公开(公告)号：WO2020027916A1

公开(公告)日：2020-02-06

申请号：PCT/US2019/035951

申请日：2019-06-07

申请人： MJNN, LLC

发明人： KLEIN, Brice ,  MATERA, Matthew ,  DUBEL, Andy ,  JENKINS, Merritt ,  HASOON, Tamara ,  MALONE, Maria ,  OLSON, Anna ,  CUSON, Mark

IPC分类号： A01G31/06

摘要： A tower opening apparatus is provided that is configured to simplify the opening of a multi-piece, hinged, hydroponic tower. The hydroponic tower opening apparatus utilizes a collection of static and continuously moving components (e.g., motor driven drive rollers, alignment rollers, stationary wedges, longitudinal ramps, etc.) to open a hydroponic tower as it passes through the apparatus. In particular, as the tower is driven through the opening apparatus, the fastener(s) holding the face plate(s) to the tower body is released by a wedge(s). After the fastener(s) is released, the face plate(s) is partially rotated about the tower body, thereby partially opening the tower cavity(s). Next a longitudinal ramp(s) continues to rotate the face plate(s) relative to the tower body, moving the face plate(s) to a fully open position.

公开(公告)号：WO2021055257A1

公开(公告)日：2021-03-25

申请号：PCT/US2020/050593

申请日：2020-09-12

申请人： MJNN LLC

发明人： COFFIN, Gage Goodspeed ,  FLYNN, Michael Peter ,  KALAYJIAN, Nicholas ,  SCHOEN, Alan Colbrie ,  JAMES, Andrew Keith ,  SANKARAN, Arvind ,  LE ROUX, Alexandre ,  HENDEL, Nadav Sahar ,  OLSON, Anna ,  HAMILTON, Michael Bennett ,  ST. GEORGE, Theodore Howe ,  PILORIN, Loren Raymond

IPC分类号： A01G31/04 ,  A01G31/06 ,  A01D45/00

摘要： Facility layouts and configurations for an automated crop production system for controlled environment agriculture. In particular implementations, the core of the facility comprises a controlled growth environment and a central processing system. The controlled growth environment includes systems for exposing crops housed in modules, such as grow towers, to controlled environmental conditions. The central processing system may include various stations and functionality both for preparing crop-bearing modules to be inserted in the controlled growth environment, for harvesting crops from the crop-bearing modules after they have been extracted from the controlled growth environment, and for cleaning or washing crop-bearing modules for re-use. The controlled growth environment may include vertical farming structure having vertical grow towers and associated conveyance mechanisms for moving the vertical grow towers along one or more grow lines. The conveyance mechanisms may include a return transfer mechanism that creates a return or u-shaped path for each grow line.

公开(公告)号：WO2021055001A1

公开(公告)日：2021-03-25

申请号：PCT/US2020/015921

申请日：2020-01-30

申请人： MJNN LLC

发明人： ASPERGER, Luke ,  JENKINS, Merritt Jonathan ,  FLYNN, Michael Peter ,  OLSON, Anna ,  MURRAY, Kellen ,  DUBEL, Andrew ,  MATERA, Matthew James ,  KARR, Charles Dylan ,  CUSON, Mark

IPC分类号： A01G31/04 ,  A01G31/06 ,  A01G9/00 ,  A01G31/02

摘要： A drive unit in a controlled agricultural environment increases a distance between an alignment element and a drive element in order to receive a plant support structure that is oriented non-vertically so that the plant support structure rests on the drive element or the alignment element. The drive unit decreases the distance between the alignment element and the drive element so that the alignment element or the drive element rests on the plant support structure. The drive element conveys the plant support structure along a direction of conveyance.

公开(公告)号：WO2020092503A1

公开(公告)日：2020-05-07

申请号：PCT/US2019/058764

申请日：2019-10-30

申请人： MJNN LLC

发明人： COFFIN, Gage Goodspeed ,  FLYNN, Michael Peter ,  KLEIN, Brice Leon ,  LE ROUX, Alexandre ,  STOREY, Nathaniel R. ,  HASOON, Tamara Tahir ,  JENKINS, Merritt Jonathan ,  MALONE, Maria Alexandria ,  MATERA, Matthew James ,  OLSON, Anna ,  HENDEL, Nadav Sahar

IPC分类号： A01D45/00 ,  A01G31/04

摘要： An automated crop production system for controlled environment agriculture that includes a horizontal-to-vertical grow tower interface between a vertical grow structure that includes vertical grow towers and associated conveyance mechanisms for moving the vertical grow towers through a controlled environment, and a processing system that performs one or more processing operations—such as harvesting, cleaning and/or transplanting—on the grow towers in a substantially horizontal orientation. The present disclosure also describes an automated crop production system for controlled environment agriculture that selectively routes grow towers through various processing stages of an automated crop production system.

公开(公告)号：WO2020027917A1

公开(公告)日：2020-02-06

申请号：PCT/US2019/035972

申请日：2019-06-07

申请人： MJNN, LLC

发明人： MATERA, Matthew ,  STAGNARO, Adam, Thomas ,  MALONE, Maria ,  OLSON, Anna ,  KLEIN, Brice ,  HASOON, Tamara ,  JENKINS, Merritt ,  DUBEL, Andy

IPC分类号： A01G31/06

摘要： A tower closing apparatus is provided that is configured to simplify the closing of a multi-piece, hinged hydroponic tower. The hydroponic tower closing apparatus utilizes a collection of static and continuously moving components (e.g., motor driven drive rollers, alignment rollers, tower body alignment rollers, face plate manipulation rollers, face closing rollers, etc.) to close a hydroponic tower as it passes through the apparatus. In particular, as the tower is driven through the closing apparatus, a series of face plate manipulation rollers gradually rotate the face plate(s) relative to the tower body, moving the face plate(s) from a fully open position to a partially closed position. Next a series of face closing rollers continue to rotate the face plate(s) from the partially closed position to the fully closed position, forcing the fasteners to latch the face plate(s) into position.

公开(公告)号：WO2019246026A1

公开(公告)日：2019-12-26

申请号：PCT/US2019/037625

申请日：2019-06-18

申请人： MJNN, LLC

发明人： KLEIN, Brice ,  WHITWORTH, John ,  PILORIN, Loren ,  OLSON, Anna ,  MALONE, Maria ,  LE ROUX, Alexandre ,  FLYNN, Michael ,  HASOON, Tamara ,  MATERA, Matthew ,  CUSON, Mark ,  JENKINS, Merritt

IPC分类号： A01G31/06 ,  A01D90/00 ,  B66F3/00

摘要： Planting and plant harvesting systems are provided for use with a vertical hydroponic tower. The planting and plant harvesting systems utilize a payload transport system that is configured to be positioned at a location adjacent to the hydroponic tower and which includes a base and a lift tower. The lift tower includes a motorized lift system that is configured to move the planting and plant harvesting systems upward and downward. The planter is configured to insert plant containers containing seedlings into the hydroponic tower as the motorized payload lift system moves the planter upwards along the face of the tower. The harvester, which cuts plant stalks while moving upwards along the face of the hydroponic tower, is configured to group and collect the plant leafs.