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System Design: IoT-Based Lake Monitoring System

Overview

The IoT-Based Distributed Lake Monitoring System is designed to collect, process, and analyze water quality parameters using IoT sensors, cloud computing, and real-time analytics. This section explains the high-level architecture, hardware components, software stack, and data flow in the system.


System Architecture

1. High-Level Architecture

The system consists of three major layers:

  1. Edge Layer (IoT Sensors & Devices)

    • Collects real-time water quality data.
    • Uses ESP32 and Raspberry Pi for data acquisition.
    • Transmits data via MQTT or REST APIs.
  2. Cloud & Processing Layer

    • Uses FastAPI (Python) for backend processing.
    • Stores structured data in PostgreSQL.
    • Performs anomaly detection and data analytics.
  3. Application & Visualization Layer

    • Provides a React-based dashboard for real-time monitoring.
    • Implements Docusaurus for system documentation.
    • Uses Leaflet.js for geospatial visualization.

2. Hardware Components

IoT Devices

  • ESP32 – Low-power microcontroller for lightweight sensor nodes.
  • Raspberry Pi – Used for edge computing and AI-based anomaly detection.

Water Quality Sensors

SensorParameter Measured
pH SensorWater acidity level
Temperature SensorWater temperature

3. Software Stack

ComponentTechnology Used
FrontendReact.js + Recharts (Data Visualization)
BackendFastAPI (Python)
DatabasePostgreSQL (Structured Data)
Messaging ProtocolMQTT (IoT Data Transfer)
Cloud DeploymentDocker + AWS

4. Data Flow & Communication

  1. Sensor Nodes (ESP32/Raspberry Pi) collect water quality data.
  2. Data is transmitted via MQTT/REST API to the backend.
  3. Backend processes and stores data in PostgreSQL.
  4. Anomaly detection module triggers alerts if abnormal values are detected.
  5. Frontend Dashboard updates in real-time via WebSockets.
  6. Alerts & Notifications are sent via Email/SMS if critical thresholds are breached.

5. System Scalability & Security

Scalability Considerations

  • Supports multiple sensor nodes for distributed monitoring.
  • Uses Docker for scalable backend deployment.
  • Implements load balancing (AWS ALB) for handling high data influx.