Methods and systems for irrigation control

• US 10,362,739 B2
• Filed: 12/15/2015
• Issued: 07/30/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/12/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rain Bird Corporation
• Original Assignee: Rain Bird Corporation
• Inventors: Ersavas, Bulut F., Pekol, Semih, Bodur, Atakan
• Primary Examiner(s): Luu, Pho M
• Application Number:
  US14/970,349
• Publication Number:
  US 20160135389A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,323 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A01G 2/00 Vegetative propagation plant reproduction by tissue culture techniques A01H4/00
• CPC Class Codes: A01G 25/023 Dispensing fittings for drip irrigation, e.g. drippers
• CPC Class Codes: A01G 25/16 Control of watering
• CPC Class Codes: A01G 25/167 Control by humidity of the soil itself or of devices simulating soil or of the atmosphere; Soil humidity sensors
• CPC Class Codes: B05B 12/04 for sequential operation or multiple outlets
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/042 using digital processors G05B19/05 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/2625 Sprinkler, irrigation, watering
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 7/0617 specially adapted for fluid materials
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/70 Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC]

Abstract

A wireless system is provided for monitoring environmental, soil, or climate conditions and/or controlling irrigation or climate control systems at an agricultural or landscape site. In some embodiments, the wireless system includes at least one wireless nodes for monitoring environmental, soil, or climate conditions and/or for controlling one or more irrigation or climate control systems at the site. The wireless system also includes a server computer system located remotely from the site. The server computer system is coupled to the node/s over a communications network for receiving data from and controlling operation of the node/s. The server computer system is also coupled to a device operated by an end-user over a communications network for transmitting the data to and receiving remote control commands or queries from the end-user.

Claims

1. A system for controlling irrigation control systems at a plurality of agricultural or landscape sites, comprising:

at least one wireless node at each of the plurality of sites;

a server computer system located remotely from the plurality of sites, said server computer system communicationally coupled to each of the at least one wireless node over a communications network for receiving data from and controlling operation of the at least one wireless node at each of the plurality of sites, said server computer system also selectively coupled to a plurality of devices each operated by one of a plurality of end-users over a communications network for transmitting the data to and receiving remote control commands or queries from the plurality of end-users,

wherein the data transmitted to a given end-user corresponds to the site for which the given end-user has authorization;

at least one gateway, at a location of each of the plurality of sites, for transferring the data between the at least one wireless node and the server computer system,

wherein the server computer system transfers an irrigation schedule to the at least one wireless node of each of the plurality of sites for execution at each of the plurality of sites; and

one or more of a web based application and a cell phone application configured to provide an end-user interface for monitoring the data from the at least one wireless node for which the given end-user has the authorization and configured transmit control commands to the server computer system, wherein the server computer system is configured to receive the control commands and transmit the control commands to the at least one wireless node, wherein the at least one wireless node is configured to receive the control commands and control irrigation based on the control commands.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said at least one gateway disseminates control commands from the server computer system to the nodes.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the server computer system communicates with the at least one node through the Internet or a cellular network.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the server computer system transmits measurements from at least one node to at least one of the plurality of end users via the Internet or a cellular network.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the server computer system responds to queries from at least one end-user with short text messages (SMS), web pages, or screens to be displayed on the cell phone application.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the irrigation control system includes pumps, solenoid or other types of valves, or fertigation devices.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one node at each of the plurality sites form an ad-hoc dynamic wireless mesh sensor network, and wherein each node sends collected environmental, soil, or climate measurements to the at least one gateway by relaying data through a neighbor node, and wherein the node identifies the neighbor node by determining which node can be used to establish the highest quality data transfer link.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the neighbor node having the best quality link comprises a parent node that is used as a bridge for sending data to the at least one gateway.

9. The system of claim 1 wherein the data comprises environmental, soil, or climate parameters include temperature, humidity, or soil moisture conditions.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the communications network for transferring the data between the at least one gateway at least one node of the plurality of sites and the server computer system comprises a GPRS network, an Edge network, a 3G network, a UMTS network, a cellular network, a wireless broadband data communication service, or WiMAX.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one wireless node at each of the plurality of sites is configured to compare received sensor measurements against at least one user-entered control condition, and control the irrigation accordingly, and wherein the at least one user-entered control condition is defined at the server computer system by the given end-user using a respective device and is transferred from the server computer system to the at least one wireless node and stored in an internal memory of the at least one wireless node.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the server computer system determines the irrigation schedule for a node at the site or particular zones at the site based on historical evapotranspiration (ET) data and information on crops or soil at the site.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the server computer system adjusts the irrigation schedule for a given period of time based on ET data at the site for an immediate prior period of time.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the server computer system adjusts the irrigation schedule based on soil moisture readings from one or more nodes at the site.

15. The system of claim 12, wherein the server computer system adjusts the irrigation schedule based on irrigation flow readings from one or more flow nodes at the site.

16. The system of claim 12, wherein the server computer system adjusts the irrigation schedule based on weather forecast information.

17. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the nodes communicate with and directly control the operation of valves or pumps without a central controller.

18. The system of claim 1, wherein the server computer system analyzes soil condition data received from at least one node and generates recommended upper and lower threshold values for starting and stopping irrigation, and wherein an end-user of the system is provided with the option of accepting or modifying the recommended values.

19. The system of claim 1 wherein the server computer system transmits a correct time for a given site to the gateway of that site, and wherein the gateway compares its time against the received correct time, and accepts the correct time as a new gateway time in the event a difference therebetween is outside of a given time window.