Wally Chang
Project · Shipped · April 2026

doorpi — a door that knows my face and waits for a peace sign.

A Pi Zero 2 W, a PC, and an ESP32 with a servo. It unlocks the door when it recognizes my face and I hold up a peace sign.

Solo build · running 24/7 on doorpihost
HardwareComputer VisionPython
REV v3unlock
Fig. 01 · system schematic · v3
camera → Pi Zero 2 W → PC (face rec + MediaPipe) → ESP32 → servo → door release
CameraLogitech C920xUSBPi Zero 2 WV4L2 captureMJPEG → PCPC · doorpihostface recognitionMediaPipe · peace signESP32HTTP /unlock10 s cooldownSG90 servoGPIO 13presses door releasePi ─MJPEG→ PC ─HTTP /unlock→ ESP32 ─GPIO 13→ servo → door-release button

doorpi v3 shipped in April 2026. It is the third version of a door unlock that runs on face recognition and a peace sign, and it runs around the clock. A Pi Zero 2 W with a webcam streams video to a PC, which does the face matching and looks for the peace sign. When both check out, the PC tells an ESP32 to push a small servo against the door-release button. The Pi never talks to the door; the PC does, so I can still unlock remotely if the camera is down.

The peace sign is the part I'm most proud of. It confirms the unlock was on purpose: the door doesn't open because my face happened to be in frame, only because I asked.

Long-form writeup in progress.