Use case
The use is easy and seamless. The boxes are stacked on the master, and the master is filled with water. The box is configured and the water level sensor will then notice that the box needs water. It will be pumped and the box will be filled. The plant grid is filled with the wanted plants, and put in. Now the only thing one can do is wait, and soon greens will be everflowing.
Tank Filled
You fill the tank up with water.
Slide in
You slide the tank in by hand.
Cleaning
The boxes are easy to remove and clean. When removed a button will be released which sends the box into a cleaning mode. This limits it from performing any actions, until the button is once again repressed. The electronics are left in the frame, one can therefore easily clean the box with water and soap, without any worry that electronics will break from being exposed to water.
Configur
When the box turns on, it turns on directly into configuration mode, where it initializes MQTT communication and name configuration.
RE-config
The boxes can be reconfigured to a new name. When pressing and holding the button next to the oled the box will once again go into configuration mode. Now when a new name is published from the app, the box will take it as its own. This can then be seen on the OLED.
Choose a Plant
Define what plant is in your box. This will be saved to the box's own JSON array, and sent to the ESP. It is then displayed on the OLED. The plant can be changed, and will then save.
Gel Packets
Small gel packets containing the plants are filled into a grid. The grid is then placed on top of the box's tank. The plants can now grow and extend their roots down into the water.
Water flow
When the sensor falls to the bottom, it's an indication of the tank being empty. This will trigger a signal which turns on the pump in the master box, and its own valve. The water is then transfered from one box to another. When one box is recieving water, no other box can. NodeRed will block it, and first start the other, when the first has been filled.
Turn the lights on
The light can be controlled through the NodeRed app. Si,ply choose the box, and then press the on/off switch. Future work would be to make this automatic, and in the right wavelength.
Harvest
The plants can now easily be harvested from the box. Just cut what you need.
In the dark
The side panels each have a way of reflecting the light.
Level in the master
In the master, there are two water level sensors. These two measure to different points of the water’s height. The program is initialised so that the water is only provided when the water is under the lowest one, and the water is stopped pumping when the water reaches the top one. This leaves a margin in which no water will be provided to the box - probably for a few days - so the machine will essentially run rarely.