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.

A large plant bagging and planting system that is comprised of a hopper surge bin, a first and second workstation. The workstations are connected at or near the center between them, and each respective workstation has a set of walls, or a circular wall, that tapers inward from a wider top opening to a smaller bottom opening, and there is at least one gate located below the walls or circular wall. There is also at least one gate located below each respective workstation. There is also at least one control arm configured to manipulate and hold a large plant into position within a grow bag while potting media that has been placed in the hopper surge bin, is released from at least one workstation via the at least one gate, in am amount appropriate to fill the grow bad to desired depth.

There is provided a pick-and-plant head for planting plant cuttings in a cultivation medium. The pick-and-plant head is provided with a grasper comprising opposed grasping surfaces for grasping a portion of a cutting between them and with an abutment that abuts a cutting. The grasper and abutment are moveable relative to one another and are arranged so that during release of a cutting from the grasper the abutment passes between the opposed grasping surfaces and the cutting is abutted by the abutment.

The present invention relates to an apparatus and a method for treating and transplanting plant propagation materials into a cultivation medium, comprising: a. providing a plurality of plant-receiving cavities in the cultivation medium; b. providing the plant propagation materials (K) in a reservoir (10); c. removing from the reservoir container and separating out plant propagation materials, and d. orienting the separated-out plant propagation materials in a position upwardly of the cavity, and e. releasing the plant propagation material from the orientation position into the associated plant-receiving cavity, and f. selectively applying a dressing composition aliquot to a surface of the plant propagation material while it is moving towards the plant-receiving cavity.

A growing system, which includes: at least one growing space having different locations for plants, a robotic arm provided with at least one tool, and a moving element arranged to move the robotic arm between the different location; an electronic and/or computerized communication element; and a remote control station which is at a distance from the at least one growing space and includes a control element arranged to control the robotic arm in each growing space via the communication element, the control element being arranged to control the moving element so as to move the robotic arm in the growing space between the different locations in the growing space and/or to control actions of the robotic arm in said growing space. Also, a corresponding method utilizing the growing system.

The present invention provides a transplanting equal-dividing mechanism which includes a driving mechanism, a module fixing plate, a robot connecting rod, a linkage and a clamping jaw device, wherein the driving mechanism is disposed above the module fixing plate, a bottom of the module fixing plate is provided with a guide rail, the guide rail is provided with a plurality of sliders thereon, the clamping jaw device is connected below each slider, each clamping jaw device is provided with two linkages on its back surface, and the linkage is rotationally connected to a back of the clamping jaw device. The clamping jaw device is driven by the drive mechanism to achieve automatic separation and aggregation, and the clamping and placing works of plants in the transplanting process are realized by utilizing the clamping and retracting functions of the clamping jaw devices. The application of a plurality of clamping jaws can simultaneously place the plants in the planting tray, so that the transplanting equal-dividing work of the plants can be carries out more quickly, which effectively improves the working efficiency and saves time.

A system for an assembly line grow pod includes a germination hub including a tank, a water source in selective fluid communication with the tank, a pump in selective fluid communication with the tank and the water source, a pod line in selective fluid communication with the germination hub, a seeder assembly in selective fluid communication with the pod line, the seeder assembly including a seeder tank, and a metering device in selective fluid communication with the seeder tank, where the metering device selectively releases seeds from the seeder tank, and a cart positioned below the metering device.

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a potting apparatus, which includes a drill that is repositionable relative to a pot-driving conveyor such that the potting apparatus may be placed in a first potting configuration or a second potting configuration. In the first potting configuration, the drill is in a first position relative to the pot-driving conveyor such that the apparatus can provide the requisite drilling functionality for potting plant life with smaller vertical profiles. In the second potting configuration, the drill is in a second position relative to the pot-driving conveyor to provide sufficient vertical clearance above the pot-driving conveyor for potting plant life with larger vertical profiles. The potting apparatus may further include a soil delivery system adapted to receive and dispense soil to the pot-driving conveyor and a drive system operatively connected to the pot-driving conveyor.

A seed level managing system includes a seed tank configured to contain seeds, a plurality of seed level sensors placed on a sidewall of the seed tank, a surface detecting sensor, and a controller. The controller includes one or more processors, one or more memory modules, and machine readable instructions stored in the one or more memory modules that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the controller to receive first information from the plurality of seed level sensors; receive second information from the surface detecting sensor and determine a number of the seeds in the seed tank based on the first information and the second information.

A full-automatic system and operation method of integrated sorting-transplanting-replanting for plug seedlings includes a frame, feeding units for a target tray and source tray, a discarding seedling tray bin, a single-claw for replanting unit, a multi-claw for sorting and transplanting unit, seedling picking claws and a monitoring module. During transportation, the seedling picking claws pass through a seedling picking zone, seedling monitoring zone, seedling discarding zone and seedling releasing zone in turn. The monitoring module and the single-claw for replanting unit are located behind and in the front of the vertical movement plane of the multi-claw, respectively. Along a tray feeding direction, a first row of the source tray is set as a source area for replanting, and other rows of the source tray are all set as the source area for transplanting. The monitoring and sorting is finished during the transportation without stopping.