Sensor Data Monitoring using IoT App for Coveyor
System
Farah Alwani Binti Razali, Dr. Sukarnur Che Abdullah
Universiti Teknologi MARA
[email protected] ABSTRACT
Nowadays, our lives are filled with many of the most recent inventions that are meant to make our lives as humans
easier. Especially, a sensor that works in a certain way. A sensor is like an "intelligent control system" that helps
people do their research and find things. Cheap sensors can be used by designers to make a prototype for a
hardware environment that can collect data. In this paper, a microcontroller system synchronises several input
devices, and the data collected by each sensor is transmitted wirelessly to the cloud by an IoT (Internet of Things)
device using the Internet of Things. The data is then recorded and monitored from a graphical user interface on
the web as a real-time way to apply data mining algorithms afterwards. The conveyor system is used in this study
to get the sensor data relationships from three different types of data: IR sensor, temperature sensor, and vibration
sensor. Each sensor's data has a different effect on the way the conveyor system is being watched. Thus, this study
examines the classification of sensor data utilising a conveyor system. A test prototype of the hardware and
software design is made so that data can be monitored. The main microprocessor for this system is ESP32, which
supports the real-time operating system. There will be an Arduino IoT cloud where the sensor data will be stored.
In the end, the outstanding results for each sensor are shown. Output data is shown in a way that allows for
precise design techniques to be used to keep the conveyor belt stable and secure during an emergency control
break.
Keywords: Real-Time, Internet of Things, Cloud, Conveyor, Sensor monitoring system
1. INTRODUCTION
In today's world, sensors are utilised in a wide variety of applications such as smartphones, automobiles,
industrial controls, climate monitoring, health monitoring, and oil exploration. Sensor technology today appears
to be the ultimate sensor machine, complete with a human being as the ultimate sensor machine. When it comes
to data forecasting and smart farming, a lot of different sensors are used to keep an eye on the weather. There are
many ways that farming can be affected by the weather, like how watering systems are controlled and how precise
farming is. The C2 (Command and Control) system can be fully aware of what is going on thanks to IoT devices
that collect and combine data from a variety of sources. [3, 4]. IoT allows digital information to be collected and
shared by using a wide range of devices that generate a lot of data[5]. Data technologies use information
technology to help businesses and the government make better decisions. They do this by looking at the underlying
regularities and patterns of data and giving businesses and the government a quick heads-up about possible threats
(malware, terrorism, fraud, etc.) [4]. This allows the military to make quick decisions that are agile, smart,
resilient, and trustworthy to meet mission needs. Healthcare practitioners have also taken advantage of the Internet
of Things monitoring technologies to save time and receive emergency notifications more quickly [6–9]. It was
possible to track patients at the hospital using smart sensors and smartphone devices, which saved time and
allowed for speedier alerts. If you want to keep an eye on things like agriculture, health care, manufacturing, and
education, you can use IoT monitoring. Many previous systems have been used to make smart monitoring and
control systems for a wide range of things. Aktham and other people showed off a way to keep an eye on pressure
regulators from afar. They used IoT communication technology to do this. The technology improves the design
of engineering lab equipment by allowing small tasks to be done through a Wi-Fi connection [11].
The primary advantage of the conveyor belts that the system often employs is that it is capable of
preventing a large amount of material from pouring out. Whenever powdered materials such as cement, concrete,
coal and so on are moved with the assistance of these machines, it is possible to observe this phenomenon. Other
enterprises that make money with conveyor belt transfers include food processing units, bottling facilities, and
wood log processing businesses. This makes a study on how to save money on conveyor belt transfer important.
When a conveyor belt is running all the time, the System is going to show how to make a control method that can
make the conveyor belt move and stop. There are many different types of conveyor belt systems used in
businesses. In this study, simple electronics are used, and they are very cheap. A control strategy is used to keep
an eye on the temperature, vibrations, and speed of the conveyor belt. People who work in an automated industry
or business have to have conveyor systems to move things. There are a lot of different types of belt conveyors
that are used in a lot of different places. These places include power plants, bottling plants, mines, and even
smelting systems. Most of the time, when there are unplanned downtimes, the whole production line is stopped.
As a result, it is becoming increasingly crucial to identify problems as early as possible. Overheated rollers have
been the cause of a large number of belt conveyor fires in recent years. Faulty bearings make the conveyor belt
get hot and start a fire when it stops. [13] The roller condition control systems that are available are expensive and
don't work well with maintenance, so they aren't used for this reason. Belt conveyors are the most prevalent type
of motorised conveyors because they are flexible and less expensive than other types of conveyors. One must not
overlook the importance of the conveyor belt, pulleys, and motor. Belt conveyor systems are used in industries
that do things like process coal, move agricultural goods, separate chemicals and make powders. The vibration
sensor, temperature sensor, and IR sensor are the three parts of this system that all work together. These
components were connected to the ESP32 microcontroller's output and input, which served as the project's brain.
It's also crucial to be alerted in the event of an accident, such as overheating when conveyors are moving at fast
speeds.
2. METHODOLOGY
A. Proposed System
This monitoring system is made up of two main parts: hardware and software. It starts by gathering information
about important things like temperature, vibration, and speed with the appropriate sensors. Arduino IoT cloud is
a real-time operating system supporter. The data will be sent to the Arduino IoT cloud. From the Arduino IoT
cloud, the user can get the data in the form of a graph. This makes it easier for the user to see the conveyor system's
status.
B. Hardware Design
For this hardware product, the component consists of ESP32 as a Microcontroller Unit (MCU) was used and was
merged with built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth networking for a multiple device access (Andreas et al., 2019),
vibration, temperature and IR sensor module. The conveyor system should be integrate to be included in the setup.
The full setup for the connection is shown in Figure 1 as below.
Figure 1: IoT device setup
This monitoring system used three different sensors which is temperature, vibration and IR sensor. For
temperature sensor already setup ranging from 0 until 80°C, the vibration sensor also setup the ranging from 0 to
6000 Hz while IR sensor ranging from 0 to 1500 rpm to detect the speed of conveyor belt.
C. Software System
This monitoring system is powered by a number of sensors. The control algorithm enables the control system to
operate and maintain the conveyor system by taking precise actions based on the obtained data. The programming
was written in the C++ language and uses in Arduino IDE software.
The nodes transmit data to the Arduino IoT cloud, which is a real-time operating system. This data gathering
operating system will be displayed on a laptop or PC (PC). The system will provide current data in graphical
formats in real-time. The Arduino IoT cloud platform allows for data collection, sensor value analysis, and real-
time monitoring of equipment. The Arduino IoT cloud enables the production of charts and graphs in real time in
response to data input [14]. The flowchart in Figure 2 depicts the full workflow of this monitoring system.
Figure 2: Flowchart of the system
D. Prototype
Figure 3: Prototype of the system.
Figure 3 show full setup the prototype of the system to get data analysis from the conveyor.
E. Data Analysis
In data analysis, the process of collecting and categorising findings according to each parameter is described [15].
Additionally, data analysis is the process of evaluating and synthesising data in order to obtain answers before
moving on to data interpretation and interpretation of data. Graphs such as line charts will be utilised to assess the
data collected by this monitoring system. A line chart depicts the movement of data over a specific period of time
or over a time range. It is described by an inclination to reflect changes in the items over time, as well as by
categorical organisation of the objects. It is preferable for the line graph's data records to be more significant than
two because this enables for trend comparison of large amounts of data [15].
3. RESULT AND DISCUSSION
A. Testing of Interface Circuit
It took 5 seconds to measure the input parameters such as temperature, vibration, and speed content using
the interface circuit developed for this project. The data collected is shown on the Arduino IDE serial display and
is monitored in the Arduino IoT cloud, as shown in Figure 4. The connected sensors determined the value present
in conveyor system and sent it to a Arduino IoT cloud. In case of a system failure, the system can send out a
message to notify the user. The entire system is put through its paces to check if it can live up to the requirements
mentioned in the specification [15].
Figure 4: Complete monitoring by Arduino IoT cloud
The graph represents in Figure 5 shows below the temperature value of conveyor. The temperature
calculated from the sensor and transmit data to the Arduino IoT cloud for monitoring. The temperature was
determined by measuring the temperatures in degrees Celsius (°C). If the current temperature measurement is less
than 80°C, the notice will display "All sensors in normal range," indicating that the conveyor system is in a safe
operating condition. As shown in Figure 8, if the current temperature measurement is greater than 80°C, the
notification will display "Temperature high," indicating that the conveyor system is in an unsafe operating
condition.
Figure 5: Temperature monitoring from Arduino IoT cloud
Figure 6 illustrates the vibration value for the conveyor system. The vibration is calculated from the
sensor and transmit data to Arduino IoT cloud. The frequency of vibration was measured in Hertz (Hz), and the
computed value was used to generate a signal output for the monitoring system. As determined by the coded
information, if the current value of vibration is greater than 6000 Hz, the notification will display "Vibration high,"
indicating that the conveyor system is facing a problem. If the current value of vibration is less than 6000Hz, the
notification "All sensors in the normal range" will be displayed, as shown in Figure 8.
Figure 6: Vibration monitoring from Arduino IoT cloud
Figure 7 shows the graph of speed value for conveyor belt. The speed calculated from the IR sensor and
transmit data to the Arduino IoT cloud for monitoring. Revolution per minute (RPM) was used to determine the
speed. According to the coding, when the current value of the speed is less than 1500rpm, the notification were
display “All sensors in the normal range” indicating that the conveyor system in safe condition but if the
temperature exceeds 1500rpm it will display as “RPM high” that show in Figure 8.
Figure 7: Speed of conveyor belt monitoring Arduino IoT cloud
Figure 8: The messenger from Arduino IoT cloud to alert any breaking sytem
4. CONCLUSION
At the end of the study, the development of sensor monitoring data collection for the conveyor system
has been built for real-time monitoring. The interface circuit is mainly controlled by an ESP32 and is supported
by other support sensors to function as a full board monitoring system. The Arduino IDE software can be used to
programme the board.The parameters were monitored using the Arduino IoT cloud. Using Arduino IoT cloud, it
may produce data in graphical forms. The Arduino IoT cloud provided support for the board's real-time operating
system. The technology is intended to identify and detect on conveyor belt issues in real time. There are a variety
of applications for conveyor belts in industries like manufacturing, bottling, mining, railroad stations, and airports.
This system is constructed in such a way that it can detect and also resolve flaws in a belt without the need for
operator intervention or a significant amount of time. The temperature sensor, vibration sensor, and infrared sensor
are all used in this system to calculate the temperature, vibration, and speed of the conveyor belt. Whenever there
is a problem with the conveyor belt, an automatic notification will be sent to the system's controller so that they
can take the necessary appropriate actions.
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