Design and Implementation of Plant Growth Chamber System with Broad Spectrum and High Intensity Lighting: Chili Cultivations Case Study

The plant growth chamber is a chamber that is isolated from the surrounding environment with the microclimate inside can be controlled so the plant growth can be monitored and controlled at the same time. With a plant growth chamber, microclimate parameters such as temperature, humidity and light intensity can be controlled at an optimal range for plant growth. Previously, researchers from Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB) and PT East West Seed Indonesia (Ewindo) have observed the growth of chili cultivations in parallel using the same chili seeds at 2 different locations. At the first location in ITB Ganesha Campus, chili seeds were grown in a plant growth chamber, while at the second location in Ewindo Purwakarta, chili seeds were grown in a screenhouse under sunlight. From the measurement results, it appears that the chili cultivations in the Ewindo Purwakarta screenhouse is better than that of in ITB’s plant growth chamber. From this experiment, a conclusion was derived that the growth of chili cultivations would be much better if they received broad spectrum and high-intensity sunlight. Based on this background, a solution was designed and implemented to upgrade a plant growth chamber system with a broad spectrum and high intensity lighting. Using horticultural LEDs with broad spectrum from blue to red lights, we obtained suitable lights for photosynthesis. The plant growth chamber system has succeeded in monitoring and controlling microclimate parameters on a regular basis, observing visually plant growth conditions in it, and can be accessed by onsite users, as well as remote users through gateways, cloud servers, and mobile or website applications. The system successfully controls the microclimate in the temperature range of 5-50°C (lights off) and 10-50°C (lights on), humidity 40-90% RH, and light intensity up to 15,000 lux.