Project

# Title Team Members TA Documents Sponsor
18 Schedulable Autonomous Fish Feeder
 Brandon MacIntosh
Colby Steber
Jeremy Richardson
 Sanjana Pingali design_document1.pdf
final_paper1.pdf
grading_sheet1.pdf
photo1.jpg
photo2.png
presentation1.pptx
proposal1.pdf
video
Team Members:
- Colby Steber (csteber2)
- Jeremy Richardson (jrr13)
- Brandon MacIntosh (bm53)
# Problem
Fish feeders currently on the market are limited on how much convenience they give fish owners when they are away from their tank. If you want to feed your fish at a certain time, you usually have to set a timer for 12 or 24 hours in advance to feed them. There is also no reassurance that your fish is actually being fed and eating. Owners just have to assume that the machine is working as intended. This poses a major problem when gone for extended periods of time, such as winter break.
# Solution
With our fish feeder, the user will not only be able to feed their fish from any location by using a mobile app, but they will also be able to schedule the exact times they want the feeder to dispense food, allowing them to customize their feeding times. In addition, the feeder will have a sensor that will detect when the food container rotates and send a notification to the user so they can ensure that their fish was fed. The feeder will be plugged into the wall to make certain that the feeder will work for extended periods of time. If the power goes out or if the feeder is not being supplied with AC power from the wall, it would switch to battery power.

This solution would require a PCB, microcontroller with wireless transmitter, rotating motor, sensors, mobile app, and a power system. Other components could be added, such as a camera, water quality sensor, and indicator LEDs.
# Solution Components
## Subsystem 1: Microcontroller
This microcontroller will implement the processing of the data along with triggering the circuit to engage the motor, communicate via WiFi to connect to an app, and take input from sensors such as the feeder engage sensor. There will also be external ports that connect to the microcontroller for additions of other sensors, such as a possible water quality sensor or camera.

Possible Microcontroller: ESP32
## Subsystem 2: Rotating Motor and Sensor
This subsystem will consist of a motor that will be connected to the main PCB via a relay. The relay will take input power from the battery and a signal to switch on from the ESP32. The output shaft will hold the container of food. The container will have a magnet on the part of the food container that rotates so that a sensor can detect when it rotates to ensure that the food actually dispensed.

Possible Motor: 5V Motor at 12RPM

Possible Sensor: Hall-effect sensor of some variety
## Subsystem 3: Mobile App
The mobile app will be programmed with multiple buttons that will communicate with the wireless transmitter on the ESP32. These buttons would manually feed the fish, change the feeding schedule, and turn on/off the feeder. The app will also notify the user when food is being dispensed and when the food level in the feeder is low. The app would also be used for implementation of the camera or water quality add-on.
## Subsystem 4: AC Switching / Charging System
This subsystem will consist of an IC that will be used to switch between AC power and battery power and another IC to control the charging of the battery. The battery would be a LiPo battery that is used as a backup to AC wall power. When AC power is restored, the charge controller will calculate how much charge is needed to put 100% charge in the battery. When AC power is available, the unit will use AC power. The battery will solely be for a backup.

Possible Implementation: One IC to control the charge and one IC to implement switching different sources, a battery, and an input port such as USB-C.
# Criterion For Success
- Manual feeding via button on feeder and in app works.
- Magnetic sensor detects that the food actually dispensed into the tank.
- App successfully notifies the user that the food was dispensed.
- When scheduling feeding times using the app, the food is dispensed at the specified times.
- When no AC power from the wall is detected, the feeder switches to battery power.

Mushroom Growing Tent

Elizabeth Boyer, Cameron Fuller, Dylan Greenhagen

Mushroom Growing Tent

Featured Project

# Mushroom Growing Tent Project

Team Members:

- Elizabeth Boyer (eboyer2)

- Cameron Fuller (chf5)

- Dylan Greenhagen (dylancg2)

# Problem

Many people want to grow mushrooms in their own homes to experiment with safe cooking recipes, rather than relying on risky seasonal foraging, expensive trips to the store, or time and labor-intensive DIY growing methods. However, living in remote areas, specific environments, or not having the experience makes growing your own mushrooms difficult, as well as dangerous. Without proper conditions and set-up, there are fire, electrical, and health risks.

# Solution

We would like to build a mushroom tent with humidity and temperature sensors that could monitor the internal temperature and humidity, and heating, and humidity systems to match user settings continuously. There would be a visual interface to display the current temperature and humidity within the environment. It would be medium-sized (around 6 sq ft) and able to grow several batches at a time, with more success and less risk than relying on a DIY mushroom tent.

Some solutions to home-grown mushroom automation already exist. However, there is not yet a solution that encompasses all problems we have outlined. Some solutions are too small of a scale, so they don’t have the heating/cooling power for a larger scale solution. Therefore, it’s not enough to yield consistent batches. Additionally, there are solutions that give you a heater, a light set, and a humidifier, but it’s up to the user to juggle all of these modules. These can be difficult to balance and keep an eye on, but also dangerous if the user does not have experience. Spores can get released, heaters can overheat, and bacteria and mold can grow. Our solution offers an all-in-one, simple, user-friendly environment to bulk growing.

# Solution Components

## Control Unit and User Interface

The control unit and user interface are grouped together because the microcontroller is central to the design of both, and they are closely linked in function.

The user interface will involve a display that shows measured or set values for different conditions (temperature, humidity, etc) on a display, such as an LCD display, and the user will have buttons and/or knobs that allow the user to change values.

The control unit will be centered around a microcontroller on our PCB with circuitry to connect to the other subsystems.

Parts List:

1x Microcontroller

1x PCB, including small buttons and/or knobs, power circuitry

1x Display module

1x Power supply

## Temperature Sensing and Control

The temperature sensing and control components will ensure that the grow box stays at the desired temperature that promotes optimal growth. The system will include one temperature sensor that will record the current temperature of the box and feed a data output back into our PCB. From here, the microcontroller in our control unit will read the data received and send the necessary adjustments to a Peltier module. The Peltier module will be able to increase the temperature of the box according to the current temperature of the box and set temperature. Cooling will not be required, as maintaining a minimum temperature is more important than a maximum temperature for growth.

Parts List:

1x Temperature Sensor

1x Peltier module

## Humidity Sensing and Control

The humidity sensing and control system will work in a similar way to the temperature system, only with different ways to adjust the value. We will have one humidity sensor that will be continually sending data to our PCB. From here, the PCB will determine whether the current value is where it should be, or whether adjustments need to be made. If an increase in humidity is needed, the PCB will send a signal to our misting system which will activate. If a decrease is needed, a signal will be sent to our air cycling system to increase the rate of cycling, thereby decreasing the humidity within the box.

Parts List:

1x Humidity Sensor

4x Misting heads

Water tubing as needed

## Air Quality Control

The air filtration system is run constantly, as healthy mushroom growth (free of bacteria) needs clean, fresh air, and mycelium requires and uses up oxygen as it grows. Additionally, this unit is connected to the hydration sensing unit- external humidity is in most cases going to be lower than internal humidity, and cycling in new air can be used to decrease humidity. When high humidity is detected, the air filtration system will decrease the internal humidity by cycling in less humid air.

Parts List:

Flexible Air duct length as needed

1x Fan for promoting air cycling

# Criteria For Success

Our demo will show that each of our subsystems functions as expected and described below:

For the control unit and user interface, we will demonstrate that the user can change the set temperature and humidity values through buttons or knobs.

The humidity sensing and control system’s functionality will demonstrate that introducing dry air into the device activates the misting system, which requires functional sensors and a water pump.

The temperature sensing and control system demo will involve showing that the heater turns on when the measured temperature is below the set temperature.

The air quality control system’s success will be demonstrated as air movement coming from the fan enters the tent.

Project Videos