CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application is a continuation application and claims priority of the PCT patent application PCT/CA2018/050295 filed on Mar. 12, 2018.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[1] The present invention relates to agitating contents inside containers. More specifically, the present invention relates to agitation of biodegradable waste inside composting bioreactor apparatus that degrades biodegradable waste into liquid and fine particles transportable by circulating water.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[2] Agitation is an important procedure in degrading biodegradable waste inside composting bioreactor containers. Its main purpose is to prevent compaction or lumping of the fed waste and to well aerate all the waste inside a container. In prior art, as shown in patents US5300438, US5744351 and US9617191 either a horizontally rotating mechanism or a vertically rotating mechanism is employed for agitating and mixing purposes.

[3] The above mentioned agitation mechanisms are not good in efficiency and not suitable for some situations for the following reasons: (1) only the torque produced by the driven motor is used for rotating the contents inside a container; (2) the others such us sound waves, vibrations and heat produced by the motor are not useful but burdens that need to be specially managed; (3) the contents inside a container are usually over-agitated, the contents are moved more than required for well de-lumping and aerating; (4) they normally employ high voltage (AC110V or AC220V) powered motors, when solar panels are employed for power source of the motors electricity undergoes loss during inverting from DC12V into AC110V or AC220V; (5) for bioreactor containers such as that of the patent US9617191, there is not enough space on the top lid for installing an agitation motor for vessels with a width or sectional diameter less than 2.5 feet since there is a feed module sitting on the top lid; (6) these agitators only fit for vertical and horizontal cylinder containers, they don't fit for square or rectangular cuboid containers; and (7) normally only one motor is installed for driving the agitating mechanism, when the only motor is broken it requires an immediate service.

[4] Efforts have been made in employing vibratory resonance for agitating or mixing liquid in sealed containers in pharmaceutical and biological industries. The patent US7195354 to Vijay Singh disclosed a method of resonant wave mixing for closed containers by a mechanism producing tilting motion to rock a container on a connected platform for mixing ingredients with liquid inside the container. The patent US7188993 to Harold W Howe etc. disclosed a resonant-vibratory mixing apparatus comprising of a plurality of compression springs and vibration motors connected and supported by frame and mass assemblies.

[5] However, the above resonant mixing mechanisms and methods are for mixing liquid purpose only, they don't fit for installing inside composting bioreactor containers. The operation of rocking or shaking a container is temporary. They are positioned under a container therefore the container normally can not have inlet or outlet ports in working during the resonant mixing operation. They also have the problem of losing energy in the forms of sound waves and heat produced by the driven motors. [6] It is desirable to have an agitating mechanism that omits the requirement for a space area on the top lid of a bioreactor container, that takes the sound waves, vibrations and heat produced by the driving motor into good uses, that may be driven by DC12V electric power from solar panels, that works well in a standing mode when the inlet and outlet ports of the containers are in operation, and that has one or more backup motors to increase its lifetime without requirement for immediate service.

[7] Comparing with others, the composting bioreactor apparatus disclosed in the patent US9617191 and its continuation-in-part application with application number US15/615820 and publication number US-2017-0354906 has the following advantages: (1) it is the first apparatus that integrates both photosynthesis and burning with a stove unit into the composting process, and therefore has extended the definition of conventional composting concept; (2) it is the first apparatus that recycles all biodegradable wastes including solid waste, waste water and exhaust gases into nutrients to grow food plants; (3) it is the first composting bioreactor that integrates composting process with the Aquaponics technology and therefore leads to the new concept of Compoponics; and (4) it focuses on degrading the wastes into gases, liquid and fine particles transportable by circulating water, and therefore realises almost completely recycling in high efficiency.

[8] However, besides the aforementioned disadvantages regarding its agitation module, the patent US9617191 and its related continuation-in-part application US15/615820 also have other aspects that need to be improved. (1) The structures of a concaved or conic lower separator and a middle chamber make it complicated in fabricating the bioreactor body vessel, therefore working process of its middle chamber may be diverted partly into its upper chamber and partly into its lower chamber. (2) It consumes a lot of electricity in having a heating-sub-chamber and having all the circulating water flowing through the heating-sub-chamber, normally only the black water containing fecal matter from toilets is required to be sterilized. (3) Eventually, unbreakable humus in its upper chamber may need to be cleaned up every a few years, vertically separated two or more sub-chambers in its upper chamber will make it easier for cleanup operation; when one of the upper chambers is prepared for cleanup the other(s) is/are available for receiving daily waste. (4) When soil inside its wicking bed gets lumped it blocks gases filtering through the soil and is not good for plants to grow; a mechanism is also required to agitate the soil of its wicking bed to keep good state of aeration for roots of plants growing in the wicking bed.

[9] The present invention will provide a new and improved mechanism and method for agitating waste inside composting bioreactor containers and overcome all the aforementioned prior art limitations. It also provides improvements for the patent US9617191 and its continuation-in-part application US15/615820.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[10] The present invention is an resonant vibratory agitation mechanism for installing inside composting bioreactor containers or other applications for agitating biodegradable waste, soil or other masses. It either comprises of a sole layer of horizontally arranged springs with at least one waterproof vibration motor installed inside each of the springs, or comprises of a central frame, at least one waterproof vibration motor fixed on a central frame and a plurality of layers of horizontally or diagonally arranged extension springs of which each spring has an outer end connecting with a connecter fixed on side walls inside a container and an inner end connecting with a connecting ring of the central frame, wherein the lowest layer has more springs than each of its upper layers and fed waste are filtered by gaps between any two neighboring springs of a layer, and wherein a vibrational frequency of the springs and the vibrational frequency of the waterproof vibration motor are matched to provide a vibratory resonance.

[11] The present invention fits for containers of both cylindrical shape and square or rectangular cuboid shape. Both low voltage (DC5V or 12V) and high voltage (AC110V or 220 V) can be employed for driving the vibration motors. Since the vibration motors stay inside the waste in containers, all the potential energies produced by the vibration motors including sound waves, vibrations and heat are used to agitate and to degrade the waste. Since all the extension springs are connected with the vibration motor via a central frame, energy produced by the vibrations of a vibration motor is amplified by the resident energy of the springs. Coincidences of vibrations of the vibration motors and the springs create resonant vibratory frequencies that have energy to help agitating and degrading the waste.

[12] The present invention also provides the following other improvements for bioreactor apparatus of the patent US9617191 and its continuation-in-part application US15/615820: (1) having the resonant vibratory agitator, the size of the bioreactor vessel can be a container with a width or sectional diameter less than 2.5 feet, since it is not required to have a space area on the top lid for installing an agitation motor; (2) comparing with making a whole body vessel vertically with three chambers, fabricating a bioreactor container by sitting a plurality of drums on a receiving tank not only saves manufacture costs but also makes it easier to transport and to clean up; and (3) it saves costs of electricity to have only the black water rather than all the circulating water sterilized by heating it to 70-100°C.

[13] Other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will be readily appreciated from the following description. The description makes reference to the accompanying drawings, which are provided for illustration of the preferred embodiments. However, such embodiments do not represent the full scope of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[14] Embodiments herein will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the appended drawings provided to illustrate and not to limit the scope of the claims, wherein like designations denote like elements, and in which: [15] FIG. 1 shows a vertically sectional elevation of a multi-layer resonant vibratory agitator 30 and a sole-layer resonant vibratory agitator 70 installed inside a bioreactor container which has an upper chamber and a lower chamber;

[16] FIG. 2A shows a horizontally sectional elevation of springs of a horizontal layer of a resonant vibratory agitator inside a vertical cylindrical bioreactor container;

[17] FIG. 2B shows a horizontally sectional elevation of springs of a horizontal layer of a resonant vibratory agitator inside a vertical cuboid bioreactor container;

[18] FIG. 2C shows a vibration motor waterproof treated by sealing a vibrator, a hollow cup motor and part of its wires inside a metal tube for installing inside springs;

[19] FIG. 3A shows perspective of a central frame with two horizontal flat plate surfaces for fixing vibration motors for a vertical cylindrical bioreactor container;

[20] FIG. 3B shows perspective of a central frame with two horizontal flat plate surfaces for fixing vibration motors for a vertical cuboid bioreactor container;

[21] FIG. 3C shows perspective of a central frame with two vertical portrait flat plate surfaces for fixing vibration motors for a vertical cylindrical bioreactor container;

[22] FIG. 3D shows perspective of a central frame with two vertical landscape flat plate surfaces for fixing vibration motors for a vertical cylindrical bioreactor container;

[23] FIG. 3E shows a top view of a multi-layer resonant vibratory agitator 30 which has a top diagonally arranged layer and a second diagonally arranged layer and each layer is composed of 18 extension springs inside a vertical cylindrical container;

[24] FIG. 3F shows a bottom view of a multi-layer resonant vibratory agitator 30 which has a bottom horizontally arranged layer composed of 36 extension springs inside a vertical cylindrical container; [25] FIG. 4A shows perspective of a bioreactor container comprising of two vertical drums as two upper chambers sitting on top and inside of a rectangular cuboid receiving tank as a lower chamber;

[26] FIG. 4B shows a top view of a receiving tank that has 4 circular openings on its top wall and a plurality of supports inside its inside volume for holding 4 drums as 4 upper chambers;

[27] FIG. 4C shows a vertically sectional elevation of a bioreactor container that has two vertical drums serving as two vertically separated upper chambers of which each upper chamber has a multi-layer resonant vibratory agitator 30 installed;

[28] FIG. 4D shows a vertically sectional elevation of a bioreactor container that has two vertical drums serving as two vertically separated upper chambers of which each upper chamber has a multi-layer resonant vibratory agitator 30 installed, and one of the drums is configured for receiving black water containing fecal matter from toilets;

[29] FIG. 4E shows a vertically sectional elevation of a bioreactor container that has two vertical drums serving as two vertically separated upper chambers of a larger height, of which each upper chamber is installed with a sole-layer resonant vibratory agitator 70 and a multi-layer resonant vibratory agitator 30 with 3 connection rings and 4 vibration motors on its central frame;

[30] FIG. 5A shows a vertically cross-sectional elevation of a wicking bed having a multi-layer resonant vibratory agitator 30 installed inside its top growing media;

[31] FIG. 5B shows a vertically sectional elevation of a wicking bed with large length having 3 multi-layer resonant vibratory agitators 30 installed inside its top growing media;

[32] FIG. 6 shows perspective of an embodiment of the present invention, an integrated bioreactor system for installing in urban household backyards for recycling kitchen waste into organic produce; [33] FIG. 7A shows perspective of a feed module composed of a cylindrical port with a transparent lid and a butterfly valve;

[34] FIG. 7B shows perspective of a feed module composed of a cuboid port with a transparent top door and a pair of second sealing doors; and

[35] FIGS. 1, 4C-E and 5A-B also shows flow charts for both gases and liquid re-circulating amongst an integrated wicking bed, a stove unit and a bioreactor container, wherein bold arrows showflowing direction of liquid while hollow arrows showflowing direction of gases.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[36] As shown in FIG. 1, a multi-layer resonant vibratory agitator 30 is installed inside a bioreactor container 10 which has a perforated plate separator 14 separating its inside volume into an upper chamber 17 and a lower chamber 18. The multi-layer resonant vibratory agitator 30 stays in the upper chamber 17. The perforated plate separator 14 has a plurality of filter holes or gaps for filtering liquid and particles.

[37] As shown in FIGS. 1, 4C-E and 5A-B, a multi-layer resonant vibratory agitator 30 comprises at least one vibration motor 36 and a plurality of layers of horizontally or diagonally arranged extension springs 31 of which each of the springs 31 has an outer end connecting with a connecter 32 fixed on side walls 13 inside the upper chamber 17 and an inner end connecting with one of the connecting rings 34-35 of a central frame 33 on which the vibration motors 36 are fixed, wherein a vibrational frequency of the springs 31 and the vibrational frequency of the waterproof vibration motor 36 are matched to provide vibratory resonance. Preferably, in a multi-layer resonant vibratory agitator 30, a lower layer may have more springs 31 than its upper layer so that the fed waste is filtered by gaps between any two neighboring springs of a layer. With this filtering function, larger sized waste stays in the upper layer while smaller sized waste filters into the lower layer inside the upper chamber 17.

[38] As shown in FIG. 2A-B, in a multi-layer resonant vibratory agitator 30 fitting either for a vertical cylindrical shaped container 10 or for a vertical cuboid shaped container 10, all springs 31 of a typical horizontal layer have the same length and the same quantity of coils.

[39] As shown in FIGS. 3A-B, a central frame 33 is a substantial metal frame. It has either circular rings 34-35 for vertical cylindrical container 10 or rectangular rings 34-35 for vertical cuboid container 10 at its top end and its bottom end for connecting the inner end of each of the extension springs 31. It also has at least one horizontal flat plate 37 between the rings 34- 35 for fixing vibration motors 36 on each of its two flat surfaces by use of screw bolts 333. The rings 34-35 and the flat plate 37 are substantially welded with vertical connecting rods 331-332.

[40] Preferably, as shown in FIGS. 3C-D, the flat plate 37 of the central frame 33 for a vertical cylindrical shaped container 10 may be arranged either as a vertical portrait position as shown in FIG. 3C or as a vertical landscape position as shown in FIG. 3D. In this case, the flat plate 37 is substantially welded with a central rod 341 of top ring 34 by way of an upper connecting rod 371, and with a central rod 351 of bottom ring 35 by way of a lower connecting rod 372.

[41] As shown in FIGS. 1, 3E and 4C-E, a multi-layer resonant vibratory agitator 30 inside an upper chamber 17, has diagonally arranged uppermost two layers of springs 31 symmetrically balanced so that the top ring 34 of the central frame 33 stays in a vertical position parallel to the opposite a vertical middle point between the uppermost two layers of connecters 32 of springs 31 while a conical top shape is formed along the upper surface of the springs 31 of the uppermost layer. [42] As shown in FIGS. 1, 3F and 4C-E, inside a bioreactor container 10 a horizontal layer of extension springs 31 is positioned above and near to an upper surface of a perforated plate separator 14 so that vibrations of the springs 31 may help prevent the filter holes of the perforated plate separator 14 from blocking by silt or sticky particles. This layer of extension springs 31 is either the lowest layer of a multi-layer resonant vibratory agitator 30 as shown in FIGS. 3F and 4C-D, or an independent sole-layer resonant vibratory agitator 70 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 4E. The vertical gap between the lower edge of each of the spring 31 and the upper surface of the perforated plate separator 14 is less than one inch.

[43] As shown in FIGS. 1, 2A-C and 4E, a sole-layer resonant vibratory agitator 70 has one horizontal layer of springs 31 and stays above and near to the upper surface of the perforated plate separator 14. It is pre-assembled so that it is easy to be installed on the upper surface of the perforated plate separator 14. It has an outer frame 72 to stay along the inside surface of side walls 13 and an inner frame 71 to be fixed on the perforated plate separator 14 with a bolt/bolts 73. Each spring 31 has an inner end connected with the inner frame 71 and an outer end connected with a connector or a hole on the outer frame 72. The height of the outer frame 72, the relative vertical position of each connector or hole on the outer frame 72 and the height of fix bolt(s) 73 for fixing the inner frame 71 are coordinated to keep the vertical gap between the lower edge of each spring 31 and the upper surface of the perforated plate separator 14 is less than one inch. Inside each spring 31 at least one vibration motor 75 is installed to provide vibrations and resonant vibratory frequencies for agitating the waste above the perforated plate separator 14 and for speeding up degrading the waste of the space area into fine particles to filter into the lower chamber 18. As shown in FIG. 2C, the vibration motor 75 is of waterproof by having a hollow cup motor 76 with a vibrator 78 and part of its wires 77 sealed inside a metal tube 74. The hollow cup motor 76 is of low voltage (<DC12V) and small sized (with sectional diameter <10mm and length <25mm) so that springs with inner diameter less than 12mm can be employed for the sole-layer resonant vibratory agitator 70. Preferably, two or more vibration motors 75 are employed inside each of the springs 31 so that the vibration motors 75 in each of the springs 31 are configured either to work together to increase vibration strength or to have half as working motor(s) and the other half as backup motor(s) to increase lifetime of the sole-layer resonant vibratory agitator 70.

[44] As shown in FIG. 4E, to fit bioreactor containers with upper chambers of a very large vertical height, the central frame 33 of a multi-layer resonant vibratory agitator 30 may have at least one more additional connecting ring 38 between the top ring 34 and bottom ring 35 for adding more layers of springs 31, and at least one more flat plate 39 among the rings 34, 35 and 38 for fixing more vibration motors 36. The two vibration motors 36 on each of the two surfaces of the flat plates 37 and 39 may be configured either to work together to increase vibration strength or to have one set as a working motor while the other set as a back-up motor to increase lifetime of the multi-layer resonant vibratory agitator 30.

[45] The vibration motor 36 is of waterproof by sealing its motor, vibrator(s) and part of its wires inside a plastic shell. The vibration motors 36 installed on the central frame 33 are configured with relatively higher torque and lower rotation speed (for example less than 6,000 RPM), so that each of the connected springs 31 is driven to vibrate in a relatively lower frequency with longer vibration wave length for reaching more space area around the springs 31. The vibration motors 75 installed inside the springs 31 of the sole-layer resonant vibratory agitator 70 are configured with lower torque and higher rotation speed (for example with a zero-load rotation speed more than 40,000 RPM), so that each of the springs 31 of the sole-layer resonant vibratory agitator 70 is driven to vibrate in higher frequency with shorter vibration wave length to reach relatively less space area around the springs 31 of the lowest layer, to speed up degrading the waste near to the upper surface of the perforated plate separator 14 into fine particles to filter into the lower chamber 18. The vibration motors 36 and vibration motors 75 may be configured either for both kinds to work together or for each kind to work in different time zones. [46] As shown in FIG. 1, 2C and 4E, the horizontally positioned vibration motors 75 are at the same height level as the liquid level for introducing into an integrated wicking bed 100 from a bioreactor container 10. The vibration motors 75 are submerged in the liquid so that heat from high speed rotations of the hollow cup motors 76 is quickly released through its metal tube 74 into the liquid around the vibration motors 75.

[47] As shown in FIG. 1, 2A-B and 3A-B, a bioreactor container 10 to be installed with a multi layer resonant vibratory agitator 30 or a multi-layer resonant vibratory agitator 30 plus a sole-layer resonant vibratory agitator 70 may be of vertical cylindrical shape or of vertical cuboid shape. It may be fabricated by positioning a substantial perforated plate separator 14 inside to form an upper chamber 17 and a lower chamber 18. The size of the container 10 may be big or small depending on the quantity of waste to be treated. However, containers 10 with a width or diameter of bigger than 3 feet are too heavy for one person to transport and too big to access most backyard gates.

[48] Preferably, as shown in FIGS. 4A-E and 6, a bioreactor container 10 may be fabricated by sitting at least one drum 170 with a sectional diameter of around 2 feet on top or inside of a receiving tank 180. The drum(s) 170 and the receiving tank 180 can be transported separately and are easy to access all backyard gates. The inside volume of the tank 180 serves as a lower chamber 18. Each inside volume of drums 170 serves as an upper chamber 17. Each bottom wall of drums 170 either having pre-drilled holes or gaps serves as a perforated plate separator 14 or being cut out has an additional perforated plate separator 14 fixed on it. The receiving tank 180 has a plurality of circular openings 63 on its top wall 60 and a plurality of supports 64 inside its volume 18 for holding drums 170. Therefore, the bioreactor container 10 may have a plurality of relatively separated upper chambers 17. All the upper chambers 17 may be configured either for each to receive different kind of waste or for each to receive all kinds of waste at different time zone. Every a few years the unbreakable humus inside an upper chamber 17 may need to be cleaned up, when one drum 170 is preparing for cleanup, the other drum(s) 170 can still receive daily waste. The drum 170 may be removed from the top wall 60 during cleaning up operation and be position back after cleaning up operation. Preferably, a vent pipe 44 between any two neighboring drums 170 is employed to lead exhaust gases from all other drums 170 to exit from an exhaust gas outlet port 40 on one of the drums 170. The liquid inlet ports 15-16 may be either both on one drum 170 or each on one of the drums 170. The contact areas between bottom end side walls of drums 170 and top edges of circular openings 63 are well sealed to prevent leaks of liquid, odor and exhaust gases.

[49] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4A-E, the bioreactor container 10 has at least one top wall 11 having a feed module 12 attached on. Preferably, the top wall 11 may be openable for the purpose to reach inside the upper chamber 17 to clean up unbreakable humus. As shown in FIG. 4A, for a cylindrical drum 170, its top edge and an outer edge of the top wall 11 may be tightened or opened up by using a closing ring 66 with a fastening mechanism 65.

[50] As shown in FIGS. 1, 4C-E, 5A-B, at least one wicking bed 100 is integrated with a bioreactor container 10 for further degrading the liquid discharged from the container 10 and for supplying water, nutrients and heat to the plants growing inside the wicking bed 100. The bioreactor container 10 has at least two liquid inlet ports 15-16, the inlet port 15 is for receiving recirculating water from an integrated wicking bed 100 while the inlet port 16 is for receiving waste water from other resources such as from kitchen sinks. The liquid mix filtered into the lower chamber 18 includes water introduced into the upper chamber 17 by way of the liquid inlet ports 15-16, water produced from degradation of the waste in the upper chamber 17, and fine particles filtered through the perforated plate separator 14 from the upper chamber 17. As shown by the bold arrows, liquid exiting a liquid outlet port 19 is introduced by way of a pipe 90 into an inlet port 110 of the integrated wicking bed 100 to supply water, heat and nutrients to food plants 150 growing in the wicking beds 100. Liquid exiting from a liquid outlet port 130 of the wicking bed 100 is introduced into a sump tank 132 by way of water pipes 131. A water pump 133 is installed inside the sump tank 132 to introduce water by pipe 134 into the bioreactor container 10 through the liquid inlet port 15. Therefore, a closed-loop water recirculation is established between the bioreactor container 10 and the integrated wicking bed 100.

[51] As shown in FIGS. 1, 4C-E and 5A-B, an aeration module 20 has aerators 21-22 installed inside the lower chamber 18 to supply oxygen to both the lower chamber 18 and the upper chambers 17 to support aerobic organisms for degrading the waste. Preferably, an integrated system has a stove unit 50 that has a heat radiator 51 staying under the bioreactor container 10 as its support base and supplying heat to the container 10. As shown by the hollow arrows, flue gas from the stove unit 50 is introduced into the lower chamber 18 by way of an exhaust gas inlet port 56. Flue gas of the stove unit 50 flows through the heat radiator 51, an outlet port 52 of the heat radiator 51, a pipe 53, a U-turn pipe 54, a pipe 55 and the gas inlet port 56 into the lower chamber 18. The U-turn pipe 54 is positioned in a higher level than the liquid level inside the bioreactor container 10 to prevent the liquid refluxing into the pipe 53. The flue gas from the stove unit 50 undergoes "washed" by the liquid in the lower chamber 18, filtered by the waste in the upper chamber 17, exiting the upper chamber 17 together with exhaust gases produced from degradation of the waste inside the bioreactor container 10 through the exhaust gas outlet port 40, flowing through an inline duct fan 42 and duct 41, entering into an integrated wicking bed 100 through its exhaust gas inlet port 120, further washed by liquid in an upper channel 101, further filtered by a top growing media 190 in the wicking bed 100, and lastly exiting from the top growing media 190 into atmosphere. If the wicking bed 100 is staying inside a greenhouse (not shown), C0 ₂ of the exhaust gases exiting from the top growing media 190 serves as a nutrient for the plants 150 growing in the wicking bed 100. Oxygen produced by the plants may also serves as a component for combustion inside a combustion chamber (not shown) of the stove unit 50. When a vent pipe (not shown) is configured to introduce air into the combustion chamber from the greenhouse in which the integrated wicking bed 100 stays, a closed-loop gas recirculation may be established among the stove unit 50, the bioreactor container 10 and plants growing in the wicking bed 100 inside the greenhouse. The duct fan 42 positioned between the exhaust gas outlet port 40 of the bioreactor container 10 and the exhaust gas inlet port 120 of the wicking bed 100 plays an important role for recirculating the flue gas. It pushes air inside duct 41 into the upper channel 101 of the wicking bed 100 to cause a positive pressure inside the upper channel 101 therefore pushing the exhaust gases inside the upper channel 101 to filter through the top growing media 190. It also draws air from the bioreactor container 10 to cause a negative pressure inside the container 10 therefore drawing flue gas flowing from the heat radiator 51 through the lower chamber 18, the upper chamber 17, the exhaust gas outlet port 40, and the duct fan 42 itself into the duct 41.

[52] As shown in FIG. 4D, one of the upper chambers 17 may be configured for receiving black water containing fecal matter from toilets. The perforated plate separator 14 is positioned upward and a middle chamber 80 and lower volume 93 having a heating sub-chamber 91 are added by fixing a concaved or conic separator 81 immediately under the perforated plate separator 14 on an inner surface of the side walls 13. The heating sub-chamber is positioned between the concaved or conic separator 81 and the top wall 60 of the receiving tank 180. Waste water filtered through the perforated plate separator 14 is collected in the middle chamber 80; it then flows through an outlet port 82 at the central lowest area of the middle chamber 80 and a pipe 83 into the heating sub-chamber 91 by way of an inlet port 84; and lastly, it exits an outlet port 85 of the heating sub-chamber 91 and enters into the lower chamber 18. An electric heater 88 and a bimetal temperature control switch 89 are installed inside the heating sub-chamber 91 from outside of the side wall 13. Vertically, the outlet port 85 of the heating sub-chamber 91 is in a higher position than its inlet port 84, therefore, all waste water flowing through the heating sub-chamber is heated by the electric heater 88. Working temperature inside the heating sub-chamber 91 is set at 70- 100°C for killing pathogenic organisms and is controlled by the bimetal temperature control switch 89. The heated waste water from the heating sub-chamber 91 is to be moderated in temperature by the liquid inside the lower chamber 18, therefore, liquid introduced into the wicking bed 100 is in a right temperature fitting for the growing plants 150. The heating sub-chamber 91 also has a second outlet port 86 to connect by way of a pipe 92 into an outlet port 87 on the side wall 13 positioned between the heating sub-chamber 91 and the top wall 60 of the receiving tank 180, so that waste water inside the middle chamber 80, heating sub-chamber 91 and the connecting pipes 83 and 92 may be emptied to prevent them from breaking by icing during winter season.

[53] As shown in FIG. 4D, the aeration module 20 connects into both the aerators 21-22 inside the lower chamber 18 and the aerators 23-24 inside the middle chamber 80 to supply oxygen to the middle chamber 80 and the upper chamber 17 for receiving black water. A vent pipe 44 connecting into the neighboring upper chamber 17 is further connecting into a pipe 45, so that exhaust gases from the upper chamber 17 for receiving black water are introduced into the lower layer of the neighboring upper chamber 17 by way of an exit 46 of the pipe 45, to be further filtered by the waste inside the neighboring upper chamber 17 before the gases exit the neighboring upper chamber 17 through the exhaust gas outlet 40.

[54] As shown in FIG. 5A, a multi-layer resonant vibratory agitator 30 may be installed inside a wicking bed 100 to provide vibrations to loosen its top growing media 190 and to improve aeration around roots of plants 150. As shown in FIG. 5B, a plurality of resonant vibratory agitators 30 may be installed inside a wicking bed 100 with very large length.

[55] As shown in FIGS. 1, 4C-E and 5A-B, a wicking bed 100 has an upper layer of 8-12 inches filled with top growing media 190 for growing plants 150, and a lower layer of 8-12 inches having an upper channel 101, an lower channel 103 and a middle channel 102 filled with bio-filter media. Both the gas duct 41 connecting with the exhaust gas outlet port 40 of a bioreactor container 10 and the liquid pipe 90 connecting with the liquid outlet port 19 of the bioreactor container 10 are introduced into the upper channel 101 through its gas inlet port 120 and its liquid inlet port 110. A second aeration module 140 connects into aerators 141-143 in the lower channel 103. The wicking bed supplies by wicking into the growing plants 150 with water, nutrients, heat and oxygen from its upper channel 101. The liquid introduced into the upper channel 101 is further filtered and degraded by the bio-filter media inside the middle channel 102. The liquid filtered into the lower channel 103 exits the wicking bed 100 through a liquid outlet port 130 which is directly connected into the lower channel 103 at the other end of the wicking bed 100. The liquid from the liquid outlet port 130 is introduced either into another wicking bed 100 or some hydroponic growing pipes 200 as shown in FIG. 6, or into a sump tank 132 and further into the liquid inlet port 15 of the bioreactor container 10 to establish a closed-loop liquid recirculation.

[56] As shown in FIG. 6, an embodiment of the present invention for installing in urban household backyards for recycling kitchen waste into organic produce has the following components: (1) two drums 170 each having a feed module 12 sitting on its top wall, a perforated plate separator 14 fixed on its bottom wall (not shown), a multi-layer resonant vibratory agitator 30 (not shown) installed inside each inside volume 17 (not shown); (2) a receiving tank 180 to receive filtered liquid and particles from the drums 170; (3) at least one tank 190 to be employed and configured as a wicking bed 100; (4) at least one layer of hydroponic growing pipes 200 staying above the tanks 190 having a plurality of openings to hold net cups 201 for growing plants; (5) a sump tank 132 having a water pump 133 (not shown) to introduce liquid from the sump tank 132 into the hydroponic growing pipes 200 by way of a pipe 134, and having an automatic water level control valve (not shown) installed on its side wall to automatically add water into the sump tank 132 when water level inside the sump tank 132 is lower than the level of automatic water level control valve; (6) a water reservoir tank 220 staying above the sump tank 132, connected into the automatic water level control valve inside the sump tank 132 by way of a pipe 211, and having a roof board 222 to collect rain water by way of pipe 221 which has an overflow port 223 to discharge extra water; (7) at least one air-pump (not shown) to supply air into inside the receiving tank 180, the drums 170 and the tanks 190; (8) a solar panel 230 having a solar charge controller (not shown) and a battery (not shown) to supply electricity to the water pump, air-pump and the motors of the multi-layer resonant vibratory agitators 30 inside the drums 170; and (9) a plurality of wood frames 240 to support the whole integrated system and to keep the components in the right positions for establishing a closed-loop water recirculation. Liquid fed into the drums 170 and produced from degradation of the fed waste inside the drums 170 flows through the receiving tank 180, the tanks 190, the sump tank 132, the hydroponic growing pipes 200 and lastly back into the drums 170 by way of a pipe 213. When the water level inside the sump tank 132 is lower than the automatic water level control valve, it automatically adds water from the water reservoir tank 220 which collects rain water from the roof board 222. The sump tank 132 also has an overflow port (not shown) vertically positioned between its top lid and the horizontal level of the automatic water level control valve to discharge extra water of the sump tank 132.

[57] As shown in FIGS. 7A-B, the feed module 12 sitting on top wall 11 of the drums 170 is either a cylindrical port 121 or a cuboid port 122. As shown in FIG. 7A, a cylindrical port 121 has a transparent top lid 301 and a butterfly valve 302 staying in its inside volume and fixed on a connecting rod 304 of a horizontal cross-sectional diameter position having its two ends penetrating the side wall via a pair of holes on the side wall of the cylindrical port 121. An operating lever 305 is connected with one end of the connecting rod 304. A bolt 307 fixed on the side wall below the connecting rod 304 has an O-ring screw 306 for tightening or loosing the operating rod 305. A pair of semicircular sealing ridges 303 are fixed on the inside wall area in a position that one touches an upper surface while the other touches a lower surface of the butterfly valve 302 when it is in closed state, to keep it tightly closed. When biodegradable waste is to be fed into the drum 170, the transparent lid 301 is opened while the butterfly valve 302 is in a closed state, the waste is then fed into the volume above the butterfly valve 302 and stays there for a while. After the transparent top lid 301 is closed, the butterfly valve 302 is opened by loosing the O-ring screw 306 and pulling the operating lever 305 to an open position. By these operations, the fed waste is fed into the drum 170 while odors and flies are prevented from coming outside of the drum 170.

[58] As shown in FIG. 7B, a cuboid port 122 has: (1) a transparent top door 311 fixed on a top strip-shaped plate 318 by top hinges 319; (2) a pair of second sealing doors 312 fixed on a first pair of opposite walls by way of hinges 314 inside the lower volume of the cuboid port 122, wherein each of the two second sealing doors 314 has a door edge 313 overlapping each other when the second sealing doors are in closed state; (3) a pair of sealing strips or boards 316 fixed on a second pair of opposite walls inside the cuboid port 122 in a position that its lower edge touches the upper surfaces of the second sealings doors 312 when they are in closed state; (4) a pair of ropes 315 each having an inner end fixed on one of the two second sealing doors 312 at a point near to door edge 313 at the end opposite to the opposite top strip-shaped plate 318; and (5) a plurality of fix rods 317 fortightening/loosing an external end of each of the ropes 315 which extend outside of the cuboid port 122 through holes 320 of the top strip-shaped plate 318 of the hinges 319. When biodegradable waste is to be fed into the drum 170, the transparent top door 311 is opened while the second sealing doors 312 is in a closed state by tightening the ropes 315, the waste is then fed into the volume above the second sealing doors 312 and stays there for a while. After the transparent top door 311 is closed, the second sealing doors 312 are opened by loosing the ropes 315. By these operations, the fed waste is fed into the drum 170 while odors and flies are prevented from coming outside of the drum 170.

[59] The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention.

[60] With respect to the above description, it is to be realized that the optimum relationships for the parts of the invention in regard to size, shape, form, materials, function and manner of operation, assembly and use are deemed readily apparent and obvious to those skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by the present invention.