Free invention idea - just give me a few when you get rich

I'm full of ideas.  I could develop them but I'm too busy working on other projects.  So I'm starting to just throw the ideas out into the world in the hopes that someone pursues it, gets rich and then remembers me in some small way.

Here's the idea.  There are occasional needs to have a thermostatically controlled device that plugs into a wall outlet.  Let's just make a plug in thermostat that can adjust from -20F to 120F.  Have a switch on it for "on when above" and "on when below".  Make it stackable so that with two of them installed in series you can turn on a device when the temperature is between two temperatures.

Some applications:  
- Turning on a light when it gets below freezing (yes, I know there's a simple plug in thermostat you can currently buy for this)
- Turning on a circulation fan when it gets above 90F in your greenhouse
- Turning on a heater in your chicken coop when it gets below -10F
- Turning on an ice melting system when it's between 35 and 20F
- Turning on a maple sap storage heating system to keep it between 33 and 40F
- Turning on a cat bed heater for outdoor cats when it gets below 0F
- Controlling temperature in a mushroom, fermentation, seed storage, root cellar or similar type of controlled environment

It could also come with (or add-on purchase) a 15' thermocouple so you could measure the temperature in a tank or somewhere other than right where the outlet is.  IE for measuring and controlling the temperature at the peak of a greenhouse or in a barrel of water.

So there's the idea, will someone please invent this simple device and either send me a couple or kick me back some cash when you get rich so I can buy some?

Thanks!

This may not be exactly what you're looking for but I suspect you may find the Dorkfood Sous Vide controller to be useful.  Its designed to go into a crockpot, plug in roasting oven, or other device.  How it works is it has a probe that's placed in the location to be temp controlled, and the appliance is plugged into the controller, which is then plugged into the wall.  The probe senses the temp and the controller cuts and provides power to the appliance to keep it within the specified temp range.  These were common in the sous vide community before immersion circulators became affordable.  It doesn't have a range as far as I can recall (i haven't used mine in roughly a decade and gave it away a while back) but it (or one of the many DIY versions that used to be all over the place) may work for your needs.

https://www.cnet.com/reviews/dorkfood-sous-vide-temperature-controller-dsv-review/

ok, probably won't be popular on this site - I can attest that I am almost all the way off grid - but everyone here must have the interwebs - so in the spirit of having a Homestead not suffer from a humans bad memory:

I am doing some homestead automation - chicken coop door open at dawn, close a half hour after sunset - little heater under the chicken water - some lighting - and the heated outdoor cat bed automation  is up next (already have the catbed heated!) - it doesn't turn on until he gets on it - but using a Raspberry Pi - and then an IOT software - I went with Mozilla - it runs pretty nicely - and I have the option to manage it away from home - via a free VPN - but it can and will work without it. I can still control the catbed power availability - based on temp - and then the built in pressure switch will turn it on when he gets on it.
using the the existing pins and programming them as to what I want - the software is made to schedule. or work with parameters - monitoring temp and taking action is easy with this.
one has to be comfortable hooking up relays to use the outputs - they are not robust enough to do much more on their own past lighting LED's - but once you trigger a relay - you pretty much own the world. you are just obligated now to use it for good!

my place is so far behind I need the help - I spend way too much time cleaning up tree debris - and I can get so absorbed in what I am currently working on I will likely forget - I did forget to let the chickens out one day until almost 1100 - this has made it so that it never happens again.
I still check/monitor - but this place is far from ready to relax on. and I am moving slower than ever now.

the little Pi's are pretty inexpensive - and way easy to work with.
pretty much all of that list would be doable to at least some degree - with one device that has a bunch of independent inputs and outputs. I put together a battery backed up power supply - I am currently good for about 24 hours of solar/gennie down and still have the Pi running. I have not had both crash at the same time yet - but I already know Murphy good enough.
I plan on integrating it into the greenhouse cooling if I ever get the greenhouse built.

it boils down to keeping the homestead as safe as I can even when I have to be out of town for a few days - couple times a year for volunteer work i do. my animals are not to suffer for any reason. especially not due to me.

Yup, I know this is doable project.  Especially if tinkering with a pi or arduino.  But I'm proposing an off-the-shelf doohickey you can buy at menards or tractor supply and then turn a knob and flip a switch to take care of your project.  Ideally it's UL listed as well...

ahh, I am pretty much only doing "you-all approved" at the moment!!
LOL
would be cool - I hope someone grabs it and runs with it!

So basically you want to combine two things that already exist - a smart plug and a smart thermometer.

Current solution would be say, Aqara Temperature and Humidity Sensor - $17 works with IFTTT and HomeKit, Generic smart plugs starting at $14 but will need a hub, existing 2.4GHz wifi.

Set up rules with IFTTT / HomeKit etc.

These are two scenarios I have used.

I did this when I built an indoor mushroom farm in my basement shower unit. I used HomeKit to check Humidity every five minutes. If humidity dropped below 80% it turned on a plug which had a small mister connected.

My sons bedroom radiator is end of the line and to heat his room requires the rest of the house to be tropical. When he was remote schooling during lockdown I set up an oil filled electric radiator, a smart plug and a smart thermometer. I used HomeKit to check the weather forecast at 5am and the temp in his room. If outside was below 10'C and forecast at 7am was below 15'C and his room was below 16'C then turn on his radiator. Check every five minutes. If temp > 20'C turn off, if temp < 20'C turn on. Turn off at 5pm regardless of temp.

So your single gizmo would be less versatile and cost less than $31 - the cost of a plug and sensor

Currently they cost $35 on Amazon without Wifi and $49 with Wifi

https://www.amazon.com/Inkbird-Max-1200W-Temperature-Controller-Greenhouse/dp/B01HXM5UAC

Sweet, they already invented it!  That link is close enough to what I'm after for my purposes.  Non-digital would be even better but I can live with this.  I wonder if they'll send me some free ones....

Thanks for finding it Edward!  I wouldn't know what to do with the wifi stuff

Mike Haasl wrote:Sweet, they already invented it!

Don’t stop dreaming and sharing!

Thanks, just bought one.  Went with a slightly cheaper model that doesn't do cooling since I need it for a chicken coop.

Ok, here's the next invention  

The Shade Drone:

Make a drone or drone-like balloon/zeppelin that communicates with a GPS device clipped to your belt.  It flies up 100 feet or so and puts itself between the sun and you to provide a spot of shade for you to enjoy.  

Likely the biggest challenge is coming up with a drone and shade structure that can stay aloft long enough to be worth using.  Perhaps it's a small drone with a flag attached.  Or a disk shaped balloon.  Overcoming wind to maintain position is another consideration.  A flying, self-recharging solar panel would be perfect but unlikely to be light enough.  Or maybe it has wings and rides the wind like a vulture or a glider to maintain lift.

So your single gizmo would be less versatile and cost less than $31 - the cost of a plug and sensor

Currently they cost $35 on Amazon without Wifi and $49 with Wifi

well, my "single gizmo" can do a lot more than one thing - currently doing 4, for the price of one - $35 -  probably feasible to pull about 30 of my automation tricks in on just one. and works when the internet is out - so I will stick with it.  
what you are doing is cool, and easy - but you don't need to put other ideas down if you don't fully understand them - but I did figure there would be something like this somewhere in a response, and it probably goes against someone else's ways/beliefs. I can have mine, thank you.
it works VERY reliably - been running over a year nonstop - and it suits me fine. I have been down the road on that single use crap, and most of them are completely nonfunctional when you have no wifi.
I am backing out - the beeping is me.....

Rob Dooley wrote:

So your single gizmo would be less versatile and cost less than $31 - the cost of a plug and sensor

Currently they cost $35 on Amazon without Wifi and $49 with Wifi

well, my "single gizmo" can do a lot more than one thing - currently doing 4, for the price of one - $35 -  probably feasible to pull about 30 of my automation tricks in on just one. and works when the internet is out - so I will stick with it.  
what you are doing is cool, and easy - but you don't need to put other ideas down if you don't fully understand them - but I did figure there would be something like this somewhere in a response, and it probably goes against someone else's ways/beliefs. I can have mine, thank you.
it works VERY reliably - been running over a year nonstop - and it suits me fine. I have been down the road on that single use crap, and most of them are completely nonfunctional when you have no wifi.
I am backing out - the beeping is me.....

The you/your pronouns in my post were referring to the original questioner, not you. It took me over an hour to research and reply - I was also cooking at the time, so hadn’t read your reply. Just to be clear I’m now addressing you, Rob, and I think your solution is great. I’m sorry there’s been a mix up because of time stamps and the order of replies. I’m definitely in favour of solutions that work when everything else fails. My Raspberry Pi does a bunch of automation but definitely needs an internet connection. I’m also in favour of exploring lots of avenues and this is a massively diverse group that celebrates our differences. I will never intentionally put other ideas down. I wont always agree and I may propose an alternative.  Ultimately, I thrive on ideas and so does this place.

OK lads what is a pi?

Especially if tinkering with a pi or arduino.

Rob, why do you spend time clearing tree debris? I just leve it alone here in Australia.

John C Daley wrote:OK lads what is a pi?

Raspberry Pi is a small one board computer. They are super cheap, great for hobbyists and automating stuff. I think the original idea was from a bunch of boffins lamenting the good old days of home computers that didn’t do anything unless you learnt to write code. (I started with an Sinclair ZX 81 back in 1981).

I bought my son when they first came out. He was ten at the time and used it to learn to code. It’s still running and my son is at college studying Computer Science.

I have one that automates a bunch of stuff like backups, running a family website, filtering out adverts . . .

I’d love to Rob’s as he’s using the onboard pins


Here they both are hooked up with USB and Ethernet - storage is a micro SD card.

Rob, why do you spend time clearing tree debris? I just leve it alone here in Australia.

John,
I have ten acres and almost 8,000 trees (personally planted 7,000 of them) - fir/pine/cedar/hemlock, etc - and we have been having horrible fires near here. I have been trying to get the "ladder fuels" picked up to save the trees if it comes through here - a year ago the "get ready to evacuate" got just under 9 miles from me. I just paid this place off two years ago - and that evac notice hit me pretty hard.
I have some other tricks for fire survival setup, and depending on the status of the neighboring 60 acres, I might only evacuate 150 feet. ooh, let me try - 50 meters?  I don't leave the US anymore - I am getting way rusty.
Edward - I will look for the Pi prototype pics - I am always needing to prove to myself I can do it before I jump in, the working Pi is stuffed away in a Hoffman box in the garage attic to be central for the cabling. and I only go in there when I have no choice!
and no ladders for Rob for a couple more months probably. I tried the weekend after thanksgiving, and that has probably set me back a bit as well. I did save a solar array and radio repeater site at 6,000 feet though!
is there a water problem thread/forum going on this site? that was what I was searching when I landed here - been distracted ever since.
R

Rob - Look for the ‘All forums’ button on the left - it will take you here https://permies.com/forums/forums/allForums

There’s Ponds and Wells and Springs under Homestead. I see there’s also wildfire.

Mike Haasl wrote:
The Shade Drone:

Make a drone or drone-like balloon/zeppelin that communicates with a GPS device clipped to your belt.  It flies up 100 feet or so and puts itself between the sun and you to provide a spot of shade for you to enjoy.  

Likely the biggest challenge is coming up with a drone and shade structure that can stay aloft long enough to be worth using.  Perhaps it's a small drone with a flag attached.  Or a disk shaped balloon.  Overcoming wind to maintain position is another consideration.  A flying, self-recharging solar panel would be perfect but unlikely to be light enough.  Or maybe it has wings and rides the wind like a vulture or a glider to maintain lift.

That’s almost as crazy as the idea of a selfie drone that was dreamed up in Singapore a few years back. In the meantime . . . Should be a BB for making one of these

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asian_conical_hat

True, a huge hat or sombrero would work too...

PLCs provide many automation possibilities for more complex tasks.

https://www.amci.com/industrial-automation-resources/plc-automation-tutorials/what-plc/

Back to the original invention idea, decades ago, Hubby made up three or four units that did essentially what you're asking for, but when computers weren't the size of my cell phone, so all manual switches and dials. Two are still functioning and one controls the underfloor heating in our brooder - we can adjust the temp easily downwards as they grow and need less heat - and one used to control the fan on our wood-stove, automatically turning off as the stove cooled down, although I think he eventually installed a couple of switches that were easy to access and I think the box isn't there now -maybe it died of old age also?

I've sent Hubby the link that Edward found, as I'm sure he'd be interested. The problem I find with many of the electronic versions is that 1) they don't last and 2) the local dinosaur who seems to have a weird magnetic resonance capable of bricking just about any electronic device is bound to manage to break the modern version just by looking at it. (I'm not responsible for breaking the old mechanical ones.)

Rob, im sorry, but... theres several things that probably wont make your idea happen:
- most importantly, the contact resistance; if you want to chain several modules to run high power devices - like a heater - your risking a thermal runaway (in other words, fire!)
- if your using a microcontroller for temperature control, you either need it VERY precise or have a huge/complex system going, otherwise your overcomplicating it, which usually winds up too expensive to buy for sensible people
- as its been mentioned, theres already countless cheap solutions out there
- also, when a product - such as your idea - is designed, a ~60% margin is rule of thumb, to account for all the overhead; hence, if you cant make it for 30-40% of what would be affordable, you might as well can it

Jay Angler wrote:The problem I find with many of the electronic versions is that 1) they don't last and 2) the local dinosaur who seems to have a weird magnetic resonance...

that depends on how their designed/built/etc, ive got automatic switches going that i built decades ago and their all still going at zero maintenance

you def. want to stay away of complex microcontrollers, if you want it to last; analog logic often also does the trick, while way more robust and even if some thing fails, you dont need a computer to fix it

the other thing is keeping it dry, even a simple swing wont last if it can corode and you can often manage shorts by mere spacing, taking into account potential contaminants like moisture, dust, insects etc

and your magnetic problems are probably caused by insufficient shielding, lack of filtering or large ground loops, which can act like antennas, picking up stray signals and doing unexpected things

Rob, im sorry, but... theres several things that probably wont make your idea happen:
- most importantly, the contact resistance; if you want to chain several modules to run high power devices - like a heater - your risking a thermal runaway (in other words, fire!)
- if your using a microcontroller for temperature control, you either need it VERY precise or have a huge/complex system going, otherwise your overcomplicating it, which usually winds up too expensive to buy for sensible people
- as its been mentioned, theres already countless cheap solutions out there
- also, when a product - such as your idea - is designed, a ~60% margin is rule of thumb, to account for all the overhead; hence, if you cant make it for 30-40% of what would be affordable, you might as well can it

Smith,
interesting thoughts, but it has been working for several years now - and the only "chaining" is the communication for some I2C modules that I recently started playing with.

please don't "chain" relays together to get higher load capacity - get one that is rated/built for what you are doing.
so many of the "countless" ways to do these things are single purpose - I have one device that can do a lot. and I can make it do exactly what i want, without any real compromise like so many of the countless things. a high percentage of those countless things require internet, or they won't work. I have no use for that.
I do have the option to control mine fromm the w3 if I need or want.

basic understanding of how you trigger a large load from a small current IS needed - and what you are mentioning  is not the way.
as far as running something for any real heat - I use wood - so nothing here involved with it for me - but running a low  voltage, low current trigger relay to then run something more robust is the way things are done - the little display thermostats that are in millions of house don't switch a 45 amp 240 volt load directly - they trigger - a relay. simple and reliable.
how reliable is your cell phone (except for service)
there are a lot of devices that get shipped with a Pi as their controller. they are cheap and they work.
no hard drive
but if you need simpler, it can be done and I applaud you for your efforts. you are going to have trouble switching some of those loads directly - and timing is cumbersome without the electronics.  lighting in big buildings is done with contactors (relays) - as a switch big enough for those loads will be huge and hard to operate.
do you have a well? do you switch it on manually, or is it "automatic" via pressure high/low? _ contacts! - that last a long time, as they are the correct one for the mission.
properly sized contacts making and breaking every time the pumps is cycled. a pressure switch is a relay operated by water/air/ what ever one is controlling.
or even better - a low volume well and a device like the old "coyote" that takes out water for a few minutes (programmable) and then rests for a programmed time, then repeat - Bing! relays and microprocessor! appears that they are used more places than you might realize.

they work. if designed and implemented correctly, they can last a long time.
like the device that keeps the chicken water from freezing. it is commercially made, it draws 40 watts - we used to use higher wattage light bulbs to keep things from freezing - there was the fire risk. heat lamps are trouble.
anyway - I just operate a relay to power the device  - electrically the world has run on relays and contactors for a lot of years - no "chaining" no risk of heat, unless one does not understand how to put the correctly rated pieces in, or even what the correctly rated pieces are.
if you get to where you really understand them - early computers use a LOT of them - and making "if/then/- and/or" type logic is easy. I have done it for many years.
precise temperature monitoring/controlling is easy. sensors are easy and inexpensive to come by.
again, I am currently running it. for several years now. it is expandable. it is reliable.
it currently opens the coop door half an hour before sunrise. it closes the coop door when it gets to the point of darkness of sunset, and then 10 minutes. it also closes it if it is open for some reason - at 21:00. it works every day.
I have lights come on at specified times, some off at sunrise. those same lights come on half an hour before sunset and then off at 20:30.
I have a temp sensor in my pumphouse that sends me an email when it drops below 35 degrees, and it also alerts me with an LED light at the house near my desk.
the only internet need for all of this is the email. the only wifi that is needed is if I want to connect to it and make programming adjustments.

I probably won't "can" it. it helps me stay on track. lots of things CAN work if you open your mind and research it. I am just doing what I have done for a lot of my working life.

I was hoping this would be a positive supportive forum - people that are trying to not consume the world really should be as supportive as it looks like Paul envisioned everything he is doing - to be. I see that in most of these forums. you don't have
I don't care if you don't like or don't want to do it my way - but saying it won't work without enough knowledge is just going to end up just taking this to a forum of city people just trying to boost heir own egos, and maybe getting some genius that is doing something awesome to not speak up. ( NOT talking about me - I am just using what I learned)
electronic isn't for everyone - but I do laugh when that fuss comes up, but they have a smartphone - that they can't even keep under control.......
try thinking about what CAN be done.

Rob

sorry, wasnt intending to be unsupportive, but rather throw in some potential issues to bare in mind and maybe broaden the spectrum of potential solutions for the actual problem/s

take timing for example, many tend to be so used to clocks/watches being as exact as possible, that they try reflecting that on their solution, integrating complex components to increase precision by maybe 20% at 80% additional cost, while a 555 or sensors like thermoelastics might do the trick too (ie automatic window openers actuated by wax)

and i agree on using relays ofc, cant do much with the typical 100mA of an IC, but they can also degrade over time, not to mention the audible "feature", but luckily thats also not the only way of switching larger loads

ps: in essence, there rarely is one "pill" for all problems