Bee Incubation Tray With Airflow Support Structure
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing incubation trays for leafcutter bees lack efficient airflow and stacking mechanisms, which can lead to inadequate temperature and humidity control, and increased disruption to the bees during their lifecycle stages.
Innovation Solution
A set of trays comprising a cover tray and a screened tray with a containment flange and support structure that allows for airflow, nesting, and stacking configurations to maintain airflow and reduce disruptions, including a method of stacking and deploying the trays for optimal bee development and pollination.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If screened trays are used for incubation, then airflow is permitted, but temperature and humidity control becomes inadequate
Solution Approach 1:
The incubation system is divided into multiple functional components: a screened tray for airflow, a cover tray for enclosure, and a support structure with apertures for controlled ventilation. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function optimally while working together to maintain proper temperature and humidity control.
Solution Approach 2:
Different parts of the system have different airflow characteristics tailored to their specific functions. The screened panel provides broad airflow for cooling, while the support structure with its apertures provides localized ventilation. The cover tray creates a sealed enclosure that concentrates resources. This local differentiation of airflow quality enables both cooling and temperature/humidity control.
2Productivity
If trays are designed for stacking, then transport efficiency improves, but structural complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cover tray is designed to nest over the screened tray, with the support structure fitting within the cover tray's cavity. This nested arrangement allows multiple trays to be stacked vertically, maximizing transport efficiency by minimizing the space required to move multiple units while keeping the individual tray structures relatively simple.
3Reliability
If containment flange is added to screened tray, then bee containment improves, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The containment flange is merged with the screened tray as a single integrated component rather than a separate attachment. This combining of the containment function with the existing tray structure adds bee containment capability while minimizing additional manufacturing steps and complexity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution ensures consistent airflow and reduced disruptions to the bees, promoting healthy development and efficient pollination by maintaining airflow throughout the lifecycle stages and facilitating easy transport and deployment.
Implementation Method 1
a screened panel that permits airflow therethrough
Implementation Method 2
The support structure has apertures that permit airflow through the support structure
Data Source
AI summary
A set of trays for incubation includes a cover tray and a screened tray. The cover tray has a closed end surrounded by a peripheral sidewall that defines a cavity. The screened tray includes a screened panel surrounded by a containment flange that surrounds and extends outward from a first face of the screened panel, and a support structure that extends outward from a second face of the screened panel opposite the containment flange. The support structure has apertures that permit airflow through the support structure. The containment flange and support structure are sized to engage overlying and underlying trays in alignment and at an angle.