Definition
Pressure is defined as force per unit area that a fluid exerts on its surroundings. You can measure this force by detecting the amount of deflection on a diaphragm positioned inline with the fluid. Given the known area of the diaphragm, pressure can then be calculated. Pressure sensors are packaged with a scale that provides a method to convert to engineering units. The SI unit for pressure is the Pascal (N/m2), but other common units of pressure include psi, atmospheres, bars, inches of mercury, millimeters of mercury.
Pressure Measurement Methods
There are three methods for measuring pressure: absolute, gauge, and differential. Absolute pressure is referenced to the pressure in a vacuum, whereas gauge and differential pressures are referenced to another pressure such as the ambient atmospheric pressure or pressure in an adjacent vessel.
Atmospheric Pressure Measurement Using BMP180
The BMP180 is the function compatible successor of the BMP085, a new generation of high precision digital pressure sensors for consumer applications. The ultra-low power, low voltage electronics of the BMP180 is optimized for use in mobile phones, PDAs, GPS navigation devices and outdoor equipment. With a low altitude noise of merely 0.25m at fast conversion time, the BMP180 offers superior performance. The I2C interface allows for easy system integration with a microcontroller.
The BMP180 is based on piezo-resistive technology for EMC robustness, high accuracy and linearity as well as long term stability.
BMP180 Sensor
Circuit Connection of BMP180 with Arduino
Arduino code for BMP180
Download Library from: https://github.com/sparkfun/BMP180_Breakout_Arduino_Library/archive/master.zip
/* SFE_BMP180 library example sketch
This sketch shows how to use the SFE_BMP180 library to read the
Bosch BMP180 barometric pressure sensor.
Like most pressure sensors, the BMP180 measures absolute pressure.
This is the actual ambient pressure seen by the device, which will
vary with both altitude and weather.
Before taking a pressure reading you must take a temparture reading.
This is done with startTemperature() and getTemperature().
The result is in degrees C.
Once you have a temperature reading, you can take a pressure reading.
This is done with startPressure() and getPressure().
The result is in millibar (mb) aka hectopascals (hPa).
If you'll be monitoring weather patterns, you will probably want to
remove the effects of altitude. This will produce readings that can
be compared to the published pressure readings from other locations.
To do this, use the sealevel() function. You will need to provide
the known altitude at which the pressure was measured.
If you want to measure altitude, you will need to know the pressure
at a baseline altitude. This can be average sealevel pressure, or
a previous pressure reading at your altitude, in which case
subsequent altitude readings will be + or - the initial baseline.
This is done with the altitude() function.
Hardware connections:
- (GND) to GND
+ (VDD) to 3.3V
(WARNING: do not connect + to 5V or the sensor will be damaged!)
You will also need to connect the I2C pins (SCL and SDA) to your
Arduino. The pins are different on different Arduinos:
Any Arduino pins labeled: SDA SCL
Uno, Redboard, Pro: A4 A5
Mega2560, Due: 20 21
Leonardo: 2 3
Leave the IO (VDDIO) pin unconnected. This pin is for connecting
the BMP180 to systems with lower logic levels such as 1.8V
*/
#include <SFE_BMP180.h>
#include <Wire.h>
// You will need to create an SFE_BMP180 object, here called "pressure":
SFE_BMP180 pressure;
#define ALTITUDE 1655.0 // Altitude in meters
void setup()
{
Serial.begin(9600);
Serial.println("REBOOT");
// Initialize the sensor (it is important to get calibration values stored on the device).
if (pressure.begin())
Serial.println("BMP180 init success");
else
{
// Oops, something went wrong, this is usually a connection problem,
// see the comments at the top of this sketch for the proper connections.
Serial.println("BMP180 init fail\n\n");
while(1); // Pause forever.
}
}
void loop()
{
char status;
double T,P,p0,a;
// Loop here getting pressure readings every 10 seconds.
// If you want sea-level-compensated pressure, as used in weather reports,
// you will need to know the altitude at which your measurements are taken.
// We're using a constant called ALTITUDE in this sketch:
Serial.println();
Serial.print("provided altitude: ");
Serial.print(ALTITUDE,0);
Serial.print(" meters, ");
Serial.print(ALTITUDE*3.28084,0);
Serial.println(" feet");
// If you want to measure altitude, and not pressure, you will instead need
// to provide a known baseline pressure. This is shown at the end of the sketch.
// You must first get a temperature measurement to perform a pressure reading.
// Start a temperature measurement:
// If request is successful, the number of ms to wait is returned.
// If request is unsuccessful, 0 is returned.
status = pressure.startTemperature();
if (status != 0)
{
// Wait for the measurement to complete:
delay(status);
// Retrieve the completed temperature measurement:
// Note that the measurement is stored in the variable T.
// Function returns 1 if successful, 0 if failure.
status = pressure.getTemperature(T);
if (status != 0)
{
// Print out the measurement:
Serial.print("temperature: ");
Serial.print(T,2);
Serial.print(" deg C, ");
Serial.print((9.0/5.0)*T+32.0,2);
Serial.println(" deg F");
// Start a pressure measurement:
// The parameter is the oversampling setting, from 0 to 3 (highest res, longest wait).
// If request is successful, the number of ms to wait is returned.
// If request is unsuccessful, 0 is returned.
status = pressure.startPressure(3);
if (status != 0)
{
// Wait for the measurement to complete:
delay(status);
// Retrieve the completed pressure measurement:
// Note that the measurement is stored in the variable P.
// Note also that the function requires the previous temperature measurement (T).
// (If temperature is stable, you can do one temperature measurement for a number of pressure measurements.)
// Function returns 1 if successful, 0 if failure.
status = pressure.getPressure(P,T);
if (status != 0)
{
// Print out the measurement:
Serial.print("absolute pressure: ");
Serial.print(P,2);
Serial.print(" mb, ");
Serial.print(P*0.0295333727,2);
Serial.println(" inHg");
// The pressure sensor returns absolute pressure, which varies with altitude.
// To remove the effects of altitude, use the sea level function and your current altitude.
// This number is commonly used in weather reports.
// Parameters: P = absolute pressure in mb, ALTITUDE = current altitude in m.
// Result: p0 = sea-level compensated pressure in mb
p0 = pressure.sealevel(P,ALTITUDE); // we're at 1655 meters (Boulder, CO)
Serial.print("relative (sea-level) pressure: ");
Serial.print(p0,2);
Serial.print(" mb, ");
Serial.print(p0*0.0295333727,2);
Serial.println(" inHg");
// On the other hand, if you want to determine your altitude from the pressure reading,
// use the altitude function along with a baseline pressure (sea-level or other).
// Parameters: P = absolute pressure in mb, p0 = baseline pressure in mb.
// Result: a = altitude in m.
a = pressure.altitude(P,p0);
Serial.print("computed altitude: ");
Serial.print(a,0);
Serial.print(" meters, ");
Serial.print(a*3.28084,0);
Serial.println(" feet");
}
else Serial.println("error retrieving pressure measurement\n");
}
else Serial.println("error starting pressure measurement\n");
}
else Serial.println("error retrieving temperature measurement\n");
}
else Serial.println("error starting temperature measurement\n");
delay(5000); // Pause for 5 seconds.
}
Result of Pressure measurement using BMP180
Air pressure measurements can be achieved with MPX5010 pressure sensor. Other weather related parameters such as rain measurement can be done using rain sensor.