FDRS hardware

[aviateur17]

Examples of some hardware I use for FDRS

Wemos form factor ESP32 with Hallard Shield. Can use ESP-NOW or WiFi and LoRa

Seeed Xiao ESP32-S3 with OLED and PIR

Wemos form factor ESP32 with OLED and PIR and BMP-280 powered by 18650 battery

[timmbogner]

I really like that Hallard module! Is your antenna just a length of solid copper wire?
Currently my setup is just the ThingPulse ethernet gateway. It's configured to have a second, LoRa gateway connected by ESP-NOW, but I don't have any sensors that need it as of yet.
I recently implemented a solar node with an ESP8266 reporting at one minute intervals. Unfortunately I didn't include any voltage monitoring, so it's just fingers crossed that it'll last forever 😄
I'll post some pics when I get a chance.

[aviateur17]

Yep, just a length of copper wire approx 78mm long.
I'd love to see and hear about your solar node. I haven't played with powering anything with solar yet.

[bvwelch]

That hallard module looks very cool! Did you solder it yourself? A quick google found this page: https://github.com/hallard/WeMos-Lora
thanks.

[aviateur17]

Yeah, just ordered the PCBs from the site linked in that github link and the LoRa chips from Amazon and the other components from Digikey. Once they all came in I soldered them on the board. Pretty difficult to solder that stuff without some good tools but it seems to work. I think they are 0508 size components which are probably the smallest I can do by hand.

[bvwelch]

My smt skills are not so much, so I may just get one of these when adding lora to a esp32 board.

https://www.adafruit.com/product/3072

[timmbogner]

Here's my new solar node! It has proven itself in the last couple days, producing more voltage than consuming. It has a very small battery, very small solar panel, and is placed in partial shade, but the TTGO T-Display inside is reporting the temp, soil moisture, and battery level every minute.

Battery level over 24hrs:

• The solar module
• The solar panel

[bvwelch]

very cool!

[bvwelch]

Here is the panel I have. But I haven't tested it yet.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B074TYH68Z/

[timmbogner]

Here is the panel I have. But I haven't tested it yet.

Coincidentally, I ordered this very similar one last night (the price also rose by $3 after I bought it):
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B081YXGT2M

[bvwelch]

Note to self- when I do test it, find the Swiss guy's video that explains how to modify a resistor to allow the proper charge rate between the panel and the controller. I might be the one with the Indiana Jones clip.

[timmbogner]

A resistor on the MPPT module? Which controller are you using?

[bvwelch]

It isnt a real mppt module, see discussion at 6 or 7 minutes into the video https://youtu.be/37kGva3NW8w

…

On Wed, Apr 26, 2023 at 10:19 AM Timm Bogner ***@***.***> wrote: A resistor on the MPPT module? Which controller are you using? — Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#160 (reply in thread)>, or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AACG5GYY6R2DO4GXV5DUCHDXDE4JNANCNFSM6AAAAAAWWVYQVQ> . You are receiving this because you commented.Message ID: <timmbogner/Farm-Data-Relay-System/repo-discussions/160/comments/5733094@ github.com>

[timmbogner]

Ah, right! I forgot about that one.

[javrolijk]

Hi folks.
Just wanted to chime in. I ordered this Solar Power Management Module combo. Seems to integrate pretty much all that's needed for proper and safe charging of the battery and power supply. It's $14 bucks, I haven't had the chance to test it out yet.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07PBRK8KG

[timmbogner]

That's super-handy. I'm pleased to see that it is listed cheaper when ordered from the manufacturer too! I'm not sure what shipping is though...

That really is a nice all-in-one module. I have several recycled panels of different voltages, so having variable panel voltage would be nice. The 5V also makes it useful as a power bank. The obscure (to me) 14500 battery size is a bit awkward, but I guess they couldn't fit an 18650.

Waveshare also has a cool LoRa hat for the Pi Pico that is FDRS compatible.

[timmbogner]

This gateway has now spent about 48 consecutive hours online running off of the sun! The voltage readings are a bit skewed, not sure if that's a math error or what, but the important thing is it stays alive.

• The battery was salvaged and split from a larger pack a couple years ago. I don't recall its specifications, but I think it's in the 3000mAh range.
• The panel was bought at a junk store years ago, and is rated 12V 5W.
• Here's a link to the MPPT module.
• And of course, everyone loves LilyGo's TTGO T-Display🙂

Note: This gateway was not receiving any traffic. That's the next step!