Designations
That last kick I made at the code last night did not generate the results I was hoping for.
The short version of what I’m up against with the software is as follows.
Originally, when the Uno only had one small sting of data it was pretty easy to just copy and paste it on down the line, so to speak.
After adding the adding the additional sensor and data stream to the first Microcomputer (an Arduino Uno), I needed to change first how the information was being handed off, by merging the data into a single string of characters; Followed by how the second Microcomputer (a NodeMCU 1.0 ESP-12E) would scan the incoming data string, before breaking and storing it as three pieces of data (TDS, Temperature and Humidity) that can be posted to my spreadsheet.
To make this easy for myself, and allow for easy future expansion, I’ve come up with a coding system for keeping track of which sensor I’m dealing with at any given time.
When scanning, the Uno saves the data in a string that reads ‘ AA###.## AB##.## AC##.# ‘ where the first letter in each string is a reference to which microcomputer is providing the data. Right now as there is only the single Uno, everything is coming in starting with an ‘A’. If/when I add a second bed/Uno to the system its designation would be ‘B’.
The second letter in the string is a reference to the type of data, with A being TDS, B Temperature and C Humidity. As new sensors or data sources are added, new letters will be added.
The # indicate the expected numerical format/layout of the data.
The challenge that I’m currently facing is that there is a trailing hard return attached to the code for AC that I cannot seem to drop or get rid of.
This “rogue return” then wreaks havoc on what I’m trying to do whenever AC##.# is referenced.
As I’ve already been trying to resolve this for 20 more hours that I wanted to, I am a little behind on other aspects of the build.
As previously indicated, I will need to shelve these extra data sources for now, and circle back to them once everything else is completed.
Next up, I’m going to grab a fresh coffee and put some eyes on the google app code and see what it will take to incorporate a timestamp.
