Development of excavator arm movement with wireless control using Bluetooth and the Internet of Things (IoT)

This research is to develop a wired control system into a wireless control system on a laboratory scale mini excavator. First step is to review the development of the drive system and control system on previous excavator models, change the pneumatic drive system to electro-pneumatic, changing the control system from wired control to wireless control using Bluetooth and Internet of Things (IoT) system. The excavator with scale 1:14 is driven by a pneumatic system. The movement of the actuator is controlled using a wired remote, so that the working area is still limited to a certain area. The pneumatic control system on previous excavators was developed into an electro-pneumatic control system. Electro-pneumatic control system by replacing the 5/2-way directional valve with a 5/3-way double solenoid directional valve. With this valve, the movement of the excavator arms can be adjusted according to the operator’s wishes. The wired control system was developed into a wires control system including the Bluetooth system and the Internet of Things (IoT). Important components in these two control systems are Arduino Mega 2560, WEMOS D1 R32, 16 channel relay, and HC05 module. The excavator model with the development of a new control system has unchanged dimensions from the previous model. The excavator arms still use the previous excavator arms as well as the traveler with the same undercarriage. Only the body housing the control system is adapted to the new component layout area. Testing the wireless remote system is at a distance of around 30 meters, while the IoT remote system at a distance of around 1.5 km. The movement of each step is easier to regulate because it uses a 5/3-way directional valve. The time used for each step is also less than previous excavator models