Methods and apparatus for indoor farming
Embodiments described herein generally relate to systems and methods for indoor farming. Containers having a lid and a basin can be used to grow plants in stagnant liquid growing medium (e.g., water and nutrients). The lid can contain solid growing medium (e.g., dirt) and seeds and/or plants. The lid can define slots that allow roots of plants to access the liquid growing medium. The containers can be stored in bays of a dense vertical rack system. Each bay can include a gravity feed system. A gantry can be operable to deposit containers into and retrieve containers from bays. Containers can be left in bays for plants to grow with no recirculation or agitation of liquid within the basins and little or no handling.
1 . A system, comprising:
a plurality of containers, each container from the plurality of containers including a basin and a lid, each basin filled with a solution of water and nutrients, each lid containing a solid growing medium and at least one of a seed or a plant, each lid including an opening configured to allow plant roots to protrude into the basin and access the solution of water and nutrients; and
a rack that defines a plurality of bays, the plurality of bays arranged in a plurality of columns and a plurality of rows, each bay having a depth configured to accept at least two containers from the plurality of containers in a single stack configuration, each bay from the plurality of bays including a gravity feed system configured to urge containers from the plurality of containers within that bay towards a front of the rack, each bay from the plurality of bays including a light source and configured to allow the at least one of the seed or the plant in containers from the from the plurality of containers disposed in that bay to grow.
2 . The system of claim 1 , wherein each bay from the plurality of bays has a depth configured to accept at least three containers from the plurality of containers in a single-stack configuration.
3 . The system of claim 1 , wherein each bay from the plurality of bays has a depth configured to accept at least eight containers from the plurality of containers in a single-stack configuration.
4 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the rack includes a gate disposed in front of a bay from the plurality of bays, the gate configured to pivot between an open configuration and a closed configuration, the gate configured to prevent a container from the plurality of containers from exiting that bay in the closed configuration, the gate having a center of gravity below a pivot point of the gate such that the gate automatically closes.
5 . The system of claim 1 , further comprising a gantry configured to move between the plurality of bays and insert a container from the plurality of containers into a bay from the plurality of bays or retrieve a container from the plurality of bays from a bay from the plurality of bays.
6 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the rack includes a gate disposed in front of a bay from the plurality of bays, the gate configured to move between an open configuration and a closed configuration, the gate configured to prevent a container from the plurality of containers from exiting that bay in the closed configuration, the system further comprising:
a gantry configured to move between the plurality of bays, the gantry including an actuator configured to move the gate from the closed configuration to the open configuration,
the gantry configured to insert a container from the plurality of containers into a bay from the plurality of bays or retrieve a container from the plurality of bays from a bay from the plurality of bays when the gate is in the open configuration.
7 . The system of claim 1 , wherein each bay from the plurality of bays and each container from the plurality of containers is configured to allow the at least one of the seed or the plant in each container from the plurality of containers to grow to maturity while each container from the plurality of containers is disposed in a bay from the plurality of bays, without recirculation or agitation of the of the solution of water and nutrients in any container from the plurality of containers.
8 . A system, comprising:
a plurality of containers, each container from the plurality of containers including a basin and a lid, each basin filled with a solution of water and nutrients, each lid containing a solid growing medium and at least one of a seed or a plant, each lid including an opening configured to allow plant roots to protrude into the basin and access the solution of water and nutrients; and
a rack that defines a plurality of bays, the plurality of bays arranged in a plurality of columns and a plurality of rows, each container from the plurality of containers disposed in a bay from the plurality of bays, at least two containers from the plurality of containers disposed, in a single-stack configuration, in one bay from the plurality of bays, each bay from the plurality of bays including a light source configured to illuminate containers from the plurality of containers disposed in that bay,
each bay from the plurality of bays and each container from the plurality of containers configured to allow the at least one of the seed or the plant in each container from the plurality of containers to grow to maturity while each container from the plurality of containers is disposed in a bay from the plurality of bays, without recirculation or agitation of the solution of water and nutrients in any container from the plurality of containers.
9 . The system of claim 8 , wherein each bay from the plurality of bays includes a gravity feed system configured to urge containers from the plurality of containers within that bay towards a front of the rack.
10 . The system of claim 8 , wherein each container from the plurality of containers defines a plurality of slots, each slot from the plurality of slots including the solid growing medium and at least one of a seed or a plant, each slot from the plurality of slots including an opening configured to allow plant roots to protrude into the basin and access the solution of water and nutrients.
11 . The system of claim 8 , wherein each bay from the plurality of bays and each container from the plurality of containers is configured to allow the at least one of the seed or the plant in each container from the plurality of containers to grow to maturity while each container from the plurality of containers is disposed in a bay from the plurality of bays, without filling or draining any container from the plurality of containers.
12 . The system of claim 8 , wherein:
each bay from the plurality of bays includes a gravity feed system configured to urge containers from the plurality of containers within that bay towards a front of the rack; and
the rack includes a gate disposed in front of a bay from the plurality of bays, the gate configured to pivot between an open configuration and a closed configuration, the gate configured to prevent a container from the plurality of containers from exiting that bay in the closed configuration, the system further comprising:
a gantry configured to move between the plurality of bays and insert a container from the plurality of containers into a bay from the plurality of bays or retrieve a container from the plurality of bays from a bay from the plurality of bays.