Patent ID: 8494683

Claim:
A method for operating an advanced irrigation controller, said advanced irrigation controller capable of receiving communications from a temperature sensor and coupled to a plurality of irrigation values for controlling an irrigation run time for each plurality of irrigation values for regulating irrigation water to a plurality of irrigation zones on a site, said method comprising: receiving day, date and time information and site location information for the site at the advanced irrigation controller; finding a current solar radiation value from the site location information and a current date; finding a pseudo temperature data conversion from the site location information; creating, by the advanced irrigation controller, current pseudo temperature data from the pseudo temperature data conversion, the current solar radiation value and the current date; receiving current measured temperature data from the temperature sensor; creating, by the advanced irrigation controller, the current measured temperature data with the current pseudo temperature data; calculating, by the advanced irrigation controller, a water amount for the site from the current solar radiation value and one of the current measured temperature data and the current pseudo temperature data; and activating, by the advanced irrigation controller, the plurality of irrigation values using the water amount for the site for activating run times of the plurality of irrigation values.