HYDROPONIC SYSTEM GUARDIAN
First Claim
1. A control assembly for controlling a liquid management system, said control assembly comprising:
- A dual relay for controlling a secondary fill pump and a secondary drain pump;
a level sensor for monitoring a liquid level in a reservoir;
a fill sensor for monitoring a primary fill pump;
a drain sensor for monitoring a primary drain pump; and
a controller being programmed to monitor a time the primary fill pump is operating, a time between a first primary fill pump operation and a second primary fill pump operation, a time between a first primary fill pump operation and a first primary drain pump operation, a time the primary drain pump is operating, a time between a first primary drain pump operation and a second primary drain pump operation, and a time between a first primary drain pump operation and a second primary fill pump operation, said controller also monitoring a liquid level in the reservoir, where the controller is further programmed to operate the secondary fill pump if the time between the first primary fill pump operation and a second primary fill pump operation exceeds a threshold value, said controller operating the secondary drain pump if the time between the first primary drain pump operation and a second primary drain pump operation exceeds a threshold value, wherein the controller is further programmed such that the controller will operate the secondary fill pump if the time between the first primary fill pump operation and a first primary drain pump operation exceeds a threshold value, said controller operating the secondary drain pump if the time between the first primary drain pump operation and a second primary fill pump operation exceeds a threshold value, said controller stopping the secondary fill pump operation if a predetermined high liquid level threshold value for the reservoir is exceeded, and said controller stopping the secondary drain pump if a predetermined low liquid level threshold value for the reservoir is exceeded.
0 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A system and method for controlling a liquid management system. The system and method include a primary fill pump and a secondary fill pump, a primary drain pump and a secondary drain pump. The system and method also include a level sensor for monitoring a liquid level in a reservoir. A controller is programmed to monitor the liquid level in the reservoir such that the controller will operate the primary fill pump and the primary drain pump to control the liquid level in the reservoir in a predetermined manner. The controller is further programmed to operate the secondary fill pump and the secondary drain pump to control the liquid level in the predetermined manner in the event of a failure of the primary fill pump or the primary drain pump.
14 Citations
20 Claims
-
1. A control assembly for controlling a liquid management system, said control assembly comprising:
-
A dual relay for controlling a secondary fill pump and a secondary drain pump; a level sensor for monitoring a liquid level in a reservoir; a fill sensor for monitoring a primary fill pump; a drain sensor for monitoring a primary drain pump; and a controller being programmed to monitor a time the primary fill pump is operating, a time between a first primary fill pump operation and a second primary fill pump operation, a time between a first primary fill pump operation and a first primary drain pump operation, a time the primary drain pump is operating, a time between a first primary drain pump operation and a second primary drain pump operation, and a time between a first primary drain pump operation and a second primary fill pump operation, said controller also monitoring a liquid level in the reservoir, where the controller is further programmed to operate the secondary fill pump if the time between the first primary fill pump operation and a second primary fill pump operation exceeds a threshold value, said controller operating the secondary drain pump if the time between the first primary drain pump operation and a second primary drain pump operation exceeds a threshold value, wherein the controller is further programmed such that the controller will operate the secondary fill pump if the time between the first primary fill pump operation and a first primary drain pump operation exceeds a threshold value, said controller operating the secondary drain pump if the time between the first primary drain pump operation and a second primary fill pump operation exceeds a threshold value, said controller stopping the secondary fill pump operation if a predetermined high liquid level threshold value for the reservoir is exceeded, and said controller stopping the secondary drain pump if a predetermined low liquid level threshold value for the reservoir is exceeded. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
-
-
8. A method for controlling a liquid management system, said method comprising:
-
providing a control unit that includes a dual relay for controlling a secondary fill pump and a secondary drain pump, a level sensor for monitoring a liquid level in a reservoir, a fill sensor for monitoring a primary fill pump and a drain sensor for monitoring a primary drain pump; and using the control unit to monitor a time the primary fill pump is operating, a time between a first primary fill pump operation and a second primary fill pump operation, a time the primary drain pump is operating, a time between a first primary drain pump operation and a second primary drain pump operation, and using the control unit to monitor the liquid level in the reservoir, where the control unit will operate the secondary fill pump if the time between the first primary fill pump operation and a second primary fill pump operation exceeds a threshold value, the control unit will operate the secondary drain pump if the time between the first primary drain pump operation and a second primary drain pump operation exceeds a threshold value, and the control unit will stop the secondary fill pump operation if a high liquid level threshold value for the reservoir is exceeded and the controller will stop the secondary drain pump if a low liquid level threshold value for the reservoir is exceeded. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
-
-
15. A control assembly for controlling a liquid management system, said control assembly comprising:
-
a primary fill pump and a secondary fill pump; a primary drain pump and a secondary drain pump; a level sensor for monitoring a liquid level in a reservoir; and a controller being programmed to monitor the liquid level in the reservoir, said controller operating the primary fill pump and the primary drain pump to control the liquid level in the reservoir in a predetermined manner, said controller also being programmed to operate the secondary fill pump and the secondary drain pump to control the liquid level in the predetermined manner in the event of a failure of the primary fill pump or the primary drain pump. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
-
Specification