Project Origins

This project was motivated by a desire to support the work of Andrew Hornblow using PicAxe processors to do various tasks. That process benefitted from an investment in developing Python code to support the use of serial data from a PicAxe to generate Cayenne dashboards using the MQTT TCP/IP protocol.

I started researching RF transmission in bush in 2013, and have been publishing research ever since. Andrew's primary motivation is to engage lots of school students (and others) in science.

Visualisation for Sensor Data

• The project has generated numerous Cayenne dashboards for specific purposes.
• An early output was this Javascript Interactive Map using a GPS sensor created by Andrew, Javascript written by Sherman Percy, and my Python code in between. I also have a video showing the map being built.
• Location-based services including field testing can be aided by using TTN Mapper to make maps like this one.
• Throughout this process data has been collected in CSV files by subscribing to various sensors.
• Another option is the use of the Flask environment which students used for this proof of concept. It retrieves rainfall data from two locations, as monitored by Greater Wellington, then graphs a comparison of the data.
• Currently options for the Node-Red platform is being investigated as a visualisation platform.
• In an unrelated Data Science project, two students used R to create an informative dashboard detailing results from twenty years of Five Minute Bird Count (5MBC) data. Full project details are now on this Whitireia and WelTec web page. Particularly interesting is this dashboard, based on data analysis in R, built by a student.

Future Potential

With more resources (time and money), this project could contribute a 'citizen science' aspect to the growing Zealandia & Wellington City Council Sanctuary to Sea project.

There are lots more options to contribute to this project.