Project
| # | Title | Team Members | TA | Documents | Sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 75 | Plant Hydration and Weather Integration System |
Aashish Chaubal Iker Uriarte Jaeren Dadivas |
Maanas Sandeep Agrawal | proposal1.pdf |
|
| Plant Hydration and Weather Integration System - Iker Uriarte (iuriar2) - Jaeren Dadivas (dadivas2) - Aashish Chaubal (achau7) Outdoor plant care is challenging due to varying weather conditions and the risk of overwatering or underwatering. There are available automated watering systems that water plants, but they don’t consider the option of saving water by considering upcoming rain. A smarter solution is needed to optimize plant hydration while conserving water. This idea could minimize the risk of overwatering, which some people consider worse than underwatering, and could maximize water usage. # Solution Our objective is to design a smart plant-watering system that monitors soil moisture levels and integrates weather forecasting to optimize water usage for outdoor plants. The system will delay watering if rain is forecasted, minimizing water waste. We will use an ESP32 microcontroller capable of requesting an API to a weather forecasting service (such as AccuWeather). Our design will include a motorized water pump whose water flow will be dependent on both weather and moisture sensors. Finally, our system will be powered by rechargeable lithium batteries to provide the user with better long-term sustainability and cost efficiency. # Solution Components # Subsystem 1: Control Board The ESP32 will be the microcontroller for this project. It offers built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth functionality, making the design process more efficient and less risky. Additionally, the ESP32 is a highly popular microcontroller with documentation available, which could be helpful. The ESP32 will handle receiving soil moisture readings from sensors. If the moisture level falls below a specific threshold (which will be manually set based on the type of plant we choose to use), the ESP32 will use APIs (e.g., AccuWeather) to get real time weather data and check the rain precipitation probability. If the probability is high, the system will delay watering and wait for the rain to moisture the soil. Otherwise, it will activate a water pump to hydrate the plants. Lastly, the ESP32 will calculate the amount of water saved by comparing moisture levels when watering is delayed due to rain versus manually watering the plant with the water pump. Since the relationship between moisture levels and water usage is not linear, developing this calculation will be a challenging but essential part of the system. These results will be sent to a website that will display a graph showing water savings over time. ### Components Used: esp32-wroom-32 voltage ## Subsystem Batteries Since our project is focused on targeting outdoor plants, we have to use lithium-ion batteries since they are the most efficient against cold weather and they can be recharged. The problem that these types of batteries tend to have is that they don’t go well with cold temperatures, so that’s why we have to go with lithium-ion batteries that are cold weather resistant. We will connect our battery to a 5V boost converter and connect the converter to the ESP32 5V input. Components used: ###Components used: 2 Pack 3.7 Volt 18650 Rechargeable Battery 3400mAh 18650 Li-ion Battery ## Watering and Sensors subsystem We will use moisture sensors pinned to soil in order to actively measure soil moisture levels. These moisture sensors will be SEN0114. SEN0114 will be connected to the 3.3V ESP32 pins. The moisture sensors will work with our water pump. Our water pump will water plants whenever the moisture levels are low and there is no forecasted rain. Our pump will be a JT-180A. ###Components used: SEN0114 JT-180A 5V ## Data Subsystem our ESP32 will collect and upload data to a Firebase database, a cloud-based storage solution that will serve as our repository (data storage). We’ll build a custom website that connects to this database, allowing us to generate plots from the stored data. In short, Firebase will be our dependable “storage box” for all the semester’s data. ## Rain Detection Subsystem In order for our control board to see if it rains, we will be using a Load Cell + HX711 that will go under a container (i.e. cup) that will, in the case of rain, measure the change in weight of the container including the plant. The weight accumulated due to the added water from the rain can then be used in calculations by the microcontroller to determine the amount of water that was saved by holding back the watering system. This subsystem will also be able to confirm that is raining to our control board. ##Criterion For Success For our smart plant-watering system to be effective it needs to be able to autonomously sustain an outdoor plant via watering them by doing the following: it needs to be able to accurately monitor the soil moisture levels (and a set moisture threshold) and the real-time weather forecast and only activate the water pump accordingly (when the moisture level falls below the threshold and when there is no rain). Furthermore, it must be able to delay watering when the probability of rain is above a set threshold. The system will calculate and display water savings by comparing the system’s actual water usage and the baseline amount of water used without weather forecast information. |
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