Authors :
U. Yuguda; N. Z. Gaza; B. A. Mohammed; C. O. Chime; S. K. Ogbuokebe
Volume/Issue :
Volume 11 - 2026, Issue 3 - March
Google Scholar :
https://tinyurl.com/mr432eny
Scribd :
https://tinyurl.com/yju4nmr2
DOI :
https://doi.org/10.38124/ijisrt/26mar459
Note : A published paper may take 4-5 working days from the publication date to appear in PlumX Metrics, Semantic Scholar, and ResearchGate.
Abstract :
Efficient water management is critical for sustainable agriculture, particularly in regions with limited water
resources. This paper presents the design and implementation of a low-power 2.4 GHz RF communication framework for
IoT-based multi-zone agricultural irrigation control using the ATmega328 microcontroller and nRF24L01 transceiver
module. The system adopts a star topology, where a central master node communicates wirelessly with multiple field nodes,
each equipped with soil moisture sensors and solenoid-controlled irrigation valves. A lightweight packet-based
communication protocol enables reliable data exchange and remote valve control while minimizing power consumption.
Experimental evaluation demonstrates a high packet delivery ratio (>95%), low transmission latency, and effective water
distribution across multiple irrigation zones up to 100 meters in open-field conditions. Power analysis confirms suitability
for battery-operated deployments, with further enhancement achievable via solar energy integration. The proposed
framework provides a cost-effective, scalable, and energy-efficient solution for precision irrigation, enhancing crop
productivity and resource utilization.
Keywords :
IoT; Agricultural Irrigation; Low-Power RF Communication; ATmega328; nRF24L01; Multi-Zone Control.
References :
- A. K. Jain and P. R. Singh, “Water use efficiency in agriculture: Challenges and opportunities,” Agricultural Water Management, vol. 123, pp. 1–8, 2013.
- FAO, The State of the World’s Water Resources for Food and Agriculture, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, 2017.
- L. Atzori, A. Iera, and G. Morabito, “The Internet of Things: A survey,” Computer Networks, vol. 54, no. 15, pp. 2787–2805, 2010.
- K. Ashton, “That ‘Internet of Things’ thing,” RFID Journal, 2009.
- Nordic Semiconductor, “nRF24L01+ Single Chip 2.4 GHz Transceiver Product Specification,” 2019.
- Microchip Technology Inc., “ATmega328/P Datasheet,” 2018.
- I. F. Akyildiz, W. Su, Y. Sankarasubramaniam, and E. Cayirci, “Wireless sensor networks: A survey,” Computer Networks, vol. 38, no. 4, pp. 393–422, 2002.
- S. Haykin and M. Moher, Modern Wireless Communications, Pearson, 2005.
- J. Zheng and M. J. Lee, Wireless Sensor Networks: A Networking Perspective, Wiley, 2009.
- IEEE Standard 802.15.4-2020, “Low-Rate Wireless Networks,” IEEE, 2020.
- D. Jayaraman, M. Wijesinghe, and S. Y. Kim, “IoT-based intelligent irrigation system using soil moisture and temperature sensors,” Sensors, vol. 18, no. 3, pp. 1–12, 2018.
- S. Saravanan, P. Ramesh, and K. Kumar, “Cloud-based smart irrigation system with IoT,” International Journal of Computer Applications, vol. 180, no. 22, pp. 25–30, 2018.
- R. Sharma, A. K. Gupta, and S. Kumar, “Wireless sensor network for smart irrigation using ZigBee,” IEEE Sensors Journal, vol. 19, no. 9, pp. 3270–3278, 2019.
- L. LoRa et al., “Long-range low-power wireless solutions for agriculture,” Ad Hoc Networks, vol. 82, pp. 99–110, 2019.
- K. Karthikeyan and R. Subramanian, “Low-power wireless multi-zone irrigation system using ATmega328 and nRF24L01,” Journal of Embedded Systems, vol. 14, no. 2, pp. 45–55, 2020.
- P. Ramesh, S. Saravanan, and K. Kumar, “Multi-zone automated irrigation system using low-power wireless networks,” IEEE Access, vol. 7, pp. 12456–12466, 2019.
Efficient water management is critical for sustainable agriculture, particularly in regions with limited water
resources. This paper presents the design and implementation of a low-power 2.4 GHz RF communication framework for
IoT-based multi-zone agricultural irrigation control using the ATmega328 microcontroller and nRF24L01 transceiver
module. The system adopts a star topology, where a central master node communicates wirelessly with multiple field nodes,
each equipped with soil moisture sensors and solenoid-controlled irrigation valves. A lightweight packet-based
communication protocol enables reliable data exchange and remote valve control while minimizing power consumption.
Experimental evaluation demonstrates a high packet delivery ratio (>95%), low transmission latency, and effective water
distribution across multiple irrigation zones up to 100 meters in open-field conditions. Power analysis confirms suitability
for battery-operated deployments, with further enhancement achievable via solar energy integration. The proposed
framework provides a cost-effective, scalable, and energy-efficient solution for precision irrigation, enhancing crop
productivity and resource utilization.
Keywords :
IoT; Agricultural Irrigation; Low-Power RF Communication; ATmega328; nRF24L01; Multi-Zone Control.