US 12,284,954 B2
Device for promoting the growth of plants
Simon Vogel, Aachen (DE); and Stefan Schillberg, Aachen (DE)
Assigned to Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Foerderung der angewandten Forschung e.V., Munich (DE)
Filed by Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Foerderung der angewandten Forschung e.V., Munich (DE)
Filed on Aug. 21, 2020, as Appl. No. 17/000,178.
Application 17/000,178 is a continuation in part of application No. 16/618,084, granted, now 12,201,071, previously published as PCT/EP2018/064182, filed on May 30, 2018.
Claims priority of application No. 17173370 (EP), filed on May 30, 2017.
Prior Publication US 2020/0383286 A1, Dec. 10, 2020
Int. Cl. A01G 31/04 (2006.01)
CPC A01G 31/042 (2013.01) 16 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A device for promoting the growth of plants, the device comprising
a conveyor belt that moves along a conveyor path and configured for attaching plants at receiving elements so that as plants grow, plant stems and leaves protrude outward from an outer side of the conveyor belt and plant roots or tubers protrude inward through an underside of the conveyor belt to define a longitudinal axis that is not parallel with the conveyor belt, wherein the conveyor path is a closed circular path or a closed oval path having an upper deflection point vertically above a lower deflection point so that as plants continually alternate between upward and downward movement along the closed circular or oval path, the attached plants alternatingly realign within the gravitational field so that gravitational forces act against different lateral sides of the plants;
a nutrient supply directed at the conveyor belt to supply nutrients to the plant roots or tubers during transport; and
wherein the device is configured to expose plants during transport to natural light, or the device further comprises an illumination unit directed towards the outer side of the conveyor belt to irradiate the leaves during transport with artificially generated light.