Measuring Water Level Using a BMP180 Pressure Sensor with Arduino

In this article, we will explore how to measure water levels using a BMP180 pressure sensor connected to an Arduino board. By detecting atmospheric pressure at the water surface and calculating the difference in pressure due to the water column, we can determine the water level accurately. The process involves the use of I2C communication and a series of formulas to convert pressure to meters of water.

What is the BMP180 Pressure Sensor?

The BMP180 is a high precision pressure sensor capable of measuring atmospheric pressure with an accuracy of ±0.5 hPa. It communicates over the I2C interface and provides altitude and temperature measurements as well. This makes it an ideal choice for projects involving environmental sensing and other applications.

Components Required

Arduino board: For example, an Arduino Uno BMP180 sensor Jumper wires Breadboard (optional)

Wiring the BMP180 Sensor

To connect the BMP180 sensor to the Arduino, follow these steps:

Connect 5V from the Arduino to the VCC pin of the BMP180 sensor. Connect GND from the Arduino to the GND pin of the BMP180 sensor. Connect the SDA pin of the BMP180 sensor to A4 on the Arduino. Connect the SCL pin of the BMP180 sensor to A5 on the Arduino.

Arduino Code

The following code demonstrates how to read the pressure from the BMP180 sensor and calculate the water level based on the pressure difference:

// Include necessary libraries#include #include #include // Create an instance of the BMP180 sensorAdafruit_BMP085_Unified bmp  Adafruit_BMP085_Unified();// Constantsconst float waterDensity  1000.0; // kg/m^3const float gravity  9.81; // m/s^2void setup() {  (9600);  // Initialize the BMP180  if (!()) {    while (1);  }}void loop() {  sensors_event_t event;  // Get the pressure reading  (event);  if () {    float pressure   * 100; // in hPa, convert to Pascals    // Assuming atmospheric pressure at water surface is 101325 Pa    float atmosphericPressure  101325.0; // in Pa    // Calculate water level in meters    float height  (atmosphericPressure - pressure) / (waterDensity * gravity);    (height); // Print the water level in meters  } else {    ("Failed to get BMP180 data");  }  delay(2000); // Wait for 2 seconds before the next reading}

Explanation of the Code

The code includes the necessary libraries for I2C communication and BMP180 sensor functionality. In the setup() function, the BMP180 sensor is initialized. The loop() function reads the pressure from the sensor and calculates the water level based on the pressure difference between the water surface and the depth. The calculated water level is printed to the Serial Monitor.

Notes

Ensure that you have the Adafruit BMP085 Unified library installed in your Arduino IDE. You can find it in the Library Manager. Also, make sure to adjust the atmosphericPressure variable if you are not at sea level or if local atmospheric pressure significantly differs from the standard value 101325 Pa.

This code provides a basic setup for measuring water levels using a BMP180 sensor. You can further refine it based on your specific application and requirements.