Abstract
SmartLock is a remote locking system that can detect intruders and set off an alarm system. It uses Wi-Fi to connect to your smartphone and lock anything so that you never have to worry about locking your door or your valuables ever again. SmartLock uses a ping sensor to detect if anyone is outside of the door, and will trigger an alarm system with flashing lights and a buzzer to alert people nearby of the intrusion.
Our Product
Inspiration
We wanted to create an easy-to-use product that would enhance security measures, especially for absent-minded people that constantly forget to lock their doors in unsafe neighborhoods.
What it does
SmartLock is a two-part device that incorporates a locking mechanism and an intruder detection system. It uses Wi-Fi to easily lock a door via your smartphone, and it includes an alarm system with an LED and a buzzer.
SmartLock’s locking mechanism incorporates a simple, sliding wedge lock housing, which is driven by a motorized arm. This sliding lock, made of acrylic, connects to the motor arm, which was designed with movable joints to allow for a wider range of linear and rotational motion. The arm is then connected to a servo motor that slides the lock back and forth. The servo motor is given instructions remotely from an Arduino Uno Wi-Fi board to turn clockwise or counterclockwise based on a user’s input from a private web server.
To establish the private web server, the following libraries were imported, and the servo was attached to pin 13 for setup. The communication begins, and the website interface is determined by the Arduino code. Click buttons were implemented to easily direct the user to URLs that correspond with locked and unlocked states. These URLs are then transmitted to the Arduino, processed, and the angular value that the servo should turn to is determined and written to the servo.
Now that the web server is setup, the user can navigate to the Arduino Uno Wi-Fi’s IP address and control the system remotely.
SmartLock’s alarm system consists of a ping sensor, an LED, and a buzzer, connected to a local Arduino. The circuitry will be set up safely behind the door, with the ping sensor placed in front of a small hole in the door.
The ping sensor is used to detect intruders outside of the door and alert others when anyone is trying to break in.
The Arduino code in control of the ping sensor tells it to only trigger the alarm system when it detects that someone is extremely close. By constantly sending out sonar waves, the ping sensor can detect objects and measure their distance to the sensor. If the ping sensor detects someone within 20 centimeters, the LED will light up and the loud buzzer will go off, alerting nearby people of the intrusion.
How we built it
Each component of the locking mechanism was designed in SolidWorks, and laser cut from quarter inch acrylic sheets. The assembly was constructed and mounted to a base to emulate mounting the system to a door.
U-shaped rails hold the slider in place, and restrict its motion so that it can only go forwards or backwards. The main lock housing contains the slider on the rail with an open-cut piece of acrylic at the end which the slider can pass through to effectively lock the door.
The intruder detection system consists of a circuit with a ping sensor, an LED, and a buzzer. The ping sensor and LED will be kept in close proximity to the small hole in the door. This shows the intruder that he/she has been detected. The alarm system's buzzer, however, will be kept out of plain view from the outside. If the intruder believes that he/she can get past the ping sensor and the LED, they will be in for a surprise, because the unseen buzzer will make a loud noise and alert others nearby.
Challenges we ran into
One of our pieces of acrylic were too short and made it difficult for the slider of the locking mechanism to pass through consistently. Also, we originally wanted the alarm system to be able to send a text message to SmartLock’s user, but we were unable to figure out how to code that. We tried to incorporate the intruder detection system’s code into the code for the locking mechanism, but we ran into a strange, unexpected error that prevented us from combining the code into one and running it from a single Arduino. This forced us to use two Arduinos (a Wi-Fi-enabled one for the locking mechanism, and a local one for the intruder detection system), which is not ideal.
Accomplishments that we're proud of
We made the servo motor operate based on a user’s input from a private web server.
Our code
Intruder detection system code
What we learned
We learned how to set up a website interface using Arduino code, and program clickable buttons to direct the user to URLs that will be transmitted to the Arduino, allowing it to tell the servo motor how to turn. In doing so, we gained more experience with Wi-Fi Arduinos. Overall, the project allowed us to become more familiar with SolidWorks, laser cutting, Arduino code, circuitry, and the design process.
What's next for SmartLock
With our product, you can rest easy knowing that your valuables are secure. With the ability to remotely lock your door in case you forget, and an intruder detection system to discourage would-be burglars, theft will be a thing of the past. SmartLock’s wide-range applicability to so many different security measures makes it an enticing addition to the field of security.
The product is not optimal yet since we have had limited time to work on it. However, if we were to continue working on SmartLock, we would cut out larger pieces of acrylic for the motorized arm to function better, and try to find an easier method of installation for the locking mechanism and intruder detection system. We would also attempt to figure out why combining the Arduino code wasn’t working and how we could get the intruder detection system to send a notification to the user.
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