# US 2014/0360095 A1 · Method for production of casing for cultivating mushrooms and/or plants > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2014/0360095 A1 - Document ID: US20140360095A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 14/373,047 - Filed: 2013-01-17 - Published: 2014-12-11 - Earliest claimed: 2012-01-20 - Assignees: Uab "Eko Invest" - Applicants: Uab "Eko Invest" - Inventors: Kestutis Juscius - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20140360095A1 ## CPC - A01G 18/64: Cultivation containers; Lids therefor - A01G 18/20: Culture media, e.g. compost - B02C 23/02: Feeding devices ({for grain mills B02C11/04; for roller mills B02C4/286}; transport devices in general B65G) - B02C 23/08: Separating or sorting of material, associated with crushing or disintegrating (B02C23/18 takes precedence {; beater mills combined with sifting devices B02C13/13, B02C13/14; for tumbling mills B02C17/1835}) - B07B 9/00: Combinations of apparatus for screening or sifting or for separating solids from solids using gas currents; General arrangement of plant, e.g. flow sheets - A01G: HORTICULTURE; CULTIVATION OF VEGETABLES, FLOWERS, RICE, FRUIT, VINES, HOPS OR SEAWEED; FORESTRY; WATERING (picking of fruits, vegetables, hops or the like A01D46/00; propagating unicellular algae C12N1/12) - B02C: CRUSHING, PULVERISING, OR DISINTEGRATING IN GENERAL; MILLING GRAIN ({household tools and machines for pulverising foodstuffs, e.g. coffee and spice mills A47J42/00; pharmaceutical mortars A61J3/02; mechanical processing of refuse and garbage B03B9/06; dressing mould materials by grinding B22C5/04}; obtaining metallic powder by crushing, grinding or milling B22F9/04; {recovery of plastics by disintegrating B29B17/00; crushing raw materials in starch making C08B30/02; beaters for papermaking D21D1/02; crushing devices specially for transport in mines E21F13/002; slag crushing devices F23J1/00; fuel milling devices in combustion apparatus F23K1/00; household devices for crushing coal F24B15/02; ice disintegrating devices F25C5/02}) - B07B: SEPARATING SOLIDS FROM SOLIDS BY SIEVING, SCREENING, SIFTING OR BY USING GAS CURRENTS; SEPARATING BY OTHER DRY METHODS APPLICABLE TO BULK MATERIAL, e.g. LOOSE ARTICLES FIT TO BE HANDLED LIKE BULK MATERIAL (wet separating processes, sorting by processes using fluent material in the same way as liquid B03; combinations of dry separating apparatus with wet separating apparatus B03B; using liquids B03B, B03D; sorting by magnetic or electrostatic separation of solid materials from solid materials or fluids, separation by high voltage electric fields B03C; centrifuges or vortex apparatus for carrying out physical processes B04; hand sorting, postal sorting, sorting by switching or other devices actuated in response to detection or measurement of some feature of articles or samples of material B07C) ## Abstract The aim of this invention is the development of an essentially new method for production of a casing layer (casing) intended for cultivation of mushrooms/plants and the use of appropriate equipment for this purpose. The invention allows the abandonment of raw materials with desired structure and enables making of preferred structure by using locally available low-quality raw materials, which is particularly relevant for countries having no raw materials suitable for the production of mushroom casing. The essence of this method is that a raw paste of ingredients is subjected to mechanical action and in the course of this action extra fibres are gradually added to the paste, fibres which quickly enter the inside of the paste and carry out the function of binding of the material being mixed (primary conglutination). Under continued mechanical action and by adding the rest of the said fibres, agglomeration of formed crumbles occurs (secondary conglutination). Thus agglomerates are formed that are later used to build the casing characterised by desired structure and resistance to mechanical action and virtually independent of the structure of raw materials used. Furthermore, this method offers the possibility to shape the casing surface to give it the desired relief (e.g. wavy surface). ## Claims ### Claim at position 1 1-8. (canceled) ### Claim 9 A production method of casing for cultivation of mushrooms and/or plants comprising: preparation and mechanical processing of primary raw materials of organic and mineral origin, wherein the method comprises the following stages: smoothing, moistening, and mixing of paste of the said primary raw materials by mechanical action, i.e., by shaking, rotating, and rolling; preparation of fibre of organic and/or mineral origin (e.g., peat fibre); gradual blending of the said raw materials with the said fibre by mechanical action, i.e., by shaking, rotating, and rolling, in the course of which the said fibre turns the said raw materials into crumbling components and performs the function of binding/grouping (primary conglutination); further blending of the said formed crumbles by continued mechanical action (shaking, rotating, and rolling) with the rest of the said fibre, during which bound/grouped crumbles agglomerate even more and resemble agglomerates (secondary conglutination); separation of too small fraction of the said formed agglomerates and guiding to the start of process; separation of desirable fraction of the said formed agglomerates and guiding them to casing production/building section where agglomerates of desirable size are used to make casing characterised by desirable structure and mechanical strength; separation of too large fraction of the said formed agglomerates and guiding to shredder section from which shredded agglomerates are guided to the start of process. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The method for production of casing according to claim 9, wherein the method additionally comprises: placing of the said agglomerates (casing) into closed ventilated container where pasteurisation procedure is carried out very efficiently by using hot (˜58° C.) air generated by mushrooms themselves (during growing) or other source of heat. ### Claim 11 (depends on 9) The method for production of casing according to claim 9, wherein the method additionally comprises: drying of the said agglomerates (casing) (previously one of the greatest problems, because drying was not possible due to structure and characteristics of casing). ### Claim 12 (depends on 9) A system for production of casing according to the method of claim 9, wherein the system contains the following units: ingredient feed unit (1) feeding paste of primary raw materials into structurer (3); fibre feed unit (2) feeding fibre into structurer (3); structurer (3) made up of mixer wherein smoothing, moistening, and mixing of the primary raw ingredients take place, and agglutination section wherein the mixed raw paste is gradually mixed with the said fibre to first form crumbles and later agglomerates; sorting unit/separator (4) wherein processes of sorting of the said agglomerates by size take place; too small fraction separation unit (5) wherein agglomerates that are too small are separated and guided to the start of the process, i.e., to structurer (3); desirable fraction separation unit (6) wherein agglomerates of desirable fraction are separated and guided to section where casing featuring desirable structure and mechanical strength is produced; shredding unit (7) accepting agglomerates that are too large and returning them to the start of the process, i.e., to structurer (3); and conveyor system (8) returning agglomerates of different fractions to different sections (to beginning of the process or casing production section); where structurer (3) and separator (4) make a single, cylinder-shaped housing and are permanently connected to each other. ### Claim 13 (depends on 9) A system for production of casing according to the method of claim 9, wherein the system contains the following units: ingredient feed unit (1) feeding paste of primary raw materials into structurer (3); fibre feed unit (2) feeding fibre into structurer (3); structurer (3) made up of mixer wherein smoothing, moistening, and mixing of the primary raw ingredients take place, and agglutination section wherein the mixed raw paste is gradually mixed with the said fibre to first form crumbles and later agglomerates; sorting unit/separator (4a, 4b) wherein processes of separation of the said agglomerates that are too small and guiding to the start of the process (i.e., to structurer (3)) take place; sorting unit/separator (5a, 5b) wherein processes of separation of the said agglomerates that are of desirable fraction and guiding to the section of production of casing featuring desirable structure and mechanical strength, take place; shredding unit (7) accepting agglomerates that are too large and returning them to the start of the process, i.e., to structurer (3); and conveyor system (8) returning agglomerates of different fractions to different sections (to beginning of the process or casing production section); where: structurer (3) and separator (4a, 4b and 5a, 5b) are separated from each other; and the said separators (4a, 4b and 5a, 5b) are based on rotating paddles distance between which can be changed and size of agglomerates can be easily customised. ### Claim 14 (depends on 9) A method for use of casing according to the method of claim 9, wherein an uneven surface of casing on uneven substrate layer is obtained, where the said unevenness of substrate layer can be produced by various techniques, e.g., by mechanically pressing (through casing) the even substrate layer located right under the casing. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The method for use of casing according to claim 14, wherein the surface of casing is wavy or features some other regular or irregular pattern. ### Claim 16 (depends on 14) The method for use of casing according to claim 14, wherein the extra casing (best when made of paper) with apertures allowing passage of air from outside to spawn in casing only at points chosen by grower (resulting in pinning in predefined order) is placed in predefined manner on surface of casing for cultivation.