{"id":210,"date":"2022-11-02T03:13:05","date_gmt":"2022-11-02T02:13:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.moya.no\/wp\/?p=210"},"modified":"2022-11-02T03:20:03","modified_gmt":"2022-11-02T02:20:03","slug":"arduino-controlled-automatic-indoor-plant-watering-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.moya.no\/wp\/2022\/11\/02\/arduino-controlled-automatic-indoor-plant-watering-system\/","title":{"rendered":"Arduino Controlled Automatic Indoor Plant Watering System"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Cody Walseth<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

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Overview<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This project is an Arduino Uno controlled automatic plant watering system.  Using an Adafruit Peristaltic pump, DF Robot capacitive soil moisture sensor, addressable LEDs and a micro servo with a couple 3D printed parts. The way it works, is if the sensed moisture level falls below the desired value, the pump and servo will turn on.  The servo will move the pump hose back and forth accross the plant evenly distributing the water.  The pump (and servo) will run for 10 seconds and stop for 2 minutes or until the desired moisture level is reached.  If after 15 attempts of watering the desired moisture is not reached, one of the LEDs will flash Red and the pump will not run again until the reset button is pressed.  This is to alert you when the water source is empty. During normal operation, one of the LEDs will update with the sensor value changing from Green (wet) to Red (dry) giving you an estimated moisture level at a glance.  If you would like to reset the desired moisture, simply water the soil until it gets to the moisture level you would like it to maintain, and hold the set button for 3 seconds.  Many variables are defined so that you can adjust them to fit the requirements of your plant or soil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Circuit and Explanation<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The capacitive moisture sensor and micro servo are connected to analog I\/O pins while also being connected to transistors between the three-pin connector and the GND pin.  This was done to use a digital pin to disable the sensor\/servo when not in use. Eliminating servo “chatter” and reduce corrosion if a resistive moisture sensor is used.  Analog pins were used to make them interchangeable as they both have the same pinout.  A third set of components was added for potential future use of a second moisture sensor. The servo is used to distribute water from side to side as it is watering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The buttons use internal pullup resistors.  The purpose of the two buttons is for one to manually turn on the water and the other to reset the “out of water” alarm along with resetting the desired moisture level if the button is held in for a set length of time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The LEDs are addressable 5mm through hole WS2812s.  The Adafruit NeoPixel library found HERE<\/a> is used to set these to the desired color.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, the pump being used is an Adafruit Peristaltic 12V pump.  With a peristaltic pump, no part of the pump contacts the water. The pump “squishes” the silicone tube to create the water flow.  The pump is connected to the two-pin connector at the bottom right of the schematic. An optocoupler was added to the circuit for protection.  A mosfet is used to allow digital motor control.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Schematic<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Schematic<\/a> was drawn in KiCad.  Many of the components used in this project are available in the Digi-Key KiCad Library<\/a>!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Parts Needed<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n