pi-sprinkler-timer

A DIY web driven scheduler system for the Raspberry Pi written in Python using lighttpd and pigpio. This is typically used to support a irrigation system with multiple sprikler valves, but you could also use it to control other devices.

(If you are looking for a more turnkey and feature rich solution for your RPi, I highly recommend OpenSprinkler Pi instead.)

Parts:

• Raspberry Pi (or other dev board capable of running Python and Lighttpd)
• WiFi dongle (if not using RPi v3)
• Power Supply for RPi
• 24V AC Sprinkler Power Supply
• Sprinler Valves
• 5V Relay Board

Pre-requisites:

• Lighttpd must be installed
• Pigpio must be installed
• RPi must be configured to connect to your network

Installation:

Configure Lighttpd to run python scripts with password protection.

1. Add the following to your /etc/lighttpd/lighttpd.conf configuration file:

auth.debug = 2
auth.backend = "plain"
auth.backend.plain.userfile = "/etc/.lighttpdpassword"
auth.require = ( "/cgi-bin/" =>
(
"method" => "basic",
"realm" => "Password protected area",
"require" => "user=admin"
)
)
$HTTP["url"] =~ "^/" {
    cgi.assign = (".py" => "/usr/bin/python")
}

Change the username from "admin" to whatever you want.

2. Create a file called /etc/.lighttpdpassword with one line in it:

admin:password

Change the password to whatever you want.

3. Enable cgi for Lighttpd

Run the following command to enable the cgi mod.

lighty-enable-mod cgi

4. Restart Lighttpd.

sudo service lighttpd restart

Copy scripts

1. Download this github repository and copy index.html to your web root directory.

2. Copy all the other ".py" scripts to your cgi-bin directory.

3. Add pigpiod and the scheduler to rc.local so they start when the Pi boots up.

sudo nano /etc/rc.local

Add ...

pigpiod &
/path to your cgi-bin directory/scheduler.py &

... before the "exit" statement.

Add your GPIO pins

Open the scheduler.py script and change the values in station to match the GPIO pins you connected to your relay board.

Enable reboot and shutdown from the web page

Add the "www-data" user to the /etc/sudoers file by using visudo. NOTE: This weakens the security of your system in that a knowledgeable person might be able to reboot or shutdown your RPi. You have been warned.

sudo visudo

Add these lines to the bottom of the file.

www-data ALL=/sbin/shutdown
www-data ALL=NOPASSWD:/sbin/shutdown

Issues 💩

I am still working on the script to change/add programs. For now you will have to open the schedule.py script and manually edit the job1 function and the scheduler.add_job statement so that the program runs when you want it to. If you want multiple programs you can define another job function (i.e. job2) and add another scheduler.add_job statement to run it as well.

Here is the way the job1 function works:

def job1(): # The name of the job
    print("Job 1 running!")
    running = True
    pi.write(station[0], 0) # Sets the first GPIO pin LOW which activates the associated relay
    time.sleep(600) # Wait 10 minutes
    pi.write(station[0], 1) # Sets the first GPIO pin HIGH which de-activates the associated relay
    time.sleep(1) # Wait for 1 second

Give it a try

Reboot your RPi. Open a web browser and type in the IP address of your RPi. You should see the index.py page.