The Anti Shenanigans Project

Inspiration

We were inspired to create something that would minimize the discomfort of working in spaces where you must have your back to the action. With the Anti Shenanigans device, you can be discreetly notified when there's someone or something moving wherever you place the sleek sensor charm. Andrew came up with the idea studying in the library one day, and Emily and Thia made it about cats.

What it does

When the remote passive infrared sensor detects motion within its 120 degree range, it sends a signal to a small, portable bauble using radio frequency. The bauble then lights up, alerting you to movement. Practical applications include keeping young children away from dangerous areas like bathrooms, notifying you of a visitor's arrival before they notify you themselves, and keeping cats away from things you care about, like Christmas Trees.

How we built it

We started by connecting an infrared motion sensor and an LED to an Arduino, and writing a simple program to light the LED when the sensor detected motion. This allowed us to get an idea of how the motion sensor worked. Next, we connected a radio transmitter to an Arduino, and a radio receiver to a different Arduino, and wrote a program to do simple communication between them. Once we had both pieces working, we hooked them together so that the Arduino with the transmitter would send a signal to the other Arduino whenever motion was detected. Finally, we attached LEDs to the Arduino with the receiver, and modified its code to fade the LEDs on and off gracefully.

Challenges we ran into

We had some issues importing our simple svg design into autodesk fusion 360 in order to 3D print it, and finding a library to interface with radio modules. We also discovered that we would have to solder antennae to our radio modules, when our reception was spotty otherwise. This problem difficult to diagnose.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

Our team is very proud of the fact that two of our members were first-time hackers. Emily and Thia learned skills like soldering, 3d rendering, and prototyping, and had a good time doing it!

What we learned

Emily and Thia learned skills like soldering, 3d rendering, and prototyping. Andrew learned about RF modules, and how to use them.

What's next for The Anti Shenanigans Project

In a fully developed version of The Anti Shenanigans Device, the hardware would be small enough to fit into durable, portable, aesthetically pleasing casing. We feel that the concept would also lend itself nicely to a mobile app, which could allow users to customize notifications.

Built With

• 3dprinting
• arduino
• passive-infrared
• radio-frequency