Continuous-flow irrigation timer

• US 7,526,365 B1
• Filed: 04/24/2007
• Issued: 04/28/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/26/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ECO-Drip Irrigation Systems Inc.
• Original Assignee: ECO-Drip Irrigation Systems Inc.
• Inventors: Farley, Earl T., Frerich, David K.
• Primary Examiner(s): BARNES-BULLOCK, CRYSTAL JOY
• Application Number:
  US11/739,658
• Time in Patent Office: 735 Days
• Field of Search: 700/11, 700/12, 700 14- 16, 700282-284, 700/289, 239/63, 239/200, 239/443, 239/569, 239/723, 137/78.2, 137/409, 137/410, 137/624.11, 137/624.13, 137/624.18, 137/825, 137/829, 137/832
• US Class Current: 700/284
• CPC Class Codes: A01G 25/00 Watering gardens, fields, sports grounds or the like special apparatus or adaptations for fertilising-liquids A01C23/00; nozzles or outlets, spraying apparatus B05B
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2625 Sprinkler, irrigation, watering
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/86405 Repeating cycle
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/86445 Plural, sequential, valve actuations

Abstract

An apparatus for controlling an irrigation system having multiple irrigation zones. The apparatus comprises a processor with associated memory, a plurality of valve controllers, an input device and a display screen. Each of the valve controllers is selectively activatable by the processor to provide a control signal to a respective zone valve, if connected thereto. The input device is adapted for inputting to the memory first data designating which of the controllers are available for activation, second data designating how many of the available controllers are to be activated simultaneously and third data designating how many times during a predetermined time period each of the available controllers will be activated. The display device is connected to the processor for displaying the first, second and third data. Initially, the processor uses the first, second and third data to select a first set containing at least two of the available controllers, to simultaneously provide control signals to all controllers in the first set, and to maintain the control signals until a new set is selected. At a regular interval thereafter, the processor uses the data to select a new set containing at least two of the available controllers, the new set including at least one controller that was not in the preceding set.

Claims

1. An apparatus for controlling an irrigation system having a plurality of irrigation zones, each of the zones having water distribution ducts and a zone valve for selectively providing water to the ducts in response to a control signal, the apparatus comprising:

a processor with associated memory;

a plurality of valve controllers operatively connected to the processor, each of the plurality of valve controllers being selectively activatable by the processor to provide a control signal to a respective zone valve, if connected thereto;

an input device operatively connected to the processor, the input device adapted for inputting to the associated memory first data designating which of the plurality of valve controllers are available for activation, second data designating how many of the available valve controllers are to be activated simultaneously and third data designating how many times during a predetermined time period each of the available valve controllers are to be activated;

a display device operatively connected to the processor for visually displaying information related to the first, second and third data stored in the associated memory;

wherein, initially, the processor uses the first, second and third data to select a valves-to-cycle set containing at least two of the available valve controllers from the plurality of valve controllers, to simultaneously provide control signals to all of the valve controllers in the valves-to-cycle set to activate all of the respective zone valves, and to maintain the control signals until a new valves-to-cycle set is selected;

wherein, continually at a regular interval thereafter, the processor uses the first, second and third data to select a new valves-to-cycle set containing at least two of the available valve controllers from the plurality of valve controllers and including at least one valve controller that was not included in the preceding set, to simultaneously provide control signals to all of the valve controllers in the new set to activate all of the respective zone valves, and to maintain the control signals until another new valves-to-cycle set is selected;

whereby during a predetermined period, each of the available valve controllers is cumulatively activated for an equal amount of time.

2. An apparatus in accordance with claim 1, wherein the input device consists of exactly two momentary contact pushbutton switches.

3. An apparatus in accordance with claim 1, wherein the input device comprises a wired modem for inputting the first, second and third data from a remote location over a PSTN.

4. An apparatus in accordance with claim 1, wherein the input device comprises a wireless modem for inputting the first, second and third data from a remote location over a PLMN cellular network.

5. An apparatus in accordance with claim 1, wherein the input device comprises a RS-232 communications interface for inputting the first, second and third data from a remote location.

6. An apparatus in accordance with claim 1, wherein the input device comprises an Ethernet-type network interface for inputting the first, second and third data from a remote location.

7. An apparatus in accordance with claim 1, wherein the display device comprises an LCD display screen.

8. An apparatus in accordance with claim 1, wherein the valve controllers comprise solid-state AC output modules producing an AC control signal in response to DC digital logic inputs received from the processor.

9. An apparatus in accordance with claim 8, where a separate solid-state AC output module is provided for controlling each zone valve.

10. An apparatus in accordance with claim 9, wherein each valve controller further comprises an over-ride switch having a first position activating the control signal regardless of inputs received from the processor, a second position deactivating the control signal regardless of inputs received from the processor, and a third position allowing the processor to selectively activate and deactivate the control signal.

11. An apparatus for controlling an irrigation system in accordance with claim 1, wherein the processor determines a value for the regular interval between the selection of successive sets of available valve controllers by accessing a lookup table stored in the associated memory using the first, second and third data as table keys.

12. An apparatus for controlling an irrigation system in accordance with claim 1, wherein the processor determines a value for the regular interval between the selection of successive sets of available valve controllers by using an algorithm having the first, second and third data as variables.

13. An apparatus for controlling an irrigation system in accordance with claim 1, wherein the associated memory further comprises:

a valve-status table having memory location addresses corresponding to each valve controller;

status data positions within each memory location address indicative of whether the respective valve controller is available; and

a pointer memory location designating a starting address in the valve-status table.

14. An apparatus for controlling an irrigation system in accordance with claim 13, wherein the valves-to-cycle set is selected by the following steps:

continually at a regular interval, incrementing the position of the pointer, and beginning at the position of the pointer, selecting the first N successive memory location addresses having a status data position indicative that the corresponding valve controller is available, where N is the number of available valve controllers to be activated simultaneously obtained from the second data; and

assigning the valve controllers corresponding to each memory location in the aforesaid first N successive memory locations to the valves-to-cycle set.

15. An irrigation timer comprising:

a digital processor with associated memory;

a plurality of output modules operatively connected to the digital processor, each output module selectively producing an output signal in response to a digital input signal received from the digital processor;

an input device operatively connected to the digital processor and adapted for inputting to the associated memory

first information designating which of the plurality of output modules are available for activation,

second information designating how many of the available output modules are to be activated simultaneously, and

third information designating how many times during a predetermined time period each of the available output modules are to be activated;

the digital processor repeatedly, at a regular interval selected using the second and third information, selecting a valves-to-cycle set containing at least two of the plurality of output modules designated available for activation by the first information and including at least one output module that was not included in an immediately preceding valves-to-cycle set, sending digital input signals simultaneously to all of the output modules in the valves-to-cycle set, and maintaining the control signals until a new valves-to-cycle set is selected;

whereby during a predetermined period, each of the of the plurality of output modules designated available for activation is cumulatively activated for an equal amount of time.

16. A method for programming an irrigation timer having a processor and associated memory, an input device and a plurality of valve controllers selectively producing an output signal in response to an input signal received from the processor, the method comprising the steps:

inputting to the associated memory using the input device first information designating which of the plurality of valve controllers are available for activation;

inputting to the associated memory using the input device second information designating how many of the available valve controllers are to be activated simultaneously;

inputting to the associated memory using the input device third information designating how many times during a predetermined time period each of the available valve controllers are to be activated;

selecting, at a regular interval using the processor, a valves-to-cycle set containing at least two of the plurality of valve controllers designated available for activation by the first information and including at least one valve controller that was not included in an immediately preceding valves-to-cycle set;

sending input signals simultaneously to all of the valve controllers in the valves-to-cycle set; and

maintaining the input signals until a new valves-to-cycle set is selected;

whereby during a predetermined period, each of the of the plurality of valve controllers designated available for activation is cumulatively activated for an equal amount of time.

17. A method for programming an irrigation timer having a processor and associated memory, an input device and a plurality of valve controllers comprising:

selecting from a plurality of valve controllers, each of the controllers controlling a zone valve for supplying water to a zone to be irrigated, a plurality of available valve controllers for actuating the associated zone valves and storing a code in a valve status table in a memory indicating an available status for the selected valves;

selecting a number of valve controllers to be simultaneously actuated and storing the number in the memory;

selecting a number of cycles in a predetermined time period that each of the available valve controllers are to be actuated to operate the associated zone valves and storing the number of cycles in the memory;

using preprogrammed logic with the processor to determine a cycle time for actuating a set of the available valve controllers;

actuating successive sets of valve controllers for the cycle time, each of the sets including at least two of the available valve controllers and at least one valve controller not actuated in the previous cycle; and

wherein the available valve controllers are each actuated for an equal amount of time over the predetermined time period.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein processor utilizes the selected number of available valve controllers, the selected number of controllers to be actuated simultaneously, the selected number of cycles in a predetermined time period and preprogrammed logic to determine the cycle time.

19. The method of claim 17 wherein the step of actuating successive sets of valve controllers for the cycle time, each of the sets including at least two of the available valve controllers and at least one valve controller not actuated in the previous cycle, includes populating a valves-to-cycle table in the memory and utilizing the table to determine each set of valve controllers to be actuated in each cycle.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein the step of populating the valves-to-cycle table comprises selecting a predetermined number of available valve controllers from the valve status table stored in the memory.