WIRELESS IRRIGATION CONTROL

• US 20160113219A1
• Filed: 12/14/2015
• Published: 04/28/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 11/29/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rain Bird Corporation
• Original Assignee: Rain Bird Corporation
• Inventors: Tennyson, Michael James, Reyes Archundia, Angel, Jenkins, Robert H., Mueller, Brian Jeffrey, Torre, Frank
• Granted Patent: US 10,201,133 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A01G 25/16 Control of watering
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/042 using digital processors G05B19/05 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/25187 Transmission of signals, medium, ultrasonic, radio
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2625 Sprinkler, irrigation, watering
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

Some embodiments provide methods and systems of controlling irrigation. Some of these systems comprise: a connector of a controller interface (CI) coupled with an irrigation controller, wherein the connector is configured to receive a valve activation signal activated by the irrigation controller; a user interface of the CI; a processor of the CI configured to obtain valve transceiver (VT) programming with VT programming being received from inputs through the user interface, determine a station identifier, and identify as defined in the VT programming a remote valve associated with the station identifier and controlled by a remote VT; and a wireless transceiver configured to wirelessly transmit a wireless activation signal configured to be wirelessly received by the VT controlling the valve associated by the VT programming with the station identifier such that the VT is configured to control an actuator to actuate the valve.

Claims

1. An irrigation system, comprising:

a connector of a controller interface (CI) coupled with an irrigation controller, wherein the connector is configured to receive a valve activation signal activated by the irrigation controller;

a user interface of the CI;

a processor of the CI coupled with the connector and the user interface, wherein the processor is configured to obtain valve transceiver (VT) programming with at least a portion of the VT programming being received from inputs by a user through the user interface of the CI, determine a station identifier as a function of the valve activation signal, and identify as defined in the VT programming a remote valve associated with the station identifier of the irrigation controller and controlled by a remote VT; and

a wireless transceiver coupled with the processor and configured to wirelessly transmit a wireless activation signal configured to be wirelessly received by the VT controlling the valve associated by the VT programming with the station identifier such that the VT is configured to control an actuator to actuate the valve.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor in obtaining the VT programming is configured to associate the VT with the valve controlled by the VT and associated with the station identifier designated by the valve activation signal.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured communicate a query to the irrigation controller, wherein the connector in receiving the valve activation signal activated by the irrigation controller is configured to receive a response to the query, and wherein the processor determines the station identifier from the response to the query.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to receive, from the inputs through the user interface, direction information as part of the VT programming, wherein the direction information identifies a designated geographic direction from a location of the CI toward the VT with which the VT programming information is associated.

5. The irrigation system of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to evaluate the valve activation signal received from the irrigation controller to identify the station number, identify as a function of the valve activation signal and the station number the valve the valve to be activated in accordance with the valve activation signal, identify the VT corresponding to the valve to be activated, and activate the wireless transceiver to wirelessly transmit the wireless activation signal in response to identifying the VT to activate the corresponding one or more identified remote valves.

6. The irrigation system of claim 1, wherein the connector comprises a plurality of station input terminals configured to couple with station output terminals of the irrigation controller intended to be directly wired with a valve actuator such that the valve activation signal when applied to a station output terminal in accordance with an irrigation schedule implemented by the irrigation controller is received at a corresponding station input terminal, and wherein the processor is configured to associate in the VT programming the input terminal with the valve to be activated upon detecting a valve activation signal on the input terminal.

7. The irrigation system of claim 1, wherein the connector is configured to couple with a communication port of a control panel of the irrigation controller to receive the valve activation signals directly from the control panel.

8. The irrigation system of claim 1, wherein the processor of the CI is further configured to receive sensor data from a remote sensor, determine whether a threshold associated with the sensor data is exceeded and interrupt irrigation from the one or more valves controlled by the VT when the threshold associated with the sensor data is exceeded.

9. The irrigation system of claim 8, wherein the processor of the CI is further configured to interrupt all irrigation associated with the irrigation controller for at least a predefined period of time in response to determining that the threshold associated with the sensor data is exceeded.

10. The irrigation system of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to obtain the remote VT programming independent of programming of the irrigation program at the irrigation controller.

11. The irrigation system of claim 1, wherein the wireless transceiver is configured to receive status information from the VT regarding a parameter of the VT;

and

the processor is further configured to determine whether the status information has a predefined relationship with a corresponding status threshold, and cause a beeper command to be wirelessly communicated to the VT to generate an audible alert in response to determining that the status information has the predefined relationship with a corresponding status threshold.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a main circuit board of the CI, the main circuit board comprising the processor and an interface board connector, wherein the interface board connector is configured to interchangeably connect the main board with one of multiple different interface boards having the connector, wherein the connector is different on the different interface boards to allow the CI to be implemented in different configurations.

13. A method of irrigating, comprising:

receiving, at a connector of a controller interface (CI) coupled with an irrigation controller, a valve activation signal activated by the irrigation controller, wherein the valve activation signal corresponds to a station identifier programmed at the irrigation controller;

identifying, at a processor of the CI, a remote valve associated with the station identifier as defined at the CI in valve transceiver (VT) programming wherein at least a portion of the VT programming is received from inputs by a user through a user interface of the CI coupled with the processor, wherein the VT programming associates the station identifier with the remote valve controlled by an associated VT; and

wirelessly transmitting a wireless activation signal to the associated VT, wherein the associated VT is configured to control an actuator to actuate the remote valve.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the obtaining the VT programming comprises associating the VT with the station identifier and a valve designation corresponding to the valve controlled by the VT.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the obtaining the VT programming comprises:

receiving, from the inputs by the user through the user interface, the station identifier of the irrigation controller; and

associating the station identifier with a valve designation corresponding to the valve controlled by the VT as part of the remote VT programming.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the obtaining the VT programming comprises:

receiving, from the inputs through the user interface, direction information representing a designated geographic direction toward the VT with which the remote VT programming information is associated; and

associating the direction information with a VT identifier.

17. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

querying, from the CI, the irrigation controller; and

wherein the receiving the valve activation signal comprises receiving, at the CI, a response to the query from the irrigation controller and identifying from the response the station identifier.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the response comprises status information indicating a valve with an on status corresponding to the station identifier;

wherein the identifying the remote valve associated with the station identifier comprises evaluating, at the CI, the status information to identify the station identifier.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the wirelessly transmitting the wireless activation signal comprises broadcasting the wireless activation signal comprising an activation listing that identifies a state of multiple valves controlled through the CI including the on state of the valve associated with the station identifier.