PyConZA 2012: "How to open a bar in Python" by Edward van Kuik

Coming from the open source world, I could not muster the courage to buy the closed-source proprietary software that most businesses use, and eventually decided to write almost everything myself that we needed to open the bar. Having everything open and in Python allows me to do cool stuff.

Things we have built:

* 8-channel rotary dial antique telephone system using 2x Arduinos, a 10-channel sound card. Libs used: pyjack, numpy, scipy, pyserial...

* 2x terminal Point of Sale system using GTK front end on Ubuntu, posting to an (also home-made) accounting and stock control system. Receipt printer, cash drawer, touch screen, RFID login.

* Door access control system using Arduinos and RFID readers. Libs used: pyfirmata, sqlalchemy...

Everything is open, and configurable by me in Python, so I can do cool stuff: I can dial a number on the rotary to change the song in Clementine, or adjust the volume. I can listen to the title of the song playing read by espeak. I can dial 222 on a rotary dial telephone to listen to BBC World Service live off the net. I can send a SMS to 32010 and it will print out as a telegram on the POS receipt printer.

Transcript

1. How to open a bar in Python bar = 'foo' open(bar) Edward van Kuik PyConZA 2012
3. Introduction • “Antique” Phone system • Door access control • Point of Sale • Tickets for shows
4. Why not Asterisk?
5. Why not Asterisk?
6. Rotary Dialers
7. More Rotary Dialers
8. More Rotary Dialers
9. Weird Phones
10. Pre-Amp
11. Arduino to detect pulses pyfirmata e.g. board = pyfirmata.Arduino(port) pin = board.get_pin("a:5:i") onhook = pin.read()
12. Telephone States >
13. Main Loop
14. Retrofit • Colin Braye
15. Telephone Control Box 0.1
16. Telephone Control Box 0.2
17. Telephone Control Box 0.2
18. Installed Phone
19. Dial 9 for the bar
20. Door Access (okay not much to see here)
21. Arduino & RFID Reader
22. Door access
23. Door Access Control Boxes
24. A Door Access Control Box
25. Point of Sale • python gtk3 • talks to api • cherrypy • RFID login • Pretty Fully Featured – Stock control – Recipes, etc.
26. Installed POS
27. Now a Theatre Upstairs
28. Acknowledgements Nicholas Spagnoletti Colin Braye
29. Questions? Contact: edward@alexanderbar.co.za Or pop by: 76 Strand Street (Cnr Loop Street) Cape Town