1. Fig. 1 Conceptual Block Diagram
Autonomous Garden System for Project Based Learning in K-12 STEM Curriculum Chidera Emeka-Okoli, Ruben Pensado, Sabera Rahman, Christina Gawargi, Maximiliano Hernandez, Dr. Ana Goulart   Electronic Systems Engineering Technology, Texas A&M University 400 Bizzell St, College Station, TX 77843, USA
Abstract
Many problems plaguing the agricultural community can be narrowed to watering. Over-watering leads to waterlogged soil, which creates a harmful environment for plants as it prevents the roots from absorbing oxygen. Under-watering leads to drought, which causes plants to wither and die. These issues can be mitigated with cost-efficient monitoring and control. The Autonomous Garden System will use the connected principles of Internet of Things (IoT) - Sensor, Gateway, Cloud - to develop a solution for water conservation and agricultural stability.
1. Introduction
IoT systems create the potential to automatically collect data from sensors and store that information on a server. In addition, the internet can be used to control a system and its responses to the data collected. The Autonomous Garden System will have IoT capabilities to monitor and control a garden bed that is watered by drip irrigation. The gateway of the IoT network, a Raspberry Pi, will collect environmental data from sensor modules spread in the garden bed. This data will be sent via cellular communication, stored in a cloud server, and displayed to the user. The server can send a command to open the water valve in the drip irrigation tank, while also allowing the user to manually start watering via a button in the server’s user interface.
2. Development & Implementation
The Autonomous Garden System, depicted in Figure 1, will monitor soil and weather conditions in a garden bed, using two types of sensors: a soil moisture and a UV light sensor. This information will be sent to a gateway via wireless modules (ZigBee) and the data will be relayed to the cloud for analysis. In the cloud server, an algorithm will analyze the data from the garden and use it in addition to the online data collected from local weather conditions (OpenWeatherMap) to make watering decisions to control the flow of water via a drip irrigation tank. Watering commands can also be sent manually through a Graphical User Interface (GUI).
The system will be developed holistically as one common hardware board and replicated five times (four printed circuit boards (PCBs) for the sensor module and one PCB for the water valve sensor). The PCBs will be populated depending on its use. This style of development will be versatile for multiple applications in undergraduate research.
3. Conclusion
The significance of using an IoT system integrated into a garden bed allows for more precise control and monitoring of garden conditions. For everyday citizens, it is a way to take care of plants while on vacation or at work. Many avoid the responsibility of owning and nurturing plants because they require extra attention and care. However, this system encourages ownership of plants with its ease of use, in addition to conserving water. To verify that this system helps to conserve water by reducing over-watering, it will be implemented at Howdy Farms at Texas A&M University in the Spring of 2018.
Fig. 1 Conceptual Block Diagram
Proceedings of the 2018 ASEE Gulf-Southwest Section Annual Conference The University of Texas at Austin
April 4-6, 2018