advice for first xbee project

XBee projects like the adapter, xBee tutorials, tweetawatt/wattcher, etc. from Adafruit

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alexdean
 
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advice for first xbee project

Post by alexdean »

Hi! I have a project in mind, but I've never done anything an XBee before, and I'd like some advice.

I want to place temperature sensors in several places in a building, collect measurements from them every few minutes, and report the values to a web service.

I was thinking something like XBee + temp sensors reporting to a rasperry pi which handles the web reporting.

I might want up to 3 temp sensors. Max range from the base station might be 100 feet. (Could be closer if necessary.)

1. How can I read the output of a simple temp sensor and broadcast it via XBee?
2. Can a raspberry pi communicate directly with an xbee, or do i need an arduino or other intermediary device between them?

I'm looking for both architecture advice and suggested components.

thanks,
alex

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: advice for first xbee project

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

1. How can I read the output of a simple temp sensor and broadcast it via XBee?
With an analog sensor such as the TMP36, you can just connect it to one of the analog inputs of the XBee.
2. Can a raspberry pi communicate directly with an xbee, or do i need an arduino or other intermediary device between them?
You need another XBee to act as a receiver. The Pi would communicate with that via serial.

There is an excellent book on the topic of wireless sensor networks using XBees here: http://www.adafruit.com/products/963

alexdean
 
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Re: advice for first xbee project

Post by alexdean »

Thanks for the book reference. I'll check into it.
adafruit_support_bill wrote: You need another XBee to act as a receiver. The Pi would communicate with that via serial.
Any particular models I should look at? Does XBee have distinct sender & receiver models, or can any XBee act in either role?

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: advice for first xbee project

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

Any XBee can act in either role. The Series 1 XBees are the simplest to configure. There are several different antenna and power options depending on the range you need.

alexdean
 
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Re: advice for first xbee project

Post by alexdean »

Thanks again. That's a huge help!

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