Adaptive plant stem flow sensing device based on paper-cut structure and clamping method

Abstract

The application discloses a kind of self-adapting plant stem flow sensing devices based on paper-cut structure, including the support mechanism and flexible clamping piece and flexible sensing piece being arranged along plant stem axial direction;The support mechanism includes a pair of parallelly arranged middle arc pieces, both ends of each middle arc piece are provided with first ear structure, and two middle arc pieces are connected head to tail to form closed loop structure by two connecting rods;The flexible clamping piece includes paper-cut structure and second ear structure cooperated with the first ear structure fixed;The flexible sensing piece includes flexible sensor unit and processor unit.The application also provides a kind of clamping method.The device provided by the application can realize long-term non-destructive stable monitoring of plant stem flow.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The application belongs to the field of plant sensors, and particularly relates to a self-adaptive plant stem flow sensing device based on a paper-cut structure and a clamping method. BACKGROUND

[0002] The internal physiological activity of a plant determines the growth state of the plant, and stem flow, as a dynamic carrier for water and nutrient transport in the plant body, directly reflects the water use efficiency and physiological health condition of the plant. A stem flow sensor can accurately analyze the water metabolism efficiency, nutrient distribution rule and stress response signal of the plant, and is a key sensing tool for realizing smart agriculture. Traditional plant stem flow sensors often have poor adaptability, complicated installation and insufficient measurement accuracy, and are difficult to accurately monitor different plant stem sizes and surface characteristics.

[0003] Chinese patent document CN118274914A discloses a method for measuring stem flow of small-sized plants, and a stem flow measuring device thereof includes a fixer, a data collector and a temperature and humidity sensor. The fixer clamps the data collector on the plant stem. However, the fixer of the device is a rigid structure, which is only suitable for short-term stem flow measurement of small-sized plants, cannot adapt to the size change of the plant stem during growth, and is inconvenient to install.

[0004] Chinese patent CN113865475A discloses a preparation method and application of a bionic self-adaptive winding wearable sensor for monitoring micro changes in plant stem diameter. The sensor is made of a flexible base and a conductive layer, and monitors the micro changes in the plant stem diameter through pre-tightening winding. The pre-tightening stretching rate of the sensor is required to be high during installation, and the internal physiological information of the plant cannot be monitored. SUMMARY

[0005] The application discloses a self-adaptive plant stem flow sensing device based on a paper-cut structure and a clamping method. The device can realize long-term, non-destructive and stable monitoring of plant stem flow.

[0006] In order to achieve the first purpose of the application, the following technical scheme is provided: a self-adaptive plant stem flow sensing device based on a paper-cut structure, including a support mechanism arranged along the axial direction of the plant stem, a flexible clamping piece and a flexible sensing piece.

[0007] The support mechanism includes a pair of parallel arranged middle arc-shaped pieces, each of which is provided with a first lug structure at both ends, and the two middle arc-shaped pieces are connected end to end through two connecting rods to form a closed loop structure.

[0008] The flexible clamping member comprises a paper-cut structure and a second lug structure fixedly matched with the first lug structure, the paper-cut structure comprises flexible units connected in sequence along the axial direction of the plant stem, and the second lug structure is arranged on the two flexible units at the outermost ends respectively, each flexible unit is provided with two first openings in the radial direction of the plant stem, and the connecting position of the adjacent two flexible units is provided with a second opening.

[0009] The flexible sensing member comprises a flexible sensor unit and a processor unit, the flexible sensor unit sequentially passes through each second opening in the paper-cut structure along the axial direction of the plant stem, and the processor unit is provided with a hook structure fixedly matched with the middle arc member at both ends.

[0010] The present application is designed for a paper-cut structure of a double-layer transparent flexible material in a specific shape and parameters, and a corresponding supporting mechanism is matched to adaptively clamp the plant stem, so that a stable environmental condition is provided for plant stem data acquisition.

[0011] Specifically, the supporting mechanism is made of an elastic alloy.

[0012] Specifically, the first lug structure is a U-shaped bending member with an opening direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the plant stem, one end of the U-shaped bending member is connected with the end of the middle arc member, and the other end is connected with one end of the connecting rod.

[0013] Specifically, the second lug structure comprises two first elastic bands arranged on the flexible units at the outermost ends and matched with the corresponding middle arc members, and each first elastic band is provided with an avoiding opening for the first lug structure to pass through and be fixed.

[0014] Specifically, the second lug structure further comprises a second elastic band arranged between the two first elastic bands on the same side, and the second elastic band is used to be wound and connected with the middle segment of the connecting rod.

[0015] Specifically, the flexible unit is made of a double-layer flexible material, one layer of the double-layer flexible material is made of an elastic material and attached to the plant stem, and the other layer is made of a non-elastic material and away from the plant stem.

[0016] Specifically, the flexible sensor unit comprises a flexible substrate, a first plant stem flow sensor, a heating resistor and a second plant stem flow sensor arranged in sequence on the flexible substrate along the direction of the plant stem flow, and a heat-conducting sheet is arranged on the back surface of the flexible substrate corresponding to the first plant stem flow sensor, the heating resistor and the second plant stem flow sensor.

[0017] In order to realize the second object of the present application, the following technical scheme is provided: a clamping method realized by the adaptive plant stem flow sensing device based on the paper-cut structure, comprising the following steps:

[0018] After the flexible sensor unit is arranged on the paper-cut structure, the second hanging ear structure at both ends of the paper-cut structure is sleeved on the first hanging ear structure at both ends of the middle arc, and the processor unit is arranged on the middle arc;

[0019] The target plant stem is selected, the gap between the two middle arcs is aligned with the target stem, the two ends of the middle arc are brought together by pressing the connecting rods at both ends, the middle arc is moved downward so that the paper-cut structure is in a state of being tightly wrapped around the plant stem, and finally the two middle arcs are released so that the paper-cut structure is in a state of being tightly wrapped around the plant stem.

[0020] Compared with the prior art, the present application has the following advantages:

[0021] The flexible clamping piece is made of a paper-cut structure with specific shape and parameters and double-layer transparent flexible material, realizes non-destructive and self-adaptive clamping of different plant stems, and has good adaptability and stability;

[0022] The flexible sensing piece is based on a flexible substrate and a weaving process, realizes synchronous deformation with the paper-cut structure of the flexible clamping piece, and tightly adheres to the plant stem, ensuring the accuracy of stem flow monitoring;

[0023] The support mechanism is made of a shape memory or high-elasticity alloy material, integrates the flexible clamping piece and the flexible sensing mechanism, realizes stem flow monitoring and rapid clamping of the plant stem, and greatly improves the convenience of use. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0024] Figure 1 The self-adaptive plant stem flow sensing device in a loosened state is provided for the present embodiment;

[0025] Figure 2 The self-adaptive plant stem flow sensing device in a clamped state is provided for the present embodiment;

[0026] Figure 3 The three-dimensional structure schematic diagram of the support mechanism is provided for the present embodiment;

[0027] Figure 4 The three-dimensional structure schematic diagram of the flexible clamping piece in a loosened state is provided for the present embodiment;

[0028] Figure 5 The three-dimensional structure schematic diagram of the flexible clamping piece in a clamped state is provided for the present embodiment;

[0029] Figure 6 The top view structure schematic diagram of the flexible sensing mechanism is provided for the present embodiment;

[0030] Figure 7 The top view structure schematic diagram of the flexible sensing unit is provided for the present embodiment;

[0031] Figure 8 A bottom view structural schematic diagram of the flexible sensor unit provided for the embodiment;

[0032] Figure 9 An assembly schematic diagram of the paper-cut structure and the sensor unit provided for the embodiment;

[0033] Figure 10 A top view structural schematic diagram of the flexible sensor unit provided for the embodiment;

[0034] Figure 11 A bottom view structural schematic diagram of the flexible sensor unit provided for the embodiment;

[0035] Figure 12 A three-dimensional structural deformation schematic diagram of the support mechanism and the flexible clamping piece in the loosened state of the adaptive plant stem flow sensing device provided for the embodiment;

[0036] In the figure, 1, support mechanism; 11, first lifting lug structure; 12, middle arc-shaped piece; 2, flexible clamping piece; 21, second lifting lug structure; 22, paper-cut structure; 3, flexible sensing piece; 31, flexible sensor unit; 311, first plant stem flow sensor; 312, heating resistor; 313, second stem flow sensor; 314, heat-conducting sheet; 315, flexible substrate; 32, processor unit; 321, hanging structure; 322, functional module; 4, plant stem. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0037] In order to make the objects, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described clearly and completely below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present application, rather than all the embodiments. The components of the embodiments of the present application described and shown in the drawings herein can be arranged and designed in various different configurations. Therefore, the following detailed description of the embodiments of the present application provided in the drawings is not intended to limit the scope of the claimed present application, but only represents selected embodiments of the present application. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative efforts belong to the scope of protection of the present application.

[0038] As shown in Figure 1 and Figure 2 , the adaptive plant stem flow sensing device based on the paper-cut structure provided for the embodiment comprises:

[0039] a support mechanism 1, which is used as a connection carrier of a flexible clamping piece 2 and a flexible sensing piece 3 and drives the flexible clamping piece 2 to deform;

[0040] Flexible holder 2 for non-destructive and self-adaptive holding of plant stems 4 of different sizes, surface features and dynamic growth.

[0041] Flexible sensing unit 3 for monitoring, analyzing and transmitting plant stem flow data.

[0042] As shown in Figure 3 , the support mechanism 1 is made of a high-elasticity alloy material, including two first lug structures 11 on both sides and a middle arch 12, the curvature of which can be adjusted and restored.

[0043] As shown in Figure 4 and Figure 5 , the flexible holder 2 is composed of two second lug structures 21 on both sides and a middle paper-cut structure 22, which is composed of multiple groups of paper-cut units with specific shapes and parameters, which can quickly and stably switch between planar and hollow cylindrical shapes under external stretching.

[0044] More specifically, the flexible holder 2 is made of transparent double-layer flexible material, the outer side away from the plant stem is non-elastic material, and the inner side close to the plant stem is elastic material with a certain thickness. The outer material provides the strength required by the flexible holder 2 under stress, and the inner material based on elasticity and compressibility under external stretching forms a profile contact with plant stems 4 of different sizes, surface features and dynamic growth, achieving non-destructive and self-adaptive holding in hollow cylindrical shape.

[0045] As shown in Figure 6 , the flexible sensing unit 3 is composed of a flexible sensor unit 31 and a processor unit 32.

[0046] As shown in Figure 7 and Figure 8 , the flexible sensor unit 31 includes a first plant stem flow sensor 311, a heating resistor 312, a second stem flow sensor 313, a heat conducting sheet 314 and a flexible substrate 315, which realizes the monitoring of plant stem flow based on the heat tracing principle.

[0047] The heat conducting sheet 314 is made of a high-thermal-conductivity metal sheet, which contacts the surface of the plant stem to achieve rapid heat conduction and reception, reducing thermal damage to the plant stem.

[0048] As shown in Figure 9 , the flexible sensor unit 31 enters the paper-cut structure 22 through the weaving process, and can deform synchronously with the paper-cut structure 22 to effectively attach to the plant stem 4, ensuring the stem flow monitoring effect.

[0049] As shown in Figure 10 and Figure 11As shown, the processor unit 32 includes a hanging structure 321 and a functional module 322 arranged on the flexible substrate 315, the hanging structure 321 realizes the connection with the support mechanism 1, and the functional module 322 realizes the control of the flexible sensor unit and the analysis and communication of the plant stem flow data.

[0050] The embodiment also provides a clamping method, which is realized by the adaptive plant stem flow sensing device provided in the above embodiment and includes the following steps.

[0051] As shown, Figure 12 As shown, the support mechanism 1 and the flexible clamping piece 2 are connected with the second lug structure 21 through the first lug structure 11, and the arc adjustment driving paper-cutting structure 22 is deformed between the planar form and the hollow cylindrical form, so as to realize the quick clamping and loosening of the plant stem 4.

[0052] More specifically, after the flexible sensor unit is arranged on the paper-cutting structure, the second lug structure at both ends of the paper-cutting structure is sleeved on the first lug structure at both ends of the middle arc-shaped piece, and the processor unit is arranged on the middle arc-shaped piece;

[0053] The stem of the selected target plant is aligned with the gap between the two middle arc-shaped pieces, the two ends of the middle arc-shaped piece are moved close to each other by pressing the connecting rod at both ends (i.e. applying an external force F), and the middle arc-shaped piece is moved downward so that the paper-cutting structure is in a state of being tightly wrapped around the plant stem, and finally the two middle arc-shaped pieces are released (i.e. triggering the elastic force G) so that the paper-cutting structure is in a state of being tightly wrapped around the plant stem.

[0054] In addition, the terms "upper", "lower", "inner", "outer", "front", "back" are only used for description purposes, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance. Unless otherwise specified, the relative steps, numerical expressions and numerical values of the components and steps set forth in the embodiments do not limit the scope of the present application.

[0055] Of course, the above only describes specific embodiments of the present application, and is not intended to limit the scope of the present application. Any equivalent changes or modifications made to the structure, features and principles described in the patent application scope of the present application shall be included in the patent application scope of the present application.

[0056] Finally, it should be noted that the above-described embodiments are merely specific embodiments of the present application, which are used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present application, but not to limit the present application, and the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Although the present application has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that any person skilled in the art can still modify or easily think of changes to the technical solutions recorded in the foregoing embodiments, or make equivalent replacements to some technical features therein, within the technical scope disclosed by the present application. Such modifications, changes or replacements do not cause the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, and should be covered within the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application should be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A self-adapting plant stem flow sensing device based on a paper-cut structure, characterized in that, The support mechanism comprises a pair of parallel arranged middle arc-shaped members, each of which is provided with a first lug structure at both ends, and the two middle arc-shaped members are connected end to end by two connecting rods to form a closed loop structure. The flexible clamping member comprises a paper-cut structure and a second lug structure fixed with the first lug structure, the paper-cut structure comprises flexible units connected in sequence along the axial direction of the plant stem, and the second lug structure is arranged on the two outermost flexible units respectively, each flexible unit is provided with two first openings in the radial direction of the plant stem, and the connecting part of adjacent two flexible units is provided with a second opening. The flexible sensing member comprises a flexible sensor unit and a processor unit, the flexible sensor unit sequentially passes through each second opening in the paper-cut structure along the axial direction of the plant stem, and the processor unit is provided with a hook structure at both ends for fixing with the middle arc-shaped member. The support mechanism is made of elastic alloy.

2. The paper-cut structure based self-adapting plant stem flow sensing device according to claim 1, wherein, The first lug structure is a U-shaped bent member with the opening direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the plant stem, one end of the U-shaped bent member is connected with the end of the middle arc-shaped member, and the other end is connected with one end of the connecting rod.

3. The paper-cut structure based self-adapting plant stem flow sensing device according to claim 1, wherein, The second lug structure comprises two first elastic bands arranged on the outermost flexible units and corresponding to the middle arc-shaped members, and each first elastic band is provided with an avoidance opening for the first lug structure to pass through and be fixed.

4. The paper-cut structure based self-adapting plant stem flow sensing device according to claim 1, wherein, The second lug structure further comprises a second elastic band arranged between the two first elastic bands on the same side, and the second elastic band is used for winding connection with the middle segment of the connecting rod.

5. The paper-cut structure based self-adapting plant stem flow sensing device according to claim 4, wherein, The flexible unit is made of double-layer flexible material, one layer of which is attached to the plant stem and made of elastic material, and the other layer is away from the plant stem and made of non-elastic material.

6. The paper-cut structure based self-adapting plant stem flow sensing device according to claim 1, wherein, The flexible sensor unit comprises a flexible substrate, a first plant stem flow sensor, a heating resistor and a second plant stem flow sensor arranged in sequence on the flexible substrate along the direction of the plant stem flow, and a heat conduction sheet is arranged on the back surface of the flexible substrate corresponding to the first plant stem flow sensor, the heating resistor and the second plant stem flow sensor.

7. The paper-cut structure based self-adapting plant stem flow sensing device according to claim 1, wherein, The processor unit comprises a mounting plate with a hook structure, and a temperature control module, a data analysis module and a communication module arranged on the mounting plate.

8. The paper-cut structure based self-adapting plant stem flow sensing device according to claim 1, wherein, The self-adaptive plant stem flow sensing device based on the paper-cut structure is realized by the steps of:

9. A clamping method, characterized by, After the flexible sensor unit is arranged on the paper-cut structure, the second lug structure at both ends of the paper-cut structure is sleeved on the first lug structure at both ends of the middle arc-shaped member, and the processor unit is arranged on the middle arc-shaped member; The gap between the two middle arc-shaped members is aligned with the target stem of the selected target plant, while the two ends of the middle arc-shaped member are moved closer by pressing the connecting rods at both ends, and the middle arc-shaped member is moved downward so that the paper-cut structure is in a state of being tightly wrapped around the plant stem, and finally the two middle arc-shaped members are released so that the paper-cut structure is in a state of being tightly wrapped around the plant stem. ​

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