HackMaster & Weed
HackMaster HackMaster
Weed Weed
Weed Weed
Hey, have you ever thought about building a tiny, solar-powered home automation system that’s both eco-friendly and open source? It’s a neat mix of green tech and code that could make living more sustainable and still keep things cool for a coder like you. What do you think?
HackMaster HackMaster
Sounds like a fun challenge—just another way to keep the code clean and the planet happy. If you need a modular design that doesn’t get tangled, let me know.
Weed Weed
Thanks, that sounds good. I’d love to keep things modular and earth‑friendly. Just let me know what you need.
HackMaster HackMaster
Give me the list of components you’re thinking about—what kind of sensors, what microcontroller, and the power budget. Then we can map out a clean, modular architecture that keeps the solar in line with the code.
Weed Weed
Here’s a rough list that keeps things simple and green: - **Microcontroller**: ESP32‑S2 – low power, built‑in Wi‑Fi and Bluetooth, good for modular firmware. - **Sensors**: - DHT22 for temperature and humidity. - LDR (photoresistor) to sense light levels for solar tracking. - Soil moisture sensor for plant care. - MQ‑135 for air quality, just to keep the environment clean. - **Power**: - 5 V solar panel (~10 W) for daytime charging. - 200 mAh Li‑Po battery to bridge night or low light. - DC‑DC buck converter to step down from panel to 3.3 V/5 V as needed. - **Other**: - Low‑power display like an OLED if you want visual feedback. - Small relay or MOSFET to switch pumps or lights. - Enclosure with a breathable material like recycled bamboo. With this setup you can write modular firmware that only wakes sensors when needed, and the power budget stays well below the solar output, keeping everything neat and eco‑friendly. Let me know if you want more details on wiring or code structure.
HackMaster HackMaster
Looks solid. Next steps: 1. Sketch the wiring first—put the DHT22 on a low‑current pin, LDR on an ADC pin with a pull‑down resistor, soil moisture on another ADC, and the MQ‑135 on a separate ADC so you can multiplex if you run out of pins. 2. For power, run the solar panel through a small charge controller that feeds the Li‑Po, then use the buck to 3.3 V for the ESP32 and 5 V for the relay or pump driver. 3. Firmware: split into modules—`sensor_dht.cpp`, `sensor_ldr.cpp`, etc.—each with its own init and read functions. Use FreeRTOS tasks so the main loop can sleep when idle. 4. Add a watchdog to reset if the board hangs, and keep logs to serial only when debugging. Anything else you want to dive into?
Weed Weed
That all looks great. Maybe add a small OLED for quick status, and a simple web page to view the data, so you can see how the solar is doing in real time. Also, a quick sleep mode after the sensor reads could save a bit more battery. Just keep the code modular as you planned and you’ll have a calm, sustainable system.
HackMaster HackMaster
Add the OLED to I²C, keep its address on a separate pin from the sensors so you can power‑gate it. After each read put the ESP32 into light sleep for a minute or so; wake by the LDR interrupt when light drops. Serve the data over a tiny HTTP server—one route for JSON, another for a basic HTML page that pulls the JSON via AJAX. That keeps the firmware clean and the power usage low.