Final Project Journal

Project Ideation

1- Tell us about the idea of your project. Why do you care about this? What were you inspired by? Include images and videos of similar projects

My project is inspired by the idea of integrating both types of greenhouses (shade and full sunlight) into one greenhouse (Greeny Glow) that should:

Open a DC fan if the humidity and temperature inside are high.
Turn on UV LEDs and white LEDs for the dark side (plywood side).
Turn on a buzzer sound if the IR sensor detects a movement inside (pest "fly, mosquitoes, bees...")

I was inspired by the design of (TerraDome Greenhouse), a smart greenhouse as well.

Project Construction

2- Explain the CAD process of your project. How did you use the software to design your project? (List the softwares/tools/materials...etc that you used)

Designing:

Done through Fusion 360.

The sides of the enclosure are sketched first, one by one using 20 cm for the length and 15 cm for the width (the side of the hexagon).

2. The tabs and the t-slots are sketched using the regular dimentions (3mm*1cm for each tab, and the slot with the dimentions of the M3 screw and nut size (3mm*8mm))

3. Using a construction line, the tabs and t-slot are mirrored to the other side.

4. The side is extruded by 3mm following the thickness of the plywood and acrylic sheets to be used.

5. Through copy and paste new tool, the first side is repeated six times, and each is assembled by rigid joints to form the hexagonal shape of the enclosure.

6. Using the project tool, the base of the enclosure is projected one of the tabs of all the sides, and the sketch is using the dimensions of 15cm, then using the circular pattern feature, the tabs and t-slot spaces are repeated 6 times.

7. After extruding the base, all of the sides with the base are reassembled using rigid joints through the tabs and their openings in the base.

(Providing every side with its right appearance)

8. Using another project, but this time through the tabs at the top of one of the sides, another circular pattern is done to create another circumscribed hexagon to create an upper chamber for the electronic components. (the tabs for the sides of the chamber are sketched here)

The dimensions of the tabs are sketched through 3 construction lines to ensure an accurate distance.

9. After extruding the top of the main enclosure (which is also the base of the electronics chamber), the tabs are assembled through rigid joints to that part.

10. The sides of the electronic chamber is sketched as a copy from the main sides, with different dimensions (5cm* 15 cm), and the mirror step is repeated to form a copy of the tabs and t-slots from the other side.

11. After extruding the chamber side, the other sides are created through copy and paste new tool.

12. After assembling all the six sides, another hexagonal top (chamber top) is sketched through the project tool, and two construction lines to sketch the other hexagon accurately, and then it was extruded as well.

Mounting on Fusion

The components are downloaded through GrabCad to be mounted into the component.

13. After inserting Arduino Uno, the screw and nut holes are created through projecting the holes and using the extrude (cut) tool but with dimention (-3mm).

The same step is repeated with all the other electronic components, and each is assembled through rigid joints.

(DHT sensor mounting)

Final project design.f3d

3- Explain the fabrication process of your project. How did you use the machine to fabricate your project? (List the softwares/tools/materials...etc that you used)

Laser-Cutting:

The software used is RDWorksV8 to cut Plywood sheets of 3mm and acrylic sheets (First picture on the right for plywood with the software icon).

The used machine is a proudly made in Egypt laser cutting machine, El Malky ML149 Laser Cutter, which operates by CO2 fumes that ionize into the laser beam.

Through exporting each side separately, I saved each DXF file to get it ready to be fabricated. (create menu).

I started by fabricating the acrylic parts using the following parameters in the screenshot.

The chamber side here is the one with the openings for the: (Arduino ports, on/off switch)

This side holds the space for the LCD.

The hexagonal part holds the spaces for the DC fan, IR sensor, DHT sensor, Arduino screws and nuts.

The chamber side at the top holds the hole for the light sensor (LDR).

Laser cutting the following parts used different speed (40) and laser power (65) parameters.

DXF and ai fabrication files

Project Electronics & Power Management

4- Describe your electronic circuit. What are the input and action components? What is the function of each? How do the components integrate together to form your smart system? (List the softwares/tools/components...etc that you used)

Software Wiring:

I decided to use Fritzing as it supports adding more advanced components that are not used through Tinkercad.

FinalProjectWiringFritzing.fzz

The batteries represent (4.8V) external power source, as a 5V adaptor will power the circuit externally.
A 5V one channel relay is connected to the DC fan, through the NO pin, the Vin pin is connected to the common voltage ground on the breadboard, the ground and the CM pin to the common ground on the breadboard, the signal relay pin is connected to Arduino pin no. 6.
The DHT sensor is connected to Arduino pin no.7, the VCC is connected to the common voltage ground on the breadboard, and the ground is connected to the common ground on the breadboard.
The IR sensor is connected to Arduino pin no.5, the VCC is connected to the common voltage ground on the breadboard, and the ground is connected to the common ground on the breadboard.
The Buzzer is connected to Arduino analog output pin no.3, the VCC is connected to the common voltage ground on the breadboard, and the ground is connected to the common ground on the breadboard.
The switch is connected to Arduino pin no.4, the VCC is connected to the 5V pin on the Arduino, and the ground is connected to the common ground on the breadboard.
The components are all connected to the common voltage pins on Arduino and all are connected to the 5V pin on Arduino.
The Vin pin is not used, because my Arduino Uno is one of those that causes a drop-down to the voltage obtained from the 5V adaptor, that's why I'm connecting everything to the 5V Arduino pin.

5- What is your power source? How did you select the suitable power source for your project? (List the softwares/tools/components...etc that you used)

My power source is a 5V DC adaptor, as the DC fan needs more electric current, and that adaptor will provide the adequate amount of amperes to protect the Arduino from being burned.

The main electronic component that required the usage of an external adapter is the DC fan, despite that it needs 5V that can be provided as an output voltage by Arduino, however, it requires more amperes that might put the Arduino at risk to burned.

Project Programming

6- Describe the code of your project. How did you program each function of the project?

I used Arduino IDE for coding all the functions of the project.

Pseudocode: (minimum features)

If the humdity OR the temperature inside the enclosure are high (Humidity: higher than 25%, Temperature: higher than 25°C), the DC fan operates.
(INPUT: Humidity value or temperature value OUTPUT: DC fan)
If the IR sensor detects movement (sensor value "high") the buzzer will work (high).
(INPUT: IR reading OUTPUT:Buzzer)

Through this link, from Autodesk's instructables, I used its help to learn how to code using the IR sensor on Arduino Uno.

I also used the basic wiring tutorials we learned at week 6 of the IR sensor to determine whether it's a digital or analog input (concerning Arduino pins).

I intended to use the DHT sensor for my assignment on week 7, and it helped me to understand it easier using it for my final project, as it's not my first time to troubleshoot for this code, and I used the same code file and edited it changing the names of the components and the pins.

I also used the wiring diagram used on week 7 along with the coding for using the relay (for the DC fan).

Double checking with my instructor helped me to finalize the code, as I switched the IR reading into my condition and it didn't work properly first, but when I used the correct reading for each condition;

if (sensorValue == LOW)

digitalWrite(Buzzer, HIGH);

else if (sensorValue == HIGH)

digitalWrite(Buzzer, LOW);

Final project minimum features code.ino

Project Integration & Testing

7- Demonstrate with text and visuals how did you integrate the project’s modules together? What are the testing results? (Include a Demo video separately, showing a proof of functionality)

All the components are connected to the plywood part through M3 screws and nuts.

The breadboard is stuck using its adhesive base.

The fan, the DHT sensor, and the IR sensor are on the bottom side of the large compartment of the electronic components (to sense the humidity, temperature and motion inside the greenhouse)

Overcoming Challenges

9- When you got stuck, what/who did you turn to? At what point did you have to pause to research or learn more before moving on? What are some mistakes, pitfalls, or challenges that others can avoid if they were doing this project?

I faced a challenge through fabrication, which was the incorrect placement on the sheets "plywood and acrylic".

I was advised by the fab lab instructor to use: CTRL + A after mounting each DXF file onto RDWorks to check if the compartments fit onto the sheet.

Future Work

10- If you had more time, what is one thing you would change/ Do next in your project?

I would've added a water source and a soil moisture sensor that controls the needed water by the plant inside and waters it automatically.

Final Project Design Files