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New Project idea, need help

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iflymyhelishigh

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Hi guys, I have a project idea. It is sort of complicated, but I'm sure most of you will be able to understand.

I want to use a keypad with a microcontroller, to control my room. I want to use a relay for my light switch, and also have sort of a burglar system.

I'm thinking about maybe mounting the keypad where my light switch used to be. I want to be able to enter a code, lets say, 3-6-4-5 to turn on/off my light, and maybe something like 1-2-5-4 to turn on/off the burglar alarm. I also want to control other electrical devices using the same relay concept.

What kind of microcontroller do you recommend? I have never coded before.
Thanks, iflymyhelishigh
 
You're actually going to have a problem chosing one because just about any of them will work for what you're trying to do. PIC's are most recommended here, AVR's are another option, those are the two best supported on the Internet.
 
Instead of trying to remember code sequences for lights on and off I think I would prefer to use an LCD with 'up arrow', 'down arrow', and 'select' keys. That way I could use the arrow keys to scroll thru' a list of functions to see the current on/off status of each function and to change the on/off status.

Mike
 
For now I'm going to stay away from LCDs, the most I'll have is maybe a ARMED DISARMED display.

The code sequences keep people from messing with my room :)

Are there any sample codes out there for my application?
 
Nevermind, found Nigel's tutorial. I think I can modify his tutorial a little. Are there any ideas on arming/disarming a burglar alarm? I'm thinking a relay to close the connection of an entirely seperate circuit for the burglar alarm.

After you arm the burglar alarm, it will give 10 seconds to leave, and if its activated, the control panel will beep. I think I need more I/Os than this :p

Or I could maybe interlink 2 PICs
 
The 2-4 line character displays are actually very easy to interface and program ifly, you should give them a thought, especially a nice backlit one, they add a lot of 'wow' factor and functionality to any project.
 
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