NL2022843B1 - Anti-intruder covering assembly for a potted plant having a back folded diaphragm portion. - Google Patents

Abstract

An anti-intruder covering assembly (1) of a plant pot (2) and a flexible protective sleeve (7) for covering an upper surface of substrate material (3) inside the pot, wherein the sleeve 5 comprises a first sleeve end portion (8) that has been placed over an upper circumferential edge (12) of the pot while gripping onto the pot, and a covering portion (13) that covers the upper surface of the substrate material (3) and that delimits a central opening (14) through which leaves and/or a stem of a plant (4) project. The sleeve further comprises a second sleeve end portion (9) that has been folded back relative to the covering portion and that also 10 has been placed over the upper circumferential edge of the pot while gripping onto the pot, Wherein the covering portion of the sleeve extends double-walled between the central opening and the first and second sleeve end portions. + Fig. 4 15

Description

P34004NLO0O/RR Clean version Title: Anti-intruder covering assembly for a potted plant having a back folded diaphragm portion.

The invention relates to a covering assembly for potted plants that helps to protect them against all kinds of intruders, like for example worms or larva of insects, that otherwise may lead to a disturbance and deterioration in growth of the plants.

From the state of the art various covering assemblies for potted plants are already known.

For example US 2005/0039389 shows a cover/entrapment system for plant pots that discourages household animals and children from disturbing soil contents of the plants. For this a cylindrical fabric sleeve cover is used that slips under a rim of the pot and fits around it by an elastic band. The remaining part of the sleeve is pulled up to above the pots rim and over the soil contents to there be adjusted with a drawstring and fastener to the stem of the plant.

A disadvantage hereof is that its user-friendliness leaves to be desired. A user needs both hands to be able to apply the cover around the pot. It seems difficult to automate this applying process for large numbers of patted plants in horticulture. Manually having to apply such covers however is laborious and costly. Furthermore it entails a risk that the plant over time may start to strangle itself by having its stem trying to grow to a larger thickness than the initially set dimensions at which the drawstring has been fastened.

Another example is shown in US 2006/0032133. There a porous elastic sleeve cover, that at its upper end has a small opening, needs to be stretched over the wall of a plant pot. The upper sleeve end with the small opening then in this stretched situation needs to be manoeuvred to above an upper edge of the pot, where it gets released. The upper sleeve end then immediately springs back to its unstretched perimeter such that it gets to at least partly cover the open top of the pot.

A disadvantage hereof is that the sleeve cover is relative vulnerable and difficult to handle. A user needs to be very careful that he does not overstretch or tear apart the porous elastic sleeve, particularly at the location of the small opening. This is quite difficult because the opening needs to be made such small, sometimes only a few mm2, that in the unstretched situation it gets to lie against a stem of the potted plant. Otherwise the cover would not be able to fulfil its purpose of preventing an intruding of small insects or the like to take place. The small opening, of said sometimes only a few mm2, however inevitably must

2.

then be stretched to a much larger dimension, namely one that is large enough to be able to manoeuvre it over the upper edge of the pot. This is a difficult thing to do manually and also complicates a possible automating of this applying process. Another disadvantage is that since the central opening in its unstretched situation must be smaller than or equal to the cross-sectional dimensions of the stem of the plant, the upper sleeve end may get to lie such tight around the stem that it may even start to strangle the plant. This problem may even worsen over time because the stem is deemed to grow, thus making the strangling force greater and greater. If however the sleeve has gotten overstretched or damaged during its applying process, then it shall no longer be able to lie substantially sealing against the plant and thus shall leave space for insects to intrude.

The present invention aims to overcome those disadvantages at least partly and/or to provide a usable alternative. In particular the present invention aims to provide an assembly of which the applying can be automated in such a manner that large numbers of potted plants can quickly and reliably be covered in a cost-efficient manner.

This aim is achieved by the anti-intruder covering assembly for a potted plant according to claim 1. This assembly comprises a plant pot with an amount of substrate material inside the plant pot and with a plant potted in the substrate material. The assembly furthermore comprises a flexible protective sleeve for covering an upper surface of the substrate material. The sleeve comprises a first sleeve end portion that has been placed over an upper circumferential edge of the plant pot while gripping onto the plant pot, and a covering portion that covers the upper surface of the substrate material and that delimits a central opening through which leaves and/or a stem of the plant project. According to the inventive thought the sleeve further comprises a second sleeve end portion that has been folded back relative to the covering portion and that also has been placed over the upper circumferential edge of the plant pot while gripping onto the plant pot. The covering portion of the sleeve extends double-walled between the central opening and the first and second sleeve end portions.

Thus a truly reliable and economic assembly is provided of which the protective cover can quickly and efficiently be applied manually or in an automated manner. Large numbers of potted plants can now be optimally protected during a growing phase in horticulture, during transport, in stores of florists as well as by end-users at home or the like.

The applying can be quite easy. It is only necessary to manoeuvre the sleeve such that its first sleeve end portion comes to lie over the upper circumferential edge of a plant pot and grips onto the plant pot, while the rest of the sleeve comes to lie freely above the upper surface of the substrate material and around the leaves and/or stem of the potted plant, to

-3- then fold back the second sleeve end portion and manoeuvre it such that it comes to lie over the same upper circumferential edge of the plant pot and also starts gripping onto the plant pot. The covering portion of the sleeve that extends in between its end portions then automatically shall get to lie double-walled above the upper surface of the substrate material while having leaves and/or a stem of the plant project through the central opening that is delimited by this double-walled covering portion.

The double-wall makes the covering stronger and less vulnerable, and thus helps to further prevent intruders from trying to enter or escape from the substrate material in the plant pot. Even if one of the walls accidentally gets damaged, the assembly remains being fully protected.

Furthermore the covering portion can be dimensioned such large that it is well able to come to lie or get draped against and around the leaves and/or stem of the potted plant while giving the plant optimal freedom to grow and keep healthy.

Thus the potted plant can be optimally protected against all kinds of influences. With respect to natural enemies of the plant, it is advantageously no longer necessary to use environmentally unfriendly and hazardous pesticides for trying to deal with them. This is becoming more and more important because the use of such means gets restricted more and more, while biological control is not always available and may be more difficult to combat because having to take place inside the substrate material.

In particular the invention can be used for protecting potted plants against worms or larva, for example worms or larva of mosquito’s or other insects, that otherwise may damage roots of the plants and thus lead to growth disturbance or deterioration.

Yet another advantage of the invention is that it may help to prevent weed, moss and the like from starting to grow onto the substrate material.

It is noted that FR-2.693.992 shows a container 1 that is wholly or partially filled with liquid and that serves the purpose of transporting cut flowers therein. In order to prevent that the liquid flows away during transport and in order to keep the cut flowers neatly centred inside the container, a flexible twisted and folded back sleeve is provided. In contrast to the present invention, FR-2.693.992 however does not relate to the field of anti-intruder covering assemblies for potted plants. On the contrary in FR-2.693.992 the main purpose is to enclose the cut flowers as watertight as possible around their stems, whereas according to the present invention air- and water permeability is crucial.

Instead of only having the covering portion lie with an amount of excess material around the plant, it is also possible to provide the sleeve according to the present invention

-4- with a diabolic shape which narrows at the location of where it delimits the opening, that is to say at a center part of its covering portion and which widens towards its end portions. In a preferred embodiment however the first and second sleeve end portions may have been twisted relative to each other over an angle of rotation around a centre axis of the plant pot for narrowing the central opening. This advantageously shall cause the opening to close itself like a diaphragm around the plant, preferably up till the moment that the covering portion of the sleeve that delimits the narrowing central opening has come to lie against the leaves and/or stem of the plant. This may even help to support and direct the leaves and/or stem of the plant.

In this manner the central opening can even be adjustably narrowed by differentiation of the angle of rotation in dependence of detected dimensions of the leaves and/or stem of the plant. Also it then has become possible to adjust the opening over time simply by further twisting the end portions relative to each other such that the opening further narrows or by twisting them back relative to each other in an opposite direction such that the opening widens itself again. Thus a progressive strangling of a growing plant can quickly and easily be prevented whenever desired or deemed necessary. It is noted that this shall not often be necessary. Depending on the material of the sleeve, the amount of excess material of the covering portion, and/or the angle of rotation, the opening that is narrowed as a diaphragm, is well able to offer an amount of flexibility that on the one hand does not have a tendency of quickly starting to tightly strangle the plant, while on the other hand it can remain on lying against the plant in such a way that intruders are unable to all of a sudden enter into or leave the plant pot at that location.

The angle of rotation between the first and second sleeve end portions may be at least 90 degrees. Thus it has appeared possible to already obtain a sufficient degree of narrowing of the central opening that is able to have the covering portion come to lie at least neatly around the leaves and/or stem of the potted plant while giving the plant good freedom to grow and keep healthy. More in particular the angle of rotation between the first and second sleeve end portions may be at least 180 degrees. Thus it has appeared possible to obtain a degree of narrowing of the central opening that is able to have the covering portion come to lie at least firmly against the leaves and/or stem of the potted plant while still giving the plant good freedom to grow and keep healthy. Preferably the amount of twisting in practice shall come to lie between 90 and 360 degrees. This shall also be dependent on the type of plant, its starting dimensions and its estimated growth over time. The smaller the cross-sectional dimensions of the plant at the location where it is to get circumvented by the covering portion of the sleeve, the larger the amount of twisting can be chosen.

-5- It is possible for the first sleeve end portion to be closed and lie against a bottom of the plant pot when applied thereto. In a preferred embodiment however, the sleeve may be tubular with two open ends. This makes it possible to for example grip the second end portion at a position below the plant pot and then pull it upwards over the plant pot while having the covering portion and the first end portion getting pulled along behind it. The upward pulling can then be stopped as soon as both the second end portion and the covering portion have passed an upper edge of the plant pot whereas the first end portion has remained lying gripping onto the plant pot at a position underneath this upper edge of the plant pot.

The sleeve with two open ends can for example each time be formed by a length of sleeve material getting pulled of a roll and getting cut from it.

Instead of directly pulling the sleeve over the plant pot, it is also possible to first have it pulled over an intermediate support element, in particular an element that is dimensioned with larger cross sectional dimensions than the plant pot, and more in particular an element that is designed to releasably clamp the plant pot. This makes it possible to thereafter have the sleeve more easily pulled over the plant pot, for example by positioning the plant pot coaxially relative to the larger dimensioned intermediate support element, before or after the sleeve has been pulled over the intermediate support element, while having at least an upper portion of the plant pot project above the intermediate support element, such that the sleeve can smoothly and gradually be transferred from the intermediate support element onto the plant pot According to the invention it is also possible to start the applying of the sleeve, directly onto the plant pot or firstly onto the intermediate support element, from above. The second end portion of the sleeve can then be gripped at a position above the plant pot/intermediate support element and then pull the sleeve downwards over the plant pot/intermediate support element while having the covering portion and the first end portion getting pulled along behind the second end portion. The downward pulling can then be stopped as soon as the first end portion has started gripping onto the plant pot/intermediate support element. Subsequently the second end portion can then be pulled upwards again while the first end portion remains gripping onto the plant pot/intermediate support element and while having the covering portion getting pulled along behind the second end portion. The upward pulling can then be stopped as soon as both the second end portion and the covering portion have passed the upper edge of the plant pot whereas the first end portion has remained or started gripping onto the plant pot at a position underneath this upper edge of the plant pot.

The sleeve can be made of all kinds of flexible materials, preferably fabric materials. In particular the sleeve can be made from an elastic material, like for example nylon. This is advantageous because it makes it possible to have the first and second end portions of the

-6- tubular sleeve stretched towards their positions over the upper circumferential edge of the plant pot while gripping onto the plant pot after having been released such that they can bias themselves sealing around and against the plant pot. Furthermore this elasticity makes it possible for the covering portion including its central opening to get neatly narrowed by means of the relative twisting while also giving a particularly attractive outer appearance to the assembly.

According to the invention the sleeve is made from a mesh fabric material having mesh openings smaller than 5 mm2. Thus it remains possible to water and feed the potted plant while at a same time protecting it against the intruders.

The invention also relates to a method for making such an anti-intruder covering assembly, and in particular to the applying of the inventive cover around and onto a plant pot with a potted plant growing inside it, as well as to a handling device for performing such a method in an automated manner. Further preferred embodiments are stated in the subclaims. The invention shall be explained in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, which show a non-delimiting embodiment of the invention, in which: - Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of an embodiment of the assembly according to the invention; - Fig. 2a-e show schematic cross-sectional side views of subsequent steps of applying the protective sleeve of fig. 1; - Fig. 3a-e show side and top views of fig. 2a-e, in which the plant is not shown for clarity purposes; and - Fig. 4a-d show side and top views of a handling device for performing the steps of fig. 2b-e resp. 3b-e.

The entire covering assembly has been given the reference numeral 1 in fig. 1. The assembly 1 comprises a plant pot 2 that is filled with an amount of substrate material 3 like soil or bark. Inside the substrate material 3 a plant 4 is potted of which the leaves project upwardly and lie above an upper surface of the substrate material 3.

An elastically stretchable flexible protective sleeve 7, here made out of a meshed nylon material, grips with first and second end portions 8, 9 onto the pot 2 just underneath an outwardly projecting rim 12 thereof. An intermediate covering portion 13 of the sleeve 7 lies twisted with a central opening 14 around and against the leaves of the plant 4.

-7- The intermediate covering portion 13 thus forms an adjustable diaphragm around the plant 4. The central opening 14 of the diaphragm can be adjusted by changing the rotational position of the end portions 8, 9 relative to each other. This can for example be done by stretching the second end portion 9 such that it no longer grips onto the pot 2 and then have this second end portion 9 rotated relative to the first end portion 8 that still grips onto the pot

2. With this the central opening 14 can be further narrowed by rotating the second end portion 9 clockwise relative to the pot 2, or widened by rotating the first end portion 8 counter- clockwise relative to the pot 2. The parts of the covering portion 13 of the sleeve that extend between the central opening 14 and the end portions 8 and 9 lie double-walled on top of each other. Further as can be seen in fig. 1, those parts are stretched tight while showing helically curved pleats that together give the entire assembly an attractive outer appearance.

In fig. 2 and 3 five subsequent steps of manually applying the sleeve 7 is shown.

The first step is shown in fig. 2a and 3a. Here the elastically flexible sleeve 7 in its entirety has been stretched around a circumferential standing wall of the pot 2.

The second step is shown in fig. 2b and 3b. Here the second end portion 9 of the sleeve 7 has been stretched radially outwardly and pulled upwards so far that the covering portion 13 has gotten to circumvent the leaves of the plant 2 without being able to damage them. The first end portion 8 remains gripping onto the pot 2 underneath the rim 12.

The third step is shown in fig. 2c and 3c. Here the second end portion 9 has been lowered somewhat.

The fourth step is shown in fig. 2d and 3d. Here it is to be seen that a further lowering of the second end portion © takes place while at a same time twisting it over a predetermined rotational angle x around a centre axis y relative to the pot 2. As can be seen in the top view of fig. 3d, the central opening 14 narrows as a diaphragm because of this twisting.

The fifth step is shown in fig. 2e and 3e. Here the simultaneous lowering and twisting has ended and the second end portion 9 has come to lie underneath the rim 12 and released there such that it has gotten to grip again onto the pot 2. In this gripped position it secures the second end portion 9 in its twisted position relative to the first end portion 8. In this end position the central opening 14 has narrowed such far that the covering portion 13 has come to lie all around and against the plant 2 while at a same time giving a proper amount of side support to its leaves and while at a same time covering the upper surface of the substrate material 3 against intruders from the outside.

In fig. 4 a handling device is shown for performing the respective above described second to fifth step of applying the sleeve in an automated manner. The device comprises a

-8- rotatable plant pot support 40 for holding the plant pot 2. Furthermore the device comprises a gripper 41 that is operable for gripping the second sleeve end portion 9. The gripper 41 is movable up and down and thus operable for moving the second sleeve end portion 9 above the rim 12 of the plant pot 2 while the first sleeve end portion 8 remains lying over this rim 12 and grip onto the plant pot 2, as is shown in fig. 4a, and for lowering the second sleeve end portion 9 again, as is shown in fig. 4b, c and d.

During this lowering of the gripper 41 the support 40 forms a twister that gets rotated over the aimed angle of rotation around its center axis y relative to the gripper 41. This causes the covering portion 13 to twist around the plant 4 while narrowing its central opening 14 until it has come to lie against the plant 4. See fig. 4c.

As soon as the covering portion 13 and/or the second end portion 9 bumps against the rim 12, a further lowering of the gripper 41 automatically causes the second sleeve end portion 9 to fold back over the rim 12. There it can be released from the gripper 41 and start gripping onto the plant pot 2. See fig. 4d.

Besides the embodiments shown numerous variants are possible. For example the dimensioning and shaping of the various parts can be varied. Instead of having the plant pot support made rotatable, it is also possible to have the gripper form the twister that is made rotatable around the center axis y.

It is noted that the sleeve according to the invention as well as the method and the device for applying the sleeve can also advantageously be used in combination with plant pots that do not have an amount of substrate material inside them. The plant pot then merely encompasses the roots of a plant potted inside the plant pot, like for example the air roots of an epiphyte like an orchid. In that case the sleeve may even have its first and second end portions twisted over more than a full 360 degrees turn, for example over two of such full turns, because then the central opening delimited by the covering portion can get narrowed such tight that the plant can be firmly held in position relative to the pot by means of the sleeve. Furthermore the sleeve then at a same time advantageously still can function as a protective shield that covers an upper free surface area of the plant pot against intruders like worms and insects that otherwise might start to damage the roots.

Claims (16)

-9- CONCLUSIONS An anti-intruder cover assembly (1) for a potted plant, comprising: - a plant pot (2); - an amount of substrate material (3) inside the plant pot (2); and - a plant (4) potted in the substrate material (3); and - a flexible protective sleeve (7) for covering an upper surface of the substrate material (3), the sleeve (7) comprising: e a first sleeve end portion (8) disposed over an upper peripheral edge (12) of the plant pot (2) while engaging the plant pot (2); e a cover portion (13) covering the top surface of the substrate material (3) and defining a central opening (14) through which leaves and / or a stem of the plant (4) protrude; and s a second sleeve end portion (9) which is turned back from the cover portion (13) and which is also placed over the upper peripheral edge (12) of the plant pot (2) while engaging the plant pot (2), the cover portion (13) of the sleeve (7) extends double-walled between the central opening (14) and the first and second sleeve end portions (8, 9), and wherein the sleeve (7) is made of a mesh fabric material with mesh openings smaller than 5 mm 2. The anti-intruder cover assembly (1) according to claim 1, wherein the first and second sleeve end portions (8, 9) are rotated with respect to each other by an angle of rotation (x) about a central axis (y) of the plant pot (2) for narrowing of the central opening (14). The anti-intruder cover assembly (1) according to claim 2, wherein the first and second sleeve end portions (8, 9) are rotated with respect to each other about the angle of rotation (x) about the central axis (y) of the plant pot (2) that the cover portion (13) of the sleeve (7) that delimits the central opening (14) has come to rest against the leaves and / or stem of the plant (4). Anti-intruder cover assembly (1) according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the angle of rotation (x) between the first and second sleeve end portions (8, 9) is at least 90 degrees, in particular is at least 180 degrees. -10- Anti-intruder cover assembly (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the sleeve (7) is tubular with open ends. Anti-intruder cover assembly (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the sleeve (7) is made of an elastic material. The anti-intruder cover assembly (1) according to claims 5 and 6, wherein the first and second end portions of the tubular sleeve (7) are stretched to their positions across the upper peripheral edge (12) of the plant pot (2) while engaging with the plant pot (2). A method of making an anti-intruder cover assembly (1), comprising the steps of: providing a plant pot (2) with an amount of substrate material (3) inside the plant pot (2) and potted with a plant (4). in the substrate material (3); e providing a flexible protective sleeve (7), the sleeve (7) being made of a mesh fabric material with mesh openings smaller than 5 mm2; placing a first sleeve end portion (8} over an upper peripheral edge (12) of the plant pot (2) and engaging the same on the plant pot (2); covering an upper surface of the substrate material (3) with a cover portion (13) ) of the sleeve (7) while the leaves and / or a stem of the plant (4) protrude through a central opening (14) defined by the cover portion (13); e recoil a second sleeve end portion (9); and placing the second sleeve end portion (9) over the upper peripheral wall (12) of the plant pot (2) and allowing it to engage the plant pot (2), such that the cover portion (13) of the sleeve (7) is double-walled extend between the central opening (14) and the first and second sleeve end portions (8, 9). The method of claim 8, further comprising the step of: rotating the first and second sleeve end portions (8, 9) with respect to each other through an angle of rotation (x} about a central axis (y) of the plant pot (2) while the central opening (14) is narrowed. The method of claim 9, wherein the step of rotating the first and second sleeve end portions (8, 9) relative to each other by the angle of rotation (x) about the central axis (y) of the plant pot (2) while keeping the central opening (14) is narrowed, occurs prior to the step of placing the second sleeve end portion (9) -11- over the upper peripheral edge (12) of the plant pot (2) and allowing it to engage on the plant pot (2). Method according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the central opening (14) is adjustably narrowed by a differentiation of the angle of rotation (x) depending on the dimensions of the leaves and / or stem of the plant (2}, in particular such that the cover portion (13) of the sleeve (7) that delimits the central opening (14) at least abuts against the leaves and / or stem of the plant (2). A method according to any one of claims 9-11, wherein the angle of rotation (x) between the first and second sleeve end portions (8, 9) is at least 90 degrees, in particular is at least 180 degrees. A processing device for making an anti-intruder cover assembly (1} for potted plants, comprising: e a plant pot support (40) for holding a plant pot (2); e a gripper (41) operable for gripping a second sleeve end portion (9) of a flexible protective sheath (7}, the sheath (7) being made of a mesh fabric material with mesh openings smaller than 5mm2, which is operable to move this second sheath end portion (9) above an upper peripheral edge ( 12) of such a plant pot (2) while leaving a first sleeve end portion (8) of the flexible protective sleeve (7) over this upper peripheral edge (12) and engaging the plant pot (2), the gripper (41) further is operable to turn this second sleeve end portion (9) back to the upper peripheral edge (12), and is further operable to place the second sleeve end portion (9) over this upper peripheral edge (12) and release it there and for engaging the plant pot (2). A working device according to claim 13, further comprising: e a rotator for rotating the plant pot support (40) and / or the gripper (41) relative to each other through an angle of rotation (x) around a central axis (y) of such a plant pot (2). Processing device according to claim 14, wherein the rotator is formed in that the plant pot support (40) is rotatable. -12- A working device according to any one of the preceding claims 13-15, wherein the gripper (41) is movable up and down relative to the plant pot support (40).