Automatic efficient irrigation threshold setting

摘要

A method and system for monitoring the dynamic response of soil moisture and setting a threshold in relation to the field capacity of a soil area is disclosed herein. By measuring the dynamic response of soil moisture under wet soil conditions, one can determine a practical field capacity for the soil, in-situ, based solely on the soil moisture sensor output. Essentially, by looking at how the soil moisture level varies with time one can determine the field capacity.

主权项

1. A method for automatic irrigation threshold setting, the method comprising:
measuring a dynamic response of soil moisture of a soil area under a fully saturated environment; setting a threshold for the soil area based on the measurements of the dynamic response; monitoring the dynamic response of soil moisture over a predetermined time period; wherein measuring the dynamic response is performed by a system comprising a plurality of wireless sub-soil sensors, an interrupter in communication with each of the plurality of wireless sub-soil sensors, wherein the interrupter comprises a housing, a microcontroller, a radiofrequency antenna, a memory, a display and a power supply; wherein the interrupter suspends scheduled watering if the soil moisture is above the threshold; wherein the interrupter continues monitoring the soil moisture level to determine if the soil moisture level has dropped below the threshold; wherein the interrupter returns to scheduled watering once the soil moisture level is below the threshold; wherein the interrupter can only interrupt a scheduled watering and not commence a scheduled watering.