Sliding Crop Encasement Sheets for Fast Weather Reconfiguration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing crop protection systems for orchards are inefficient in rapidly adapting to changing weather conditions, requiring manual deployment and reconfiguration, and fail to effectively manage water distribution and temperature regulation.
Innovation Solution
A system of protective encasement sheets with adjustable configurations, using control and configuration ropes to quickly respond to weather changes, combined with nets and insulation encasement strips for optimal water management and temperature control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If nets or plastic sheeting are used to protect crops, then protection against hail and rain is improved, but the time required to unfold and reconfigure the system increases
Solution Approach 1:
The protective system employs dynamic elements including slidable sheets on guides, movable nets, and adjustable support structures that can be quickly reconfigured. The sheets can slide along guides to change configuration, and the net can be moved between different positions, enabling rapid adaptation to changing weather conditions without time-consuming manual unfolding
Solution Approach 2:
The system is divided into modular components including multiple sheets, guides, support structures, and net sections that can be independently positioned and reconfigured. This segmentation allows different parts of the system to be adjusted separately and quickly, reducing the overall time required to change the protective configuration
2Stability of the object's composition
If nets are stretched over pre-built structures with poles and wires, then structural stability is improved, but the system can only adopt a single configuration which limits water management flexibility
Solution Approach 1:
The system incorporates dynamic elements including slidable sheets on guides, movable nets, and adjustable support structures. The sheets can slide along the guides to change configuration, and the net can be moved between different positions, enabling rapid adaptation to changing weather conditions while maintaining structural stability through the guide system
Solution Approach 2:
The protective system is designed to perform multiple functions: it can protect against hail, rain, and frost; it can manage water distribution by directing runoff to different areas; and it can be quickly reconfigured for different weather conditions. The same structural framework supports various configurations of sheets and nets to achieve different protective and water management functions
3Reliability
If plastic sheeting is used to prevent rain from falling on crops, then protection against excessive watering is improved, but the inability to concentrate water on tree rows reduces irrigation efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables different water management configurations for different areas. The sheets can be positioned to direct water runoff specifically to tree rows when irrigation is needed, or spread water more broadly when general moisture is required. This local control of water distribution optimizes both protection against excessive watering and irrigation efficiency
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 system provides rapid adaptation to weather conditions, efficiently managing water and temperature, reducing yield loss and ensuring stable crop production, thereby minimizing the need for additional irrigation and reducing the carbon footprint.
Implementation Method 1
Positioning the sheets in a sloping configuration ensures that precipitation can flow over them
Implementation Method 2
The protective encasement sheets are advantageously made of a material substantially impermeable to water. By this it is meant the material which, in particular, does not allow water from rainfall to pass through, so that most of the water runs off the sheet
Implementation Method 3
The protective encasement sheets may be made of a foil, preferably transparent... In particular, plastic foils may be used such as those currently used in systems for protecting plants
Data Source
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AI summary
A system for protecting crops against weather conditions comprising at least two rows of supports at the extremities of the protected crop area; guides fixed between the supports of opposite rows of supports; and at least two pairs of protective encasement sheets attached to the support ropes and extending perpendicularly with respect to the support ropes below the support ropes, wherein in each pair the first sheet is inclined downwardly towards the first support row and the second sheet is inclined downwardly towards the second support row. Protective encasement sheets (21A, 22A, 23A, 21B, 22B, 23B) are slidably attached to the guides (31, 32, 33).