Thread: help with choosing processors,controlers

im thinking of building an electric lock on my door a one which you will need to enter a code, which will be displayed on a small 16X2 charcter lcd screen, the password will be entered with a 4X4 keyboard and a engin will be installed on my lock so only when i press the right code the engine will turn(the engine is of course hooked up to a relay) but heres the problem i cant seem to find a cheap and simple processors,controlers which will be able to control these thing, asaid from controlling an lcd, an engine and scaning the keyboard, i also need it to have memory for the password so if i desire to change the password i will be able to.

please help

I don't know at what level you are interested in working. The lowest level might be to get a Microchip PIC such as the 16F818 and start integrating. A slightly higher level, with a ready made circuit board and such, would be to look at various hobby sites -- sparkfun.com is one I always recommend -- to find something you can use. The Arduino hobby board is probably way overkill for your project, but looking at that might lead to some other options.

As for the "engine" which operates your lock... Must be a pretty big lock, eh? You probably just need a solenoid, like from an old washing machine or maybe from a car starter motor.

I believe one can also just buy the whole kaboodle, possibly cheaper than building from scratch, so you might look at various security websites before hand.

thanks for the advice ill look into it.

as for the engine i belive a simple 5v dc motor which has the key glued at the tip will do the job(the locks at my house are a bit difrent),but it might be somthing to look into...

anyways thanks again

p.s. the type of controler/processor im looking for is a simple chip that i can solder myself, for some reason i enjoy soldring.