Plant Holder Grid Assembly With Air Ducted Climate Uniformity

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Solution Overview

Problem

Mobile plant cultivation systems face challenges in maintaining ideal growth conditions, particularly in terms of air quality around roots and leaves, leading to suboptimal plant growth due to variations in humidity and air conditions during transportation and storage.

Innovation Solution

The product holder assembly incorporates an air duct system that creates overpressure to direct a consistent air flow through a grid system with strategically placed apertures, ensuring uniform air distribution and climate stability for plants, with features like peripheral walls to control air flow and interaction with the substrate, and connection means for easy integration with external air supply systems.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If plants are cultivated in mobile systems with transportation and storage phases, then logistics optimization is improved, but air quality conditions around plants deteriorate leading to suboptimal growth

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvelogistics optimizationVSAvoidgrowth conditions
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system divides the cultivation environment into separate controllable zones using grid systems with apertures, allowing independent control of air flow and climate conditions for different plant groups during mobile cultivation phases

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

An air duct system acts as an intermediary between external air supply and the plant cultivation zones, mediating air flow to maintain optimal humidity and air quality conditions even during transportation and storage phases

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Productivity

If grid systems are arranged to maximize plant density, then productivity is improved, but air flow distribution deteriorates causing growth variations

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveplant densityVSAvoiduniformity of growth conditions
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSStability of the object's composition

Solution Approach 1:

The grid system incorporates strategically placed apertures that create localized air flow patterns, ensuring each plant region receives appropriate air distribution even at high densities, maintaining uniform growth conditions across the entire cultivation area

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

The air duct system introduces a vertical dimension to air flow distribution, directing air flow through multiple levels and directions to penetrate dense plant arrangements uniformly, overcoming the limitation of horizontal air distribution alone

Inventive Principle:
Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

3Stability of the object's composition

If air duct systems are added to control air flow, then climate stability is improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveclimate stabilityVSAvoidsystem complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Stability of the object's compositionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The grid system serves multiple functions simultaneously: it provides structural support for plants, enables air flow distribution through integrated apertures, and facilitates climate control, eliminating the need for separate complex air distribution components

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Solution Approach 2:

The air duct system is merged with the existing grid structure, combining climate control functionality with the support framework, thereby reducing overall system complexity while achieving stable climate conditions

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

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 solution provides a stable and uniform climate for plants, promoting consistent growth by ensuring similar air properties for all plants, reducing growth variations, and allowing for optimal growth conditions even during mobile cultivation.

Implementation Method 1

the air duct system is connectable with an external air supply system to cause an overpressure in the air duct system relative to the second space

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectOverpressure: Pressure Increase

Implementation Method 2

the grid system is adapted to direct a flow of air from the grid system into the second space along the plants

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectAir flow: Convection

Data Source

PatentEP3751986B1Product holder assembly
Publication Date: 2022.03.23 LOGIQS BV
  • EP3751986B1 patent drawingFigure 1A~1B
  • EP3751986B1 patent drawingFigure 2~4
  • EP3751986B1 patent drawingFigure 5~6

AI summary

Product holder assembly (1) for a mobile cultivation of plants along a path in a hall, comprising: a product holder (100) having a bottom (110) and an upstanding circumferential wall (120) extending from the bottom, a first space (101) extending from the bottom of the product holder (100) along the wall to allow a medium or substrate for roots of the plants to receive nutriments and/or support from, a grid system (500) arranged to be placed on the product holder (100) to cover the first space (101) in the product holder (100) and to separate the first space from a second space (102) adjacent to the grid system (500) at a side of the grid system facing away from the first space (101), wherein the grid system (500) is arranged for holding a plurality of separate plants (30), the roots (31) of which to reach for the first space (101) and the leafs (32) of which to reach for the second space (102), wherein the grid system (500) is arranged to operate in conjunction with an air duct system (800).