Title: Personal Food Computer: A new device for controlled-environment agriculture,
Abstract: Due to their interdisciplinary nature, devices for controlled-environment
agriculture have the possibility to turn into ideal tools not only to conduct
research on plant phenology but also to create curricula in a wide range of
disciplines. Controlled-environment devices are increasing their
functionalities as well as improving their accessibility. Traditionally,
building one of these devices from scratch implies knowledge in fields such as
mechanical engineering, digital electronics, programming, and energy
management. However, the requirements of an effective controlled environment
device for personal use brings new constraints and challenges. This paper
presents the OpenAg Personal Food Computer (PFC); a low cost desktop size
platform, which not only targets plant phenology researchers but also
hobbyists, makers, and teachers from elementary to high-school levels (K-12).
The PFC is completely open-source and it is intended to become a tool that can
be used for collective data sharing and plant growth analysis. Thanks to its
modular design, the PFC can be used in a large spectrum of activities.