Team:ULaVerne Collab/applieddesign
APPLIED DESIGN
When deciding on what project to build and the components needed for the build we considered using the Arduino and Raspberry Pi. The Arduino is an open-source micro-controller that can read any input and providing an output for our project. To have the Arduino board do as we tell it, we used the programming language C++ to give the device the instructions for every component attached to the board. The program used to input the code and write the commands needed was the Arduino editor that is provided by the Arduino manufacturers on their website, arduino.cc. In order to get the data needed, we used a variety of sensors to help track and detect any information we needed. The sensors and their functions are as follows:
Photoresistor
This light-controlled variable resistor decreases its resistance with increasing light intensity. The photoresistor is used to detect when a certain amount of light reaches the device and reacts, while providing data when light has reached it.
UV Sensor
This sensor measures the power of incident ultraviolet radiation. With this sensor we can determine the exposure of our device to ultraviolet radiation in our testing environment.
Turbidity Sensor
With this sensor, we can measure the amount of light that is scattered by the suspended objects in water. As the water gets more polluted and clouded with the solids, the water’s turbidity level increases. This can provide us with data to see how the quality of water is while we are experimenting with the subject matter.
Temperature Sensor and Control
The temperature sensor we used for our device not only reads the temperature of the tank, but also helps control the temperature to the correct temperature we see fit. By connecting a device that can raise the temperature and another device that can lower the temperature, we can monitor and have complete control of the temperature of our water within the tank.
Ultrasonic Sensor
This sensor used helps us to measure the water level within the tank, and provide any other data related to distance and depth. The ultrasonic sensor uses ultrasound at 40,000 Hz that travels through air and any object within the path and then bounce back to the receiver. Once the ultrasound is received, the data is output in our monitor and allows us to view if there are any changes in the depth of the water and if the water levels change throughout the experiment.
The last device that brings everything together is the Raspberry Pi microcomputer. With this, we can remotely view and modify the sensors and data that are being controlled by the Arduino. If any changes need to be made with the code for any of the sensors, we would remotely log into the Raspberry by from any laptop or desktop computer and make the changes needed without having to interfere with our project. The Raspberry Pi can also be used to continuously send the data being read to our devices via email. We have set the data to be sent every 12 hours so that we can have constant feed from the device and monitor the data as it is being read.
