Automatic Plant Irrigation System 1

MINOR PROJECT SYNOPSIS

AUTOMATED IRRIGATION USING ARDUINO

Submitted By:

Arpit Maheshwari Rohan Saini

Enrollment No: 03896404914 Enrollment No: XXX

Submitted To:

Mr. Lalit Aggarwal

Assistant Professor

DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING

MAHARAJA AGRASEN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
(AFFILIATED TO GURU GOBIND SINGH INDRAPRASTHA UNIVERSITY, DELHI)
DELHI 110086
September-2017
 Automatic Plant Irrigation System 2

CONTENT TABLE

Contents Page no

Acknowledgement 3

Abstract 4

Introduction 5-7

Rationale 8

Objectives 9

Literature Review 10

Expected Outcomes 11

References 12
 Automatic Plant Irrigation System 3

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

We take this opportunity to express our profound gratitude and deep regards to our guide Asst.
Prof. Lalit Aggarwal for his exemplary guidance, monitoring and constant encouragement
throughout the course of this project work.

We are obliged to staff members of MAIT, for the valuable information provided by them in
their respective fields. We are grateful for their cooperation during the period of our project
work.
 Automatic Plant Irrigation System 4

ABSTRACT
In the field of agriculture, use of proper method of irrigation is important and it is well known
that irrigation by drip is very economical and efficient. In the conventional drip irrigation system,
the farmer has to keep watch on irrigation timetable, which is different for different crops. The
project makes the irrigation automated. With the use of low cost sensors and the simple circuitry
makes these project a low cost product, which can be bought even by a poor farmer. This project
is best suited for places where water is scares and has to be used in limited quantity. Also, third
world countries can afford this simple and low cost solution for irrigation and obtain good yield
on Crops. The heart of the project is the ARDUINO based microcontroller. The humidity
sensors are constructed using aluminum sheets and housed in easily available materials. The aim
is to use the readily available material to construct low cost sensors. Five relays are controlled by
the microcontroller through the transistor BC547/FC-28. One relay is used to shut-off the main
motor which is used to pump the water to the field.
 Automatic Plant Irrigation System 5

INTRODUCTION

By using the concept of modern irrigation system a farmer can save water up to 50%. This
concept depends on two irrigation methods those are: conventional irrigation methods like
overhead sprinklers, flood type feeding systems i.e. wet the lower leaves and stem of the plants.
The area between the crop rows become dry as the large amount of water is consumed by the
flood type methods, in which case the farmer depends only on the incidental rainfalls. The crops
are been infected by the leaf mold fungi as the soil surface often stays wet and is saturated after
irrigation is completed. Overcoming these drawbacks new techniques are been adopted in the
irrigation techniques, through which small amounts of water applies to the parts of root zone of a
plant. The plant soil moisture stress is prevented by providing required amount of water
resources frequently or often daily by which the moisture condition of the soil will retain well.
The diagram below shows the entire concept of the modern irrigation system. The traditional
techniques like sprinkler or surface irrigation requires / uses nearly half of water sources. Even
more precise amounts of water can be supplied for plants. As far as the foliage is dry the plant
damage due to disease and insects will be reduced, which further reduces the operating cost.

Working of this Automatic Plant Irrigation System is quite simple. First of all, it is
a Completely Automated System and there is no need of manpower to control the system.
Arduino is used for controlling the whole process and GSM module is used for sending alert
messages t o user on his Cellphone.
 Automatic Plant Irrigation System 6

If moisture is present in soil then there is conduction between the two probes of Soil Moisture
sensor and due to this conduction, transistor Q2 remains in triggered/on state and Arduino Pin
D7 remains Low. When Arduino reads LOW signal at D7, then it sends SMS to user about
Soil Moisture is Normal. Motor turned OFF and water pump remains in Off state.

Now if there is no Moisture in soil then Transistor Q2 becomes Off and Pin D7 becomes
High. Then Arduino reads the Pin D7 and turns On the water motor and also sends message to
user about Low Soil Moisture detected. Motor turned ON. Motor will automatically turn off
when there is sufficient moisture in the soil.

The soil moisture sensor module used here have two output pins ( Digital output and Analog
output ). The output from the probe of the moisture sensor is compared with a reference value
using a lm393 comparator. The reference value can be changed by turning the potentiometer in
the module. The digital pin gives an active low output when the soil is wet. Here we are using
the analog output from the module by connecting it to one of the analog pins of Arduino. While
using the analog output the wet detection value can be set/adjusted within the program itself.
 Automatic Plant Irrigation System 7

As shown in the circuit diagram, a float switch is connected to one of the analog pins of Arduino
and a 1K Ohm resistor is used to pulled up the line. Analog pins of Arduino can also be used as
digital inputs. The status of the tank is identified by checking the output of the float switch.
Arduino reads the voltage dropped across the pull up resistor for sensing the level of water in the
tank. Two LEDs are connected to the 2nd and 3rd pin of Arduino to show the moisture status and
tank status respectively. And the 4th pin links to the base of a BC547 transistor which in turn
drives the 12 V DC motor.

A 162 LCD is connected with Arduino in 4-bit mode. JHD162A is the LCD module used
here. JHD162A is a 162 LCD module based on the HD44780 driver from Hitachi. The
JHD162A has 16 pins and can be operated in 4-bit mode (using only 4 data lines) or 8-bit mode
(using all 8 data lines). Here we are using the LCD module in 4-bit mode. Control pin RS, RW
and En are directly connected to arduino pin 13, GND and 12. And data pin D4-D7 is connected
to 11, 10, 9 and 8 of arduino.
 Automatic Plant Irrigation System 8

RATIONALE

Irrigation of plants is usually a very time- consuming activity, to be done in a reasonable amount
of time, it requires a large amount of human resources. Traditionally all the steps were executed
by humans. Nowadays some systems use technology to reduce the number or workers or the time
required to water the plants. With such systems, the control is very limited, and many resources
are still wasted. Water is one of these resources that are used excessively. Many irrigation is one
method used to water the plant. This method represents massive losses since the amount of water
given is in excess of the plant needs. The excess water is evacuated by the holes of the pots in
greenhouses, or it percolates through the soil in the fields. The contemporary perception of water
is that of a free renewable resource that can be used in abundance. It is therefore reasonable to
assume that it will soon become a very expensive resource everywhere. In addition to the excess
cost of water labour is becoming more and more expensive. As a result, if no effort is invested
in optimising these resources, there will be more money involved in the same process.
Technology is probably a solution to reduce costs and prevent loss of resource, this project can
be a strong way to tackle such a situation.
 Automatic Plant Irrigation System 9

OBJECTIVES
Monitor the moisture content of the soil using a soil moisture sensor and the water level of the

tank using a float switch.

Turn the motor ON when the soil moisture falls below a certain reference value and if there is

enough water in the tank.

Display the status of the soil and the tank using a 162 LCD.
 Automatic Plant Irrigation System 10

LITERATURE REVIEW
It is a simple project more useful in watering plants automatically without any human
interference. We know that people do not pour the water on to the plants in their gardens when
they go to vacation or often forget to water plants. As a result, there is a chance to get the plants
damaged. This project is an excellent solution for such kind of problems. Many irrigation
systems exits such as, 1. Monitoring of rice crops using GPRS and wireless sensors for efficient
use of water and Electricity. 2. Wireless Sensor Based Remote Monitoring System for
Agriculture Using ZigBee and GPS. 3. Design of Embedded System for the Automation of Drip
Irrigation. 4. A Survey of Automated GSM Based Irrigation System. 5. Wireless Sensor
Networks Agriculture: For Potato Farming. 6. Design and Implementation of GSM based
Irrigation System Using ARM7. 7. Automated Irrigation System Using a Wireless Sensor
Network and GPRS Module. 8. Automated Irrigation System Using Solar Power. 9. Review for
ARM based agriculture field monitoring system. 10. Automatic Irrigation Control by using
wireless sensor networks. 11. Remote Sensing and Control of an Irrigation System Using a
Distributed Wireless Sensor Network.

]
 Automatic Plant Irrigation System 11

EXPECTED OUTCOMES
Day by day, the field of electronics is blooming and have caused great impact on human beings.
The project which is to be implemented is an automated irrigation method and has a huge scope
for future development. The project can be extended to greenhouses where manual supervision is
far and few in between. The principle can be extended to create fully automated gardens and
farmlands. Combined with the principle of rain water harvesting, it could lead to huge water
savings if applied in the right manner. In agricultural lands with severe shortage of rainfall, this
model can be successfully applied to achieve great results with most types of soil. By developing
a Smart Wireless Sensor and by using upcoming techniques a farmer can increase his profit by
solving different problems that are faced by the farmer in his routine life. And also to involve
Arduino Controller with a video capturing by using an MMS facility about the crop position
and at the same time sending video to the farmer.
 Automatic Plant Irrigation System 12

REFERENCES

BOMAN, B.; SMITH, S.; TULLOS, B. (2006): Control and Automation in Citrus
Microirrigation Systems. Gainesville: University of Florida. URL [Accessed: 24.10.2011].
CARDENAS-LAILHACAR, B. (2006): Sensor-Based Automation of Irrigation of
Bermudagrass. (= Master Thesis). Gainesville: University of Florida. URL [Accessed:
24.10.2011].
IDE (Editor) (n.y.): Technical Manual for Ideal Micro Irrigation Systems. Golden: International
Development Enterprises. URL [Accessed: 30.11.2011].
RAJAKUMAR, D.; RAMAH, K.; RATHIKA, S.; THIYAGARAJAN, G. (2008): Automation in
Micro-Irigation. New Delhi: Technology Innovation Management and Entrepreneurship
Information Service. URL [Accessed: 24.10.2011].
UNEP (Editor) (1998): Source Book of Alternative Technologies for Freshwater Augmentation
in Latin America and the Caribbean. Nairobi: United Nations Environment Programme
(UNEP).URL [Accessed: 17.10.2011].
VORTECH (Editor) (2009): Super Siphon: Installation and Design Manual. Warkworth: Ashby
Consulting Engineering Ltd.. URL [Accessed: 27.10.2011].
Automatic Plant Irrigation System 13
Automatic Plant Irrigation System 14
Automatic Plant Irrigation System 15
Automatic Plant Irrigation System 16
Automatic Plant Irrigation System 17
Automatic Plant Irrigation System 18
Automatic Plant Irrigation System 19
Automatic Plant Irrigation System 20
Automatic Plant Irrigation System 21
Automatic Plant Irrigation System 22
Automatic Plant Irrigation System 23