Building a greenhouse and testing its limits.
I built a greenhouse, developed connected irrigation and designed a user interface. My master’s thesis examines whether this could help households provide part of their own food supply.
Why I built it
The pandemic made me aware of how much daily life depends on supply chains, infrastructure and political and economic decisions. I wanted to explore how households could take some provision into their own hands by bringing sustainable value creation into everyday life.
My contribution
I built the greenhouse, sourced components and developed an IoT irrigation prototype. In Figma, I designed an interface exploring what users need to know, when they should be notified and when they should intervene. I investigated feasibility and explored solutions and market gaps at an agrivoltaics trade fair.
Results and limits
A physical prototype and interface concept demonstrated possibilities and integration limits. Fully autonomous end-to-end operation was not achieved; the studied variant did not meet the economic and environmental objectives. AI models were considered conceptually, not comprehensively implemented or tested. This was not a market-ready product.
What I learned
Components were difficult to integrate and available household solutions were expensive. My budget did not allow a larger product venture. The thesis recommends cost optimisation, greater attention to user needs and a differentiated choice of energy supply. I now want to revisit costs, open systems and AI support.
Sustainability needs measurable impact
As later context, in 2025 BP reduced planned annual transition-business investment through 2027 to $1.5–2 billion, more than $5 billion below previous plans. A 2024 research review estimated that less than 16% of credits issued by the projects studied corresponded to actual emission reductions. This finding concerns those projects, not all carbon certificates. I therefore want to assess systems by their actual utility, total costs and environmental impact. The thesis was written in German.
Abstract · Summary
The thesis examines whether smart photovoltaic greenhouses can help households produce more of their own food. Technical, economic, environmental and user requirements were assessed alongside a greenhouse, an IoT irrigation prototype and an interface concept. The study identified integration opportunities and substantial limitations: full autonomy remained a challenge, and the investigated configuration did not meet its economic and environmental targets. It recommends focusing on user needs, total costs and suitable energy systems.
Ongoing research
A scheduled weekly research process now investigates greenhouses with a total footprint of 15–30 square metres. It compares off-the-shelf components, simple self-assembly, automatic ventilation, irrigation, sensors and diverse seasonal crops. Research covers full costs, compatibility, labour, usable harvests, energy supply and open-source solutions. Payback within one year is a research target, not an established result. Physical assembly and operation tests remain outstanding.