Stackable Seedling Device With Agar-Gel Media for Root Protection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional hydroponic cultivation methods face issues such as root oppression by sponges, generation of unreusable sponges after harvest, and accumulation of chemicals and salts harmful to crop growth, limiting crop growth and health.
Innovation Solution
A stackable raising seedling device with a device body and floating planting board, utilizing a culture medium layer of agar gel containing plant growth nutrients, allows adjustable stacking to accommodate different growth stages of crops, preventing nutrient accumulation and root oppression.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If sponges are used as base material for hydroponic cultivation, then crops can be planted without soil, but roots of planted crops are often oppressed by sponge which limits the growth of rhizomes and affects the growth and health of planted crops
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the sponge base material from the hydroponic system and replaces it with a nutrient solution reservoir. This extraction eliminates the root oppression problem while maintaining the soilless cultivation benefit. The nutrient solution is delivered through capillary action or gravity to the planting area without requiring a sponge structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a nutrient solution as an intermediary medium between the water reservoir and the plant roots. This intermediary provides necessary nutrients while allowing free root growth, eliminating the need for sponge-based support structures that constrained root development.
2Ease of manufacture
If sponges are used for hydroponic cultivation, then crops can grow without soil, but a large amount of sponges are unreusable after harvesting the crops
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces expensive, non-reusable sponges with a reusable nutrient solution reservoir system. The reservoir can be refilled and reused across multiple cultivation cycles, eliminating the waste problem associated with disposable sponges while maintaining ease of planting.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent enables recovery and reuse of the nutrient solution reservoir across multiple cropping seasons. The system is designed to be disassembled, cleaned, and reused, transforming a waste-generating system into a sustainable, reusable one that recovers materials for continuous use.
3Reliability
If hydroponics is used for cultivation, then it can avoid the effects of unpredictable natural disasters, insect pests and man-made environmental pollution, but nutrient used in the hydroponics will continuously accumulate chemical components or salts in water which will harm growth of the crops
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements periodic drainage and replacement of the nutrient solution to prevent salt accumulation. The system drains the solution at intervals and refills with fresh nutrient solution, creating a cyclic process that maintains nutrient availability while removing harmful accumulations, thus protecting crops from chemical harm while maintaining environmental protection benefits.
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
Enhances crop growth by providing sufficient space and nutrient management, reducing waste, and maintaining optimal growing conditions through adjustable stacking and nutrient control.
Implementation Method 1
the culture medium layer comprises an agar gel, and the agar gel is composed of a plant growth nutrient, agar powder and water
Implementation Method 2
the hollow body is a cone structure that tapers from the top hole to the bottom hole, and in the cone structure, an aperture of the top hole is the largest, and an aperture of the bottom hole is the smallest
Implementation Method 3
The stackable raising seedling device further comprises a floating planting board
Data Source
AI summary
A stackable raising seedling device has a device body and a floating planting board. The device body has raising seeding hole parts disposed at intervals and holes disposed intervals. The raising seeding hole pans and the holes are staggered in parallel and with each other along a first direction, the raising seeding hole part and the holes are staggered in parallel with each other along a second direction, and the holes of the first direction and the raising seeding hole parts of the second direction are adjacently arranged. The raising seeding hole pan can receive a culture medium layer, the culture medium layer has an agar gel, and the agar gel is composed of a plant growth nutrient, agar powder and water. The present disclosure improves the overall seed germination rate and the quality of planted crops when massively planting the planted crops.