#arm based sbc

In the wave of modern agriculture's transition to intelligence, greenhouse facilities, as a representative of efficient and intensive planting models, urgently require more precise and energy-efficient irrigation solutions. The ARM AI Industrial Computer, with its high performance, low power consumption, and strong scalability, serves as the ideal core platform for intelligent irrigation systems. It empowers greenhouses to optimize water resource management and promote high-quality crop growth.

System Architecture and Functional Modules

Control Core: ARM AI Industrial Computer BL440 Series

Supports multi-core processing and edge computing for real-time response to environmental changes.

Integrates AI inference modules for local intelligent decision-making.

Compatible with multiple communication interfaces (RS485, CAN, Wi-Fi, 4G).

Sensing Layer: Multi-Dimensional Environmental Sensors

Real-time data collection from sensors for soil moisture, temperature, light intensity, CO₂ concentration, and more.

Supports zoned deployment for differentiated regional management.

Execution Layer: Irrigation and Ventilation Control

Controls electromagnetic valves, water pumps, and misting systems.

Integrates with ventilation windows and shading curtains for microclimate regulation.

Cloud Platform and Remote Management

Uploads data to an agricultural cloud platform for historical analysis and remote control.

Provides visualized interfaces to display crop status and irrigation records.

Water-Saving and Optimization Management Strategies

AI Intelligent Decision-Making: Automatically determines irrigation timing and volume based on crop growth models and environmental data.

Zoned Precision Irrigation: Independently controls irrigation strategies according to the needs of different crops or zones.

Predictive Scheduling: Integrates weather forecasts and growth cycles to pre-plan irrigation schedules.

Data Closed-Loop Feedback: Continuously monitors soil changes post-irrigation to refine subsequent strategies.

Application Advantages

Advantage DimensionDescriptionWater-Saving EfficiencySaves over 30% of water resources, preventing over-irrigation.Crop Quality ImprovementMaintains optimal humidity and temperature, enhancing fruit and vegetable yield and quality.Reduced Operational CostsAutomates control to minimize manual intervention and lower maintenance expenses.Strong ScalabilitySupports integration of various sensors and control devices, adaptable to different greenhouse scales.Data VisualizationEnables real-time monitoring and historical analysis, improving management transparency and decision-making efficiency.

Suggestions for Application Scenario Expansion

High-End Vegetable Planting Bases: Precise control of water-fertilizer ratios to elevate product quality.

Flower Seedling Greenhouses: Regulates humidity and light to ensure robust flower growth.

Research and Experimental Greenhouses: Facilitates data collection and experimental parameter control.

Urban Agriculture Demonstration Gardens: Showcases intelligent agriculture outcomes to raise public awareness.

Summary

This ARM AI Industrial Computer -driven intelligent irrigation system revolutionizes greenhouse management by integrating advanced sensing, AI-driven decision-making, and automated execution for superior water efficiency and crop performance. By reducing resource waste, enhancing yield quality, and enabling scalable remote oversight, it not only addresses key challenges in modern agriculture but also paves the way for broader adoption in diverse scenarios, fostering sustainable and intelligent farming practices.

Case Details

Seawater desalination is a critical solution to global water scarcity. Multi-Effect Distillation (MED) is widely used in coastal areas and islands for its high energy efficiency and operational stability. The MED system involves components such as evaporators, condensers, heaters, vacuum pumps, and circulation pumps, requiring precise control and real-time data acquisition to ensure efficiency and water quality.

Role of ARM Edge Logic Controller BL350 Series

The ARM edge logic controller serves as the core control unit of the MED system, integrating real-time data acquisition, edge computing, and remote monitoring to meet the demands of complex operational environments.

Data Acquisition and Monitoring

Temperature: Monitors temperatures in evaporators, condensers, and inlet/outlet pipelines.

Pressure/Vacuum: Tracks pressure conditions in evaporation and condensation chambers.

Flow: Measures circulation pump and product water flow rates.

Conductivity/TDS: Ensures product water quality through real-time monitoring.

Logic Control

Steam Flow Regulation: Automatically adjusts heating steam flow to optimize temperature gradients in evaporators.

Vacuum Pump Control: Maintains a low-pressure evaporation environment for enhanced efficiency.

Pump Logic Switching: Intelligently switches between circulation and feedwater pumps to prevent dry running.

Energy Efficiency Optimization

Utilizes edge computing to analyze thermal energy efficiency and dynamically adjust operating conditions.

Reduces steam and electricity consumption, improving overall system efficiency.

Safety and Alerts

Issues alerts for overtemperature, overpressure, or pump anomalies.

Employs local redundant logic during network disconnections to ensure safe operation.

Remote Operation and Maintenance

Supports 4G/Ethernet connectivity to SCADA systems or cloud platforms.

Provides VPN and secure encrypted channels for remote maintenance and parameter optimization.

Application Value

Enhanced System Stability: Ensures continuous and stable operation of the MED process.

Reduced Maintenance Costs: Remote operation minimizes the need for on-site personnel.

Improved Energy Efficiency: Edge computing optimizes thermal energy utilization, reducing energy consumption.

Assured Water Quality: Real-time conductivity/TDS monitoring guarantees high-quality freshwater output.

Summary

The ARM edge logic controller significantly enhances the efficiency and stability of MED systems through integrated data acquisition, logic control, energy optimization, and remote maintenance. Its edge computing capabilities reduce energy consumption, remote monitoring lowers operational costs, and real-time water quality monitoring ensures safe freshwater output, providing an efficient and reliable solution for seawater desalination.

With the rapid development of the Internet of Things (IoT), how to quickly build an efficient, reliable and low-cost system has become a core challenge facing the industry. The solution consisting of the ARMxy Industrial Edge Gateway, the Node-RED low-code platform and the ThingsBoard IoT platform can meet 99% of the IoT scenario requirements with its flexibility, development efficiency and comprehensive functions. Whether it is industrial automation, smart agriculture, or smart cities, this combination has demonstrated strong adaptability. The following analyzes its advantages from three aspects: hardware, development tools and platforms.

ARMxy: Combined Industrial Edge Gateway, flexible hardware selection to meet different project requirements

As the "nerve endings" of the IoT system, the performance and reliability of the hardware acquisition module are crucial. Through the flexible combination of X board and Y board, the ARMxy series can support tens of thousands of IO interface configurations, including RS485, RS232, CAN, Ethernet port, analog/digital input and output, thermal resistance, etc., covering almost all access requirements of industrial sensors and equipment.

Its multi-level configuration strategy (high/medium/low configuration) further optimizes the cost: the high-profile version is suitable for industrial scenarios with many data points and strict real-time requirements; while the medium and low-profile versions can meet lightweight requirements such as agricultural monitoring or small environmental monitoring. In addition, ARMxy adopts industrial-grade design, with dustproof, vibration-resistant, wide temperature operation and other characteristics, ensuring long-term stable operation in harsh environments, laying the foundation for the reliability of the Internet of Things system.

Node-RED: Low-code development, opening up the "highway" of data flow

Node-RED, with its visual drag-and-drop programming and rich protocol support, has become a key bridge connecting hardware and the cloud.

Full coverage of protocols: Built-in Modbus, Siemens PLC protocol, power industry DL/T645 and other industrial protocol nodes, easily connect to various devices; uplink supports MQTT and HTTP, seamlessly integrates mainstream cloud platforms such as Alibaba Cloud and AWS.

Edge computing capabilities: Through custom nodes or plug-in extensions, data can be pre-processed (such as filtering and compression), reducing cloud bandwidth pressure and improving system efficiency.

Rapid development: Non-professional developers can also build data collection, processing and transmission logic by dragging nodes, greatly shortening the development cycle, especially suitable for prototype verification and agile iteration.

ThingsBoard: An all-round platform for refined management of data and devices

As an open source IoT platform, ThingsBoard provides one-stop services from data storage to visualization:

Real-time monitoring and visualization: Through custom dashboards, users can intuitively view device status and generate dynamic charts or reports, such as temperature curves of factory equipment and heat maps of urban traffic flow.

Large-scale device management: Supports batch access, remote control and OTA upgrades of thousands of devices to meet industrial-grade scenario requirements.

Highly scalable: Open source features allow developers to customize functional modules according to business needs, such as integrating AI algorithms to achieve predictive maintenance.

ARMxy + Node-RED + ThingsBoard synergistic advantages release the potential of the IoT

The combination of ARMxy, Node-RED and ThingsBoard builds a complete closed loop from hardware to cloud:

Seamless collaboration: ARMxy is responsible for data collection, Node-RED performs edge processing and protocol conversion, ThingsBoard realizes centralized management and visualization, and the three form an efficient data flow.

Extreme cost optimization: ARMxy's flexible configuration reduces hardware costs, and the open source features of Node-RED and ThingsBoard eliminate software licensing fees. The overall solution cost is only 1/3 of the traditional solution.

Full coverage of scenarios: Industrial production lines, farmland environmental monitoring, urban infrastructure management and other scenarios can be quickly adapted to meet 99% of the Internet of Things needs.

Rapid deployment: Node-RED's low-code development and ThingsBoard's ready-to-use functions can compress project cycles from months to weeks.

Conclusion: The future of IoT begins with an efficient tool combination

The golden combination of ARMxy + Node-RED + ThingsBoard not only solves the compatibility problem in the fragmented IoT scenario, but also becomes the preferred solution for enterprise digital transformation through its advantages of low cost, high flexibility and rapid implementation. Whether it is a startup team or a large enterprise, this combination can help them seize the initiative in the IoT wave and truly realize the vision of "Internet of Everything".