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Forum Index : Microcontroller and PC projects : Marketing of products?
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| akashh Senior Member  Joined: 19/01/2014 Location: IndiaPosts: 115 |
Hi all, Apologies if this is slightly off topic, but I'd like to bring it up it up all the same... I have noticed that most members of this forum are very much into the hobby space, sharing code and ideas. I think that's great and commend Goeff on his fantastic product and very supportive user base. Now imagine that one of you (or in this case me) has spent countless hours developing a microcontroller project that is marketable, with the intention of trying to start a successful small business and solve a problem at the same time, how would I go about introducing it to the Australian market as a foreigner without any clue as to how things work there? In a nutshell the product Wattmon is an energy monitoring and control platform for solar and wind systems with a very intuitive web based interface. It is well received in countries as far north as Norway, but down under, not so much - I don't know whether it's just that I haven't found the right clients or perhaps used the wrong approach. Any tips from this group would be much appreciated! Akash |
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bigmik Guru  Joined: 20/06/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2949 |
Hi akashh, You could always post here. I start my `commercial' posts with *** COMM *** meaning Commercial. It is also good etiquette to PM Gizmo (the site owner) with what you wish to post and let him either sanction or reject your postings. I did that and he has allowed my posts but I also try to keep them to a minimum, no one likes being bombarded over and over. Regards, Mick PS. You can always pay for a `random' advertisement on TBS forum, Contact Gizmo for details of costs etc. Mik Mick's uMite Stuff can be found >>> HERE (Kindly hosted by Dontronics) <<< |
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| hitsware Guru Joined: 23/11/2012 Location: United StatesPosts: 535 |
Perhaps Scandinavians are less " DIY prone " than Downunderers ? |
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| bigmik Guru Joined: 20/06/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2949 |
Akash, Why dont you publish more details about what your product offers us. I know that it is some sort of solar/wind power controller but not much else.. There is nothing to stop you mentioning what it is that you have and what it does. There is also the WINDMILLS and SOLAR section of the TBS forum that might be interested in your product. Mick Mick's uMite Stuff can be found >>> HERE (Kindly hosted by Dontronics) <<< |
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| akashh Senior Member Joined: 19/01/2014 Location: IndiaPosts: 115 |
Mick, Thanks for your suggestions. I guess now is a good time to post my blurb: Wattmon is a monitoring and control platform designed to be highly flexible. It was initially conceived as a solar energy and battery monitor but it has evolved into much more thanks to customer feedback. I beta tested the product in 2013 in a tiny township in South India with die-hard solar enthusiasts and it grew from there - there's always a “oh, can you also monitor my…” And a “but I want to automate my ..” 
The Hardware The product consists of a master unit (I just release a new version called WattmonPRO) which is the brain of the system. It runs on anything from 5 to 60v DC and is ideally directly connected to a battery bank. It has Ethernet, a USB host port that supports several cellular dongles for low cost remote monitoring, and an SD card for storage. An embedded web server provides a convenient responsive interface for all devices from smart phones to large screens. Several onboard connectors make basic data collection and control easy: 4 isolated digital inputs, 3 of them with pulse counting let you hook up flow meters or other counter devices. 4 open collector outputs let you hook up SSRs or small relays to control things. A built in isolated relay can handle 5 amperes of current, ideal for powering a small load. On the analog side, the power supply voltage is measured through one channel. A second channel can read voltages up to 330v DC, such as a large high voltage battery bank. A third input handles 0-5v dc, ideal for a sensor such as a pyranometer. The real power comes from the interfaces: an RS-485 port with Modbus-RTU support makes it possible to communicate with thousands of third party modules such as meters, relays and sensors. I created a few devices that cover most commonly required function such as isolated current sensing, analog inputs, relays, frequency measurement and PWM output. The Rs-232 serial port can be used to collect data from pretty much anything. We provide drivers to Victron and Studer inverters but could adapt them to any serial inverter protocol. And finally a onewire port makes it easy to add temperature sensors for monitoring and automated heating control. 
The Software Although the actual firmware is proprietary, the entire functionality of the front end application runs on what I call uPHP, a small (but powerful) subset of the hugely popular PHP language used in most websites today. The scripts are all open source, and a built in file manager and editor makes it easy to customise and program the device to your needs if you require it. Everything is configurable through a browser and no custom software is required. As a user you can configure additional devices, decide which data to log, generate your own graphs and add automated actions based on anything ranging from battery state to time of day or external sensor values. All this is specifically designed for non-programmers and does not require you to enter a single line of code! 
For the backshedders I will describe the internals a bit. A pic32mx795 processor runs a FreeRTOS based operating system which allows me to run up to 2 or 3 programs simultaneously. Memory is the biggest constraint and careful use of variables needs to be made or else a script will be terminated. Scripts are compiled (tokenizer) into a separate file the first time a script is run, and stored on the sd card. Scripts are buffered in RAM as they execute, meaning there is no size limit on programs, and include files can be used to combine different parts together, exactly like with PHP. An enc28j60 ethernet controller provides the LAN connectivity. A USB Host stack also supports certain cellular dongles, setting up a second network interface with PPP. This was lots of fun to implement, adapting the microchip tcp stack to support multiple interfaces. The usb stack also got modified to handle the required "modeswitch" for dongles, they first appear as SD cards and need to be reconfigured each time! All in all this has been an intensive three years for me and as I mentioned in the title of the post I would love to figure out a way to connect with people that could be interested. It is also an easy way for DIY hobbyists to create simple projects. I would be happy to answer questions here, or if you would like, just visit www.wattmon.com . Here is a graph of daily solar production and load for yesterday, as seen on the iPad. This is generated from the webserver on Wattmon dynamically. 
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MicroBlocks Guru Joined: 12/05/2012 Location: ThailandPosts: 2209 |
I would put this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0DtcPOgxDw on your home page and add some narrative. Then add it to your Facebook page and make a boosted post. Make sure you select the right segments to boost your post to. Cost some money but I found that it really works to get the word out. Posts that normally got a few hundred views got tens of thousands of views once boosted. The costs were about 50USD, Really worth it. Now don't take the next advice badly! Downplay the fact that everything is done in India. The reason is that products from India a perceived to be of low quality. I make stuff in Thailand, and we have a similar problem as you might know. Throw in a few words like 'German', 'Japan' and see your sales boost. So hopefully you have some parts that are made in Germany or Japan. Then you can use phrases like for example "Our product uses the latest and best current measuring parts from Germany. This guarantees high reliability." I know it is blah blah and will not appreciate all the hard work that has gone into the product, but that is marketing for you. Wish you the best with a truly great product. Microblocks. Build with logic. |
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| akashh Senior Member Joined: 19/01/2014 Location: IndiaPosts: 115 |
Thanks for all the suggestions TZAdvantage, much appreciated. I will put the video up, it is a good idea since it does explain the system well. It's a pity that made in India and Thailand cannot be synonymous with quality. I do hope that this will eventually change, but I understand exactly what you mean. I fell for the same thing when I was trying to buy some electric cycles from China, the company had a German name and listed headquarters in Germany. They messed up on the shipping and we lost 20 packs of lithium batteries. When I called their German headquarters someone picked up who knew nothing about the company, it was all bogus. I am not quite ready to resort to the same tactics just yet, but...  |
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