Project

# Title Team Members TA Documents Sponsor
1 Mobile Hive Checker
 Fiona Cashin
Olivia Guido
Rawda Abdeltawab
# Team Members:
- Fiona Cashin (fcashin2)
- Olivia Guido (ojguido2)
- Rawda Abdeltawab (rawdaka2)



# Problem
Beekeepers must routinely monitor hive conditions to maintain healthy colonies. However, manually opening a hive significantly stresses the bees and disrupts their environment, and frequent disturbances can negatively affect bee behavior and productivity. On the other hand, insufficient monitoring can lead to swarming or freezing, resulting in the loss of an entire colony. Each lost colony can cost a beekeeper between $100 and $200. This highlights the need for a non-invasive solution for assessing the health of multiple hives, while minimizing stress on the bees. Although monitoring systems are available, they typically cost around $100 per hive, and many of the leading companies in this space are headquartered in Europe.



# Solution
The proposed solution is a portable device that enables beekeepers to monitor a colony’s health without opening the hive. A small sensor probe is inserted into the hive entrance to collect internal environmental data while the main unit remains outside. The device displays active sensor readings on an integrated screen and indicates whether hive conditions fall within acceptable ranges, such as temperatures between 70 and 97 degrees Fahrenheit. This approach minimizes hive disturbance while still providing essential health data including temperature, humidity, and carbon dioxide levels.



# Solution Components
## Subsystem 1, Temperature and Humidity Monitoring
This subsystem measures the internal temperature and humidity of the beehive.

Maintaining proper temperature is critical for hive health, as bee eggs will not develop and adult bees may die if the internal temperature falls outside the range between 70 and 97 degrees Fahrenheit. Humidity levels must remain between 50 percent and 60 percent to allow nectar to dry into honey. Excess humidity can promote pest reproduction, while insufficient humidity can cause bee eggs to dehydrate.
The device will use a temperature and humidity sensor connected via a long cable, allowing the sensor to be inserted into the hive while the user holds the device externally. The sensor will interface with a microcontroller unit (MCU), which will process the data and display the readings on an LCD screen. The MCU will evaluate whether the temperature and humidity values fall within the acceptable ranges. If the readings are normal, the display will show “PASSED.” If any reading is outside the normal range, the display will show “FAILED.”
Components:
- Digital Temperature Humidity Sensor : HiLetgo DHT21
- Microcontroller Unit (MCU) : ESP32-C3-WROOM-02
- Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) : B0DN9NMBFW (GODIYMODULES) or B0BWTFN9WF (Hosyond)



## Subsystem 2, Carbon Dioxide Monitoring
This subsystem measures the carbon dioxide concentration within the hive.
In a beehive, CO2 levels can be tolerated to a level of 8 percent, with higher levels indicating overcrowding and poor ventilation. The device will include a CO2 sensor connected via cable to the same MCU. The MCU will record the CO2 levels and display the results on the LED. As with the temperature and humidity subsystem, the MCU will determine whether the CO2 level is within the acceptable range and display “PASSED” or “FAILED” accordingly.
Components:
- CO2 Sensor : HiLetgo MHZ19
- Microcontroller Unit (MCU) : ESP32-C3-WROOM-02
- Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) : B0DN9NMBFW (GODIYMODULES) or B0BWTFN9WF (Hosyond)



## Subsystem 3, Microcontroller and Logic
The microcontroller coordinates all the subsystems and implements a Finite State Machine (FSM).

The MCU runs embedded C firmware that defines an FSM with at least four states, including “Start”, “Reset”, “Testing”, and “Done”. During the “Testing” state, sensor data is acquired via the appropriate communication protocols. Once testing is complete, the collected data is displayed on the LCD, allowing the user to assess the overall health of the hive. The MCU compares the data with the specified range to determine if the data is within range. This will prompt either a passed or failed responses to be displayed on the device

Components:
-Microcontroller Unit (MCU) : ESP32- option could be Espressif ESP32-C3-WROOM-02 which has RISC-V 32 bit CPU, antenna built-in, bluetooth, WIFI
-Programming Interface: use USB to upload code. USB can either charge battery/upload code, Arduino IDE platform
-Rest Button: PTS645SL43-2 LFS, resting the data on LCD to test another hive
-Power ON Button: PTS645SL43-2 LFS
-Liquid Crystal Display (LCD): B0DN9NMBFW (GODIYMODULES) or B0BWTFN9WF (Hosyond)



# Criterion For Success
- The humidity sensor accurately measures humidity.
- The temperature sensor accurately measures temperature.
- The display correctly shows the measured temperature.
- The display correctly shows the measured humidity.
- The display turns on when the ON button is pressed.
- A Start screen is shown when the ON button is pressed.
- A Testing screen is shown after the Start screen.
- A Done screen is displayed when the ON button is pressed the second time.
- A Reset Screen is displayed when the reset button is pressed.
- The display correctly shows “PASSED” and “FAILED.”
- The display shows “PASSED” when all sensor readings are within normal ranges.
- The display shows “FAILED” when at least one sensor reading is outside the normal range.
- Final product tested on multiple hives.

Monitor for Dough and Sourdough Starter

Jake Hayes, Abhitya Krishnaraj, Alec Thompson

Monitor for Dough and Sourdough Starter

Featured Project

Team Members:

- Jake Hayes (jhayes)

- Abhitya Krishnaraj (abhitya2)

- Alec Thompson (alect3)

# Problem

Making bread at home, especially sourdough, has become very popular because it is an affordable way to get fresh-baked bread that's free of preservatives and other ingredients that many people are not comfortable with. Sourdough also has other health benefits such as a lower glycemic index and greater bioavailability of nutrients.

However, the bulk fermentation process (letting the dough rise) can be tricky and requires a lot of attention, which leads to many people giving up on making sourdough. Ideally, the dough should be kept at around 80 degrees F, which is warmer than most people keep their homes, so many people try to find a warm place in their home such as in an oven with a light on; but it's hard to know if the dough is kept at a good temperature. Other steps need to be taken when the dough has risen enough, but rise time varies greatly, so you can't just set a timer; and if you wait too long the dough can start to shrink again. In the case of activating dehydrated sourdough starter, this rise and fall is normal and must happen several times; and its peak volume is what tells you when it's ready to use.

# Solution

Our solution is to design a device with a distance sensor (probably ultrasonic) and a temperature sensor that can be attached to the underside of most types of lids, probably with magnets. The sensors would be controlled with a microcontroller; and a display (probably LCD) would show the minimum, current, and maximum heights of the dough along with the temperature. This way the user can see at a glance how much the dough has risen, whether it has already peaked and started to shrink, and whether the temperature is acceptable or not. There is no need to remove it from its warm place and uncover it, introducing cold air; and there is no need to puncture it to measure its height or use some other awkward method.

The device would require a PCB, microcontroller, sensors, display, and maybe some type of wireless communication. Other features could be added, such as an audible alarm or a graph of dough height and/or temperature over time.

# Solution Components

## Height and Temperature Sensors

Sensors would be placed on the part of the device that attaches to the underside of a lid. A temperature sensor would measure the ambient temperature near the dough to ensure the dough is kept at an acceptable temperature. A proximity sensor or sensors would first measure the height of the container, then begin measuring the height of the dough periodically. If we can achieve acceptable accuracy with one distance sensor, that would be ideal; otherwise we could use 2-4 sensors.

Possible temperature sensor: [Texas Instruments LM61BIZ/LFT3](https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/texas-instruments/LM61BIZ%252FLFT3/12324753)

Proximity sensors could be ultrasonic, infrared LED, or VCSEL.\

Ultrasonic: [Adafruit ULTRASONIC SENSOR SONAR DISTANCE 3942](https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/adafruit-industries-llc/3942/9658069)\

IR LED: [Vishay VCNL3020-GS18](https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Vishay-Semiconductors/VCNL3020-GS18?qs=5csRq1wdUj612SFHAvx1XQ%3D%3D)\

VCSEL: [Vishay VCNL36826S](https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Vishay-Semiconductors/VCNL36826S?qs=d0WKAl%252BL4KbhexPI0ncp8A%3D%3D)

## MCU

An MCU reads data from the sensors and displays it in an easily understandable format on the LCD display. It also reads input from the user interface and adjusts the operation and/or output accordingly. For example, when the user presses the button to reset the minimum dough height, the MCU sends a signal to the proximity sensor to measure the distance, then the MCU reads the data, calculates the height, and makes the display show it as the minimum height.

Possible MCU: [STM32F303K8T6TR](https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/STMicroelectronics/STM32F303K8T6TR?qs=sPbYRqrBIVk%252Bs3Q4t9a02w%3D%3D)

## Digital Display

- A [4x16 Character LCD](https://newhavendisplay.com/4x16-character-lcd-stn-blue-display-with-white-side-backlight/) would attach to the top of the lid and display the lowest height, current height, maximum height, and temperature.

## User Interface

The UI would attach to the top of the lid and consist of a number of simple switches and push buttons to control the device. For example, a switch to turn the device on and off, a button to measure the height of the container, a button to reset the minimum dough height, etc.

Possible switch: [E-Switch RA1113112R](https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/e-switch/RA1113112R/3778055)\

Possible button: [CUI Devices TS02-66-50-BK-160-LCR-D](https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/cui-devices/TS02-66-50-BK-160-LCR-D/15634352)

## Power

- Rechargeable Lithium Ion battery capable of staying on for a few rounds of dough ([2000 mAh](https://www.microcenter.com/product/503621/Lithium_Ion_Battery_-_37v_2000mAh) or more) along with a USB charging port and the necessary circuitry to charge the battery. The two halves of the device (top and underside of lid) would probably be wired together to share power and send and receive data.

## (stretch goal) Wireless Notification System

- Push notifications to a user’s phone whenever the dough has peaked. This would likely be an add-on achieved with a Raspberry Pi Zero, Gotify, and Tailscale.

# Criterion For Success

- Charge the battery and operate on battery power for at least 10 hours, but ideally a few days for wider use cases and convenience.

- Accurately read (within a centimeter) and store distance values, convert distance to dough height, and display the minimum, maximum, and current height values on a display.

- Accurately read and report the temperature to the display.

- (stretch goal) Inform the user when the dough has peaked (visual, audio, or app based).

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