Methods and systems for use in controlling irrigation

• US 10,420,295 B2
• Filed: 08/22/2016
• Issued: 09/24/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/01/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rain Bird Corporation
• Original Assignee: Rain Bird Corporation
• Inventors: Marsters, Jonathan I., Callison, Douglas H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Shechtman, Sean
• Application Number:
  US15/243,625
• Publication Number:
  US 20160353678A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,128 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: A01G 25/16 Control of watering
• CPC Class Codes: A01G 25/165 Cyclic operations, timing systems, timing valves, impulse operations
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/0426 Programming the control sequence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2625 Sprinkler, irrigation, watering
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 7/0617 specially adapted for fluid materials
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 7/0635 by action on throttling means G05D7/0688, G05D7/0694 take precedence

Abstract

Some embodiments provide systems and methods of controlling irrigation, comprising: communicating an assumption broadcast from a first irrigation controller to each of a plurality of other irrigation controllers defining assumed states of control elements, wherein the control elements are shared with one or more of the first irrigation controller and the other irrigation controllers; determining whether a reply is received from one or more of the other irrigation controllers in reply to the assumption broadcast; identifying, from the reply, a correction to a state corresponding to a first control element; updating state information corresponding to the first control element in response to the identifying the correction; and communicating a subsequent notification from the first irrigation controller to each of the plurality of other irrigation controllers of the irrigation system, where the subsequent notification comprises the updated state information corresponding to the first control element.

Claims

1. A method of controlling irrigation, the method comprising:

causing, by a computer, an assumption broadcast to be communicated to each of a plurality of irrigation controllers of an irrigation system, wherein the computer is remote from at least one of the plurality of irrigation controllers and wherein the assumption broadcast defines assumed states of operation of one or more control elements each coupled to a respective one of the plurality of irrigation controllers of the irrigation system, wherein the irrigation system is configured to implement irrigation scheduling instructions, wherein the one or more control elements are shared with one or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers of the irrigation system that are not coupled to the one or more control elements;

identifying, from a reply to the assumption broadcast received from a first irrigation controller of the plurality of irrigation controllers, a correction to a state corresponding to a first control element of the one or more control elements, wherein the first control element is associated with at least the first irrigation controller of the plurality of irrigation controllers;

updating state information corresponding to the first control element in response to the identifying the correction; and

causing a subsequent notification to be communicated to the plurality of irrigation controllers of the irrigation system, wherein the subsequent notification comprises the updated state information corresponding to the first control element.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the irrigation system comprises a central control irrigation system comprising a sub-system of the central control irrigation system, wherein the sub-system comprises the plurality of irrigation controllers, and wherein the computer comprises a computer based central controller configured to communicate the irrigation scheduling instructions to one or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

causing, by the computer, a communication of sharing configuration data to one or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers, wherein the sharing configuration data identifies which one or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers share which of the one or more control elements.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more control elements comprises a master valve, wherein the assumption broadcast comprises a state of the master valve defining whether the master valve is in an open state or a closed state.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the assumption broadcast comprises a plurality of predefined locations within the assumption broadcast, wherein a different one of the plurality of predefined locations corresponds to a different one of the plurality of irrigation controllers such that each predefined location defines a state of the one or more control elements corresponding to the respective irrigation controller of the plurality of irrigation controllers associated with the predefined location within the assumption broadcast.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more control elements comprises a sensor, where the assumption broadcast comprises information corresponding to a state of the sensor.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the state of the sensor identifies whether one or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers sharing the sensor are to interrupt an irrigation scheduling instruction.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of irrigation controllers couples with one or more irrigation valves and is configured to activate one or more irrigation valves in implementing additional irrigation scheduling instructions received from the computer.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the computer comprises at least one of a central computer, remote server and a mobile computer.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein a subset of two or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers do not directly communicate with one another.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the communication of the assumption broadcast comprises a single assumption broadcast communicated to each of the plurality of irrigation controllers wherein the single assumption broadcast informs each of the plurality of irrigation controllers of an operating state of the one or more control elements shared by two or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers.

12. The method of claim 1,

wherein the reply to the assumption broadcast is only received when one or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers identifies that one or more assumed operating states of the one or more control elements is inconsistent with an irrigation scheduling instruction being implemented by a corresponding one of the plurality of irrigation controllers.

13. The method of claim 1,

wherein the reply to the assumption broadcast is received from the first irrigation controller of the plurality of irrigation controllers only when the state corresponding to the first control element shared with the first irrigation controller of the plurality of irrigation controllers is inconsistent with a state expected by the first irrigation controller of the plurality of irrigation controllers.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising

identifying indicators of sensed operating states of one or more sensors within the irrigation system, with each of the one or more sensors being coupled to a respective one of the plurality of irrigation controllers;

communicating a sensor assumption broadcast to each of the plurality of irrigation controllers, wherein the sensor assumption broadcast comprises one or more indicators of the one or more sensors states of the one or more sensors and the sensor assumption broadcast informs each of the plurality of irrigation controllers of the sensed state of the one or more sensors shared by two or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers.

15. An irrigation system comprising:

a computer

a plurality of irrigation controllers, wherein one or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers are in communication with the computer that is remote from at least one of the one or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers, and wherein each of the one or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers controls one or more irrigation devices in implementing a respective irrigation scheduling instruction stored at each of the one or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers; and

one or more control elements, wherein each of the one or more control elements are coupled to a respective one of the one or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers, and wherein at least one of the one or more control elements are shared with one or more of the one or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers that are not coupled with the control element;

wherein the computer is configured to;

cause an assumption broadcast to be communicated to each of the one or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers, wherein the assumption broadcast defines assumed states of operation of the one or more control elements;

identify, from a reply to the assumption broadcast from at least a first irrigation controller of the one or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers, a correction to a state corresponding to a first control element of the one or more control elements, wherein the first control element is associated with at least the first irrigation controller;

update state information corresponding to the first control element in response to the identifying the correction; and

cause a subsequent notification to be communicated to the one or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers, wherein the subsequent notification comprises the updated state information corresponding to the first control element.

16. The irrigation system of claim 15, wherein the one or more control elements comprise a first master valve, wherein the first master valve is controlled by a second irrigation controller of the one or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers, such that the second irrigation controller is configured to alter a state of the master valve in response to the assumption broadcast when a state corresponding to the master valve defined in the assumption broadcast is different than an actual state of the master valve as controlled by the second irrigation controller.

17. The irrigation system of claim 16, wherein a third irrigation controller shares the first master valve controlled by the second irrigation controller such that water is made available to the one or more irrigation devices controlled by the third irrigation controller when the first master valve is open, and wherein the third irrigation controller is configured to communicate the reply to the assumption broadcast when the state of the master valve as defined in the assumption broadcast identifies the master valve as closed and an irrigation scheduling instruction being implemented at the third irrigation controller specifies that irrigation is to be active.

18. The irrigation system of claim 17, wherein the third irrigation controller is further configured to communicate the reply to the assumption broadcast only when the assumed state of the first master valve is inconsistent with a state expected by the third irrigation controller.

19. The irrigation system of claim 16, wherein the one or more control elements comprise a first sensor, wherein the first sensor is communicationally coupled only with a corresponding one of the one or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers, such that the corresponding one of the one or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers is configured to:

identify a state of the first sensor, and to communicate a reply to the assumption broadcast only when a state of the first sensor defined in the assumption broadcast is different than an actual state of the first sensor as communicated to the corresponding one of the one or more of the plurality of irrigation controllers from the first sensor.

20. The irrigation system of claim 15, wherein the computer comprises at least one of a central computer, remote server and a mobile computer.