Solar data acquisition wireless network for agricultural applications

This paper describes the implementation of a wireless data acquisition network for agricultural applications based on the Microchip PIC16C71, and the Intel 87C592 microcontrollers. The system uses a set of solar powered wireless data-acquisition stations (SPWAS) linked by radio frequency to a base station (BS). The base station has as main functions the control of the data-acquisition stations and the storage of the data collected by them. The network has been applied to collect outdoor and indoor climate data from a set of greenhouses located at Universidade de Tras-os-Montes e Alto Douro (UTAD), in the northwest of Portugal. Experimental tests have been done since mid June 1996, and the results obtained show that the communications to the BS were performed without errors or loss of data.