Method and system for determining surface level and soil infiltration under irrigation

A device to determine a surface level of an area subject to flood, furrow, border-check or surface irrigation, said device comprising:

• an open-ended tube, which is partially insertable into a hole in the soil to be irrigated, said open-ended tube having a plurality of perforations along a length and periphery of the open-ended tube to allow water entering perforations from above ground level to fill said open-ended tube;
• a housing secured to the other end of said tube containing a programmable ultrasonic transducer for transmitting and receiving acoustic signals from the water level within said tube, said housing having electronic circuitry and wireless communication elements to control said programmable ultrasonic transducer, enabling said surface level to be determined by monitoring water levels within said tube by a change point at which increases in monitored water levels slow, after a rapid increase of the monitored water levels, and a depth of water flowing along the surface level is determined by a difference in monitored water levels and the determined change point and provide measured characteristics to a remote networked computer system.

A surface irrigation device to determine the water infiltration rate into soil being irrigated, said surface irrigation device comprising:

• an open-ended tube partially insertable into a hole in the soil to be irrigated, said open-ended tube having a plurality of perforations along a length and periphery of the open-ended tube to allow water entering perforations from above ground level to fill said open-ended tube;
• and
• a housing secured to the other end of said tube containing a programmable ultrasonic transducer for transmitting and receiving acoustic signals from a water level within said tube, said housing having electronic circuitry and wireless communication elements to control said programmable ultrasonic transducer and provide measured characteristics to a remote networked computer system.

An irrigation measurement device to determine water advance along an area to be irrigated, said irrigation measurement device comprising:

• an open-ended tube partially insertable into a hole in soil to be irrigated, said open-ended tube having a plurality of perforations along a length and periphery of the open-ended tube to allow water entering perforations from above ground level to fill said open-ended tube;
• and
• a housing secured to the other end of said open-ended tube containing a programmable ultrasonic transducer for transmitting and receiving acoustic signals from a water level within said tube, said housing having electronic circuitry and wireless communication elements to control said programmable ultrasonic transducer and provide measured characteristics to a remote networked computer system.