WashTime

Inspiration

We were tired of going down to the laundry room with our heavy loads of dirty clothes, only to realize all the machines were in use.

What it does

WashTime allows the users to know if the laundry machines are in use and includes a timer feature.

How we built it

We split up our team in two: one half was responsible for working on the back-end and the other half on the front-end. Looking for a way to manage the communications between the hardware and the iOS app, we decided to use Firebase to relay our data. The iOS application itself was developed through Swift. From there we were able to start working on the actual hardware.

We have a setup of a reed switch and a 3-axis gyroscope hooked up to a Raspberry Pi. Our code, written in Python, writes our data to a server that we have set up through AWS via PHP. Our server is configured to be able to send POST requests directly to Firebase. On the iOS side, developed with Xcode, a single-view application retrieves data from Firebase.

Challenges we ran into

We ran into an issue in selecting the right database. Our original plan was to utilize Parse, but it did not provide support for the Arduino Uno or the Raspberry Pi without having to incorporate workarounds. Luckily, we found Firebase, an ideal IoT database. Secondly, we started out with an Arduino Uno and then realized that it is not powerful enough to send HTTPS/SSL requests. We had to switch to a Raspberry Pi. Lastly, being able to grab data as it came in was a challenge for the iOS development because Firebase auto-generates a random ID for each incoming set of data. Essentially, we could not easily retrieve data by identifiers. We had to sort the data by time in order to get the most recent data.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We started out not knowing Swift or Python, and to come out with a working product to showcase is incredibly fulfilling.

What we learned

We learned how to work with both Swift and Python. We also learned how challenging it is to relay data from a device to a mobile application over a network.

What's next for WashTime

The next thing for WashTime is to get involved with the University of California, Santa Cruz's administration in order to implement the large-scale production of these devices and applications. We want to be able to expand the platforms of the mobile applications later on and to print our own dedicated PCB's for WashTime.

Built With

amazon-web-services
apache
cardboard
esp8266
firebase
linux
mac-os-x
mpu6050
php
python
raspberry-pi
raspbian
swift
xcode

Submitted to

Hack UCSC 2016

Created by

I managed the project. I also made the website and graphics. In addition, worked on helping implement POST requests and helped facilitate app development. Lastly, worked on presentation and marketing.

Alex Tai
Coded the Python backend on the Raspberry Pi and figured out the PHP backend to reroute requests to the Firebase database from an AWS server.

Payam Katoozian
I worked on creating the swipe function as well as the design layout for the app. I was able to utilize Swift to change the images base on the data received and include notifications.

Tiffany Lee
Worked on retrieving the data from Firebase to the app. Created the iOS app with Swift that recognizes the availability of the machine along with a timer countdown function to notify the users when their laundry is finished washing.

Lyanna Ho