PENGUJIAN KINERJA PROTOTIPE SISTEM PENYIRAMAN TANAMAN OTOMATIS BERBASIS INTERNET OF THINGS MENGGUNAKAN MIKROKONTROLER DAN APLIKASI TELEGRAM

The Internet of Things (IoT) can be described as a powerful force for transmitting information over networks without the need for traditional computing devices. IoT is highly beneficial for society, driving the utilization of technology in various aspects of daily life. The primary goal of IoT is to connect the physical world with the digital realm. Therefore, real-world conditions are measured by sensors and converted into digital data that computers can understand. This data is then transformed into commands that can be executed by actuators. The objective of this research is to build a prototype of an automatic and manual plant watering system based on a microcontroller. This system will include remote control capabilities via the Telegram application, with the final product being an Android-operated plant watering application. The research method involved assembling the automatic plant watering device using an Arduino Uno system. Testing results indicate that this automatic plant watering system can perform both automatic and manual watering effectively, based on a soil moisture threshold of 40%. The soil moisture sensor accuracy test showed an average error of 7.4% under initial dry soil conditions, which significantly decreased to 4.5% after the watering process was complete. This suggests more stable sensor performance in moist soil conditions. Additionally, the system successfully integrated with the Telegram application, enabling users to monitor moisture and temperature data and send control commands remotely. With scheduled and controlled watering through this system, the observed plant growth became more optimal.