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Questions about Robo Tank
#1
Hi to all!
I have some question about the Software and the Hardware:
1 - On my reef tank I'm already using 2 PTC sensor as ATO and fail safe for Skimmer (I have not a sump so ATO sensor in in the tank - PTC sensors is very very small - and the skimmer is hang on the bag of the acquarium and if the level rise up inside of the collector sup the sensor switch the skimmer off)
Can I use them with Robo Tank maybe on two analog input? The code I'm using now is a simple AnalogRead:

    if((analogRead (ATOtankPin) > 100) && (analogRead (ATOtankPin) < 512))                //Level is LOW
        ATOtank = 0;
    else if((analogRead (ATOtankPin) > 819))                        //Level is HIGH
        ATOtank = 1;    
    else if((analogRead (ATOtankPin) < 100))                        //Sensor disconnected
        ATOtank = 2;

2 - In my hang on skimmer I've also put two float switch to add more fail safe ( just in case that something close up the drain pipe and the water cannot return to the tank) Can I also use  them maybe with custom rules?
3 - I'm now using 3 GNC Minù to light up the tank, every fixture has a DS18B20 temperature sensor inside, Is there a way to control all of the sensors?
4 - Which are the dimension of all the PCB board and the screen?
5 - Can you ship to Italy?

I think I've ask all of the questions, Blush
Thank you very much!

Simone Smile
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#2
Another question (Sorry) About the dosing pump, it is possible to split the daily dose in more than one? I'll use them to dose Kh, Ca and Mg so it will be better if the dose is split during the day... Thank you again!
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#3
Think the doses can be splitted, in the design ideas sectio is a thread about it.
Shipping to italy is no problem, i live in the netherlands, and one of the guys here who runs the system lives in belgium, another one in germany ;)

Think (correct me if i'm wrong) the robo-tank already uses the ds18b20 temp sensors

As for ATO sensors, i don't use an ATO But i'm sure there is a way to use them and set them up the way you want/need

As for size, in the design section there Should be a thread about the latest generation boarda maybe you'll find dimensions there
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#4
Thank you very much for your answer ;)
I've checked the thread, I couldn't find anything about dosing pump, only in one the feature list I find: "Schedule up to 10 doses per day for each pump"
Robo tank already uses DS18B20 sensors, up to 6 if I'm not wrong so it will be possible...
Let's wait Rob for the board dimensions ;)
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#5
Hi Simone, welcome to the forum. :)  I don't know much about the PTC sensors but based on the code you're using they should work with no issues. The main ATO sensor port uses an analog pin and reads the value from sensor just like your code and compares it to the settings you select. The backup port was only setup for a float switch though, when 5v goes through the float it turns on a transistor which opens or closes the rest of the circuit. However I did add an analog pin to the port as a spare or could be used for a second sensor. It wouldn't take much to add the code for that analog pin to also control the digital pin turning the ATO pump on/off. Doing that you would add a jumper where the float switch goes or use it as another fail safe. There's also a timeout fail safe, you can set the maximum run time for the ATO pump so it turns off the pump if the sensors don't. If that happened the ATO wouldn't run again until you manually reset it on display.

You can use the custom rules to monitor a maximum of 5 float switches (unlimited if you use same pins) or five analog sensors like the PTC. I assume you cut the AC power to the skimmer so creating rules for them won't be a problem.

For your lights you can monitor up to six DS18B20 sensors (4 of them can also read DHT22 +1) and use them all in the custom rules so you could control cooling fans for each light if you wanted. Today you can only turn DC accessories on/off but the hardware is setup to control the speed I just need to get the options in the software. There's 4 ports that can be used for DC accessories, each 1-1.5amps but you might need external power supply as the circuit board can only handle 3 amps total. The controller puts out 0-5v PWM as default for dimming the lights but that can be changed to 0-10v PWM or Analog with an external converter.

The display is 7" full color, image is clearer than camera shows. Here's a link showing dimensions.

https://www.elecfreaks.com/wiki/images/t...01-7.0.jpg

The full controller has 3 circuit boards, one for display, controller and expansion.

Display board = 100mm x 100mm  (the board is hidden behind the display but one side sticks out past the display about 1/2")
Controller board = 208mm x 90mm
Expansion board = 167mm x 98mm (this board is rectangular but those are the max, if you need better let me know)

You can split your doses throughout the day. For each of the 8 dosing pumps you can set 10 scheduled times per day and select which days it runs. With 10 times and option for running 7 days a week gives a possibility of using 70 schedules per pump per week. Here's a link showing some images of the dosing schedule pages, I plan to do similar for AC outlets. In the settings the smallest dose is 1ml however you can dose smaller by manipulating the dose pump calibration settings.

https://www.robo-tank.ca/forum/Thread-Ro...0-is-Ready

If you have more questions feel free to ask, don't need to be sorry. :)
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#6
Hi Rob, thank you very much for your detailed answer!
I've read that software supports also 5" lcd, is it right? (even if 7" is better). Do you also do "custom" kits for DIY applications?
P.S. are e-mail alerts already implemented?
Thank you very much!
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#7
Hi Simone, yeah you can use a 5" display instead of 7", any Arduino display that uses 800x480 resolution should work, I might even have a 5" if you don't. I can probably do a custom kit, depending what you need I guess. :) Some of the email alerts are implemented, I have plans for more, here's pic of the different emails.

[Image: web_alerts.jpg]
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#8
Thank you again Rob, maybe for the custom kit I ask you in PM ;)
For the e-mail alerts it'll be nice if it can be done as a custom rules (for examples: ATO failure -> action: send e-mail notification)...
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#9
Yeah currently no emails with custom rules but that's definitely going to happen soon. I've been working on a major software update changing how the controller operates, I expect to be finished soon, then I'll be updating other things such as the email alerts as they are past due and easy to add. Work is slowing down and it's getting cold soon so I'll have nothing else to do but this. :)
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#10
That will be fantastic, looking forward to see the new updates :D The hardware will still the same? I was looking at some build here on the forum, in particular Nixu's build. He has the 7" screen right? looking at the photos the display seems really cool with an high definition (now I'm running a 3.2" lcd controller and I think that is not as much defined as the 7") and high contrast...
I think that the controller will be better with the 7"...
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#11
The hardware will be the same, no plans to change that. Nixu does have a 7" screen, I think there's only one person using the 5". The 7" is a lot bigger, those 2 extra inches are really nice. With 5" it starts getting a little small to adjust some settings with just a finger. You'll never want to go back to 3.2". :) The screens aren't hi-def but they are clear and bright. In my opinion if you don't have a 5" using a 7" would be much better.
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#12
to cold to fast all ready planning on closing the pool and the wife want to go to the pumpkin farm to start getting big ones to set out for Halloween
But like Rob was saying the 7" Screens are the way to go after having one of them you will never want to go back to a little 3 inch or even a 5 hate to kick Rob when he is working so hard as it is but there is 10" ones on the way :)) going to have to go wireless when that thing comes online ...hehehehe
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#13
Hey Rott, yeah definitely gets cold quick 10" wow that's too big, is this something made for the Arduino?
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#14
Hi Rob, can I use SD card with more than 4GB? because 4GB isn't so easy to find... Another question, in the outlet option I can find also the icons for marine equipment such as skimmer and so on?
Thank you again
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#15
I run a second hand 1gb SD card.
So don’t Think 4gb is mandatory, But rob Should be able to clarify
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#16
Larger cards do work as its setup to read FAT32 format or less however larger cards usually run slower. I put a 64gb in mine at one point but it was very slow, I was surprised. I typically recommend 4gb or smaller but 8gb should be ok as well. I wish I could find an old batch of 1gb like fietsenrex uses as it's plenty large enough and seem to be the best.

Currently there are 10 icons you can use for the outlets, I plan to add another 10. Here's the list.

Light
Heater
Filter
Powerhead
Air Pump
Skimmer
co2
Cooling Fan
Wavemaker
Aux (Auxiliary)
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#17
Must note, my card is pretty old..
It pre-dates any class* cards, So i don’t know what speed it is at.
But smaller is better in my case, it outpreforms a 8gb class 10 card and also out preforms a 4gb class 4 card.

Don’t know what the minimum is But you maybe could try a 512mb or smaller.
It gives the controller less space to search in thus making it faster
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#18
It depends on the dimensions of the file that are stored on the SD, maybe a 1GB will be enough... Which data are stored on the cards?
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#19
I was thinking similar that larger cards are slower because more to search. I don't think there's a minimum size but smallest I've tried is 512mb. As for size not much is need, on controller less than 1mb and display uses 27mb currently. There's some different settings and images on the cards. All the logs are written to the display card so it will increase in size over time. I think I calculated something like 20 years of data would fit on 2gb card.
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