Methods and systems for irrigation control

• US 10,716,269 B2
• Filed: 06/25/2019
• Issued: 07/21/2020
• 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:
  US16/452,397
• Publication Number:
  US 20190307084A1
• Time in Patent Office: 392 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 15/02 electric
• 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 67/025 for remote control or remote monitoring of applications
• 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: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/561 Adding application-functional data or data for application control, e.g. adding metadata
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/60 Scheduling or organising the servicing of application requests, e.g. requests for application data transmissions using the analysis and optimisation of the required network resources admission control or resource allocation H04L47/70
• 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. 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 an irrigation control system at an agricultural or a landscape site, comprising:

at least one wireless control node at a site;

a server computer located remotely from the site, said server computer communicationally coupled to each of the at least one wireless control node over a communications network for receiving data from and transmitting data to the at least one wireless control node at the site, said server computer coupled to a device operated by an end-user over the communications network for transmitting the data to and receiving remote control commands or queries from the end-user; and

a web based application or a cell phone application configured to operate on a device operated by the end-user, to couple to a communications network, and to provide an end-user interface for the end-user, the end-user having authorization to access the at least one wireless control node; and

at least one gateway, at a location of the site, for transferring the data between the at least one wireless control node via a local wireless network and the server computer via the communications network;

wherein the server computer generates and transfers an irrigation schedule to the at least one wireless control node for storage and execution by the at least one wireless control node at the site;

wherein the at least one wireless control node receives at least one user-entered command entered via the web based application or the cell phone application on the device, and control irrigation accordingly, wherein the at least one user-entered command is transferred from the server computer to the at least one wireless control node;

wherein the server computer communicates with and responds to queries from the end-user with short text messages (SMS), web pages, or screens to be displayed on the web based application or the cell phone application;

wherein the at least one wireless control node communicates with and directly controls the operation of valves or pumps without a central controller.

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

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

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the server computer transmits measurements from the at least one wireless control node to the web based application or the cell phone application via an Internet or a cellular network.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the irrigation control system includes a pump, solenoid or other types of valves, or fertigation devices.

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

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

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

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the server computer determines the irrigation schedule for the at least one wireless control node at the site based on historical evapotranspiration (ET) data and information on crops or soil at the site.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the server computer adjusts the irrigation schedule for a given period of time based on ET data at the site for an immediate prior period of time.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the server computer adjusts the irrigation schedule based on soil moisture readings from the at least one wireless control node at the site.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein the server computer adjusts the irrigation schedule based on irrigation flow readings from one or more flow nodes at the site.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein the server computer adjusts the irrigation schedule based on weather forecast information.

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

15. The system of claim 1 wherein the server computer transmits a correct time for a given site to the at least one gateway, and wherein the at least one gateway compares its time against the received correct time, and accepts the correct time as a new gateway time in an event a difference there between is outside of a given time window.

16. The system of claim 1 wherein the web based application or the cell phone application on the device is configured to allow the end-user to input a new irrigation schedule or a schedule adjustment for the at least one wireless control node to be transmitted to the server computer.