Since our house system is not outdated but at the same time not exactly advanced
enough to offer functions such as gathering information in one place and changing
parameters, I decided to upgrade the existing system with a technology that would
support these functions.
The core of the system is Raspberry Pi with the openHAB 3open source
server. The central unit receives data from all measuring sites through the MQTT
protocol. The server also makes decisions based on the inputs and sends orders
to actuators about the state they should go to.
The data are visualised on a resistive touch screen Nextion, receiving and
sending messages for indication or change of parameters over serial communication with ESP8266. All these functions can also be monitored and controlled
with a smartphone.
This house automation will have the biggest impact on the central heating
system, as it will enable changing the temperature on different parts of the system
and based on that making a decision to achieve higher efficiency. Around the
central heating system, there are many actuators requiring a lot more energy
that the ESP32 can provide; therefore, I decided to make a printed circuit board
to ensure the system would be as compact as possible and allow easy connection
to all actuators and sensors.
The entire system is designed so as to ensure that, in case of an equipment or
program failure, it is still possible to run essential parts manually
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