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Arduino based Embedded Computing System

Technical Report · December 2021

DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.27640.57609

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 Student Research Project

Research in Arduino based Embedded Computing System

Author: Sohangkumar Sureshbhai Patel

Mentor:
Prof. Dr. Frank Denk
1. Introduction
In the first era, Arduino was introduced as a microcontroller platform for making the learning
of microcontrollers, sensors, and actuators easier for students. With the increase in demand for
microcontrollers, the Arduino platform becomes more advantageous due to its larger developer
community, simplicity, multiplatform supported IDE, open-sourcing, and a vast range of
applications [1]. Most of the hardware part of Arduino boards has AVR CPU which are inter-
connected with main parts like memory system, timer system, ADC, serial communication,
port system and interrupt system [2]. Hardware also includes a power supply, USB port,
buttons (reset & boot), external programmer, and pins (power, GND & I/O) [1]. The
programming part of the platform consists of well-structured IDE, multiple sources of
programming libraries, easy uploading, and running of program facilities with serial
communication logs [2]. Arduino is developed at a fast pace in the field of embedded systems
than other microcontrollers. Arduino platform is now coming with the features like inbuilt
wireless communication, GUI interactions, Multiple programming language support (HTML,
Python, C++), and multi-device connectivity.
Arduino consists of most of the connectivity and compatibility features that can be useful in
many applications like IoT, Home automation, Disaster management, Enhancement in
industrial automation (e.g., configuring PLC), Smart wearable, etc. In all these types of
applications majorities of Arduino boards have an ATmega328 microcontroller which has 16
MHz of clock speed and a 32-bit processer with auto-reset features [1]. Normally, Arduino
boards have 10-bit ADC which has a voltage resolution value of 4.88mV for most sensors
which operates between 0 to 5V [3, 2]. This standard formulation and voltage value help in the
integration of sensors accurately. Arduino platform includes various parts for specific purposes
like UART can be used for exchanging data with LCD screens, ADC can be used for reading
sensor data, I2C can be used as a timer interrupt and integrating RTC, SPI can be used for
integrating storage and data exchange purposes like integrating SD card, and other interrupt
system can be used for accumulation purposes [2]. In general Arduino boards have only 8
analog pins available onboard but an extension can be possible via Arduino Mega (8 Pins) and
Arduino Shield board [1]. Arduino shield is itself an extension version for increasing size,
number of I/O pins, and specific features (Interfacing Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GSM/LTE, etc.) [1].
The required power supply for the Arduino board is about 9 to 12 V which can be easily
supplied by any DC power sources like battery, small solar cells, and AC to DC (e.g., 230V
AC to 9/12V DC) converter [1].
In IoT & smart automation applications, Arduino must have to take consideration of integrating
different devices in one place so users can get its access easily. For remote location access, it
must provide a platform that can establish user preferable mode of communication. If a user
wants to access its smart system, the communication system must be available at any place and
at any time. Arduino platform must have to take consideration of costing so user can afford
this system in the worth of its service. Smart home applications are containing appliances,
security systems, furniture control (folding bed, Smart showcase, etc.), and power supply
management. These all need to be operable via laptop, mobile, or tablet and smart remote. It
is also necessary to handle huge buffer memory and processing it to the specific function and
give exact output. For version controlling of firmware and bug-free applications, it should have
to load the new program at any time or in any circumstances at the location of application.
This study explains the development aspects of home automation using hardware and software
features of the Arduino platform. It includes computing, programming, communicating, user
interfacing, and storing data. Home automation aims for three basic operations I) Monitoring
II) Controlling & III) Security. Arduino is compatible with home appliances for controlling
them from remote locations or plan their operations based on environmental conditions. IoT is
the fastest developing scenario for industrial and domestic purposes. It will be the ultimate
option for monitoring environmental situations in home automation. Security systems consist
of securing safe boxes, door alarms, disaster management, thief protection alarming, etc.

Figure 1. Simple block diagram of Home Automation based on Arduino boards.

As shown in Figure 1. we can divide home automation into three subsystems [3, 4, 5, 6]. This
part is detailed discussed in the next part of the study. S. Gunputh, A. P. Murdan & V. Oree
has proposed a design of a low-cost Arduino system that helps in controlling home appliances
and actuating furniture items [3]. The proposed system is based on Arduino mega operated
with web server mode for any remote device access system. S. Naik, S. Sharma, S. Umarwal,
Katta Sri Harsha & S. Das has suggested a BLE HC-05 based real-time monitoring system.
Also, they have included solar-based grid supply and power management which has made it
an improvised home automation system [4]. V. Govindraj, M. Sathiyanarayanan & B.
Abubakar has proposed an IoT-based system that consists of a Wi-Fi-based communication
channel [5]. Their study showed that IoT systems are more appropriate than other conventional
systems. They have suggested a security system based on PIR, Capacitive touch, and Gas
sensors. This security system approach has been hugely extended by Q. I. Sarhan. His study
has added a fire safety system using a DHT22 smoke detection sensor and camera for an
adaptive face detection system for intruders [6] In addition to IoT based study, W. Jabbar, T.
Kian, R. Ramli, S. Zubir, and their co-authors have introduced a prototype model of
IoT@HoMe. They have introduced a more compatible way of using MQTT protocol and IoT
system for home automation system and they have shown good benefits of it by comparing
with other models [7]. C. Tseng, C. Cheng, Y. Hsu & B. Yang has pointed some of the good
warning systems that can enhance security systems. Also, their study shows how AI and GUI’s
can improve the user experience at the time of using IoT systems [8]. These all literature
suggests that optimum system should be discussed at some point which can improvise vision
of automation.
2. Structure of home automation using Arduino platform.
The first essential element of a home automation system is sensors. Some important sensors
for automation are the DHT22-Temperature & Humidity sensor, MQ2-gas sensor, camera,
PIR-motion sensor, LM383-sensing light intensity, FC 37- Rain sensor, HCR04- Water level
sensor, RF transceiver [3, 9, 7]. The Microcontroller board is an important part of the system
which is the centre of the processing medium for all actions. Some most used boards for home
automation are Arduino mega2560, Arduino Uno R3, Arduino Nano, ESP8266, Zigbee,
Arduino Shield, nRF24L01, NodeMCU, and BLE HC-05 [5, 1]. For actuation purposes,
buzzers, relays, stepper motors, solenoid valves, blowing fans, and light bulbs are used [3]. In
the list of communication modes Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GSM/LTE, NFC, Zigbee could be counted
as the preferable mode for automation [8].
Making of a sensor network requires numbers of I/O pins available in microcontroller board
and for that Arduino mega is the best choice in this method. It consists of 16 analog, 14 Digital
PWM, and 54 Digital I/O pins. In the search for an optimum method of communication, Wi-
Fi is found to be the best available mode of user connectivity due to its connectivity with
internet connection and fast bandwidth of data transmission. One of the proposed methods has
concluded that compiling queries from ESP8266 to MQTT and forward those queries to the
HTTPS gives a better option for monitoring and controlling devices over the Internet. Sensor
nodes are connected to the main Arduino board via the nRF24L01 module.

Figure 2 Appliance controlling and Weather monitoring using Arduino Mega [5, 9]

Appliances like a fan, microwave, light bulb, device chargers, water heater, Air-Condition,
heaters, the water pump can be controlled as a proposed method in figure 2. Arduino mega
sends instructions signal of ON/OFF via I/O pins. nRF2401 module can sense the sensor’s
analog output and send it to Arduino mega via wireless transmission. Here ESP/NodeMCU is
wired to the Arduino Mega. Wired connections has two parts I) power supply of
ESP/NodeMCU and II) data transmission via Tx and Rx pins. ESP/NodeMCU can connect
with the internet through the router then via the internet data is transmitted in the form of JSON
string. This string is a small size of query packet which is delivered to the MQTT broker. Then
broker transmits this message to the IoT cloud server via HTTPS. Cloud server converts JSON
string into a database query and then distributes it which will be displayed on website or
application platforms. For user input the same process follows in the reverse manner.
Sometimes for special applications, integration of clock is done by external RTC otherwise
inbuilt functions and internet UTC time is called as a real time function.
As an optional consequences user can use Arduino ethernet shield instead of ESP8266 but it
will create drawback to wired system which may lead to lower range of communication for
nRF24L01. ESP8266 consumes power at a 3.3V whether Arduino board supplies 5 volt, to
regulate that external voltage regulator LM317T is used [3]. NodeMCU has 32-bit processor
with 8 MHz of clock speed internal 20kb of RAM, 10 GPIOs, 4 Mb of EEPROM and TCP/IP
[7]. These internal features make it a good option for replacement of nRF2401 module for
range increment, but it costs higher power consumptions. Zigbee can also replace nRF24L01
module due to its lower power consumption and good connection, but it requires extra cost of
host device and router. Arduino GSM and LTE module is not good replacement for ESP
module due to its extra cost of SIM card module. Also, ESP provides better libraries and
functions compare to other boards. As a communication protocol MQTT is the best and fasted
option available due to its M2M design which enables user to stream their data between two
machines easily. Message is published on released on the topic registration based [8]. In the
same way TCP & HTTPS is best suitable and secure protocol for streaming data through
internet medium [8, 3].
Every sensor and relay board has two common connection pins VCC and GND. Apart from
this DHT22 sensor has a data pin, MQ2 sensor have Digital out and Analog out pins, buzzer
have signal pin, relay board have relay ground and digital input pin. In multiple device system
master-slave approach is used. Zigbee have three parts Zigbee coordinator, Zigbee router and
Zigbee End Device [2]. The process of IoT connection can be seen from below figure 3. It
represents the connection schematic from thing’s registration to property editor.

Figure 3 Arduino based IoT Structure [2]

Programming parts of Arduino have two main parts which are known as setup and loop
functions. For all sensor integration you must define sensor first in the function of setup then
and then you will be able to use it. Loop function consists controlling actions as below figure
4. This diagram only consists generalized form of flow which can be modified as per user’s
requirement. The amazing part of Arduino is sleep mode which helps in saving power
consumption for this computing system.

Figure 4 General Program flow for sensing and controlling actions [2]
Controlling furniture, doors, and windows requires actuation mechanisms, but controlling
appliances only requires electronics connections. This actuation involves voltage regulation
and current control in applications such as smooth or progressive acceleration in door
opening/closing movements, as well as in folding bed applications. Stepper motors are widely
used in this type of application where an H-bridge can be used to control multiple motors in
combined operations. H-bridge consists of MOSFET-based controlling. Cleaning robots are
also one of the Arduino automation which is based on H-bridge operation. The blowing fan
can also be controlled via MOSFET. The water level in the tank can be measured via the
HCR04 sensor and it gives operational feedback to the submersible brushless water pump
which is based on the DC power supply. It helps the user to control the speed of the motor in
the case of a gardening application where the flow of water can be control for irrigation
purposes. In window closing, rain sensors are the triggers for a closing window. Also,
programming gives flexibility to the user to operate manually.
In security applications like system warnings and system failure buzzer is works as an actuator
and it gives warning sirens according to disasters or accidents. Security from thief and intruders
can be detected via integrating PIR motion sensor and Camera. It sends warning message to
remote device and plays warning sirens from buzzers. Enhance security system by using RFID
based gate pass and fingerprint scanner-based bio-metric door lock is also possible with the
integration of Arduino platform. Method of C. Tseng, C. Cheng, Y. Hsu & B. Yang was used
for face recognizion and chat-bot UI for enhencing security system [8]. Instead of using
separate user server system can be replaced by using external processing like raspberry pi or
use of cloud computing. Using of cloud computing makes response fast and safe due to vast
range of processing power available. It also alows user-friendly front-end devlopment of UI
for mobile app and web app. In LPG leakage case MQ2 sensor performs instant actions of
warning
In addition to this power supply can be controlled via integrating MCBs & power sources into
the Arduino board. The monitoring of power consumption and production is also possible via
connecting current transducers and potential transducers circuits to the Arduino board. This
helps in analysing power consumption and production periodically via various data processing
algorithms. Power consumption is the key to maintenance decisions, downgrading of the power
factor indicates some inductive loads are consuming more power than usual. If a generalized
monitoring system exists forecasting of
consumption data will be near to the real-time
consumption this leads to helps powerplants to
produce the exact amount of power. As a rooftop
solar system, it could be channelized into the
grid and automate as a hybrid backup and socket
supply system [4]. For decoration and
conditional lighting purposes LED decorations
can be possible using SCK and MOSI pins of the
controller board as shown in figure 3. It Figure SEQ Figure \* ARABIC 5 LED
separates all incident lights into R-G-B via configuration with ATMega328
moderating analog voltage supply [2]. LM383 sensor sensesCITATIONthe lightBar21 \l 16393 [2]
intensity according to
the environmental condition and it gives instructions to the LED decorators to enhance lighting
experience.
3. Conclusion, Recommendation and Future work
Conclusion
It was observed that the above automation provides fast responsive, errorless working, and
cost-effective solutions. Here, MQTT and ESP module are two major pillars that play a vital
role in automation. The quick and easy implication of these two pillars is easier with the
Arduino platform. Arduino gives the flexibility of use and gives a high range of features that
can help in installing and modifying the system faster. Its simple architecture makes it quick
adaptive from any other system. For creating a small computer system Arduino can do
controlling and computing both processes with the same board. Arduino platform is extremely
compatible with any board with one single IDE. As low voltage operating Arduino consumes
less power and gives higher performance. Additional features are also enhancing experience
which can be observed from sleep mode and designing application-specific hardware using
Arduino shield. Controlling is easy for both the part with mechanical and electronics. As a
power-saving system, IoT architecture should work based on collecting and sending data
packages to the system. In this study, we showed that JSON strings collect data and set it in a
formation that can reduce power consumption [9]. Power supply and renewable power source
monitoring can be automated by a hybrid system which can utilize renewable source in a more
advanced way. As a smart home system IoT@HoMe model runs in a much better way with
the radio frequency module due to its low power nodes. In the programming part user can save
power using dynamic change of waiting period, sending data on warning or out of limit values,
and using differential data comparison for better results. The use of esp8266 enables a high
rate of data transfer which can ensure a reliable model for a large system. A battery-supported
sensor node can be a good stand-alone system as a reliable structure. In this system, the ESP
module works as a gateway system which also applies security protocols for safekeeping data
transfer to cloud and user.
In searching for various options for making a user-friendly User Interface some of them could
worth into similar limitations as limited possible access to multi-type devices. Adafruit IO,
MQTT, and google assistant can be a good combination for that [7]. Applications like chatbot
is a good example to use a Conversational User Interface which uses HTTPS [8]. It enables a
variety of data exchange options for creating web app which can be accessible in any kind of
smart devices including for macOS. Users can access this system from any remote location via
the internet so security alerts can be helpful to the user for taking faster action at the time of
disaster situations like fire, thief, intruders, short circuits, appliance failures, etc. This could be
any system like SMS, email, or mobile app notification from which mobile notification is the
feasible option due to living data streaming can be accessed using a mobile app. As a host
control device, the mobile app could be an authenticated device in local communication with
ESP8266. The host control device can change parameter values as of user-defined value. LPG
gas usage monitoring can be possible using this system so it can give a reminder response to
the user for refill the LPG cylinder. Using AI technology enables face recognition for security
purposes and the Arduino platform can do this integration also.
Of above findings suggests IoT implications in home automation increase the performance,
decreases the cost, and Arduino makes it a simpler way to build. But Arduino have several
limitations like for large system it could not be sufficient to handle huge data processing, too
much hardware component can create complexity for designing their housings and
installations, in complex applications like video streaming and image processing raspberry pie
has good integration due to its good processing power and OS integration. In this system,
Arduino passes data to numbers of a channel which decreases the response time. With this
simple system, Arduino can’t process multiple devices at the same time due to its single-core
processing power.
Recommendations
System on Chip modules like esp8266 could be replaced by Arduino
Yun (figure 7.) which is a combination of ATMega32U4 and Wi-Fi.
This could be used in a lower range of applications effectively.
Integration of the Voice recognition module (figure 6.) can be useful
for disabled people to use this
system effectively. Instead of a
buzzer small size speaker and mic Figure Voice
could help blind people to understand recognition module
situations in the more correct way.
Special guidance system for disabled people can also be
designed by enhancing this system with other physical parts
and parameters. Other SoC modules are also available for
Figure SEQ Figure integrating robotic system to the IoT applications.
\* ARABIC 6 Arduino
Arduino programming
Yun could be easier in implementation via ESP Web update. Users can use
Web updater libraries for version controlling of Arduino code via direct internet. In this system,
the user must take into consideration of requirement of an extra half blank space in EEPROM.
Cloud computing is an essential element for IoT, but small application users could use the
private computer server or use SD card shield (figure 8.) in Arduino
board. SD card is not only adding storage capacity but also gives a
fast response system. As RaspberryPi is good in the camera
application, it can be integrating into the Arduino for ease of
application. For making smart wearable devices Arduino Lilypad
and Arduino Nano are quite good board like if we want to make a
gesture control system for an appliance system these boards are
Figure SEQ
useful because they are small. Modules like Ethernet shield, GSM/LTE Figure \* ARABIC
8 SD cardconnection
module could be helpful at the time of loss of connectivity by providing emergency shield
to the localhost or web host. But in the case of complete connectivity loss, an external storage
service could be work as a temporary or buffer storage service for a short amount of time. In
cloud computing-based processing this could not work properly due to the majority of
programming are stored in cloud computing so localhost cannot forward its query to the
computer and the process could not be complete until instructions did not receive.
The use of more AI models will increase the user experience of controlling appliances and
planning several tasks. The use of various APIs can give numerous types of data handling and
data acquisitions for various applications e.g., Google’s natural voice speech recognize API,
GPS API, etc. Python could be a good enrichment as a programming hand if we are
implementing AI. Arduino has some library support which can help in easily implementing
python. Wired data transmission at a very long range could be possible by using standard
signal Modbus communication protocols e.g., RS232, RS485. This type of data
communication has three operations convert, transmit and receive which is possible by using
MAX232 and MAX485 microchips [2].
Future Work
A fingerprint scanner or retina recognizer could be further work for advancing the security
system of this embedded system. As shown in the study of performance evaluation of different
home automation systems by I. Kuzminykh, A. Carlsson, and M. Yevdokymenko are limited
to the individual component and homogeneous node behavior [9]. Their study could be taken
into consideration and performance should be
improvised via analysing large systems with
heterogeneous node system and selection of exact
sensor node system can be achieved as a result of this
evaluation. As a part of SoC evolution, D. K. Halim
and their colleague have suggested a multi-processor
SoC system for creating a multi-core processing
environment on an Arduino platform. As shown in
figure 9 [10]. Its flow of processing could work in
parallel layer format. This system could be
integrating by using Arduino Shield Buddy TC275. Figure Multicore processing flow
CITATION Hal19 \l 16393 [10]
This multi-core processing could be a revolution in
home automation due to its distributed processing task. Large automation has a bunch of
processes that are classified and some of them are required to be work at the same time. If an
emergency system like camera monitoring and smoke sensor works simultaneously, they will
give optimum output for fire detection earlier and precise results.
 4. Bibliography and Appendix

[1] L. Louis, "Working Principle of Arduino and Using it as a Tool for Study and Research,"
International Journal of Control, Automation, Communication and Systems, vol. 1, 2018/07/11.

[2] S. F. Barrett, "Arduino III Internet of Things," in Synthesis Lectures on Digital, M. A. Thornton,
Ed., Morgan & Claypool Publishers series, 2021.

[3] S. Gunputh, A. P. Murdan and V. Oree, "Design and implementation of a low-cost Arduino-based
smart home system," International Conference on Communication Software and Networks,
2017.

[4] S. Naik, S. Sharma, S. Umarwal, K. S. Harsha and S. Das, "Improvisation of smart home
automation using hybrid sources," in International Conference on Power Systems, 2017 7th
International Conference on Power Systems.

[5] V. Govindraj, M. Sathiyanarayanan and B. Abubakar, "Customary homes to smart homes using
Internet of Things (IoT) and mobile application," in International Conference On Smart
Technologies For Smart Nation (SmartTechCon), 2017.

[6] Q. I. Sarhan, "Arduino Based Smart Home Warning System," in 6th International Conference on
Control Science and Systems Engineering (ICCSSE), 2020.

[7] W. A. Jabbar, T. K. Kian, R. M. Ramli, S. N. Zubir, N. S. M. Zamrizaman, M. Balfaqih, V. Shepelev

and S. Alharbi, "Design and Fabrication of Smart Home With Internet of Things Enabled
Automation System," IEEE Access, vol. 7, 2019.

[8] C. Tseng, C. Cheng, Y. Hsu and B. Yang, "An IoT-Based Home Automation System Using Wi-Fi
Wireless Sensor Networks," in IEEE International Conference on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics
(SMC), 2018.

[9] I. Kuzminykh, A. Carlsson and M. Yevdokymenko, "A Performance Evaluation of Sensor Nodes in
the Home Automation System based on Arduino," in International Scientific-Practical
Conference Problems of Infocommunications, Science and Technology (PIC S&T), 2019.

[10] D. K. Halim, T. C. Ming, N. M. Song and D. Hartono, "Arduino-based IDE for Embedded Multi-
processor System-on-Chip," in 5th International Conference on New Media Studies (CONMEDIA),
2019.

1. Image References:
Figure (6), Figure (7), Figure (8) are taken from www.google.co.in/imghp
Other images have been cited at the end of captions.

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