Design of a Smart Greenhouse Monitoring and Control System using a Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) Module

Abstract

Greenhouse farming is a method of growing crops in a controlled environment that can increase the yield, quality and profitability of crops. However, this requires constant monitoring and control of various environmental factors such as temperature, humidity, soil moisture, and light intensity. Traditional methods of monitoring and control involve manual labour and are expensive, time-consuming and error-prone. To overcome these challenges, a Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM)-based smart greenhouse farming monitoring and control system capable of automatically detecting and adjusting environmental parameters using a temperature sensor, humidity sensor, soil moisture sensor, light sensor, fan, heater, water pump, and light-emitting diode (LED) light was designed. This system also used a GSM module to communicate with greenhouse caretakers via Short Message Service (SMS) messages. This system was tested and evaluated in simulation using Proteus software. The proposed system demonstrated correct threshold-based actuation across all tested scenarios, with a total estimated hardware cost of GH¢2,530.00 (approximately USD 225), which is comparably lower than IoT-based systems reported in the literature that typically require cloud subscriptions and higher-end networking hardware [2, 12]. Unlike systems that depend on continuous Internet connectivity, the GSM-based architecture operates reliably in regions with limited or unreliable network access. While a physical prototype has not yet been built, simulation results confirm the functional logic and design feasibility of the system, with real-world validation recommended as a priority for future work.