JP2002272270A - Growth box for plant culture - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a growth box for plant culture making it possible to uniformly and effectively utilize light energy, and manage and control fruits and vegetables a minimum necessary space and supply of energy of by establishing a stable growth atmosphere in a space-saving manner, capable of easily eliminating disease and insect damage, and given at a low cost. SOLUTION: This growth box for plant culture 1 is used for growing crops 10, including the fruits and vegetables, in a specified space by supplying the crops with introduced light, a nutrient solution, and necessary gas, wherein the growth box 1 is so structured as to form a closed space, and the inner surfaces of the growth box 1 facing at least the front and the back surfaces of leaves of the crops 10 are made to be mirror-finished so that the crops are repeatedly irradiated by the light. The growth box can breed the crops, including the fruits and vegetables, to have uniform quality with a high growth rate by completely controlling various conditions required for breeding the crops in the growth atmosphere composing the closed space of the necessity minimum at the low cost with stability, and further can stably cultivate the crops without using agrochemicals throughout the year. Further, the growth box can easily realize development of a plant factory, to say nothing of its introduction into protected horticulture and its application to private growth equipment.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a growth box for plant cultivation suitable for container cultivation in an isolated space, and enables cultivation of rare plants in places other than cultivation suitable places such as cold regions and polar regions. It is also promising as a means of supplying fresh vegetables at future manned space bases.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, to grow crops such as fruits and vegetables by greenhouse cultivation or greenhouse cultivation, seedlings of fruits and vegetables are planted directly on the ground in a greenhouse or a house, or are grown on several shelves installed indoors. A large number of pots in which seedlings are planted are placed, and the temperature, ventilation, light and the like of the entire room are controlled. For this reason, greenhouses and greenhouses as cultivation spaces are relatively large, light energy does not reach each fruit and vegetable sufficiently and evenly, and there is also a large leakage loss of thermal energy to the outside of the room, which wastes control energy. Was inevitable.

[0003] In view of such circumstances, a device disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H11-75546 as shown in FIG. 12 has been proposed. In this method, seedlings are placed on a seedling shelf 103 formed in a box frame-shaped bench 102, and an illuminating light 1 is placed above the seedling shelf 103.
06 and a reflector 105, and in a breeding apparatus for breeding seedlings by reflecting light rays of the illumination lamp 106 on the reflector 105, the reflector 105 is formed on a downwardly curved surface and provided on the seedling shelf 103. At the same time, the lamp section 160 of the illumination lamp 106 is moved along the central portion of the
With the lamp base 162 side down. With such a configuration, the light from the lamp unit 160 is prevented from being directly irradiated on the seedlings on the seedling shelf 103, and the light from the lamp unit 160 is substantially uniformly reflected by the reflecting plate 105 to form a single light. It is possible to satisfactorily grow a uniform seedling while suppressing the temperature rise in the growing device by the illumination lamp 106.

[0004]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional example, the lamp section 160 of the illumination lamp 106 is not provided.
Although the aim is to reduce the unevenness of illumination emitted from the reflector 105 and to improve the positional nonuniformity of seedling growth, the reflector 105 having a downward curved surface in an open space is simply illuminated. It was merely installed above the lamp 106, and it was still difficult to say that light energy could reach each fruit vegetable sufficiently and evenly, and in particular, light could not reach the back of the fruit vegetable. In addition, because of the large leakage loss of heat energy to the outside, waste of control energy is still unavoidable. In addition, the seedling shelf 103 forms an open space to increase the cultivation space, lowering the cultivation efficiency, and when a pest occurs, a box frame-shaped bench 102 is formed.
There is a risk of spreading to all the fruits and vegetables in the greenhouse or house where the greenhouse is installed, and the entire greenhouse or house needs to be disinfected, which is uneconomical.

In the present invention, the creation of a stable and cultivating atmosphere in a space-saving manner enables uniform and efficient use of light energy, management and control of fruits and vegetables by a minimum space and energy supply, and enables the control of pests and pests. An object of the present invention is to provide a low-cost plant cultivation growth box that can be easily removed.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, the present invention relates to a growth box for plant cultivation in which crops such as fruits and vegetables are grown in a predetermined space by supplying adopted lighting, nutrient solution and necessary gas. Is formed in a closed space, and the inner surface of the growth box is mirror-finished so as to correspond to at least the front and back of the leaf of the crop, and the crop is repeatedly irradiated with the crop. Further, the present invention is characterized in that the inner surface of the growth box is entirely covered with a mirror finish.
Further, the present invention is characterized in that sunlight is introduced by an optical fiber as the illumination. Further, the present invention is characterized in that the lighting is an artificial lighting installed inside a growth box. Further, the invention is characterized in that the growth box is made of a heat insulating material. Further, the present invention is characterized in that the illuminance of the illumination, supply and discharge of nutrient solution and necessary gas can be controlled from outside. Further, the present invention is characterized in that the control is automated and night power can be supplied.
Further, the present invention is characterized in that the growth box is configured to be stackable in multiple stages. Further, the present invention is characterized in that a predetermined number of the growth boxes are modularized to form an independent cultivation space. Further, the present invention is characterized in that pollination is enabled by a blower for sending and exhausting air installed in the growth box, and these are used as means for solving the problem.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of a growth box for plant cultivation according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a side sectional view showing one embodiment of a growth box for plant cultivation of the present invention. The present invention provides a growth box for growing plants such as fruits and vegetables in a predetermined space by supplying the adopted lighting, nutrient solution and necessary gas, and forming the growth box in a closed space, The inner surface of the growth box is mirror-finished so as to correspond to at least the front to the back of the leaves of the crop, and the crop is irradiated repeatedly. That is,
Light that has not been irradiated to the crop is reflected by a mirror or the like, and the crop is continuously and repeatedly irradiated to increase the light use efficiency.

[0008] The growth box 1 is formed of a container forming a predetermined closed space having a closed casing of an appropriate shape, and its wall member is formed of a heat insulating material such as styrene foam or vinyl chloride. The inner surface of the growth box 1 is mirror-finished corresponding to at least the front and back of the leaf of the crop 10. Preferably, the entire interior is mirror-finished. As means for introducing illumination into the growth box 1, a floodlight 2 which is a small fluorescent lamp of daylight 25W installed inside the growth box 1 (the ceiling in the illustrated example) is employed as an artificial lighting device. As the illumination, in addition to artificial illumination such as laser light and LED, it is also possible to configure so that sunlight is branched into each growth box 1 by an optical fiber and introduced.

A nutrient solution tank 3 is provided at the bottom of the growth box 1. The nutrient solution tank 3 is supplied with a required amount of gas such as oxygen and air, and a nutrient solution containing nutrients such as fertilizer from the outside. Waste that is supplied by the air pump 4 and the liquid supply pipe 5 and that is no longer needed is appropriately discharged through a circulation path (not shown) or the like. The supply / discharge amount is controlled by the control computer 8 according to the growing condition of the crop 10 such as fruit and vegetables. A temperature sensor 9 is disposed on the inner surface of the side wall of the growth box 1, and a temperature amplifier 7 driven by the control computer 8 and disposed on the ceiling in accordance with a value detected by the temperature sensor 9.
By the blower 6 having the exhaust function, the temperature in the room of the growth box 1 is optimally maintained, and at the same time, the concentration of gas such as carbon dioxide is controlled. Also, the blower 6 or a dedicated air atomizer (not shown) may be configured to enable pollination of the crop in the growth box 1. On the other hand, the lighting time of the light projector 2 as a lighting device is controlled by the control computer 8 so as to achieve proper growth of the cultivated crop 10. In addition, these controls are fully automated, and preferably, the energy sources including the driving power of the control device can be supplied with inexpensive nighttime power.

In the following, the results of the experiments for obtaining the optimum data for forming the growth box for plant cultivation of the present invention will be described in detail. As a growth box 1 having the structure shown in FIG. 1, three prototypes including a comparative example were manufactured. The white interior of the first comparative example (Ch.
1) The second comparative example having an aluminum matt (C)
h. 2) And a mirror-finished product (Ch. 3) as an example of the present invention was prepared. A daylight 25 W small fluorescent lamp was used as the internal irradiation light, and the lighting time was controlled by the control computer 8. Measurement recording was performed every minute by a temperature sensor 9 installed in the growth box 1, and a 500-fold Hyponex solution was stored in the nutrient solution tank 3 at the bottom as a nutrient solution, and was constantly refilled to the initial setting. In addition, a sufficient supply of required gas is performed by an electric air supply pump 4, and the same temperature and carbon dioxide gas concentration as in a constant temperature chamber are maintained by exhausting a blower 6.

FIG. 2 is a photograph showing the experimental arrangement of FIG. 2 in which the above three growth boxes 1 are juxtaposed in a constant temperature room and the upper housing is removed. In the photograph of FIG. 2, the second comparative example Ch. 2 shows the state of the transplanted seedlings from which only the casing was removed, using sunny lettuce as a cultivation sample plant, and plug seedlings embedded in a mat after raising the seedlings. The mat has a thickness of about 30 mm and is kept floating on the surface of the nutrient solution. Most of the rooting was observed in the nutrient solution after the experiment. The irradiation time of the light projector 2 was 15 hours a day, and the temperature was not particularly adjusted. The growth box 1 was visually selected to have the same standard, and three strains were transplanted, and two of them were measured after cultivation. Ch.
Experiment 1 and Experiment 2 were conducted when the interior of No. 1 was painted black and then painted white, respectively, and the former was cultivated for 3 weeks and the latter for 4 weeks.

<Experimental Results and Discussion> FIG. 3 shows the results obtained by measuring the illuminance on the floor in a growth box with a looks meter. C in Comparative Example 1
h. 1 is about 3824 Lx, whereas Ch. 7 for 2
020Lx, Ch. In the case of No. 3, it reached 11440 Lx. Although not shown,
Ch. In Example 1, when the interior was painted black, the ratio was only 803 Lx, and the inverse ratio of the mirror interior to the embodiment of the present invention was about 14.

FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 show C in which the interior is painted black.
h. Growth example and leaf weight (fresh weight-root weight) of the transplanted plant after cultivation in Experiment 1 (cultivation period: 3 weeks) with 1 being Comparative Example 1
FIG. 4 shows an example. 1 showed almost no growth, but Ch. In No. 3, sufficient growth was observed, and the effectiveness of the mirror surface interior was confirmed. FIG.
Experimental Examples Ch. 1, Ch. 2 and Ch. 3 shows the growth intensity of the illuminance in the growth box and the leaf weight of the transplanted plant of Ch. In the case of 803Lx of No. 1, almost no growth was observed in the leaf weights of 1 g and 2 g before the experiment, and Ch. 2 in 70
In the case of 20 Lx, the weight of the leaf before the experiment was 1 g or 2 g in both cases of 1 g and 2 g. 3 of 11
At 440 Lx, the leaf weight before the experiment was 1 g and 2 g for both 20 g.
A remarkable growth of about g was observed.

FIGS. 6 and 7 show C in which the interior is painted white.
h. Growth example and leaf weight (fresh weight-root weight) of the transplanted plant after cultivation in Experiment 2 (cultivation period of 4 weeks) using 1 as Comparative Example 1
This shows an example, and Ch. The illuminance in the growth box in No. 1 was 3824 Lx. As shown in FIG. 7, under the condition that the floor area is 0.123 m ² and the amount of light is 25 W, the weight of the leaf before the experiment is 1 g or 2 g after 4 weeks, and compared with the growth result of 3 weeks in FIG. Although the difference is small, Ch. 1 than Ch.
2 had a larger leaf weight, and Ch. It can be seen that three grow more. FIG.
Although it is not clear in the photograph of Example, Ch. 3 of 11
440Lx has the effect of attaching 32 leaves to an internode length of 4 cm. 1 and Ch. The effectiveness of the mirror interior was recognized as compared with that of Comparative Example 2.

FIG. 8 shows an example of a closed fully controlled plant factory for simulation in which the growth boxes 1 are configured to be stacked in a multi-stage manner. By stacking the growth boxes 1 in multiple stages, it is possible to grow the maximum number of plants in the minimum necessary cultivation space, and if a predetermined number of the growth boxes 1 are modularized to form an independent cultivation space, When a pest occurs, the problem can be solved by easily removing or removing only the modularized growth box 1. Air conditioning of the entire interior of the plant factory is controlled in an aseptic manner by an air conditioner, and a control adjustment room in which the control computer 8 is installed is also provided.

FIGS. 9 to 11 show a detailed comparison of the results of plant growth in Experiments 1 and 2. According to the “growth comparison after 3 weeks” in FIG. 9, it can be clearly seen that the growth of the embodiment with the mirror-finished interior clearly progressed in all respects up to 3 weeks than that of the comparative example with the black interior and the aluminum mat interior. I understand. Also, from “Comparison of growth after 4 weeks (1)” in FIG. 10, it can be seen that growth is progressing at all points except the leaf length. The leaf length was compared with the result of “growth comparison after 4 weeks (2)” in FIG.
From the week to the fourth week, the stem diameter and the number of leaves (the ratio of internode length / leaf number is smaller, the number of leaves per internodal unit length is larger) is the period during which the growth occurs. It can be seen that the example of the interior achieves higher growth than the other comparative examples. Therefore, it is considered that the leaf length also grows during this period, and thus the leaf length growth is reduced.

The embodiments of the present invention have been described above. However, within the scope of the present invention, the types of lighting (the types of artificial lighting such as fluorescent lamp, incandescent lamp, laser light, LED, etc.
Sunlight) and the form of intake (artificial lighting installed outside the growth box) may be adopted inside, or natural light such as sunlight may be introduced into each growth box by an optical fiber or the like. ), Components and types of nutrient solution and necessary gas, and their circulation and supply / discharge modes, blower type (in addition to suction / discharge type, discharge type by air blow), and nutrient solution tank including installation type such as nursery beds Shape, form, growth box shape (square box shape is preferably used for modularization and stacking, but if it forms a closed space isolated from the outside world, it may be spherical, cone, etc. The material may be any suitable material other than styrofoam and vinyl chloride as the heat insulating wall.
An appropriate form can also be adopted for the mirror interior. ), Control of the illuminance of the lighting, supply and discharge of nutrient solution and necessary gas (other than computer control, ordinary electrical control may be used),
Modification form of the growth box (one growth box may be one module, or a plurality of growth boxes may be connected to one module).
A multi-stage stacking form (including a connection form for control wiring and supply / exhaust pipes by step stacking) and the like can be appropriately selected.

[0018]

As described above in detail, according to the present invention, a growth box for plant cultivation that grows crops such as fruits and vegetables in a predetermined space by supplying the adopted lighting, nutrient solution and necessary gas. In the above, the growth box is formed in a closed space, and the inner surface of the growth box is mirror-finished corresponding to at least the front and back of the leaf from the leaf surface, so that the crop is repeatedly irradiated with the crop. It is possible to grow crops such as fruits and vegetables with equal quality and high growth rate by stably and completely controlling various conditions necessary for growing in a growing atmosphere constituting a minimum enclosed space at low cost. In addition, stable pesticide-free cultivation is possible throughout the year. Furthermore, development of a plant factory becomes easy, not to mention introduction into facility horticulture and cultivation equipment for individuals.

In the case where the inner surface of the growth box is entirely mirror-finished, the adopted lighting has a high reflectivity due to the mirror surface of the entire interior of the growth box, and the entire space is close to direct lighting. Become
High growth can be obtained in all parts of crops such as fruits and vegetables. Furthermore, in the case where sunlight is introduced by an optical fiber as the lighting, although it is affected by the weather, it is economical because no special artificial lighting energy is required. Furthermore, when the lighting is artificial lighting installed inside a growth box, it is possible to give a stable light energy to the crop when it is needed without being affected by the weather, and to control the illuminance and irradiation time. Can be performed electrically, and the growth of the crop can be controlled more precisely.

When the growth box is made of a heat insulating material, the amount of energy that can enter and leave the growth box, which is the growth atmosphere that originally constitutes the minimum necessary enclosed space, can be further reduced, and the cost of the crop can be reduced. Training is possible. Further, when the illuminance of the lighting, the supply and discharge of nutrient solution and necessary gas can be controlled from the outside, the type and maturity of the crop to be grown can be determined for each growth box in combination with a blower having an exhaust function. Various conditions can be freely controlled according to the demands of the season and the like, and those conditions can be easily maintained, and stable crop growth can be performed. Furthermore, if the control is automated and night power can be supplied, the labor for monitoring can be reduced, and the cost can be further reduced by using economical night power.

When the growth box is configured to be stacked in multiple stages, it is possible to adopt a growth box of the same standard, thereby lowering the cost, and making the space required for growing crops much more compact. In addition, a connection configuration such as a control wiring and a supply / exhaust pipe can be easily adopted through the step-up configuration. Furthermore, when a predetermined number of the growth boxes are modularized to form an independent cultivation space, crops in one modularized breeding unit can be grown under the same conditions, and pests and pests are generated. In this case, the problem can be solved by easily removing or removing only the modularized breeding units. Furthermore, in the case where pollination is enabled by an air blower or the like installed in the growth box, pollination of fruit and vegetables particularly suitable for air flow pollination is performed by using a blower or the like installed for temperature control. Easy to do. Thus, according to the present invention, the creation of a stable and cultivating atmosphere in a space-saving manner enables uniform and efficient use of light energy and the management and control of fruits and vegetables by the minimum necessary space and energy supply. An easy-to-kill and low-cost plant growth box is provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view showing one embodiment of a growth box for plant cultivation of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a photograph of an experiment arrangement.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing measurement results of illuminance on the floor in a growth box.

FIG. 4 is a photograph showing an example of growth of a transplanted plant after cultivation for a cultivation period of 3 weeks.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the relationship between illuminance and leaf weight.

FIG. 6 is a photograph showing an example of growth of a transplanted plant after cultivation for a cultivation period of 4 weeks.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the relationship between illuminance and leaf weight.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a form of a hermetically closed, completely controlled plant factory for simulation in which the growth boxes are arranged in a multi-stage stack.

FIG. 9 is a growth comparison diagram after 3 weeks.

FIG. 10 is a growth comparison chart 1 after 4 weeks.

FIG. 11 is a growth comparison diagram 4 after 4 weeks.

FIG. 12 is a conventional plant growing device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Growth box 2 Floodlight (lighting) 3 Nutrient tank 4 Air supply pump 5 Liquid supply pipe 6 Blower 7 Temperature amplifier 8 Control computer 9 Temperature sensor 10

[Procedure amendment]

[Submission date] June 14, 2001 (2001.6.1)
4)

[Procedure amendment 1]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0009

[Correction method] Change

[Correction contents]

A nutrient solution tank 3 is provided at the bottom of the growth box 1. The nutrient solution tank 3 is supplied with a required amount of gas such as oxygen and air, and a nutrient solution containing nutrients such as fertilizer from the outside. Waste that is supplied by the air pump 4 and the liquid supply pipe 5 and that is no longer needed is appropriately discharged through a circulation path (not shown) or the like. The supply / discharge amount is controlled by the control computer 8 according to the growing condition of the crop 10 such as fruit and vegetables. A temperature sensor 9 is disposed on the inner surface of the side wall of the growth box 1, and a temperature amplifier 7 driven by the control computer 8 and disposed on the ceiling in accordance with a value detected by the temperature sensor 9.
The blower 6 having an exhaust function (the air inflow method is omitted) maintains the temperature in the room of the growth box 1 optimally and controls the concentration of gas such as carbon dioxide. Also, the blower 6 or a dedicated air atomizer (not shown) may be configured to enable pollination of the crop in the growth box 1. On the other hand, the lighting time of the light projector 2 as a lighting device is controlled by the control computer 8 so as to achieve proper growth of the cultivated crop 10. In addition, these controls are fully automated, and preferably, the energy sources including the driving power of the control device can be supplied with inexpensive nighttime power.

[Procedure amendment 2]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] Brief description of drawings

[Correction method] Change

[Correction contents]

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view showing one embodiment of a growth box for plant cultivation of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a photograph of an experiment arrangement.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing measurement results of illuminance on the floor in a growth box.

FIG. 4 is a photograph showing an example of growth of a transplanted plant after cultivation for a cultivation period of 3 weeks.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the relationship between illuminance and leaf weight.

FIG. 6 is a photograph showing an example of growth of a transplanted plant after cultivation for a cultivation period of 4 weeks.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the relationship between illuminance and leaf weight.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a form of a hermetically closed, completely controlled plant factory for simulation in which the growth boxes are arranged in a multi-stage stack.

FIG. 9 is a growth comparison diagram after 3 weeks.

FIG. 10 is a growth comparison chart No. 1 after 4 weeks.

FIG. 11 is a growth comparison diagram 4 after 4 weeks.

FIG. 12 is a conventional plant growing device.

[Description of Signs] 1 Growth box 2 Floodlight (illumination) 3 Nutrient tank 4 Supply pump 5 Supply pipe 6 Blower 7 Temperature amplifier 8 Control computer 9 Temperature sensor 10 Plant

Claims (10)

[Claims] 1. A plant growing box for growing crops such as fruits and vegetables in a predetermined space by supplying adopted lighting, nutrient solution and necessary gas, wherein the growing box is formed in a closed space, A growth box for plant cultivation, wherein the inner surface of the growth box is mirror-finished at least corresponding to the front and back of the leaves of the crop, and the crop is irradiated repeatedly. 2. The growth box for plant cultivation according to claim 1, wherein the inner surface of the growth box is entirely mirror-finished. 3. The growth box for plant cultivation according to claim 1, wherein the sunlight is introduced by an optical fiber as the illumination. 4. The growth box for plant cultivation according to claim 1, wherein the lighting is artificial lighting installed inside a growth box. 5. The growth box for plant cultivation according to claim 1, wherein the growth box is made of a heat insulating material. 6. The growth box for plant cultivation according to claim 1, wherein the illuminance of said lighting, the supply and discharge of nutrient solution and necessary gas can be controlled from the outside. 7. The growth box for plant cultivation according to claim 6, wherein the control is automated and the power can be supplied at night. 8. The growth box for plant cultivation according to claim 1, wherein the growth box is configured to be stacked in multiple stages. 9. The growth box for plant cultivation according to claim 1, wherein a predetermined number of said growth boxes are modularized to form an independent cultivation space. 10. The growth box for plant cultivation according to claim 1, wherein pollination is enabled by an air blower or the like installed in said growth box.