DE102016015360B3 - Programmable plant rearing lamp - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a plant growing lamp (100, 100 ') comprising at least two different light sources (L, L'), a device (101, 101 ') for controlling the light intensity of the at least two light sources (L, L'), a device ( 102, 102 ') for communicating with a unit (E) separated from the plant growing lamp (100, 100') for transmitting a control setting. According to the invention, it has a timer (103, 103 '), preferably in the form of an electronic timer, via which various control settings can be activated at different times of the day. By means of the clock, the plant growing lamp can autonomously simulate daylight with daytime spectral distributions, without external control.

Description

The invention relates to a programmable plant growing lamp, comprising at least two different light sources, a device for controlling the light intensity of the at least two light sources, a device for communicating with a separate from the Pflanzenaufzuchtlampe unit for transmitting a control setting.

For the cultivation of crops in greenhouses it is known to adapt the circadian light rhythm to the growth phases of the crop plants. For this purpose, the length of the illumination is shifted both in length and in phase within a 24-hour time window. This means that a lighting scenario similar to the spring or early summer, with early sunrise and late sunset, is simulated in the actual season against the daylight window. In order to control the lighting of crops in a greenhouse, electronic timers are used, which turn off the entire greenhouse lighting in a 24-hour rhythm and again.

In addition to the rearing with desired high crop yield, it is also known from medicinal plants that the active ingredient to be obtained from the medicinal plant is particularly high at certain times of the day or night. For example, the active ingredient content of evening primrose (genus, Oenothera) is particularly high at full moon. This can be explained by the fact that plants, as well as other living things, have a daytime specific metabolism. Finally, it is also known that some crops or medicinal plants have an additional, about 28-day metabolic rhythm, which is based on the moon phases.

The existing research branch is still in its infancy for the systematic recording of such effects. Although clues to these daily and lunar rhythms are already known from ancient pharmacopoeias, research has not yet worked out this finding in a manner common to research. Much of the knowledge about the impact of lighting is still placed today in a merely scientific and therefore not to be taken seriously context.

However, the successful simulation of day and night times can no longer be achieved by simply turning on and turning off plant lamps. The biological plant sensors allow a variety of higher-developed plants to distinguish between daylight and moonlight illumination.

Another special problem arises in the rearing of some ornamental plants, such as in the rearing of the popular in Germany at Christmas time poinsettia (Euphorbia pulcherrima). It is observed that the cultivation of young plants in Germany succeeds only unsatisfactory or not. Even with mechanical pollination, the young plant shoots hardly grow under a Northern European lighting situation. Nor has it been possible to solve the problem of growth by simulating African or Central American daylight through the corresponding rhythm of switching on and off. The beginnings of the relevant research allow the conclusion that the change of the spectral composition of the plant light over the day and over other time rhythms as another factor for the plant stimulation is important.

In the international patent application WO2014 / 188303 A1 Koninklijke Philips NV discloses a method for plant breeding and a corresponding system in which a control loop of sensors located in the beds of the plants to be grown and a plant lighting system have an adaptation of the respective growth phase to red and blue LED light controls. The essential idea of the invention disclosed therein is to provide individual light recipes for a crop genus or a plant variety, the total amount of light being controlled in the control loop throughout the day. However, the control loop requires a not inconsiderable investment in control electronics and an existing lighting device must be rebuilt for the lamp control but at least designed for it. Furthermore, the need for a central computer for control is necessary. Networked computers today are becoming increasingly vulnerable to computer vandalism or spying. Computer vandalism is dangerous for greenhouse operators who have made large investments in crops. Spying is a major problem, especially in the pharmaceutical field, when very high-priced medicinal plants are to be grown for an increase in yield for active ingredient harvest.

From the WO2013 / 000092 A1 For example, a network-based plant rearing system is known in which data from a larger number of sensors serve as an input to a control system that also controls, among other things, the lighting of the plant beds. The network-based system can extract data from a data pool for the ideal parameterization of the plant rearing parameters.

Further, at the time of this application, a lamp system commercially available under the trademark Philips ^Hue® on sale is. These are polychromatic lamps whose design is based on a classic incandescent lamp. A sunrise in brightness and color can be simulated via a central control unit which sends control signals to this lamp system, and in turn receives control signals from a mobile telephone or a computer. This system is preferably used for atmospheric lighting or awakening under the illusion of a sunrise. However, this system is complex to manage since every single lamp has to be registered to the system and there is a tripartite division. Namely, there is the lamp, the central control unit which controls the lamps via a simplified control protocol, and the central control unit is remotely controlled by a mobile phone or a personal computer (PC). The use under industrial conditions, where a large number of lamps must be controlled, this is no longer practicable.

The object of the invention is to provide a programmable plant growing lamp which can simulate an improved daylight situation independently of external controls. The programmable plant growing lamp should be less sensitive to computer vandalism and computer spying.

The object underlying the invention is achieved in that the plant rearing lamp has a clock, preferably in the form of an electronic timer, via which various control settings can be activated at different times of the day. Further advantageous embodiments are specified in the subclaims to claim 1.

According to the invention, it is thus provided that the programmable plant rearing lamp has a clock generator. The clock may be in the obvious case, a clock chip, which is read via a microcontroller. Or, the clock chip will become active at predetermined times of the day and will initiate a microcontroller that will hand over a control setting of the internal lamp control for the time of day or for the selected rhythm. The different control settings during the day cause in the lamp according to control technology that the intensity of the different light sources is set individually. Preferably, the control device of the lamp has a memory in which various lamp control programs are stored. In the simplest form, these programs can be a table in which one time or a date or a combination of time and date is stored per line and an intensity value as another line entry per light source intensity to be controlled. The lamp control then reads from the table the valid for the respective time intensity values. Since the intensity is very high in very bright plant rearing lamps, the controller may have an 8-bit register or a 16-bit register, with the aid of which the intensity can be subdivided into 256 (8-bit) or 65,536 (16-bit) intensity levels. Such a high level of dynamics in lamp intensity control means that new and daytime individual intensity combinations of the various light sources can be set over the course of a day in the range of seconds. In order to prevent the stored control tables from becoming very large, provision can be made for having a starting point in time with a start intensity instead of long tables with values in the rows and a time endpoint of a control interval with an end intensity. In between, the intensity of all or individual light sources may increase or decrease linearly or increase or decrease according to certain functional patterns.

For a simplified light simulation it can be provided that a mathematical function stored in the control device calculates the sunrise time and the sunset time at a place on earth from a geographical length parameter and a geographic latitude parameter and a given date, optionally a height parameter, which are the predetermined geographic length parameters and geographical latitude parameters. By this mathematical function can be with less than 200 locations almost all daylight relevant regions of the earth with respect to the sunrise time, sunrise time, sunset time, sunset time and by the elevation and the spectral composition of the daylight sufficiently by simple calculation, with the help of a inexpensive micro-controller is calculable simulate. It can be provided that for an internally calculated table of 200 value lines of latitude, longitude, altitude and date additional spectral time courses are specified, which are set alternatively or cumulatively to the calculated light spectrum of the control device of the lamp. A factory-made and factory-configured lamp, by specifying a region on a personal computer or a mobile phone as a unit for transmitting a control setting, enables the calculation of a particular lighting scenario, which can be refined by specifying additional time / spectrum information. Such a control program of a maximum of a few hundred kByte size can via e-mail communication to a computer or by Filing and downloading botany portals of the lamp are transmitted, whereupon they independently unwinds their lighting program regardless of a control from the outside.

For use under industrial conditions, that is, in large greenhouses having a plurality of identical or similar type lamps, it is impracticable to individually program all the lamps when changing the control program, for example, for other planting or experimental purposes. The large gaps in larger greenhouses make it almost impossible to deposit the control program with high reliability by transmitting it once to all independent lamps. In order to simplify the deposit of new control programs, provision may be made in the programmable plant growing lamp for the device for communication with a plant control lamp separate unit to transmit a control setting, or another device for communication over a day periodically to send out a request signal is sent to the same or similar plant-like plant cultivation lamps in the immediate vicinity, whereby the same or similar plant-breed lamps emit their own control setting, which is received by the aforementioned device for communication and the device for controlling the light intensity of the at least two light sources.

It is therefore intended that the lamps regularly ask neighboring lamps for new programs. If a lamp is equipped with a new program, this lamp, when interrogated by another lamp shares its new program, which can carry a timestamp, with the neighboring lamp. If the newer control program is newer than that in the adjacent lamp, the adjacent lamp replaces its own control program. In this way, a once communicated to the lamps program spreads like wildfire. To prevent improperly modifying the bulbs from the outside, the bulbs should carry out encrypted communication with the lamp set only for initial installation or after a power failure for unencrypted reception of a new communication key for communication with other bulbs. After a single receipt of a communication key, the lamp can only receive a new key through encrypted communication.

It is not only the timing of the light important, but also the spectral distribution. In order to achieve the broadest possible distribution of the light, the plant cultivation lamp according to the invention is provided in a preferred embodiment that at least one light source of the at least two different light sources emits light in the UVC range, which fluorescents phosphors, preferably in the form of rare earth doped alkaline earth phosphates in a light is converted with longer wavelengths than the UVC range. It is therefore intended to use light, for example from LED and convert this to longer wavelengths with loss of power. This approach makes it possible to provide light in various typical spectral ranges with essentially identical LEDs and by using different conversion filters. For example, blue and red light from LEDs can be obtained directly and, if necessary, converted into long-wave near infrared light by conversion filters. Furthermore, it can be provided to convert the UVC light into UVA light, thereby also making available to the plants to be grown UVA light. Finally, the UVC light of the UVC-LED can also be converted to a white light by mixtures of fluorescent phosphors, whereby the plant to be grown is a daylight-like light with accumulation of light in the UVA range, in the blue range, in the red range and in the near IR Area receives. This lighting is then changed based on the table stored in the lamp over the day and / or the date.

The programmable plant growing lamp is concretized by means of an example, wherein in the following figures all optional features are realized in one example.

• 1.1 eine polychromatische Lampe aus dem Stand der Technik,
• 1.2 eine Kommunikationseinheit zur Verbindung der Lampe aus 1.1 mit einem Computer-Netzwerk,
• 1.3 ein Mobiltelefon als Handcomputer zur Programmierung der Lampe aus 1.1,
• 2.1 eine erfindungsgemäße Pflanzenaufzuchtlampe in einer äußern Ansicht,
• 2.2 die Pflanzenaufzuchtlampe aus 2.1 in einer teilweisen durchbrochenen Ansicht,
• 2.3 eine Hülse mit Konversionsfiltern für die Pflanzenaufzuchtlampe aus 2.1,
• 3 eine Gewächshaussituation mit einer typischen Anwendungssituation der programmierbaren Pflanzenaufzuchtlampe,
• 4 eine erfindungsgemäße Pflanzenaufzuchtlampe in einer alternativen Ausführungsform,
• 5 einzelne Spektren der Lichtquellen in der erfindungsgemäßen Pflanzenaufzuchtlampe,
• 6 beispielhafte Einzelspektren zur Simulation von Sonnenaufgang, Tageslicht, Sonnenuntergang und Nacht.

It shows:

• 1 .1 a polychromatic lamp of the prior art,
• 1 .2 a communication unit for connecting the lamp 1 .1 with a computer network,
• 1 .3 a mobile phone as a handheld computer to program the lamp 1 .1,
• 2 1 shows a plant growing lamp according to the invention in an external view,
• 2 .2 the plant rearing lamp 2 .1 in a partially broken view,
• 2 .3 a sleeve with conversion filters for the plant growing lamp 2 .1,
• 3 a greenhouse situation with a typical application situation of the programmable plant rearing lamp,
• 4 a plant growing lamp according to the invention in an alternative embodiment,
• 5 individual spectra of the light sources in the plant growing lamp according to the invention,
• 6 Exemplary single spectra for the simulation of sunrise, daylight, sunset and night.

In the figures 1 .1, 1 .2 and 1 .3 is an overall system for a polychromatic lamp 1 represented by the prior art, as it has become known today, for example, under the brand name Philips Hue ^® in the trade. In the lamp 1 There are different LEDs, usually a red LED R , a blue LED B and a green LED G , This LED R . G and B be through one in the lamp 1 existing control device 2 controlled in their intensity. Since it is three LEDs with primary colors red, green and blue, it is possible to have a large color space with this lamp 1 cover. The one in the lamp 1 existing control device 2 is wirelessly from a so-called hub via a simplified control protocol 3 controlled as a central control unit. The hub 3 is in turn by a mobile phone 4 as a handheld computer or remotely controlled by a personal computer PC via a widespread wireless communication protocol (WLAN). The hub 3 as a central control unit takes over a kind of translation function, which makes it unnecessary that any lamp to be controlled 1 must be logged in a wireless computer network and identified as the central control unit, Hub 3 , and the lamp 1 lead to a simplified wireless protocol. The mobile phone 4 as a hand-held computer or the personal computer PC transmits on request by a user a control profile for a desired color of the polychromatic lamp 1 so the lamp 1 this color actually shows. By using a specific program on the mobile phone 4 as a handheld computer or on the personal computer PC is always in regular and relatively short intervals, a new control profile in the polychromatic lamp 1 deposited. The polychromatic lamp 1 It changes its color over time and can, for example, simulate a sunrise, such as a half-hourly transition from an incipient red / orange light, which changes into an initially yellowish and then whitish light.

In the figures 2 .1, 2 .2 and 2 .3 is a plant growing lamp according to the invention 100 shown with a control device 101 and a device 102 for communication and a clock 103 , preferably in the form of a clock chip. It shows 2 .1 the plant raising lamp 100 as it is recognizable from the outside. In 2 .2 is the plant growing lamp 100 shown in broken lines. Inside the plant raising lamp 100 there are individual sections S in which each one LED as a light source L with individual light spectrum and emit the light in the UVC range, in the blue area or in the red area. The light of this LED is first through a transparent sleeve H with different conversion filters applied to it K converted or converted and colored. Depending on the desired spectral composition of the plant light, an intensity combination of the various spectral components is produced by the control device 101 generated by this the drive current for the individual LED L individually adjusted. The plant cultivation lamp presented here 100 is shown as a tube lamp, but the structure of Pflanzenaufzuchtlampe invention 100 is not reduced to the tube shape, but it comes in principle any design into consideration.

In 3 is a typical application scenario of the programmable plant rearing lamp 100 for lighting plants P presented in a nursery bed. At the beginning of use, namely the first installation in a lamp socket or the first energization of the plant growing lamp 100 with mains power, this is susceptible to receiving a communication key KS with the plant raising lamp 100 with other plants rearing lamps 100 or with a central unit e communicates to transmit a control setting. There is such a central unit e Similar to the in 1 The lamp represented a hub that serves as a translator and that makes it unnecessary for any single plant growing lamp 100 individually addressable by receiving an individual network address. The optional use of a communication key KS However, this is important or necessary only in cases where it is to be feared that a chosen lighting program will be read out in an unauthorized manner or that the plant cultivation lamps 100 be adjusted by computer sabotage. To the communication key KS to receive, send each plant rearing lamp 100 a request signal AS with which she signals that she has a new communication key KS would like to receive. An adjacent plant growing lamp 100 then sends under encryption with the communication key KS the plant growing lamp sending the request 100 a new private communication key KS the requesting plant raising lamp 100 then uses for further communication. So that an adjacent Pflanzenaufzuchtlampe 100 Can decide if they have a new communication key KS compares these internally, whether the public communication key KS the requesting plant raising lamp 100 is identical with your own public communication key KS or a former own communication key KS , To avoid getting an old communication key KS is distributed, it is provided that a timestamp is added to each record, only from the central unit e can be changed to transmit a control setting.

After the communication key KS in a large group of construction-similar or construction-similar Pflanzenaufzuchtlampen 100 has spread is the single plant raising lamp 100 receptive to receiving new control programs SP or time synchronization signals. Each date whether communication key, control program or time synchronization signal is a timestamp of the central unit e attached to transmit a control setting. Only if the timestamp of the received record is newer than the timestamp of an existing record will that be in the plant raising lamp 100 Updated existing record.

A user of a greenhouse can now, for example, from a botany portal on the Internet, shown here as a cloud for engl. "Cloud", a control file just a few hundred kilobytes in size SP Download and this at least one of the plant breeding lamps 100 about the way of the central unit e to communicate a control setting. Depending on the frequency of the request for new data sets, the new control program spreads SP in the plant rearing lamps 100 like wildfire. In the few hundred kilobyte control file SP There may be several different growth programs for ornamental plants, tropical plants, medicinal plants, vegetables or other plants. The user then transmits a selected record in the form of a control file SP one of the plants rearing lamps 100 about the central unit e for transmitting a control setting (hub), which then receives the received control file SP how a program executes. To avoid unwanted reprogramming, to prevent computer sabotage or to avoid spying, the user provides the central unit e for transmission of a control setting (stroke), resulting in no communication of the plant rearing lamps 100 more is possible to the outside. The plant rearing lamps 100 only communicate with each other for mutual query whether updates exist. The plant rearing lamps 100 So run from this point to the central unit e to transmit a control setting (hub) is switched off, autonomous, that is: without external control.

In 4 is an alternative lamp assembly of a plant growing lamp 100 ' in a broken view, in which the conversion filter K ' are inside the tube of a tube lamp and are illuminated from inside by the LED L 'as light sources.

In 5 Exemplary different basic spectra of the LED as a light source and the conversion filter are shown. Here, the dimensionless intensity I plotted as the ordinate over the wavelength of light in nm (10 ^-9 m). In the present case, a type D65 phosphor is excited by a UVC LED and produces the light of the color of a uniformly clouded sky.

In order to mix UVA levels into the light, modified D65-type phosphor UVC-LED combinations exist that emit light in the UVA range.

Furthermore, a blue LED can be present which emits light approximately in the range of the wavelength around λ = 420 to 450 nm.

Finally, a red LED can still be present which emits light approximately in the range of wavelength λ = 610 to 640 nm.

Furthermore, a near-infrared light source can also be present, which emits light by conversion of a light from a light source with shorter wavelengths about λ = 800 nm in the wavelength range. Exemplary mixtures of the light are in 6 shown. For example, on the simulated morning blue light and red light can be added to the spectrum for the main light, so that a sunrise can be simulated with orange / red light, which has a not inconsiderable amount of UVA due to the scattering of the sky.

Over the simulated day, the plant rearing light is essentially white due to the D65 light but still blended with blue.

At the simulated evening the light turns orange / red again and a near infra-red part (NIR-part), which was obtained from the conversion of blue light, is added to the evening light to simulate a rest day heat.

At night there is only a very low proportion of white light with UVA content, which is supposed to simulate moonlight.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS

1

polychromatic lamp

2

control device

3

stroke

4

mobile phone

100

Plant growing lamp

100 '

Plant growing lamp

101

control device

101 '

control device

102

Device for communication

102 '

Device for communication

103

clock

103 '

clock

AS

request signal

B

blue LED

e

Unit for transmitting a control setting

G

green LED

H

shell

I

dimensionless intensity

L

light source

L '

light source

R

red LED

K

conversion filters

K '

conversion filters

KS

communication key

P

plant

S

section

SP

control program

Claims (5)

Plant growing lamp (100, 100 '), comprising - at least two different light sources (L, L'), - a device (101, 101 ') for controlling the light intensity of the at least two light sources (L, L'), - a device (102 , 102 ') for communicating with a unit (E) separate from the plant growing lamp (100, 100') for transmitting a control setting, characterized in that it comprises a clock generator (103, 103 '), preferably in the form of an electronic timer which different control settings can be activated at different times of the day. Plant growing lamp after Claim 1 , characterized in that - the device (102, 102 ') for communication with a unit (E) separate from the plant growing lamp (100, 100') for transmitting a control setting, or another device for communication over a day recurrently a request signal ( AS), which is sent to the same or similar plant-growing lamps (100, 100 ') in the immediate vicinity, whereby the identical or similar type Pflanzenaufzuchtlampen (100, 100') send out their own control setting, which of the aforementioned device for communication (102, 102 ') is received and the device (101, 101') for controlling the light intensity of the at least two light sources (L, L ') is passed. Plant raising lamp according to one of the Claims 1 or 2 , characterized in that of the at least two different light sources (L, L ') emits at least one light in the UVC range, which is converted via fluorescent phosphors, preferably in the form of rare earth earth alkaline phosphates in a light with longer wavelengths than the UVC range , Plant raising lamp according to one of the Claims 1 to 3 , characterized in that it comprises a light source with white light of the type D65, blue light, red light and near infrared light, wherein the light of the light sources is generated directly or is converted by conversion filters. Method for operating a plant growing lamp according to one of Claims 1 to 4 , Characterized in that a stored in the control device mathematical function calculated from a longitude parameter, and a latitude parameter and a predetermined date, optionally, a height parameter, the sunrise time and the sunset time at a location on the earth, having the predetermined longitude parameter latitude parameters.

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