Laser Tracker

by nmecklenburg in Workshop > CNC

352 Views, 0 Favorites, 0 Comments

Null

LaserTracker5.png
LaserTracker.png
LaserTracker3.png
FinalRenderWithGoodLighting.jpg
In our rooms we cram our books, papers, gadgets, and toys. In our over-packed kitchens, we stow away our pots and pans and food. In our garages, we hoard our entire lives, even displacing our cars to make room for our belongings. For those who make enemies of organization, the house is a black hole where an item found today is lost tomorrow. The laser tracker takes a new, feasible approach to this age-old issue of organization with the aim to become the next frontier in smart home technology. The tracker employs directional RFID technology to locate passive UHF RFID sticker tags placed on important items designated by the user. Each paper-thin tag is powered by the radio waves sent by the tracker’s built-in RFID antenna and consequently requires no batteries. With tags costing less than a dollar each, the laser tracking system can be used to locate any number of tagged items in the home environment. Additionally, a user may not need to purchase tags for all his or her belongings, for we are using industry standard GEN2 EPC technology, already present in certain identification cards (e.g. U.S. permanent resident cards) and medical devices. The device interfaces with a mobile application, wherein the user can specify an item to be tracked, signaling to the tracker via Wi-Fi to begin scanning the room. Upon item location, the tracker physically designates the location of the object by activating a laser pointer and highlighting the corresponding location in the mobile app. The laser pointer feature can be enabled and disabled per the user’s preferences. The version of the laser tracker submitted today would rely on an adhesive applied between the tracker and the surface on which it is mounted to stay in place. Alternatively, if an adhesive is undesirable, high friction pads can be adhered to the base's bottom for horizontal stability. Hooks may also be added later as an additional alternative. The user may add items to the tracker and its app’s inventory by photographing the item on the user’s mobile phone, scanning the item’s tag with the tracker, and naming the item to finish cataloging it. By including the name element in identification, the laser tracker may also respond to voice commands to search for given items, enabling hands-free location services. The laser tracker also doubles as an in-house item security system, where it can be toggled to keep track of specific belongings, alerting the user via mobile app notification if and to where a watched item has been moved. Beyond the laser tracker’s general target audience of disorganized individuals, other smaller, more specific groups will benefit from the product, including but not limited to: the elderly, parents of very young children, and students. Finally, as anything unmarked by RFID tags is invisible to the tracker, the technology is minimally invasive and presents no personal security risk. When in tracking mode, the product only emits radio waves when requested to find an item, so there is minimal exposure to radiation. When in security mode, the product emits waves periodically at an interval that can be changed according to the user’s preferences; even at a near constant frequency of emittance, the radio waves present no significant radiation—or otherwise safety-related—concerns.