Development Status and Prospect Analysis of LED Plant Growth Lights

With the rapid development of the rural economy and the improvement of people's living standards, farmers' requirements for lighting quality have also increased. Especially since the implementation of the national policy of promoting energy-saving lighting, it has further stimulated the huge demand of the rural market. Here, the “rural market” is not a geographical meaning, but represents a consumption power and level.

In the rural market, the biggest channel is the plant growth lamp. At the 23rd Taipei International Optoelectronic Week Exhibition, the plant factory echoes the trend of green energy economy and climate change, exhibiting plant growth lights, hydroponic facilities, testing and Equipment such as environmentally-friendly energy-saving systems are quite eye-catching.

In recent years, the fully artificial light-controlled plant factory is gradually forming a new manifestation of the semiconductor industry on a global scale, combining the technological advantages of traditional agriculture, the lighting and automation technology of the semiconductor industry, and the deep industrial foundation of network information. The factory seems to be an important application and development direction for the development of the global semiconductor industry.

LED plant lamp market development status

Plant lighting, which has been popular in Japan and South Korea, has recently begun to receive attention in China. The sales market of LED plant lights is concentrated in countries and regions with less agricultural personnel in Japan, South Korea, Central America, and Europe. However, with the increase in the penetration rate of LED plant growth lamps, the Chinese market has entered an explosive period. According to the survey, the global LED plant growth lamp production value began to show rapid growth in 2013, although the output value is only 10 million US dollars, but it is estimated that in 2014 will exceed 35 million US dollars, 2017 is expected to challenge 300 million US dollars.

Lin Peiyu, a researcher at the Photovoltaic Industry Center of Tuoba Industrial Research Institute, said that the cost of LED plant lights in 2013 has fallen sharply compared to 2010. Each lumen is about NT$0.38, which is only 1/5 of the 1.8 yuan in 2010, which in turn drives Philips. Osram, Mitsubishi, Panasonic and other international manufacturers have invested in the LED plant factory innovation application, Taiwan with both LED and agricultural advantages, of course, do not want to miss business opportunities, add technology innovation to agriculture, let enterprises promote the value of 100 million yuan .

Taiwan has the advantages of developing special wavelengths of LED lamps, customizable products, low cost of construction, overall solutions, technology transfer, etc. at the plant factory, but it also faces insufficient government support, uneven products, and low brand awareness. Hidden worry, the primary solution to the problem at this stage is the promotion strategy of LED plant lights.

The plant factory originated in 1957 in Denmark due to insufficient sunshine to hinder the growth of plants. Later, Japan, the United States, and the Netherlands successively invested. However, under the factors of high cost, insufficient technology, and poor experience, the management was not good until the 21st century, due to the greenhouse. The effect is getting more and more serious and it has been re-emphasized.

From the perspective of agricultural development, modern agricultural development, due to the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, has been able to rapidly increase production to supply the huge food demand generated by the surge in population, and to contribute to solving global food and poverty problems. However, traditional agriculture is purely dependent on the environment. Not only is crop cultivation limited by climate and season, it cannot be produced as planned, even if the crop harvest is affected by the price drop; plus farmers use pesticides to prevent pests and diseases in order to ensure the harvest. As a result, food safety concerns, in order to increase production capacity, excessive use of fertilizers, not only increase costs, more polluted farmland, rivers, lakes and oceans, is more likely to cause high levels of nitrates, harming consumers.

Another reason for the popularity of plant factories is that the global construction industry is eager to seek new developments through investment in agriculture due to the economic downturn and the decline in public construction projects. Chain catering and supermarket companies hope to build their own vegetable bases to form a stable supply of raw materials. The electronics industry is gradually shifting overseas due to the manufacturing sector, and a large number of cleaning workshops for producing precision devices such as chips are idle. These plants can be transformed into plant factories with a little modification. Therefore, these three industries have become the most active pioneers in investment plant factories.

Therefore, the plant factory is highly automated, and can be planted throughout the year like a factory, producing fresh, sanitary fruits and vegetables in science and agriculture, and does not pollute the environment. Naturally, the government and the research institutes attach great importance to it. In addition to the transportation costs saved by the plant's production model, plant factories have the opportunity to become a true alternative to traditional crop production models, which is why venture capital and private equity funds focus on plant factories.

Population expansion and lack of water resources are global problems. The global population is currently 7 billion. It is likely to increase to 9.2 billion in the next 40 years. It still has nearly 1 billion hungry people, and it needs to be improved by nearly 58 in 40 years. % of grain production capacity; however, 80% of the existing cultivated land has been used, coupled with unfavorable factors such as climate anomalies, reduced arable land area, and the trend of rural and rural populations. In addition, traditional agriculture uses about 87% of the world's freshwater resources, so the substantial increase in productivity per unit area and the establishment of water-saving technologies are urgent research topics.

On September 10, 2013, the National Semiconductor Lighting Engineering R&D and Industry Alliance Standardization Committee (CSAS) issued the CSA021-2013 Alliance for Performance Requirements for LED Panel Lights for Plant Growth. This standard specifies the terms and definitions, classification and naming, technical requirements, test methods, inspection rules, marking, packaging, transportation and storage of LED panel lamps for plant growth.

At present, there are many forms of LED illumination products for plant growth, such as flat panel lights, double-ended lamps, flexible lamp strips, etc., which will gradually change with the development of technology. CSAS will gradually carry out standardization work on LED lighting for plant growth according to technological development, promote scientific and technological progress, and support industrial development.

What is LED plant growth lamp?

LED plant growth lamp is a kind of plant lamp. It uses LED (light-emitting diode) as the light source. According to the law of plant growth, it is necessary to use sunlight to replace the sunlight with the light to give the plant a growth and development environment.

LED plant growth light introduction

The light environment is one of the important physical environmental factors indispensable for plant growth and development. Controlling plant morphogenesis through light quality regulation is an important technology in the field of facility cultivation.

LED plant growth lamp is a kind of lamp that uses LED (light-emitting diode) as the light source, must use sunlight according to the law of plant growth, and replace the sunlight with light to plant growth and development environment.

LED plant lights help to shorten the growth cycle of plants, because the light source of this lamp is mainly composed of red and blue light sources, using the most sensitive light band of plants, the red wavelength is 620-630nm and 640-660nm, and the blue wavelength is used. 450-460 nm and 460-470 nm. Let plants promote the differentiation of multiple collaterals and buds during the growth process, accelerate the growth of roots and leaves, accelerate the synthesis of plant carbohydrates and vitamin synthesis, and shorten the growth cycle.

The results of a large number of applications of LEDs in plant cultivation environments indicate that LED plant lights are particularly suitable for use in artificial light-controlled plant facility cultivation environments.

The color temperature and lumen of the artificial light source are seen by the eyes of the creature, and the plant's demand for light is the photosynthesis. This is determined by the radiation value without looking at the color temperature and lumen.

Effects of spectral range on plant physiology

·280~315nm––>This wavelength is already ultraviolet light. It has the function of direct repressive growth for all kinds of animals, plants and even fungi, and has little influence on morphology and physiological processes.

· 315~400nm––> This kind of light wave is also a kind of far-ultraviolet light. Although there is no ultraviolet damage to plants, it has no direct effect on plant growth, and chlorophyll absorption is less, affecting photoperiod effect and preventing stem elongation.

· 400~520nm (blue) –> Such wavelengths can directly develop the roots and stems of plants, and have the largest absorption ratio of chlorophyll and carotenoids, and have the greatest impact on photosynthesis.

· 520~610nm (green) –> Green plant rejection push, the absorption rate of green pigment is not high.

· 610 ~ 720nm (red) -> plant chlorophyll absorption rate is not high, only this wavelength has a significant impact on photosynthesis and plant growth rate.

· 720~1000nm––> These wavelengths are mostly infrared wavelengths. The low absorption rate of plants can directly stimulate cell elongation and affect flowering and seed germination.

·>1000nm––> The wavelength of the near-laser light has been converted to heat.

From the above plant and spectral data, the light of each wavelength has different effects on plant photosynthesis. In the light required for photosynthesis, 400 ~ 520 nm (blue) light, and 610 ~ 720 nm (red) Photosynthesis contributes the most, while 520 ~ 610 nm (green) light has a low efficacy rate for plants to grow.

According to the above principle, the plant has direct growth effects only for the spectrum of 400 ~ 520nm (blue) and 610 ~ 720nm (red). Therefore, the plant lights under the academic concept are made into a combination of red and blue, all blue, and all. Red three forms to provide red and blue wavelengths of light to cover the wavelength range required for photosynthesis in plants.

In terms of visual effects, the red and blue LED plant growth lights are pink. This kind of mixed light color is extremely uncomfortable for biological lighting, but it can only be used for practical purposes. Sexuality.

Generally, white LED lamp beads , the most common is to use a blue core to stimulate the yellow phosphor to illuminate, thereby producing a visual white light effect. On the energy distribution on the integrating sphere test report, there are two peaks in the blue region of 445 nm and the yellow-green region of 550 nm.

The 610 ~ 720 nm red light required by plants is less able to cover the light efficiency required to supply light and function to plants. This explains why the growth rate and harvesting effect of plants are not as good as those of outdoor plants under the illumination of white LEDs.

Using the above data, the ratio of red and blue light chromatograms of general plant lights is generally between 5:1 and 10:1, and the ratio of 7 to 9:1 is usually selectable. According to the light, the number of non-lighting beads is based on the light mixing.

When the plant growth lamp is used for planting, the height of the blade is generally about 30-50 cm. In the middle, it is necessary to actually give different light intensities depending on the type of planting plant. The height adjustment is generally regarded as the most convenient brightness adjustment method.

Industry insiders explained that the plant-specific LED lights are installed in the shelves of large plant factories. Unlike the general LED spectrum, in order to cooperate with photosynthesis, the plant lamp spectrum is blue and red, and can be adjusted to cold according to individual needs. Warm white light, with mobile phone APP remote control, operation is very convenient. According to the industry, the multi-layer plant plant is equipped with a water circulation system, which can be used to grow more than 100 plants, which is suitable for mass production needs. In addition to households, plant factories generally have two kinds of profit-making routes, one is the mass production of leafy vegetables, such as cabbage, Qingjiang, lettuce and other cruciferous plants; the second is the high economical cultivation of ginseng, burdock and other high economy. Value crops, using specific LED spectrum and control systems, can grow seasonal crops with harsh growth conditions.

LED plant lamp market prospects

Not long ago, Doha City, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan publicly showed the world's largest LED (light-emitting diode) artificial light plant factory to the media. The factory, called “Future 畑”, covers an area of ​​2,300 square meters and uses 17,500 LED illuminators. It can be produced all year round and is expected to harvest about 10,000 lettuce per day. Not long ago, Fujitsu also announced that after a year or so of preparation, low-potassium lettuce produced by its own plant began to be put on the market.

Compared with traditional plant lights, LED plant lighting has the advantages of obvious energy saving and high efficiency. In 2013, the cost of LED plant lights has dropped sharply compared with that of 2010. Each lumen is about NT$0.38, which is only 1/5 of the 1.8 yuan in 2010. In turn, it has driven international companies such as Philips, Osram, Mitsubishi and Panasonic. Innovative application of LED plant factory, Taiwan, which has the advantages of LED and agriculture, of course, does not want to miss business opportunities, add technology innovation to agriculture, and let enterprises promote their value.

Japan is the fastest growing country for plant factories. The government took the lead in proposing a plant factory subsidy policy in 2009, which led to the application of LED lighting in this field. According to statistics, the demand for LED panel lighting in Japanese plant factories in 2009 was 1,000. In 2011, due to the 311 earthquake, it surged to 8,850 units. Although it fell back to 2,500 units last year, PIDA believes that the demand for the Japanese market will rise year by year. It is estimated that this year will reach 3,200 units, and in 2015 it is expected to reach 9,000 units. In 2020, we will see 18,000 units.

Taiwan has also begun to smell the business opportunities of plant factories. Many LED manufacturers have already begun to enter the market in this field. In addition to Jingdian and Yiguang, there are also Yuanyuan, Guangding, Hongqi, Guangxu, New Century, Dongbei, etc. The Economic Development Association also began to support plant factories through the pipeline last year to promote the activation of Taiwan's agriculture.

However, Taiwan has a narrow population and limited development space. On the contrary, the mainland China market with vast land and resources is the target of various industries. The Chinese government recently introduced the "12th Five-Year Plan" 863 Program. Although the total funding is only about RMB 46.11 million (about 217 million yuan for the new Taiwan), the plan will include the "Intellectual Plant Factory Production Technology Research" in the research project for the first time. Among the 7 projects, including the plant energy-saving LED light source application, it is obvious that the business opportunities for LED lighting in China are ready to rise.

In China, after the implementation of the Chinese central government, the market is optimistic that the local government will follow the footsteps, and if the Chinese government has taken a big step in subsidizing the LED industry, then the new LED lighting business opportunities led by the plant factory will also allow The family industry is looking forward to the future, and it is the next niche market development opportunity for Taiwan LED Factory.

In the past, LED lighting costs remained high, and plant factories used fluorescent tubes or high-pressure sodium lamps. As LED prices fell and technology upgrades, LED applications in plant factories showed a new wave of progress. At present, there are not many manufacturers of LED plant lights in China, and most of them are concentrated in Shenzhen.

At present, the sales market of LED plant lights is also concentrated in countries and regions with less agricultural personnel in Japan, South Korea, Central America, and Europe.

to sum up:

With the extensive development of the LED industry, LED companies are constantly looking for new ways to develop. LED plant growth lights are undoubtedly a rebirth for LED companies. However, despite the promising future of plant growth lamps, the development of plant factories still faces some bottlenecks. ". For example, the initial investment is too large, an artificial light plant factory with a daily output of 1,000 lettuce, generally requires a relatively high upfront investment. Even if the government subsidizes 50%, it usually takes 5-7 years to achieve profitability. In addition, the planting technology in the factory agricultural era has yet to mature, and the related quality control and logistics sales models are also being explored.