Low cost precipitation measurement in remote areas

Mapping Intimacies ◽

10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-13836 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Adam Brziak ◽

Peter Valent ◽

Martin Kubáň

Keyword(s):

Rapid Prototyping ◽

Open Source ◽

Temporal Resolution ◽

Low Cost ◽

Atmospheric Precipitation ◽

Rain Gauge ◽

Small Scale ◽

Measuring Instruments ◽

Dynamic Calibration ◽

Remote Areas

Accurate measurements of atmospheric precipitation play an important role in solving a&#160;large variety of water management problems. The relatively low spatial and temporal resolution of the monitoring network in remote areas puts significant constraints on its use in small-scale studies, where a&#160;high spatial and temporal resolution is a&#160;must. Until quite recently, the high cost of the commercial devices that have to be deployed to fill in the gaps in space and time domains was very often the main factor restricting the focus of both scientific research and commercial applications on larger scales. The first decades of the 21st century brought about&#160;massive advancements in the field of low-cost electronics, sensors, and rapid prototyping techniques. Moreover, a number of open source software solutions came into existence that provides ready-to-use tools to store, analyse and transfer data. This inspired a&#160;large community of scientists and makers to build their own prototypes of measuring instruments or dataloggers, often for a fraction of the cost of the commercial devices that comply with their specific needs.This study presents the process of the development and calibration of a&#160;low-cost rain gauge for measuring atmospheric precipitation. The prototype was designed as a&#160;two-chamber tipping-bucket rain gauge built around the Arduino open-source electronics platform. The advent of 3D printing enabled the rapid prototyping of the mechanical parts of the rain gauge, which are made of a durable ABS thermoplastic material. The study also presents the process of rain gauge calibration, with both volumetric and dynamic calibration procedures used. The rain gauge was set at a&#160;resolution of 0.5&#160;mm with a&#160;standard deviation of&#160; &#177;0.01&#160;mm. The results of the dynamic calibration also showed that the behaviour of the rain gauge complies with that of the commercial devices.The low cost and precision of this type of instrumentation make it ideal for applications in which there is a high risk of its being damaged or even lost. In addition, the open-source aspect of the project, its low-cost, and the relatively minor requirements for its construction make it a&#160;good candidate for use in citizen-science partnerships, which are becoming very popular, mainly due to their popularization benefits.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;

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Gloxinia—An Open-Source Sensing Platform to Monitor the Dynamic Responses of Plants

Sensors ◽

10.3390/s20113055 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 20 (11) ◽

pp. 3055

Author(s):

Olivier Pieters ◽

Tom De Swaef ◽

Peter Lootens ◽

Michiel Stock ◽

Isabel Roldán-Ruiz ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Open Source ◽

Large Scale ◽

Environmental Changes ◽

Low Cost ◽

Current Data ◽

Dynamic Responses ◽

Small Scale ◽

Data Logging ◽

Short Term ◽

Sensing Platforms

The study of the dynamic responses of plants to short-term environmental changes is becoming increasingly important in basic plant science, phenotyping, breeding, crop management, and modelling. These short-term variations are crucial in plant adaptation to new environments and, consequently, in plant fitness and productivity. Scalable, versatile, accurate, and low-cost data-logging solutions are necessary to advance these fields and complement existing sensing platforms such as high-throughput phenotyping. However, current data logging and sensing platforms do not meet the requirements to monitor these responses. Therefore, a new modular data logging platform was designed, named Gloxinia. Different sensor boards are interconnected depending upon the needs, with the potential to scale to hundreds of sensors in a distributed sensor system. To demonstrate the architecture, two sensor boards were designed—one for single-ended measurements and one for lock-in amplifier based measurements, named Sylvatica and Planalta, respectively. To evaluate the performance of the system in small setups, a small-scale trial was conducted in a growth chamber. Expected plant dynamics were successfully captured, indicating proper operation of the system. Though a large scale trial was not performed, we expect the system to scale very well to larger setups. Additionally, the platform is open-source, enabling other users to easily build upon our work and perform application-specific optimisations.

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A Low-Cost, Open Source Monitoring System for Collecting High Temporal Resolution Water Use Data on Magnetically Driven Residential Water Meters

Sensors ◽

10.3390/s20133655 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 20 (13) ◽

pp. 3655 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Camilo J. Bastidas Pacheco ◽

Jeffery S. Horsburgh ◽

Robb J. Tracy

Keyword(s):

Open Source ◽

Monitoring System ◽

Water Use ◽

Temporal Resolution ◽

Low Cost ◽

High Temporal Resolution ◽

Time Interval ◽

Residential Water Use ◽

Water Meters ◽

Residential Water

We present a low-cost (≈$150) monitoring system for collecting high temporal resolution residential water use data without disrupting the operation of commonly available water meters. This system was designed for installation on top of analog, magnetically driven, positive displacement, residential water meters and can collect data at a variable time resolution interval. The system couples an Arduino Pro microcontroller board, a datalogging shield customized for this specific application, and a magnetometer sensor. The system was developed and calibrated at the Utah Water Research Laboratory and was deployed for testing on five single family residences in Logan and Providence, Utah, for a period of over 1 month. Battery life for the device was estimated to be over 5 weeks with continuous data collection at a 4 s time interval. Data collected using this system, under ideal installation conditions, was within 2% of the volume recorded by the register of the meter on which they were installed. Results from field deployments are presented to demonstrate the accuracy, functionality, and applicability of the system. Results indicate that the device is capable of collecting data at a temporal resolution sufficient for identifying individual water use events and analyzing water use at coarser temporal resolutions. This system is of special interest for water end use studies, future projections of residential water use, water infrastructure design, and for advancing our understanding of water use timing and behavior. The system’s hardware design and software are open source, are available for potential reuse, and can be customized for specific research needs.

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CALIBRATION OF A LOW-COST 3D PRINTED RAIN GAUGE UTILIZING AN OPEN-SOURCE ARDUINO PLATFORM

17th International Multidisciplinary Scientific GeoConference SGEM2017, Water Resources. Forest, Marine and Ocean Ecosystems ◽

10.5593/sgem2017/31/s12.010 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Peter Valent

Keyword(s):

Open Source ◽

Low Cost ◽

Rain Gauge ◽

3D Printed

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Maker Buoy Variants for Water Level Monitoring and Tracking Drifting Objects in Remote Areas of Greenland

Sensors ◽

10.3390/s20051254 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 20 (5) ◽

pp. 1254

Author(s):

Daniel F. Carlson ◽

Wayne J. Pavalko ◽

Dorthe Petersen ◽

Martin Olsen ◽

Andreas E. Hass

Keyword(s):

Open Source ◽

Water Level ◽

Low Cost ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Greenland Ice Sheet ◽

Water Levels ◽

Glacial Lake ◽

Remote Areas ◽

The North ◽

Meltwater Runoff

Meltwater runoff from the Greenland Ice Sheet changes water levels in glacial lakes and can lead to glacial lake outburst flooding (GLOF) events that threaten lives and property. Icebergs produced at Greenland’s marine terminating glaciers drift into Baffin Bay and the North Atlantic, where they can threaten shipping and offshore installations. Thus, monitoring glacial lake water levels and the drift of icebergs can enhance safety and aid in the scientific studies of glacial hydrology and iceberg-ocean interactions. The Maker Buoy was originally designed as a low-cost and open source sensor to monitor surface ocean currents. The open source framework, low-cost components, rugged construction and affordable satellite data transmission capabilities make it easy to customize for environmental monitoring in remote areas and under harsh conditions. Here, we present two such Maker Buoy variants that were developed to monitor water level in an ice-infested glacial lake in southern Greenland and to track drifting icebergs and moorings in the Vaigat Strait (Northwest Greenland). We describe the construction of each design variant, methods to access data in the field without an internet connection, and deployments in Greenland in summer 2019. The successful deployments of each Maker Buoy variant suggest that they may also be useful in operational iceberg management strategies and in GLOF monitoring programs.

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Laboratory test results of a new developed low-cost and open-source inclinometer based on MEMS technology

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-15309 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Giuseppe Ruzza ◽

Paola Revellino ◽

Francesco Maria Guadagno

Keyword(s):

Laboratory Test ◽

Open Source ◽

Electronic Device ◽

Low Cost ◽

Rain Gauge ◽

Real Field ◽

Landslide Monitoring ◽

Maximum Displacement ◽

Laboratory Test Results ◽

Measuring Module

The stationary or in-place inclinometer is the main high-performance solution in landslide monitoring applications due to its capability of tracking real time displacement at different depth and supporting early warning. Despite that and the general need of data for understanding landslide behaviour, the high cost of in-place inclinometers, in most cases, limit or prevent their use. On this basis, we started developing a low-cost and open source, modular MEMS-based inclinometer that uses multiple Arduino boards as processing units. Although MEMS accelerometers have many advantages in comparison with traditional high-precision electromechanical sensors, they are very sensible to temperature variation (i.e. thermal drifting).In order to compensating thermal drifting a specific thermal analysis and an associated simple compensation strategy were used. After the mitigation of thermal bias, the electronic devices were designed, built and assembled.The developed inclinometer system is composed of two main electronic systems: 1) a multiple electronic device (i.e. a MEMS accelerometer, the IMU reading interface and a communication board) installed within each measuring module; 2) an external master control unit, based on the Arduino platform coupled with a dedicated developed interface board. The master unit reads tilt value from each measuring module through a communication interface. This unit was developed to allow interfacing of additional digital or analog sensors (e.g. water content, rain gauge, etc..), and control additional parameters.A steel casing for measuring components was designed and built. For each measuring unit, a squared-section case, consisting of a 30 cm long tube equipped with 4 elements that allow the installation the instrument within a standard inclinometric tubes, was prepared and assembled.After system assembling, displacement of the inclinometric column was first simulated by a laboratory test. In particular, we used a supporting frame that allowed to vertically align the modules. The auxiliary frame was specifically designed to drive displacement along a selected axis and to register the maximum displacement at the head of the inclinometric column. In this way, the lower module is kept fixed. This test permitted to obtain a number of different synthetic deformation curves that form a basis for checking the accuracy of the instrumentation measurement. Result obtained highlight the potential use of our system for real monitoring application. The next step will be to install the instrumentation on site to check its operation in real field conditions.

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ModGrasp: An open-source rapid-prototyping framework for designing low-cost sensorised modular hands

5th IEEE RAS/EMBS International Conference on Biomedical Robotics and Biomechatronics ◽

10.1109/biorob.2014.6913903 ◽

2014 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

F. Sanfilippo ◽

H. Zhang ◽

K. Y. Pettersen ◽

G. Salvietti ◽

D. Prattichizzo

Keyword(s):

Rapid Prototyping ◽

Open Source ◽

Low Cost

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PIONEER: open wireless sensor network for smart environmental monitoring of remote areas

10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-15913 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Federico Dallo ◽

Daniele Zannoni ◽

Fabrizio de Blasi ◽

Jacopo Gabrieli ◽

Carlo Barbante ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Wireless Sensor Network ◽

Open Source ◽

Human Health ◽

Atmospheric Chemistry ◽

Tropospheric Ozone ◽

Crucial Role ◽

Low Cost ◽

Wireless Sensor ◽

Remote Areas

Atmospheric observatories in the remote areas represent the primary infrastructure for the state-of-the-art meteorological and climate research and play a crucial role in Climate Change comprehension. However, the World Meteorological Organization Global Atmosphere Watch (WMO-GAW) states in their 2018 final report that &#8220;the fate of the next generation of monitoring stations will be dramatically modified by the breakthroughs of new low-cost sensor (LCS) technologies.&#8221;. The development and improvement of low-cost technologies are proving notable applications and today LCSs are already playing a crucial role in fields such as model or emission validation and spatial variability of pollution[1]. Upcoming earth observation programmes, applications, services and support in citizen inclusion in earth monitoring are pushing the European Union (EU) in funding R&D to assess low-cost technologies, thus making the introduction of basic and applied research imperative. PIONEER* aims at establishing a low-cost wireless sensor network (LCS-WSN) for the study of transboundary transport phenomena of air pollutants. Given its highly relevance for the Earth climate, ecosystems, and human health, primary endeavor will be directed towards the study of tropospheric ozone to obtain quantitative, reproducible in-situ measurements. Tropospheric ozone is one of the most important atmospheric gases involved in photochemical reactions[2], it plays a central role in the radiative budget of the atmosphere and it is the third greenhouse gas in the troposphere[3]. Also, surface ozone is a dangerous secondary pollutant causing harm to human health and ecosystems[4]. Since the troposphere is a very complex system the goal is to develop and deploy a reliable LCS-WSN, along the trail Munich-Venice, to be used by scientists as well as citizen engineers in remote areas, where the needs of reliable dense spatial data to model the transport phenomena and Climate Change effects is decisive.&#160; PIONEER will exploit the existing open source technologies and commercial low-cost sensors to provide a LCS-WSN systems for long term climate data collection, a cloud-assisted database for time series collection and management, a web portal for uploading, displaying, performing statistical analysis and downloading records and metadata in a fully open access fashion, a comprehensive open source repository with tools, guidelines and application developed. The software will be open-source and released under copyleft license, thus allowing the complete reproducibility of all the developed devices and tools.&#160;*Individual Global Fellowships granted by the Research Executive Agency.&#160; Grant Agreement number: 844526 &#8212; PIONEER &#8212; H2020-MSCA-IF-2018[1] Lewis, Alastair, W. Richard Peltier, and Erika von Schneidemesser. "Low-cost sensors for the measurement of atmospheric composition: overview of topic and future applications." (2018).[2] Crutzen, P.J., Lawrence, M.G., Poschl, U.,&#8220;On the background photochemistry of tropospheric ozone&#8221;, Tellus AB 51, 123&#8211;146 (1999).[3] Forster, Piers, et al. "Changes in atmospheric constituents and in radiative forcing. Chapter 2." Climate Change 2007. The Physical Science Basis. 2007.[4] Cooper, Owen R., et al. "Global distribution and trends of tropospheric ozone: An observation-based review." (2014).[5] Young, P. J., et al. "Pre-industrial to end 21st century projections of tropospheric ozone from the Atmospheric Chemistry and Climate Model Intercomparison Project (ACCMIP)." Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 13.4 (2013): 2063-2090.

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