Designing and implementing the arduino-based nutrition feeding automation system of a prototype scaled nutrient film technique (NFT) hydroponics using total dissolved solids (TDS) sensor

Hydroponics is a new breakthrough in farming because it no longer uses soil as a planting medium, and uses water instead. In the hydroponic system, the fertilizer used is mixed into water, which is then referred to as hydroponic nutrition or nutrient solution. The nutrient concentration in the solution, which is then indicated by the electrical conductivity (EC), is very influential on crop production. The nutrient concentration usually mixed manually by combining the fertilizer and the water in the right amount. Therefore, through this research, a nutrition feeding automation system of a prototype scaled Nutrient Film Technique (NFT) hydroponics is prepared. The system is designed with a control center using the Arduino UNO R3 board. The system is equipped with GP2Y0A21 proximity sensor as a water level detector, TDS sensor as a detector of electrical conductivity of the nutrient solution, and servo motor as an opening device of the faucet in the nutrient container. The research resulted that the system is capable of performing water delivery automatically when the water level is less than the minimum level, and add the nutrients automatically when the nutrient solution concentration is below 800ppm.