If you've been considering buying a smart doorbell, you may want to consider creating your own with a Raspberry Pi instead. Maker Zane Claes of Technically Wizardry did just that, finding that managing your own open-source doorbell helps eliminate some of the security concerns associated with commercial smart doorbells.
This smart doorbell project is primarily a Raspberry Pi with a button, camera, microphone and speaker. With just these few components, you can create a complex (or simple) smart doorbell platform.
Claes has a whole smart home system that this doorbell interfaces with, but you could also use pieces of this project to create a standalone doorbell system.
This DIY smart doorbell also uses an infrared (IR) camera with night vision and a built-in microphone, as well as a tiny USB speaker. The camera is motion-sensitive, using Motion Eye OS to handle the video feed and provide security camera controls. With Tensorflow, image recognition adds a new dimension of security and can be used to trigger custom notifications and events.
The components are housed inside a steampunk-themed junction box, designed by Claes himself. A metal button with an LED serves as the doorbell button visitors will press. The doorbell button response is controlled via the Node-RED programming tool.
To read more about this project, visit the Technically Wizardry website for the full post. You can also check out our list of Best Raspberry Pi Projects for more cool Pi creations.
