Unattended Equipment Loan System? 63
captnitro asks: "I run a small media lab for a department at a large public university. We have about 120 faculty and and equal number of graduate students who from time to time need things like digital cameras, video equipment, projectors, EyeOne units, and so on. (While there is a central location on campus for students, faculty and staff to get some of this equipment, we stock a few specialized pieces that our faculty need.) Since I'm out of the office a lot, I'm looking for a clever way of loaning out equipment that doesn't involve me being there and is secure enough that our administrators deem it "theft resistant" enough to implement. I've looked into small safes with PINs, or card readers (all faculty have IDs with magstripes), blah blah blah, but most of these are prohibitively expensive, so I'm thinking of hacking something together myself.. though I have no idea how I'd do that. Any thoughts?" Solutions could range from the clever and mixed tech (cheap locked boxes with combinations sent through encrypted e-mail), through high tech (use of the existing ID cards system) to unlock delivery boxes. If you were going to set up a system like this, how would you do it?
Pay Someone (Score:5, Insightful)
Also remember that any system you implement to check out equipment also has to make it easy to return equipment. This means that automated solutions need to not rest combinations or whatever until the equipment is returned.
Also, if you choose to go with a technology solution, remember that even if it seems expensive, think of the cost of the equipment that could be stolen, or the cost of paying someone to man the desk.
Q-cat. (Score:4, Insightful)
http://cuecatastrophe.com/mirrors/Default.asp?p
I would do a 3 step process here. I will assume you have mag strip access to rooms on these cards. Should not be to much of a strech to have one set up on a storage door for access. Here you have a access control list for that door and limit your pool of people with access.
Then barcode all the equipment, set up a little web site that allows people to "request" to check out a piece of equipment online. Use the qcat, after getting past the access list for room access at the door, they scan the piece they are checking out. This time stamps the equipment for you as a check out and return. When they return the equipement they scan it again, and this removes it from the webpage as a "checked out" iteam. Thus giving a running list on the website of things that are "in".
Finally, set up a cheap webcam (thinkgeek has for 200 that is ip based with webserver) to write to disk on a computer in anouther room. This is your safty net for "nothing was scanned, but we have billy bob on tape slinking out with the digital camera. Here are the door scan logs from 12:03 am, and here are the logs where he did not scan it out. Also, he did not request this iteam via the web page. Get a ROPE!"
I think this pretty much covers your ass, gives them access to the equipment, and allows for an automated check in, check out, and what is "in stock".
Best of luck.
Low-tech solution (Score:3, Insightful)
Tux2000
Our uni library has this (Score:3, Insightful)
Can you say "library"? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Pay Someone (Score:3, Insightful)
The first was sys admin for the department's computers. The others were the 2-3 students that ran the stockroom (EE, so all the students needed to check out scopes/supplies for their labs).
Even if your department doesn't already have students working in this capacity, if the department you work in has >120 faculty, it should not be difficult to justify a $5/hour student assistant.
For checking things out, it was a simple checkout sheet that the person checking things out would put their name/id number on, and they and the person manning the stockroom would sign. The solution may not be high-tech, but it does have the benefit of helping out a few students with some extra money (which they always need), and keeping you more involved with students (which is the kind of thing that will improve the chances the students recommending your school, assuming you are fairly nice to them)
Re:it can be done (Score:3, Insightful)
It's not like he mentioned Microsoft.
I personally like the home built approach. Why not have a locked room that can be entered by swiping University ID (these must be in place already in the school). Lockers containing the items to be loaned with magnetic locks line the walls. (Maybe include RFID tags as backup?) Someone out there I am certain can write a simple SW program that uses the persons University UID and PWD (nothing new to learn) to authenicate them. Once in the system, they see the current status of items available to loan, pick what they want from the list (maybe even include a request functionality?) Hit a Submit button and VIOLA! (that's waaaa-laaaaaaa to you) the magnetic lock opens and hey! i can pick up my piece of equipment 24/7.
Now, let's hear how those with the expertise would implement it instead of sniping about off-topic BS.
Student Workers (Score:4, Insightful)
It's great for us because we're free to work on more involved projects without worrying that Dr. Smith isn't going to get her LaserDisc player on time. Student workers are also neat to have around.. We maintain a very casual, but very efficient, atmosphere in the office.
While what you're doing MAY be possible without human help, I get the feeling that any automated solution will cause you to spend more time babysitting it than doing your job.
Good luck, and don't forget to change the air filters on those projectors!
Re:RTFS! (Score:3, Insightful)
Well, I seriously doubt you're going to get a long-term viable solution that leaves it up to the honour of the people if there is no-one in attendance.
I know that even in corporate offices where you need a swipe-card to get into the cube farm, things will disappear from peoples desks. When your co-workers might steal your laptop, an honour-system for borrowing the really cool kit is going to hurt.
I advise the draconian/inconvenient policy, or in about six months you'll no longer have stuff to track for lending.