Mailbox Sensor Plus Using Arduino & Ultrasonic Sensor

Hi,

I hope you are all doing well. Today I am going to show you how to make a mailbox with a sensor using the arduino board and IDE. This project is very simple and most of the supplies can be found in most homes. Know that Covid-19 has struck we are getting deliveries for all over the place. You can use one of those boxes to make it. It should take you around 30 minutes to make. I hope you enjoy it! I have spent hours to make it the best for everything so if you enjoy please vote for it. If you need any help me fell free to ask me a question and/or comment in the comments below.

• Big cardboard box
• Ultrasonic Sensor
• 4 female to female jumper wires
• Laptop
• Tape
• Xacto Knife
• Arduino Board with wire
• Pencil

The first step is to cut out all the pieces that we need. Take your pencil and draw were you will cut out. For the front you will cut out a 15 cm by 8.5 cm cut. Do not cut the top fully out because you have to pull it out and in. That will be our mail slot. Next you will cut out the back for the wires. It should be 2 cm by 2.5 cm. This time fully cut it out.

The next step is to program the board. To do that you will need the arduino IDE app which you can install from there website. Once you have downloaded the IDE you will need to open the code. I have included the code in the description. You can find the code here and the libraries here. Once you have opened the code click tools > Boards > Arduino Uno. Once you have done that wait a few seconds then click tools > Port > COM3. Once you have done that click upload and wait a minute or two. Once that is completed open up Serial Monitor. It should not say anything for know.

The next step is to plug in the wires to the sensor. I have included a Picture of the connections here. First put the wires through the hole that you just cut out in the back. Then put the sensor inside of the box. Connect the wires to the sensor as shown on the picture. Once you have done that open up again your serial monitor and know it should say your distance in cm.

The last step is to tape the sensor to the cardboard. Take a few pieces of tape and put it on the wires and put it on top middle of the cardboard. Once that is in it should be done. I hope you enjoyed it! If you have any question and/or comments please let me know in the comments or by private chat.