Observant C3

Description

The Observant C3 is a self-contained battery and solar powered wireless sensing and control platform predominately for usage in the agricultural industry. It was designed to handle harsh environments, operate with limited power and with little service or installation input. The C3 works in conjunction with a number of third party sensing devices (eg. soil moisture and weather sensors) and a cloud based software suite to deliver near-real-time and historical data to the user.

The C3 is constructed from a number of different plastic compounds, machined, stamped and laser cut metal parts. The internals consist of a single 4-layer PCA using a mixture of SMT and through-hole components. Provision is made for a number of different radio technologies which can be combined for data routing and back-haul operations. In its field configuration the C3 is powered by a 14 watt PV panel, this feeds an integrated power management system that maintains two independent, custom built, 4-cell, 36 WHr LiFePO₄ battery packs.

Whilst predominantly constructed from plastics the design is intended to project a robustness expected from equipment operating in such environments. To that end most of the resins have some glass content, and generous wall thicknesses are used throughout.

For

While in the employ of Observant

Involvement

• Whole product concept
• Product mock-ups and prototyping
• Detailed electronics design and PCB layout
• Low-level firmware (HPLs)
• Detailed mechanical design including injection moulded plastic, machined and laser cut metal parts
• Production documentation, sourcing and support
• Product shipping pack design
• Generation of technical user documentation including user guide and application notes

Status

Currently in production

Awards

• Good design award 2013
• Powerhouse museum design award and selection 2013

*Images courtesy Observant