Automatic feeder for animals
An automatic pet feeder that, at fixed times, dispenses a specific amount of food until the bowls.
Author: Lazar Alessia-Alessandra
GitHub Project Link: https://github.com/UPB-PMRust-Students/proiect-lalessiaa
Description
The project involves an automatic pet feeder. At fixed times (9:00 AM, 12:00 PM, and 7:00 PM), it will refill the food bowls, but not with a fixed amount each time. A sensor will calculate how much the pet has eaten from the bowl and will dispense the remaining amount needed to fill it. The same process applies to kibble and water. Each week, the feeder will provide specific statistics regarding the quantities consumed by the pet.
To alert the owner when the containers need to be refilled, there will be two LEDs: green means there is enough food in the containers, red indicates they need to be refilled. There will also be a buzzer that emits three signals at mealtime to notify the pet that the bowls have been refilled.
Motivation
I chose this project because of my love for animals and the desire to simplify the feeding process on busy days. If the owner has a full day or is away from home all day, the pet will still have enough food, in moderate amounts throughout the day. This way, the feeding process becomes automated and easier to manage in everyday life.
Architecture
Log
Week 5 - 11 May
Week 12 - 18 May
Week 19 - 25 May
Hardware
Pico 2W – control board for the feeder
Servo motor – operates the flap for dispensing kibble
Water pump – fills the water container
Level sensor – measures the water level in the container
Pressure sensor – measures the total weight of dry food
Instrumentation module HX711 – converts the pressure sensor data to control the motor
Buzzer – audio signal
LEDs – reservoir level indicators
Schematics
Place your KiCAD schematics here.
Bill of Materials
| Device | Usage | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Raspberry Pi Pico 2W | The microcontroller | 39.66 RON |
| Modul de Instrumentatie HX711 | Data convertor | 5.99 RON |
| Servo | Operates the flap | 19.33 RON |
| Mini water pump | Fills the water container | 15.99 RON |
| Pressure sensor | Data measurement | 29.59 RON |
Software
| Library | Description | Usage |
|---|---|---|
| hx711 | HX711 Load Cell Amplifier | Used for reading weight data from the pressure sensor (load cell). |
| stepper | Stepper motor driver | Controls the stepper motor to dispense food accurately. |
| lcd-i2c | I2C LCD display | Displays real-time data such as time, weight, and alerts. |
| rtc-pcf8523 | Real-Time Clock (RTC) | Keeps track of time for scheduled feeding. |
| pico-sdk | Raspberry Pi Pico SDK | Low-level support for the Pico 2W microcontroller. |
| embedded-hal | Embedded Hardware Abstraction Layer | Provides traits for abstracting embedded hardware peripherals. |