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PackWorks logo
Inspiration
RFID chips have been around for some time and have been proven to increase accuracy and speed in object handling as compared to the barcode method. For some reason, this technology is currently under utilized perhaps due to resistance to change or a fear of high costs despite the high benefit. We wanted to create our own system to imitate this mechanic paired with a website that is accessible and understandable by general retailers to spread awareness of this new beneficial technology which can save time and money.
What it does
Our system consists of three parts: a transmitter, a receiver, and a website. The transmitter consistently tries to connect to the receiver. If in range of the receiver, the receiver connects and tells the website that the item has been connected. Once the receiver disconnects, the item tells the website where it was left. In other words, this transmitter can keep track of packages, groceries, or retail clothing without ever needing to scan barcodes. This would improve warehouse accuracy and could remove the need for checkout attendants which has huge cost benefits but to this day is still not commonly used.
How we built it
The project consists of both software and hardware components.
The software component involved creating the website which employees can access to keep track of the various items in each workplace location. The back end is a database which contains tables for Products, Workplaces, and Employees. We also implemented HTML, CSS, and PHP to create the front end and connect it to the back end to display table values on the pages. All components are running a LAMP stack on a Lightsail instance with Amazon Web Services, and we used the Cloud9 collaborative IDE to work together on our project files. We acquired a custom domain (PackWorks.tech) from Domain.com and connected it to our Lightsail instance.
The hardware component involved using a Wemos chip, which transmits a Bluetooth signal that any device (in our case, one of our laptops) can detect and automatically connect to. The device can then programmically check if it is connected to Bluetooth, specifically by listening for changes in known/paired devices. Thus, if the laptop gains a new connection, the chip is matched to its corresponding product (we made the item a banana), and this connection is communicated into our database so that it can finally be rendered onto the website (which increments the item count by one). Similarly, if the laptop loses a connection, the count displayed for that corresponding item on the website decreases by one.
Challenges we ran into
All of us are software developers and know nothing about hardware. Simply trying to connect the Wemos to Bluetooth took hours. Additionally, connecting the back end of the website to the front end to display accurate data was also a significant challenge.
Accomplishments that we're proud of
We are proud of the large scope of this project and the fact that we were each able to learn a little about a lot of different sides of a complex project. We are also proud that we were able to work together to come up with an idea which excites all of us and work together to take that vision as far as we could.
What we learned
This project focused heavily on both hardware and software, and since none of us knew much about hardware, we all had to help each other out in figuring out how to work with the Wemos chip. Most of us did not have back end or PHP experience either, so that was another thing we figured out together. Overall, we learned how essential it is to consider a project in its entirety in order to make it feasible.
What's next for PackWorks
Currently, PackWorks only involves one transmitter sending signals and one receiver listening for them. For this reason, we did not worry about identifying unique transmitters and pairing them to unique products (our one transmitter was simply matched to gaining or losing a banana). Thus, the next level of our project would involve expanding PackWorks to handle dealing with multiple transmitters across various locations.
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