Peek-a-Thief

Overview

Set up of Drawer when open with sensors pointing upwards and Teddy Bear spy camera mounted on Drawer.

What goes on in your dorm room while your away? When you have class and your roommate is home, what do you think he is doing? If you are even slightly suspicious that your personal stash of snacks is being eaten by someone else, then we have the solution for you.

Introducing: Peek-a-Thief, an operating system with the sole purpose of capturing close up images of the people who open up your drawers. Our end goal is to create a security device that discretely captures thieves in action.

Check out our Peek-A-Thief Twitter Feed!

Team Members

• Michael Pichardo
• Derick Speltz
• Will Luer (TA)

Objectives

• Sense a person that opens up your drawer using the HC-SR04 ultrasonic sensors
• Create a sleek operation design that ensures the electrical hardware is hidden
• Create a mobile system that can operate in multiple environments including dorm rooms, offices, etc.
• When triggered by the sensor, take a picture using an 8-Megapixel camera
• Take pictures of a person every second for the first 10 seconds the drawer is opened
• Store picture data locally on Raspberry Pi
• Upload to social media platform (Twitter)
  • Stretch Objective: Integrate an Alarm system to startle the thieves!

Challenges

• Design sensor supports (for 3-D print) using SolidWorks software
• Hiding camera, wires, etc. so that they cannot easily be seen from the outside
• Construction: Attach the sensor supports onto the inside of the drawer with epoxy glue and ensuring that the sensors don't interfere with each other
• Environment: Finding a good location for the system to operate in (good lighting for the picture, minimal extra noise that would interfere with the ultrasonic sensors)
• Hardware: Making sure sensors are stable and that the ultrasonic sensors work when sending signals against different types of materials
• Software: saving all picture data on Raspberry Pi to possibly upload to a social media interface
• User Safety: ensure fire safety from electrical system
• Privacy Considerations: In order for our system to work properly, we will need to take a picture of the person by optimizing camera angle. Given that it is surveillance of our own property, privacy of thieves will not be compromised.
• Operation Costs: Our operation does not cost us anything except time, but we enjoy what we do

Budget

• 8 MegaPixel Camera for Raspberry Pi: $25.00 + 7.99 (Shipping Charges) [1]
• 1-meter Flex Cable for Raspberry Pi $3.95 + 9.42 (Shipping Charges) [2]
• Raspberry Pi Charging Cable $5.95 + $9.42 (expedited shipping) [3]

 Total Budget: $61.73

Lab Materials / Our Own

• Sterilite 16 Quart Stacking Drawer with White Frame - 17" L x 14-3/8" W x 6-7/8" H (We own it) [4]
• Glue Gun [5]
• Through Hole Resistors [6]
• Male to Male Jumper Cables [7]
• Female to Female Jumper Wires [8]
• One: Medium-sized Stuffed Teddy Bear (We own it) [9] [10]
• Raspberry Pi & Breadboard (Lab) [11] [12]
• Two Ranging HC-SR04 Detector Sensors for Raspberry Pi: (Lab) [13]
• Wires, Cables, Electrical Tape, Soldering Iron [14]

Gantt Chart