IoT Sensing and Control Network for Pico-Hydroelectric in the Nepal Himalayas

We describe the Internet-of-Things (IoT) network, the Arduino platform and integrated development environment (IDE), and the JSON communications protocol, to manage a pico-hydroelectric system in a Himalayan Nepalese village. This demonstrates the usability and reliability of open-source IoT devices and platforms in critical green energy infrastructure at difficult-to-reach places. The local system utilizes an RS-485 network that connects five nodes: power room, turbine room, village bathwater tank, a community center bathwater tank, and a biogas digester tank. The power room node contains the master controller of the monitoring and utilization network. The turbine room node consists of a Failsafe module that monitors the voltage, temperature, and water pressure of the turbines. The Failsafe is critical for automatically dumping dangerous excess generated power into the river. The community center and village bathwater nodes, and the biogas digester node, consist of AC Relay modules that monitor the temperatures and send power to their resistive loads on command from the power room, based on village user selected priorities and current energy availability. Close to 100% utilization of the generated power has been achieved, bringing significant benefits to the villagers.