department of electrical and computer engineering team 7 “the beepachu” preliminary design...

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Team 7

“The BeepachU”

Preliminary Design Review

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Team 7 Members

Eric WagnerEE

David ZeifmanCSE

Mark WagnerEE

Quanquan HanEE

3Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Problem Statement

4Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

The Problem Millions of items are misplaced

every day (i.e. keys, wallets)

Lost items = Lost time

We need an easy, cheap solution to help find lost items

Where did my X

go?

Where did my X

go?

5Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Significance of the Problem Lost items can cause people to be late to work and

other events

Delays caused by lost items don’t just affect you!

If the average adult spends 15 minutes looking lost items everyday• 15 minutes x 365 days = 5,475 minutes• 5,475 minutes = 3.8 days/year• 3.8 days/year = 190 days over 50 years

200+ days lost over a lifetime

6Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Context: Effect on Individuals

Losing or having your valuables stolen leads to stress• Need to cancel credit cards,

change locks• Wastes time

Need to keep a close eye on things• Distracts from more

important tasks

7Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Context: Effect on Groups

Lost items can delay group meetings

Sometimes requires third party intervention i.e. Police or Banks Wastes everyone’s time and money

Fewer lost items Less stress Less stress Happier communities!

8Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Broader Impacts

9Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Broader Impacts: Moral Implications A product that helps locate items could be used to

locate people This raises privacy concerns Sometimes helping to find people isn’t a bad thing

Could be used as an anti-theft device An alarm mode could alert individuals when lost items go out

of range

If the product plays a sound to help users find an item, that sound could be customized for pranks i.e. fart sound played at embarrassing times

10Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Broader Impacts: Special Populations

Parents Could use product to help keep track of children

Care-Takers Could use product to keep track of Alzheimer patients who

may wandering off

11Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Design Considerations

12Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Requirement Analysis: Specifications

Helps people locate lost items Small enough not to be a burden Cheap Easy to operate Works over a wide operating range

13Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Requirements Analysis: Inputs and OutputsInputsLosable itemsButton Press

Outputs Feedback that helps

locate itemSoundLightDirection of lost item

14Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Possible Solutions

15Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Design Alternatives: Non-Technical Solution

Don’t Lose Item

Search All Possible Locations

If either of these solutions actually worked our problem statement would not have been valid

16Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Design Alternatives: RFID

We could use RFID chips as receivers and an RFID reader as a transmitter

Pros• RFID tags are extremely small and cheap• Passive RFID tags do not need battery

Cons• Short range (6m for passive, 30.5m for active/semi-passive tags)• RFID readers are large and expensive

17Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Design Alternatives: Wifi

We could use make a transmitter tag that connects to nearby Wifi and uploads its position to a hub

Pros• No dedicated receiver• could read lost item location from a computer/phone

Cons• Constantly searching for wifi signal/uploading data takes a lot of

power• What if lost item is outside wifi-range?

18Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Design Alternatives: Smartphone Tracking

We could utilize a smartphone’s Bluetooth compatibility to communicate with a Bluetooth receiver

Pros•Fairly long range•Transmitter power not a problem (assuming phone is charged)•Easy to develop GUI

Cons•Similar products already exist/being developed

(i.e. Tile/Treasure Tag)•Need to own a smartphone

19Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Our Solution

20Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Our Solution: BeepachU

Form: Transmitter and Receiver Technology: Bluetooth Low Energy SoC Function: Press a button on the TX. The RX will “Beep-

at-You”• TX provides Hot/Cold option in case RX outside hearing range

(Possible) Extra Functionality:• A directional TX antenna could give BeepachU a directionality

feature• Alarm mode: if transmitter/receiver are separated: “BEEP”

21Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Requirements: BeepachU Design Goals

Range: 100m (line of sight) Battery life: 6 months for both TX and RX Weight: TX < .5 lb, RX < .5 Ib Response time: under 2 seconds Size:

• TX < 4 square inches• RX < 3 square inches

Robust• RX will not be set off by interference signal

Cheap: Each unit < $30 when mass produced

22Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Our Solution: Block Diagram

23Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Individual Responsibilities

24Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Individual ResponsibilitiesDave ZeifmanProgramming SoC

Eric WagnerAntenna + Link Budget

Mark WagnerSpeakers + Team Coordination

Quanquan HanPower Supply/Power Management + UI

25Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

SoC ProgrammingDave Zeifman

Requirements:Generate TX signalsInterpret RX signalsGenerate desired outputs from specific inputsStore “Beep” sound bite Drive audio sectionDrive RX “sniff” mode

26Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Speakers + Team CoordinationMark Wagner

RequirementsSpeakers must be loud enough to hearSmall enough to meet space requirementsSpeaker amplifier must be power efficientAlso responsible for managing the size/weight/cost of each item

27Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Antenna + Link BudgetEric Wagner

Requirements:Antenna must be matched to SoC’s transceiverAntenna should have reasonable efficiency/radiation patternAntenna must be small enough to meet size constraintsAlso responsible for managing link budget to meet 100m range requirement

28Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Power Supply/Management + UIQuanquan Han

RequirementsBattery must be small enough to meet TX/RX size requirementsMust last at least 6 monthsIs responsible for budgeting power use and determining duty cycle for RX “sniff” mode

29Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Power Supply/Management + UIQuanquan Han

UI RequirementsTransmitter UI should include

• Enough buttons to allow user to activate each feature (i.e. alarm, hot/cold, beep)

• LED’s to indicate hot/cold

Receiver UI should include• LED’s• Any buttons/ports needed for customizable sounds/features

30Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Deliverables

31Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Proposed MDR Deliverables

Demonstration of working TX/RX• TX and RX recognize each other and work at close distance• TX and RX hardware not necessarily contained in small

package (may be on a breadboard or Development Kit Module)• Not battery powered

Working speakers driven by TX/RX hardware• Small audio system will be operational• Same transceiver SoC that drives TX/RX must be able to drive

audio system.• Not battery Powered

32Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Schedule

33Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Questions?