The project that I am doing is like a human "doggy door". As i walk towards/away from the door, an arduino inside/on the door will pick up the bluetooth doggle on my key chain. When it does pick up my "existence" it will activate one or two (not sure yet) pistons that will unlock/lock the door for me. I am very proficient at programming so that wont be a problem, but what is a problem is i have no flippen idea what hardware to use! what bluetooth shield/module should i use? all the one ive found communicate directly with your computer/phone. What pistons should i use? it even goes to what arduino should i use? i am planing to use a mini, but if that doesnt work i have full access to any of the other CPUs. What should i do because im completely lost as of right now...PLEASE HELP
thank you,
Alex Valente
Dos Pueblos Engineering Academy
Class of 2015
Hey man!
Sounds like a cool project! As more of a mechanically enclined person myself (just starting with the arduino), there are just a few questions I have about this. Is this supposed to be a secure door (Such as a front or back door)? Do you mean Solonoides(electrical) or actual pistons(air powered)? How heavy is the door(wood, metal, insulated metal)? These a just a few things to consider in the design process.
Also just to let you, I was thinking up the same project! I'm glad a fellow student thought it up to.
@Terryking228: I do know that those exist, as of right now i could easy buy one, but i want to make it. For me its more about the process then the actual result. ive already worked with the lock and know how to make the pistons turn the tumbler inside the lock. as of right now im using a "tip 120 transistor" and just an average bluetooth module. it has a RX in, TX out, GND in, and a VCC (im using a 3.3 volt pin) pins. As of right now i can only communicate with a phones or computers, i want it to communicate with a key chain sized doggal, or something like that, just anything that can "sense" my presence and will unlock the door.
@calm8809: Yes it is going to be but on my front door. I want it to be that if someone tries to open my door, it wont open. But i if someone wants to kick down my door, the lock wont be prevent that from happening.
calm8809:
Do you mean Solonoides(electrical) or actual pistons(air powered)?
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well not going to lie, i have no idea what a "Solonoide" is...what ever will work by sending an electrical impulse to it. And the door is normal, probibly lighter then most...its a wood door. and ya that about all i know for now
For starters, a piston works with compressed air, and a solenoid acts just like a miniature piston, only it works by using an electrical input. That is what is used in the latches that terryking228 mentioned. The reason I ask if its a secure door is because while implamenting your devise, you don't want to take away from your door's security. If you've worked out a design, that's great!
greetings and Salutations;
Ok...if I understand this correctly, you want to hook up a solenoid to the lock mechanism, so as to pull the deadbolt back automatically when you reach the door. I am not entirely sure that this approach will work the way you expect. Unless this locking mechanism is really different than the ones I am familiar with, the bolt will not retract unless the lock cylinder turns. The only way the cylinder can turn is if the tumblers are set by the varying heights of the key's teeth.
In short, the easiest way to unlatch the door is to put an electrically controlled strike plate in place that the Arduino will release.
Also, I would suggest you look into short-range RFID readers and fobs instead of using Bluetooth. After all, Bluetooth only sets up a link...it really is not designed for this usage.
I suspect you could do this, but, it seems like one of those tricks that is cool because it can be done, not because it is the most elegant, or, efficient way to go about it.
pleasant dreams
Bluetooth could technically work, but RFID may actually be a better idea, since you are only looking for a short range, and I believe it will be simpler to set it up securely. Bluetooth only acts as a method of communication over a wireless serial port. You would need to then write some form of protocol to communicate between the dongle and the host device. I believe you can get RFID tags that will allow you to use their presence to act as the authentication, rather than trying to set up communication.
Also to consider:
So what happens when you forget your dongle, or the battery on it dies?
Bluetooth could technically work, but RFID may actually be a better idea, since you are only looking for a short range, and I believe it will be simpler to set it up securely. Bluetooth only acts as a method of communication over a wireless serial port. You would need to then write some form of protocol to communicate between the dongle and the host device.
It is true for Bluetooth 1.0~3.0, but not 4.0.
I believe you can get RFID tags that will allow you to use their presence to act as the authentication, rather than trying to set up communication.
I did one side (personal) project some time ago, tried to put biometric passport based RFID tag on dog, tough task - die, bonding, package, customer RFID tag, loading applet on RFID tag (use same one for human), PKI infrastructure, all go through well. but not until I find out "dogs don't have finger print."
Also to consider:
So what happens when you forget your dongle, or the battery on it dies?
Also to consider:
So what happens when you forget your dongle, or the battery on it dies?
Well what happens when you loose your keys or they brake in the lock? (witch has happened to me)
@xmundt
you want to hook up a solenoid to the lock mechanism, so as to pull the deadbolt back automatically when you reach the door. I am not entirely sure that this approach will work the way you expect. Unless this locking mechanism is really different than the ones I am familiar with, the bolt will not retract unless the lock cylinder turns. The only way the cylinder can turn is if the tumblers are set by the varying heights of the key's teeth.
that's not exactly what I had in mind, what I was thinking is that the solenoid is the lock...but what i found was that solenoids run on electromagnetic coils and if left on for too long, will over heat and theoretically explode. so i have actually designed and built a solenoid that works in reverse...the piston(piece of mettle that sticks out of the "box") is always sticking out, and is sitting inside my wall while the rest is attached to the door...hence the door is always locked. and when the solenoid is activated the piston is pushed in to the "box" and can no longer be seen, therefor it is no longer in my wall, and no longer locking my door. im now just working on the communication part of the project.
I would suggest you look into short-range RFID readers and fobs
I will diffidently look in to those, the more I look in to Bluetooth the less i like the idea of it, I've never heard of RFIDs or FOBs so ill check them out
i have done quite a bit of research in to Bluetooth 4.0 i cant find a single thing that would work with the ardino...if im completely wrong and there is something, please do tell me because this looks the most promising as of right now.
thank you everyone for helping me, it really does make a difference
