IMPLEMENTATION SCHEDULE

FALL TERM:

  • Week 1: Visit to the Schenectady ARC for design specifications from Donna. Acquaintance to the currently implemented system and visualizing the specific components to be implemented.
  • Week 2: Obtained past implemented circuit on an Arduino Uno, and tested it with the previous code.
  • Week 3: Refactoring the old code to ensure robustness and reusability and user friendly. Tested the code on the Arduino UNO.
  • Week 4: Ordered the Arduino MEGA 2560 and read documentation about the board.
  • Week 5: Implemented the preliminary design on the new MEGA board.
  • Week 6: Refactored and tested the old Arduino code to account for the new controller board. 
  • Week 7: Setup the solid state relay and test the signal from the board being to trigger the water system in the lab.
  • Week 8: Visualize the final implementation of the outer structure of the system (i.e autonomy, wireless sensors, and a protector case).
  • Week 9: Visit to the Schenectady ARC to get seedling tray measurements to estimate the dimensions of the outer structure, and testing the preliminary circuitry.
  • Week 10: ECE 498 Report (each part of the paper is written per week)
  • Stayed an extra week during winter break to build the wireless sensors.

WINTER TERM:

  • Week 1 : Visualizing the implementation plan for the term as well as ordering the components necessary for building the prototype.
  • Week 2 : Test the manual and automatic option as two separate systems both on the prototype.
  • Week 3 : Ordering the Digital Soil Moisture Meter and Freeze Alert (commercial unit) and the RF Link Receiver for reverse engineering an existing wireless moisture sensor.
  • Week 3: Reverse engineering the wireless moisture with a 434 Mhz Sparkfun receiver to decode an RF signal from bits to moisture levels.
  • Week 4 : Intensive research, testing different setups with the commercial unit,  realizing that the commercial unit is not feasible, and redesigning a solution for wireless moisture sensing.
  • Week 5 : Ordering the components  for the new design and laying out an implementation plan (online schematics). Intensive research and acquiring the documentation for the Xbee modules, test grove boards, and Sparkfun USB dongles. 
  • Week 6 : Setting up the connection between the Xbee modules through a mesh network.
  • Week 7 : Implementing the remote unit (the Xbee module) to collect moisture content as voltage levels, and read them through the XCTU software.
  • Week 8 : Implementing the coordinator unit (Xbee with the Arduino Mega 2560) to receive an API frame from the remote system wireless and be read through serial communication from the main controller.
  • Week 9: Oral presentation to the ECBE departments and continuing implementation
  • Week 10 -11: Reassembling all the units together (the remote and the transmitter), as well as the user interface, and an LED to symbolize the trigger to the water system given that this is a prototype.