Inspiration

Our inspiration came from the idea of a small autonomous city node that can monitor its environment, react on its own, and communicate useful information to people nearby. We wanted to combine comfort, safety, and resource awareness into one compact Arduino-based system.

What it does

The project uses a Mega 2560 to read temperature, humidity, time, and water level, then displays the information on an LCD1602. Every 30 seconds, it triggers an event that rotates a stepper motor for 1024 steps and activates a buzzer and LED in a rhythmic cycle. If the water level sensor detects water, the event stops immediately.

How we built it

We connected the stepper through a ULN2003 driver, used a DS1307 RTC to schedule events, read temperature and humidity with a DHT11, and showed everything on a 1602A LCD in 4-bit mode. We wrote the logic in Arduino C++ so the system could keep updating the screen while managing the timer, motor, and alert behavior at the same time.

Challenges we ran into

The biggest challenge was fitting all the modules into the pin limits while still keeping the design clean and reliable. Another difficulty was making the timing logic work properly so the LCD always stayed updated while the event system and sensor checks were running. We also had to make sure the water sensor could interrupt the event immediately.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We’re proud that we built a complete, autonomous system that combines multiple real-world components into one working prototype. We also managed to stay within the pin budget and keep the project organized around a clear purpose. The final result feels like a small smart-city control node rather than just a demo.

What we learned

We learned how to coordinate several sensors and actuators on a single Arduino without blocking the whole program. We also learned a lot about RTC scheduling, LCD wiring in 4-bit mode, and how to structure code so it can react to sensor input while still displaying live information. Most importantly, we learned how to simplify hardware decisions to fit real constraints.

What's next for équipe 18

Next, we would like to calibrate the water sensor more precisely and improve the display formatting. We could also add data logging, battery optimization, or a wireless communication module so the system can report status to a central dashboard. Another good upgrade would be replacing the shared buzzer/LED output with a more advanced alert interface.

Built With

• arduino