Automatic Chicken Coop Door Opener Project

This is an Arduino (clone) powered automatic chicken coop door opener that has a couple of gravity-actuated latches that should keep out racoons, etc..

Blog-site for this project:
http://slinkyx.blogspot.com/2010/05/it-lives.html

Also, great minds think alike: http://www.fabiens.org/ckblog/?page_id=106

Category:

Pets & Animals

Tags:

• arduino
• seeduino
• polulu
• drill
• re-use
• chicken-coop
• latch

[akwila3737]

Better hope it wont get wet and swell in the tack.

[clintfisher]

@akwila3737 thanks, that's a very valid concern - especially here in the great Northwest. I'll be sealing it and finishing it with killz paint before the final install.

[socrkool21]

In your opinion are you a slight inventer? I was also wondering where you got the experience and knowledge to do this? Did you just pick it up or just an extra benefit from your college major?

[clintfisher]

@socrkool21 - I love to invent things. As for idea sources, it has been said: "necessity is the mother of invention". As for my background, I started studying computer hardware when I was in elementary school (in the early '70's no-less), and software in the late 70's onward. As such, I have a pretty good low-level understanding of how things work. I've continued my fascination into college and the many years since.

The biggest driving force? Curiosity.

Best of luck to you!

[emailharold]

People who say this is overly complicated have never met a raccoon. Well done. Will you run your coop ventilation louvers off of the same Arduino? You mentioned temperature in the video, that would be a neat subroutine....

[clintfisher]

@emailharold - thanks! I don't think we're going to need vent louvers where we live and the way the coop is set up. Due to the number of control lines the motor driver requires (it's really low-level), there aren't enough pins in the Arduino. I'd probably go with a simpler setup that could be driven by the wi-fi Arduino (the BlackWidow 1.0). The BlackWidow board will be the "master controller" for the coop as a whole, where the other Arduino (seeeduino) is just for the door.

[pactrop]

That is awesome.  I would recommend 3M 4200 glue over shoe goo. 4200 is a marine grade that will seal and hold like nothing I have seen before.

[Jerbod2]

So with a click on the mouse it opens?

[jgwray]

Love this. Am working on similar design using a hospital bed motor. 1/8 HP and 75 rpm. 2 inch pulley gives it about a 2 sec opening time. The problem I'm having is that the motor bleeds down due to the weight of the door. Can use counter weight but prefer not to. Any ingenious ideas on a camlock style design to hold the door open and release upon close cycle? Love what you did! Thanks for the inspiration.

[Mig2133]

Very nice man

[rifleman795]

Now that's cool

[astrialkil]

@coopofhazzard Why? is getting Laid important? Can you afford unplanned children? What happens if she refuses to have an abortion?

[younwhosarmy]

Your door latch mechanism is Sweet !!  Very creative... Thumbs uP if you agree!

[ICUC007]

Cracks me up. That's GREAT

[refan742]

that door it's very nice......i like it

[coopofhazzard]

You need to find a female that would tolerate your limited humor, and nerdism/ geeksquad wanna-be. How about spendind as much time figuring out how to get laid, vs filming your chickens get laid.