Advanced manufacturing, a term that describes using equipment such as 3D Printers, allows individuals and organizations to print any object that can fit within the size of the printer. From tools, to plumbing, to enclosures, to plant media structures that enable more effective nutrient and water delivery which can enhance yield of the plants. While printing standard components will be made possible, the latter plant media structures will be the primary focus of this project; to enhance the structure in which the plant and/or growing media is located throughout the life cycle of the plant, with the specific intention of increasing annual yield.

Lack of access to parts in remote communities in particular can delay production of a portion of, or the entire indoor farm, so establishing a ubiquitous capability in remote communities to produce their own parts and materials on-the-fly will have a strong impact on indoor farming system reliability, operational costs, and consistent high quality yield of food from for north community investments in agricultural technology.

The plant media structures will increase the contact that water, nutrients, and air have with the root system, which has been shown to increase yield when compared to conventional farming.6 Improving on prior aeroponics systems, a better planting media structure will make more root surface area accessible to aeroponics nozzles distributing water and nutrients to the roots via a fog or mist.

3D printing excels at generating parts that have shapes that are impossible to produce any other way. Other manufacturing methods force very simple designs or solutions to problems, which are not sufficient to solve the problem of plant media structures to ensure roots are getting as much exposure to water, nutrients, and air as necessary to support a plant’s improved yield.

A decrease in time for transplant readiness by approximately one-third is also expected, which enables five to six crop cycles a year (indoor aeroponics year-round) instead of just one or two (conventional farming). We intend to improve the quality of seedling readiness for transplant with a new seedling media structure that we develop for printing on a 3D printer.

Specific defined scope:

• Choose a focus prototype, such as the plant media structure or the atomizer.
• Propose 2-3 different potential solutions either as sketches or draft models.
• Refine the model and prepare for printing.
• Work with your institute to complete a print and either test in-house or ship to AgriTech North for testing.
• All additional costs of the printing process or utilization of Additive Manufacturing Lab time will be covered by AgriTech North.

Benjamin has taught independent studies, led capstone projects, and fulfilled internships/co-ops for mechanical engineers, electrical engineers, computer scientists, and architects. He has fulfilled such obligations with positive results for more than fifty students ranging in practice from research at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute to industry experience.