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I'm not sure if this is the correct thread to ask but I need to start somewhere

What I'm looking to do is small box computer that I can mount on wall near the exit from my house that would monitor the environmental stats + other things

From what I have seen I can't decide which device to use ( or modules, or if they are compatible which each other )

Basically what I need it to be able to have:

WiFi Light /Pressure / Temperature / Humidity sensor (basic environment check ) WebCam ? or other sensor to detect proximity ( somebody approach device ) Small LCD / OLED display to display small graphic ( 3.5" max size ) Running linux ( programing in python preferable ) Sound output ( play song ) Mic input would be nice ( not needed )

Cheep and small

I can program in python, and if my life depended on it also in android java.. but would very much prefer python and linux.

From what I have read around raspberry pi could be good choice, but can it run all the sensors at once, I have no experience with it though.

Also it should be powerful enough to run web server ( even one written in python would be ok ) to display data ( serve data via xml to other devices like phone and so on... )

Any suggestions would be much appreciated, thanks Vladimir

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  • Sounds like this would be very possible.
    – Jivings
    Commented Sep 16, 2012 at 16:06
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    I thought discussions where baned from stackexchange and questions that have a precise answer was the one allowed. Maybe it's just in the "Overflow stack". Anyway just want to make a punch for the DS18B20 Temperature sensor! It's digital and real easy to setup if you have the distro Occidentalis! Look here: adafruit.com/category/105 If you want to use analog sensors look here: abelectronics.co.uk
    – Christian
    Commented Sep 16, 2012 at 21:22
  • @Christian There is some grey area where discussion is involved. IMO, this question does have a definite answer (is the Pi capable of this or not?), but you're right in saying it will be interspersed with other discussion (what is the best tool for the job?). In this case let us see how the question goes and if the discussion get's out of hand it can be reigned back.
    – Jivings
    Commented Sep 17, 2012 at 6:44

1 Answer 1

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The Raspberry Pi is surely a good choice for a small and cheap linux box with web server, sound output etc. programmable in Python or any other common language. A WebCam and WiFi can easily be added via USB and you need a case. I think there are similar small linux boxes but you probably won't find people arguing for them at this place ;-)

The requirements that may need some additional work include:

  • Small LCD / OLED display (see this question)
  • Sensors (humdity, temperature etc.)

You can attach sensors to the Pi via GPIO pins, but it really depends on what you actually need and what work you can invest. For instance you can measure temperature as described in this question. A very easy solution is to use sensors from Tinkerforge, which can be controlled from a Raspberry Pi. There is a humidity Bricklet and Temperature Bricklet, among others, all shipped with drivers in Python and other languages.

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