CA2175005A1 - Water leak detecting and shut-off system - Google Patents
Water leak detecting and shut-off systemInfo
- Publication number
- CA2175005A1 CA2175005A1 CA002175005A CA2175005A CA2175005A1 CA 2175005 A1 CA2175005 A1 CA 2175005A1 CA 002175005 A CA002175005 A CA 002175005A CA 2175005 A CA2175005 A CA 2175005A CA 2175005 A1 CA2175005 A1 CA 2175005A1
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- water
- valve
- llne
- alarm
- sensing probe
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Abandoned
Links
Classifications
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G05—CONTROLLING; REGULATING
- G05D—SYSTEMS FOR CONTROLLING OR REGULATING NON-ELECTRIC VARIABLES
- G05D7/00—Control of flow
- G05D7/06—Control of flow characterised by the use of electric means
Abstract
A system for minimizing water leaks comprises open circuited probes placed in areas of potential leakage. If one of the probes is immersed in water, it short circuits which results in a valve controller for a solenoid valve interposed in a water main acting to close the valve. Short circuiting the probe may also activate an alarm.
Description
2 1 ~ 5 ~J0 5 WATER LEAK DETECTING AND SHUT-OFF SYSTEM
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This lnventlon relates to a system for detectlng and mlnlmlzlng fluld leaks.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Wherever water ls held under pressure, there ls the prospect of a leak and conse~uent water damage. One source of such leaks ls a household hot water tank. Another, 18 the water llnes runnlng to a domestlc washlng machlne. Whlle leaks are not fre~uent occurrences, a leak, lf not detected lmmedlately, can cause conslderable property damage.
The sub~ect of the lnventlon addresses thls problem.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordlng to the present lnventlon, there ls provlded a system for detectlng and mlnlmlzlng fluld leaks fed by a fluld llne, comprlslng: a shut-off valve for lnterposltlon ln the fluld llne; a valve controller for sald valve; at least one fluld senslng probe for placement ln at least one leak susceptlble area; sald valve controller operably assoclated wlth sald at least one fluld senslng probe such that sald valve controller acts to close sald valve when one of sald at least one fluld senslng probe senses fluld.
91674-3,RDF/sdw Q ~ ~
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
In the flgures whlch lllustrate example embodlments of the inventlons flgure 1 ls a schematlc representatlon of a system made ln accordance wlth the lnventlons; and flgure 2 ls a schematlc representatlon of a portlon of a system made ln accordance wlth another embodlment of the lnventlon.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED E~BODIMENTS
Wlth reference to flgure 1, ln overvlew, a system 10 for detectlng and mlnlmlzlng water leaks comprises a shut-off valve 12 lnterposed ln a water llne lllustrated ln phantom at 14. A
controller for the valve ls lndlcated at 16. The valve controller 16 ls coupled to a power connecter 18 through a network lndlcated generally at 20 whlch ls descrlbed more fully herelnafter. The valve controller 16, and an alarm buzzer 28, are operatlvely assoclated wlth water senslng probes 22 through network 20.
Valve 12 ls a normally closed ~olenold valve. The valve comprlses a valve body 30 connected to a solenold core 32 whlch ls surrounded by a solenoid coil 34. The solenoid core 32, and therefore the valve body 30, ls blased by spring 36 to a valve closed positlon, as lllustrated in the flgure. The valve controller 16 comprlses a magnetlc coll 40 and a relay swltch 42 blased by sprlng 44 to a flrst posltion whereat the blade 43 of 91674-3:RDF/sdw 2~ ~5Q05 the relay contacts contact 42a, as lllustrated ln flgure 1. The connector 18 comprlses a palr of connectors 46 for connectlon with an alternatlng current source of power, such as a household supply. Each probe 22 comprlses a palr 48a, 48b of proxlmate open clrcuited wlres partlally surrounded by houslng 50. The probes are connected ln parallel to contacts 52a, 52b of ~unctlon 52 of network 20.
Network 20 comprlses a power supply llne 56 and a ground llne 58 coupled to connector 18 through transformer 60. A
rectlfler 62 ls posltloned ln the power supply llne and a capacltor 64 brldges the power supply llne and the ground llne 58. The power supply llne 56 ls connected to (1) one slde of the magnetlc coll 40 of valve controller 16, (11) contact 42b of relay swltch 42, (111) one slde of alarm buzzer 28, and (lv) contact 52a of ~unctlon 52. The power supply llne 56 has a path to ground through zener breakdown dlode 66, reslstor 68, and translstor 70 -- due to the connectlon to the collector of translstor 70, wlth the emltter of the translstor 70 connected dlrectly to ground.
The other slde of magnetlc coll 40 of valve controller 16 ls connected to ground through translstor 72 -- due to the connectlon from thls other slde of the coll to the collector of translstor 72, wlth the emltter of the translstor 72 grounded.
Alarm buzzer 28 has a connection to ground through translstor 74 -- due to the connectlon of the buzzer to the collector of the translstor 74, wlth the emltter of translstor 74 grounded.
91674-3:RDF/sdw 21 ~ Q~5 Each of transistors 70, 72, and 74 are operated ln an on-off swltchlng mode vla a control lnput to thelr base. The control llne 77 to the base of translstor 70 extends from ~unctlon termlnal 52b through reslstor 78. Further, a capacltor 80 and a varlable reslstor 82 are connected ln parallel between llne 77 and ground. The control llne 80 to the base of translstor 72 extends dlrectly from the collector of translstor 70. The control llne 83 to the base of translstor 74 extends from the collector of translstor 72 through a reslstor 84.
Protectlon llne 86 extends between power supply llne 56 and the collector of translstor 72 through zener dlode 88 and reverse blased dlode 90.
In operatlon, probes 22 are posltloned ln areas whlch may become wet lf a leak develops downstream of solenold valve 12 ln water llne 14 (l.e. leak susceptible area~). For example, one probe could be posltloned at the base of a washlng machlne fed by llne 14 and another at the base of a domestlc hot water tank fed by llne 14. A thlrd probe could be ~olned to the ~unctlon 52 and placed ln a basement storm sewer. Because of sprlng 36 whlch blases the solenold valve to the closed posltlon, prlor to connector 18 belng plugged lnto a source of electrlcal power, solenoid valve 12 keeps water llne 14 shut off.
In the following descrlptlon, it ls flrst assumed that probes 22 are dry, such that wlres 48a, 48b of each are open clrculted. Once connector 18 ls plugged lnto a source of alternatlng current power, transformer 60 steps down the voltage 91674-3sRDF/sdw 21 75Q~
and rectlfier 62 and capacitor 64 act to rectlfy the voltage and regulate lt ln order to provlde a substantlally constant DC
voltage supply on llne 56. Wlth each of the probes dry, there can be no slgnal on llne 77 to translstor 70, thus, thls translstor ls "off". The DC voltage on line 56 breaks down zener dlode 66 and, wlth translstor 70 off, applles a control voltage on control llne 80 to the base of translstor 72. Thls turns transistor 72 "on" such that it acts as a short clrcult. Wlth transistor 72 acting as a short, a clrcuit path i8 completed from power llne 56 through coll 40 of valve controller 16 to ground.
The resultlng current magnetlzes the coll to swltch relay 44 from the posltlon shown ln the flgure to a posltlon whereat the blade 43 of the relay contacts contact 42b. Thls connects the solenold coll 34 of valve 12 wlth the DC power llne thereby causlng the solenold coll 34 to draw ln solenold core 32 agalnst the urglng of sprlng 36 hence movlng the valve body 30 to a valve open position.
It will be noted that wlth translstor 72 actlng as a short clrcult, there ls no control slgnal on llne 83 and therefore translstor 74 acts as an open clrcult. Thus, buzzer 28 ls cut off from electrlcal power and so ls sllent.
If one of the probes 22 ls lmmersed ln water, then the houslng 50 of the probe admlts water so that water surrounds wlres 42a, 42b. Thls short-clrcults these wlres thereby provldlng a path from the DC power llne 56 to the control llne 77 of translstor 70. The magnltude of the control slgnal on llne 77 can be ad~usted by approprlate ad~ustment of varlable reslstor 91674-3.RDF/sdw 2 ~ 7~5 82. Thls control slgnal turns translstor 70 "on" so that lt acts as a short clrcult whlch ln effect grounds control llne 80 of transistor 72. Wlth control llne 80 grounded, translstor 72, whlch had been "on" and actlng as a short clrcult now turns "off"
and therefore acts as an open circult. Consequently, the end of coll 40 ~olned to the collector of translstor 72 now has no path to ground. Consequently, no slgnlflcant current flows through coll 40 from the DC power supply llne 56 so that the blade of relay 42 swltches lnto contact wlth contact 42a under the urglng of sprlng 44. Thls, ln turn, deprlves the solenold valve 12 of power whlch results ln the valve 12 shuttlng by vlrtue of the urglng of sprlng 36.
Zener dlode 88 and reverse blased dlode 90 of protectlon llne 86 protect translstors 72 and 74 from the back emf generated when the current flowlng through coll 40 ls substantlally cut off.
The open clrcultlng of translstor 72 results in a slgnal voltage appearlng on llne 83 to translstor 74. Thls causes translstor 74 to turn "on" and, therefore, swltch from an open clrcult condltlon to a short clrcult condltlon whlch completes a clrcult path from the power supply llne through buzzer 28 to ground. Thls actlvates the buzzer to emlt an audlble warnlng.
The buzzer contlnues soundlng and the solenold valve 12 remalns shut off for as long as the lmmersed probe 22 remalns ln contact wlth water and system 10 remalns powered. If power ls lost at any tlme, the buzzer wlll cease operatlon, but the solenold valve wlll remaln shut off.
91674-3~RDF/sdw 2~1 750~r)5 -Once the probe 22 whlch had been lmmersed ls drled, system 10 returns to a condltlon wlth the solenold valve open and the buzzer 28 sllent.
Typlcally water llne 14 wlll be the water maln for a bulldlng, however, ln clrcumstances where system 10 ls to protect agalnst leaks only ln respect of one plece of equlpment, such as a hot water tank, then llne 14 will be the water llne feedlng the hot water tank.
Whlle probes 22 have been descrlbed as a palr of proxlmate open clrculted wlres, lt wlll be appreclated that more sophlstlcated probes may be used, such as humidlty sensors. In such case, consequent changes would be requlred to network 20 as wlll be understood by those skllled in the art. Whlle system 10 has been descrlbed ln assoclatlon wlth an alarm buzzer 28, obvlously any other warnlng devlce may be employed. For example, on translstor 74 short clrcultlng, a prompt could be glven to a securlty system to phone a monltorlng company in order to apprlse the monltorlng company of the alarm condltlon. As a further modlflcatlon, a temperature sensor could be provlded whlch acts to ground control llne 77 of translstor 70 and turn the translstor "off" ln the event that the sensed temperature falls below a preset level. Wlth control llne 77 grounded, the probes 22 are dlsabled. Thls would have utlllty where monltorlng was only necessary lf the temperature exceeded a predetermlned mlnlmum.
Wlth reference to flgure 2, whereln like parts have been 91674-32RDF~sdw ~ ~ '7 ~ 5 glven llke reference numerals, system 100 comprises a probe 22a whlch ls connected to contacts 152a and 152b of ~unctlon 152 and probe 22b which l~ connected to contacts 152c and 152d of ~unctlon 152. Line 110a extends from contact 152a to one lnput of AND gate 120 and llne 110b extends from contact 152b to the other lnput of AND gate 120. A llne 56a ls connected between the power supply llne 56 (of flgure 1~ and llne 110a. AND gate 120 outputs on llne 112 to one lnput of OR gate 140. An LED 114 ls connected to llne 112. Slmilarly, llne 116a extends from contact 152c to one lnput of AND gate 130 and llne 116b extends from contact 152d to the other lnput of AND gate 130. AND gate 130 outputs on llne 118 to the other lnput of OR gate 140. An LED
122 ls connected to llne 118. OR gate 140 outputs on control llne 77 to translstor 70. The remalnder of system 100 ls ldentlcal to system 10 of figure 1 and so ls not further detalled.
In operatlon, wlth llne 56 powered, llnes 110a and 116 sustaln a "hlgh" slgnal whlch lnputs thelr respectlve AND gates 120, 130. If probe 22a ls emerged ln water, lt short clrcults such that there ls then a "hlgh" slgnal on llne 110b to AND gate 120. Thls causes the output of AND gate 120 to go from "low" to "hlgh". The hlgh output causes L~D 114 to lllumlnate. Thls hlgh output also passes through OR gate 140 such that a control voltage ls passed to control llne 77 of translstor 70. As aforedescrlbed ln con~unctlon wlth flgure 1, thls causes the solenold valve to shut off and the buzzer to sound. Slmllarly, lf probe 22b ls lmmersed ln water, the output of AND gate 130 goes hlgh and thls hlgh slgnal turns on LED 122. The hlgh slgnal 91674-3:~DF/sdw 2 1 7~5 also passes through OR gate 140 to cause the solenold valve to shut off and the buzzer to sound. It wlll be apparent that, while the operation of system 100 ls slmilar to the operation of system 10 ~of figure 1), the llghtlng of LED 114 and/or 122 provldes an lndlcatlon of which probe 22a, 22b ls lmmersed ln water. Thls speeds locallzation of the leak. Obviously, the system 100 of figure 2 may be modified to accommodate additional probes, lf desired. An enhancement to the system of figure 2 would be to place addltlonal probes in areas whlch could become wet for reasons other than a leak arlslng ln equipment fed by water llne 14. For example, a probe could be placed at an area of a bulldlng hlghly susceptlble to water damage (e.g. computer equlpment) so that should the probe so placed sense water, an alarm would be generated.
Whlle system 10 (of flgure 1) and 100 (of flgure 2~ have been descrlbed in con~unctlon wlth probes for detectlng water, lt wlll be apparent that the systems wlll work equally well lf probes whlch sense the pressure of other flulds, such as natural gas, are substltuted.
Other modlflcatlons wlll be apparent to those skllled ln the art and, therefore, the lnvention ls deflned ln the clalms.
91674-3:RDF~sdw
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This lnventlon relates to a system for detectlng and mlnlmlzlng fluld leaks.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Wherever water ls held under pressure, there ls the prospect of a leak and conse~uent water damage. One source of such leaks ls a household hot water tank. Another, 18 the water llnes runnlng to a domestlc washlng machlne. Whlle leaks are not fre~uent occurrences, a leak, lf not detected lmmedlately, can cause conslderable property damage.
The sub~ect of the lnventlon addresses thls problem.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordlng to the present lnventlon, there ls provlded a system for detectlng and mlnlmlzlng fluld leaks fed by a fluld llne, comprlslng: a shut-off valve for lnterposltlon ln the fluld llne; a valve controller for sald valve; at least one fluld senslng probe for placement ln at least one leak susceptlble area; sald valve controller operably assoclated wlth sald at least one fluld senslng probe such that sald valve controller acts to close sald valve when one of sald at least one fluld senslng probe senses fluld.
91674-3,RDF/sdw Q ~ ~
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
In the flgures whlch lllustrate example embodlments of the inventlons flgure 1 ls a schematlc representatlon of a system made ln accordance wlth the lnventlons; and flgure 2 ls a schematlc representatlon of a portlon of a system made ln accordance wlth another embodlment of the lnventlon.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED E~BODIMENTS
Wlth reference to flgure 1, ln overvlew, a system 10 for detectlng and mlnlmlzlng water leaks comprises a shut-off valve 12 lnterposed ln a water llne lllustrated ln phantom at 14. A
controller for the valve ls lndlcated at 16. The valve controller 16 ls coupled to a power connecter 18 through a network lndlcated generally at 20 whlch ls descrlbed more fully herelnafter. The valve controller 16, and an alarm buzzer 28, are operatlvely assoclated wlth water senslng probes 22 through network 20.
Valve 12 ls a normally closed ~olenold valve. The valve comprlses a valve body 30 connected to a solenold core 32 whlch ls surrounded by a solenoid coil 34. The solenoid core 32, and therefore the valve body 30, ls blased by spring 36 to a valve closed positlon, as lllustrated in the flgure. The valve controller 16 comprlses a magnetlc coll 40 and a relay swltch 42 blased by sprlng 44 to a flrst posltion whereat the blade 43 of 91674-3:RDF/sdw 2~ ~5Q05 the relay contacts contact 42a, as lllustrated ln flgure 1. The connector 18 comprlses a palr of connectors 46 for connectlon with an alternatlng current source of power, such as a household supply. Each probe 22 comprlses a palr 48a, 48b of proxlmate open clrcuited wlres partlally surrounded by houslng 50. The probes are connected ln parallel to contacts 52a, 52b of ~unctlon 52 of network 20.
Network 20 comprlses a power supply llne 56 and a ground llne 58 coupled to connector 18 through transformer 60. A
rectlfler 62 ls posltloned ln the power supply llne and a capacltor 64 brldges the power supply llne and the ground llne 58. The power supply llne 56 ls connected to (1) one slde of the magnetlc coll 40 of valve controller 16, (11) contact 42b of relay swltch 42, (111) one slde of alarm buzzer 28, and (lv) contact 52a of ~unctlon 52. The power supply llne 56 has a path to ground through zener breakdown dlode 66, reslstor 68, and translstor 70 -- due to the connectlon to the collector of translstor 70, wlth the emltter of the translstor 70 connected dlrectly to ground.
The other slde of magnetlc coll 40 of valve controller 16 ls connected to ground through translstor 72 -- due to the connectlon from thls other slde of the coll to the collector of translstor 72, wlth the emltter of the translstor 72 grounded.
Alarm buzzer 28 has a connection to ground through translstor 74 -- due to the connectlon of the buzzer to the collector of the translstor 74, wlth the emltter of translstor 74 grounded.
91674-3:RDF/sdw 21 ~ Q~5 Each of transistors 70, 72, and 74 are operated ln an on-off swltchlng mode vla a control lnput to thelr base. The control llne 77 to the base of translstor 70 extends from ~unctlon termlnal 52b through reslstor 78. Further, a capacltor 80 and a varlable reslstor 82 are connected ln parallel between llne 77 and ground. The control llne 80 to the base of translstor 72 extends dlrectly from the collector of translstor 70. The control llne 83 to the base of translstor 74 extends from the collector of translstor 72 through a reslstor 84.
Protectlon llne 86 extends between power supply llne 56 and the collector of translstor 72 through zener dlode 88 and reverse blased dlode 90.
In operatlon, probes 22 are posltloned ln areas whlch may become wet lf a leak develops downstream of solenold valve 12 ln water llne 14 (l.e. leak susceptible area~). For example, one probe could be posltloned at the base of a washlng machlne fed by llne 14 and another at the base of a domestlc hot water tank fed by llne 14. A thlrd probe could be ~olned to the ~unctlon 52 and placed ln a basement storm sewer. Because of sprlng 36 whlch blases the solenold valve to the closed posltlon, prlor to connector 18 belng plugged lnto a source of electrlcal power, solenoid valve 12 keeps water llne 14 shut off.
In the following descrlptlon, it ls flrst assumed that probes 22 are dry, such that wlres 48a, 48b of each are open clrculted. Once connector 18 ls plugged lnto a source of alternatlng current power, transformer 60 steps down the voltage 91674-3sRDF/sdw 21 75Q~
and rectlfier 62 and capacitor 64 act to rectlfy the voltage and regulate lt ln order to provlde a substantlally constant DC
voltage supply on llne 56. Wlth each of the probes dry, there can be no slgnal on llne 77 to translstor 70, thus, thls translstor ls "off". The DC voltage on line 56 breaks down zener dlode 66 and, wlth translstor 70 off, applles a control voltage on control llne 80 to the base of translstor 72. Thls turns transistor 72 "on" such that it acts as a short clrcult. Wlth transistor 72 acting as a short, a clrcuit path i8 completed from power llne 56 through coll 40 of valve controller 16 to ground.
The resultlng current magnetlzes the coll to swltch relay 44 from the posltlon shown ln the flgure to a posltlon whereat the blade 43 of the relay contacts contact 42b. Thls connects the solenold coll 34 of valve 12 wlth the DC power llne thereby causlng the solenold coll 34 to draw ln solenold core 32 agalnst the urglng of sprlng 36 hence movlng the valve body 30 to a valve open position.
It will be noted that wlth translstor 72 actlng as a short clrcult, there ls no control slgnal on llne 83 and therefore translstor 74 acts as an open clrcult. Thus, buzzer 28 ls cut off from electrlcal power and so ls sllent.
If one of the probes 22 ls lmmersed ln water, then the houslng 50 of the probe admlts water so that water surrounds wlres 42a, 42b. Thls short-clrcults these wlres thereby provldlng a path from the DC power llne 56 to the control llne 77 of translstor 70. The magnltude of the control slgnal on llne 77 can be ad~usted by approprlate ad~ustment of varlable reslstor 91674-3.RDF/sdw 2 ~ 7~5 82. Thls control slgnal turns translstor 70 "on" so that lt acts as a short clrcult whlch ln effect grounds control llne 80 of transistor 72. Wlth control llne 80 grounded, translstor 72, whlch had been "on" and actlng as a short clrcult now turns "off"
and therefore acts as an open circult. Consequently, the end of coll 40 ~olned to the collector of translstor 72 now has no path to ground. Consequently, no slgnlflcant current flows through coll 40 from the DC power supply llne 56 so that the blade of relay 42 swltches lnto contact wlth contact 42a under the urglng of sprlng 44. Thls, ln turn, deprlves the solenold valve 12 of power whlch results ln the valve 12 shuttlng by vlrtue of the urglng of sprlng 36.
Zener dlode 88 and reverse blased dlode 90 of protectlon llne 86 protect translstors 72 and 74 from the back emf generated when the current flowlng through coll 40 ls substantlally cut off.
The open clrcultlng of translstor 72 results in a slgnal voltage appearlng on llne 83 to translstor 74. Thls causes translstor 74 to turn "on" and, therefore, swltch from an open clrcult condltlon to a short clrcult condltlon whlch completes a clrcult path from the power supply llne through buzzer 28 to ground. Thls actlvates the buzzer to emlt an audlble warnlng.
The buzzer contlnues soundlng and the solenold valve 12 remalns shut off for as long as the lmmersed probe 22 remalns ln contact wlth water and system 10 remalns powered. If power ls lost at any tlme, the buzzer wlll cease operatlon, but the solenold valve wlll remaln shut off.
91674-3~RDF/sdw 2~1 750~r)5 -Once the probe 22 whlch had been lmmersed ls drled, system 10 returns to a condltlon wlth the solenold valve open and the buzzer 28 sllent.
Typlcally water llne 14 wlll be the water maln for a bulldlng, however, ln clrcumstances where system 10 ls to protect agalnst leaks only ln respect of one plece of equlpment, such as a hot water tank, then llne 14 will be the water llne feedlng the hot water tank.
Whlle probes 22 have been descrlbed as a palr of proxlmate open clrculted wlres, lt wlll be appreclated that more sophlstlcated probes may be used, such as humidlty sensors. In such case, consequent changes would be requlred to network 20 as wlll be understood by those skllled in the art. Whlle system 10 has been descrlbed ln assoclatlon wlth an alarm buzzer 28, obvlously any other warnlng devlce may be employed. For example, on translstor 74 short clrcultlng, a prompt could be glven to a securlty system to phone a monltorlng company in order to apprlse the monltorlng company of the alarm condltlon. As a further modlflcatlon, a temperature sensor could be provlded whlch acts to ground control llne 77 of translstor 70 and turn the translstor "off" ln the event that the sensed temperature falls below a preset level. Wlth control llne 77 grounded, the probes 22 are dlsabled. Thls would have utlllty where monltorlng was only necessary lf the temperature exceeded a predetermlned mlnlmum.
Wlth reference to flgure 2, whereln like parts have been 91674-32RDF~sdw ~ ~ '7 ~ 5 glven llke reference numerals, system 100 comprises a probe 22a whlch ls connected to contacts 152a and 152b of ~unctlon 152 and probe 22b which l~ connected to contacts 152c and 152d of ~unctlon 152. Line 110a extends from contact 152a to one lnput of AND gate 120 and llne 110b extends from contact 152b to the other lnput of AND gate 120. A llne 56a ls connected between the power supply llne 56 (of flgure 1~ and llne 110a. AND gate 120 outputs on llne 112 to one lnput of OR gate 140. An LED 114 ls connected to llne 112. Slmilarly, llne 116a extends from contact 152c to one lnput of AND gate 130 and llne 116b extends from contact 152d to the other lnput of AND gate 130. AND gate 130 outputs on llne 118 to the other lnput of OR gate 140. An LED
122 ls connected to llne 118. OR gate 140 outputs on control llne 77 to translstor 70. The remalnder of system 100 ls ldentlcal to system 10 of figure 1 and so ls not further detalled.
In operatlon, wlth llne 56 powered, llnes 110a and 116 sustaln a "hlgh" slgnal whlch lnputs thelr respectlve AND gates 120, 130. If probe 22a ls emerged ln water, lt short clrcults such that there ls then a "hlgh" slgnal on llne 110b to AND gate 120. Thls causes the output of AND gate 120 to go from "low" to "hlgh". The hlgh output causes L~D 114 to lllumlnate. Thls hlgh output also passes through OR gate 140 such that a control voltage ls passed to control llne 77 of translstor 70. As aforedescrlbed ln con~unctlon wlth flgure 1, thls causes the solenold valve to shut off and the buzzer to sound. Slmllarly, lf probe 22b ls lmmersed ln water, the output of AND gate 130 goes hlgh and thls hlgh slgnal turns on LED 122. The hlgh slgnal 91674-3:~DF/sdw 2 1 7~5 also passes through OR gate 140 to cause the solenold valve to shut off and the buzzer to sound. It wlll be apparent that, while the operation of system 100 ls slmilar to the operation of system 10 ~of figure 1), the llghtlng of LED 114 and/or 122 provldes an lndlcatlon of which probe 22a, 22b ls lmmersed ln water. Thls speeds locallzation of the leak. Obviously, the system 100 of figure 2 may be modified to accommodate additional probes, lf desired. An enhancement to the system of figure 2 would be to place addltlonal probes in areas whlch could become wet for reasons other than a leak arlslng ln equipment fed by water llne 14. For example, a probe could be placed at an area of a bulldlng hlghly susceptlble to water damage (e.g. computer equlpment) so that should the probe so placed sense water, an alarm would be generated.
Whlle system 10 (of flgure 1) and 100 (of flgure 2~ have been descrlbed in con~unctlon wlth probes for detectlng water, lt wlll be apparent that the systems wlll work equally well lf probes whlch sense the pressure of other flulds, such as natural gas, are substltuted.
Other modlflcatlons wlll be apparent to those skllled ln the art and, therefore, the lnvention ls deflned ln the clalms.
91674-3:RDF~sdw
Claims (12)
1. A system for detecting and minimizing water leaks, comprising:
- a shut-off valve for interposition in a water main;
- a valve controller for said valve;
- at least one water sensing probe for placement in at least one leak susceptible area;
- said valve controller operably associated with said at least one water sensing probe such that said valve controller acts to close said valve when one of said at least one water sensing probe senses water.
- a shut-off valve for interposition in a water main;
- a valve controller for said valve;
- at least one water sensing probe for placement in at least one leak susceptible area;
- said valve controller operably associated with said at least one water sensing probe such that said valve controller acts to close said valve when one of said at least one water sensing probe senses water.
2. The system of claim 1 including an alarm operably associated with said at least one water sensing probe such that said alarm goes into alarm when one of said at least one water sensing probes senses water.
3. A system for detecting and minimizing water leaks, comprising:
- a shut-off valve for interposition in a water main;
- a connector for connection to a source of electrical power;
- a valve controller for said valve said valve controller coupled to said power connector;
- at least one water sensing probe for placement in at least one leak susceptible area, said at least one probe coupled to said power connector;
- said valve controller operably associated with said at least one water sensing probe such that said valve controller acts to close said valve when said power connector is coupled to a source of electrical power and one of said at least one water sensing probe senses water.
- a shut-off valve for interposition in a water main;
- a connector for connection to a source of electrical power;
- a valve controller for said valve said valve controller coupled to said power connector;
- at least one water sensing probe for placement in at least one leak susceptible area, said at least one probe coupled to said power connector;
- said valve controller operably associated with said at least one water sensing probe such that said valve controller acts to close said valve when said power connector is coupled to a source of electrical power and one of said at least one water sensing probe senses water.
4. The system of claim 3 wherein each of said at least one water sensing probe comprises a pair of proximate open circuited wires, whereby said wires are short circuited when immersed in water.
5. The system of claim 4 wherein said valve is biased to a valve closed position.
6. The system of claim 5 wherein said valve controller is arranged so as to open said valve when coupled to a source of electrical power unless one of said at least one probe is short circuited.
7. The system of claim 3 wherein said at least one water sensing probe comprises at least two water sensing probes connected in parallel.
8. The system of claim 7 wherein each of said at least two water sensing probe comprises a pair of proximate open circuited wires, whereby said wires are short circuited when immersed in water.
9. The system of claim 7 wherein said valve is biased to a valve closed position.
10. The system of claim 9 wherein said valve controller is arranged so as to open said valve when coupled to a source of electrical power unless one of said at least two probes is short circuited.
11. The system of claim 3 including an alarm operably associated with said at least one water sensing probe such that said alarm goes into alarm when one of said at least one water sensing probes senses water.
12. The system of claim 10 including an alarm operably associated with said at least one water sensing probe such that said alarm goes into alarm when one of said at least one water sensing probes senses water.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA002175005A CA2175005A1 (en) | 1996-04-25 | 1996-04-25 | Water leak detecting and shut-off system |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA002175005A CA2175005A1 (en) | 1996-04-25 | 1996-04-25 | Water leak detecting and shut-off system |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA2175005A1 true CA2175005A1 (en) | 1997-10-26 |
Family
ID=4158064
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA002175005A Abandoned CA2175005A1 (en) | 1996-04-25 | 1996-04-25 | Water leak detecting and shut-off system |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA2175005A1 (en) |
Cited By (2)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN101749468B (en) * | 2008-12-12 | 2012-01-04 | 中国移动通信集团山东有限公司 | Communication equipment room waterproof system |
| US11060623B2 (en) | 2017-12-21 | 2021-07-13 | Scott Carpenter | Water management system |
-
1996
- 1996-04-25 CA CA002175005A patent/CA2175005A1/en not_active Abandoned
Cited By (2)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN101749468B (en) * | 2008-12-12 | 2012-01-04 | 中国移动通信集团山东有限公司 | Communication equipment room waterproof system |
| US11060623B2 (en) | 2017-12-21 | 2021-07-13 | Scott Carpenter | Water management system |
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| Date | Code | Title | Description |
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| EEER | Examination request | ||
| FZDE | Dead |