Roman Fedevych, a 9th grader at Lviv Technological Lyceum, came fourth in the Robotics and Intelligent Machines Category at the Intel Techno Ukraine contest. His smart greenhouse knows when it needs to be ventilated, and can automatically shut the windows if the wind gets too strong. The 15-year old Lviv native plans to improve his model and participate in the competition again, as he wants to realize his grandfather’s dream of having a “smart” greenhouse.
“My grandpa has a greenhouse, and during summer it needs to be ventilated. But often in summer the heat can also be accompanied by strong gusts of wind, and if the window is open, the wind can push the window back and break it. It takes a long time to repair it, and it’s quite costly. This has happened to my grandpa more than once. So that’s why I decided to create a smart greenhouse.
I knew about robotics, but I didn’t know how to connect all parts together to make the model work as one mechanism. So I went to my teacher, Viktor Petrovych, and together we thought about how to make it work.
A good scientific advisor is half the success of a student.
Viktor Petrovych and I spent days trying to decide how to connect all these sensors using the software and make it all work without errors. We ran into problems many times.
Let’s just say: you think you’ve done it, and then you go on improving it for two more months.
The model for the smart greenhouse consists of a wooden frame wrapped in a plastic film. It operates using an Arduino Uno processor. That is a blue single-board microcontroller, which is connected to a computer and programmed. Temperature and wind sensors are connected to it. There is also a servo motor – a mechanism for opening and closing the window.
When the window is open and the temperature inside the greenhouse starts to fall to the minimum value, the window closes. It’s done automatically thanks to the sensor that measures temperature. If the temperature rises, and starts to approach the maximum level set by the user, the window opens. If the wind sensor is spinning lightly and the strength of the wind is not too much, the window does not react, but if a strong wind starts up, the window will automatically close.
The price of such greenhouse depends on the size, but on average it’s USD 300-500. I even researched whether there are any smart greenhouses on sale. There are the ones with a temperature sensor, but I haven’t found any with the wind sensor.
My grandpa really liked my model. He wants me to use it on his greenhouse. Theoretically it could be done; it would require the same sensors, only bigger, and a more powerful processor.
Automatic watering is also on the drawing board. Information from a weather website will be transmitted to the processor and if, for example, high temperatures are forecast for tomorrow, the greenhouse will be automatically watered at night or early in the morning. The soil will then be wet and the plants will have enough time to absorb the moisture. If you water the plants when the temperature is high, the moisture simply evaporates and the soil gets nothing. There will be additional soil moisture sensors for additional monitoring of watering at each location.
I have already started developing an application for smartphones. Users will be able to control their smart greenhouse from anywhere in the world, provided they have Internet access.
I’m planning to finish developing the watering option and the application for smartphones in time for the next Intel Techno contest. Obviously I have to set myself goals, because you can’t achieve anything unless you have a goal.
I’d like to finish this product, and make it successful. Of course I’d like to do well at the contest, but my greatest desire is for it to work and be useful to people.
In the future I want to be an honest person… I want all people to become honest… I wish that everything were well in our country, that there was peace. I’d like to help people with my developments.
In my free time, I watch videos or read articles on programming, study new sensors, controllers. I need to grow. I have some knowledge, but I’d like to learn more.
We have many spheres that could be automated, where people doing some work could be replaced with robots. Even this greenhouse can be adjusted both for small households and large farms. The principle is the same, only the size differs.
I’d like for the world to develop technologically. I believe machinery, automation and robots are our future.”
