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How far is your greenhouse from your flat? Is there a clear line-of-sight? The emonTx is designed to use the RFM12B radio (not WiFi - that is too difficult) to connect to the emonBase inside your flat. The emonBase could be your Raspberry Pi fitted with the RFM12Pi module, or a NanodeRF, connected to your LAN.

Alternatively, if you want to connect the emonTx by a short cable to the Raspberry Pi and use WiFi from there to your flat, see here: http://openenergymonitor.org/emon/node/3872

It is 7 meters away. But the Greenhouse is like a Faraday cage. I can't receive the Wi-Fi in my flat from the Greenhouse. So I assume that the signal from the RFM12B module can't be received neither. Is it possible to connect the emonTX and the Raspberry via the RFM12B and then connect the Raspberry Pi via Wi-Fi to the Internet? I just made a part list. Did I forget something?
emonTX:
1 x emonTx V3 - Assembled PCB
1 x emonTx V3 Aluminium Enclosure Case
4 x 100A max clip-on current sensor CT
1 x Programmer - USB to serial UART
1 x AC-AC Power Supply Adapter - AC voltage sensor (Euro plug)
Base Station:
1 x Raspberry Pi - Model B
1 x RFM12Pi V2 Raspberry Pi Expansion board
1 x Pre-Loaded Raspberry Pi Gateway 4GB SD card
1 x 5V DC USB Power Adapter (Euro Plug)
1 x Micro-USB cable
Kind regards
Beat

Yes, I think you can do EmonTx > radio (RFM12B @ 433 or 868 MHz) > RPi > WiFi @ 2.4 GHz > Router.  I'm not familiar with the RPi so you need somebody who is to confirm that.

I think you will need to take the "rock solid" gateway image for the RPi and modify it to send via Wi-Fi rather than wired.

But it might be worth checking whether the lower frequency (433 or 868 MHz compared to 2.4 GHz) can get through.

Do you want to separately monitor 4 currents? You do not need to use all 4 channels if you don't want to. I cannot see anything obvious missing from your list, other than a case and Wi-Fi for your RPi

Yes you can go EmonTx > radio (RFM12B @ 433 or 868 MHz) > RPi > WiFi @ 2.4 GHz > Router.

You would need to purchase a USB wifi dongle, it's worth checking that the one you choose has been made to work with a Raspberry Pi or purchase through a Rasp Pi focussed shop such as http://shop.pimoroni.com/collections/accessories or http://www.pi-supply.com

If you are going to this effort why not also monitor temperature and humidity?

For temperature and humidity I use Netatmo, which I really like. Now I got all the parts. But the Wi-Fi doesn’t work. I use an Edimax Dongle. I downloaded the Rock Solid Gateway (http://emoncms.org/site/docs/raspberrypigateway) and tried to configure the Wi-Fi (http://wiki.openenergymonitor.org/index.php?title=Raspberry_Pi#Using_WiF...) but it doesn’t work. I also found this post (http://openenergymonitor.org/emon/node/3074) which doesn’t help either. I have to main problems. When I tried to upgrade the system it says it doesn’t have enough space in archive. The ifconfig just brings the eth0 and the lo. Therefor I guess, when I type sudo ifup wlan0, it can't find device wlan0. What can I do to make the Wi-Fi work? Thanks for your help.
Kind regards
Beat

Hi

You might like to read through these which may help:-

http://openenergymonitor.org/emon/node/3074

http://openenergymonitor.org/emon/node/3700

Regards

Ian

Hi
Thanks for your links. I read the second post and the problem isn't the same. It isn't that it loses the Wi-Fi connection from time to time. It doesn’t find the wlan0 from the beginning. It starts with the message “cannot find the device wlan0″ bind socket to interface: no such interface. Failed to bring up wlan0″. I tried many different combinations of the interface and the wpa_supplicant.conf file. But it's always the same. I think the Edimax is recognized because when I type lsusb, it's listed.
Kind regards
Beat

There is a problem with the WiFi drivers on the rock solid gateway image and the Jan 14 HDD image. I use a Wifi  dongle and couldn't get it to work with those images. The latest feb14 HDD image works fine with my Realtek dongle, however if you are using a SD card rather than HDD then the none gateway image for the SD card from late Nov 13 should work if you can find it. I couldn't find any of the images designed to run from SD when I just checked, unless they've been moved elsewhere on the site.

Hi. I can't get it to work either really invested a lot of hours in getting it done. I realized that with lsmod the list is empty. So I tried to install the rtl8188cus driver but the install.sh aborts with errors and other helping scripts don't work either. So my new strategy is to look for a good image or I buy a hdd and hub and try the solution with hard drive. The only image (without hdd) that is available is from October. Did anyone got it to work with this image and the Edimax? Or am I the only one who tries a simple forwarder with Wi-Fi?

Kind regards
Beat

I tried most of the official images since last summer and only the gateway version using IPE and the Jan2014 Hdd version gave problems with Wifi drivers. 

pb66 identified the cause of the problem as a Kernel mismatch for the hdd image in this thread....

http://openenergymonitor.org/emon/node/3688

The IPE images exhibit the same Wifi driver behavior but I don't know if the cure is the same.

Did you sort your wifi issue?

I've made a new "Rock solid gateway" image which should fix the issue if you haven't, your welcome to try it but please be aware of an upgrade issue with the rock solid images that has come to light (not just this one) so do not use apt-get upgrade without doing a back up first as it is probable that it may break.

see this post http://openenergymonitor.org/emon/node/4036

regards Paul

Thanks for asking. But I couldn't solve my Wi-Fi Problems. So I decided to use the solution with hdd. The Wi-Fi and emoncms are working now. But I'm not sure if I receive data from the emonTx. But to solve this issue I first have to read up on the emoncms. Thank all of you for your support and help.
Best regards
Beat

I read the manual (http://emoncms.org/site/docs/inputsandfeeds) for input and feeds. But when I go to feeds at the column updated there is always inactive written. So I thing I don't get any Input data. Is there a possibility to check if the emonTx is properly connected to the Pi? And how can I identify the nodID of the emonTX? Thanks for your help.

You can follow the debugging steps on this page

http://wiki.openenergymonitor.org/index.php?title=RFM12Pi_V2

I tried to debug so I installed the minicom but when I try to run the command "minicom -b9600 -D/dev/AMA0" the system returns AMA0 no such file or directory. So I created this directory. But it doesn’t work either: cannot open dev/AMA0. What am I doing wrong?

I think the serial port should be /dev/ttyAMA0 rather than /dev/AMA0

the dev/AMA0 is the serial port that the RFM12Pi use to communicate with the RaspberryPi.

So the first thing you need to do is to delete that directory you created.

Then check that you have done the first two things on this page.

http://www.hobbytronics.co.uk/raspberry-pi-serial-port

as well as checking that you have killed whichever process is valid on this page.

You need to do this as only one process can use the serial port.  Having done this things try minicom again.

Thats strange as I tried it on my working rfm12pi before posting and if you look at the screen dump photo on wiki via your link it is connected to ttyAMA0.I thought it was a typo. The rock-solid read-only gateway must differ.

Apologies if I got it wrong I didn't mean to give misleading info.

Paul

The steps above where already done. And when I prompt "minicom -b9600 -D/dev/AMA0" still the same error. But with minicom -b9600 -D/dev/ttyAMA0" it opens but I think I don't receive anything. I only see my config and I can turn the LED on and off on the transmitter.

Assuming the green led on the rfm12pi doesn't flash periodically (usually about 3-5secs) to signify a received packet, it would suggest no data is arriving at the rfm12pi.

are the emontx v3 and pi located within easy range? I assume they are if they are both in a greenhouse (but you never know) so I would suggest hooking up the emontx v3 to the pi using the programming lead just to see whats happening at that end.

you can use minicom again this time watching the usb port which I think is /dev/ttyUSB0. this will help determine if the problem is communication between the units or prior to transmission.

Dear Paul
Sorry for my late replay. But I had a little accident with a stair. And the stair won. For now, I didn't install the parts in the green house. They are right beside each other near the computer. Your Assumption is right and the LED doesn’t flash. Actually it never flashes.  How do I connect the emontx with the pi? Do I need to connect it with the usb programming interface via usb cable to the pi? And if yes on the first usb port is the edimax and on the second usb port is the usb hub connected with keyboard and hdd. Does this matter for the minicom? Thanks for your help.
Kind regards
Beat

Sorry to hear about the chair incident I hope your on the mend.

Yes you can use the usb programming lead in any spare usb port I don't think it's fussy, (if you do have a problem you could just unplug the wifi dongle while you check the emontx v3) or alternatively if it's close to the pc you could just connect the emontx v3 to that with the usb lead and use the serial port monitor built into the arduino IDE.

Paul

Dear Paul

I just connected the emonTx  to the PC and installed the Arduiono IDE. I started to monitor the serial port. All 5 seconds a number value (ca. 240.00) appears on the screen. I assume that the emonTx is working. What can I do next? How can I check if the emonTx  is sending data?

Kind regards
Beat

I assume this is powered by AC/AC adapter correct?

Does the emontx led flash every 5 secs (approx)?

Have you confirmed the emontx v3 and rfm2pi units you received are the same frequency? I know the rfm2pi's are marked as such and would expect the emontx to be also.

I'm not familiar with the v3 but maybe someone who is will jump in and assist if needed, looking at the standard pre-installed sketch I would of expected a great deal more serial prints, Did you connect the usb lead before powering up the emontx? the setup phase of the sketch which only happens on start up should put the emontx in debug mode if a serial connection is detected.

Were there any setup statements printed to serial prior to the 240's?

Do you have any ct's connected ? particularly in ct1,

Maybe you should leave the usb lead & PC connected and power cycle the emontx and post the serial output.

PB

When the emonTx is connected to the power (9v) the led flashes approx every five seconds. Connected with the programming interface the led doesn't flash. The rfm2pi is labled with 433Mhz but at the v3 I can't see the bottom of  the print. When I look at the output I think it's 433 Mhz too. I have one ct connected ant it's on port  CT1. The output was:

emonTx V3 Discrete Sampling
OpenEnergyMonitor.org
CT 1 Calibration: 90.90
CT 2 Calibration: 90.90
CT 3 Calibration: 90.90
CT 4 Calibration: 16.60
RMS Voltage on AC-AC Adapter input is: ~6V
AC-AC adapter NOT detected - Apparent Power measurements enabled
Assuming VRMS to be 230V
Assuming powering from batteries / 5V USB - power saving mode enabled
CT 1 detected
Unable to detect DS18B20 temperature sensor
RFM12B Initiated:
Node: 10 Freq: 433Mhz Network: 210
9906
26
0
2
4
5
3
4
6
4
4
2
5
6
6

...and so forth

Kind regards

Beat

With AC Adapter connected:

emonTx V3 Discrete Sampling
OpenEnergyMonitor.org
CT 1 Calibration: 90.90
CT 2 Calibration: 90.90
CT 3 Calibration: 90.90
CT 4 Calibration: 16.60
RMS Voltage on AC-AC Adapter input is: ~172V
AC-AC adapter detected - Real Power measurements enabled
assuming powering from AC-AC adapter (jumper closed)
Vcal: 276.90
Phase Shift: 1.70
CT 1 detected
Unable to detect DS18B20 temperature sensor
RFM12B Initiated:
Node: 10 Freq: 433Mhz Network: 210
14313 315.97
87 240.65
-5 240.47
-3 240.29

1 or 2 odd values like 172v - probably just settling

It looks like rfm12b has setup ok freq,and network id match rfm2pi defaults

led flashes on emontx to signify a data packet was sent

If the led on the rfm12pi doesn't flash to confirm packet received 

are both aerials intact?

is there a strong source of interference?

Did you confirm or change any settings when you had minicom connected to rfm12pi? you previously mentioned you saw the rfm2pi config when you connected minicom was it correct?

Paul

The "RMS Voltage on AC-AC Adapter input is: ~172V" is not the filters settling, it was a bug in the sketch - it's been corrected and a good version is now on Github.

"14313 315.97
87 240.65" is the filters settling and that too has now been corrected on Github.

The LED does not flash unless AC power was detected at start-up (a battery-saving feature).

You can tell whether the RFM12B is a 433 MHz or an 868 MHz from the pictures here.

Ok. It’s definite a 433 MHz module. I just did a new installation on the pi just to be sure I have the right configuration. But still no blinking led on the pi. What else could be wrong so it doesn't receive data? I'm using the SMA Antenna PCB Connector - 90 Degree Elbow and this antenna (http://www.tp-link.com/lk/products/details/?model=TL-ANT2409A). Could this be the problem?

Kind regard
Beat

dendrobates,

I think you've found a potential source of your problem!  That antenna isn't tuned for 433MHz as it operates in the 2.4GHz band.

If you wish to use SMA antenna you need to use one that is designed to work at 433MHz.

As ukmoose says, you should use an antenna designed for 433Mhz, Just for clarity, do you have this 2.4Ghz ant connected to the emonTx or have you fitted a sma connector to the rfm12pi ?

I used the SMA Antenna PCB Connector and soldered the connection from the module to the emontx print. The antenna was connected with an SMA reverse SMA adapter to the SMA Antenna PCB Connector. Yesterday I soldered a wire directly on the module. But still the same behavior. The emontx v3 is blinking and the rfm12pi does not blink.

Kind regards 
Beat

Did you use the original wire? the antenna wire needs to be 165mm long.

When you soldered the wire to "the module" I assume you mean the RFu328 (not the emontx v3 or rfm12b) did you disconnect the link to the emontx v3 pcb ?

Paul

Dear Paul

The wire is 165mm long. I didn't use the original wire. It's a normal small connecting wire. Before I soldered the antenna I disconnected the link to the emontx. And I installed  the antenna on the RFu328 module. How can I check if the RFM12Pi is not broken.

Kind regards
Beat

I am unsure how you can proceed without a 3rd device. The trouble being that both the rfm12b and the rfm2pi appear to be set up and functioning correctly. Although the rfm2pi isn't flashing to indicate receipt of a packet, that doesn't necessarily mean it's at fault because we cannot be sure one is being sent by the rfm12b despite it flashing to suggest is has.

Is there a reason you suspect the rfm2pi? If I had to take a guess at which was at fault (and it would be a guess at this point), knowing how reliable the rfm2pi's are I might be inclined to suspect the rfm12b on the emontx as this been connected to an incompatible active antenna which may have caused some damage, But I do not know for sure if that is likely or even possible I'm afraid. It is of course totally possible one of these units has an unrelated fault but if so which one?

In future it would be wise to test the units out of the box before modding or connecting to other devices.

Maybe someone else can suggest further tests, but I think either a 3rd device is required to test both boards further or if you're ok with a soldering iron maybe buying a new rfm12b module would be the most cost effective and expedient way forward, this could then be used as a replacement for either board. so if fitting it to one board doesn't work you can fit it to the other.

Paul

Dear Paul
Thanks a lot for your help. I think it works now. I updated the rfm12pi firmware (http://wiki.openenergymonitor.org/index.php?title=RFM12Pi_V2). After that I had to reconfigure the frequency via minicom and then it starts to receive packages.
Kind regards
Beat

that's really good news, I'm glad you cracked it

Paul

What kind of antenna should I order? I need a 5m cable when the antenna should be mounted on the outside of the green house. There are many different ones (http://stores.ebay.com/rfsupplier/_i.html?_nkw=433&_arm=1&_armi=3G+UMTS+antenna&_armm=351&_ruu=http%3A%2F%2Fstores.ebay.com%2Frfsupplier%2F3G-UMTS-antenna-%2F_i.html%3F_nkw%3D433%26_arr%3D1%26_fsub%3D1442294016%26_sid%3D174265176&_sid=174265176&_rdc=1). When I put the emontx print in the alu case it sends only a few meters. I think the case acts like a small Faraday cage. 

Kind regards
Beat

Reading your previous posts I understood you where going to site the Pi in the greenhouse with the emontx and connect to the existing wifi network in the greenhouse with a usb wifi dongle.

You may find that is the easier way if you already have the wifi signal in the greenhouse as extending the emontx range may not be straight forward, Glyn recently did some testing which found the wire whip to give the better results in his tests, that doesn't mean it can't be improved but firstly not all these "gain" antenna do what they are advertised to do so finding a good one may be difficult and secondly you may need to regain a loss from extending 5metres before any real gain will be noticed.

Paul

I would prefer to have the pi not in the green house, because the average humidity is around 80%. And even if the electronic devices are ip66 housings it's no good for them. Normally a device last approx. 5 years, because of humidity and heat. The big advantage of having the antenna outside is because the signal would not be absorbed by the greenhouse and I would have a direct line to the flat. In the next days I will test if the pi receives a signal from inside the greenhouse.

Now I fully installed the emontx in the greenhouse. And the pi is in my flat and receives the signal without any problems. Now there is another issue. The input ct4 always returns values around 24kW. Doesn’t matter which sensor is connected. Do I need to update the firmware on the emontx or is there a way to check what’s wrong? Thanks a lot for your help.

Kind regards
Beat

What is the power you expect to see? What does it return when NO sensor is connected? And what sensors are you using? What firmware do you think you have in the emonTx?