Abstract:
An automated irrigation system having a computer to monitor and regulate the water flow to the various destinations. The computer is user programmable. The water flow is regulated by solenoids which are open and close based upon the instructions received from the computer. Moisture sensors at the destination locations transmit information to the computer by a PC board to prevent water overflow or flooding.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    This invention relates to an exemplary method and apparatus for an automated, non-farming irrigation system uniquely suited for watering indoor plants as well as outdoor lawns, hedges, plants, etc. 
         [0002]    Today, there are no commercially available methods for watering indoor plants. Yet indoor plants are a staple both in and around residential and commercial buildings. However, keeping plants sufficiently watered exacts a cost in terms of time and money. In the residential building, the occupants are required to remember to manually water the plants, taking care not to over water or underwater the plants. Long periods of extended absences such as vacations can wreck havoc with indoor plants. 
         [0003]    In commercial buildings, indoor plant maintenance is often relegated to a building employee who must be paid for this time. Moreover, this employee is not likely to know how often to water a given plant, and how much water to provide. 
         [0004]    Similarly, outdoor plants, hedges, lawns, etc, generally receive no individualized attention when part of an automated system. Sprinklers are set to periodically provide water at regular intervals in fixed amounts regardless of the state of the plants. This often leads to the same issue of over watering or underwatering the plants. 
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0005]    The invention herein represents an exemplary solution to this problem which will save time and costs in the automation of water plants, both indoors and outdoors. Specifically, the invention consists of a main controller, one of more J Boxes, plumbing, and one or moisture sensor. 
         [0006]    It is anticipated that this invention is ideally suited for new construction where the J Boxes can be installed into the structure of the building in the same way that electrical outlets are part of the structure of a building. This system is anticipated to cause a nominal increase in the cost of the building. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0007]      FIG. 1  is a schematic illustration of the invention 
           [0008]      FIG. 2  is a flow diagram of the invention 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS 
       [0009]    Referring to  FIG. 1 ,  FIG. 1  represents a high level schematic diagram of the invention. The invention is composed of main controller  110 , which includes transmitter  115 . Main Controller  110  controls the water flow through external water solenoid  120 . Solenoid  120  is attached via PX tubing  130 . PX tubing  130  is connected to one or more J Boxes  150 . J Box  150  is comprised of Power Supply  140 , and printed circuit board  144 , which includes alarm lights  142 , and transmitter  146 . J Box  150  also includes water flow splitter  152 , which directs the water flow equally to water solenoid  154 . Leakage sensor  160  ensures sends and alert to circuit board  144 . 
         [0010]    Main controller  110  is a computer system capable of receiving data, processing said data, and outputting said data via one or more communications channel. For each J Box, the information received by Main Controller  110  would include, but is not limited to, how often to water each plant and how much water to provide each plant, and whether the watering amount and frequency, for a given plant, should depend on the moisture level of the soil. In one embodiment of the invention, main controller  110  has an interface configured to permit the user to input J Box control information directly to Main Controller  110 . In another embodiment of the invention, instructions and data cannot be entered directly into Main Controller  110  by the user, but is received via a communications channel from each J Box  150 . In yet a third embodiment of the invention, Main Controller  110  receives instructions and data from a computer network. 
         [0011]    External Solenoid  120  is a common solenoid except that it can be controlled, i.e. opened and closed, by Main Controller  110 . Its purpose is to permit or restrict water flow through PX tubing  130 . 
         [0012]    Printed Circuit Board  144  directly controls the opening and closing of Solenoid  154  which controls water flow to each plant. Printed Circuit Board  144  receives water moisture information from Moisture Sensors  148 . Additionally, Printed Circuit Board  144  receives water leakage information from Moisture sensors  160 . 
         [0013]    In one embodiment of the invention, J Box  150  includes a method whereby the user can directly program water control information into Printed Circuit Board  144 . This information would include, but is not limited to, how often to water the plants and how much water to provide each plant, and whether the watering amount and frequency should depend on the amount of moisture in the soil. 
         [0014]    In another embodiment of the invention, the J Box receives this information from the main controller via a communications channel. In yet another embodiment, some information is received from Main Controller  110 , while the remaining other information is set at each J Box  150 . 
         [0015]    Printed Circuit Board  144  uses this information to determine how long and how often to keep solenoid  154  open. 
         [0016]    Moisture sensor  160  acts as a leakage control. In the presence of a leak, Moisture sensor  160  sends an interrupt to Printed Circuit Board  144 . For purposes of this invention, an interrupt is a hardware signal that causes Printed Circuit Board  144  to set aside normal processing and begin execution of an interrupt handler, i.e. a special computer program associated with the interrupt. Upon receipt of the interrupt, Printed Circuit Board  144  closes Solenoid  154  and informs Main Controller  110  that Moisture sensor  160  detected a possible leak. Main Controller  110  will also close solenoid  120  as a further safeguard against leakage, until such time as it receives the all clear, i.e. the flag is reset. 
         [0017]    In another embodiment of the invention, the Main Controller  110  opens and closed solenoid  120  based upon a set interval without regard to Moisture Sensor  160 . 
         [0018]    Referring to  FIG. 2 ,  FIG. 2  illustrates one embodiment of the flow logic of the invention. At step  210 , the user sets the moisture level for a given plant. The moisture level is set at the main controller. At step  220 , the moisture control information is transmitted to the appropriate J Box. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the moisture control information is transmitted via radio frequency ID, although any wired or wireless protocol may be used to transmit the moisture control information. 
         [0019]    At step  230 , the main controller samples the leaking sensor. If the No_Leak sensor flag is set to Yes, it is considered a non-event. However, if the No-Leak Flag is set to No, then the solenoid remains closed and the routine ends. 
         [0020]    At step  240 , the main controller samples the soil moisture sensor. If the soil moisture level is below the programmed level then the SOIL_MOISURE_LEVEL flag is set to TOO DRY and the solenoid associated with said sensor will be opened for the programmed amount of time. If the SOIL_MOISURE_LEVEL flag is at or above the programmed level, the routine proceeds to END. 
         [0021]    In another embodiment of the invention, the soil moisture level is programmed at each individual J Box. 
         [0022]    In yet another embodiment of the invention, the main controller opens the solenoid without regard to the soil moisture level. 
         [0023]    In a further embodiment of the invention, the invention includes an emergency shut-off button; said shut-off button would set the EMERGENCY_SHUTOFF flag as YES. IF the EMERGENCY-SHUTOFF flag is set to yes then the main controller will close the appropriate solenoid and will not permit it to be opened again until the EMERGENCY_SHUTOFF flag is set to no.