Design and Development of Feeding Automation System and Water Quality Monitoring on Freshwater Fish Cultivation
Authors: Zuriati Z , Supriyatna A R , Arifin O 
Published: April 2022

Feeding is one of the most critical aspects of freshwater fish farming in order to get optimal aquaculture outcomes. It has been widely acknowledged that feeding is often done directly by cultivators, who distribute the feed by employing hand. This common strategy can result in two outcomes. The first outcome is an increase in feed costs owing to excessive feeding, while the second outcome is an increase in feed costs due to excessive feeding. Overfeeding, as a matter of a fact, may lead to the result in leftover feed that is not devoured by the fish, contaminating the pond water and disrupting the pH stability of the pond water. In addition, the second effect that may occur is a shortage of nutrition and nutrients in fish, which can lead to poor fish development. Another issue in aquaculture is the high mortality rate of fish, which actually contain several reasons, one of which is poor water quality, which is not conducive to maximal fish growth and development. Cultivators must thus regularly examine the quality of pond water, specifically the pH of pond water. In light of these concerns, we require a system that can assist farmers in controlling feed scheduling, determining the amount of feed required based on the age of the fish, and monitoring water quality. The device in question is an automated fish feeding and water quality monitoring system. This automated solution has shown to provide a number of benefits. The benefit is that feeding can be scheduled, the amount of feed can be changed according to the age and demands of the fish, and the pond water quality, in this case the pH of the water, can be automatically monitored. Further, the research was carried out at different stages. Planning and data gathering, needs analysis, implementation, and system testing were all aspects of the research. The RTC sensor, pH sensor, and temperature sensor were all employed in the automation system. The RTC sensor was utilized to time the feeding schedule for the fish. The pH sensor detected the pH value of the pool water, while the temperature sensor detected the temperature of pool water. The data collected from the three sensors was then processed by the NodeMCU ESP8266 microcontroller. The NodeMCU ESP8266 microcontroller chip houses the system’s logic and software instructions. The data of the sensor was transferred and recorded to a Google spreadsheet, where it was utilized as an indication to control actuators such as servo motors and relays. Further more, the fish feed was opened and closed by utilizing a servo motor. The pH pump was turned on and off using the relay as a switch. This pH pump contained fluids to keep the pH levels in the water stable. Through employing NodeMCU ESP8266 microcontroller, this study has revealed to be able to create an automated system for feeding and monitoring water quality. The automation system then was able to perform the feeding activity in accordance to schedule set, and also was able to perform it according to the specified amount of feed. In addition, the quality of the pond water was also able to be monitored.