Patent Application
20230026601
The present disclosure relates to barriers or enclosures, such as fences, including gates for ingress and egress. More specifically, the present disclosure is directed to a contactless gate position sensor for determining the position of a gate relative to the fence.
There are approximately 54 million adult beef cattle in the United States and most of these animals are born and raised in outdoor environments, such as pastures, rangelands and forests, making them vulnerable to predation, theft, injury and disease. Providing and maintaining safe and effective fencing is of major importance to cattle production and many other outdoor industries, for avoiding costly losses and even legal issues.
According to one aspect, a contactless gate position sensor includes an optical time-of-flight sensor positioned within a predetermined proximity of a gate for detecting a closed position of the gate and an open position of the gate. The optical time-of-flight sensor has a predetermined field of view that is established, within sensor design limitations, via programming. When a predetermined portion of the gate is within the predetermined field of view, a status of the gate is indicated as closed. When the predetermined portion of the gate is outside the predetermined field of view, the status of the gate is indicated as open. The status is detected by the optical time-of-flight sensor and transmitted using a data communication network.
According to another aspect, a method of determining a status of a gate using a contactless gate position sensor includes a step of positioning an optical time-of-flight sensor within a predetermined proximity of the gate for detecting a closed position of the gate and an open position of the gate. A field of view of the optical time-of-flight sensor is defined, and a status of the gate is identified as closed when a predetermined portion of the gate is within the predetermined field of view. The status of the gate is identified as open when the predetermined portion of the gate is outside the predetermined field of view. Thus, this method can determine gate status without regard to gate structure, gate material or attachment method; allows the gate to move within its retention without registering as “open;” and can be fully enclosed and protected from dust, moisture, and weather. This method also includes transmitting the status of the gate using a data communication network.
The details of one or more embodiments of the subject matter described in this specification are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features, aspects, and advantages of the subject matter will become apparent from the description, the drawings, and the claims.
Like reference numbers and designations in the various drawings indicate like element.
Before the present methods, implementations, and systems are disclosed and described, it is to be understood that this invention is not limited to specific synthetic methods, specific components, implementation, or to particular compositions, and as such may, of course, vary. It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular implementations only and is not intended to be limiting. It should also be clear that implementations and/or embodiments may evolve over time, and still remain within the spirit and scope of the invention.
The gate 12 may have a first end 24 pivotally mounted to the first fence length 16 via a hinge 26, for example, and a second end 28 that swings freely relative to the second fence length 18. Hinges 26 or other similar fastening devices may be used to both permit and restrict the relative movement between the second end 28 of the gate 12 and the second fence length 18. For example, some devices permit a range of pivotal movement of the gate 12, even while the gate 12 is considered “closed,” while other devices may strictly limit or restrict pivotal movement of the gate 12. Various types and configurations of fencing, including gates, gate and fencing hardware, and the like, made from various materials, may benefit from the teachings of the present disclosure.
According to the present disclosure, an exemplary contactless gate position sensor may include an optical time-of-flight sensor 30, such as a laser-based sensor, which may be positioned within a predetermined proximity of the gate 12 for detecting a closed position of the gate 12 and an open position of the gate 12. According to some embodiments, a post 32 of the first fence length 16 may support the optical time-of-flight sensor 30.
Distance measurement and object detection play significant roles in numerous areas, including factory automation, robotics applications, consumer electronics and logistics. Especially in the context of safety, detection and response to objects or people at specific distances are required. For example, a robot arm may need to stop immediately once a worker enters its danger zone. And, according to the present disclosure, successful containment of cattle is of utmost importance.
Time-of-flight (ToF) is becoming increasingly important for these purposes. With ToF technology, as illustrated in
As described with reference to
With reference again to
Turning now to
The optical time-of-flight sensor 30, or other sensor, has a predetermined field of view, with the cone 60 defining the predetermined field of view in the exemplary embodiment. When a gate 62, or a particular portion thereof, is within the predetermined field of view, a status, or status identifier, of the gate 62 is set to “closed.” When the gate 62 is outside the predetermined field of view, the status of the gate 62 is set to “open.” The status of the gate 62 is detected by the optical time-of-flight sensor 30 and transmitted using a data communication network.
Similarly, the status of the gate 62 is closed when the second end 64 is positioned within a first predetermined angle range relative to an end of the second fence length 66. The status of the gate 62 is open when the second end 64 is positioned within a second predetermined angle range relative to the end of the second fence length 66, wherein the second predetermined angle range is greater than the first predetermined angle range.
Controlling the ROI from the SPAD is important because it allows for control of “slop” to an optimal amount to meet the desires of a particular application. Slop, as illustrated in
According to an exemplary embodiment, and as shown generally in
A communications module 80, through which communications may be both sent and received over the long range (“LoRa”) radio standard may also be provided. One particular microcontroller may be a system in package that includes a 32-bit ARM® Cortex microcontroller and SAM R34 LoRa radio module.
The sensor system, or device, is powered by a battery which is connected to the printed circuit board (PCB) populated with sensor system components. Additionally, the device has the capabilities to charge this battery from a solar panel that can be connected to the device and with its output managed by a power management integrated circuit on the PCB, shown at module 82, that integrates a battery charger, energy harvester and power point tracker.
Since the contactless gate position sensor is most likely to be used outdoors, a weatherproof housing and mounting system 84 may protect the sensor from weather, moisture, dust intrusion and/or other adverse conditions.
The contactless gate position sensor may be a node of a mesh network. A mesh network is a local network topology in which the network nodes connect directly, dynamically, and non-hierarchically to each other to route data. This lack of hierarchy and dependency allows for every node to participate in the relay of data packets generated by other nodes, instead of each node having to communicate directly with a base station, gateway or router to gain access to a higher-level network such as the Internet.
All nodes in the mesh network are connected to each other wirelessly. As long as they are within range, they can communicate with one another wirelessly without the need for a router or switch. This allows for fast and efficient data routing.
The sensor may thus function as a node of a mesh network and also transmit sensor information indicating a gate open or gate closed status.
A system 90 may include a PCB 92 that includes a microcontroller 94 packaged with a LoRa radio 98 and with communications via a LoRa antenna 96; and a Bluetooth module with Bluetooth antenna 100 for direct communication with the gate position sensor 30 using a Bluetooth-enabled device, such as a smartphone or tablet, in order to communicate data to or from the Bluetooth-enabled device and the gate position sensor and/or the network. A power management integrated circuit 102 is provided and may manage energy created by the solar panel using the integrated battery charger, energy harvester and power point tracker (82). This communicates with a solar panel 104 and/or battery 106.
As illustrated in
The power management integrated circuit 102 further includes a first connector 110 connected in electric communication with a first node 112 and with ground 114. The first node 112 is electrically connected to a first pin 128 of a power management integrated circuit 119. A second node 116 is connected in electric communication with the first node 112, a first test point 117, and a first capacitor 120. The first capacitor 120 is electrically connected to ground 114. A second capacitor 122 is electrically connected to ground 114. The power management integrated circuit 119 has a second pin 124 connected in electric communication with the second capacitor 122, a third pin 118 connected in electric communication with a first inductor 126, a fourth pin 130 electrically connected to ground 114, fifth and sixth pins 132, 134 electrically connected to each other, and a seventh pin 136 electrically connected to a third node 138. The third node 138 is electrically connected to a fourth node 140 and to a first resistor 142. The first resistor 142 is electrically connected to a fifth node 144. The fifth node 144 is electrically connected to second resistor 146. A sixth node 148 is electrically connected to the second resistor 146 and to a third resistor 150. The third resistor 150 is electrically connected to a seventh node 152. The seventh node 152 is electrically connected to a fourth resistor 154. The fourth resistor 154 is electrically connected to an eighth node 156 and to the fourth node 140. The power management integrated circuit 119 has an eighth pin 160 electrically connected to the fifth node 144, a ninth pin 162 electrically connected to the seventh node 152, a tenth pin 164 electrically connected to the eighth node 156, and an eleventh pin 166 electrically connected to a ninth node 168.
A sixth resistor 170 is electrically connected to the sixth node 148 and to the ninth node 168. A seventh resistor 172 is electrically connected to the ninth node 168 and to the third node 138. The power management integrated circuit 119 has twelfth, thirteenth, fourteenth, fifteenth, sixteenth, seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth pins 174, 176, 178, 180, 182, 184, 186, 188, wherein the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth pins 184, 186, 188 are connected in electric communication with ground 114 through a tenth node 190. The twelfth pin 174 and thirteenth pin 176 are electrically connected to an eleventh node 192. A twelfth node 194 is electrically connected to the eleventh node 192 and to a thirteenth node 196, and a third capacitor 198 is connected in electric communication with the thirteenth node 196 and a fourteenth node 200. The fourteenth node 200 is electrically connected to ground 114. A fourth capacitor 202 is electrically connected to the fourteenth node 200 and to the thirteenth node 196. A second test point 204 is connected in electric communication with the twelfth node 194. A second inductor 206 is connected in electric communication between the fifteenth pin 180 and a fifteenth node 208. A fifth capacitor 210 is connected in electric communication with the fifteenth node 208 and with ground 114. A third test point 212 is electrically connected to the fifteenth node 208. A fourth test point 213 is electrically connected to the fourteenth pin 178 and to a battery 214. The battery 214 is electrically connected to ground 114.
The communications portion 98 further includes an optical sensor integrated circuit 250 having a twentieth pin 252, a twenty-first pin 254, a twenty-second pin 256, a twenty-third pin 258, a twenty-fourth pin 260, a twenty-fifth pin 262, a twenty-sixth pin 264, a twenty-seventh pin 266, a twenty-eighth pin 268, a twenty-ninth pin 270, a thirtieth pin 272, and a thirty-first pin 274. A sixteenth node 276 is connected in electric communication with the twentieth pin 252, a sixth capacitor 278, and a seventeenth node 282. A seventh capacitor 280 is electrically connected to the seventeenth node 282, and the sixth and seventh capacitors 278, 280 are electrically connected to ground 114. An eighteenth node 284 is electrically connected to the seventeenth node 282 and a nineteenth node 286. The nineteenth node 286 is electrically connected to a twentieth node 290. The twenty-first, twenty-second, twenty-third, twenty-fifth, and twenty-sixth pins 254, 256,258, 262, 264 are connected in electric communication with ground 114. The twenty-seventh 266 pin is electrically connected to the seventeenth node 282. An eighth resistor 288 is electrically connected to the nineteenth node 286. A ninth resistor 292 is electrically connected to the twentieth node 290.
A twenty-first node 294 is electrically connected to the twentieth node 290, to a tenth resistor 296, and to an eleventh resistor 298. A twenty-second node 300 is connected in electric communication with the tenth resistor 296, with the twenty-eighth pin 268, and with a twenty-third node 302. A twelfth resistor 304 is electrically connected to the twenty-third node 302. A twenty-fourth node 306 is electrically connected to the twenty-second node 300, to a thirteenth resistor 308, and to the twenty-ninth pin 270. A twenty-fifth node 310 is electrically connected to the twentieth node 290 and to the thirty-first pin 294.
The LoRa integrated circuit 98 has a thirty-second pin 312, a thirty-third pin 314, a thirty-fourth pin 316, a thirty-fifth pin 318, a thirty-sixth pin 320, a thirty-seventh pin 324, a thirty-eighth pin 326, a thirty-ninth pin 328, a fortieth pin 330, a forty-first pin 332, a forty-second pin 334, a forty-third pin 336, a forty-fourth pin 338, a forty-fifth pin 340, a forty-sixth pin 342, a forty-seventh pin 344, a forty-eighth pin 346, forty-ninth pin 348, a fiftieth pin 350, a fifty-first pin 352, a fifty-second pin 354, a fifty-third pin 356, a fifty-fourth pin 360, fifty-fifth pin 362, a fifty-sixth pin 364, a fifty-seventh pin 366, a fifty-eighth pin 368, a fifty ninth pin 370, a sixtieth pin 372, a sixty-first pin 374, a sixty-second pin 376, a sixty-third pin 378, a sixty-forth pin 380, a sixty-fifth pin 382, a sixty-sixth pin 384, a sixty-seventh pin 386, a sixty-eighth pin 388, a sixty-ninth pin 390, a seventieth pin 392, and a seventy-first pin 394. The thirty-third pin 314, the fortieth pin 330, the forty-second pin 334, the fifty-second pin 354, the fifty-third pin 356, the fifty-fourth pin 360, the fifty-fifth pin 362, the fifty-sixth pin 364, the fifty-seventh pin 366, the fifty-eighth pin 368, the fifty-ninth pin 370, the seventieth pin 392, and the seventy-first pin 394 are electrically connected to ground 114.
The thirty-second pin 312 is electrically connected to the twenty-fifty node 310. The thirty-seventh pin 324 is electrically connected to the nineteenth node 286. The forty-fifth pin 340 is electrically connected to the twelfth resistor 304. The forty-sixth pin 342 is electrically connected to the twenty-fifth node 310.
The switch portion 108 further includes a second connector 400 having a seventy-second pin 402, a seventy-third pin 404, a seventy-fourth pin 406, a seventy-fifth pin 408, a seventy-sixth pin 410, a seventy-seventh pin 412, a seventy-eighth pin 414, a seventy-ninth pin 416, an eightieth pin 418, and an eighty-first pin 420, wherein the seventy-third, seventy-fourth, and seventy-sixth pins 404, 406, 410 are electrically connected to ground 114. A twenty-sixth node 422 is electrically connected to the eighty-first pin 420. A fourteenth resistor 424 is electrically connected to the twenty-sixth node 422. A switch 426 is provided having an eighty-second pin 428 connected in electric communication with the twenty-sixth node 422 and an eighty-third pin 430 electrically connected to ground 114.
A twenty-seventh node 440 is connected in electric communication with a twenty-eighth node 442, twenty-ninth node 444, and the twenty-first node 294. The twenty-eighth node 422 is electrically connected to seventy-second pin 402. Twenty-ninth node 444 is electrically connected to fiftieth pin 350, fifty-first pin 352, and third test point 212. Thirtieth node 446 is connected in electric communication with eighty-first pin 420, twenty-eighth node 422, and sixtieth pin 372.
With reference to the present disclosure, a commercial product might have a smaller PCB than the one depicted in the drawings. Further, placement of the battery and/or other components and features may vary in accordance with a commercial embodiment. These variations, and others, do not narrow the spirit and scope of Applicant's disclosure.
While the claimed technology has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description, the same is to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive in character. It is understood that the embodiments have been shown and described in the foregoing specification in satisfaction of the best mode and enablement requirements. It is understood that one of ordinary skill in the art could readily make a nigh-infinite number of insubstantial changes and modifications to the above-described embodiments and that it would be impractical to attempt to describe all such embodiment variations in the present specification. Accordingly, it is understood that all changes and modifications that come within the spirit of the claimed technology are desired to be protected.
