User interface for a sensor-based interface device for interrupting an irrigation controller

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10206342-B2
Application number	US-201514830600-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 19, 2015
Priority date	Jun 20, 2006
Publication date	Feb 19, 2019
Grant date	Feb 19, 2019

Abstract

Some embodiments provide an interface unit interfacing with an irrigation controller, comprising: a housing; a controller configured to instruct an interruption of a watering schedule executed by the irrigation controller, the interruption based on one or both of sensed temperature and sensed rainfall amount, and based on one or both of user entered temperature and rainfall threshold parameters; a switching device coupled with the controller, and configured to cause the interruption in response to signaling from the controller; and a user interface comprising: a plurality of user input devices configured to provide signaling to the controller based upon user's engagement, and configured to allow the user to define the temperature and rainfall threshold parameters; and a user display comprising a display screen; wherein the controller is configured to cause the display screen to display a plurality of pictorial representations that in combination convey whether irrigation is being interrupted.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An interface unit interfacing with an irrigation controller that is separate from the interface unit, the interface unit comprising:
a housing;
a control unit within the housing, where the control unit is configured to:
based on signaling received from a rain sensor, detect active rainfall and an absence of rain,
the rain sensor including a moisture absorptive material configured to expand in response to the contact with the rainfall and contract in response to the absence of the rain;
the signaling received from the rain sensor by the interface unit including data corresponding to a variable amount of expansion and contraction of the moisture absorptive material of the rain sensor; and

determine, based on an analysis of the data corresponding to the variable amount of expansion and contraction of the moisture absorptive material of the rain sensor received by the interface unit in the signaling from the rain sensor by the interface unit, whether an interruption of one or more watering schedules executed by the irrigation controller should occur; and
output signaling to instruct the interruption, the interruption being based on a determination by the control unit that the data corresponding to the variable amount of expansion and contraction of the moisture absorptive material of the rain sensor received by the interface unit in the signaling from the rain sensor indicates that a sensed rainfall accumulation amount is above a predefined rainfall accumulation threshold parameter, the interruption being for an interval of time after a detection of a sensed stop of the rainfall;

a switching device configured to cause the interruption in response to the signaling from the control unit; and
a user interface integrated with the housing and comprising:
a plurality of user input devices coupled to the control unit and configured to provide signaling to the control unit based upon a user's engagement therewith, the plurality of user input devices configured to allow the user to set and adjust at least the user set rainfall threshold parameter; and
a user display comprising a display screen and coupled to the control unit;

wherein the control unit is configured to cause the display screen to display to the user at least one of the sensed rainfall accumulation amount, the predefined rainfall accumulation threshold parameter and whether irrigation is being interrupted.

2. The interface unit of claim 1 , wherein the display screen is configured to display one or more pictorial representations; and
wherein the control unit is configured to cause the display screen to display a plurality of pictorial representations that in combination convey to the user the at least one of the sensed rainfall accumulation amount, the predefined rainfall accumulation threshold parameter, and whether irrigation is being interrupted; and
wherein the control unit in being configured to cause the display screen to display the plurality of pictorial representations is configured to cause the display screen to simultaneously display the plurality of the pictorial representations.

3. The interface unit of claim 1 , wherein the display screen is configured to display one or more pictorial representations; and
wherein the control unit is configured to cause the display screen to display a plurality of pictorial representations that in combination convey to the user the at least one of the sensed rainfall accumulation amount, the predefined rainfall accumulation threshold parameter, and whether irrigation is being interrupted; and
further comprising:
a receiver coupled with the control unit, wherein the receiver is configured to receive a communication from a remote sensor, where the communication comprises data indicating the sensed rainfall accumulation amount above the predefined rainfall accumulation threshold parameter; and
the control unit is configured to:
receive the data indicating that the sensed rainfall accumulation amount exceeds the predefined rainfall accumulation threshold parameter; and
communicate the signaling to cause the switching device, when it is determined by the control unit that the data indicating the sensed rainfall accumulation amount exceeds the predefined rainfall accumulation threshold parameter, to cause the interruption;
wherein the control unit in being configured to cause the display screen to display the plurality of pictorial representations is configured to cause the display screen to display an interrupt indicator and a rain indicator in response to a determination by the control unit that the sensed rainfall accumulation amount exceeds the predefined rainfall accumulation threshold parameter,
wherein the combination of the interrupt indicator and the rain indicator conveys to the user that the irrigation is interrupted based on the sensed start of rainfall.

4. The interface unit of claim 3 , wherein the control unit is configured in part to instruct the interruption of the one or more watering schedules executed by the irrigation controller based on a user set interval of time of the interruption after the sensed stop of the rainfall; and
wherein the plurality of user input devices are configured to allow the user to set and adjust the interval of time of the interruption after the sensed stop of the rainfall.

5. The interface unit of claim 4 , wherein the control unit in being configured to cause the display screen to display the plurality of pictorial representations is configured to cause the display screen to not display a water spray indicator such that the combination of the interrupt indicator and the lack of the display of the water spray indicator conveys to the user that the irrigation is being interrupted, and the combination of the interrupt indicator, the lack of the display of the water spray indicator and the rain indicator conveys to the user that the irrigation is interrupted based on the sensed rainfall accumulation amount being above the predefined rainfall accumulation threshold parameter.

6. The interface unit of claim 5 , wherein the control unit in being configured to communicate the signaling to cause the switching device to cause the interruption is further configured such that the signaling communicated by the control unit to cause the switching device to cause the interruption is not communicated to the irrigation controller.

7. The interface unit of claim 4 , wherein the control unit in being configured to cause the display screen to display the plurality of pictorial representations is configured to cause the display screen to display, based on the sensed rainfall accumulation amount, a rainfall indicator that depicts a graphical representation of the sensed rainfall accumulation amount.

8. The interface unit of claim 1 ,
wherein the display screen is configured to display one or more pictorial representations; and
wherein the control unit is configured to cause the display screen to display a plurality of pictorial representations that convey to the user the sensed rainfall accumulation amount and wherein the pictorial representations that convey to the user the sensed rainfall accumulation amount include a graphical representation comprising one or more displayed bars dependent on the sensed rainfall accumulation amount with a greater number of bars being displayed as the sensed rainfall accumulation amount increases.

9. The interface unit of claim 1 ,
wherein the display screen is configured to display one or more pictorial representations; and
wherein the control unit is configured to cause the display screen to display a plurality of pictorial representations that in combination convey to the user the at least one of the sensed rainfall accumulation amo

Assignees

• Rain Bird Corp

Inventors

• Redmond David M
• Tennyson Michael J
• Hern Randall A
• Peterson Gerald E
• Fern David G

Classifications

• G05B2219/2625

  Sprinkler, irrigation, watering · CPC title

• G05B19/042

  using digital processors (G05B19/05 takes precedence) · CPC title

• A01G25/167 Primary

  Control by humidity of the soil itself or of devices simulating soil or of the atmosphere; Soil humidity sensors · CPC title