Im putting together a project that has 2 main locations:
Location 1:
1.1 Rpi3 which controls a bt relay board
1.2 Arduino (Ard#1) (maybe nano) that reads 2 current sensors and will send data to Rpi3
Location 2:
2.1 Ard#2 will control 6 PIR sensors (maybe nano) and must report to Rpi3
2.2 Ard#3 will control an ultrasonic sensor and an NFC shield (might be UNO) & report to Rpi3
2.3 Ard#4 will control 8 PIR sensors (maybe nano) and must report to Rpi3
2.4 Ard#5 will control Stepper via L298N, photo sensor, moisture sensor, solenoid & water flow meter
All these arduinos must report the data to the Rpi3.
So I was thinking of sending the data via wifi to a local webserver on Rpi3 but I dont want to add a wifi module to each arduino, do I? These are not critical in any way, but the reporting times would be something like:
PIR sensors should report every minute or so
Ultrasonic and NFC only when activated, around 5-10 times a day
Stepper/298N and Solenoid will be activated about 2x a day
Water Flow Meter and Power Sensors should reporte every minute or so
Pros and Cons:
WIFI
PROS:simple to post to a db on a rpi3
CONS:Cumbersome to add wifi module to each arduino
BT
PROS:simple to use
CONS: BIG - There are about 2 or 3 concrete walls between Location1 and Location2 and about 10 meters. BT fails here big time. Maybe it would work for arduinos to post to a second rpi3 in Location2, but makes project more expensive and fragile.
Serial
PROS: robust and simple
CONS: Never used it before, not sure how to do it, btw, I mean hardwiring arduinos between one another?
So Im thinking, either:
A. add wifi modules to each arduino and post to db-server
B. add second rpi3 to location2
C. hardwire comm between Ard2-6
D. bring current sensors and relay board and rpi3 from loc1 to loc2, but i still need to send data from ARD2-6 to the Rpi3.
Any suggestions?
