SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR THE REMOTE MONITORING OF POTTED PLANTS

• US 20120019382A1
• Filed: 02/24/2010
• Published: 01/26/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/25/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ETH Zurich
• Original Assignee: ETH Zurich
• Inventors: Köhler, Moritz, Bolliger, Philipp, Ostermaier, Benedikt
• Granted Patent: US 8,836,504 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/540
• CPC Class Codes: A01G 7/00 Botany in general
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/24 Earth materials G01N33/42 takes precedence

Abstract

The invention relates to a system and method for determining the state, state changes, and/or condition changes of a potted plant and for indicating the determined state of said object to the owner or user thereof, wherein the system and method locally determine at least one physical and/or chemical parameter on top of on the side of or in the immediate vicinity of the plant (1) to be monitored by means of preferably several sensors or sensing elements (3). Said physical and/or chemical parameter is processed into a coded digital parameter signal and transmitted wirelessly, optionally by means of intermediate stages, to a central processor, which determines a statement about the state of the plant (1) from said coded digital parameter signal and other digital as an optical and/or acoustic indication of the current or prognosticated state of the plant/object (1). The sensation of the object is preferably simulated, which aims at triggering emotions in the user himself, for example, by means of language- and culture-independent icons. The data are determined, processed, and transmitted without significant time delay, in other words, in real time in principle. In the central processing, the data can be combined with further information, for example, the requirements profile of the object, historical data, data of similar objects, climate data, or weather forecasts. The user of the system can automatically be contacted if certain events are ascertained for the monitored object, if for example, an unfavorable forecast or a harmful parameter is ascertained. The sensors or sensing elements and further components are preferably placed in a plant container, an “intellignet flowerpot” so to speak, in such a way that the sensors or sensing elements are undetectable or barely detectable. Said “intelligent flowerpot” can comprise a “mobile sensor clip” as an essential component in addition to sensors arranged therein or thereon.

Claims

1-24. -24. (canceled)

25. A system for determining a state or a state change of a potted plant and for indicating said state or state change to a user by wireless communication, comprising

placed on or within a culture medium in a pot or other vessel at least two cross-linked sensors, each said sensor determining at least one physical and/or chemical parameter, each said parameter being represented as an electrical parameter signal,

placed on or within said pot or in one of said sensors an electronic device which transforms said electrical parameter signal into a digitally encoded parameter signal and transmits said digitally encoded parameter signal to a receiver located outside said pot or other vessel,

at least one of said sensors determining the contents of nutritive and/or harmful substances within said culture medium.

26. The system according to claim 25, wherein

the sensor or sensors determining the contents of nutritive and/or harmful substances within the culture medium identifies the conductivity of the culture medium or of a groundwater in the pot or vessel, by measuring the resistance between two accordingly placed electrodes.

27. The system according to claim 25, further comprising

at least one sensor equipped for measuring at least one of the following physical or chemical parameters:

temperature and/or moisture of said culture medium,

temperature and/or humidity of the ambient atmosphere, and/or

duration and/or intensity and/or nature of light or other radiation to which the plant is exposed.

28. The system according to claim 25, wherein

the digitally coded parameter signals are transmitted wireless via an existing communication network.

29. The system according to claim 25, including

a plurality of sensors for determining the moisture within the culture medium and/or the contents of nutritive and/or harmful substances therein, said sensors being placed in differing levels of the pot or vessel.

30. The system according to claim 25, including

a plurality of sensors for determining the moisture within the culture medium and/or the contents of nutritive and/or harmful substances therein, said sensors extending from the bottom of the pot or vessel and having different lengths.

31. The system according to claim 25, wherein

at least one sensor is configured as a movable float gauge for determining the moisture within the culture medium by identifying a level of a liquid within said culture medium.

32. The system according to claim 25, further including

an RFID tag attached to the pot or vessel for identifying said pot or vessel by an RFID reader.

33. The system according to claim 25, wherein

at least one sensor is configured as mobile sensor clip mountable on or close to the plant, said sensor clip including a power supply, one or more sensors, and means for wireless transmitting the electrical parameter signals derived by said sensors to the electronic device.

34. The system according to claim 33, wherein

the mobile sensor clip has a plant-like structure, in particular approximately the form of a leaf, a fruit, a blossom, or a flower, whereby a part of said structure is configured as or includes a solar cell for said clip'"'"'s power supply.

35. The system according to claim 25, wherein

a plurality of more than two sensors is provided, at least two of which are connected by wire whereas the remaining sensors are wireless cross-linked.

36. The system according to claim 25, wherein

at least one sensor generates digitally encoded parameter signals and/or includes means for transmitting said digitally encoded parameter signals.

37. The system according to claim 25, wherein

at least one sensor is placed at the upper end or rim of the pot or vessel for determining duration and/or intensity and/or nature of the light or other radiation to which the plant is exposed.

38. The system according to claim 25, wherein

at least one sensor generates digitally encoded parameter signals and/or includes means for transmitting said digitally encoded parameter.

39. A method for operating the system according to claim 25 for determining a state or a change of state of a potted plant and for indicating said state or change of state to a user by wireless communication, comprising

deriving at least two physical and/or chemical parameters, one of them indicating the contents of nutritive and/or harmful substances within a culture medium in a pot or vessel containing said potted plant,

representing each said physical and/or chemical parameter as an electrical parameter signal,

transforming said electrical parameter signal into a digitally encoded parameter signal and transmitting said digitally encoded parameter signal to a receiver located outside said pot or vessel,

processing said digitally encoded parameter signals received in said receiver and deriving output signals representing the state or change of state of said plant,

transmitting said output signals to an indicating or display device of the user of said plant, and

displaying or otherwise indicating to said user the state or change of state of said plant.

40. The method according to claim 39, wherein

a further parameter of the at least two physical and/or chemical parameters is one of the group of:

temperature and/or moisture of the culture medium, and/or

temperature and/or humidity of an ambient atmosphere, and/or

duration and/or intensity and/or nature of light or other radiation to which the plant is exposed.

41. The method according to claim 39, wherein

the physical and/or chemical parameters are determined in realtime and the digitally coded parameter signals derived therefrom are transmitted to the user without delay.

42. The method according to claim 39, wherein

the user is alarmed whenever any of the digitally coded parameter signals or any therefrom derived output signals concerning a plant of said user indicates a dangerous state of said plant.

43. The system according to claim 25, wherein the electronic device transmits said digitally encoded parameter signal in realtime.

44. The system according to claim 25, wherein the digitally encoded parameter signals are transmitted wireless via an existing WLAN and/or the Internet.

45. The system according to claim 25, wherein the sensors are placed at a wall of the pot or vessel.

46. The system according to claim 37, wherein at least one sensor comprises a plurality of locally distributed sensors.

47. The method according to claim 39, wherein the digitally encoded parameter signal is transmitted in realtime.

48. The method according to claim 42, where in the user is alarmed in realtime.