Smart hydroponics monitoring system for urban cities
Description
A smart hydroponic monitoring system that allows the user to have a close control of the of health and conditions of a hydroponic system. Checking data from PH in the water solution, water and environment temperature, humidity, PPM, and solar radiance. The monitored data is then presented in a graphical user interface to allow the user to interact and evaluate what actions to take to maximize crop yield and plant health.
My contribution
Hydroponic System
Developed a hydroponic system in an urban area in Tijuana using only a wall with a restricted dimension of 2.5 meters by 4 meters. This design was created with budget and local supplies in mind, making it easier to be replicated in other urban areas. The system is composed of 6 PVC tubes that allow for nutrient rich water to travel across the roots of lettuce plants, keeping a constant flow while cycling the water in a reservoir that collects and reuses the water, a small pump keeps a constant flow in the system.
Monitoring system
The monitoring system microcontroller is the ESP 32 that allows for easy connectivity to WIFI, making it possible to upload data to a server. The sensors used are a PH sensor, a PPM sensor, a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, a UV light sensor and a lux sensor. For the analog sensors that require precision an external 16-bit ADC was used connected via I2C. The circuit was creating using a perforated board and a 3D printed board to bolt and hold all the components together. All this was then placed inside a weatherproof cabinet to prevent water and humidity to enter. A weatherproof casing was 3D printed and painted to allow constant humidity and temperature readings of the environment without getting wet. The lux and UV sensors are protected using clear epoxy.
Local and cloud integration
The data is sent to a cloud and local solution, allowing for both remote and local monitoring. In the local solution a raspberry pi is used as a server running home assistance, which is an integrator for smart houses that has services like a database and a web graphical user interface. The cloud solution is used running Microsoft azure services where an MQTT broker and a database system stores the data. The ESP32 sends data to the respective MQTT broker for a light bandwidth data transfer, which is then stored in both databases.
The cloud integration is designed to be expandible to multiple hydroponic monitoring systems allowing for a scalable solution.