Crop growing structure and method
OwnerPhilip Fok, Steve Oster +1inventors
InventorsPhilip Fok, Steve Oster, Ken Stutzman
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Plants are grown in grow trays. The grow trays are placed on a shelf that has rollers mounted on a top side of the shelf and a first stop at a first end of the first shelf. The first shelf is tilted so that grow trays placed on the first shelf will tend to roll towards the first stop at the first end of the first shelf. A plurality of light panels is mounted on the light support system at various locations over the shelf so that a first subsection of the grow trays will be illuminated by the light panels and a second subsection of the grow trays will not be illuminated by the light panels.
Claims14
A method for growing crops comprising:
- growing plants in grow trays;
- placing the grow trays on a first shelf that has rollers mounted on a top side of the first shelf and has a first stop at a first end of the first shelf, wherein the first shelf is tilted so that grow trays placed on the first shelf will tend to roll towards the first stop at the first end of the first shelf;
- providing a plurality of light panels mounted on the light support system at various locations over the first shelf so that a first subsection of the grow trays will be illuminated by the light panels and a second subsection of the grow trays will not be illuminated by the light panels;
- and,
- periodically removing one or more grow trays closest to the first stop at the first end of the first shelf, so that the remaining grow trays adjust position by moving closer to the first stop at the first end of the first shelf so that the grow trays traversing the first shelf encounter different light configuration depending upon location on the first shelf.
A method for growing crops comprising:
- growing plants in grow trays;
- placing the grow trays on a first shelf that has rollers mounted on a top side of the first shelf and has a first stop at a first end of the first shelf, wherein the first shelf is tilted so that grow trays placed on the first shelf will tend to roll towards the first stop at the first end of the first shelf;
- providing a plurality of light panels mounted on the light support system at various locations over the first shelf so that different areas of the shelf are illuminated by different lighting configurations optimized for a selected growth stage of plants within the grow trays, wherein light configurations are varied by different light panels in the plurality of light panels providing light of different color and different intensity than is provided by other light panels in the plurality of light panels;
- and,
- periodically removing one or more grow trays closest to the first stop at the first end of the first shelf, so that the remaining grow trays adjust position by moving closer to the first stop at the first end of the first shelf so that the grow trays traversing the first shelf encounter different light configuration depending upon location on the first shelf.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.