Hi,
I am relatively new to the world of arduino and am in need of advice. I know there have been many water level monitoring systems talked about in detail in the forums here, however the one i am thinking of building is slightly different to any of the ones i have seen.
I am wanting to build a system that monitors about 30 livestock water troughs across my family's farm, all within about a 3-4km line of sight radius, to the homestead. I am thinking of using 433mhz transceivers and hc-sr04 sensors that send the data back to the arduino/s, however i am open to other suggestions (btw no cell reception so cant use gsm system). I have absolutely no idea about the receiving end, what equipment should i use? Also I would love to view the data on a single computer screen as percentages ect., preferably accessible from the web. Is this at all possible or am I dreaming?
Any help appreciated greatly
Thanks
NRF24L01+ 2.4GHz Antenna Wireless Transceiver Module for Arduino.
EBay 10 for about $10
You can have a meshed network that each will work as a router to the next one.
Hi,
See details, How-To on nRF24L01 type modules HERE:
You will need the higher-power versions for those distances.
You may need directional antennas or Mesh networking for the longer distances.
Get some samples and start testing "In The Field" , so to speak...
I cant offer any advice as I am newer to this than you, but living on a farm and having the same issues are your water supplies connected to a mains supply ? is the purpose you wish to see how much water is used or to make sure you have enough water available. or is it a case you wish to see when the water has gone down so you can re supply?
Hi. The farm is supplied by water that is pumped from a creek, then into a main tank. No-one actually lives on the farm, we live on another farm about an hour away, but we are there every couple of days, so it would be nice to see whats going on, especially when the cattle have an obsession of playing with float valves. I have put in an existing CCTV system, which covers the main holding tank and sheds, there and also a wifi socket so i can turn on the pump remotely when the tank is getting low. However due to the laws in Australia, I cant use the video transmitters that i need, because they are like 15 times the legal limit, so I have to use ip cameras with wifi network (which is really expensive) or sensors with the transceivers mentioned here. I am a mechanical engineer, with basic knowledge of electronics, so this is very much an ambitious task for me
Thanks for the updated info on your problem, we solved our problem with float valves, but as you say the cattle play with the float valves so not ideal for you. I am also luckily enough to have mine fed by gravity so it gets on and looks after itself. Sorry cant be of more help but what a great project lets hope you work it all out would love to know the outcome when you do.
Cliff
not that it would help, but putting a cage over the float valve, or using a fully submerged one, pressure activated, might be an option.
on your project, I would make a sketch, with distances, of each location.
you may find a way to make the mesh network without too much of an issue.
as a note, I did see a laser option for data transfer.
patrickdaly28:
hc-sr04 sensors
there are a few options with single (and double) head sensor that are weatherproof. the HC-SR04 has open end and might offer a nesting place for insects.
the JSN-SR04 uses automobile back-up sensors on a wire or has a board mounted sensor.
minimum distance is about 30cm. any closer and the readings are wild and unuseable.
the backup sensor head fits in my PVC pipe with a strong press. but hides the wires.
seems you have two core challenges - the wireless network to cover your land, and the "can arduino do this code logic" part.
I think the coding part should be a slam dunk - depending on how complex you need things - but monitor a sensor, take action on sensor state is the core job I see in your project - which is right up Arduino's alley.
the other part - building a network to cover 3-4KM - not so trivial, and probably little to do with the Arduino.
lets assume if you can get wi-fi across your 3-4km, you can build what you like. I might recommend though - that you seek some other sources of information to build that.
I have built wi-fi mesh networks before (at hobby scale) - you might check the openWRT projects - good for hacking older linksys wi-fi routers to create large coverage mesh networks. of course - you need AC or DC power where ever you need an access point. specialized antennas will come into play - those little rubber ducks wont cut it.
might check these guys -
You might consider an approach used by the High Altitude Balloon (HAB) fraternity and transmit telemetry on the same frequency at infrequent random times from each monitoring station.
If your transmit antenna is elevated a little you should easily get a 10km line of site range and the HAB project code etc will form a good starting point.
Transmitters are narrow band and not as low cost as you may like but if you contact these guys then you will be able to get a lower price.
If some of the monitor points are closer together then perhaps a short range lower cost network could be established using cheap 2.4GHz modules.
Powering the system may also be a problem but batteries/solar panels may provide a solution.
the costing is the key part IMO. yes, you can build a network to cover that land, no problem. how much $$ is the real issue. my personal record on wifi (802.11) is 10 miles point to point using very focused beam antennas. on the wifi 10 mile attempt - it was done with a $30 USD linksys AP (hacked up/openWRT) and a $20 antenna (on both sides) - run off of a APC battery backup. over 10 miles, the protocol tends to break down (time out values) and results are "iffy", based on which brand access point you use.
how ever you do it - I'd figure out how many "nodes" you need to cover your land (based on anticipated coverage per node), and then figure the cost per node - including all supporting things needed for that node like antenna, batteries, solar, etc. that will let you decide which approach is best.