Developed during the Water Hackathon on March 23-25 in New York City, the water quality sensor is a multipurpose tool for collecting data remotely. This tool is rapidly changing and is being used as part of the on going research initiative called [DontFlush.me](https://web.archive.org/web/20160111004345/dontflush.me) (archived). This tool consists of an Arduino microcontroller, a set of water quality sensors, and a network connection module. As currently developed this tool uses a GSM based cellular module to send data via SMS. For this design a custom arduino shield was created. This shield allows the arduino to be powered by a 3.7v lithium ion battery. The shield includes a 3.3v to 5v setup circuit based on the Adafruit Mintyboost. Currently there are two versions of the shield. Both versions use the waterproof digital temperature sensor from Adafruit. The shields differ in the electrical conductivity probe they are designed to use. Electrical conductivity (EC) is basically a measure of water's purity. The more pure the water the less conductive. When pollutants enter water it usually causes an increase in EC. Lots of details about EC are available from the EPA site. The first probe is DIY. It was created using designs published in the book Environmental Monitoring with Arduino. This probe uses readily available parts from most Radio Shack stores. More details about this probe will hopefully be posted with permission from the book's author. The second type of electrical conductivity sensor is much more expensive but is lab quality. Its available from Atlas Scientific. Here is the shield designed for the Atlas Scientific probe. Connected between the battery and the Arduino is a solar charging circuit. And also use for [quality control systems](http://www.aquar-system.com/). This is connected to a 2w 6v solar panel. Both of these are available from Adafruit. The data from this sensor is uploaded to Pachube using a GPRS shield from Seeedstudio. The initial prototype was using a TCP/IP connection, which requires a SIM card with a data plan, but the Arduino code is poorly optimized for long durations. The second prototype is sending SMS messages directly to Pachube's beta SMS gateway. Here is the sensor all wired up in a pelican case with the solar panel on the top. ...
| Author | Comment | Last activity | Moderation | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| shanlter | "Hi @MadTinker, I was told that 5V is fine, the board can automatically convert the voltage. " | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| MadTinker | "@shanlter @rocket Thanks for the suggestion of the power bank. My biggest question, particularly related to the power bank in the link, was the vol..." | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| shanlter | "Hi @MadTinker , yes you are right, the battery I'm using is the one in your link. But you can use any kind of portable battery to charge your devic..." | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| rockets | "@MadTinker I think you can use that, but if you have a power bank, that also working. " | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| MadTinker | "@shantler I'm probably missing something, but the battery shown in the link in the components list doesn't look like the battery in the pictures ab..." | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| MadTinker | "@shantler @rockets FWIW- came home today with a mailbox literally full of 'stuff'. Also, many thanks for the loan. I have to track down my Riffle o..." | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| rockets | "yes, that's better than mines " | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| warren | "Hi, @rockets -- maybe refining the title could be helpful here; I hope you don't mind but as I'm an admin, I changed it to How accurate are KnowFlo..." | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| rockets | "The probe accurate is list below: 1 Gravity: Analog Electrical Conductivity Sensor / Meter For Arduino Operating Voltage: +5.00 V PCB Size: 45 × 32..." | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| MadTinker | "@liz Sounds great. I think there are three parts and I'll probably ask for advice on posting as things develop: the build, the deployment, and the ..." | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| liz | "Hi @madtinker, oh there's interest! as @shanlter said, the best place to document your build is by clicking the blue button "Click here to replicat..." | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| shanlter | "@MadTinker, awesome!! I'm trying to get familiar with Public Lab's logic as well, I guess the best way to document is by replicating an activity? A..." | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| MadTinker | "@shantler @rockets et al... FWIW - I ordered the (majority) of the parts needed for a KnowFlow related system (sans the DO sensor and the enclosure..." | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| liz | "Hi @xose , @shantler did create a method page, and this now appears there as an activity! Check it out: https://publiclab.org/wiki/knowflow " | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| MadTinker | "@rockets Thanks for the summary. I thought I was going to have to move in a different direction, but this clears things up. Cheers. " | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| ramarro | "@shanlter i havent wrote anything about my project its just an hobbies for my aquarium :) @rockets I am using my project to control my reef aquar..." | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| rockets | " DFR0504_Analog_Isolation_Module-V1.0-_Schematic.pdf here is the schematic of the isolator. " | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| shanlter | "Thanks @rockets! I hope this could help answering your questions, @ramarro. btw, The GUI of your controller looks so nice! Where can I learn more a..." | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| rockets | "I just try translate youyou's answer into english. Q:The parts for the KnowFlow-esque are going to be ordered from DFRobot and was wondering if yo..." | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| ramarro | "@shanlter i think that DFR EC will be better than what i use, at least after a brief look to the circuit. i will order one, and try it as well, if ..." | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| shanlter | "Yes, you got it :) @MadTinker If you want to use DFRobot's EC sensor, you'd better test your sample with a TDS pen first (which only costs several ..." | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| shanlter | "@ramarro, you tried so many stuff! Thanks for the info on EC, I am learning it. Lots of the questions you mentioned I don't know the answer, I aske..." | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| MadTinker | "@shanlter @ramarro Dang, got lost in the comments .... my bad. " | Read more » | over 7 years ago | |||
| ramarro | "@MadTinker, @shanlter use DFRobot EC probe. I am using EC_mini_v31 we are two different person :) using 2 different devices for a similar project..." | Read more » | over 7 years ago |