A Solar Energy Powered Autonomous Wireless Actuator Node for Irrigation Systems

Sensors

Rafael Lajara¹  Jorge Alberola¹ 

[1] Research Institute for Integrated Management of Coastal Areas, Universitat Politècnica Valencia, EPSG, C.Paranimf, 1, Gandía, Spain;

关键词: wireless sensor networks;    actuator node;    autonomous sensor;    solar energy;    agriculture irrigation systems;   

DOI  :  10.3390/s110100329

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

The design of a fully autonomous and wireless actuator node (“wEcoValve mote”) based on the IEEE 802.15.4 standard is presented. The system allows remote control (open/close) of a 3-lead magnetic latch solenoid, commonly used in drip irrigation systems in applications such as agricultural areas, greenhouses, gardens, etc. The very low power consumption of the system in conjunction with the low power consumption of the valve, only when switching positions, allows the system to be solar powered, thus eliminating the need of wires and facilitating its deployment. By using supercapacitors recharged from a specifically designed solar power module, the need to replace batteries is also eliminated and the system is completely autonomous and maintenance free. The “wEcoValve mote” firmware is based on a synchronous protocol that allows a bidirectional communication with a latency optimized for real-time work, with a synchronization time between nodes of 4 s, thus achieving a power consumption average of 2.9 mW.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2011 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.