G A R D E N S Greenhouse

G. A. R. D. E. N. S. (Greenhouse Automation and Relay Device for Expansionary Nodal Systems) By: Andrew Baker with assistance from Willy Duffle

OUTLINE • • • Introduction Project Description Requirements Components Used System Operation Q&A

INTRODUCTION • Society is heading towards a “Green” way of life, and that includes producing one’s own food supply • We wanted to make something that would help greenhouse caretakers grow better crops, and also assist in crop maintenance for people who may be disabled or unable to perform regular upkeep.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION • Design, build, and test a system which: – Automates the watering of crops based on soil moisture conditions – Control a roof vent which can be used to keep the temperature within the green house consistent – Build a system which supports multiple zones, for different types of crops within the greenhouse

REQUIREMENTS • • • Output Display Audio Output Device Manual Data Input Automatic Sensor Input Actuators, Mechanisms, and Hardware Logic, Processing, and Control

SOLUTION OVERVIEW • First lets look at what we used to cover each of the required categories: – Output Display • Sparkfun LCD with Serial Backpack – Audio Oautput Device • Buzzer on master controller to indicate to user if an operation is successful or not – Manual Data Input • Capacitive touch keypad

SOLUTION OVERVIEW – Automatic Sensor Input • Temperature Sensor to control the Servo – Actuators, Mechanisms, and Hardware • RC Servo Motor – Logic, Processing, and Control • Dual Arduino Pro Mini microcontrollers communicating over the Phillips I 2 C protocol. LCD screen shows custom coded menu, and water control based on moisture sensor data

UNITS • G. R. O. W. – Greenhouse Robustness and Operations Workstation • S. E. C. A. N. T – Sensor Enabled Controller and Automation Node Transceiver • R. A. C. – Relay Activation Controller

SYSTEM OPERATION

G. R. O. W. • Contains the Keypad, LCD Screen, and Speaker • Used for changing a Zone’s variables – Ideally would be placed in a location that is easily accessible • Used to test water control relays and servo functions

S. E. C. A. N. T. • Aka the “Zone” unit • In current implementation of the system, only 1 SECANT unit is supported, but with a few code modifications up to 125 Zones could be operated from one GROW unit • Has moisture sensor and temperature sensor attached and is responsible for turning on or off water supply, and opening or closing the roof vent.

R. A. C. • This was designed to be a unit solely responsible for housing the water valves • Current system does not have this due to budget constraints

How It All Works Together On power up the SECANT pulls its limit values from its built in EEPROM. It then reads the temperature and moisture levels, then determines if it needs to take action or if the current conditions satisfy the limits. During the SECANT’s normal operation, the GROW can interrupt its function to change the limits which are then reloaded to the onboard EEPROM. The GROW uses the keypad and custom menu shown through the LCD to change variables.

Issues Yet Resolved • If a water valve is turned on but the chip locks up it would fail to turn off the water valve • Possible Solutions: – Watchdog timer within the MCU – Analog override if the moisture reading goes too high

Issues Yet Resolved • Current system only supports one zone • Solution: – Code within the GROW unit needs to be changed to be able to address more than just 1 I 2 C address – Custom Menu needs one more option to allow the user to select which zone to change settings on

BUDGET

GANTT CHART

Questions