SenseCAP Wireless Soil
Temperature, VWC & EC
Sensor - LoRaWAN EU868 MT20
SKU 101990796
SenseCAP Wireless VWC, Temperature and EC
Sensor measures soil volumetric water content
(VWC), temperature and the electric conductivity
of Soil. The device consists of a 3-in-1 sensor, a
LoRaWAN module, a custom battery and an IP66
enclosure, optimized for outdoor use that
requires reliable data collection over years.
PRODUCT DETAILS
About SenseCAP
SenseCAP is focusing on wireless environmental sensing applications: smart
agriculture, precision farming, and smart city, to name a few. It consists of hardware
products (sensors, data-loggers & gateways, etc.), software services (SenseCAP portal,
mobile App, open dashboard), an API for device & data management.
Note
Please email sensecap[at]seeed[dot]cc to request any technical support for this
product.
Features
•
High Performance: high accuracy, reliability, and stability
•
Enables Data Transmission with LoRaWAN
•
Compact Design: 3-in-1, soil moisture, temperature, and EC sensor
•
Industrial-grade Robustness: IP66 rated, suitable for long-term applications.
•
Strong Anti-interference: made of flame-retardant epoxy resin.
•
High Durability: anti-corrosion, with excellent performance for long-term use
•
IP66 Certified
•
User-friendly: easy to use, install and integrate
•
Support LoRaWAN protocol Class A
•
High reliability and stability
•
Ultra-wide-distance transmission: 10km in the line-of-sight scenes, 2 km in urban
scenes
•
Battery life ≥ 6 years
Description
The Sensor measures the volumetric water content(VWC), the Soil temperature, and
the electrical conductivity (EC). The VWC is used to determine the amount of water
stored in the soil. Electrical conductivity can be used to determine the level of salts in
soil (salinity). These parameters are very important indicators of soil fertility and health,
which ultimately affect the plants that grow in them. High soil salinity will make it
difficult for plants to consume water even with a high moisture level in the soil. This will
ultimately "burn" the plants. Meanwhile, too much moisture in the soil is not only bad
for the plants but also wastes water and adds extra burdens on our planet.
Plants grow best in their preferred environment, at the optimal ranges of soil moisture,
temperature, and EC level. It is important for growers to get access to the data of these
parameters, to get insights on what actions need to be taken to ensure plant health
and higher yield.
This Soil Moisture & Temperature & EC LoRaWAN Sensor is designed with industry
standards, featuring high precision and high sensitivity and durability. It has a
LoRaWAN module to transmit collected data over long distances without cables.
Incorporating three sensors (soil moisture sensor, soil temperature sensor, and soil
electrical conductivity) into one, with auto temperature compensation, this sensor
ensures the accuracy of measurements regardless of the environmental changes.
By measuring the dielectric constant of the soil, it can measure the soil VWC
(volumetric water content) regardless of various soil types. The measurement
conforms to current international standards for soil moisture measurement.
The stainless-steel probe can be permanently inserted in the soil with quick testing for
long-term use. This soil sensor is IP66 rated, very robust and durable, suitable to be
applied at long-term monitoring of soil moisture, temperature, and electrical
conductivity at scientific experiments, water-saving irrigation, gardening, greenhouses,
outdoor farming, horticulture, golf turf management, forestry, precision agriculture,
and other professional environmental monitoring scenarios. It can also be applied in
the water, nutrient solution, and other kinds of substrates where the EC level is
needed.
This device incorporates a built-in LoRa transmitter based on SX1276 for long-range
transmission, the 3-in-1 sensor, and a custom battery. It is specifically designed and
optimized for use cases powering end devices by batteries for years. To minimize the
power consumption, the device wakes up, transmits the collected soil moisture and
temperature data to the gateway, and then goes back to sleep.
Under the best of circumstances, the battery is expected to last for more than 6 years,
depending on environmental factors and the data transmission intervals. Please kindly
note that the default interval is once per hour. If you'd like to change the data upload
interval, please refer to this document
To fit in adverse conditions, the LoRaWAN Module is designed with industry standards
and equipped with an IP66 waterproof enclosure, protecting the device from UV
radiation, rain, and sunlight exposure.
The SenseCAP Sensor adopts a modular design, integrating the data logger with the
sensor probe, which can be replaced by other SenseCAP sensor probes.
SenseCAP Sensor + Other LoRaWAN Gateway Architecture
Applications
The sensor can be used for different environmental monitoring scenarios some
examples are:
•
water-saving irrigation
•
gardening
•
greenhouses
•
outdoor farming
•
horticulture
•
golf turf management,
•
forestry,
•
precision agriculture
Besides being used in the soil, the sensor can also be used in water and nutrient
solutions.
Specifications
Soil Temperature
Range
-40 ℃ to +80 ℃
Accuracy
±0.5 ℃
Resolution
0.1 ℃
VWC
Range
From completely dry to fully saturated (from 0% to 100%
of saturation)
Accuracy
±3% ( 0 to 51 %); ±5% ( 50 to 100 %)
Resolution
0.1 %(0 to 50%); 0.3%(51 to 100%)
Soil Salinity
Range
0 to 23000uS/cm
Accuracy
±5% from 0~7000uS/cm
±15% from 7000~23000uS/cm
Resolution
10uS/cm(0~7000uS/cm)
50uS/cm(7000~230000uS/cm)
General Parameters
Product Model
LoRa-S-EU868-Soil Temp&VWC&EC-01
Microcontroller
Ultra-low-power MCU
Support Protocol
Based on LoRaWAN v1.0.2 protocol
LoRa Channel Plan
EU868
LoRa Power Output
16 dBm (EIRP)
Sensitivity
-137.5dBm(SF12, BW125KHz)
Current Consumption
5 μA (sleep mode)
120 mA max(active mode)
Communication
Distance
2 to 10 km (depending on different antennas and
environments)
Measuring Area
A cylinder area (with the probe as the center, diameter:
7cm, height: 7cm)
IP Rating
IP66
UV Resistance
anti-aging (from rain/sun exposure): UL746C F1
Enclosure Material
PC
Operating
Temperature
-40 ℃ to +60 ℃
Operating Humidity
0 to 100%RH (non-condensing)
Device Weight
385g
Certification
RoHS
Battery (Contained in equipment)
Battery Life
≥ 3 years (upload data once per hour)
Battery Voltage
3.6V
Battery Capacity
19Ah (non-rechargeable)
Technical Details
The device is designed with a fixed LoRa channel, which can not be modified by users.
The supported channels are as follows. Please refer to this document for how to
connect this device with a LoRaWAN gateway.
Please kindly note the device uses 2nd Sub-Band by default (channels 8 to 15 and
65).
LoRa Channel Plan
Uplink (MHz)
Frequency(MHz): 868.1, 868.3, 868.5, 867.1, 867.3, 867.5, 867.7, 867.9
Downlink
Multiplexing the frequency points of the 8 uplink channels. 869.525MHz -
(MHz)
SF9BW125 (RX2 downlink only)
(SF7BW125 to SF12BW125)
Part List
1
Sensor
1x
2
Bracket
1x
3
M4 Self-drilling Screw
4x
4
M3 Self-drilling Screw
2x
FAQ
Q:
A:
Q:
A:
Q:
What exactly is soil moisture measured?
Measured is soil volumetric water content, soil volumetric water content %= soil
volumetric water content * bulk density
How is soil volume water content measured?
By measuring the dielectric constant, and then through a certain calculation formula
to convert into soil volume water content.
Why does the measured volume water content of soil not reach 100% in water?
First of all, the saturated water content of the soil is about 60%, and the measurement
of higher water content is not of practical significance.
Second, we need to pay attention to the test environment and method when testing.
A:
7*7*7cm square column range measured by the sensor probe. If water is used for the
test, a container of at least 20*20*20cm is required, and the probe is placed in the
middle (with water to immerse the probe).
The resulting value will be between 80% and 100%.
Q:
How to install a soil sensor probe?
Dig a vertical hole, insert the sensor steel needle into the hole to be measured, and
then compacted the pit to ensure that the steel needle is in close contact with the soil.
A:
Q:
Is the conductivity affected by the soil moisture?
The EC value can be continuously monitored in the field, mainly by measuring Bulk EC
A:
value, which is related to soil water content. If there is no water or little water content,
the ions in the soil cannot dissolve in the water, and conductivity will be low.
ECCN/HTS
HSCODE
9025800090
USHSCODE
9031808070
UPC
LEARN AND DOCUMENTS
Documentations
LoRaWAN Gateway and Sensor Catalog
https://www.seeedstudio.com/SenseCAP-Wireless-Soil-Temperature-VWC-EC-Sensor-LoRaWAN-EU868-MT20-p-4994.html/3-2-22