Home-Made Twitter and Gmail Notifications with PHP and Arduino

This project uses PHP and Arduino to create a personalized notification system for Twitter and Gmail, displayed via an RGB LED. The system offers visual feedback through color-coded alerts (Twitter blue, Gmail red) and a proximity sensor allows for hands-free dismissal of notifications.

Key Features:

• Multi-Platform Support: Integrates with Twitter and Gmail APIs, easily expandable to other services.
• Visual Notifications: An RGB LED displays alerts with distinct colors for each service.
• Hands-Free Dismissal: A proximity sensor lets you dismiss notifications with a simple hand wave.
• Secure API Key Handling: Employs environment variables to securely store sensitive API keys.
• Modular Design: The code is structured with interfaces and classes for easy maintenance and extension.

Hardware Components:

• RGB LED (common anode type, with resistors if needed)
• Infrared Proximity Sensor
• Arduino Board (or compatible microcontroller)

Software Setup:

The project utilizes PHP 7.1 and requires several Composer packages: endroid/twitter, carica/io, carica/firmata, and vlucas/phpdotenv. API keys for Twitter and Gmail are stored securely in environment variables (.env file, excluded from version control).

The PHP code manages API interactions, notification checking, and Arduino communication. The Arduino code controls the RGB LED and proximity sensor.

Functionality:

The PHP script periodically checks for new mentions on Twitter and unread emails in Gmail. New notifications trigger the RGB LED to cycle through the corresponding color. Waving a hand over the proximity sensor dismisses the current notification type.

Further Development:

The system's modular design makes it easily extensible to other social media platforms or notification sources by adding new service implementations.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):

This section provides concise answers to common questions about the project's setup, functionality, and troubleshooting. (The original FAQ section is quite lengthy; this condensed version maintains the core information.)

• Setting up: Requires Twitter/Gmail accounts, PHP/Arduino software installation, API key configuration, and hardware connection.
• Other Languages: While PHP is used here, other languages (Python, JavaScript) could be adapted.
• Hardware: Arduino board, computer, RGB LED, and proximity sensor are necessary.
• Customization: Modify the PHP script to filter notifications or adjust the Arduino code for display variations.
• Other Platforms: Extendable to other platforms by integrating their APIs.
• Troubleshooting: Check API connections, credentials, internet connectivity, and API documentation.
• Stopping Notifications: Turn off the Arduino or modify the PHP script.
• Beginner Friendliness: Requires basic programming and electronics knowledge.
• Commercial Use: Possible, but be mindful of API usage limits.
• Benefits: Real-time notifications, learning opportunity, and a fun, practical project.

This revised response streamlines the original text while retaining its core information and maintaining the image positions.

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