water level and water pressure sensor

[captain_haddock]

Hello all,

It is very kind of you if you don't mind to show me some hint about this problem.

I have inquiry from government in tropical area which is about measuring water level
and water pressure inside the water pipe for public water system reservoir.

I know I can make it out of AVR microprocessor, but now I'm looking for factory made, ready to use
and have factory guaranty at least 1 year.

Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance

 

[KlausST]

Hi,

Something like this?


Klaus

 

[barry]

Or this...

 

[c_mitra]

It is not clear what you mean by water level inside the water pipe for public water reservoir.

It is confusing because the water pipes are usually at a lower level when compared to the reservoir and they will be always full (unless the reservoir is completely empty).

Bourdon type pressure gauges are both rugged and cheap and does not need electric power (but consider if you have to take 100s of readings everyday)

If you are interested in measuring the water level in the reservoir, (and possibly at several points) consider tools for depth measurements).

But if you want the results to be fed at a central office somewhere else, then consider electrical and wireless devices too. They can help you get real time results.

 

[captain_haddock]

Thank you, but I need something to read the data and send it to central office 100 miles away.

wireless device is indeed specified, but none come within frequency allowed over here.

 

[KlausST]

Hi,

Please give meaningful specifications like
* resolution
* accuracy
* sampling rate
* pressure range
* interface
* protocol
.... and so on.

Thank you, but I need something to read the data and send it to central office 100 miles away.

This can be done by an employee. Don´t you agree?

Usually I like specifications with values and units. Like your "100 miles". But the results won´t differ much if it is 10 miles or 1000 miles.
Optical communication will not work. Thus either wired (telephone, modem, internet ...)
or radio. But for directional rido you need to knwo whether there is a a flat see or mountains between the two stations.

wireless device is indeed specified, but none come within frequency allowed over here.

"over here" is where? Alaska? Sahara? Easter Island? (probalbly not - there is nothing around in 100miles distance)

Klaus

 

[c_mitra]

If it is public water distribution system, then possibly mobile communication is available and can be used. Each device can be configured to send the pressure reading (or level reading or both) every 10 mins and they can be collected by the central office.

If mobile communication facility is available, the transmitter may only need a SIM card!

 

[captain_haddock]

>Please give meaningful specifications like
* resolution
* accuracy
* sampling rate
* pressure range
* interface
* protocol
.... and so on.<
I haven't got the proper permission to check the site, as usual government red tape might take weeks to get the paper done.

>But for directional rido you need to knwo whether there is a a flat see or mountains between the two stations. <
It is actually in BALI, right below the mountain, recent eruption effectively kill the public water service.

 

[c_mitra]

If I understand correctly, your job is more than finding water level and water pressure in a pipe; you will have some integral job that consists of

1. you need to monitor both pressure and level at periodic intervals;

2. Keep a log of the data even if nobody is going to look at it;

3. Transmit the data to a remote station where it will be archived;

4. Define trigger conditions that will cause an alert;

5. Build in some degree of redundancy in the system.

There are many types of pressure sensors- but the real task is to collect the data at regular intervals and wirelessly transmit the data to a remote location. If the range is more than a few meters, you will need to service of a mobile service provider: using any other long range and high power transmitter (and you will need 100s of them) may be illegal and may be prohibited.

My suggestion is the opposite: first plan your strategy and layout and bother last about the pressure and level transducers.

 

[BradtheRad]

Since the project may be temporary, and involves the government then they may arrange permission to send data via shortwave transmitter. Data can be in the form of morse code, created by turning the oscillator on and off.

The shortwave allocation is from 1.7 to 30 MHz. You'll want to research which band is best for your geography, latitude, weather, and radio traffic. A ham operator can advise you, and he may even be aware of radio stations, repeaters, satellites you might purchase time to use for your operation, etc.

Try to locate the antenna at the top of a mountain. Or if that's impossible then lift the antenna high via helium balloon, to give you greater transmitting range. Hope that your signal bounces off the ionosphere. (The only way you can have line-of-sight is by raising your antennas a mile high.)
Consider that electric power can come from batteries, or wind, water, solar, etc.

 

[captain_haddock]

My suggestion is the opposite: first plan your strategy and layout and bother last about the pressure and level transducers.

Thank you for the support, it is exactly what am I doing, but the other team member is busy themselves with politics and bribe.

 

[c_mitra]

busy themselves with politics and bribe

These two are like god: omnipresent and omnipotent. In developed countries, they tend to rise to the top and the people at the bottom are just happy to have a decent life. In poor countries, they are every where. I am reminded of the old English perverb: what cannot be cured must be endured.

 

[varul92]

Hello, just going through your post and if I am not late then I can suggest you about Wireless Pressure and temperature sensor which is using Xbe module (using 900 MHz and 2.4 GHz freuency) for remote areas as well as easy to use with Microcontroller like Avr or directly use with laptops with some dedicated designed software to use with them. Even If you want a guide to use it, is also available on website

Hope this might help you out.