Irrigation flow sensor systems and methods of detecting irrigation flow

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2025264346-A1
Application number	US-202519067659-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Feb 28, 2025
Priority date	Apr 27, 2020
Publication date	Aug 21, 2025
Grant date	—

Abstract

Some embodiments provide an irrigation flow sensor system, comprising: a housing forming a fluid channel to cooperate with conduits of an irrigation system; a paddle wheel device with at least a first blade of a set of the blades comprises a magnetic element; the paddle wheel device is positioned with at least a portion of the blades extends into the fluid channel as the blades rotate about an axis; a magnetic sensor proximate a pathway of the magnetic element as it rotates configured to provide a sensor output every time the magnetic element passes the magnetic sensor; a switch coupled to the magnetic sensor and a current loop, wherein the switch in an activate state is configured to temporarily change the current in the current loop in response to the sensor output, with a rate of change in current corresponding to a flow rate of the fluid flowing.

First claim

1 . An irrigation flow sensor system, comprising:
a sensor, within a housing, configured to provide a sensor output when an element of a flow device passes the sensor, the element moving in the presence of fluid flow in a fluid path of an irrigation system to transport water to irrigation distribution devices of the irrigation system; and a switch coupled to the sensor and a current loop, wherein the sensor output operates the switch to change a current in the current loop between a first current flow value and a second current flow value, wherein a frequency of transitions between the first current flow value and the second current flow value corresponds to a flow rate of the fluid flow.

2 . The flow sensor system of claim 1 , further comprising:
a timeout circuit electrically coupled with the switch and configured to force the switch from an active state to a non-active state overriding the sensor output and cause a change from the first current flow value to the second current flow value within the current loop when the element is within a threshold distance of the sensor for more than a threshold period of time.

3 . The flow sensor system of claim 2 , further comprising:
a communications interface coupled with the current loop and configured to communicate to an an external irrigation controller flow rate data corresponding to the frequency of the transitions between the first current flow value and the second current flow value within the current loop that corresponds to the flow rate of the fluid flow.

4 . The flow sensor system of claim 3 , wherein the current loop comprises a voltage protection circuit configured to protect the switch from an input voltage received at the communications interface that is greater than a first voltage threshold; and
a current protection circuit configured to protect the switch from an input current received at the communications interface that is greater than a first current threshold.

5 . The flow sensor system of claim 3 , further comprising:
a voltage supply circuit electrically coupled with the sensor and the communications interface and configured to generate a substantially constant voltage that is supplied to the sensor to power the sensor.

6 . The flow sensor system of claim 2 , wherein:
the switch comprises a first transistor coupled with an output of the sensor, wherein the first transistor is activated to cause a transition to the active state and to cause a transition to the first current flow value within the current loop in response to a change to a first state of the sensor output triggered in response to each detection by the sensor of the element; and the timeout circuit comprises a second transistor coupled with a gate of the first transistor and configured to override the activation of the first transistor by the sensor when the sensor output from the sensor is active, corresponding to the element being within the threshold distance of the sensor, for more than the threshold period of time.

7 . The flow sensor system of claim 6 , wherein the timeout circuit comprises a resistance-capacitance (RC) circuit comprising at least a timeout resistor coupled with a timeout capacitor, wherein the RC circuit couples with the second transistor and an RC time constant of the RC circuit defines the threshold period of time.

8 . The flow sensor system of claim 1 , further comprising:
a fluid channel, wherein the fluid channel comprises a first port and a second port and is configured to transport fluid between the first port and the second port; wherein the housing is secured with the fluid channel and comprises a sealed portion, wherein the sensor is sealed within the sealed portion; and wherein at least the sealed portion of the housing is removable from the fluid channel, wherein when the sealed portion of the housing is removed from the fluid channel the flow device is exposed.

9 . The flow sensor system of claim 1 , further comprising:
the flow device comprising multiple blades extending away from an axis of the flow device, wherein a first blade of the multiple blades comprises the element and a second blade of the multiple blades comprises an additional element, and wherein the element and the additional element are configured to move relative to the sensor in response to the fluid flow; wherein the sensor is configured to change the sensor output to a first state in response to the element moving proximate the sensor and change the sensor output to a different second state in response to the additional element moving proximate the sensor.

10 . The flow sensor system of claim 1 , further comprising:
a conduit portion secured with the housing, wherein the fluid flows through the conduit portion; an upstream conduit coupling and a downstream conduit coupling, each configured to couple with respective irrigation conduits; a filter positioned at least partially within the conduit portion; an O-ring cavity formed in the conduit portion; and an O-ring secured within the O-ring cavity between the conduit portion and the conduit coupling, wherein the filter is secured between the conduit portion and the upstream conduit coupling with a filter head of the filter being positioned with a portion of a lateral surface of the filter head biasing the O-ring into the O-ring cavity.

11 . The flow sensor system of claim 1 , wherein the switch in an active state is configured to temporarily change the current to the first current flow value in the current loop in response to the sensor output from the sensor being in a first state in response to the element passing the sensor such that the current loop varies between the second current flow value when the switch is in a non-active state and the first current flow value when the switch is in the active state based on the first state of the sensor output from the sensor.

12 . The flow sensor system of claim 1 , further comprising:
a fluid channel comprising a first port and a second port, wherein the fluid channel is configured to transport fluid between the first port and the second port, wherein the fluid channel further comprises a pair of recesses; and a separate axle cooperated with the flow device and aligned with a rotational axis of the flow device and with a first portion of the axle and a second portion of the axle extending from opposite sides of the flow device; and wherein the pair of recesses are each configured to receive one of the first portion and the second portion of the axle.

13 . The flow sensor system of claim 1 , further comprising:
the flow device comprising multiple blades, wherein each blade of the multiple blades comprises: an enhanced region positioned at a distal end of the blade away from axis of the flow device, wherein the enhanced region comprises an increased thickness relative to a thickness of the blade between the enhanced region and a central hub region of the flow device.

14 . The flow sensor system of claim 1 , further comprising:
a conduit portion secured with the housing, wherein the fluid flows through the conduit portion, the conduit portion comprising recesses; wherein the flow device comprises a pair of protruding posts each extending from opposite sides of the flow device and each of the pair of protruding posts are aligned with an axis of the flow device and forming a fixed axle; and bushings each cooperated with one post of the pair of protuding posts, wherein each of the bushings is configured to cooperate with a respective one of the recesses of the conduit portion.

15 . The flow sensor system of claim 1 , further comprising:
the housing s

Assignees

• Rain Bird Corp

Inventors

• Geerligs Steven D
• Churchill Russell
• Montgomery Randy R
• Kwak Chong Wang
• Porrazzo Jr Joseph G
• Landis Michael A
• Archundia Angel Reyes

Classifications

• G01F15/066

  involving magnetic transmission devices · CPC title

• A01G25/16

  Control of watering · CPC title

• G01F15/14

  Casings, e.g. of special material · CPC title

• G01F15/063

  using electrical means · CPC title

• G01F1/1155 Primary

  with magnetic coupling only in a mechanical transmission path · CPC title