Greenhouse Cloud Ceiling Monitor Kit v4 - Map Cloud Height and Climate with IR TOF

Every part needed, pre-tested for compatibility, with an AI build companion trained on this exact project. Shipped from Bengaluru in 3-5 days.

Commercial greenhouse yields depend on the microclimate above the canopy - and that includes cloud cover. This kit lets you build a pulsed IR ceilometer that estimates cloud base height by timing the return of a 940?nm pulse. On-board BMP280 and DHT22 correct for air density and humidity, so your measurements remain accurate as a thunderstorm builds or a dry spell settles in. The result is a self-contained, microSD-logging instrument that gives you actionable cloud-layer data alongside temperature, humidity, and barometric pressure - the four variables that most influence plant transpiration and disease pressure inside a high-value greenhouse.

What You'll Build

You'll assemble a compact sensor head that fires brief, high-power IR pulses into the sky and captures the faint reflected signal with a BPW34 photodiode and two-stage LM358 amplification. An Arduino Mega processes the return time, corrects it using BMP280-derived air density, and displays the instantaneous cloud ceiling height on a 0.96-inch OLED. All environmental readings - cloud height, temperature, humidity, pressure, and a timestamp from the DS3231 RTC - are written to a microSD card for later analysis. The final device mounts easily on a greenhouse ridge, running on a single 12?V supply, and gives you near-real-time visibility into the atmospheric boundary that governs light diffusion and humidity management inside.

What You'll Learn

• Design a pulsed infrared time-of-flight rangefinder with LM358-based receiver signal conditioning
• Correct range measurements for atmospheric density using BMP280 pressure and temperature data
• Interface DHT22, BMP280, DS3231 RTC and a microSD module on an Arduino Mega simultaneously
• Write firmware that averages multiple TOF returns, rejects false triggers, and logs structured CSV data

Kit Contents

Why Buy This Kit Instead of Sourcing Parts Separately

Who This Kit Is For

This kit is built for agricultural engineers, greenhouse operators, and researchers who need a reliable cloud-ceiling sensor for microclimate studies. It's equally at home in a B.Tech ECE or agri-electronics final-year project, a Smart India Hackathon precision-agriculture prototype, or a commercial polyhouse where light-dependent crop growth models rely on real-time cloud data. If you have prior Arduino experience and are comfortable with analog circuits, you'll find the 15-20 hour build both challenging and deeply satisfying.

Built and Backed by Compoden

Every Compoden kit ships with an AI build companion trained on this exact project - accessible via a QR code on the box, with WhatsApp and email backup. We've spent 10 years building projects for makers, schools, and institutions across India. If a part fails because of a manufacturing defect, replace it free within 7 days.

Choose your assembly option:

• Soldering Kit - 25W soldering iron, 60/40 solder wire, flux, and small perfboard for permanent assembly.
• Breadboard Combo - 800-point full-size breadboard with 65-piece jumper wire pack for solderless prototyping.