Real-time plant nutrition prescription

• US 6,549,851 B2
• Filed: 03/23/2001
• Issued: 04/15/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/23/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Platte Chemical Company
• Original Assignee: Platte Chemical Company
• Inventors: Greensides, Thomas W.
• Primary Examiner(s): McElheny, Jr., Donald E.
• Application Number:
  US09/816,650
• Publication Number:
  US 20020138201A1
• Time in Patent Office: 753 Days
• Field of Search: 702/5, 702/2, 706/930, 701/50
• US Class Current: 702/2
• CPC Class Codes: A01B 79/005 Precision agriculture
• CPC Class Codes: A01C 21/002 Apparatus for sowing fertiliser; Fertiliser drill
• CPC Class Codes: A01C 21/007 Determining fertilization requirements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management

Abstract

A system and method for translating plant tissue analysis results into nutritional supplement recommendations. A tissue analysis is performed on plant samples from a treatable area of plants. The tissue analysis results indicate current nutrient levels in the plant. The tissue analysis results are applied as inputs to rule-based logic that selects entries from an expert database. The expert database includes nutritional amendment information including specific products, application rates, and application intervals intended to restore the plant nutrient levels to desired values.

Claims

1. A method of prescribing plant nutrients comprising:

obtaining tissue analysis results for plant samples from a treatable area of plants, the tissue analysis results indicating a current nutrient level in the plant;

providing an expert database of nutritional supplement recommendations;

using the tissue analysis results to select entries from the expert database; and

compiling the selected entries to form a prescription for plant nutrients.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of selecting entries comprises applying the tissue analysis results as inputs to rule-based logic, wherein the rule-based logic selects the entries from the expert database.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the expert database includes nutritional supplement information including specific products, application rates, and application intervals intended to restore at least one plant nutrient level to a desired value.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising combining a soil analysis result with the tissue analysis results in the act of determining a nutritional amendment plan.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the prescription accounts for current environmental conditions and current plant needs.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the act of selecting entries from the expert database comprises:

selecting at least one product from a set of available nutritional supplement products; and

selecting a sequential application regimen from the selected product.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the act of selecting entries from the expert database comprises:

selecting a plurality of products from a set of available nutritional supplement products; and

selecting a sequential application regimen for each of the selected products taking into consideration cooperative and destructive interference from each of the selected products on others of the selected products.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the act of selecting entries from the expert database comprises prioritizing various nutrient shortfalls indicated by the tissue analysis results and determining the nutritional amendment plan so as to preferentially support shortfalls of high priority nutrients as compared to low priority nutrients.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the tissue analysis indicates plant nutrient levels selected from a group consisting of nitrogen, sulfur, phosphorous, potassium, nitrates, zinc, iron, copper, manganese, calcium, magnesium, sodium and boron.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the prescription comprises a selection of foliar supplements and an application schedule for the selected foliar supplements.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the act of selecting entries from the expert database comprises:

comparing the tissue analysis results to a predefined standard for a particular plant;

identifying deviations from the predefined standard; and

selecting the entries from the expert database such that the selected entries describe actions that will cause nutrient levels in the plant to approach the standard.

12. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving a user-input target nutritional profile for particular supplements, wherein the act of automatically determining comprises;

comparing the tissue analysis results to the nutritional profile for a particular plant;

identifying deviations from the target nutritional profile; and

selecting the entries from the expert database such that the selected entries describe actions that will cause nutrient levels in the plant to approach the target nutritional profile.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the act of using the tissue analysis results to select entries is performed using computer-implemented actions comprising:

capturing the tissue analysis results in a spreadsheet format;

loading a target nutritional profile associated with a particular plant and growth stage into the spreadsheet;

using the spreadsheet, comparing the captured tissue analysis results to a target nutritional profile to identify nutrients shortfalls;

for each nutrient shortfall, identifying one or more supplements that provide the nutrient;

cross-checking each identified supplement against other identified supplements to identify contraindicated supplements;

selecting a set of supplements that are not contraindicated within the selected set; and

computing custom application directions for each selected supplement, the application directions including information about timing of the application over the season and mixing directions.

14. A plant nutrient management service comprising:

receiving plant tissue samples;

performing tissue analysis on the received samples to identify a current nutrient profile for the plant;

comparing the current nutrient profile to a desired nutrient profile to identify deviations; and

considering the identified deviations together, generating a nutritional supplement plan to cause the plant nutrient profile to approach the desired nutrient profile.

15. A system for managing plant nutrients comprising:

an interface for receiving plant tissue analysis reports comprising raw data about current nutrient levels in a plant;

an expert database comprising a plurality of entries, wherein at least some entries are associated with a particular nutrient product and indicating nutrient supplement regimens for the associated product;

product selection logic acting on the current nutrient levels to identify shortfalls between current nutrient levels and desired nutrient levels, and identify entries in the expert database indicating regimens suitable to achieve the desired nutrient levels; and

prioritization logic acting on the identified entries to select from the identified entries a subset of entries that are suitable to achieve the desired nutrient levels of particular nutrients in favor of other nutrients.

16. The system of claim 15 further comprising:

interaction logic acting on the identified entries to remove entries associated with nutrient products having contraindicating interactions.

17. The system of claim 15 further comprising:

mandatory rules logic that selects particular entries from the expert database based upon mandatory rules associated with a particular nutrient product.

18. The system of claim 15 further comprising:

time-of-application logic that selects particular entries from the expert database based upon plant-specific information that contraindicates application of a nutrient during the current season.