1-Wire Temp Sensor

It is helpful to be able to monitor temperature to understand if components or systems are performing properly. Temperature sensors have typically used wired connections, and recently been available with wireless connectivity. With restrictions on radio/RF emissions in place, a low-cost wired sensor for monitoring temperature was put together.

The requirement was to be able to read wired remote temperature data (-20 to +60 C) at a 1 Hz rate via a USB virtual serial port connection. The elements available were: Arduino UNO boards, 1-Wire temperature sensor(s) and associated software, and misc. wire and electronic components as needed.

The outcome was multiple sets of wired temperature monitor probes capable of capturing temperature in degrees C (.06 degree discrete steps), at a distance of up to ~5 meters from the PC, needing no special PC WIN drivers, and providing data for use in LabVIEW processing at that PC.

Costs for the temperature sensors are estimated as (USD): Arduino UNO ($20), 1-Wire Sensor ($6), Extra wire & 4.7KOhm 1/4W resistor ($2), and ESD bag ($1). Total: $29 if all components are purchased for this project.

Photos below are for a typical sensor, with USB plug at PC end, white cable to remote sensor element, and Arduino UNO board for processing function.

The rear side of the UNO board shows the sensor element electrical connections and the 4.7 KOhm 1/4 pull-up resistor.

Red = +5V
White = GND
Blue = Arduino D3              <<---
Resistor to +5V.                         |           
Resistor to Processor P(5) <<--- (Pull high to +5V, trace runs to D3 UNO pin.)

The wired Arduino UNO processor is protected with an ESD bag with a tie-wrap to keep it secured over the board and wiring within.

The sensor's USB serial output is at 9600 baud and may be monitored using PUTTY or other serial montor software. This serial stream is typically received and utilized within LabVIEW for my home laboratory.

From a software perspective, all standard off-the-shelf software can be used (no custom programming typically needed for a simple temperature monitor.

https://docs.arduino.cc/libraries/onewire/

Below is a nice soup-to-nuts tutorial that might help with both hardware and software:

https://lastminuteengineers.com/ds18b20-arduino-tutorial/

Conclusion: This is a relatively simple project that connects a 1-Wire temperature sensor to an Arduino UNO to provide periodic temperature data to a local computer system. Hoping this capability helps in your home projects!

Author photos taken with an iPhone-16e.