Primary objective: Creation of an accurate scale model of the solar system that fits within a 1000 acer ranch in West Texas. All planets must be visable from the Sun.
This specific set of projects covers the Design/Build of Planet nodes that represent outer planets as an LED light source.
Projects include, but are not limited to.
1. Design/build of a weather resistant, durable and aesthitically appropriate container to house all components safely in the extreme West Texas climate.
2. Design/build of a multi-color, dimable, controllable, programable LED light source that can be tuned to represent each planet (visable at night).
3. Design/build (Hardware & Software) of an Arduino-style controller (MCU) to operate/manage all node functions
4. Design/build of a remote/self-contained Power System capable of meeting 7x24 power requirements for all node functions. Includes:
- Power source (battery) capabable of maintaining all node functions for a defined cycle (assumed 24 hours with enough
reserve capacity to handle cloudy days). - Solar recharging system capable to charge the power source to required levels
- Power management controller to avoid over charging / over draining battery to maximize usable lifespan
5. Design/build of a robust, low-power RX/TX network to enable reliable 2-way serial communication between nodes and the mothership master controller.
6. Design/build of the mothership master control unit
- Provides centralized, yet independent control of all planet nodes
- Capable of wireless serial network connectivity with each planet node for the purpose of sending control commands and
receiving status reports from each node. - Hosts a basic web-based application for viewing status of each planet with the ability to turn the LED on/off, change color, change brightness, put in "find me" mode, etc.
- WIFI connectivity for web browser access on the local WIFI network
- Appropriate user-based security if future public Internet access to the web-application is desired.