The motivation came from hassle and laziness. My roommate would forget to take the key everytime but would never forget his phone. I saw an opportunity that the maker inside me could not miss. Wi-Fi lock was born.
The ESP8266 module was configured to connect to the WiFi in my room and host a webpage using a REST api. The webpage could be accessed by navigating to a server address and would offer two options – Lock and Unlock. There was an alternative option to connect to the hotspot offered by the ESP8266 in the event of a power cut. The ESP8266 would send a digital high or low to the arduino when the buttons on the website were triggered. The arduino then activated a linear actuator to open and close the latch of the door. The linear actuator was driven by a L298 motor driver and powered by a Pb battery.
Video:- The video of the project in action can be found here.
Pictures:-
Parakh M. Gupta 