Arduino and RFID Based Smart Parking System

Hello readers in this project i will show you how i made this parking system that works based on RFID technology that is powered by arduino uno.

You might have seen rfid based toll tax project this project works in similar way but in the different application.

Here in this project i will show you a full working model of a smart parking system that uses the security of RFID tags to open and close the gates of parking space.

This is an interesting concept if you are planning to implement this in and around your living area.

Say for example in the place where you live has lots of problems for parking for your cycle or bike, you can then simply setup this project.

Allot a dedicated space for each vehicle and to open and close the gates of that spot you assign a RFID tag, now when you tap on the reader that gate will open.

Now in simple words i will explain how this project works.

The parking system that i build here has 3 parking spots and for each spot we have a gate and this gate is controlled by micro servo.

When the project is powered on the LCD displays message and the model is ready for using, we have a dedicated tag that is registered on the uno board(arduino program)

I have used 3 different tags that control the 3 servos and upon tapping each of them the servo works one after the another.

There is no limitation on expanding this model with more servos but you will need additional power source to run this project.

If you want to build this project i have given all the codes and circuits along with a working video given at the end of this instructabales.

Now let us begin with arranging the components to make this, and like always if you have anything to ask in any step leave it in the comments and i will respond shortly.

These are list of electronics and other building materials used to make this project

Arduino Uno

RFID module

RFID tags x 3

Micro Servo(plastic geared preferred)

Mini Breadboard

Jumper Cables

LCD module with I2c

Piece of Cardboard

Arduino IDE

Programming Cable

Hot glue

Paper and Scissors

Here i have uploaded the code to uno first, copy and paste the arduino progr̥am on your ide and select the proper port and board and click on upload, After this is done we can head over to building the connections.

I know what you are thinking after looking at this circuit diagram! Dont worry this is simple and i will break it down to even more easy steps after reading the circuit explanation below.

I will explain the connections component wise, we have servo, RFID board and LCD module

Servo connections

i will use 3 servos and each servo comes with 3 pins, 2 for power and one for signal

Vcc and Gnd of all three servos are connected to plus and minus pins on the breadboard, whereas the signal pins of servo 1, 2 and 3 are connected to D5,D6 and D7 pins on the uno board.

Now our servo connections is complete and lets see how to connect LCD

LCD come with 4 pins, Vcc and Gnd are connected to power rails on the breadboard, Scl and Sda are connected to A5 and A4 on the Uno board.

Connect the 5v and gnd pins from the Uno to power rails on the breadboard.

RFID reader has 8 pins and we are using 7 of them. Here you should make a note that vcc pin is connected to 3.3v pin on the uno board.

Sda to D10

Sck to D13

Mosi to D11

Miso to D12

Rst to D9 pin

3.3 v to 3.3v and Gnd to gnd pins

These will complete the connections and now we can head over to testing the circuit.

To test the circuit and working of all the components all you have to do is connect uno board to computer or any USB powered device.

Now you will see a LCD screen with display message that welcomes to the parking area!

Tap on the RFID reader with your tag, If everything is fine the LCD will show uid of the tag and then the servo will open(gate)

Repeat the same step for tag 2 and tag 3, you should receive the same response from the other tags also.

Now the circuit is working fine and now we can head over to getting all the components assembled in an order.

Use hot glue and double adhesive tapes to keep the components intact on a piece of cardboard or any other plastic base.

Now the electronics are placed on the board and left to dry completely, In the end you mark the area where you will be placing the servos.

To make it look like a parking system i will use some stationery items like paper and glue, and we can see that in the next step

I will cut a piece of paper that is the color of the road and cut small stripes of paper, glue it on the road and allow to dry completely.

Paste this on the cardboard in front of the RFID and LCD module so that it looks like the passway to the vehicles.

To build the gates i will use a small strip of hazard gates and paste the same to the horns of the servo.

The servos by itself will be too low and will cause disturbance in the working of the servo horns, to fix this issue i will use a piece of paper that is rolled to form a tube.

I pasted this tube that will work the way like a small pillar! Paste the servo to this tube and allow to dry completely.

Glue the prepared servos like as shown in the steps, You can also add the parking area names to the preferred space.

Now almost we have finished the build part of this, we can head over to test the project and we will see how it can be done in the further steps.

Using this project is very easy all you have to do is plug the uno board to cable and connect the other end of cable to USB power source.

Now you will see a display message on LCD panel and in few seconds the device is ready for using.

I have numbered the tag according to the servo order, 1, 2 and 3 so now i now if i tap on the RFID reader with tag 1 the servo 1 will open(gate) same goes with the 2 and 3 tags and servos.

When I tap readers with respective tag the gate will open and the same message will be displayed on the LCD panel.

The servo count that I'm using is 3, I recommend to use 3 max because if you use more than this the power issues occur and the reader and servo will not work as expected.

There is no set rule that you have to arrange the servos and other components in the way i did, Feel free to setup in your own creative way in the end the working of this project will remain same.

This was all about this project, if you have any questions ask me in the comments.

Here is the detailed working video of this project, this video has all the build steps and has a step on uploading the program.

Like i mentioned earlier you can also add more servos and tags to this project thereby expanding the parking space.

Hope you will try to build this and add your own new features, If you need any help let me know.

That was al about this project, Thank you for showing interest and best of luck.