing changes in the weight of the cultivation system and the moisture content of the medium before and after the first irrigation over time.
6 shows changes in radiation, temperature, relative humidity, and moisture content according to the time of day in the present invention.
7 shows a graph of the weight of the cultivation system, the moisture content of the medium, and the fresh weight of a crop derived by applying a correction algorithm according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, various embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in connection with the accompanying drawings. Various embodiments of the present disclosure may be subjected to various changes and may have various embodiments, and specific embodiments are illustrated in the drawings and related detailed descriptions are described. However, this is not intended to limit the various embodiments of the present disclosure to a specific embodiment, and it should be understood that all changes and/or equivalents or substitutes included in the spirit and scope of the various embodiments of the present disclosure are included. In connection with the description of the drawings, similar reference numerals have been used for similar elements.

Expressions such as "include" or "may include" that may be used in various embodiments of the present disclosure indicate the existence of a corresponding function, operation, or component that is disclosed, and additional one or more functions, operations, or It does not limit components, etc.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, expressions such as "or" include any and all combinations of words listed together. For example, "A or B" may include A, may include B, or may include both A and B.

Expressions such as "first", "second", "first", or "second" used in various embodiments of the present disclosure may modify various elements of various embodiments, but do not limit the corresponding elements. Does not. For example, the expressions do not limit the order and/or importance of corresponding elements. The above expressions may be used to distinguish one component from another component.

When a component is referred to as being "connected" or "connected" to another component, the component is directly connected to or may be connected to the other component, but the component and It should be understood that new other components may exist between the other components. On the other hand, when a component is referred to as being "directly connected" or "directly connected" to another component, it will be understood that no new other component exists between the component and the other component. Should be able to

Terms as defined in a commonly used dictionary should be interpreted as having a meaning consistent with the meaning in the context of the related technology, and unless clearly defined in various embodiments of the present disclosure, ideal or excessively formal It is not interpreted in meaning.

Hereinafter, various embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Plants and crops are used interchangeably for convenience of description, but have the same meaning.

1 is a system diagram illustrating a system for predicting and monitoring live weight of a crop according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, the system 1000 of the present invention may include a crop (or plant) live weight prediction device 100, an external device 200, and an external server 300, and each configuration is a network network ( 400), it is possible to communicate using a wireless or wired communication method.

The crop live weight prediction apparatus 100 may estimate the live weight of a hydroponic crop in a non-destructive manner using a load cell, a sensor, and a moisture weight correction algorithm. In addition, according to the present invention, the crop live weight prediction apparatus 100 may simultaneously measure a tension supported by an attraction line and a load applied in a downward direction in order to accurately measure a change in the weight of a crop. As described above, the crop live weight prediction apparatus 100 may calculate and predict the live weight of the crop by obtaining the moisture content of the medium and the weight of the cultivation bed.

The external device 200 may be a user terminal for a user to monitor a growing state of a crop. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the user can check the live weight of the crop calculated through the crop live weight prediction device 100 through the external device 200, and receive information about the crop growth prediction in the future. . By checking the weight and water content of the received crop, the user can check the current growth state of the crop, and then perform water content control in consideration of the growth of the crop.

In this case, the external device 200 may be a fixed terminal implemented as a computer device or a mobile terminal. For example, there may be a smart phone, a mobile phone, a navigation device, a computer, a notebook computer, a terminal for digital broadcasting, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a portable multimedia player (PMP), a tablet PC, but are not limited thereto.

The external device 200 according to an embodiment of the present invention may directly calculate the weight of the crop and the moisture content of the root of the crop by using the weight information received from the weight and water content calculation device 100 of the crop. The external device 200 may itself store the calculated weight of the crop and the moisture content of the root region of the crop, or may transmit and store the calculated weight of the crop to the external server 300 through the network 400. The external device 200 may control the operation of the cultivation system including the fabric weight and crop weight prediction device 100 through the network network 400. The user can remotely manage the cultivation facility by controlling the cultivation facility including the plant weight and crop live weight prediction device 100 through the external device 200.

The external server 300 may be a server managed by a service company that provides the crop live weight prediction apparatus 100. The external server 300 may include a processor that executes actual program code for implementing the prediction method and system of the present invention. In addition, the external server 300 may include a database for storing data measured, calculated, and predicted by the live weight prediction apparatus 100 for crops.

The external server 300 communicates with the crop weight and crop live weight prediction device 100 or the external device 200 through the network network 400, and is measured from the crop weight and crop live weight prediction device 100. Receive information on weight, calculated plant weight and moisture content. On the other hand, the external server 300 may directly calculate and store the weight of the crop and the water content of the root zone of the plant using the weight information received from the crop weight and live weight prediction apparatus 100. The external server 300 may provide the calculated weight of the crop and the moisture content of the root region of the crop to the external device 200 through the network network 400.

The communication method of the network network 400 is not limited and may include a communication method using a communication network (for example, a mobile communication network, a wired Internet, a wireless Internet, a broadcasting network) as well as a short-range wireless communication between devices. For example, the network network 400 includes a personal area network (PAN), a local area network (LAN), a campus area network (CAN), a metropolitan area network (MAN), a wide area network (WAN), and a broadband network (BBN). ), may include any one or more of networks such as the Internet. In addition, the network network 400 may include any one or more of a network topology including a bus network, a star network, a ring network, a mesh network, a star-bus network, a tree or a hierarchical network, etc. It is not limited thereto.

2A and 2B are views for explaining an apparatus for estimating live weight of a crop according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

In particular, FIG. 2A is a view showing a simple appearance of the apparatus for estimating the live weight of a crop, and FIG. 2B is a simple block diagram for explaining the components of the apparatus for estimating the live weight of a crop.

Referring to FIG. 2A, the apparatus 100 for estimating live weight of a crop 100 includes an outer frame 10, an upper inner frame 21, a lower inner frame 22, a wire 23, a tensile load cell 30, and a cultivation stage 40. ) Can be included.

The outer frame 10 may be manufactured using an aluminum profile, and serves as a frame that entirely supports the crop weight estimation apparatus 100. The height of the outer frame 10 may be below the shade screen rail of the greenhouse, and the width may be limited to a length that does not interfere with the passage of the cultivation lift between the cultivation lines in the greenhouse, and the length may be limited to more than the length of the badge. However, it is not limited thereto.

The upper inner frame 21 and the lower inner frame 22 may also be manufactured using an aluminum profile, but are not limited thereto. The upper inner frame 21 may be provided with an attraction line, and the attraction line is configured to attract crops.

In addition, according to an embodiment of the present invention, the upper inner frame 21 may be connected to the rotation frame 10 through at least one tensile load cell 30.

The tension-type load cell 30 may include an elastic body that changes proportionally by an external force and a load detection sensor using a strain gauge that converts it into an electrical signal. At this time, the tension-type load cell 30 converts the physical deformation occurring in the confinement part of the elastic deformable body that generates structurally stable deformation with respect to force or load into electric resistance change using a strain gauge, and uses a Wheatstone Bridge. By constructing an electric circuit called, it can be converted into a precise electrical signal.

The present invention simultaneously measures the load of the crop and the medium acting in the downward direction supported by the lower inner frame 22 through the tensile load cell 30 and the tension applied to the attracting line of the crop supported by the upper inner frame 21 can do.

The lower inner frame 22 may be of the same size as the upper inner frame 21. At this time, the lower inner frame 22 may be provided with a cultivation stage 24. The cultivation stage 24 is a portion in which a medium in which the nutrient solution is supplied and the plant 80 grows is mounted. In the present embodiment, an example in which a culture medium is mounted on the cultivation stage 24 is disclosed, but it is not limited thereto.

For example, a culture medium insertion groove may be formed in the cultivation stage 24, and a culture medium may be inserted and mounted in the culture medium insertion groove. The nutrient solution may be supplied to the medium through a nutrient solution supply pipe connected to one side of the cultivation stage 24, and the nutrient solution may be discharged from the medium through a nutrient solution discharge pipe connected to the other side of the cultivation stage 24.

The upper inner frame 21 and the lower inner frame 22 may be connected to each other by a wire 23. At this time, the wire 23 may be implemented as a house band, a coated wire, a plastic wire, a coated wire, an aluminum coated wire, etc., but is not limited thereto and may be implemented with various types of materials.

The sensor 40 may be a component for measuring the moisture content of the medium included in the cultivation stage 24. At this time, the sensor 40 may be implemented with at least one of a Time Domain Reflectometry (TDR) sensor, a Time Domain Transmissometry (TDT) sensor, a Frequency Domain Reflectometry (FDR) sensor, a tensiometer, and an Amplitude Domain Reflectometry (ADR) sensor. However, it is not limited thereto.

The crop 80 may be grown by receiving a nutrient solution from a medium mounted on the cultivation stage 24. At this time, the crop 80 may be a crop that utilizes an incentive such as paprika and tomato, but is not limited thereto and includes a variety of crops.

Referring to FIG. 2B, the apparatus 100 for estimating the live weight of a crop is a component for predicting the live weight of a crop. In addition to the tensile load cell 30 and the sensor 40, the communication unit 50, the memory 60, and the processor 70 It may further include.

The communication unit 50 is a component for communicating with the external device 200 or the external server 300. Specifically, the communication unit 50 transmits information on the live weight of the crop excluding the actual moisture weight calculated by the processor 70 through the correction algorithm to the external device 200 or the external server 300 through the network network 400. Can be transmitted.

The communication unit 50 may receive a moisture content control signal in consideration of the growth of crops from the external device 200. In addition, the communication unit 50 may receive a code for a correction algorithm for implementing the prediction method and system of the present invention from the external server 300 and may be periodically updated through this.

The communication unit 50 may be a component that communicates with various types of external devices according to various types of communication methods. The communication unit 50 may include at least one of a WiFi chip, a Bluetooth chip, a wireless communication chip, and an NFC chip. The processor 70 may communicate with the external server 300 or various external devices 200 using the communication unit 50.

The wireless communication chip refers to a chip that performs communication according to various communication standards such as IEEE, Zigbee, 3rd Generation (3G), 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), and Long Term Evolution (LTE). The NFC chip refers to a chip that operates in a Near Field Communication (NFC) method using a 13.56 MHz band among various RF-ID frequency bands such as 135 kHz, 13.56 MHz, 433 MHz, 860 to 960 MHz, and 2.45 GHz.

The memory 60 may store various data for the overall operation of the plant body weight estimation apparatus 100 such as a program for processing or controlling the processor 70.

For example, the memory 60 may previously store the weights of the internal frames 21 and 22, the wires 23, the cultivation stage 24, the lure line 25, and the sensor 40. When calculating the weight of the plant 80 and the water content of the root region, by subtracting the weight of the other members (21, 22, 23, 24, 26, 40) described above, it is possible to solve the problem that the weight of the medium is incorrectly measured. I can.

In addition, the memory 60 may store an algorithm for correcting a relationship between the moisture content measured by the sensor 40 and the actual weight of moisture according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As such, the memory 60 may store a plurality of application programs or applications, data, and instructions driven by the apparatus 100 for estimating plant weight. At least some of these application programs may be downloaded from an external server through wireless communication. In addition, at least some of these application programs may exist on the plant living weight estimation apparatus 100 from the time of shipment for basic functions of the plant living weight estimation apparatus 100. The application program may be stored in the memory 60 and driven by the processor 70 to perform an operation (or function) of the plant body weight estimation apparatus 100.

The memory 60 may be implemented as a non-volatile memory, a volatile memory, a flash-memory, a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), or the like. The memory 60 is accessed by the processor 70, and data read/write/edit/delete/update by the processor 70 may be performed. In the present disclosure, the term memory may include ROM, RAM, or an attached memory card (not shown) (eg, micro SD card, memory stick) in the processor 70.

The processor 70 may perform an overall control operation of the moisture content calculating device 100. The processor 70 may calculate the weight of the plant 80 based on the measured weight value.

Specifically, the processor 70 obtains the change information of the volume moisture content value in the medium before and after irrigation at the first irrigation point every day through the sensor 40, and the change information of the total weight of the cultivation system through the tensile load cell 30. Can be obtained. Thereafter, the relationship between the measured moisture content and the actual moisture weight may be corrected using the change information of the volume moisture content value and the total weight of the system.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the processor 70 estimates the fresh weight of the crop excluding the weight of the moisture in the medium by applying the moisture content-moisture weight relationship and the correction factor at night time when the change of moisture in the medium during the day is the most stable. I can. This will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 6.

The processor 70 periodically calculates the change in the weight and water content of the plant 80, thereby monitoring the growth change of the plant 80 according to the change in the weight increase amount and water content according to the growth of the plant 80. In addition, the processor 70 may transmit the measured weight value, the calculated weight and moisture content of the plant 80 to the external device 200 or the external server 300 through the communication unit 50.

The processor 70 may be implemented as a digital signal processor (DSP), a microprocessor, or a time controller (TCON) that processes digital signals, but is not limited thereto, and the central processing unit ( central processing unit (CPU)), microcontroller unit (MCU), micro processing unit (MPU), controller, application processor (AP), or communication processor (CP), ARM processor In addition, the processor 70 may include one or more of, or may be defined by a corresponding term. In addition, the processor 70 may be implemented as a SoC (System on Chip) or LSI (large scale integration) with a built-in processing algorithm, or an FPGA ( Field Programmable gate array) can also be implemented.

3 is a perspective view illustrating an apparatus for estimating live weight of a crop according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 3, a description overlapping with FIG. 2 will be omitted.

According to the embodiment of FIG. 3, the upper inner frame 21 may be connected to the outer frame 10 through four tensile load cells 30.

The plants 80 can be grown by being attracted to the attracting line 25 connected to the upper inner frame 21. At this time, the attracting line 25 may be formed through a paracord 550 cord, a plastic wire, or the like, but is not limited thereto.

According to the present invention, the tension applied by the plant to the lure line can be applied to the upper shaft inner frame 21, and the tension type load cell 30 is a tension applied to the lure line of the crop supported by the upper inner frame 21 through Can be measured. That is, the tension type load cell 30 can simultaneously measure the load of the rearing stage 24 and the sensor 40 acting in the downward direction supported by the lower inner frame 22 and the tension applied to the upper inner frame 21. I can.

The sensor 40 may be installed perpendicularly to the badge in the middle of the badge of the cultivation stage 24 installed on the lower inner frame 22. In this case, the sensor 40 may be installed so that the lower end of the sensor 40 in the ground direction may be inserted to the end of the badge so that it may contact the cultivation end 24.

4 shows a graph showing the change in the weight of the cultivation system and the moisture content of the medium over time. In this case, the cultivation system may refer to the apparatus 100 for estimating a living body weight of a plant, and the sensor 40 may be an FDR sensor.

4, the x-axis represents (month/day/year) over time, the left side of the y-axis represents the system weight (kg) of the plant live weight estimation apparatus 100, and the right side of the y-axis represents the FDR sensor. Shows the moisture content (%) measured through.

The moisture content of the medium through the Frequency Domain Reflectometry (FDR) sensor is repeatedly increased or decreased within a certain range (50% to 80%) regardless of the passage of time. On the other hand, it can be seen that the system weight of the plant living weight estimation apparatus 100 increases from 8kg to 12kg over time.

The system weight of the plant live weight estimation apparatus 100 shows a trend of increasing as the fresh weight of the crop increases, but the accurate weight is not measured according to the repeated increase or decrease of the moisture content of the medium.

That is, since the weight of the cultivation system including the fresh weight of the crop is not constant according to the moisture content of the medium, there is a need for a method of predicting the fresh weight of the crop by accurately measuring the amount of moisture contained in the medium in a non-destructive method.

5 shows a graph showing the change in the weight of the cultivation system and the moisture content of the medium before and after the first irrigation over time. In this case, the cultivation system may refer to the plant living weight estimation apparatus 100.

The x-axis represents the time (hours:minutes:seconds) over time, the left side of the y-axis represents the system weight (kg) of the plant live weight estimation apparatus 100, and the right side of the y-axis represents the moisture content measured by the FDR sensor ( %).

Referring to FIG. 5, the first irrigation time may be performed between 07:50:00 and 08:00:00.

SWa represents the load cell value (kg) after the first irrigation, SWb represents the load cell value (kg) before the first irrigation, FDRa represents the medium moisture content (%) measured by the FDR sensor after the first irrigation, and FDRb represents the first irrigation. It shows the moisture content of the medium (%) measured by the FDR sensor.

In order to exclude the weight of water in the medium, the apparatus 100 for estimating the fresh weight of a plant according to an embodiment of the present invention uses the change in the water content of the medium and the system weight according to the first irrigation every day, as shown in Equation 1 below. -The correction factor of the FDR sensor can be calculated based on the relationship between the load cell values.

Cf: Load cell-medium moisture content correction factor (kg% ^-1 )

SWa: Load cell value after first irrigation (kg)

SWb: Load cell value before first irrigation (kg)

MCa: Medium moisture content measured by FDR after first irrigation (%)

MCb: Medium moisture content measured by FDR before the first irrigation (%)

Specifically, the larger the correction factor Cf is, the greater the amount of moisture contained in the actual system is than the amount of moisture measured by the sensor 40. For example, when SWb is 10.2kg, MCb is 53%, and MCa is 73%, when SWa is 10.7kg, the correction factor Cf is 0.025 kg% ^-1 , and when SWa is 11kg, the correction factor Cf is 0.04 kg% ^-1 .

The apparatus 100 for estimating a living body weight of a plant may perform correction for the moisture content through a larger correction factor Cf as the amount of moisture contained in the actual system is greater than the moisture content calculated based on the moisture content measured by the sensor 40.

The apparatus 100 for estimating live plant insects may obtain a moisture error by applying a correction factor to a moisture weight relationship with respect to moisture content. Specifically, the plant live weight estimation apparatus 100 may obtain a moisture content error rate by multiplying the existing moisture content by a correction factor, and may estimate the fresh weight of a crop by additionally excluding the moisture content error rate from the load cell value.

6 shows changes in radiation, temperature, relative humidity, and moisture content according to the time of day in the present invention.

In general, among the factors constituting the fresh weight of a crop, the moisture content in the crop accounts for a large proportion (more than 90%), and the moisture content in the crop is determined by environmental factors such as temperature, humidity, insolation, and moisture content in the root zone. .

Referring to FIG. 6, it can be seen that the temperature increases as the radiation increases rapidly from 7:00. From 7:00 to 19:00, when there is solar radiation, the amount of change in temperature is similarly unstable, and the amount of change in moisture content is also unstable.

On the contrary, it can be confirmed that the change in moisture content in the crop is not large and is stable in the early morning hours from 24:00 to 7:00 when the solar radiation begins to increase again. The apparatus 100 for estimating live plant insects of the present invention can apply the calculated correction factor Cf to the moisture content at the dawn time when the amount of change in the moisture content is not large. Accordingly, the apparatus 100 for estimating live plant insects may obtain an error rate of water content and calculate a stable live weight.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, when receiving information on a change in moisture content over time, the apparatus 100 for estimating live plant insects determines a time at which the rate of change in moisture content is the least, based on this The calculated correction factor can be applied.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, when receiving time information, daily insolation change information over time, and daily temperature change information over time, the apparatus 100 for estimating live plant insects is calculated based on the input information. Factors can be applied. Specifically, the apparatus 100 for estimating live plant insects may determine a time when daily insolation changes and daily temperature changes are the least, and may apply a pre-calculated correction factor to the moisture content measured at the determined time.

7 shows a graph of the weight of the cultivation system, the moisture content of the medium, and the fresh weight of a crop derived by applying a correction algorithm according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 7, the x-axis represents (month/day/year) over time, and the left side of the y-axis represents the predicted crop fresh weight (kg) and the system weight (kg) of the plant live weight estimation apparatus 100, respectively. And the right side of the y-axis shows the moisture content (%) measured through the FDR sensor.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, in order to estimate the live weight of a crop excluding the weight of water in the medium, a correction factor according to the water weight for the calculated medium moisture content is applied to a section where the amount of water in the medium is constantly decreased at night. So that the weight of moisture in the medium was excluded.

In general, the total weight of the cultivation system follows this pattern of moisture content in the medium, but as a result of deriving the change in daily live weight using a value that can finally represent the daily live weight, the derived live weight is the amount of moisture in the medium. Weight was excluded, showing a constant increase pattern.

The amount of moisture calculated based on the moisture content (FDR on the graph) obtained through the FDR sensor can be excluded from the system weight (System weight on the graph) of the plant live weight estimation device 100, and additionally, the moisture error amount according to the correction algorithm Excluding this, the fresh weight of the crop (fresh weight on the graph) can be estimated.

By non-destructively measuring the live weight of a crop according to the above-described embodiment, it may be possible to continuously measure various environmental factors and cultivation techniques, and to collect big data on crop growth information.

As described above, the present invention has been described with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings, but these are only exemplary, and those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that various modifications and equivalent other embodiments are possible therefrom. . Therefore, the true technical protection scope of the present invention should be determined by the technical spirit of the appended claims.

10: outer frame
21: upper inner frame
22: lower inner frame
23: wire
24: cultivation group
25: lure line
30: tension type load cell
40: sensor
50: communication department
60: memory
70: processor
100: plant live weight estimation device
200: external device
300: external server
400: network network

Claims (7)

In the live weight estimation device of the crop,
Outer frame;
A cultivation group in which a medium on which a crop is grown is mounted by supplying nutrient solution;
A sensor mounted on the cultivation stage and sensing information on moisture content of the medium;
A lower inner frame on which the cultivation stage is installed;
An upper inner frame connected to the lower inner frame by wire and spaced apart from the upper inner frame;
At least one tensile load cell connecting the upper inner frame and the outer frame so that the lower inner frame is spaced apart from the ground; And
A processor for obtaining a moisture content correction coefficient based on the medium moisture content information obtained through the sensor and a load cell value obtained through the tensile load cell, and predicting the live weight of the crop based on the moisture content correction coefficient; Including,
The processor acquires a moisture content correction coefficient based on first information, which is the medium moisture content information before and after the first irrigation, and second information, which is the load cell value before and after the first irrigation, wherein the moisture content correction coefficient is the second information for the first information. A live weight estimation device that is calculated as a ratio of information. The method of claim 1,
The sensor includes at least one of a Time Domain Reflectometry (TDR) sensor, a Time Domain Transmissometry (TDT) sensor, a Frequency Domain Reflectometry (FDR) sensor, and a tensiometer for measuring the moisture content of the medium. Device. The method of claim 1,
The sensor is mounted through the medium so as to contact the cultivation stage. delete The method of claim 2,
The processor calculates an error between the actual moisture content contained in the medium and the moisture content calculated based on the media moisture content information based on the moisture content correction coefficient, and predicts the fresh weight of the crop based on the error. . The method of claim 1,
The upper inner frame is a living weight estimation device for measuring a tension applied to the upper inner frame through the guide line is installed in the ground direction, and the tensile load cell through the guide line. The method of claim 5,
The error is calculated by multiplying the moisture content correction factor with respect to the first information,
The living weight estimation apparatus is calculated by excluding the first information and the error from the second information.

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