🔎 Unit Overview
In this unit you will:
- Research and explore to understand requirements for a Smart Greenhouse.
- Understand the project brief and generate ideas.
- Develop a well-structured software design.
- Write and implement a functional program to control the Greenhouse.
- Use the greenhouse to grow plants
- Use data analysis to drive software refinement.
- Evaluate and present the final software solution.
🎯 Learning Objectives
Develop the Programming & Development, Algorithms Learning Strands:
- Develop skills in researching information and explore the commercial uses for smart greenhouses and the problems they are trying to solve.
- Investigate the environmental factors which are measured and controlled in smart greenhouses.
- Gain an understanding of the inputs & outputs on the Smart Greenhouse Kit and the data logging process using the MakeCode extension.
- Develop skills in software design by planning a program to achieve the goals of the project brief.
- Plant your seeds in the greenhouse
💬 Key Vocabulary
- micro:bit
- automation
- requirements
- analysis
📝 Starter Activity
Think – Pair – Share
What could you automate and
computer control in this scene?
📖 Introduction
Today we are going to start our new project designing programs to control a smart greenhouse and gather environmental data for analysis.
We will be writing a program and using the results of data analysis to make improvements to it, and using our design booklets to develop our ideas as groups.
At the end of the project you will present your solution to the class.
📖 Project brief & assessment criteria
Your Smart Greenhouse software solution must:
- Successfully care for the plants in the greenhouse.
- Regularly log sensor data with time and date stamps to enable analysis.
- Make control decisions (e.g. watering) in response to sensor readings (e.g. soil moisture).
- Have a well structured design based on the outcome of the research.
- Be written within the time allocated and by using the booklet.
📝 Initial research
We are currently in the “Requirements Research” part of the software development cycle.
Use the following pages in the project workbook to record your smart greenhouse research:
- Start on Section 2 – Analysis (Silver) look through the websites listed and create a mind map using the Mindmup website to collate your research.
- Then go to 3 – Existing Smart Greenhouse Designs (Gold). You need to copy in some images of existing designs you found.
- Finally go to 4 – Smart Greenhouse Purposes (Platinum). List some of the reasons Smart Greenhouses are used, why do they need technology instead of being “dumb”.
Some example videos to help you with your research:
In this lesson, you…
- Looked at the development cycle and started the analysis of Smart Greenhouses.
- Designed a solution to the problem of a Smart Greenhouse using the micro:bit and environmental control board.
- Put together the greenhouse itself with soil, seeds and water.
Next lesson, you will…
- Begin developing the code solution for your greenhouse using Makecode
🏅 Badge it
🥈 Silver Badge
- Upload a screenshot of your mind map to Bourne to Learn.
🥇 Gold Badge
- Upload a screenshot of your 3 – Existing Smart Greenhouse Designs page to Bourne to Learn.
🥉 Platinum Badge
- Upload a screenshot of your 4 – Smart Greenhouse Purposes page to Bourne to Learn.