Koada project (Open-source LED Controller / automation)

Hey,

During the last two month, I worked hard building & optimizing our 2 Samsung F-Series build (3x3 & 4x4)

After some testing, we're quite happy with those two prototypes, but now we want to go a bit further. We need to create an easy way for us to manage more than ten lamps, so we decided to start a new automation grow system.

The name of our open-source & free project is Koada.

Our primary goal is to create a web-app (Working on Android/IOS & any recent web browser on your computer) who can manage a group of lamps powered by type B Meanwell drivers.

The main features will be:

1) Managing light schedule w/ PWM
2) Advanced spectrum controller (Dynamic spectrum)
3) Switching drivers On/Off completely with a connected power switch (relay)
4) Managing optional led modules (Far red for example).
5) Simulating sunset/sunrise w/ PWM
6) The ability to create different plant group to assign different light schedule/parameters & track different info (days since flowering, nutrition problem, days since last watering etc)
7) Managing watering with solenoid valves & wireless humidity sensor.
8 ) Conditional triggering, E.g Automatically adjusting light power to keep the grow space in a specific temperature range.

To achieve that, we will use the cheap Raspberry Pi (Model 3B for Wifi/Bluetooth support) computer with a PWM controller hat. (50-100$ depending on where you live)

We also have some mid-term goals:


1) Managing hydroponics installation (PH/TDS)
2) Creating an alarm & log system with temperature/humidity sensor to prevent problems, monitor & improve grow routine
3) Selling fair-priced kit (Installed raspberry pi with the proper hat, solenoid valve, PWM cable & connector, etc)

I will keep this post updated with the project's progression.

This project is based in Switzerland.

We expect our first release for mid-October.

Some pics of the actual software

You sure this isnt called Kiasmos? It's a project based off Ledgardener Forums

Guess they changed the name.

We just changed the name because Kiasmos is a popular electronic music duo. We don't want to use a registered trademark as our project name!

Cool, I've been following this as well as a couple other members

Subbed

@Randomblame that project is progressing nicely

Yeah, thanks! I've read the ledgarderner thread about it and it sounds very interesting.
I've often thought about getting a bluefish controller but it was not worth the $200 just for PWM dimming and sun rise / sun set simulation. Most of them are for aquarists not for growing. @VegasWinner has made something similar with his growgreen or gogreen controller but have not read from him for a long time (there were often unpleasant insults).
Maybe he decided to leave rui..
Nice that it is a "european project", so no additional customs for me and shipping is a lot cheaper, lol!
In the end, I need probably just the code. I can get the RasPI + PWM extension and a few cables myself.
But that just makes the project the more interesting.

We're currently starting the production of our PCB that allows to control up to 16x Meanwell driver & 8x relay without any additional power supply.

We're still figuring out how we will distribute this project. We came to the conclusion that we just can't maintain different version of the software & that hosting the server on a RPI will be a difficult option because of some dependencies we have to use.

For now, the first version of the software will be hosted on our swiss server (Total confidentiality, thanks to our law) & we should release the server & client code. But we probably won't have the time to release any serious documentation before December.

We sadly are forced to generate some revenue (We're working full time on this project since 4 month),
so our primary goal is to sell a fair priced, configurable, plug & play, Swiss made, Koada box able to control 16x drivers, switch on & off 8 devices (Led driver, solenoid valve, etc) with an optional co2, temperature & humidity sensor (Sensirion scd30) & all the other Koada features.

The full box with relay & power supply for solenoid valve should cost less than 200$ & the version with just the PWM controller (no relay, only compatible with drivers that can be dimmed down to 0%) should cost around 130$

Our PCB will also be available for DIYer!

Thank you for your support!

Hyakutak said:

We're currently starting the production of our PCB that allows to control up to 16x Meanwell driver & 8x relay without any additional power supply.

We're still figuring out how we will distribute this project. We came to the conclusion that we just can't maintain different version of the software & that hosting the server on a RPI will be a difficult option because of some dependencies we have to use.

For now, the first version of the software will be hosted on our swiss server (Total confidentiality, thanks to our law) & we should release the server & client code. But we probably won't have the time to release any serious documentation before December.

We sadly are forced to generate some revenue (We're working full time on this project since 4 month),
so our primary goal is to sell a fair priced, configurable, plug & play, Swiss made, Koada box able to control 16x drivers, switch on & off 8 devices (Led driver, solenoid valve, etc) with an optional co2, temperature & humidity sensor (Sensirion scd30) & all the other Koada features.

The full box with relay & power supply for solenoid valve should cost less than 200$ & the version with just the PWM controller (no relay, only compatible with drivers that can be dimmed down to 0%) should cost around 130$

Our PCB will also be available for DIYer!

Thank you for your support!

Click to expand...

This project is getting better and better ..
Data security is a big problem here(meta-data acquisition, ...) and I'm glad if you run the server in Switzerland.
Prices are appropriate for the feature set offered. With Bluefish you pay about the same without accessories and although you can use it for growing, it remains optimized for aquariums. Comparable to what you guys offered for 130..
I'm definately a DIYer and will follow the thread until you finished the project.

Hyakutak said:

We're currently starting the production of our PCB that allows to control up to 16x Meanwell driver & 8x relay without any additional power supply.

We're still figuring out how we will distribute this project. We came to the conclusion that we just can't maintain different version of the software & that hosting the server on a RPI will be a difficult option because of some dependencies we have to use.

For now, the first version of the software will be hosted on our swiss server (Total confidentiality, thanks to our law) & we should release the server & client code. But we probably won't have the time to release any serious documentation before December.

We sadly are forced to generate some revenue (We're working full time on this project since 4 month),
so our primary goal is to sell a fair priced, configurable, plug & play, Swiss made, Koada box able to control 16x drivers, switch on & off 8 devices (Led driver, solenoid valve, etc) with an optional co2, temperature & humidity sensor (Sensirion scd30) & all the other Koada features.

The full box with relay & power supply for solenoid valve should cost less than 200$ & the version with just the PWM controller (no relay, only compatible with drivers that can be dimmed down to 0%) should cost around 130$

Our PCB will also be available for DIYer!

Thank you for your support!

Click to expand...

why exactly does the project need a web server? why can't one run its own server at home?

sethimus said:

why exactly does the project need a web server? why can't one run its own server at home?

Click to expand...

I believe they are just talking about where the code repo is stored. I assume they are talking about version control like git since they mention not being able to support multiple versions. I could be misunderstanding them in which case I agree. What are the pros to having this web based and not local?

sethimus said:

why exactly does the project need a web server? why can't one run its own server at home?

Click to expand...

You're sadly right.

We cannot provide a local server for multiples reasons:

As I said before, we're sadly forced to generate some revenues & our priority is the Koada box. We have to create something plug & play and very easy to use. We have developed an Android/Ios app that connects to the RPI 3B using Bluetooth and configures it (Wifi, updates, connection to a remote server...). We have an alert/notification system, and having the possibility to control/monitor the growspace remotely is a must for us. And having to configure the router for port forwarding isn't an option (not plug & play and easy for our customer).

The second problem is about the dev dependencies. MongoDB, our database, isn't supported anymore on Raspberry Pi. You can install an old version, but they aren't maintained anymore (Security vulnerability, performance problem, etc). But we hope Raspbian will be upgraded to 64 bit to support MongoDB (or the inverse), or maybe someone in our community will create an image with another OS than Raspbian that is 64 bit with Koada on it. We would love to do all those things, but for now, we just don't have the time. That's also why local hosting is problematic to maintain. Updating a single server is far more easy for us than updating thousands of RPI around the world. But as I said, the server & client should be made available on Gitlab under GNU AGPLv3, so if you want to host it by yourself, you can! But during the first month, we won't have the time to make the update process easy & write serious documentation.

I'm a strong defensor of local hosting & privacy. We won't ask you for any personal informations and will provide solutions for more privacy asap (Tor on RPI, independent vpn services). My hands are just tied for now.

ok, that sounds a lot better

sethimus said:

ok, that sounds a lot better

Click to expand...

Thank you!

Anyway, I just wanted to say that any ideas/opinions are welcomed!

Beta time!

Hi!

We're happy to start the beta of Koada! If you're interested in testing the software and/or the hardware, please register here.

The first beta will features:

- Light schedule for PWM & Non-PWM driver (relay)
- Custom light module support (far red)
- Dynamic spectrum (power variation over time w/PWM)
- Sunrise & Sunset simulation

The second stage of the beta should features:

- Sensors (Temperature, Humidity, Co2)
- Environment alert (Mail / Push notification)
- Solenoid valve triggering for Co2 enrichment
- Support PWM fan for Temperature & CO2 control.

That sounds good. I'm currently planning to rebuild my light but It will took some time because I've not ordered anything to date. Makes no sense when I can provide data in 10 weeks or so. That's why I am unfortunately out but I hope others show interest and register for beta tester.

Thank you for the support Randomblame!

We have a lot of demands from the US. So we will probably organize a second round of the hardware beta for people living outside of the EU!

Hyakutak said:

Thank you for the support Randomblame!

We have a lot of demands from the US. So we will probably organize a second round of the hardware beta for people living outside of the EU!

Click to expand...

Sounds like a smart idea, the US market is probably a bit bigger and I'm pretty sure a lot US growers (outside Cal.)would be happy about more data security!

Just a small update:

We are waiting for our Koada PCBs to be made in the USA, it should take 3-4 days before shipping & we'll send news for the beta at the end of the month.