Abstract:
An inflatable plant support system for receiving, moving and growing potted plants. The system includes an elongated inflatable member having recesses defined in a top surface thereof to accept potted plants. Channels defined in the top surface distribute water to the plants. The inflatable member may be rolled onto a reel and inflated as it is unrolled so that plants may be placed thereon. An interior of the inflatable member is heated.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims priority from earlier filed United States Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 60/060,771, filed Oct. 2, 1997, and entitled “Inflatable Plant Support Structure,” now abandoned. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to support systems for plants, more particularly to an inflatable plant support structure. 
     2. Prior Art 
     Potted plants are typically grown in environmentally controlled greenhouses. The air temperature and humidity are controlled throughout the entire volume of the greenhouse. Water is delivered to each of the plants in a system of water delivery pipes and sprinkler heads. 
     Such greenhouses may be up to 1,000 feet wide and 120 feet long with the width of the greenhouse divided up into individual bays of ten to twenty feet in width. Roadways extending the full width of the greenhouse on either end of the greenhouse and/or through the middle of the greenhouse provide access to the bays for transporting plants to and from the bays. Once the plants have been transported to the end of the bays, a worker must remove each potted plant from a truck or dolly or the like and carry the plant down the bay and place it on the floor or a table. Such procedures are very time consuming and labor intensive as workers walk back and forth carrying potted plants from a truck to the floor of the bay. When the plants have grown sufficiently, workers must again pick up each of the individual plants, remove them from the bay and reload them onto a truck for delivery elsewhere. 
     One solution to this problem has been the use of a conveyor for transporting the plants from the truck to the bay, but such conveyors are cumbersome and expensive to maintain. Another solution has been the use of a Dutch tray and a railway. The Dutch tray typically is a 4 foot by 9 foot table having casters mounted on its underside which allow the tray to be moved down the bay along the railway. This requires that the roadway also have rails and results in a very expensive installation, typically $10 per square foot. Considering that the cost of operating a greenhouse is about $10 per square foot itself, the use of a Dutch tray doubles the cost of operation of a greenhouse and therefore is prohibitively expensive. 
     Thus, a need remains for a plant support and transport system which reduces the labor required for placing potted plants within bays of a greenhouse. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     This need is met by the inflatable plant support structure of the present invention which includes an elongated inflatable housing, preferably formed in a roll made from polyethylene. The housing defines a chamber and includes a plant receiving surface outside of the chamber. A plurality of recesses are defined in the plant receiving surface and are each adapted to receive a potted plant. A first end of the inflatable housing defines one or more first inlets, a second inlet and an outlet. The first inlets are connected to a manifold having a plurality of pipes, each pipe being connected to one of the first inlets. The manifold is adapted to be in fluid communication with a first fluid source, preferably pressurized air, so that the chamber may be filled with the first fluid. 
     A plurality of channels are defined in the plant receiving surface and include a main channel and a plurality of branch channels in fluid communication with the main channel and the recesses. A duct is disposed within the chamber and is in fluid communication with the second inlet and the outlet. The second inlet is adapted to be in fluid communication with a second fluid supply and the outlet communicates with the atmosphere. Heat from the second fluid in the duct transfers to the first fluid in the chamber. A plurality of apertures are defined in the plant receiving surface to allow the heated first fluid to escape therethrough. 
     A first cable is attached to the first end and is adapted to be wound upon a first cable reel. A second cable is attached to the second end and is adapted to be wound onto a second reel. When the first cable is wound upon the first cable reel, the roll and the second cable unwind from the second reel and the roll is unwound to expose the plant receiving surface. 
     The present invention further includes a plant support system including the plant support structure and a body which extends over the housing and compresses the plant receiving surface and the base together so that only the portion of the housing between the body and the first end is inflated when the first fluid enters the housing through the first inlets. The system further includes a support member which elevates the inflated portion adjacent the body. The support member includes an inclined surface over which the inflated portion moves when the roll is unwound and the first cable is wound onto the first cable reel. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of an inflatable plant support system with an inflatable plant support structure made in accordance with the present invention when partially unrolled; 
     FIG. 2 is a side perspective view of the inflatable plant support structure illustrated in FIG. 1 when fully unrolled; 
     FIG. 3 is a plan view of a portion of the inflatable plant support structure illustrated in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view of the inflatable plant support illustrated in FIG. 3 taken along line IV—IV; 
     FIG. 5 is a cross sectional view of the inflatable plant support structure illustrated in FIG. 3 taken along line V—V; 
     FIG. 6 is a side elevation view of the inflatable plant support structure illustrated in FIG. 1 when partially unrolled; and 
     FIG. 7 is a side elevation view of the inflatable plant support structure illustrated in FIG. 6 when fully unwound. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     As depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2, the inflatable plant support structure  10  of the present invention includes a roll  12  of an elongated inflatable housing  14 . The roll  12  is adapted to be wound onto a housing reel  16 . The housing  14  defines a chamber  18  and includes a first end  20  extending from the roll  12 . As the roll  12  is unwound, a plant receiving surface  22  is exposed which is spaced apart from a base  24  by two sides  26 . 
     As shown in detail in FIGS. 3 and 4, the plant receiving surface  22  defines a plurality of recesses  28 , preferably being cylindrically or frustoconically shaped, which are each adapted to receive a potted plant  30 . For six inch pots, such as may be used to grow annual plants, the centers of the recesses  28  should be about seven inches apart. The housing  14  is made of a flexible material such as polyethylene which allows it to be wound into the roll  12  and unwound to expose the plant receiving surface  22 . 
     Referring back to FIGS. 1 and 2, a plurality of first inlets  32  are defined in the first end  20  and are in fluid communication with the chamber  18 . The first inlets  32  are adapted to be in fluid communication with a fluid source (not shown), preferably an air supply such as an air compressor. Air provided from the air supply inflates the housing  14 . Preferably, each of the first inlets  32  are connected to the air supply via a manifold  34 . The air supply tubing and the first end  20  further define a bleed hole (not shown) having a removable plug (not shown). 
     A body  36  extends across-a width of the housing  14  urging the plant receiving surface  22  and the base  24  towards one another such that only a portion  38  of the housing  14  extending between the body  36  and the first end  20  is inflated when the roll  12  is unwound and air flows through the manifold  34 , the first inlets  32  and into the chamber  18 . Preferably, the body  36  includes an upper roller  40  impinging upon the plant receiving surface  22  and a lower roller  42  impinging upon the base  24 . The gap between surfaces of the rollers  40  and  42  is selected to allow the housing  14  to pass between the rollers  40  and  42  yet prevent air from passing between the rollers  40  and  42  into an uninflated portion  44  of the housing  14 . 
     As shown in FIG. 3, the plant receiving surface  22  defines a main channel  46 , a plurality of first branch channels  48  and a plurality of second branch channels  50 . The main channel  46  extends along the length of the housing  14  and the first branch channels  48  are in fluid communication with the main channel  46 . The first branch channels  48 , in turn, are in fluid communication with the second branch channels  50  which are in fluid communication with the recesses  28 . Preferably, the first branch channels  48  have larger cross sectional areas than the second branch channels  50 . Other configurations of the channels can be made without departing from the invention. 
     FIGS. 4 and 5 show a heating duct  52  disposed within the chamber  18  to warm the air within the chamber  18  and maintain the proper temperature for the potted plants  30  growing within the recesses  28 . The heating duct  52  is in fluid communication with a second inlet  54  defined in the first end  20  and which is adapted to be connected to a warm fluid supply (not shown). The housing  14  further includes an outlet  56  in fluid communication with the heating duct  52  and adapted to vent to the atmosphere. The heating duct  52  preferably is disposed within the chamber  18  adjacent an underside  58  of the plant receiving surface  22  in a sinuous manner to ensure heat transfer throughout the chamber  18  from the heating duct  52  to the chamber  18 . A plurality of apertures  53  are defined in the plant receiving surface  22 , preferably located above the heating duct  52 . 
     Returning to FIGS. 1 and 2, a first cable  60  is attached at one end thereof to the first end  20 . Preferably, the first cable  60  includes two portions  62  which extend through the housing  14  and are each mounted on an inner surface  64  of one of the sides  26 . The portions  62  are longer than the housing  14 . Another end of the first cable  60  is attached to a cable reel  68 . A second cable  70  is attached to the first cable portions  62  extending out from a second end  72  of the housing  14  and is attached to the housing reel  16 . 
     A table  74 , having a horizontal surface  76  and a sloped surface  78 , is positioned adjacent the housing reel  16 . The sloped surface  78  preferably forms an angle of about 25° with the floor. 
     In operation, the first end  20  of the housing  14  is withdrawn from the roll  12  by winding the first cable  60  around the cable reel  68 . Compressed air is supplied to the manifold  34  via an air supply tubing  80  connected to the air supply. The air supply tubing  80  is provided on a tubing reel (not shown), or the cable reel  68  and the tubing reel may be combined as a single unit. The air flows through the air tubing  80 , the manifold  34  and into the chamber  18  via the inlets  32 . The portion  38  of the housing  14  extending between the rollers  40  and  42  and the first end  20  becomes inflated. The roll  12  is slowly unwound and the housing  14  is pulled along the length of a bay by the first cable  60 . Potted plants  30  are inserted into the recesses  28  of the inflated portion  38  which rests on the horizontal surface  76  of the table  74 . 
     As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, when the first end  20  is pulled via the first cable  60  towards the cable reel  68 , a portion of the plant receiving surface  22  having potted plants  30  placed in the recesses  28  moves off the horizontal surface  76  and down the sloped surface  78  to the floor. When the housing  14  is fully extended and unwound from the housing reel (FIG.  7 ), the housing  14  and the potted plants  30  placed therein remain in this position for a period of time. Due to the apertures  53  and possible incidental air leaks in the housing  14 , air is preferably continuously supplied from the air supply to the chamber  18  so that the housing  14  remains inflated. 
     A source of warm fluid, preferably warm air, is connected to the second inlet  54  so that air circulates through the heating duct  52 . The warm air becomes cooled as it passes through the heating duct  52  as heat transfers from the warm air inside the heating duct  52  to the air within the chamber  18  and to the potted plants  30 . The cooled air then exits the heating duct  52  via the outlet  56  to the atmosphere. Warm air escapes the chamber  18  through the apertures  53  to warm the potted plants  30 . The temperature of the warm air is selected to provide the proper growing temperature for the plants  30 . 
     When the housing  14  is fully extended and rests upon the floor, the main channel  46  may be filled with water from a hose  82  or the like as shown in FIG.  2 . As water fills the main channel  46 , it flows into the first branch channels  48 , the second branch channels  50  and into the recesses  28 . The channels  46 ,  48  and  50  are filled with water periodically or as needed for growth of the plants. 
     When the growing period of the plants has ended and the plants are ready to be removed from the bay, the second cable  70  and the housing  14  are rewound into the roll  12 . In order to rewind the housing  14  onto the housing reel  16 , the housing  14  must be deflated. The removable plug is removed from the bleed hole and air slowly escapes therethrough to the atmosphere. The pair of rollers  40  and  42  urges the plant receiving surface  22  and the base  24  towards each other thus reducing the volume of the chamber  18  and forcing air out of the chamber  18  through the bleed hole. As the housing  14  is rewound onto the housing reel  16 , the potted plants  30  travel back up the sloped surface  78  of the table  74  to the horizontal surface  76 . The potted plants  30  may readily be removed from the recesses  28  supported by the horizontal surface  76  and be placed onto a truck or the like for transport elsewhere. 
     The inflatable plant support structure  10  may further include a cover (not shown) releasably attached to the plant receiving surface  22  or the sides  26  to define an upper chamber into which the plants  30  extend thus creating a self-contained greenhouse. The upper chamber is climate controlled such that the combination of the inflatable support structure with the cover may be used as a self-contained greenhouse. The cover includes an inlet for delivery of water and is transparent or translucent to permit sunlight to reach the plants. Each self-contained greenhouse may be operated independently. Plants requiring common temperature control and watering level may be placed together in one greenhouse. The cover is reattachable to the plant receiving surface  22  or the sides  26  by use of a sealing mechanism such as a zipper or adhesives. The sealing mechanism permits the cover to be opened for placement of plants  30  into the recesses  28  and reopened for removal of plants  30  and then reopened and resealed repeatedly. 
     The cover defines a cover inlet and a cover outlet. The cover inlet is adapted to receive a flow of air, preferably heated air, to inflate the cover above the plants  30  as the inflatable plant support structure  10  is unrolled and while the plants  30  are growing. The cover outlet is adapted to allow air to escape the upper chamber when the inflatable plant support structure  10  is unrolled or as otherwise needed to provide air flow through the upper chamber to refresh the air within the upper chamber. 
     In order to maintain the cover inflated above the plants  30  when the plants  30  are being placed into or removed from the recesses  28 , the air supplied to the upper chamber through the cover inlet is pressurized. Alternatively, the area surrounding an opened portion of the cover may be contained with a pressurized chamber in sealing engagement with the inflatable plant support structure  10  and/or the cover. 
     It will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art that modifications may be made to the invention without departing from the concepts disclosed in the foregoing description. Such modifications are to be considered as included within the following claims unless the claims, by their language, expressly state otherwise. Accordingly, the particular embodiments described in detail herein are illustrative only and are not limiting to the scope of the invention which is to be given the full breadth of the appended claims and any and all equivalents thereof.