Design of Plant Watering Autonomous Mobile Robot Solution for indoor environments

Project Title

Design of Plant Watering Autonomous Mobile Robot Solution for indoor environments

Project Area of Specialization RoboticsProject Summary

PROJECT SUMMARY:

Autonoumous Plant Watering Robot for indoor environment is the autonoumous robot that can waters the plant without human intervention. In thisproject, we will design a complete autonomous plant watering system that can map its environment through Rao Blackwellized Particle Filter (RBPF) SLAM, can localize itself in that map using Monte Carlo Localization (MCL), to monitor and watch potted plants and water them according to their need in an efficient and timely manner by incorporating an embedded system with various sensors without human intervention. Our proposed system can detect plants through an RFID tag attached to each plant, sense water requirements of plants using HSM-20g temperature and humidity sensor attached with robot body and soil moisture sensor attached with robotic hand and water them according to data gets from the sensor through water reservoir attached with the robot. For mobilization of the robot, we used the SLAM algorithm that allows the vehicle to generate a map of its environment and to localize itself in that environment using LIDAR. 

SYSTEM BLOCK DIAGRAM:

Project Objectives

PROJECT OBJETIVES:

The  core objectives of the proposed project are:

• To design a SLAM-based real-time autonomous plant watering robot that can map and navigate through its environment.
• The robot should be able to detect different species of plants.
• The robot should be able to recognize plant species as well as their water requirement and pot height.
• The robot must be able to collect and monitor plant data (i.e., temperature, humidity, moisture).
• To design an onboard water reservoir, able to water plants on the go, based on the number of plants, their water requirements, and the size of the robot.
• To design a mechanism for automatic refilling of water reservoir.
• To design a mechanism for automatic recharging of robot
• To design a wireless communication system (IoT) that can transfer sensor data and robot stats to the user.

Project Implementation Method

METHODOLOGY:

LiDAR and ultrasonic sensors will be used to allow the robot to map and navigate through its environment. These sensors will provide data in the form of distance from the landmarks. The raw data from LiDAR will be sent to a Raspberry Pi 4, for processing and it will also has high level control of system, meanwhile an Arduino Mega 2560 will have the low level control of the system. Arduino Mega 2560 will communicate with Raspberry Pi 4 via USB connection; the same connection will provide power to Arduino Mega 2560 and peripherals attached to it. The robot will be a differential derive robot with wheels attached to motors and 2 wheels and free wheels. The motors will be driven by motor driver circuit controlled by Arduino Mega 2560 Radio frequency identification will be utilized to detect and differentiate plants. A closed loop PID control for motors attached to the robot will be implemented using Arduino Mega 2560. Built-in encoders of DC motors will be used to provide feedback in control system for motors. Plant detection will be done through a RFID ta attached to the pot. Plant specifications i.e. specie, water requirement, serial number, pot height and when was plant watered last time, will also be stored in RFID tag assigned to plant. To read data from and write data to RFID tag a RFID reader/writer module will be used which will be connected to Arduino Mega 2560. For the real time collection of data, temperature and relative humidity sensors fixed on robot and soil moisture sensor attached to a robotic arm will be utilized. The raw input from these sensors, which will be in analog form, will be given to the built-in ADC of Arduino Mega 2560. This data extracted from the inputs of sensors will be displayed on an Alphanumeric LCD attached to Arduino Mega 2560. The robot will a have an onboard water reservoir for watering plants, a relay controlled by Arduino Mega 2560 will trigger an electrical pump attached to water reservoir for watering plants. A height sensor will continuously monitor the water level and if water level falls below a set threshold value that, sensor will inform the robot that it requires refilling, the robot will stop its current operation of move to base station where a wirelessly controlled solenoid valve will allow automatic refiling of reservoir. Auto recharging of robot will be achieved by employing wireless charging coils or by incorporating solar panels. An IoT network will established for storing and transmitting robot stats and sensor data to a web server and IoT application.

Benefits of the Project

BENEFITS OF AUTONOMOUS PLANT WATERING ROBOT:

Nowadays, the demand for the autonomous robot has risen and will continue to rise because of their unlimited benefits including high efficiency, cost-effectiveness, performing highly complex tasks, improves safety for employees that work in high-risk areas and vice versa.

SOCIAL IMPACT:

Our proposed system has the following benefits:

BENEFITS:

• High applications in agriculture and farming 
• High positive impact in field of robotics
• Act as an assistive device for the busy people
• Prevent under and overwatering of plants
• Can water many plants in less time which is difficult for a person
• Portable and cost-effective
• No harmful effect on the environment
• Highly efficient
• Reduced manpower
• New research area
• Reduced cost
• Can compensate for human disabilities.
• Can be used in a radioactive and contaminated environment.
• Can be used for survey purposes

Technical Details of Final Deliverable

FINAL DELIVERABLE:

The  final deliverable outcome of this project will be a reliable solution for watering neds of plants in the form of a completely autonomus robot. The robot will be an integration of both hardware and software systems. Autonomous plant watering robot using SLAM will have many advantages on other techniques to design a robot. Simultaneously Localization and Mapping will not only enabale the robot to map the environment but also it will help localize the robot in its environment and navigate to the target with collision avoidance and it will also updates the environment map every time as it navigates to target. Autonomous plant watering robot will not just efficiently map its environment  but will also water the plants in efficient and timely manner by incorporating embedded system with various sensors.Our proposed system will be efficient enough to water the plant according to their needs to keep plants growing vigorously. It will be portable and low-cost autonomous robot. It will eliminate the concern of over watering or under watering as well as act as assistive device for busy people

Final Deliverable of the Project HW/SW integrated systemCore Industry AgricultureOther Industries Manufacturing , Security Core Technology RoboticsOther Technologies Artificial Intelligence(AI), OthersSustainable Development Goals Industry, Innovation and InfrastructureRequired Resources

Item Name	Type	No. of Units	Per Unit Cost (in Rs)	Total (in Rs)
			Total in (Rs)	74522
RPLIDAR A1M8-R6 - 360 Degree Laser Scanner Development Kit	Equipment	1	29600	29600
Raspberry Pi 4 Model B - 8GB with Metal Case (Dual fans)	Equipment	1	22000	22000
4*Metal DC Geared Motor w/Encoder - 12V 83RPM 45Kg.cm	Equipment	1	2000	2000
Hsm-20g Temperature And Humidity Sensor Module	Equipment	1	1942	1942
2*HW-330 Capacitive Soil Moisture Sensor	Equipment	1	300	300
MFRC522 RC522 RFID Card Reader Writer Module	Equipment	1	180	180
Arduino Mega 2560 R3	Equipment	1	2500	2500
XBee 2mW Wire Antenna - Series 2 (Zigbee Mesh)	Equipment	1	4500	4500
Metal 4WD Smart Robot Car Chassis With 85mm Wheels	Equipment	1	4000	4000
Battery 12 V	Equipment	1	2000	2000
Stationery/Printing	Miscellaneous	1	1500	1500
Travelling	Miscellaneous	1	4000	4000