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Automated access to a rented studio

Student: Madalina Boboc
Email: madaeboboc@gmail.com
Master: AAC
Source code: https://github.com/mboboc/iStudio

Introduction

This project aims to turn assets such as physical spaces into services using Internet of Things. The use case chosen is a studio that can be used for different activities such as dance/yoga/pilates classes, photoshoots or workshops. The purpose of the project is to automate the workflow of accessing such assets in order to easily expose it to the public without the need of a constant human supervision. By implementing this system an owner of a space can reduce time and money while also keep the quality of the services provided.

Problem statement

A person who owns a space and wants to monetize it has to invest time and resources in managing it. This might include activities like scheduling the appointments, access and reception of clients, managing infotainment of the studio and assure the space is well-maintained and clean. In other words the owner needs to invest:

time
- on managing personnel
- on managing appointments
money on personnel that handles
- reception
- cleaning

Proposed solution

The suggested solution is an ecosystem composed of several modules that are meant to function together in order automate the workflow of an appointment. The architecture is separated in 5 modules: access control and check-in, infotainment, cloud, application and cleaning. Each module tackle a certain task. For reservations and check-in, the straightforward approach is to create a web application. The users authenticate inside the app, book an interval and then receive a QR for access. The booking table is safely stored on a cloud server and is accessible by any user that has the application. The QR code is used later for both studio access and check-in. After successfully scanning the code, the user is authenticated inside the studio via the cloud communication and has access to the studio infotainment.

Figure 1: System architecture

The complexity of the system necessitates a phased approach, thus the objective of this project is to develop a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) that incorporates the access control and the check-in module.

Workflow

The user interacts with the website and creates an appointments. The platform generates a QR code and sends it to the user by email. The data of the appointment is kept in the firebase database and it’s accessible by the lock module of the studio. The lock in this case is represented by the ESP32-CAM module. When the user arrives at the location and scans the QR code, the lock module checks if the scheduled appointed matches the time and the QR code provided and opens the door. The user is allowed to enter the room.

Figure 2: Workflow

Implementation

Hardware

ESP32 Cam
- Onboard ESP32-S module, supports WiFi + Bluetooth
- OV2640 camera with flash
- Antenna: Onboard PCB antenna

Software

Django - Python-based web application framework that is free and open source. It includes ready-to-use capabilities including a login system, database connection, and CRUD activities (Create Read Update Delete).
Vue Js - free and open-source JavaScript model-view-view model front end framework for creating user interfaces and single-page applications.
Firebase - Realtime Database - NoSQL database that facilitates the storage and synchronisation of data among clients in real-time. It is hosted on the cloud, where data is stored in JSON format and synchronised in real-time.