Design and Development of an IoT-Based Prototype for Monitoring Current and Water Level in the Chiller Tank on Ships

Abstract

This final project focuses on the chiller system, which is used for cooling or air conditioning rooms on ships. The chiller is part of the HVAC system on the ship. Monitoring the chiller is essential to determine the remaining water volume in the chiller tank, as well as to store the monitoring history in the web server. Currently, the chiller's monitoring system is still manual, meaning the water volume must be filled manually. This process requires a considerable amount of time. To address this issue, the author introduces an innovation titled "Design and Development of an IoT-based Monitoring Prototype for Chiller Tank Water Flow and Level on Ships."

The IoT-based monitoring system works by connecting sensors from the chiller tank components to a NodeMCU, which processes the data. The NodeMCU then sends the relevant data to a web server. The monitoring system tracks not only the water level but also the current and temperature. The current to be monitored is the output current from the chiller pump motor. This data is connected to an application that will notify the user if the current, frequency, voltage of the pump motor, or water level do not meet the specified criteria, triggering an alarm. The temperature being monitored refers to the chiller's temperature used to cool a room.

Additionally, there is a protective system for the chiller pump motor using an MK2P relay, which functions to disconnect the current or voltage in case of a loss of power to the motor. This helps protect the motor from damage by cutting off the control circuit connected to the motor.