Electric actuator and method for applying electric actuator to multi-source sensor intelligent irrigation system

Abstract

The invention relates to the field of irrigation systems, in particular to an electric actuator and a method for applying the electric actuator to a multi-source sensor intelligent irrigation system.The irrigation system comprises a pipeline, a pressure sensor and an ultrasonic flowmeter, the pipeline comprises a main pipeline and branch pipelines, the multiple branch pipelines are located at different heights, one end of each branch pipeline communicates with the main pipeline, and the other end of each branch pipeline communicates with the ultrasonic flowmeter; a plurality of irrigation openings are evenly distributed in the branch pipelines, the ultrasonic flow meters are installed at the irrigation openings to collect the flow speed of water flow at the irrigation openings, at least one pressure sensor is installed on the main pipeline and each branch pipeline, the pressure sensors are used for monitoring water pressure in the branch pipelines, the electric actuators are installed on the main pipeline and the branch pipelines, and the valves are fixed to the pipelines. The opening degree of the valves is in direct proportion to water pressure and water flow, and the electric actuators on the branch pipelines are installed at the ends, communicated with the main pipeline, of the branch pipelines. The water pressure in the pipeline is controlled by controlling the electric actuator, and the pipeline dredging effect is achieved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of irrigation systems, and in particular to an electric actuator and a method for using the same in a multi-source sensor intelligent irrigation system. Background Art

[0002] The intelligent irrigation system can adjust the irrigation time and water volume in real time according to multi-dimensional information such as soil moisture, climate conditions, crop growth requirements, etc., to achieve the best irrigation effect. The intelligent irrigation system relies on a variety of sensors to monitor environmental conditions, such as soil moisture, temperature, pH value, light intensity, etc. These sensors transmit real-time data to the control system, which issues instructions to the electric actuator to perform specific irrigation actions, such as turning on or off the water pump, starting or stopping the sprinkler, etc.

[0003] In the existing technology, the intelligent irrigation system can use sensors such as pressure transmitters and ultrasonic flow meters to monitor the water pressure and flow of the pipe network. Factors affecting the water pressure may be blockages in the pipes. Due to physical impurities, sediments generated by chemical reactions, or biological growth, blockages may form in the pipes or irrigation outlets, affecting the smooth flow of water. Summary of the invention

[0004] In order to solve the technical problem of pipe blockage in an irrigation system, the present application provides an electric actuator and a method for using the same in a multi-source sensor intelligent irrigation system.

[0005] In a first aspect, the present application provides an electric actuator, which adopts the following technical solution: the electric actuator includes a housing, a motor, a transmission and a valve, the motor and the transmission are encapsulated in the housing, the motor is connected to the input shaft of the transmission, and the output shaft of the transmission is fixedly connected to the valve core of the valve to control the opening of the valve.

[0006] The beneficial effect is that the water flow rate and water pressure passing through can be adjusted by adjusting the opening degree of the valve, and the opening degree of the valve is proportional to the water flow rate and water pressure.

[0007] In a second aspect, the present application provides a method for using an electric actuator in a multi-source sensor intelligent irrigation system, adopting the following technical solution: the irrigation system includes a pipeline, a pressure sensor and an ultrasonic flowmeter, the pipeline includes a main pipeline and a branch pipeline, and the multiple branch pipelines are located at different heights. One end of the branch pipeline is connected to the main pipeline, and a number of irrigation ports are evenly distributed on the branch pipeline. The ultrasonic flowmeter is installed at the irrigation port to collect the flow rate of the water flow at the irrigation port. At least one pressure sensor is installed on the main pipeline and each branch pipeline. The pressure sensor is used to monitor the water pressure in the branch pipeline. Electric actuators are installed on both the main pipeline and the branch pipeline. The valve is fixed on the pipeline. The degree of opening of the valve is proportional to the water pressure and the water flow. The electric actuator on the branch pipeline is installed at one end where the branch pipeline is connected to the main pipeline, and the electric actuator of the main pipeline is installed at the water inlet end of the main pipeline.

[0008] The beneficial effects are: by changing the opening degree of the valve on the branch pipe, the water output of the irrigation port on the branch pipe and the water pressure in the branch pipe can be adjusted; by adjusting the opening degree of the valve on the main pipe, the water flow rate and water pressure in the main pipe can be adjusted.

[0009] In a third aspect, the present application provides a control method for a multi-source sensor intelligent irrigation system, which adopts the following technical solution: comprising the steps of: constructing a first mapping curve about valve opening and water pressure and a second mapping curve about valve opening and flow rate; calculating the failure coefficient of the pipeline according to the slope of the first mapping curve and the slope of the second mapping curve; in response to the failure coefficient being greater than a preset coefficient threshold, controlling the valve to increase the degree of opening to increase the water pressure until the failure coefficient is less than the coefficient threshold, and controlling the valve to return to its initial state.

[0010] The beneficial effect is: when the fault coefficient is greater than the coefficient threshold, the valve on the branch pipe or main pipe is controlled to increase its opening degree, at which time the water pressure and water flow increase to flush the blockage of the pipe until the blockage is flushed and the fault coefficient decreases. At this time, the valve is restored to the opening degree before adjustment and irrigation continues. If the increase in the valve opening degree causes the real-time water pressure and flow rate data of the irrigation port to change insignificantly, it means that it is caused by other reasons rather than the blockage of the pipe port, such as a pipe rupture, etc. At this time, the valve of the corresponding pipe is controlled to be closed to stop the water supply and provide an alarm, waiting for maintenance.

[0011] Optionally, the fault coefficient is calculated by calculating the ratio of the slope of the first mapping curve to the slope of the second mapping curve at the current moment, calculating the average ratio of the slope of the first mapping curve to the slope of the second mapping curve at each moment before the current moment, and taking the absolute difference between the ratio and the average ratio as the fault coefficient at the current moment.

[0012] The beneficial effects are: the abnormality of the pipeline is quantified by the fault coefficient, and the absolute difference can highlight the degree of deviation from the historical average state. By comparing the difference between the current slope ratio and the historical average, it is possible to detect whether the pipeline has an abnormality or fault.

[0013] Optionally, the fault coefficient is calculated as follows: calculate the ratio of the slope of the first mapping curve to the slope of the second mapping curve at the current moment; calculate the average of the ratios of the slope of the first mapping curve to the slope of the second mapping curve at each moment before the current moment; and use the variance of the ratio and the average of the ratio as the fault coefficient at the current moment.

[0014] Optionally, the first mapping curve and the second mapping curve are constructed by using Matlab.

[0015] Optionally, the synchronization degree of the irrigation outlets on each branch pipe is calculated, and when the synchronization degree is less than a preset synchronization degree threshold, the valve at the water inlet of the branch pipe at that height is controlled to close to stop the water supply.

[0016] The beneficial effect is that the irrigation outlets on a branch pipe are located at the same height, and the flow rates of all irrigation outlets at the same height should be similar. The similarity is quantified by the degree of synchronization. When the degree of synchronization is less than the preset degree of synchronization threshold, it means that the irrigation outlet has a low similarity with other irrigation outlets at this time.

[0017] Optionally, the synchronization degree is calculated by constructing a flow rate sequence of each irrigation outlet at multiple times; taking any irrigation outlet as the target irrigation outlet, and taking the average of the cumulative sum of cosine similarities between the flow rate sequences of other irrigation outlets and the flow rate sequence of the target irrigation outlet as the synchronization degree.

[0018] The beneficial effect is that by calculating the cosine similarity, the similarity between the flow rate sequences of different irrigation outlets can be quantified. The cosine similarity ranges from -1 to 1, where 1 indicates the exact same direction, 0 indicates no correlation, and -1 indicates the exact opposite direction. If the flow rate sequence of a particular irrigation outlet is significantly out of sync with the flow rate sequences of other irrigation outlets, this may indicate that there is an anomaly in that irrigation outlet. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] By reading the detailed description below with reference to the accompanying drawings, the above and other purposes, features and advantages of the exemplary embodiments of the present application will become easily understood. In the accompanying drawings, several embodiments of the present application are shown in an exemplary and non-restrictive manner, and the same or corresponding numbers represent the same or corresponding parts.

[0020] Figure 1 It is a structural diagram of the electric actuator of an embodiment of the present application.

[0021] Figure 2 It is a method flow chart of the control method of the multi-source sensor intelligent irrigation system according to an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0022] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present application to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present application, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present application.

[0023] It should be understood that when the terms "first", "second", etc. are used in the claims, specification and drawings of the present application, they are only used to distinguish different objects, rather than to describe a specific order. The terms "include" and "comprise" used in the specification and claims of the present application indicate the presence of the described features, wholes, steps, operations, elements and / or components, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, wholes, steps, operations, elements, components and / or their collections.

[0024] The embodiment of the present application discloses a control method for a multi-source sensor intelligent irrigation system, which uses an irrigation system and an electric actuator.

[0025] Reference Figure 1 The electric actuator includes a housing 1, a motor, a transmission and a valve. The motor and the transmission are encapsulated in the housing 1, and the motor is connected to the input shaft of the transmission. The valve is set as a butterfly valve, and the valve includes a valve body 2, a valve plate 3 and a valve shaft 4. The valve plate 3 and the valve shaft 4 form a valve core. The valve body 1 is provided with a cavity with openings at both ends. The valve plate 3 is placed in the cavity. The valve shaft 4 is fixed on the valve plate. The axis of the valve shaft 4 coincides with the axis of the valve plate 3 along the diameter extension direction. One end of the valve shaft 4 is rotatably connected to the valve body 1, and the other end passes through the valve body 1 and is fixed to the output shaft of the transmission. The valve plate 3 can block the cavity by rotating, and the motor controls the opening of the valve through the transmission.

[0026] The irrigation system includes: pipelines, pressure sensors and ultrasonic flow meters. The pipelines include main pipelines and branch pipelines. Multiple branch pipelines are located at different heights. One end of the branch pipeline is connected to the main pipeline. Several irrigation ports are evenly distributed on the branch pipeline. The ultrasonic flow meter is installed at the irrigation port to collect the flow rate of water at the irrigation port. At least one pressure sensor is installed on the main pipeline and each branch pipeline. The pressure sensor is used to monitor the water pressure. Electric actuators are installed on the main pipeline and the branch pipelines. The valves are fixed on the pipelines. The opening degree of the valves is proportional to the water pressure and the water flow. The electric actuator on the branch pipeline is installed at one end where the branch pipeline is connected to the main pipeline, and the electric actuator of the main pipeline is installed at the water inlet end of the main pipeline.

[0027] Reference Figure 2 The control method of the multi-source sensor intelligent irrigation system includes steps S1 to S3: S1: constructing a first mapping curve between valve opening and water pressure and a second mapping curve between valve opening and flow rate.

[0028] In one embodiment, the first mapping curve and the second mapping curve are obtained using Matlab.

[0029] S2: Calculate the failure coefficient of the pipeline according to the slope of the first mapping curve and the slope of the second mapping curve; in response to the failure coefficient being greater than a preset coefficient threshold, control the valve to increase the degree of opening to increase the water pressure until the failure coefficient is less than the coefficient threshold, and control the valve to return to the initial state.

[0030] For the same branch pipeline or main pipeline, the fault coefficient is calculated. In one embodiment, the fault coefficient is calculated by calculating the ratio of the slope of the first mapping curve to the slope of the second mapping curve at the current moment, calculating the average ratio of the slope of the first mapping curve to the slope of the second mapping curve at each moment before the current moment, and taking the absolute difference between the ratio and the average ratio as the fault coefficient at the current moment.

[0031] In one embodiment, the variance between the ratio and the mean of the ratio may also be used as the fault coefficient at the current moment.

[0032] The abnormality of the pipeline is quantified by the fault coefficient, and both the absolute difference and the variance can highlight the degree of deviation from the historical average state. By comparing the difference between the current slope ratio and the historical mean, it is possible to detect whether the pipeline has an abnormality or fault. When the fault coefficient is greater than the coefficient threshold, the degree of opening of the valve on the branch pipeline or the main pipeline is controlled to increase. At this time, the water pressure and water flow increase to flush the blockage of the pipeline until the blockage is flushed and the fault coefficient is reduced. At this time, the valve is restored to the opening before adjustment and irrigation work continues. Exemplarily, the coefficient threshold is set to 0.5, and the coefficient threshold can be adjusted according to the actual application scenario.

[0033] If increasing the degree of valve opening results in no obvious change in the real-time water pressure and flow rate data at the irrigation outlet, it means that other reasons are caused rather than pipe outlet blockage, such as pipe rupture, etc. At this time, the valve of the corresponding pipe is controlled to be closed to stop the water supply and provide an alarm while waiting for maintenance.

[0034] S3: Calculate the synchronization degree of the irrigation outlets on each branch pipe. When the synchronization degree is less than a preset synchronization degree threshold, control the valve at the water inlet of the branch pipe at the height to close to stop the water supply.

[0035] The synchronization degree is calculated as follows: construct the flow velocity sequence of each irrigation outlet at multiple times; take any irrigation outlet as the target irrigation outlet, and take the mean of the cumulative sum of cosine similarities between the flow velocity sequence of other irrigation outlets and the flow velocity sequence of the target irrigation outlet as the synchronization degree.

[0036] The flow rate series can be expressed as , Indicates The flow rate data at the time, Indicates The flow rate data at the time, The delay time is set to reduce the uneven flow rate caused by water pressure changes. A delay time needs to be set to calculate the synchronization degree of the irrigation outlet to reduce the sensitivity of the synchronization degree. The delay time can be 2 seconds.

[0037] By calculating the cosine similarity, we can quantify the similarity between the flow rate series of different irrigation outlets. The cosine similarity ranges from -1 to 1, where 1 indicates the exact same direction, 0 indicates no correlation, and -1 indicates the exact opposite direction. If the flow rate series of a particular irrigation outlet is significantly out of sync with the flow rate series of other irrigation outlets, this may indicate that there is an anomaly in that irrigation outlet.

[0038] The irrigation outlets on a branch pipe are located at the same height. The flow rates of all irrigation outlets at the same height should be similar. The degree of synchronization is used to quantify this similarity. When the degree of synchronization is less than the preset degree of synchronization threshold, it means that the irrigation outlet is less similar to other irrigation outlets at this time. The degree of synchronization threshold can be set to 0.5, and the degree of synchronization threshold can be adjusted according to the actual application scenario.

[0039] Although this specification has shown and described a plurality of embodiments of the present application, it is obvious to those skilled in the art that such embodiments are provided by way of example only. Those skilled in the art will think of many changes, modifications and alternatives without departing from the thought and spirit of the present application. It should be understood that in the process of practicing the present application, various alternatives to the embodiments of the present application described herein may be adopted.

[0040] The above are all preferred embodiments of the present application, and the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Therefore, any equivalent changes made according to the structure, shape, and principle of the present application should be included in the protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. Electric actuator, characterized in that: It includes a housing, a motor, a transmission and a valve. The motor and the transmission are encapsulated in the housing. The motor is connected to the input shaft of the transmission. The output shaft of the transmission is fixedly connected to the valve core of the valve to control the opening of the valve.

2. A method for using an electric actuator in a multi-source sensor intelligent irrigation system, characterized in that: The irrigation system includes pipelines, pressure sensors and ultrasonic flow meters. The pipelines include main pipelines and branch pipelines. Multiple branch pipelines are located at different heights. One end of the branch pipeline is connected to the main pipeline. Several irrigation ports are evenly distributed on the branch pipeline. The ultrasonic flow meter is installed at the irrigation port to collect the flow rate of water at the irrigation port. At least one pressure sensor is installed on the main pipeline and each branch pipeline. The pressure sensor is used to monitor the water pressure in the branch pipeline. Electric actuators are installed on the main pipeline and the branch pipelines. The valves are fixed on the pipelines. The degree of opening of the valves is proportional to the water pressure and water flow. The electric actuator on the branch pipeline is installed at one end where the branch pipeline is connected to the main pipeline, and the electric actuator of the main pipeline is installed at the water inlet end of the main pipeline.

3. The control method of the multi-source sensor intelligent irrigation system is characterized in that: Includes steps: Constructing a first mapping curve between valve opening and water pressure and a second mapping curve between valve opening and flow rate; The failure coefficient of the pipeline is calculated according to the slope of the first mapping curve and the slope of the second mapping curve; in response to the failure coefficient being greater than a preset coefficient threshold, the valve is controlled to increase the degree of opening to increase the water pressure until the failure coefficient is less than the coefficient threshold, and the valve is controlled to return to an initial state.

4. The control method of the multi-source sensor intelligent irrigation system according to claim 3, characterized in that: The fault coefficient is calculated by calculating the ratio of the slope of the first mapping curve to the slope of the second mapping curve at the current moment, calculating the average ratio of the slope of the first mapping curve to the slope of the second mapping curve at each moment before the current moment, and taking the absolute difference between the ratio and the average ratio as the fault coefficient at the current moment.

5. The control method of the multi-source sensor intelligent irrigation system according to claim 3, characterized in that: The calculation method of the fault coefficient is: calculating the ratio of the slope of the first mapping curve to the slope of the second mapping curve at the current moment; Calculate the average value of the ratio of the slope of the first mapping curve to the slope of the second mapping curve at each time before the current time; The variance between the ratio and the mean of the ratio is taken as the failure coefficient at the current moment.

6. The control method of the multi-source sensor intelligent irrigation system according to claim 3, characterized in that: The first mapping curve and the second mapping curve are constructed by matlab.

7. The control method of the multi-source sensor intelligent irrigation system according to any one of claims 3 to 6, characterized in that: The method also includes the steps of calculating the synchronization degree of the irrigation outlets on each branch pipe, and when the synchronization degree is less than a preset synchronization degree threshold, controlling the valve at the water inlet of the branch pipe at the height to close to stop the water supply.

8. The control method of the multi-source sensor intelligent irrigation system according to claim 7, characterized in that: The synchronization degree is calculated as follows: construct the flow velocity sequence of each irrigation outlet at multiple times; take any irrigation outlet as the target irrigation outlet, and take the mean of the cumulative sum of cosine similarities between the flow velocity sequence of other irrigation outlets and the flow velocity sequence of the target irrigation outlet as the synchronization degree.

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