Greenhouse Up-Down Cultivation Gutter Drive Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional plant cultivation apparatuses in greenhouses require complex structures and many parts, making installation and maintenance difficult and costly, which increases production costs and burdens on producers and consumers.
Innovation Solution
A plant cultivation apparatus using an up-down system with a simplified structure, featuring a deceleration motor, drive shaft, and a set of sprockets and elevating chains that allow cultivation gutters to ascend and descend alternately using a single deceleration motor, reducing the complexity and cost of installation and maintenance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a complex structure with multiple driven shafts and worm gear reducers is used to operate multiple elevating units, then the cultivation gutters can be raised and lowerd alternately, but the device complexity and installation maintenance difficulty increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple driven shafts into a single drive shaft that extends across the greenhouse. This single drive shaft directly drives all elevating units along its length, eliminating the need for multiple separate driven shafts and worm gear reducers at each intersection. The merging of multiple drive components into one unified system reduces complexity while maintaining the ability to operate multiple elevating units.
Solution Approach 2:
The single drive shaft serves multiple functions: it provides rotational motion to all elevating units simultaneously, acts as a structural support element, and enables independent control of different sections through variable speed motors. This multi-functional design replaces the need for dedicated drive mechanisms at each elevation point, simplifying the overall system.
2Power
If multiple driven shafts and worm gear reducers are installed at intersections of drive shaft and driven shafts, then rotational force can be transferred to multiple elevating members, but the number of parts increases and installation time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple power transfer components into a single continuous drive shaft system. Instead of installing separate driven shafts and worm gear reducers at each intersection point, one long drive shaft spans the entire greenhouse, directly connected to all elevating units. This eliminates numerous installation steps and reduces assembly time significantly.
Solution Approach 2:
The drive shaft is divided into multiple sections that can be assembled independently and then connected together. Each section can be pre-assembled with its corresponding elevating units, allowing for modular installation. This segmentation approach reduces the overall installation time while maintaining the power transfer capability to multiple elevating members.
3Adaptability or versatility
If a complex structure with many parts is used to operate elevating members, then the cultivation gutters can be controlled to form worker passages, but the maintenance difficulty and cost burden increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple independent drive systems into a single unified drive shaft structure. This reduces the number of components that require maintenance and simplifies repair operations. When maintenance is needed, the single drive shaft system requires fewer parts to be accessed and serviced compared to multiple separate driven shafts with worm gear reducers at each intersection.
Solution Approach 2:
The drive shaft system is designed to be easily accessible and simple enough that basic maintenance can be performed by operators without requiring specialized mechanical expertise. The simplified structure allows for routine maintenance tasks to be completed more quickly and with fewer tools, reducing the overall maintenance burden.
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 apparatus simplifies the structure and reduces installation and maintenance costs, enabling efficient use of the entire greenhouse area for cultivation while minimizing production costs and burdens on producers and consumers.
Implementation Method 1
a deceleration motor, a drive shaft axially installed on the bottoms of middle crossbars of the trusses to cross the middle crossbars in the forward and backward direction and rotating by the deceleration motor
Implementation Method 2
driving sprocket members each configured with a set of five sprockets of first to fifth sprockets and axially installed at the drive shaft at regular intervals in the forward and backward direction
Implementation Method 3
first elevating chains having a middle part interlocking with a bottom portion of the first sprocket, left and right parts interlocking with top portions of the first left and right guide sprockets and directed downward from left and right sides of the top portions thereof respectively
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3~4a
AI summary
Disclosed is a plant cultivation apparatus using an up-down system enabling mass production of plants by allowing the entire area of a greenhouse to be used as a cultivation space. The plant cultivation apparatus using the up-down system includes a driving unit (20) installed at trusses (12), installed at regular intervals in a forward and backward direction to horizontally cross tops of inner pillars (11) of a greenhouse (10), an elevating unit (30), installed to be operated by the driving unit (20), and left and right cultivation gutters (40, 40') configured to be ascended and descended by the elevating unit (30), wherein the driving unit (20) comprises a deceleration motor (21), a drive shaft (22) and driving sprocket members (23) and first to fourth left and right auxiliary sprockets (241 to 244); the elevating unit (30) is configured with a set of five elevating members of first to fifth elevating members (31 to 35); wherein the left and right cultivation gutters (40, 40') of the first to fifth elevating members (31 to 35) ascend and descend alternately in turn in a zigzag shape by the use of the deceleration motor (21) and the drive shaft (22).