Posts made by jtm312

jtm312

@dbemowsk The 2xbattery builds that I built didn't have the voltage regulator as you suggest. It was just a range problem as the voltage dropped. Moving it closer to the gateway everything was still working.

jtm312

@dbemowsk I am using the 3.3V pro minis. It is the one pictured at the top of this thread. I started out by getting about a week. The big difference came after removing the LEDs, as they were using most of the power. Also sleeping most of the time.

A good quality 9v also helped. Other humidity sensors can also cut the power drain.

I have also built version using 2xAAA batteries, but I find that it doesn't take long before the voltages drops below the useful voltage for the radio and starts to cause a range problem. The next version I am planning on going back to using the onboard regulator with 4xAA batteries.

jtm312

@dbemowsk By cutting the LEDs off, I am getting 12 to 16 weeks.

jtm312

The pro minis have an onboard voltage regulator (raw input). The specs say that they are good for up to 12v for either the 5v or 3.3v version. I used a 3.3v version as it made the rest of the interface easier.

jtm312

@flopp I have added the FreeCAD file to the Thingiverse post so that people can make any changes they want.

http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:704715

jtm312

@172pilot It is an outlet cover.

jtm312

@bjacobse Thanks, they look interesting. I will grab some and have a play.

jtm312

@Dylano Thanks.

I get 3-4 months from a battery by just removing the 2 LEDs from the arduino. Could probably do better running it from 2 AAA batteries and removing the voltage regulator as well. To save more power, you could also increase the interval between sending updates to the controller.

To build it you need:

Arduino Pro Mini
Humidity Sensor – DHT22 Aliexpress
list itemPressure Sensor – BMP180 Aliexpress
Prototype board & Battery Connector

Connections:

Radio connected as http://www.mysensors.org/build/connect_radio
3.3V to sensors from arduino
Battery Sense - A0 - connected as http://www.mysensors.org/build/battery R1=1M * R2=100k
BMP085 - SCL - A5
BMP085 - SCA - A4
DHT22 - D3

jtm312

@BulldogLowell Thanks, that looks like it is worth a try, or just round to 0.5 degree. I am also going to cut down the sample interval. After the 1min samples to average for the pressure, the rest of the time 5min is probably good enough.

jtm312

@TimO Its been running for about 2 weeks now, and used 5-6% of the battery. I have pulled the leds off of the nano to make it last longer (I was only getting 3 weeks with the leds on). It would be nice to think that I could get 20 weeks. I am also thinking of some more code changes to reduce them amount of power consumed.

jtm312

This is a new mini weather station that I have been working on.

It provides Temperature, Humidity, Pressure, and Battery Voltage.

The case is designed to be printed without the need for any support, has vents in the front and sides. The front slides on to make it easy to replace the 9v battery. It is designed to take a 50x70mm prototype board. This gives heaps of room for the sensors.

The 3d files can be found on http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:704715

The code is mostly a refactor from the examples in the MySensors libraries, with a simplification of the forecast algorithm to reduce the amount of memory that it uses.

#include <SPI.h>
#include <MySensor.h>  
#include <DHT.h>  
#include <Wire.h>
#include <Adafruit_BMP085.h>

#define CHILD_ID_HUM 0
#define CHILD_ID_TEMP 1
#define CHILD_ID_BARO 2
#define CHILD_ID_BARO_TEMP 3

#define HUMIDITY_SENSOR_DIGITAL_PIN 3
int BATTERY_SENSE_PIN = A0;  // select the input pin for the battery sense point

#define SLEEP_MINUTE 60000
#define SLEEP_FIVE_MINUTES 300000

MySensor gw;
DHT dht;
Adafruit_BMP085 bmp = Adafruit_BMP085();      // Digital Pressure Sensor 

float   lastTemp = -1.0;
float   lastHum = -1.0;
float   lastBaroTemp = -1.0;
int     lastForecast = -1;
char    *weather[] = { "Stable", "Sunny", "Cloudy", "Unstable", "Thunderstorm",	"Unknown" };
int     minutes;
int     pressureSamples[5];
float   lastPressureAvg = -1.0;
int     lastPressure = -1;
int     minuteCount = 0;
float   pressureAvg;
int     pressure;
float   dP_dt;
boolean metric = true;

MyMessage msgHum(CHILD_ID_HUM, V_HUM);
MyMessage msgTemp(CHILD_ID_TEMP, V_TEMP);
MyMessage msgBaroTemp(CHILD_ID_BARO_TEMP, V_TEMP);
MyMessage msgBaro(CHILD_ID_BARO, V_PRESSURE);
MyMessage msgForecast(CHILD_ID_BARO, V_FORECAST);

void setup() {
	// use the 1.1 V internal reference
	analogReference(INTERNAL);
	gw.begin();
	dht.setup(HUMIDITY_SENSOR_DIGITAL_PIN);
	if (!bmp.begin()) {
		Serial.println("Could not find a valid BMP085 sensor, check wiring!");
	}
	// Send the Sketch Version Information to the Gateway
	gw.sendSketchInfo("Mini Weather Station", "3.2");

	// Register all sensors to gw (they will be created as child devices)
	gw.present(CHILD_ID_HUM, S_HUM);
	gw.present(CHILD_ID_TEMP, S_TEMP);
	gw.present(CHILD_ID_BARO, S_BARO);
	gw.present(CHILD_ID_BARO_TEMP, S_TEMP);
	metric = gw.getConfig().isMetric;
}

void loop() {
  
  	Serial.print("minuteCount = ");
	Serial.println(minuteCount);

        // The pressure Sensor Stuff
	int forecast = SamplePressure();


        if ( minuteCount > 4 ) { // only every 5 minutes
                // Process the barometric sensor data 
        	float baro_temperature = bmp.readTemperature();
        	if (!metric) {    // Convert to fahrenheit
        		baro_temperature = baro_temperature * 9.0 / 5.0 + 32.0;
        	}

        	if (baro_temperature != lastBaroTemp) {
        		gw.send(msgBaroTemp.set(baro_temperature, 1));
        		lastBaroTemp = baro_temperature;
        	}

        	if (pressure != lastPressure) {
        		gw.send(msgBaro.set(pressure, 0));
                        //delay(1000);
//        		gw.send(msgBaro.set(pressure));
        		lastPressure = pressure;
        	}

        	if (forecast != lastForecast) {
        		gw.send(msgForecast.set(weather[forecast]));
        		lastForecast = forecast;
        	}


                // The humidity sensor stuff
      	        delay(dht.getMinimumSamplingPeriod());
      
      	        float temperature = dht.getTemperature();
        	if (isnan(temperature)) {
        		Serial.println("Failed reading temperature from DHT");
        	} else if (temperature != lastTemp) {
        		lastTemp = temperature;
      	        	if (!metric) {
      		        	temperature = dht.toFahrenheit(temperature);
      		        }
      		        gw.send(msgTemp.set(temperature, 1));
      		        Serial.print("Temperature: ");
      		        Serial.println(temperature);
      	        }
      
        	float humidity = dht.getHumidity();
        	if (isnan(humidity)) {
        		Serial.println("Failed reading humidity from DHT");
        	} else if (humidity != lastHum) {
        		lastHum = humidity;
        		gw.send(msgHum.set(humidity, 1));
        		Serial.print("Humidity: ");
        		Serial.println(humidity);
        	}
      
      
        	// get the battery Voltage
        	long sensorValue = analogRead(BATTERY_SENSE_PIN);
      
        	// 1M, 100K divider across battery and using internal ADC ref of 1.1V
        	// Sense point is bypassed with 0.1 uF cap to reduce noise at that point
        	// ((1e6+100e3)/100e3)*1.1 = Vmax = 12.1 Volts
        	// 12.1/1023 = Volts per bit = 0.011827957
        	// sensor val at 9v = 9/0.011827957 = 760.909090217
        	// float batteryV  = sensorValue * 0.011827957;
        	long batteryValue = sensorValue * 100L;
        	int batteryPcnt = batteryValue / 761;
        	gw.sendBatteryLevel((batteryPcnt > 100 ? 100 : batteryPcnt)); // this allows for batteries that have slightly over 9v
      
        	Serial.print("Batt %:");
        	Serial.println(batteryPcnt);
        }

        if ( minuteCount < 5 )  // sleep a bit
	        gw.sleep(SLEEP_MINUTE); //while pressure sampling
        else
	        gw.sleep(SLEEP_FIVE_MINUTES); 
        
}

int SamplePressure() {
	// This is a simplification of Algorithm found here to same memory
	// http://www.freescale.com/files/sensors/doc/app_note/AN3914.pdf

	pressure = bmp.readSealevelPressure(60) / 100; // 60 meters above sealevel

	if (minuteCount > 9) { // we are going to test pressure change every 30 min (5*1min + 5*5min)
		lastPressureAvg = pressureAvg;
		minuteCount = 0;
	}

	if (minuteCount < 5) {
		pressureSamples[minuteCount] = pressure; // Collect 5 minutes of samples every 30 min
                Serial.print("  Sample(");
                Serial.print(minuteCount);
                Serial.print(") = ");
                Serial.println(pressure);
        }

	if (minuteCount == 4) { // the 5th minute
		// Avg pressure in first 5 min, value averaged from 0 to 5 min.
		pressureAvg = ((pressureSamples[0] + pressureSamples[1]
				+ pressureSamples[2] + pressureSamples[3] + pressureSamples[4])
				/ 5);
		float change = pressureAvg - lastPressureAvg;
		dP_dt = (((65.0 / 1023.0) * change) / 0.5); // divide by 0.5 as this is the difference in time from last sample 0.5 hours
		Serial.print("dP_dt = ");
		Serial.println(dP_dt);
	}

	minuteCount++;

	if (lastPressureAvg < 0) // no previous pressure sample.
		return 5; // Unknown, more time needed
	else if (dP_dt < (-0.25))
		return 4; // Quickly falling LP, Thunderstorm, not stable
	else if (dP_dt > 0.25)
		return 3; // Quickly rising HP, not stable weather
	else if ((dP_dt > (-0.25)) && (dP_dt < (-0.05)))
		return 2; // Slowly falling Low Pressure System, stable rainy weather
	else if ((dP_dt > 0.05) && (dP_dt < 0.25))
		return 1; // Slowly rising HP stable good weather
	else if ((dP_dt > (-0.05)) && (dP_dt < 0.05))
		return 0; // Stable weather
	else
		return 5; // Unknown

}

jtm312

@tbully I'm using a Flashforge Creator. It's a Chinise clone of the original Makerbot GPL version. I have made a few minor mods to it and upgraded the firmware to the latest Sailfish version. It came mostly assembled, so I was up and running quickly. There are better printers on the market, but you get a lot for your money. Overall I have been happy with the investment, and it has been great to learn with.

jtm312

@ServiceXp Sorry, I can only do the design. Free to download and print though

jtm312

@hek sure, if you want. I hope people find the design useful.

jtm312

@ServiceXp Just added a new version of the box with LEDs and include button.
http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:483676

jtm312

@ServiceXp yeh, I was thinking about putting LED and inclusion button into it. I will have a bit of a thing about how best to fit it in.

jtm312

@gregl Here is my first attempt at a case for the iBoard. If I get time I will do a re-spin for the smaller radios without aerials.

http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:474650

jtm312

Thanks, I changed over to using a wiznet5100 based board (iboard) and it seems to have fixed the problem.

jtm312

I have built a gateway following the instructions above. It works well, and the mod was quite simple.

I have had a first cut at printing a custom case to match, unfortunately I had one of the holes in the wrong place. I will correct this over the next few days. When I get it right, I can post the design if people are interested.

jtm312

Hi,
I am hiving some trouble getting the Ethernet 1.4 gateway going with Vera UI7. It seems to compile and install OK, but it doesn't function. Often pressing the "Start for inclusion button" on the Vera doesn't send any data (but sometimes it does), and after a short time following a reboot of the Vera, it sends the gateway all sorts of rubbish.

I can telnet to the gateway port and what I type in shows in the serial debug nicely, and I can manually put the gateway into inclusion mode and I see the sensor data OK. Following is the serial debug (without the network traffic, and including a few extra debug statements)

Hello
0;0;3;0;14;Gateway startup complete.
Gateway Started
Hello, Ethernet Started
Server Started
0;0;3;0;9;Inclusion started by button.
0;0;3;0;5;1
0;0;3;0;9;Inclusion started by button.
0;0;3;0;5;1
0;255;0;0;17;1.4
0;0;0;0;7;1.4
0;1;0;0;6;1.4
0;0;3;0;5;0
eth0-Hello - This is some text from telnet

It seems to start off ok, asking for the version, but then goes wrong. Following is a trace of the network traffic coming from the vera and going to the gateway:

0;0;3;0;2;Get Version
.......1.0..@.........0..E.......1.0..@.........0..E...FFooma...^......1....2.........2.........1.0..@.........00..E...Fooma...^......1....22........2.........1.0..@..........0..E...Fooma...^......0..@.........0..E...Fooma....^......1....2........2..........1.0..@.........0..E....Fooma...^......1....2.........2.........1.0..@..........0..E...Fooma...^......1.....2........2.........1.0..@..........0..E...Fooma...^.......1....2........2.........11.0..@.........0..E...Fooma....^......1....2........2..........1.0..@.........0..E....Fooma...^......1....2.........2.........1.0..@..........0..E...Fooma...^......1.....2........2.........1.0..@..........0..E...Fooma...^.......1....2........2..........1.0..@.........0..E...Foomaa...^......1....2........2..........1.0..@.........0..E....Fooma...^......1....2.........2.........1.0..@..........0..E...Fooma...^......1.....2........2.........1.0..@@.........0..E...Fooma...^.......1....2........2..........1.0..@.........0..E...Foomma...^......1....2........2..........1.0..@.........0..EE...Fooma...^......1....2.........2.........1.0..@..........0..E...Fooma...^......1.....2........2.........1.0...@.........0..E...Fooma...^.......1....2........2..........1.0..@.........0..E...Foooma...^......1....2........22.........1.0..@.........0...E...Fooma...^......1....2.........2.........1.0..@..........0
================================= CUT CUT CUT =========================
...~....dM-SEEARCH * HTTP/1.1
..@.@..C..........0..@j...E..1..@.@......
f..
...~.....M-SEARCH *  HTTP/1.1
...3.t.@............Bp....E..(!.@.?..a..........6..........P...r
.........=.....@...........Bp....E...(!.@.?..`.........6..........!P...q.........N%p^..@............Bp....E..(!.@.?.._..........6.........=P...q.............fF.@...........Bp.....E..(!.@.?..^.........6.....803006 3 ipp://192.168.10..102:631/printers/Brother_HLL-2140_series "Office" "Brotther HL-2140 series" "Brotheer HL-1240 Foomatic/hl1250 ((recommended)" job-sheets=noone,none lease-duration=300


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