Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) has played a revolutionary role in facilitating domestic fuels used for heating and cooking. With multiple advantages, bottled LPG has seen a wide growth in many Asian countries. However, LPG also comes with disadvantages. The main disadvantage associated with the use of LPG is to do with the storage and safety. To store LPG, the gas has to be kept pressurized in very sturdy tanks and cylinders. This causes high risk of gas leak and explosion which resulted in serious damages to lives and property. Besides, due to the unique form of storage, it is hard for consumers to know when the bottle runs out of gas. This could lead to some unpleasant experiences during cooking time.
GASsistant was invented to address these issues and make the usage of LPG more convenient to household. Early 2016, a group of software engineers working for Axon Active Vietnam has released this smart system after a year working on it.
GASsistant is a smart system of interrelated digital scale, cloud server and mobile application that could work independently and have the ability to transfer data over the Internet without requiring human interaction.
While each component of the system functions independently, a combination of them offers useful features to consumers.
GASsistant features a digital scale that continuously measures the weight of the LPG bottle throughout usage and compare with its original weight to determine the amount of usage. If the quantity of LPG left in the bottle falls below a certain number, which is preset by user, the system will notify user that gas will soon be running out. Settings and notifications are accessible to user via the mobile application.
Consumers can interact with GASsistant via a mobile application which allows them to modify any preset, such as the original weight of the bottle, alert frequency and the Internet network.
This app provides user prompt notice of gas usage and helps prevent any chance of gas leaking. In addition, it visualizes the usage data stored in cloud server and displays a history of record so user can keep track of their past LPG usage.
If the quantity of gas remained in the bottle keeps falling at a certain high speed, system will send alert to users via the application. This not only helps of keep track of how much gas is being used but more importantly, to know if gas is leaking from the bottle when it is not being used.
This feature contributes to reducing the risk of gas explosion which is always the major concern of LPG consumers.
Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) bottle has been used widely in most households. But the most frequent frustration arises when the bottle runs out during cooking without prompt notice. And a high risk of gas explosion led from the high chance of leaking is the bigger concern.
GASsistant is an application which connects to gas scale to help user track gas usage and get a notification if the gas bottle is leaking or running out.
Features:
– Provide real-time info about the amount of gas in the bottle.
– Notify user when the bottle is about to run out.
– Alert user when there is a chance of gas leakage.
– Keep track of gas usage by history chart.
Notice:
– GASsistant requires a connection to a gas scale & the internet for using.
 |
 |
|
Scan to install the app
 |
To build 1 device you will need:
Additionally, we use an Arduino for burning the source code to ESP (a colleague suggests we use the USB UART CP2102 but we didn't buy to try because we have spare Uno from previous project).
If you want to CNC your base like we did, please find the AutoCAD file at
https://github.com/aavn/Gassistant/tree/master/design
Otherwise, you can create your own design ( We are interested in a solution that uses a smaller number of loadcells than us, please leave us a comment if you have any suggestion).
Design:
The idea is 3 loadcells are positioned at 3 corners of an equilateral triangle. The weight will be distributed on 3 loadcells. We sum up the result to have the actual weight of the bottle.
| Amplifier | ESP8266 |
|---|---|
| VCC | VCC |
| GND | GND |
| DT1 | GPIO_12 |
| SCK1 | GPIO_14 |
| DT2 | GPIO_13 |
| SCK2 | GPIO_5 |
| DT3 | GPIO_4 |
| SCK3 | GPIO_16 |
| DT1, SCK1: DT & SCK pins on the 1st amplifier. |
| DT2, SCK2: DT & SCK pins on the 2nd amplifier. |
| DT3, SCK3: DT & SCK pins on the 3rd amplifier. |
The original source code for the GASsistant can be downloaded from here.
For coding on ESP, we use the ESP8266 Addon on Arduino IDE. With this approach, we can reuse most Arduino libraries for ESP. You can find the instruction how to setup here.
We use the Arduino Uno as the bridge to upload the source code to ESP. The setup as following:
| Arduino Uno Reset | Arduino GND |
| ESP8266 | Arduino Uno |
| RX | RX |
| TX | TX |
| VCC | 3.3V |
| CH_PD | 3.3V |
| GND | GND |
| GPIO_15 | GND |
| GPIO_0 | GND |
Also, make sure that you choose the correct board type for the ESP (like the attached photo).
Find the ESP8266 chip ID (We use it as a unique ID for the scale):
Upload the ESP_chip_id sketch from
https://github.com/aavn/Gassistant/tree/master/design
to your ESP board, and note the chip ID printed on the Serial monitor. This ID will be used later when you add your scale to the cloud server.
Note:If you want to re-upload to ESP board while it is still connecting to bridge, just unplug ESP's VCC and GPIO_0, then re-plug them before uploading new code.
Get the source code for the Gassistant base from GasScale GitHub
You can find the libraries needed inside the library folder. Copy them to your Arduino IDE folder.
Upload the source code to your ESP.
Disconnect the ESP from Uno, put the battery on.
Your scale is ready to go.
You can get the Android application from the link below, iOS version will be published soon.
When adding your scale to the cloud, you will be prompted for:
NOTE: The GASsistant cannot stop the gas leaking. When you receive the alert, you have to verify and take action if needed.
Finally, the last step is to bring your GASsistant to your home Wi-Fi
We embedded the SmartConfig into the app for ease of use. If you are interested in deep knowledge how SmartConfig works, you can take a look here (I could not find the explanation for ESP SmartConfig, but after all, from what I searched around, they use the same concept).
If you want to get your hand dirty and modify the way your GASsistant work, please feel free to get the source from the link GASsistant. We are also interested to see any upgraded/modified versions from you :)
There are some issues that we did not have enough knowledge (& effort) to improve:
The smart system took the group more than a year of research, experiment and learning to finally accomplish the first stage of production. At present time, GASsistant is running with basic features. It does have some limitations which the team is still working on. In the meantime, they have decided to share the technology and technique publicly so the community can contribute to this insightful project.
In 2008, the Group expanded its business to Vietnam by establishing a high-performance, scalable software delivery infrastructure. Axon Active Vietnam focuses on offshore software development services with strong expertise in Agile IT and a large portfolio of successful international projects, ranging from small businesses to highly complex multi-platform systems for large corporate clients.
The 300+ developers’ outsourcing organization offers the perfect mix of talent management, Agile and Scrum practices, technology skills and industry knowledge.
Axon Active builds solid partnerships with its clients by assembling tailored development teams in Vietnam who deliver high-quality, innovative solutions at a very competitive price.
For more information about:
– Axon services & expertise, please visit: www.axonactive.com
– Axon social life, just take a tour: www.fb.com/AxonActiveVietnam
