Our idea is based on a fear that we have all experienced before, the fear that your possessions might be stolen while you're off doing something else. You may be gone only momentarily, you could be in another room, down the hall, or just across the street, but that means you're not in the same location as the possessions that you left behind and they could be stolen without you preventing it or finding out who took them.
Wouldn't it be nice to have some sort of alert or alarm system that could be easily clipped onto your devices/possessions or allow them to rest on top of it? It would be very convenient to have the ability to leave possessions behind if you're to return to them later, but without any way to easily monitor their safety it's too risky to do so. Things like amusement parks, beaches, camping areas, libraries, classrooms, home, office, and public areas are perfect places where its application might be easily be useful.
So how do you catch thieves when you're not there? We imagine incorporating a few possible sensors and actuators to make it easier to catch a thief.
Below are possible sensors and actuators we could integrate with our Arduino- (* for both possibilities)
Clip-on:
*Motion Sensor: to sense when the object is picked up, grabbed, or moved from a set location
Surprisingly Simple Arduino Motion-Sensing Project Makes For Some Weekend Fun
*Button: initiates protection mode, would need deactivation that the thief couldn't use
*Camera+Flash: uses motion, distance, or change in light to trigger a camera and flash angled at where an approacher might be coming from. The actual placement of the camera will need to be discussed because bad placement might not get a photo in some cases
How-To: Arduino high speed photography trigger
*Alarm: when the arduino detects that your possessions are stolen it could sound at an alarm, alerting you if you're nearby or your peers that someone is stealing in hopes that they might be able to prevent it or stop the thief
*SMS/Bluetooth: messages or calls you when it detects that your possessions have been touched, moved, or stolen
*Audio/Alert: another way of alerting others other than the alarm, coud use speakers to shout "Thief!" or something that lets people know what might be going on
*Distance Sensor/Ultra Sonic Range Measure: for detecting when someone is at a dangerously close distance to your possessions or for actually setting a distance from the object you want watched and the sensor (if the distance changes it might be being stolen). Could use the distance sensor to initiate the camera in advance or capture a photo of the thief if they happen to be very fast about their actions
Flat panel to set things on:
Floor Mat Switch: could set objects on top of it, and when it changes switch modes you know something has been stolen
Light Detector: block the light to the sensor when placing an object over it, when the object is moved or stolen more light gets through and you'll be alerted to this change
Force Sensor: same idea as the floor mat switch, change in force means something is up
Flat Force Sensor
Linear Potentiometer: For detecting that an object is on top of it. Flat and convenient to use, might not be as obvious to a thief and might make it easier to catch them even if they grab both the arduino and your possessions
Oh and maybe an LED or some small component to let you know when the device is armed or not so you don't set it off yourself
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