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Uv-c Based Germs Disinfecting Machine

About the project

A touch-free germs disinfecting device that can disinfect anything from masks, wallets to mobile phones, killing maximum germs using UV-C.

Project info

Difficulty: Moderate

Platforms: Adafruit, Arduino, ControlEverything.com, Digilent, PHPoC, SparkFun

Estimated time: 2 days

License: GNU General Public License, version 3 or later (GPL3+)

Items used in this project

Hardware components

	ControlEverything.com 1-Channel Signal Relay 1A SPDT I²C Mini Module	x 1
	SparkFun Stepper motor driver board A4988	x 1
	Ultrasonic Sensor - HC-SR04 (Generic)	x 1
	Digilent IR Proximity Sensor	x 2
	Adafruit RGB Backlight LCD - 16x2	x 1
	UVC Lamp	x 1
	Jumper wires (generic)	x 1
	PHPoC Bread Board	x 1
	MG90S Micro Servo	x 1
	Arduino UNO	x 1
	Arduino MKR WiFi 1010	x 1

View all

Software apps and online services

	Hacksaw with Blade
	Hammer
	Multitool, Screwdriver
	Drill / Driver, Cordless
	Solder Flux, Soldering
	Solder Wire, Lead Free
	Arduino IDE

Hand tools and fabrication machines

	Poker	x 1
	Soldering iron (generic)	x 1

Story

Motivation:

I always wanted to build something useful to the society and the world. Having been experienced in doing several science projects in electronics and IoT, I wanted to utilize my skills in such a way that most of the front-line workers are benefited from that. Due to the ongoing pandemic, things have changed a lot. We need to wear masks everywhere, sanitize our hands time to time, etc. One such issue that I found was, after using our mobile phones or other things outside, we often forget to sanitize them or we do it with liquid disinfectant. Thus, I wanted to build something that could help people stay away from germs by disinfecting their essentials without touching the disinfecting machine itself.

In the current era, e-Waste has been a major threat to the environment. Therefore, this project mainly relies on using the e-Waste effectively as much as possible.

Theory:

UV-C Kills the germs by rupturing their cell membrane and altering their DNA/RNA

Source: lightstec.com

So this was the main idea in doing this project. UV disinfecting chambers have already hit the market, but one of the main feature that they all lacked was, the 360-degree all-surface disinfection. This project overcomes those limitations and disinfects all the surfaces by flipping the items automatically after disinfecting one surface.

Key Features:

Completely Touch-Free
360-degree disinfection
Kills corona viruses also
UV-C based
Interactive display
Adjustable Timer up to 12 Hrs.
Emergency stop

Working:

The micro-controller continuously monitors for any obstacles in the proximity of the IR sensors. Once there is an obstacle in the close proximity, for required amount of time (1.5 seconds in this case) an event is triggered, based on what's displayed in the LCD.
When the open tray event is triggered, the stepper motor is driven the required number of steps to open the tray.
The same way when the close tray event is triggered, the stepper is driven until the limit switch shows a red-flag (the switch changes it's state) so that the tray is closed.
The timer is set either to default or by measuring the distance between the ultrasonic sensor and the hand.
After choosing the disinfect option, the relay is turned ON, thus turning on the UV-C lamp. After disinfecting one surface, the items are automatically flipped with the help of servo motors while the UV is still ON.
Lastly after disinfection the tray is again opened by the stepper motor.

Procedure:

Step 1: Gathering Things

Since this project is made from e-Waste, you need to first gather the parts.

Things you would need:

An old flatbed scanner / embedded scanner (from printer)
An old CPU Case
Geometry box

Then, you would need all the parts listed in the previous section.

Step 2: Building the Case and Tray

Dismantle the scanner and take out the lower part of the scanner that would have the scan head and the stepper motor attached with it. This would be used to take the items inside and outside the disinfecting machine.
Solder wires to the stepper motor, so that they're lengthy enough to connect to the breadboard.
Fix a limit switch at the end of the base, so that we can determine the position of the scan head while starting the MCU.

The base with the scan head of an old flatbed scanner, with the stepper motor and limit switch attached.

Remove the lamp that's there inside the scan head, you can re-use it later. Fix a firm base (tray) to the scan head. The things to be disinfected will be placed on the tray.
Now take the geometry box and separate the lid and the base. Attach these two to the servo motors, the servo motors will be used to flip these items.
Now fix the servo motor set up with the tray such that they can lift items and flip them. Make sure you use a powerful enough servo like a metal geared one, ex. MG90S servo.
Now mount the tray to the scan head. You should end up something like this:

The tray fixed to the scan head with the servo set-up

Remove the front part of the CPU case such that it's completely open in one side.
Now attach the lower part of the scanner with CPU case using screws. Drill holes if necessary.

The base and tray mounted to the CPU case.

Step 3: The circuitry and sensors

The primary Micro-controller board will be the Arduino MKR WiFi 1010, and the secondary Micro-controller board will be the Arduino Uno. Give the connections as per the circuit given in the Schematics section below.
Fix the IR sensor in front of the top panel and the ultrasonic sensor in the middle, the display should be in the corner and clearly visible to the user.
The UV-C light should be placed beneath the top panel, in a reasonable position such that max. amount of light falls on the items placed on the tray.
Test each and every part including the motor and sensor as you connect them to the MCU.
Make the wires connecting the servo lengthy enough such that it doesn't stop the tray from coming out completely.
The completed circuitry looked like this for me, but make the connections as neat as possible.

The finished circuit should look something like this

Step 4: Uploading the code

The code that is provided is completely modular, call the functions that you need to execute while checking the circuitry.

Code:

This is the function that will be executed once you turn ON the Arduino MKR WiFi 1010, so while building the project, you can check the working of individual components by commenting the rest of the code.

void execute(){   DisplayControl (1);      //Display open tray option  delay(1000);  sense_1();               //To sense sensor 1    DisplayControl (2);    //Display status message    TraverserControl (1);  //Open the tray    DisplayControl (3);    //Display Close tray option  sense_2();               //To sense sensor 2    DisplayControl (9);    //Display status message    TraverserControl (0);  //To close the tray    DisplayControl (4);    //To display default time    int val = sense_1_2_();//To sense both sensors for input    if (val == 0)          //If user selects to     {        DisplayControl (5);  //Display disinfecting message      disinfect();         //Start disinfection    }    else    {       changeTime();       //To change default timing       DisplayControl (5); //Display disinfecting message        disinfect();        //Start disinfection    }  sense_1();    DisplayControl (6);    //Display status message    TraverserControl (1);  //To open the tray  sense_1();    DisplayControl (9);    //Display status message    TraverserControl (0);  //To close the tray    DisplayControl (7);    //Display thank you message}

You can find the full program in the Code section below.

The final model:

The complete set-up

You're done!You might encounter some hardware errors while building the project, try to fix them and move on. Remember, "Never Give Up". This project failed to work properly several times and it needed many modifications to arrive at the optimal solution. So, with smart work and dedication, you can do anything!

The finished project:

The Completed project would look something like this

Any queries / doubts or you want to build this project in a large scale to launch it in market, feel free to contact me: E-Mail: ymlabs98@gmail.com

Schematics, diagrams and documents

The photo of the complete circuitry

Connect the UV-C Lamp to the main supply and the relay such that it's powered by the external source and turned ON by the relay.

The complete schematic for the disinfecting machine.

The Fritzing File

Code

Arduino MKR WiFi 1010 - YM Labs Germs Disinfecting Machine.ino

It's used to control the whole set up. To program the Arduino MKR WiFI 1010

//  _    _         _               ___     ___ 
//  \\  //         ||       /\    ||  \\  //  \\
//   \\//    __    ||      /__\   ||__//  \\__  
//    //\\  //\\   ||     //  \\  ||  \\  _   \\
//   //  \\//  \\  ||||| //    \\ ||__//  \\__// 

// A YM Labs Production

//////////////////////////////////////////////
// For Stepper Motor -  Pins                //
   const int stepPin = 3;                   //
   const int dirPin = 4;                    //      
////////////////////////////////////////////// 
// For LCD                                  //
//  Libraries                               //  
    #include <Wire.h>                       //
    #include <LCD.h>                        //
    #include <LiquidCrystal_I2C.h>          //
//  I2C Object,                             //
LiquidCrystal_I2C  lcd(0x3F,2,1,0,4,5,6,7); //
//////////////////////////////////////////////
//  For Ultrasonic Sensor                   //
// Trigger pin and echo pin                 //
    const int pingPin = 7;                  //
    const int echoPin = 6;                  //
// Distance                                 //
    long duration, cm;                      //
//////////////////////////////////////////////
// For Limit switch                         //
// Setting pin and value                    //        
    const int b_ls = A3;                    //
    int bls_val = LOW;                      //   
//////////////////////////////////////////////
//  For IR Sensors                          //
//  Setting the pins and values             //
    const int ir1 = A4;                     //
    const int ir2 = A5;                     //
    int val1 = 0;                           //
    int val2 = 0;                           //
//////////////////////////////////////////////
//  For timers                              // 
    long int time1, time2;                  //
    int timer = 1000;                       //
    long int dis_time = 12500*60;           //
//////////////////////////////////////////////
//  For UV light                            //
    const int uv_pin = 1;                   //
//////////////////////////////////////////////
// For Servo                                //
   const int servopin = 9;                  //
//////////////////////////////////////////////

void setup() 
{

//////////////////////////////////////////////
//Setting up the Traverser                  //
//Setting Stepper Motor pins                //
  pinMode (stepPin,OUTPUT);                 //
  pinMode (dirPin,OUTPUT);                  //    
                                            //
//Enabling pulldown for Limit Switch        //
  pinMode (b_ls, INPUT_PULLDOWN);           //
                                            //
//Set direction to backward                 //
  digitalWrite (dirPin,LOW);                //
//------------------------------------------//
//Bring the traverser to the position       //
  while (bls_val == LOW)                    //
  {                                         //
    digitalWrite (stepPin,HIGH);            //
    delay (1);                              //
    digitalWrite (stepPin,LOW);             //
    delay (1);                              //
    //Continuously read switch value        //
    bls_val = digitalRead (b_ls);           //
  }                                         //
//////////////////////////////////////////////
// Set up the LCD                           //
  lcd.begin (16,2); // For 16*2 LCD         //
  lcd.clear ();                             //
  lcd.home ();                              //
  lcd.print ("UVC Based");                  //
  lcd.setCursor (0,1);                      //
  lcd.print ("Disinfector");                //
  delay(4000);                              //
//////////////////////////////////////////////
// Set up the Ultrasonic Sensor             //
  pinMode (pingPin, OUTPUT);                //
  pinMode (echoPin, INPUT);                 //    
//////////////////////////////////////////////
// Set up the IR sensors                    //
  pinMode (ir1, INPUT);                     //
  pinMode (ir2, INPUT);                     //
//////////////////////////////////////////////
// Set up UV light enable pin               //
  pinMode (uv_pin, OUTPUT);                 //
//////////////////////////////////////////////    
// Disable flip                             //
  pinMode( servopin, OUTPUT);               //
  digitalWrite(servopin, LOW);              //
//////////////////////////////////////////////
} 

void loop() 
{
  execute();
}



void execute()
{ 
  DisplayControl (1);      //Display open tray option
  delay(1000);
  sense_1();               //To sense sensor 1
    DisplayControl (2);    //Display status message
    TraverserControl (1);  //Open the tray
    DisplayControl (3);    //Display Close tray option
  sense_2();               //To sense sensor 2
    DisplayControl (9);    //Display status message
    TraverserControl (0);  //To close the tray
    DisplayControl (4);    //To display default time
    int val = sense_1_2_();//To sense both sensors for input
    if (val == 0)          //If user selects to 
    {  
      DisplayControl (5);  //Display disinfecting message
      disinfect();         //Start disinfection
    }
    else
    {
       changeTime();       //To change default timing
       DisplayControl (5); //Display disinfecting message 
       disinfect();        //Start disinfection
    }
  sense_1();
    DisplayControl (6);    //Display status message
    TraverserControl (1);  //To open the tray
  sense_1();
    DisplayControl (9);    //Display status message
    TraverserControl (0);  //To close the tray
    DisplayControl (7);    //Display thank you message
}

//To control the display
void DisplayControl(int a)
{
  lcd.clear ();
  lcd.home ();
  switch (a)
  {
    case 1:                              
      lcd.print ("Do not touch :)");                  
      lcd.setCursor (0,1);                      
      lcd.print ("1 to Open tray");
      break;
    case 2:
      lcd.print ("Opening tray");
      lcd.setCursor (0,1);                      
      lcd.print ("Please wait...");
      break;
    case 3:
      lcd.print ("Place the items");
      lcd.setCursor (0,1);
      lcd.print ("2 to close tray");
      break;
    case 4:
      lcd.print ("Default time:");
      lcd.setCursor (0,1);
      lcd.print ("12.5 Minutes");
      delay (4000);
      lcd.clear ();
      lcd.home();
      lcd.print ("1 to continue");
      lcd.setCursor (0,1);                      
      lcd.print ("2 to change time");
      break;
    case 5:
      lcd.print ("Disinfecting...");
      lcd.setCursor (0,1);                      
      lcd.print ("Emergency stop 1");
      break;
    case 6:
      lcd.print ("Opening tray...");
      lcd.setCursor (0,1);                      
      lcd.print ("1 to close tray");
      break;
    case 7:
      lcd.print ("Thank you for");
      lcd.setCursor (0,1);                      
      lcd.print ("using YM Labs DM");
      break; 
    case 8:
      lcd.print ("Invalid choice");
      lcd.setCursor (0,1);                      
      lcd.print ("Try again");
      break;  
    case 9:
      lcd.print ("Closing tray");
      lcd.setCursor (0,1);                      
      lcd.print ("Please wait...");
      break; 
      default:
      lcd.print ("Welcome to YM Labs!");       
  }
}


void disinfect()
{
  digitalWrite(uv_pin, HIGH);
  delay(dis_time/2);
  digitalWrite(servopin, HIGH);
  delay(1010);
  digitalWrite(servopin, LOW);
  delay(dis_time/2);
  digitalWrite(uv_pin, LOW);
}


// A simple recursive function to sense the right gesture of the hand on sensor 1
int sense_1()
{
  do 
  {
    val1 = digitalRead(ir1); 
  } while (val1 == 0);
    time1 = millis();
    while (val1 == 1) 
    {
      val1 = digitalRead(ir1);
      time2 = millis();
      if( (time2-time1) > timer) 
      { 
        return 0;
      }
    }
    sense_1();
}

// A simple recursive function to sense the right gesture of the hand on sensor 2
int sense_2()
{
  do 
  {
    val2 = digitalRead(ir2); 
  } while (val2 == 0);
    time1 = millis();
    while (val2 == 1) 
    {
      val2 = digitalRead(ir2);
      time2 = millis();
      if( (time2-time1) > timer) 
      { 
        return 0;
      }
    }
    sense_2();
}

// A simple recursive function to sense the right gesture of the hand on both sensors
int sense_1_2_()
{
  do
    {
      val1 = digitalRead(ir1); 
      val2 = digitalRead(ir2);
    } while (val1 == 0 && val2 == 0) ;
    if (val1 == 1 && val2 == 1)
    {
      DisplayControl (8);
      delay(2000);
      sense_1_2_();
    }
    time1 = millis();
    while (val1 == 1) 
    {
      val1 = digitalRead(ir1);
      time2 = millis();
      if( (time2-time1) > timer) 
      { 
        return 0;
      }
    }
    while (val2 == 1) 
    {
      val2 = digitalRead(ir2);
      time2 = millis();
      if ( (time2-time1) > timer) 
      {
        return 1;
      }
    }
    sense_1_2_();
}

// To control the stepper motor using the A4988 driver
void TraverserControl (int y)
{
  if (y == 0)
  {
    digitalWrite (dirPin, LOW);     // Set the directiom
    bls_val = digitalRead (b_ls);   // Read the limit switch
    while (bls_val == LOW)          // While traverser not at the end
    {
      digitalWrite (stepPin,HIGH); 
      delay (1); 
      digitalWrite (stepPin,LOW); 
      delay (1); 
      bls_val = digitalRead (b_ls); // Move the traverser and read the limit switch
    }
  }
  else
  {   
    digitalWrite (dirPin,HIGH);     // Set the directiom
    for (int x = 0; x < 6800; x++)  // Write the number of steps required to open the tray
    {
      digitalWrite (stepPin,HIGH); 
      delay (1); 
      digitalWrite (stepPin,LOW); 
      delay (1); 
    }
  }
}


//To change the time of disinfection
int changeTime()         
{
  while (val1 == 0) 
  {
    lcd.clear ();
    lcd.home ();
    lcd.print ("Timer: ");
    long dist = calcDistance();        // Calculate the distance 
// Set the timing in accordance with the distance between the hand and the sensor
    if (dist >= 1 && dist <= 5)        
    {
      lcd.print ("30 min.");
      dis_time = 1000*60*30;
    }
    else if (dist > 5 && dist <= 10)
    {
      lcd.print ("1 Hr.");
      dis_time = 1000*60*60;
    }
    else if (dist > 10 && dist <= 15)
    {
      lcd.print ("2 Hrs.");
      dis_time = 1000*60*60*2;
    }
    else if (dist > 15 && dist <= 20)
    {
      lcd.print ("4 Hrs.");
      dis_time = 1000*60*60*4;
    }
    else if (dist > 20 && dist <= 25)
    {
      lcd.print ("8 Hrs.");
      dis_time = 1000*60*60*8;
    }
    else if (dist > 25 && dist <= 30)
    {
      lcd.print ("12 Hrs.");
      dis_time = 1000*60*60*12;
    }
    else
    {
      lcd.print ("12.5 Min.");
      dis_time = 12500*60;
    }
    lcd.setCursor (0,1);                      
    lcd.print ("1 to set Timer"); 
    delay(500);
    val1 = digitalRead(ir1);
  }           // Repeat until the timer is set
  while (val1 == 1) 
  {
    lcd.clear ();
    lcd.home ();
    lcd.print("Timer Set");
    delay(2000);
    return 0;
  }
}

// To calculate the distance between the sensor and the hand
long calcDistance()       
{
  digitalWrite(pingPin, LOW);
  delayMicroseconds(2);
  digitalWrite(pingPin, HIGH);
  delayMicroseconds(10);
  digitalWrite(pingPin, LOW);
  duration = pulseIn(echoPin, HIGH);
  cm = microsecondsToCentimeters(duration);
  return cm;
}

// To convert the microseconds to distance in cm
long microsecondsToCentimeters(long microseconds) 
{
   return microseconds / 29 / 2; 
}

Arduino Uno- YM Labs Germs Disinfecting Machine.ino

It controls the servo motors alone. Used to program the Arduino Uno

//  _    _         _               ___     ___ 
//  \\  //         ||       /\    ||  \\  //  \\
//   \\//    __    ||      /__\   ||__//  \\__  
//    //\\  //\\   ||     //  \\  ||  \\  _   \\
//   //  \\//  \\  ||||| //    \\ ||__//  \\__// 

// A YM Labs Production

//////////////////////////////////////////////
// For Servo Motor                          //  
//   Library                                //
     #include <Servo.h>                     //
//   Objects                                //
     Servo servo1;                          //
     Servo servo2;                          //      
//   Servo Positions                        //
     int pos1 = 0;                          //                   
     int pos2 = 0;                          //
//////////////////////////////////////////////
// For input from MKR WiFi 1010             //
     const int input = 12;                  // 
     int value = 0;                         //
//////////////////////////////////////////////
//  For timers                              // 
    long int time1, time2;                  //
    int timer = 1000;                       //
//////////////////////////////////////////////
void setup()
{
//////////////////////////////////////////////
// Setting up servo connection              //
   servo1.attach (3);                       //
   ServoControl (0);                        //
//////////////////////////////////////////////  
}


void loop()
{
  // Continuously check for input from arduino
  do 
  {
    value = digitalRead(input); 
  } while (value == 0);
  time1 = millis();
  while (value == 1) 
  {
    value = digitalRead(input);
    time2 = millis();
    if( (time2-time1) > timer) 
    { 
      flip();
      break;
    }
  }
}

// To flip the items
void flip()
{
  ServoControl(1);
  delay(1000);
  ServoControl(2);
  delay(1000);
}

// To make the servo to go from one angle to another
void ServoControl (int x)                   
{                                                                                      
  if (x == 1)                           
  { 
    pos2 = 166;                                       
    for (pos1 = 178; pos1 >= 30; pos1 -= 1)  
    {                                        
      servo1.write (pos1);
      servo2.write (pos2);                  
      delay (15);                            
    }    
    delay(250);
    for (pos1 = 30; pos1 <= 178; pos1 += 1)  
    {                                        
      servo1.write (pos1);      
      servo2.write (pos2);             
      delay (15);                           
    } 
    delay(250);
  }                                      
  else if (x == 2)                               
  {  
    servo2.attach(6);
    pos1 = 178;                                        
    for (pos2 = 166; pos2 >= 30; pos2 -= 1)
    {     
      servo2.write (pos2);
      servo1.write (pos1);
      delay (15);  
    }
    delay(250);                                      
    for(pos2 = 30; pos2 <= 166; pos2 += 1)   
    {                                        
      servo2.write (pos2); 
      servo1.write (pos1);                  
      delay (15);                            
    }    
    delay(250);    
    servo2.detach();                                
  }
  else
  {
    servo1.write (178);
    delay (1000);
    servo2.attach(6);
    servo2.write (166);
    delay (1000);
    servo2.detach();
  }
}

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Uv-c Based Germs Disinfecting Machine

About the project

Project info

Items used in this project

Hardware components

Software apps and online services

Hand tools and fabrication machines

Story

Schematics, diagrams and documents

The photo of the complete circuitry

The complete schematic for the disinfecting machine.

Code

Arduino MKR WiFi 1010 - YM Labs Germs Disinfecting Machine.ino

Arduino Uno- YM Labs Germs Disinfecting Machine.ino

Credits

yeshvanth-m

Leave your feedback...

Shop

Project Hub

Video

Blog

Shop home

3D printing

Single Board Computers

Development kits

Sensors

Internet of things

Robotics

Accessories

Product of the Week

Electromaker Educator

The Electromaker Show

The Electromaker Podcast

Uv-c Based Germs Disinfecting Machine

About the project

Project info

Items used in this project

Hardware components

Software apps and online services

Hand tools and fabrication machines

Story

Schematics, diagrams and documents

The photo of the complete circuitry

The complete schematic for the disinfecting machine.

Code

Arduino MKR WiFi 1010 - YM Labs Germs Disinfecting Machine.ino

Arduino Uno- YM Labs Germs Disinfecting Machine.ino

Credits

yeshvanth-m

Leave your feedback...

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