Cold Frame Project

Project Information

Garden cold-frame monitoring system.

23 days ago

gitlab.com

Project by Jack Malone

Project Objective

The aim of this project is to develop an embedded system for operating as a garden cold frame monitoring system.

Main is located in /src, and all custom classes are located in /lib

Hardware

The system is developed using the ESP-32 microcontroller. The user interface is facilitated through an Adafruit TFT display, which provides real-time feedback on the current environment and system status.

Operating Modes

The system features multiple operating modes tailored to various stages of plant development:

  • Winter
  • Germinating
  • Vegetative
  • Fruiting
  • Night
  • User Editable Mode

Features

Implemented Features

Basic Loop & Data Logging

  • Reads sensors as fast as possible.
  • Outputs a debug string to the Serial output every 5 seconds.
  • The debug string includes the latest values for all sensor readings and system statuses, detailing whether sensors are either above, within, or below the set range.

User Output Display

  • Integrated output display screen that reports current sensor values and statuses.
  • Displays minimum and maximum temperature/humidity over the last 24 hours.

Mode Selection

  • Through the use of a rotary encoder, the user is now able to change the operating mode of the system.
  • Display has been updated to show value states using colour indicators , with values being printed in red if they are out of the defined range of the current operating mode, and green if they are within.

Custom User Mode

  • User is now able to create their custom operating mode and select it in the mode list.
  • Double buffering has now been added for a smoother display, eliminating flickering when the screen updates.

Data Visualisation + Online Storage

  • Every 5 minutes readings are now sent to a server and stored in a MongoDB database; Using Grafana this data is now visualised in a dashboard.

Project Dashboard

Features Not Yet Implemented

  • Responsive HVAC Control
  • Remote Storage
  • Alerts
  • Remote Control and OTA Updates
  • NVM Storage
  • Power Management

Setup Images

Version 1

Version 1

Version 2

Version 2