Smart Hydroponic Plant Growth Chamber with Integrated Air Conditioning System, Artificial Photosynthetic Lighting System, and Smart Monitoring System

Abstract

Given the escalating population in the Philippines, enhancing food security and establishing a community free from hunger is paramount. It is essential for the development of a more food-sustainable nation. Although modern agriculture meets current demands through mechanization and synthetic inputs, it fails to eradicate hunger and contributes to soil degradation. Embracing sustainable farming aligns with the United Nations' sustainable development agenda, mandating the integration of innovative technologies under Agriculture 4.0. This study underscores the critical need for a paradigm shift in agricultural practices to attain sustainable farming and ensure food security for the burgeoning national population. It aims to design and construct a plant growth chamber (PGC) to collect and analyze data for implementing existing technologies into sustainable farming methods, particularly in urbanized areas. This approach optimizes environmental parameters through IoT Arduino-based smart monitoring, minimizing water and soil use and eliminating chemical inputs. This study aims to demonstrate the potential of indoor farming in the Philippines and how it can improve food production with better control and efficiency. By utilizing indoor farming methods, a more sustainable and reliable food supply can be created, addressing the challenges posed by traditional agricultural practices. It compares pak choi's growth (Brassica Rapa Sbsp. Chinensis) in a PGC-integrated hydroponic system versus conventional farming. The germination rate of the pak choi in the system was higher compared to that of grown in soil. The study found that the average calculated relative growth rate tends to be slightly higher for hydroponically grown pak choi (RGR=0.18) than for conventional pak choi (RGR=0.16). The study also observed that pak choi in the PGC has consistent relative humidity and temperature compared to conventional ones.