Li Wei's Borneo-IoT Is an Open Source, Affordable Espressif ESP32 Five-Channel Aquarium Light
With Wi-Fi connectivity and app-based control over RGBW and UV-A mixing, the Borneo-IoT will keep fishy friends happy.
Software engineer and aquarium keeper Li Wei has addressed the high cost of decent aquarium lighting with the Borneo-IoT — a smart lighting kit with five-color-channel LED pulse-width modulation (PWM) controller, based around an Espressif ESP32 microcontroller.
"The idea for the Borneo-IoT project came to life in 2021 because I couldn’t afford a proper aquarium light, so I created my own," Wei explains. "As a software engineer who's into freshwater aquariums and knows a bit about electronics, this project is my trial-and-error journey and what I’ve learned from it."
The Borneo-IoT project centers around a Wi-Fi-controllable LED lighting system, designed specifically for aquarium use. A compact "core board" hosts an Espressif ESP32 microcontroller — compatible with a range of models in the family, Wei explains — and runs a 65W five-channel LED lighting board which serves as a reference design.
The lighting board connects to a companion app running on a smartphone, laptop, or desktop, featuring ESPTouch Wi-Fi provisioning and a graphical interface with scene control, device management, scheduling, and optional manual control over the five color channels on the LED board: red, green, blue, white, and UV-A, each of which can be faded individually.
"The firmware is full functionality and stability, but some minor features are still not quite perfect," Wei says of the project's status. "All major [app] functions have been completed and are operational, but minor functions such as setting the time zone still need to be implemented, and the stability also requires further polishing."
More information on the project is available on the official website, while hardware design files and source code are available on GitHub under the Strongly Reciprocal variant of the CERN Open Hardware License 2 and the GNU General Public License 3 respectively. "In addition to the GPL-3.0-only license, I also offer proprietary licensing options for those who wish to use this software in proprietary products," Wei adds."