RoadTest: IDT Wireless Flow Rate, Humidity&Temp Sensing Kit
Author: gam3t3ch
Creation date:
Evaluation Type: Development Boards & Tools
Did you receive all parts the manufacturer stated would be included in the package?: True
What other parts do you consider comparable to this product?:
What were the biggest problems encountered?:
Detailed Review:
I thought there would be more to it then meets the eye. But I was sadly mistaken of how closed the system and how reliant it was on AWS.
There is no problem with using a cloud service to run your devices off but this device does not and will probably never be what it should be.
Reasons why I say that and then we will get into it more.
Setting up data logging on a offline or record-able format without the internet is next to nothing. You will get the real time view on the local
dashboard but if you want anything more you will need to have it set up with AWS. This is a big bummer as I was hoping it would play a role
in my project that I wanted to do so at this point it's really not possible without a internet connection to use the functionality of the unit to its
fullest potential. This would be a big deal if lets say someone from a greenhouse wanted to play with the device to incorporate it into their
setup which they might not have long range WiFi or sufficient data plan to allow it to do its thing. To me I like the ease of using a cloud service
but rely on being able to have a hard local copy on any given device in case of failure on the web end of things.
I have been looking for a flow sensor and the FS2012 seems to fit the bill but not in this setup that's for sure.
The case for sensors has zero mounting options as does the wifi hub for the unit.
Now lets have a look at the sensor location in the unit. so if I run warm or cold liquid through the unit will it conflict with temperature being displayed?
Probably one of my biggest pet peeves lately on sensor boards I love them but test it out before you decide to put a sensor to close to another that might
skew the reading in any shape or form.
A little test on the unit.
Probably not the best testing setup but no less it did the trick.
Recap this is the start of the test the initial startup show's the temp at 21oC which was the room temp as you can see it raised to 23.17oC
With the Cold water test the temp dropped from 23.17oC to 20.59oC
Took about 14 minutes to get the temp to settle back to its starting point.
So Room temp = 21oC
unit temp after calming down = 23.17oC
Temp with cold water run through it = 20.59oC
So I guess its safe to say that yes it does skew with the reading both the unit and the water.
I would certainly have to play with this in a more isolated setup will have to come up with something.
Now I am not going to go into the AWS Setup of it all as I feel testing it at this point is my main concern but I will certainly be seeing if I can do something with
that flow sensor out of this setup for my one project that I want to do as it would be a vital asset to it as data collection and monitor will be one of my biggest
concerns on the project.
Reading the PDF Manual for the unit is pretty straight forward on the setup of things. You can read the here: https://www.farnell.com/datasheets/2722508.pdf
But on the bright side their packaging is by far one of the best I have ever seen everything was all snug as a bug in that box. Props to whoever thought of that.
I will have to certainly come up with other test to figure out the best way to get the best results for the unit so the readings are of actual. I know nxp in their
rapid iot kit actually allowed you to adjust the offset readings which made things a lot more nicer to produce accurate results.
So I can see this being a entry level into designing for aws and getting the understanding of sensors but being able to implement it into a working setup and
getting accurate readings right away seems a bit off in my books. So at this point implementing the products into designs would be more ideal for me.
I had a lot of fun with this and will be trying some other pumps along with the unit as I did use a bigger pump then I probably should have.
