Patent Application
20180092309
This invention relates to agricultural equipment, and more particularly, relates to devices for protecting plants and facilitating growth in adverse conditions.
Climate conditions, such as low temperatures, high temperatures, changes in temperature, frost, or high winds, can be detrimental to plant health and growth. Wax paper cones can be placed over plants or seeds to partially protect against some adverse climate conditions, such as low temperatures, frost, or rain. Other products used for compensating for climate conditions use multiple layers, including a water layer, to provide additional insulation for a plant or seed. While such devices may protect against cold weather and other climate conditions, such devices are not capable of protecting a plant over large ranges of temperature without human interaction.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, a plant protector is provided.
In one embodiment, a plant protector includes an inner wall, a lid coupled with the inner wall, wherein the lid and inner wall form an interior chamber when the lid is in a closed position, and a temperature sensitive coil or other actuator coupled with the lid, wherein the temperature sensitive coil is configured to change configuration based on a change in external temperature, wherein the temperature sensitive coil is configured to cause the lid to transition between an open position and a closed position based on the change in external temperature. A plant protector can also include an outer wall, wherein the inner wall and outer wall define a chamber configured to receive a liquid.
The present invention provides systems and apparatuses for protecting plants. Representative embodiments can include a double-walled plant protector configured to be placed over a seedling or plant.
When the lid is in an open position, a decrease in temperature can cause rotation of the end 184 in an opposite direction of that described for an increase in temperature, causing the lid to rotate towards the closed position. If the temperature decreases to the particular threshold temperature, the lid can return to the closed position. For example, the lid can start to open when the interior temperature is above about 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 75, or 80 degrees F., and can be fully open at a temperature of about 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 10, 15, 20, or 25 degrees higher than that. Because transparent enclosures can trap solar heat through the greenhouse effect, the interior temperature can be significantly higher than the exterior temperature. While this extra heat can facilitate plant growth when it is cold outside, it can damage plants if it gets too high. Thus, the ability of the lid 115 to fully open leaving an essentially unobstructed path for hot air to escape protects the plants from heat damage.
In certain embodiments, one or more of the components of the double-walled plant protector 100, such as the outer wall 110, inner wall 105, top section 135, bottom section 130, and lid 125, can be made of a transparent or semi-transparent material. One or more components of the plant protector 100 can consist of a material that is transparent or relatively transparent to photosynthetically-active radiation. Photosynthetically-active radiation describes wavelengths of light capable of being absorbed by plants, generally in the range of about 400 nm to 700 nm. In some embodiments, one or more components of the plant protector 100 can consist of a material that is relatively transparent or partially relatively transparent to a range of light extending from about 400 nm to 700 nm or a section of a range of light within the range of 400 nm to 700 nm. Chlorophyll a has absorption peaks at about 460 nm and 660 nm, while chlorophyll b absorbs at slightly higher wavelengths. The material making up one or more of the components of the plant protector 100 preferably have high transmissivity at the absorption maxima of chlorophylls a and b. Thus, the materials making up light-transmitting portions of the plant protector 100 preferably can transmit at least about 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 85, 90 or 95 percent of solar radiation at the photosynthetically-active wavelengths.
In some embodiments, one or more of the components of the double-walled plant protector 100 can include one or more plastics.
Embodiments of a double-walled plant protector 100 as described above may assist in fostering an environment that is beneficial for plant growth, particularly in climates experiencing temperature changes, low temperatures, high temperatures, frost, rain, wind, or other potentially adverse climate conditions. For example, the inner wall 105, outer wall 110, and lid 115 when in the closed position can block wind, frost, rain, or other natural phenomena from contacting a plant or seedling positioned in the interior chamber 150 of the plant protector 100. The inner wall 105, outer wall 110, and lid 115 may also protect against animal interference with a plant or seedling positioned in the interior of the plant protector 100. The greenhouse effect can provide extra heat inside the plant protector 100 during cooler weather.
The chamber 155 is also configured to be filled with a liquid, such as water, through the filling channel 120. The water can provide insulation and thermal mass and act as a barrier to cold temperatures. Due to its specific heat, after warming during the day the water cools more slowly than the ambient air, keeping the plants warmer through its thermal mass. During freezing, due to the latent heat of fusion, liquid water remains at a constant temperature (the freezing point of 32° F. or 0° C.) until all of the water has crystalized to form ice. This is a slow process and even if the ambient temperature is several degrees below freezing, the water will not all freeze and thus the interior temperature of the plant protector 100 is unlikely to go below freezing. However, if all of the water has formed ice, the temperature of the ice may continue to decrease until it reaches the temperature of the outside air. The additional time required for the water in the chamber 155 to crystallize before dropping below the freezing temperature can act to prevent low night temperatures from damaging plants or seedlings. Energy from the sun may also be stored in water in the chamber 155. This stored energy may be transferred to the interior chamber 150 at night providing further heat for a plant or seedling in the interior chamber 150.
The lid 115 can be transitioned between a closed position and an open position. In the closed position, the lid 115 can form a seal at the top of the interior chamber 150 in order to retain heat within the interior chamber 150 and to block climate conditions such as frost, rain, wind, and low temperatures. In an open position, the lid 115 can be configured to allow light, heat, and air to enter the interior chamber 150. The coil 180 in connection with the rod 125 can function to open the lid 115 when the external temperature is above a threshold temperature, for example 65° F., and to close the lid 115 when the external temperature is below the threshold temperature. By transitioning the lid 115 between an open position and a closed position based on temperature, the coil 180 allows the plant protector 100 to automatically regulate the temperature within the interior chamber 150 without the electronic or manual input. The temperature sensitive coil 180 can cause the lid 115 to be in an open position when experiencing warm external temperatures, which may occur during the day when sunlight is radiating on the plant protector 100, further allowing sunlight to enter the top of the interior chamber 150 and allowing heat to enter the interior chamber 150. In some embodiments, the opening of the lid 115 may also prevent the interior chamber 150 from experiencing temperatures that are too warm to sustain plant growth by allowing for the release of heat. The temperature sensitive coil 180 can also cause the lid 115 to transition to the closed position when experiencing cold external temperatures. For example, when the temperature drops at night, the temperature sensitive coil 180 may cause the lid 115 to transition to the closed position, sealing in heat remaining in the chamber and providing insulation against cold external temperatures and conditions. The advantages described above may extend the growing season of a plant or seedling by weeks or even a month or more in cooler climates.
Various other modifications, adaptations, and alternative designs are of course possible in light of the above teachings. Therefore, it should be understood at this time that within the scope of the appended claims the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein. It is contemplated that various combinations or subcombinations of the specific features and aspects of the embodiments disclosed above may be made and still fall within one or more of the inventions. Further, the disclosure herein of any particular feature, aspect, method, property, characteristic, quality, attribute, element, or the like in connection with an embodiment can be used in all other embodiments set forth herein. Accordingly, it should be understood that various features and aspects of the disclosed embodiments can be combined with or substituted for one another in order to form varying modes of the disclosed inventions. Thus, it is intended that the scope of the present inventions herein disclosed should not be limited by the particular disclosed embodiments described above. Moreover, while the invention is susceptible to various modifications, and alternative forms, specific examples thereof have been shown in the drawings and are herein described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the invention is not to be limited to the particular forms or methods disclosed, but to the contrary, the invention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the various embodiments described and the appended claims. Any methods disclosed herein need not be performed in the order recited. The methods disclosed herein include certain actions taken by a practitioner; however, they can also include any third-party instruction of those actions, either expressly or by implication. The ranges disclosed herein also encompass any and all overlap, sub-ranges, and combinations thereof. Language such as “up to,” “at least,” “greater than,” “less than,” “between,” and the like includes the number recited. Numbers preceded by a term such as “approximately”, “about”, and “substantially” as used herein include the recited numbers (e.g., about 10%=10%), and also represent an amount close to the stated amount that still performs a desired function or achieves a desired result. For example, the terms “approximately”, “about”, and “substantially” may refer to an amount that is within less than 10% of, within less than 5% of, within less than 1% of, within less than 0.1% of, and within less than 0.01% of the stated amount.
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/402,756 filed on Sep. 30, 2016 and entitled “DOUBLE-WALLED PLANT PROTECTOR”, the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62402756 | Sep 2016 | US |
