Many years ago I was involved in a project designing the hardware and
firmware for controlling the lawn sprinklers on a military cemetary.
I don't remember at this point how many thousand sprinkler heads were
involved. It was set up on a binary code and we used APPLE II's on the
parallel port.
We also had moisture sensors at each sprinkler head and an over-ride so that
blocks could be shut off by hand in case of a funeral - bad carma to get
high ranking military wet in the middle of a service.
We used very simple circuitry to turn the valves on and off. The biggest
limitation was the length of the lines even using tone modulated signals.
just a few components at each controller.
Sorry, I don't have any of the circuitry right now, but with a little
research it shouldn't be too hard to come up with old ideas. The tone
contrilled IC's (8 pin, I believe) were fron National Semiconductor.
Bill Eade
----- Original Message -----
From: "Lan Barnes" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: "Friendly list for people new to Linux" <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, October 09, 2006 11:45 AM
Subject: Re: sprinkler controller via software in linux? usb-serial
adapterrecognition?
On Mon, Oct 09, 2006 at 10:46:58AM -0700, Richard W. Ernst wrote:
Two part question.
If I wanted to control a sprinkler setup from my computer, linux
preferably, but windows is ok at this point as well, what would I
need/where would I go for the hardware end of it? Ideally, I don't want
to have to run the computer all the time for the controls, just to
modify settings.
Most fancy controllers I've seen in my web research, use wireless, or
serial connections, nothing usb by default. I'd like to avoid the
wireless and X10 interfaces, but serial is easy and cheap. So, part two
of my question is how does linux see a usb to serial adapter, since many
systems don't come with serial ports any more.
Thanks,
What are you doing this for? Work? Or a home project?
I explored doing home control of my biodiesel. I concluded that it was
impractical, wildly expensive, and perhaps dangerous. Who wants 29 gal
of hot used fry oil dumped on his garage floor while he's at work
because he <gasp> wrote a bug? (And electrically controlled 3/4" gate
valves are stunningly expensive. How many do I have? 7? 8?)
You might ask yourself the same question: How am I going to exhaustively
test this for everything, including power failure and restore, to
prevent inappropriate sprinkling.
If the question is fire risk, physical systems are made where a glass
plug breaks from heat.
But if you're talking lawn sprinkling, the hazards may be far lower.
But I would also personally never embark on such a project unless I had
priced out the commercial solutions unless intangibles (learning, sense
of accomplishment) outweighed going that route.
--
Lan Barnes
Linux Guy, SCM Specialist
Tcl/Tk Enthusiast
To conceive extravagant pretensions from success in war is to forget how
hollow is the confidence by which you are elated. For if many
ill-conceived plans have succeeded through the still greater fatuity of
an opponent, many more, apparently well laid, have on the contrary ended
in disgrace.
- Thucydides
--
[email protected]
http://www.kernel-panic.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/kplug-newbie
--
No virus found in this incoming message.
Checked by AVG Free Edition.
Version: 7.1.407 / Virus Database: 268.13.1/466 - Release Date: 10/7/2006
--
[email protected]
http://www.kernel-panic.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/kplug-newbie
