Local Temperature Control for Granular Harvest Timing
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current temperature control methods in greenhouses affect all plants uniformly, leading to undesired coarse control and long-term effects on harvest timing, making it difficult to match short-term market demand fluctuations.
Innovation Solution
A local temperature control system that allows for independent temperature management of specific plant regions within a growing environment, using heating and cooling systems to control harvest times without affecting other regions or plants, thereby enabling granular control over the ripening process.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of time
If greenhouse temperature is increased to accelerate harvest, then harvest time is reduced, but all plants and all trusses are affected causing long-term effects on yield timing
Solution Approach 1:
The invention divides the plant into multiple controllable regions (trusses) and applies temperature control selectively to specific regions rather than uniformly to the entire plant. This segmentation enables independent control of harvest timing for different trusses, allowing the first truss to be accelerated while protecting higher trusses from long-term temperature effects.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention implements local temperature control by positioning heating elements close to specific plant regions (trusses) and using insulation barriers to confine thermal effects. This creates localized temperature zones that affect only the target region, enabling granular control over ripening without affecting other parts of the plant.
2Productivity
If greenhouse temperature is adjusted to match market demand, then yield timing is optimized, but control is coarse and affects entire plant and all plants in greenhouse
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments both the plant (into trusses) and the control system (into independent temperature zones) to enable granular control. Each truss can be controlled independently, allowing precise matching of yield timing to market demand without affecting other plants or trusses.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces insulation barriers as intermediary elements between the heating system and higher trusses. These barriers act as thermal mediators that allow heat to reach the target truss while blocking heat from affecting higher trusses, enabling precise local control.
3Ease of operation
If temperature control is applied uniformly to greenhouse, then simple control is achieved, but inability to control short-term yield without affecting long-term yield
Solution Approach 1:
The invention segments the greenhouse into multiple independent temperature control zones, each capable of being controlled separately. This segmentation maintains operational simplicity while dramatically increasing adaptability, allowing different harvest strategies for different trusses based on market conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements dynamic temperature control where heating elements can be activated or deactivated based on real-time market demand and plant development stage. This dynamic approach allows the system to adapt to changing conditions while maintaining ease of operation through automated control.
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
This system allows for precise control of harvest times to match market demand fluctuations, accelerating or delaying growth in specific regions without impacting long-term yields, thus optimizing short-term yield timing without affecting other parts of the greenhouse.
Implementation Method 1
a local heating system for heating a plant of group of plants at different regions of the plant or plants of the group
Implementation Method 2
a local cooling system for cooling a plant of group of plants at different regions of the plant or plants of the group
Data Source
AI summary
A system is provided for controlling a time-dependent yield function for a plant or group of plants in a grow facility, in which a local temperature control system locally controls the temperature of one or more regions of a plant or group of plants. The local temperature control system controls the local temperature at at least one of the one or more regions of the plant or group of plants to be different from an overall temperature in the grow facility, to thereby control a time of harvest from the at least one of the one or more regions of the plant or group of plants without affecting the time of harvest from other regions of the one or more regions of the plant or group of plants or from other plants or groups of plants in the grow facility.