We wanted to tackle water wastage in everyday households and businesses. Small leaks, unattended taps, and inefficient water usage often go unnoticed. This leads to waste, environmental impact and higher bills. WaterDrop was inspired by the idea of combining sensor technology with automation to conserve water. WaterDrop detects when water is flowing using an ultrasonic sensor, monitors usage, and displays the status on an LCD. If water flows continuously over a certain period of time, it can shut the tap to prevent waste. The system helps users to save water, track the consumption, and reduce environmental impact. We used an Arduino Uno to read data from an ultrasonic sensor and control a servo motor that opens and closes the tap. A 16x4 LCD displays the water status and distance. To make water detection possible, we implemented a system to prevent false triggers. The result is a reliable water-saving system built with Arduino components. We gained hands-on experience in integrating sensors and microcontrollers for a real world application. We also learned how to implement algorithms and how to design a simple user interface to monitor water.
Challenges we ran into:
- Wiring problems and glitches with the LCD
- False readings showing the wrong distance and inaccurately showing the usage status
- Compiling for native apps (Android IOS) without sideloading
Accomplishments that we're proud of:
- Achieved reliable water flow detection with no false readings.
- Automated tap control to prevent water wastage
- Created an interface on the LCD that shows water status and distance
- Created Backend with live update support, sign in, authentication.
- Frontend with basic usage metrics, and live connection with backend.
What's next for WaterDrop:
- Integrate WiFi connectivity to send water usage data to a mobile app.
- Add analytics to track water consumption patterns
- Expand the system for leak detection in larger buildings
Below in our try out links showcases the code we used to develop everything and the google drive showcases a video of how the our prototype app works and the logs and information being sent to the app as well as how you can control the device using just your phone as a tool.
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