Final Project
Individual Project
- Document a final project masterpiece that integrates the range of units covered, answering: What does it do? Who's done what beforehand? What did you design? What materials and components were used? Where did they come from? How much did they cost? What parts and systems were made? What processes were used? What questions were answered? What worked? What didn't? How was it evaluated? What are the implications?
- Prepare a summary slide and a one-minute video showing its conception, construction, and operation. Your project should incorporate 2D and 3D design, additive and subtractive fabrication processes, electronics design and production, embedded microcontroller interfacing and programming, system integration and packaging.
- Where possible, you should make rather than buy the parts of your project. Projects can be separate or joint, but need to show individual mastery of the skills and be independently operable. Present your final project, weekly and group assignments, and documentation.
Learning outcomes:
- Create your own integrated design
- Demonstrate 2D & 3D modeling capabilities applied to your own designs
- Select and apply appropriate additive and subtractive techniques
- Demonstrate competence in design, fabrication, and programming of your own fabbed microcontroller PCB, including an input & output device
Have you?
- Made your slide: 1920 x 1080 pixels with your name, project name, Fab Lab name, a photo/render/sketch of your project, a brief description of what your project is/does
- Made a ~1 minute (10MB/1080p) video of you explaining your project
- Made a separate Final Project page that briefly summarizes your project
- Included the BOM (Bill of Materials) for your project
- Linked from this page to any weeks that you worked on your final project
- Linked to your presentation.png and presentation.mp4
- Included all of your original design files in the archive (2D & 3D, board files & code). No external hosting of final project files - discuss file sizes with your instructor
- Included the license you chose
- Acknowledged work done by others
Presentation Slide
Presentation Video
Connection Diagram
Here is the general diagram of the whole system.
Links
Final Project summary page
All the files
What did you design?
- GitLab Fabcloud project page containing the PCB, enclosure, and firmware.
- Firmware
- Board Files
- Enclosure
What does it do?
My final project is an irrigation system controller. It allows me to schedule irrigation events by zone and time, and it also shows humidity and temperature. The PCB has extra pins for expansion.
Who's done what beforehand?
There are a number of companies that sell irrigation controller systems.
On the Alibaba website, we can see many options with an almost infinite price range, as well as capabilities.
JOGIN FRANCIS made a really nice automatic valve for irrigation automation that could definitely add to my project, but for now, I will focus more on the interface and controller and use commercial valves.
João Milheiro also made an irrigation system. He is using it to control the environment of a mushroom growing kit.
What did you design?
I designed the PCB that has at its center an ESP32, relays for the activation of various equipment like solenoid valves and a pump, and a sensor.
I also designed the waterproof enclosure as well as a gasket.
Finally, I designed the web interface to allow connectivity and operation of the system.
I did not design valves, sensors, actuators, or power supplies. These were commercially available items that were integrated into my final project.
What materials and components were used?
Where did they come from?
How much did they cost?
To answer the questions above, I made a spreadsheet.
| Materials and components | Purpose | Source | Links | Quantity | Unit Price | Total Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MDF Forescolor | for the enclosure | Fablab Stock | forescolor.com | 90000mm2 (30 × 30 cm) | $0.000027/mm2 | $2.43 |
| Silicone | for the gasket | Fablab stock | amazon.es | 50g | $0.05/gram | $2.39 |
| Epoxy resin | to further waterproof the interior of the enclosure and help with the light diffusion of the LEDs | Fablab stock | amazon.es | 50ml | $0.01/ml | $0.60 |
| Total | $5.42 |
Electronics Board
| Value | Package | Description | Source Links | Quantity | Unit Price | Total Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PCB blank | Proto Board Copper Clad FR1, Single Sided, 1 oz. 5.00" x 4.00" (127.0mm x 101.6mm) | digikey.com | 1 | $2.44 | $2.44 | |
| FTDI-SMD-HEADER | 1X06SMD | CONN HEADER R/A 6POS 2.54MM | digikey.com | 1 | $0.18 | $0.18 |
| 22-23-2021 | 22-23-2021 | CONN HEADER VERT 2POS 2.54MM | digikey.com | 1 | $0.17 | $0.17 |
| header2x6 | 2X03 | CONN HEADER VERT 6POS 2.54MM | digikey.com | 2 | $0.48 | $0.96 |
| SWITCH | SWITCH TACTILE SPST-NO 50MA 12V | SWITCH TACTILE SPST-NO 50MA 12V | digikey.com | 2 | $0.20 | $0.40 |
| 0.1uF | C1206FAB | CAP CER 0.1UF 50V X7R 1206 | digikey.com | 2 | $0.11 | $0.22 |
| 100uF | C1206FAB | CAP CER 100UF 10V X5R 1206 | digikey.com | 1 | $1.49 | $1.49 |
| 15pf | C1206FAB | CAP CER 15PF 50V 1206 | digikey.com | 2 | $0.19 | $0.38 |
| 1nF | C1206FAB | CAP CER 1206 1NF 250V X7R 10% | digikey.com | 1 | $0.27 | $0.27 |
| ESP32-WROOM-32 (16MB) | ESP-WROOM-32 | WIFI MODULE 128MBITS SPI FLASH | digikey.com | 1 | $4.50 | $4.50 |
| LED | LED1206 | Standard LEDs - SMD 1206 Blue | eu.mouser.com | 7 | $1.45 | $10.15 |
| 100ohm | R1206 | RES SMD 100 OHM 1% 1/4W 1206 | digikey.com | 5 | $0.57 | $2.85 |
| 10k | R1206 | RES SMD 10K OHM 1% 1/4W 1206 | digikey.com | 3 | $0.57 | $1.71 |
| 1.2Mohm | R1206 | RES SMD 1.2M OHM 5% 1/4W 1206 | digikey.com | 1 | $0.10 | $0.10 |
| 1.5Mohm | R1206 | RES SMD 1.5M OHM 1% 1/4W 1206 | digikey.com | 1 | $0.18 | $0.18 |
| 150ohm | R1206 | RES SMD 150 OHM 5% 1/4W 1206 | digikey.com | 2 | $0.10 | $0.20 |
| 1K | R1206 | RES SMD 1K OHM 1% 1/4W 1206 | digikey.com | 4 | $0.57 | $2.28 |
| 220ohm | R1206 | RES SMD 220 OHM 1% 1/4W 1206 | digikey.com | 4 | $0.10 | $0.40 |
| SRD-05VDC-SL-C | RELAY_SRD-05VDC-SL-C | SRD-5VDC-SL-C 5 Pin PCB Type | banggood.com | 4 | $1.99 | $7.96 |
| ACS712 | SO08 | SENSOR CURRENT HALL 20A AC/DC | digikey.com | 1 | $2.32 | $2.32 |
| Diode | SOD123 | DIODE GEN PURP 100V 200MA SOD123 | digikey.com | 4 | $0.13 | $0.52 |
| EL817(S)(D)(TU)-V | SOIC254P1030X460-4N | OPTOISOLTR 5KV TRANSISTOR 4-DIP | digikey.com | 4 | $0.18 | $0.72 |
| BCX70SMD | SOT23 | TRANS NPN 45V 0.1A SOT23 | digikey.com | 4 | $0.19 | $0.76 |
| MCP1700T-3302E/TT | SOT95P237X112-3N | IC REG LINEAR 3.3V 250MA SOT23-3 | digikey.com | 1 | $0.37 | $0.37 |
| TEMP-HUM-SENSOR-DHT22 | TEMP-HUM-SENSOR-DHT22 | SENSOR HUMID/TEMP 5V DTL 5% MOD | digikey.com | 1 | $5.00 | $5.00 |
| Screw Clamp | W237-102 | WAGO SCREW CLAMP | aliexpress.com | 4 | $0.10 | $0.40 |
| ECS-.327-12.5-13X | XTAL_ECS-.327-12.5-13X | CRYSTAL 32.7680KHZ 12.5PF TH | digikey.com | 1 | $0.24 | $0.24 |
| Total | $47.17 |
What parts and systems were made?
- The enclosure
- The PCB
- The gasket
What processes were used?
- Electronics
- Electronics design, Designing the PCB in Eagle.
- Electronics production, Milling the PCB.
- Debugging the PCB
- Web interface, communication with C++ using JSON, and the embedded program itself in C++
- Burning The Firmware
- Network Code
- Enclosure
- Finalizing
What questions were answered?
How to make a web interface that communicates smoothly with C++? I used the ArduinoJson library, which serialized and deserialized the communication between the HTML, JavaScript, and C++.
How to set the time and keep it from being lost with a power loss? That's still a challenge to be tackled, as I am not completely happy with how the system keeps time. Right now, it relies heavily on the battery in case of power failure.
What worked? What didn't?
The firmware has worked for 3 months so far, irrigating my plants. What I am not very happy with is that if the battery runs out, because it is in a remote location, we need to bring a hotspot so it connects to the Internet automatically to get the Internet time.
I did not have time to create a safety routine to check the pump amperage. The board has the components, but the software is not developed yet.
How was it evaluated?
My objectives with my final project were to have an irrigation controller on my Fab Farm and at the same time learn code and electronics.
Let's see my evaluation questions:
- Can I connect using my phone to the web interface of the irrigation controller?
Yes
- Can I view the scheduled times and irrigation zones from the web interface?
Yes
- Can I change time and duration from the web interface?
Yes
- Does it display humidity and temperature?
Yes
- Does it irrigate the plants according to the schedule?
Yes
- Can a farmer install/operate the system without a lot of technical knowledge?
Yes and no. I don't believe a non-technical person can install it, but anyone can operate it.
- Will it improve the life of a small farmer/plant enthusiast, reducing, with a relatively low cost, the time they need to spend watering plants?
Yes! It improved mine! We don't need to go and water the plants like before, having to open and close valves about 8 times a day.
- Did I improve my C++ skills while making this project?
Yes, I am much more confident programming in C++ now.
- Did I improve my electronics design skills while making this project?
Yes, I feel like I can move on to many more projects in electronics.
- What would I change in the next board?
The MCP1700 regulator gives up to 250 mA, and the ESP32 can pull around 500 mA in short peaks when the Wi-Fi transmits, which can reset the board. Next time I would use a regulator of 500 mA or more, like the AP2112 or the AMS1117.
Weeks that I worked on my final project
Interface and Application Programming
License
Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike.
license fileAcknowledgments
I would like to thank my local instructor Luis Carvão for all the tips and the time dedicated to helping me finish this project and the Fab Academy course.
I would also like to thank my friend Jeff Knight for the instructions on C++ during one day and a late night he spent helping me implement the ArduinoJson library in my project.
Jeff also contributed the following commits to the firmware here:
- 67b8986dc461a48e3b30200d0f11b5dd3fbc80ac
- f25d13f2b7815fac7dd77ed1649d91ac00ccd9ad
- f378d6e14cc321061a00d9e26984945cc89e626b
- 05524b31d637ed6b8a400be250609f2009b70d75
- 4cb1541005bedf5d1ca8ad8460527e4cacdccd9d
- 8e0d0cbede70c0df11671a82f1443deaa3d6c9eb
- 71567dc3612ff74e320ba6bf4a23b33b1df091f7
- 38dba68509052fc6db306f06a1fa82c1e9add3c9
- 4ceaffcf42d84c8ee0c79b63d927556a43889af6
- 2650a62e9afadb377c6fde4ae305d7321ce3a398
- 3aefa9dde126dfbc0b7b46d73bde86464cb3d91c
- 34486528453d6e11dd8a4cefc3b47929642c58b8
- 0ef9ce70e71ce3fa1ea8c4f2e82f5ba4ffe742cd
- 4a4b18f125d0b8d175301a3b7c5c0e4a61e3627d
- 39a5eae10aaf87dca6e1f879e6e0390f5c1f7761