Analog data from solar boat -> wifi?

Projects General Guidance
1

Salutations,

What I would like to do, is transmit data such as voltage, amperage, and remaining battery life through the Arduino + ethernet shield (perhaps?) and to a laptop at the shore, where it can be manipulated and displayed. You see, this is for a solar-endurance race. It is best to go as fast as possible without running out of power, so these gauges will be helpful (and it's just fun to learn about this stuff :slight_smile: ).

I may also create an interface for an iPad that displays the data - and also perhaps enable audio communication through it (if it's within the capabilities of the Arduino), but the glare from the sun might sink this idea.

The race is in the middle of nowhere (no wifi, no cell service), but that stuff is easier to figure out.
For now, I'd just like to know if this is possible (assuming a wifi connection will reach the boat).

2

wifi is certainly feasible but may cut into your power budget more than you want. Class 1 bluetooth might have similar range at lower power. If you are intent on using it with an iPad or some other i-device bluetooth is likely not the solution though. Bluetooth modems that work with SPP on i-devices are scarce. That doesn't apply to a jailbroken device, however.

If your radio was asleep most of the time and just reported at some interval, the power probably wouldn't be a problem.