Wireless Leak Sensor with Manual Intervention Window
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing wireless water leak detection systems lack the ability for manual prevention of external actions such as alarms and valve shut-offs, often resulting in unnecessary alerts and valve closures due to accidental water splashes or cleaning activities.
Innovation Solution
A wireless water leak detection system that allows manual prevention of external actions by initiating a local alarm and recording a first time upon leak detection. If manual input is not received within a pre-set time threshold, a second alarm signal is transmitted, and if a threshold number of leak sensors detect a leak, a shut-off signal is sent to a valve controller.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If automatic alarm and valve shut-off are implemented upon leak detection, then leak-related damage is prevented instantly, but unnecessary alarms and valve closures occur due to accidental water splashes or cleaning activities
Solution Approach 1:
The system initiates a local alarm and starts a time threshold counter upon leak detection, allowing manual intervention before external actions are triggered. This preliminary action window enables maintenance personnel to reset the sensor if the leak is false (e.g., from cleaning), preventing unnecessary external alarms and valve shut-offs while still providing rapid response for genuine leaks.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary manual intervention mechanism between leak detection and external alarm/valve shut-off. The local alarm and time threshold serve as intermediaries that allow human judgment to filter out false positives, while the base station acts as an intermediary that receives the alarm signal and can be prevented from triggering external actions based on manual input within the time threshold.
2Object-generated harmful factors
If manual intervention capability is added to prevent unnecessary external actions, then false alarms are reduced, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the alarm response into local and external components. The local alarm provides immediate notification and manual intervention capability at the sensor level, while the external alarm and valve shut-off are handled separately by the base station. This segmentation allows manual prevention of external actions without requiring complex integration throughout the entire system.
Solution Approach 2:
The leak sensor performs self-service by generating a local alarm and managing its own time threshold counter upon detection. This self-service capability allows the sensor to handle false positives autonomously without requiring constant base station intervention, reducing the overall system complexity while maintaining the ability to prevent unnecessary external actions.
3Object-generated harmful factors
If a time threshold for manual intervention is implemented, then unnecessary external actions are prevented, but response time for genuine leaks may be delayed
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses periodic action through the time threshold counter, which provides a structured, time-limited window for manual intervention. This periodic mechanism ensures that genuine leaks are addressed promptly (within the threshold period) while allowing sufficient time for maintenance personnel to respond and prevent false alarms. The base station is configured to trigger external actions only if no manual input is received within this predetermined periodic interval.
Data Source
AI summary
The system and method for wireless water leak detection provides for manual prevention of external action, such as an external alarm and/or valve shut-off, if a leak sensor can be reached by a respondent within a pre-set time threshold. Upon detection of a leak by a leak sensor, a local alarm, such as an audible alarm or the like, is initiated. Additionally, at the time of detection, a first time is recorded. A first alarm signal is transmitted from the leak sensor to a base station. The first alarm signal includes data representative of the recorded first time. If manual input is not received by the leak sensor within a pre-set time threshold measured from the first time, then the base station transmits a second alarm signal to at least one external device, and may further wirelessly transmit a shut-off signal to a valve controller for closing an associated valve.