Robo-Tank w/Reefpi: Adding other I2C sensors

[Atrumblood]

Greetings all,

So I have recently set up my first reef aquarium controller and I want to start adding other sensors.
I would like to add a salinity probe and an ORP probe to my toolset.
Ideally, I would like to be able to monitor all the parameters necessary for keeping a healthy reef tank, but some of the probes are crazy expensive.

Does Reefpi / Robo-Tank support those? I would imagine it can as long as the probes use the I2C protocol?

 

[lapin]

@Ranjib would know

 

[robsworld78]

Hi @Atrumblood you are correct, if other sensors or circuits use I2C it's possible to use but reef-pi doesn't directly support salinity or ORP. You can however run an additional script / program on the Pi that will read Atlas circuits, save the data to text file and then it can be imported into reef-pi and used like pH.

For this to work you would need to be a little comfortable using the SSH terminal for Pi as you need to send commands to the script for calibration or change settings. If this sounds good I can help get you going and on a side note I'm working on an app of my own that will support the Atlas salinity and ORP and other circuits from them but it'll be a few months till it's ready.

Things aren't cheap, the circuits would cost about $150 + 2 probes.

Atlas recently came out with a USB version which is better than I2C but I've yet to get one to test it. If you think you can get this running on your Pi using their driver and examples I can help edit the code so data gets saved to text file.

You would need two of these.

Gen 2 Electrically Isolated USB EZO™ Carrier Board | Atlas Scientific

The Gen 2 Electrically Isolated USB EZO™ Carrier Board Allows you to connect your Atlas Scientific circuit directly to your computer or Raspberry Pi.

atlas-scientific.com

This is the EC circuit, it can output conductivity, TDS, salinity and in salt water specific gravity.

EZO™ Conductivity Circuit | Atlas Scientific

The Atlas Scientific EZO-EC Circuit reads conductivity, salinity, and TDS (PPM) which are fundamental measurements of water chemistry.

atlas-scientific.com

This is for ORP.

EZO™ ORP Circuit | Atlas Scientific

Atlas Scientific’s EZO-ORP circuit makes taking high accuracy ORP readings easy - from calibration to timed readings, this circuit is a drop-in solution to a complex measurement.

atlas-scientific.com

 

[Atrumblood]

Hi @Atrumblood you are correct, if other sensors or circuits use I2C it's possible to use but reef-pi doesn't directly support salinity or ORP. You can however run an additional script / program on the Pi that will read Atlas circuits, save the data to text file and then it can be imported into reef-pi and used like pH.

For this to work you would need to be a little comfortable using the SSH terminal for Pi as you need to send commands to the script for calibration or change settings. If this sounds good I can help get you going and on a side note I'm working on an app of my own that will support the Atlas salinity and ORP and other circuits from them but it'll be a few months till it's ready.

Things aren't cheap, the circuits would cost about $150 + 2 probes.

Atlas recently came out with a USB version which is better than I2C but I've yet to get one to test it. If you think you can get this running on your Pi using their driver and examples I can help edit the code so data gets saved to text file.

You would need two of these.

Gen 2 Electrically Isolated USB EZO™ Carrier Board | Atlas Scientific

The Gen 2 Electrically Isolated USB EZO™ Carrier Board Allows you to connect your Atlas Scientific circuit directly to your computer or Raspberry Pi.

atlas-scientific.com

This is the EC circuit, it can output conductivity, TDS, salinity and in salt water specific gravity.

EZO™ Conductivity Circuit | Atlas Scientific

The Atlas Scientific EZO-EC Circuit reads conductivity, salinity, and TDS (PPM) which are fundamental measurements of water chemistry.

atlas-scientific.com

This is for ORP.

EZO™ ORP Circuit | Atlas Scientific

Atlas Scientific’s EZO-ORP circuit makes taking high accuracy ORP readings easy - from calibration to timed readings, this circuit is a drop-in solution to a complex measurement.

atlas-scientific.com

Hey man, I appreciate the reply.

I am decently familiar with SSH and linux in general. I have some programming experience so it would be nothing new to me.

I think my only area of confusion would be how to access the various GPIO ports from a script (python I assume).

Can you point me to some documentation on how I can do that?

Thanks,

 

[robsworld78]

Hey man, I appreciate the reply.

I am decently familiar with SSH and linux in general. I have some programming experience so it would be nothing new to me.

I think my only area of confusion would be how to access the various GPIO ports from a script (python I assume).

Can you point me to some documentation on how I can do that?

Thanks,

Great, if you go I2C you can connect to external I2C port on controller or with USB just plug into a Pi USB. USB is better as the I2C is prone to electrical noise.

This covers the 3 ways to connect.

https://atlas-scientific.com/files/pi_sample_code.pdf

And if you go to the circuit listing and click on "documents and downloads" there's lots of info.

EZO™ Conductivity Circuit | Atlas Scientific

The Atlas Scientific EZO-EC Circuit reads conductivity, salinity, and TDS (PPM) which are fundamental measurements of water chemistry.

atlas-scientific.com

In reef-pi you use the file driver to read text files, put in the file path, add an analog connector and then you can use the pH tab to import.

 

[Ranjib]

We'll be adding the EC/ORP support if folks continue to use it. I didn't add it in the beginning because I was not interested (less necessary and high price/maintenance). I'll keep this in mind for the next major release

 

[SantaMonica]

First time seeing this Robo Tank equipment. Neat.

 

[Atrumblood]

We'll be adding the EC/ORP support if folks continue to use it. I didn't add it in the beginning because I was not interested (less necessary and high price/maintenance). I'll keep this in mind for the next major release

Glad to hear that. IMO it is nice to have options even if they are not popular.

I am a metrics junkie and so the more data I can get the better.

 

[Atrumblood]

Great, if you go I2C you can connect to external I2C port on controller or with USB just plug into a Pi USB. USB is better as the I2C is prone to electrical noise.

This covers the 3 ways to connect.

https://atlas-scientific.com/files/pi_sample_code.pdf

And if you go to the circuit listing and click on "documents and downloads" there's lots of info.

EZO™ Conductivity Circuit | Atlas Scientific

The Atlas Scientific EZO-EC Circuit reads conductivity, salinity, and TDS (PPM) which are fundamental measurements of water chemistry.

atlas-scientific.com

In reef-pi you use the file driver to read text files, put in the file path, add an analog connector and then you can use the pH tab to import.

Thank you for your reply.
This looks very helpful.

 

[Atrumblood]

First time seeing this Robo Tank equipment. Neat.

It seems like a good investment and is expandable to whatever you need (as long as you don't mind a little DIY).

I got it because it seemed like a great way to dive into automation without spending 500-1000 dollars to get started. If you include the cost of a pH probe, you can get a system going for less than 300 once you factor in the cost of the raspberry pi unit.

 

[robsworld78]

First time seeing this Robo Tank equipment. Neat.

I hope to have some exciting days ahead, hard at it.

 

[Coldrush]

Thanks for the info in this topic. I was searching for how to measure salinity/ORP with Reef Pi and ended up here after Google. I hope folks don't mind me hijacking this topic

I am about to order an aquarium computer and I'm currently making a decision about which ecosystem to go for. The Robotank + Reefpi is my preferred option due the fact that it is selfhosted as well as open (source) although it is a bit more work.

The main limitations seems to be the lack of options to track salinity/ORP out of the box. @robsworld78 I'm about to order Robotank Deluxe and I'm doing my homework. From what I understand, I could still get the values into Reef Pi by following the instructions above. I understand the basics behind SSH and what not (I'm a home assistant / smart home geek) but my programming skills are limited. I understand that I would need scripts to get the values from pi into Reef Pi. Would you mind giving me a bit more detailed instructions as well as let me know if the scripts are publicly available? Thanks for your help!

 

[Ranjib]

Thanks for the info in this topic. I was searching for how to measure salinity/ORP with Reef Pi and ended up here after Google. I hope folks don't mind me hijacking this topic

I am about to order an aquarium computer and I'm currently making a decision about which ecosystem to go for. The Robotank + Reefpi is my preferred option due the fact that it is selfhosted as well as open (source) although it is a bit more work.

The main limitations seems to be the lack of options to track salinity/ORP out of the box. @robsworld78 I'm about to order Robotank Deluxe and I'm doing my homework. From what I understand, I could still get the values into Reef Pi by following the instructions above. I understand the basics behind SSH and what not (I'm a home assistant / smart home geek) but my programming skills are limited. I understand that I would need scripts to get the values from pi into Reef Pi. Would you mind giving me a bit more detailed instructions as well as let me know if the scripts are publicly available? Thanks for your help!

Use atlas scientific ezo circuit and add them as ph probe/module in reef-pi and you should be able to read the ec or orp measurements.
the official ph board can be used for ph as well as orp. For ec we don’t have any open source board support. Let’s not hijack this thread, and start a separate post if you have queries .
Sincerely
Ranjib

 

[robsworld78]

Thanks for the info in this topic. I was searching for how to measure salinity/ORP with Reef Pi and ended up here after Google. I hope folks don't mind me hijacking this topic

I am about to order an aquarium computer and I'm currently making a decision about which ecosystem to go for. The Robotank + Reefpi is my preferred option due the fact that it is selfhosted as well as open (source) although it is a bit more work.

The main limitations seems to be the lack of options to track salinity/ORP out of the box. @robsworld78 I'm about to order Robotank Deluxe and I'm doing my homework. From what I understand, I could still get the values into Reef Pi by following the instructions above. I understand the basics behind SSH and what not (I'm a home assistant / smart home geek) but my programming skills are limited. I understand that I would need scripts to get the values from pi into Reef Pi. Would you mind giving me a bit more detailed instructions as well as let me know if the scripts are publicly available? Thanks for your help!

Hi Coldrush, yeah you could use the Atlas circuits and import the data into reef-pi. I just sent a message to them about the USB carrier board. Instead of I2C this uses UART and I want to make sure multiple circuits can be read at the same time using different USB ports on Pi. I don't see any sample code so just want to make sure. I'm hoping the USB will be ok as it's a more reliable method of communication. I'll let you know what I hear back. Either way I can help, feel free to start a thread if you like.

 

[PlantedAquaChicago]

We'll be adding the EC/ORP support if folks continue to use it. I didn't add it in the beginning because I was not interested (less necessary and high price/maintenance). I'll keep this in mind for the next major release

This is my first post on this board, I'm a brand new user and I hope I'm not derailing the thread as you said above. I'm curious if you've included these sensors as you were discussing here. If not, can someone point me in the right direction how I could get something like this working?

Thanks for everything, this seems like an amazing platform!

 

[SahnCH]

Hi there !
Same situation here - would you have update on the PH sensor compatibility with Robo-Tank / Reef Pi ?

 

[robsworld78]

Hi there !
Same situation here - would you have update on the PH sensor compatibility with Robo-Tank / Reef Pi ?

Sorry for the late reply, I'm just seeing this now. The controller does have a pH circuit built in and I have standalone version that can be connected if a 2nd one is needed. Reef-pi also supports the reef-pi open source pH circuit or the Atlas circuit.

 

[SahnCH]

Hi Robs!
Sorry I was tired when writting the message, I meant salinity im thinking to order a robo tank but just would like to avoid ordering it before a new version of the hardware is released with salinity capability
Cheers,
Nico

 

[Ranjib]

This is my first post on this board, I'm a brand new user and I hope I'm not derailing the thread as you said above. I'm curious if you've included these sensors as you were discussing here. If not, can someone point me in the right direction how I could get something like this working?

Thanks for everything, this seems like an amazing platform!

i have tested the rtd temperature sensor, and i know the orp and ec sensor should work as well (because they all ezo circuit, the protocol is same). You have to do the i2c mode conversion and calibration with atlas scientific library.. you can read the probe, chart and control things through it using the ph module

scratch that , didnt realize this is robo tank specific. My response was general reef-pi with raspberry pi + ezo driver (or tentacle shields). @robsworld78 is the right person to provide specifics on robotank integration. Let me know if you need anything from the reef-pi controller/software side

 

[robsworld78]

Hey Nico, I'm trying to get an EC circuit but that's been the case for a while. There's nothing special required to integrate the Atlas circuits, the controller has some header pins so it's easy to connect. As @Ranjib mentioned Atlas should read ok directly from reef-pi but calibration would need to be done using the test scripts provided by Atlas. The calibration is stored on the circuit so it'll stay with it. One thing to note though, the EC circuit can output 4 parameters, I believe reef-pi will only capture the conductivity. If you wanted to view all 4 parameters you would need to run a separate script full time that saves the parameters to file which can then be imported into reef-pi using the file driver, doing this is more advanced though.