Nature’s Eye

Summary

I’m planning to build an all-in-one Weather System, Bird Cam, and Home Dashboard with Home Assistant, Weather Sensors, and a Google Pixel.

Plan

Currently, I have a home assistant setup running on my home server. We have a small forest in our backyard, and it is often visited by birds. Additionally, Oklahoma is known for (if anything) weird weather patterns.

So, I’d like to set up a small setup out in this forest to monitor the weather, and to see/monitor the birds that visit.

Solving some problems/How everything will work

Humidity

Humidity is kinda an issue for electronics, so I’m using a plastic enclosure to shield the components from humidity.

Power Management

These components require power, and I have to get it from somewhere. For power, I’m using a combination solar panel and battery pack I found from amazon. This should work for now, but I hope to potentially examine adding more batteries, or maybe even completely overhauling this system.

Connectivity

Wireless Connectivity

The whole project had a major problem: The forest is outside of the WiFi range. To solve this issue, I’m using a Pixel 5, so it can connect over Cellular Data to my Home Assistant instance.

Connectivity Between Pixel and Sensor

Since the pixel can’t natively connect to the sensor, I’ll be using this library with a custom-made app and the FT232H chip to connect to the chip and “phone home.”

Supply Shortages

Another driving factor in using a Google Pixel instead of a Raspberry Pi are the ongoing supply chain issues. Raspberry Pi’s are extremely hard, if not impossible, to find. That, and the cost for a camera that’s comparable to the Pixel and a Cellular modem would be even more expensive than the pixel itself.

One More Thing…

While we’re on the topic of Home Assistant, I have some RGB lighting in my room that is REALLY annoying to turn off at night. I’d like to automate this process using Home Assistant and a Pi Pico W, which I’ve found (for an arm and a leg) on Amazon. This is just something to add for the fun and convenience of it.

Ideas for the Future

• Add AI bird detection? (As seen in The MagPi)
• Create Mastodon Bird Watcher Bot? (Powered by the AI)
• Add a Humidity Sensor?
• Add a Wind Speed Sensor?
• Add a bird perch near it?

Intangible Products of this Project

Open Source Licensing

I will release the code (App for Android Connection, RGB Lighting Controller) I create for this project under an Open Source License.

Documentation of Project Itself

I will, if all goes correctly, document the process of making this project as an Instructable and/or post the process to my Blog.

Budget

Credits

Thanks to my Grandma for the inspiration for this project <3