Smart Essentials Store

Real-Time Access, Real-Student Convenience

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\section*{Inspiration} At UMBC, the Essentials section is a crucial place where students buy their daily groceries. However, it relied heavily on outdated Excel sheets and manual updates, which led to inefficiency. Students without vehicles often wasted time visiting Essentials only to discover that their required items were unavailable. Employees also struggled with maintaining accurate records. This inspired us to bridge the technology gap and create a system that saves time and effort for both students and staff. \section*{What it does} Our solution is a cross-platform system consisting of a Flutter mobile app, a React website, and a Node.js backend with MongoDB. It allows students to: \begin{itemize} \item Check real-time inventory online before visiting Essentials. \item Use an AI-powered booth that classifies grocery items through Google Gemini’s API. \item Swipe their UMBC ID card at the booth, which automatically updates the inventory in the database. \end{itemize} Employees can easily manage and update stock using a smooth admin interface, reducing manual work and improving efficiency. \section*{How we built it} \begin{itemize} \item \textbf{Frontend:} Flutter for mobile application, React for website. \item \textbf{Backend:} Node.js server with REST APIs connected to MongoDB. \item \textbf{AI Integration:} Google Gemini API for object detection and classification of grocery items. \item \textbf{Workflow:} Student $\rightarrow$ Scan item $\rightarrow$ Gemini detects $\rightarrow$ Swipe ID card $\rightarrow$ Inventory updates. \end{itemize} \section*{Challenges we ran into} \begin{itemize} \item Ensuring real-time synchronization between app, website, and backend. \item Training and fine-tuning object detection for grocery items with different packaging. \item Deploying and hosting the system consistently across web and mobile. \item Designing an intuitive interface for both students and employees. \item Making the system scalable for possible use beyond UMBC. \end{itemize} \section*{Accomplishments that we're proud of} \begin{itemize} \item Building a fully functional cross-platform solution (mobile + web). \item Seamlessly integrating AI-powered object detection into inventory management. \item Creating a system that saves students’ time and improves employee efficiency. \item Successfully handling end-to-end development, hosting, and maintenance as a team. \end{itemize} \section*{What we learned} \begin{itemize} \item Practical integration of AI APIs with real-world applications. \item Full-stack development experience across mobile, web, backend, and database. \item Importance of UI/UX design in ensuring adoption and ease of use. \item How to collaborate effectively as a team to deliver a reliable product. \end{itemize} \section*{What's next for Smart Essentials Store} \begin{itemize} \item Scale the solution to other universities and campus stores. \item Improve the AI model with a larger dataset for better accuracy. \item Add features like predictive restocking and analytics dashboards. \item Explore integration with delivery options for students without vehicles. \end{itemize}

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