When it comes to technology, many of us are enthusiasts and want to make the most possible use of it. These days, not only our phones have become smart, but also our watches. So if you have an Apple Watch, and are of an adventurous type and can handle technical stuff well, then you are going to love this DIY project from Make. Marc Jensen, James Squires and Shawn Roske have provided detailed instructions on how you can automagically open doors at home or at work by using your Apple Watch. Just a tap on the display of the Watch and voila, the door will open.
So how did this project start? They say that necessity is the mother of invention, and that’s true with this project. According to the DIY site, this project was started to solve a real world issue that the employees of their company were facing. Here’s a more detailed explanation
We started this project to help solve a real-world problem: to prevent our employees from being locked out of the office. Our security system automatically locks the doors outside of normal business hours. If someone steps out of the office without their security card or keyfob, they’re locked out. When this happens, people use their phone to call or email people at the office to let them back in. This showed us that people may forget their security card — but they don’t forget their phone.
Basically, if you follow the instructions, then you can turn a normal door into a door that can be opened remotely via an Apple Watch or iPhone. This do-it-yourself (DIY) project is not that easy though, and you will need fair bit of technical knowledge.
Things you will need:
- 12-16 hours’ time
- Approx $100 for the door
- Apple Watch
- Patience
This project makes use of a standard door-strike hardware, a tiny RFduino microcontroller and a custom Apple Watch or iPhone app. The app will authenticate the user, and will communicate wirelessly with the door to allow it to open.
The developers think that this project can be extended in many other ways. For example, you can add more security to this system, so that it requires connection to an existing WiFi network, or you can also limit the total number of times the door can be accessed. Using a system like IFTTT, other triggers can also be added. There’s also the possibility of extending this system to the Android platform.
Check out the video below and then head over to the project page to learn more.
