The Executive Summary Will Give a Brief Overview of the Entire Project, and the Process

1.0Executive Summary

The executive summary will give a brief overview of the entire project, and the process the team underwent to reach the objective.

1.1Project Need

An intelligent garage door system was needed. The objective of the project was to design, implement, test, and demonstrate a system that would determine if the garage door should be closed automatically upon departing the home. Some people drive a few blocks away from home and then return to make sure that they have closed the garage door. The project would involve determining the various conditions that could exist. Examples include: (1) departing car is parked inside the garage, (2) departing car is parked outside the garage on the driveway or street, and (3) garage door should remain open while resident mows or works on the lawn.

1.2Project Activities

To start, the team brainstormed several ideas for how to solve the above problem. The idea that was picked is a system built of several different components. The brain of the system is a micro-controller, which takes inputs from several environmental sensors, makes a logical decision, and creates an output signal. The entire purpose of the sensors is to tell the “brain” of the system what state the garage door is in. The SGDS can be retrofitted with any opener that has open and closing contacts on the exterior of the base unit.

The entire team did research on different components of the SGDS system. Many of the components were free through help from our faculty advisors. Also, the fact this was a student project helped our team obtain many parts for free. The group began the testing process after all the parts were obtained. Several items were found to be incompatible at first and had to be exchanged for compatible components. There were no problems with making exchanges. After all the correct components were on hand, each was tested on an individual basis to make sure of proper working conditions. After all the testing was finished many of the original plans were slightly altered. However, the overall design follows the original plan the group created.

1.3Final Results

When finished the project prototype worked and the final costs for the project were $180.82. The original estimate was $215, which means the project finished approximately 16% under budget. Time actually spent on the project was at a total of 563 hours and it was originally projected to be 690 hours, 18% under budget. Considering the facts that the project works as planned with finances and time allotment being under budget, the project is considered a success.

1.4Recommendations for follow on work

If this project were to be considered for mass production, the following work would not only make the system more cost effective and run efficiently, but also save money in production expenses.

• Create an original transmitter/receiver that will work for the system, not one purchased from a third party vendor. This would affect the cost of the overall system. If the system was mass-produced, this option might save money on production.
• New microprocessor – The goal would be to find the cheapest microprocessor on the market that would be able to carry out all of the functions already in place. The current microprocessor (Motorola HC11) is overkill for the functions it is called to perform. The same functions can be carried out on a cheaper processor. This would help to lower the cost and area taken up by the present microprocessor.
• Design for commercial use – This approach would broaden our customer base. This in turn would help sell more of the SGDS.
• Design for more than two garage doors – This would allow customers with three or more garage doors, the abilities to operate each one with the luxury of only one remote.
• Design for non-rail-type systems – This again will help to broaden the SGDS customer spectrum and bring in more business.

Acknowledgement:

The team of SGDS would like to take this opportunity to express their sincere appreciation to Ralph Patterson III and John Lamont for their time and expertise in making this system from a conceptual idea to one that can be thoroughly enjoyed by all homeowners.

2.1Problem Statement

This section will provide a general background of the general garage opening problem, a technical description of the problem and what the solution is to be. It will explain the operating environment, the intended users, and assumptions and limitations the team was faced with during the project duration.

2.1.1 General Background

The current problem afflicting most homeowners as they leave their homes is the question, “Did I close my garage door?” As a direct result of this puzzlement, the homeowner is often forced to return back to their home to check on the status of their garage door. This type of problem costs the homeowner not only a headache, but also extremely precious time they could have spent elsewhere. The solution to this problem is the SGDS system. The SGDS is a system that determines if the garage door should be closed automatically upon departing the home.

This is accomplished by utilizing several devices, which are monitored by a master command module. These devices include a door timer, light timer, a micro-controller, a four-button main controller, a four-button remote control, and two contact limit switches. The four-button main controller mounts on the wall inside the garage, and replaces the normal wall mounted buttons for a regular garage door system. The four-button remote control can be carried in a vehicle or a person’s pocket or hand when they leave and want to run the system when they return. The contact limit switches mount on the rail of the opener system and are used to determine what position the garage door is in. The micro-controller is the “master command module” and is used for the timing devices along with the logic of the other sensing devices.

These devices install directly upon the existing garage door system and should in no way interfere with the proper or ordinary functionality of the regular garage door system.

2.1.2Operating Environment

The SGDS system functions and includes the same type of environmental requirements as a normal garage door. This means the SGDS operates in rain, snow, extreme heat, and other related weather elements. The nominal operating temperature range for the SGDS system is from -40° F and +140° F. The SGDS may fail in conditions where the weather reaches extreme conditions and these conditions begin to interfere with the normal operation of the SGDS.

2.1.3Intended Users

The intended users for the SGDS include the homeowner(s), family members who need access to the garage, and friends of the family. Other users who may be authorized to use the system include such examples as service people. Most anyone with access to a controller can operate the system.

The intended uses of the SGDS include the ability to automatically close the garage door. The system also offers the feature of allowing the user to push a button in order to disengage the automatic closing ability, and allows the garage door to remain in an open state.

It should be noted that while the SGDS has certain security and safety features, it is ultimately the responsibility of the end user to see that these features are not abused and that those using the system understand how it operates. The SGDS is also not meant to be the sole security for the house, but merely a supplement.

2.1.4Assumptions and Limitations

Some of the assumptions that were made while designing the SGDS include that:

• The system is to be installed on any garage door system with a residential grade opener.
• The power source being used by the SGDS will be monitored and maintained by the end user.
• The user’s garage system will allow for the proper installation of the SGDS system with minimal effort.

The limitations being made in the design of the SGDS include that:

• The opener to which the SGDS system is being attached must have open and closing contacts readily available.
• Obstruction sensors MUST be installed.Due to federalregulations under UL325, there is no way to bypass or eliminate obstruction sensors.
• Remote controls will not operate outside a range of 120 ft.
• Batteries will be needed for the remote control and a power supply are needed for the receiver and processor.
• Timers for the door(s) and driveway lights will have a maximum of 8.5 minutes and minimum of 30 seconds.

2.1.5Expected End Product

The SGDS is a garage door opener enhancer, which enables the owner/user to leave home without worry that the garage door might have been left open. The system is built of several different components. The brain of the system is a micro-controller, which takes inputs from several environmental sensors. The entire purpose of the sensors is to tell the “brain” of the system what state the garage door is in. The SGDS can be retrofitted with any opener that has control contacts on the exterior of the base unit.

2.2 Project Approach and Results

This section will explain the general approach to the design and all of the details of the final product that was developed.

2.2.1End-Product Functional Requirements

Below is a list of functional requirements in which the SGDS system will be designed to meet:

• Door Timer – When the garage door is opened and the SGDS is activated, a timer is initialized and starts a count down of length determined by the user settings. Upon the completion of the count down the garage door closes. If the user wishes for the door to remain open a SGDS override button exists. This button enables the user to switch off the SGDS and return the opener to its original operating mode.
• Lights Timer – When the garage door open or close signal is present, driveway lights will come on based upon the output of a solar sensor. After the lights turn on a timer is initialized and begins a count down of length determined by the user settings. Upon the completion of the count down the lights will turn off
• Light Sensor – The purpose of this sensor is to send a signal to the micro-controller telling the controller if it is light or dark outside. If it is dark then the driveway light function will be activated. (See appendix C)
• Contact Limit Switches –These sensors are mounted on the garage door opener rail and positioned so detection of open and closed states is possible. The two contact switches should be mounted on the opener rail in a position so the door arm will engage either one of the two switches when the door is in the opened position or the other when the door is in the closed position.
• Driveway Lighting Relay – This device shall have a set of contacts, which close when a signal is present. When the contacts close, the driveway lighting circuit will be energized and the lights will come on. This circuit will be wired in parallel with the power switch that resides in the home to give manual lighting control to the homeowner. (See Appendix D)
• Micro-controller – The SGDS micro-controller takes input signals from the remote transmitter and wall-mounted buttons. Then it logically compares these signals with the contact switches, obstruction sensors, and solar sensor signals present at that time. After the signals are processed the micro-controller sends the appropriate signal to the outputs, which are the open and closing contacts of the door opener. (See Appendix E for program code)
• Four-button Controllers – A wireless receiver and transmitter combo provides four different signals that are relayed via wire to the SGDS micro-controller. A four-button wall mounted control panel is wired in parallel with the receiver output wires running to the micro-controller. Connecting these in parallel will give the wall-mount controller the same functionality as the remote transmitter. The micro-controller is programmed in a way that the presence of different signals from the transmitter will output a different function.

2.2.2Resultant Design Constraints

Limitations considered for design of the SDGS were:

• Transmitter/receiver unit – Location of a device which had the exact functionality defined was too difficult and finding the exact match would be a task that would extend beyond the time frame given for the project.
• Extreme cold – Extreme cold may affect the timing circuits. Placing the timer circuit inside the garage so harsh weather conditions are not a factor will solve this problem.
• Battery power – This system will only work if the batteries used in the remote controller have enough power.
• Two-door garage – The system will only control up to 2 garage doors.

2.2.3Approaches Considered and One Used

The approach to this design problem was to draw up all the different scenarios and determine the correct functionality for the SGDS system. Below is a list of scenarios that apply to the functionality of the garage door system.

The different scenarios that exist in any garage door system are as follows.

• The door is to stay open after initially being in a closed position and remain open. Example – The owner walks into the garage, decides to work outside, and desires to have the garage door open while they work.
• The door is to close from the initial open position and remain closed.
• The door is to open from the initial closed position, stay open for a set amount of time, and then close after time has elapsed.

A micro-controller was chosen for all the system logic due to the number of inputs this system has. Hardwire logic is an option but would be very hard to troubleshoot do to the size and complexity of the circuit. Outputs of this controller send a signal to the opener unit, which controls the actual opening and closing of the garage door.

A way of transmitting a signal from a remote control to the micro-controller was needed. Since so many transmitter/receiver systems already existed it made sense to purchase the product rather than waste time re-inventing. Also, a wall mount is needed for inside the garage. Momentary contact push buttons were purchased for this task.

Logical checks and safety devices were needed for this device too. Obstruction sensors, which should be on the original garage door system, are used to check the door opening for blockages. Contact limit switches are used to check if the door is in an open or closed state.

Timer circuits in the micro-controller are used for the driveway lighting and door closure timing. Potentiometers are used to make the timers adjustable.

A free Craftsman opener was given to the team for testing purposes. This opener has open and close contacts and a lighting circuit installed.

2.2.4Detailed Design

The entire system can be visualized by observing the block diagram shown in Figure 1.

Each different block/component was purchased separately. The micro-controller is programmed to take all the device inputs and send an output signal to the open or close contact of the opener unit itself.

Following is a diagram displaying the general layout of the wall-mounted and remote control.

Figure 2: General Controller Layout

The descriptions below describe the functionality of the wireless transmitter/receiver and button control system.

• Opening (opening the garage door from a closed position and leaving the door open) – This will be initiated by a push button override. Pressing either “Override 1” for door one, or “Override 2” for door two will open their respective door and override the timer. A signal will be sent from the transmitter unit on the button release. (1 to 2 second delay).
• Close (Immediate close from any state) – Close the garage by pressing either one of the two consecutive garage door buttons for the selected garage door.
• Open & Close (Automatically) – To operate, the user will need to press one of the Door buttons on the controller (Door 1 or Door 2). This will open the garage door from a closed position and expect it to only stay open for the set amount of time. The time from open to close will be determined by the user (factory default at one minute). After the timer times out, a signal will be present at one of the inputs on the micro-controller and a door closing output signal will be sent to the opener unit.

2.2.4.1 Environmental Inputs to SGDS

• Contact Limit Switches – Allows the system to monitor the status of the garage door. Determines whether the garage door is in an open or closed position.

• Light Sensor – Allows the system to determine if daylight is present. If daylight is not present then the driveway lighting circuit should not be activated.