Power Management for a Wireless Solenoid Irrigation Valve

In this work, the power management (PM) system to drive a 12 V LoRaWAN latching solenoid valve (LSV) for automated irrigation systems is studied in detail. The objective is to optimize the use of a supercapacitor and a boost converter, allowing to drive the LSV from a small primary battery, even a button cell, to reduce installation costs and battery environmental impact issues. Detailed supercapacitor, converter, and leakage measurements are presented, allowing to properly optimize the circuit design and PM system. Following the proposed guidelines a wireless solenoid valve can be operated for 5 years from a single 1/2AALiSOCl2 primary battery.