Contactless Elevator Floor Selector

Touchless elevator floor selection system using capacitive proximity sensing — designed in Altium Designer and programmed with Arduino IDE

Project Overview

Designed a contactless elevator floor selection system that allows passengers to select floors without physically touching any button. Using capacitive proximity sensing, the system detects hand gestures near the panel and triggers the corresponding floor relay — eliminating the need for physical contact, which is especially valuable in hygiene-sensitive environments.

Designed in Altium Designer and programmed with Arduino IDE.

Assembled board showing the multi-channel capacitive sensing array with blue sensitivity trim potentiometers, central MCU, transistor output stage, and screw terminal connections to elevator control wiring.

Key Features

  • Contactless Operation — capacitive proximity sensors detect hand presence without physical touch
  • Multi-Channel — supports multiple floors, each with an independent sensing channel
  • Adjustable Sensitivity — blue trim potentiometers allow per-channel calibration for reliable detection
  • Transistor Output Stage — drives existing elevator relay wiring directly
  • Screw Terminal Outputs — easy integration with existing elevator control panels
  • Arduino-based Firmware — flexible and easily configurable logic

How It Works

Each floor button is replaced by a capacitive sensor. When a hand is brought close to the sensor zone, the capacitance change is detected by the MCU. After debounce confirmation, the corresponding output transistor is triggered — simulating a button press to the elevator controller — without any physical contact.

Hardware Architecture

Block Implementation
Sensing Capacitive proximity sensors — one per floor channel
Sensitivity Blue trim potentiometers for per-channel threshold tuning
MCU Arduino-compatible QFP microcontroller
Output Transistor array driving elevator relay inputs
Connections Green screw terminal blocks for elevator wiring integration

Technologies & Tools

  • Altium Designer — schematic and PCB layout
  • Arduino IDE — firmware development
  • Capacitive sensing and signal conditioning
  • Multi-channel transistor output design

Key Achievements

✅ Enabled fully touchless elevator floor selection
✅ Multi-channel design supporting multiple floors on a single board
✅ Per-channel sensitivity adjustment for reliable real-world performance
✅ Drop-in integration with standard elevator control wiring
✅ Designed in Altium Designer and programmed with Arduino IDE