CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

1.1 GENERAL

In a representative democracy voting is the method by which the electorate

appoints its representatives in its government. In a direct democracy, voting is the
method by the electorate directly makes decisions, turn bills into laws, like a good
majority of the nations in the world, follows democracy, making voting an integral
part of our everyday lives. Unfortunately, unlike the developed nations following
democracy, political instability is one of the diseases plaguing this country,
hindering its economic development.

Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) is a device that is used to count ballot and
record votes instead of doing it manually using human resource to record and count
votes. This paper is proposed to develop a prototype design for solar power
electronic voting machine. Voting is a formal expression of preference for a
candidate to rule a country. Democratic nations elect the holders of high office by
voting. Electronic voting machine is a simple electronic device used to record votes
instead of doing it manually. In the proposed system, biometric based voting system
is implemented to avoid fake voting and acknowledgement is provided to notify the
person for which candidate the person has voted. Solar based system is
implemented in order to overcome the power crisis in rural areas. This paper
discusses in detail the design of a solar powered EVM prototype which is efficient
and allows the user a relief from the laborious act of vote collection and counting.
Furthermore, it also removes the errors from the system, since it is a digital device.
One of the biggest concerns of EVM is the security system which includes insider

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threats, network vulnerability and challenges to auditing. To limit these issues the
prototype has been developed with a three stage security encryption.

This project examines policy regarding the electronic approaches and

developments towards electronic data storage and transmission. Finger print devices
for Voting machines and other existing identity documents are discussed and
implemented in this project.

The person at the polling booth has to show his Finger. This Finger print
reader reads the details from the tag. This data is passed to the controlling unit for
the verification. The controller reads the data from the reader and compares this
data with the already existing data. If the data matches with the already stored
information, the person is allowed to poll his vote. If not, a message is displayed
on LCD and the person is not allowed to poll his vote. The polling mechanism
carries out manually using the switches. LCD is used to display the related
messages.
The objective of the project is to develop a microcontroller based security
and alert system. It consists of a Finger print reader, thermal printer, solar power,
and microcontroller, the interfacing unit to allow the communication between the
microcontroller and Finger print module, and the LCD.

1.2 EXISTING SYSTEM

In the existing system, human are used for monitoring the voting system so the
fake voting is implemented and valid person are not elected by the people.

1.3 DISADVANTAGES OF EXISTING SYSTEM

 There can be a loss of data due to virus attack.

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  Due to foreign manufactured voting machines, the secret codes can be used
to influence the election results.
 There is no identity verification for the voters which leads to a high chance
for fake voting.

1.4 PROPOSED SYSTEM

In the proposed system, biometric based voting system is implemented for avoid
the fake voting and acknowledgement is notice to the person so the person put the
voting for the right system. And solar based system is implemented it’ll work or
any place without external EB power supply.

1.5 ADVANTAGES OF PROPOSED SYSTEM

 Cost effective
 Easier counting of votes
 Low power consumption
 It is economical
 Less manpower required
 Time conscious, as less time required for voting & counting
 Avoids invalid voting
 Saves transportation cost due to its compact size
 Convenient on the part of voter

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 CHAPTER 2
LITERATURE SURVEY

TITLE : Analysis and Management of the Impacts of a High Penetration of

Photovoltaic Systems in an Electricity Distribution Network

AUTHOR : S. J. Lewis, Engineer, Endeavour Energy (previously known as

Integral Energy)

ABSTRACT : Small scale grid connected photovoltaics (PV) have rapidly

increased over the past decade. This rapid increase has heightened network utility
concerns about the impact of these systems on customer power quality. This paper
depicts work undertaken to explore PV system integration from a network utility
point of view. Additionally utility strategies to minimize the negative impacts are
explored. This was done by analysis of network and PV data from selected case
study areas as well as producing models based on data. The results have indicated
that current penetration levels are too low to cause significant power quality issues,
however power factor and current harmonic issues have been identified. Simulated
increases in PV penetration suggest negative growing adverse integration effects
including voltage rise and current swing issues. Management strategies suggested
are: a PV monitoring program, energy storage, and limitation of PV penetration on
distribution transformers, implementation of reactive power support, lowering
system voltage and implementation of network infrastructure. Through effective
management PV integration risks can be reduced and network benefits are fully
realized.

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TITLE : Electronic Voting Machine – A Review

AUTHOR : D. Ashok Kumar Department of Computer Science,

Government Arts College, Trichy -22 Tamilnadu, India.

ABSTRACT : Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) is a simple electronic device

used to record votes in place of ballot papers and boxes which were used earlier in
conventional voting system. Fundamental right to vote or simply voting in
elections forms the basis of democracy. All earlier elections be it state elections or
centre elections a voter used to cast his/her favorite candidate by putting the stamp
against his/her name and then folding the ballot paper as per a prescribed method
before putting it in the Ballot Box. This is a long, time-consuming process and
very much prone to errors. This situation continued till election scene was
completely changed by electronic voting machine. No more ballot paper, ballot
boxes, stamping, etc. all this condensed into a simple box called ballot unit of the
electronic voting machine. Because biometric identifiers cannot be easily
misplaced, forged, or shared, they are considered more reliable for person
recognition than traditional token or knowledge based methods. So the Electronic
voting system has to be improved based on the current technologies viz., biometric
system. This article discusses complete review about voting devices, Issues and
comparison among the voting methods and biometric EVM.

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TITLE : Effect of grid-connected photovoltaic systems on static and

Dynamic voltage stability with analysis techniques – a review

AUTHOR : Zetty Adibah Kamaruzzaman, Azah Mohamed, Hussain Shareef

University Kebangsaan, Malaysia

ABSTRACT : This paper presents an overview on the effect of grid-connected
photovoltaic (PV) system on static and dynamic voltage stability and discusses the
analysis techniques used to quantify the effect. A review on the published works
showed that the PV system design, PV parameters and the distinct design of power
system network affect system voltage stability. Furthermore, a discussion is also
made on the optimization techniques used for determining optimum PV placement
and sizing for the purpose of improving voltage stability. In this paper, various
analysis techniques and effects of grid-connected PV systems on voltage stability
have been reviewed. These analysis techniques comprise different methodology to
address voltage stability problems. Effects of PV generation on power system
voltage stability are thoroughly examined based on various factors that influence
system static and dynamic voltage stabilities. The efficiency of voltage stability
analysis depends on the system design, application, and scenarios.

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 CHAPTER 3
OVERVIEW OF THE TECHNOLOGIES USED

3.1 EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

An embedded system can be defined as a computing device that does a
specific focused job. Appliances such as the air-conditioner, VCD player, DVD
player, printer, fax machine, mobile phone etc. are examples of embedded systems.
Each of these appliances will have a processor and special hardware to meet the
specific requirement of the application along with the embedded software that is
executed by the processor for meeting that specific requirement.
The embedded software is also called “firm ware”. The desktop/laptop computer is
a general purpose computer. You can use it for a variety of applications such as
playing games, word processing, accounting, software development and soon.
In contrast, the software in the embedded systems is always fixed listed below:
Embedded systems do a very specific task; they cannot be programmed to
do different things. Embedded systems have very limited resources, particularly
the memory. Generally, they do not have secondary storage devices such as the
CDROM or the floppy disk. Embedded systems have to work against some
deadlines. A specific job has to be completed within a specific time. In some
embedded systems, called real-time systems, the deadlines are stringent. Missing a
deadline may cause a catastrophe-loss of life or damage to property. Embedded
systems are constrained for power. As many embedded systems operate through a
battery, the power consumption has to be very low. Some embedded systems have
to operate in extreme environmental conditions such as very high temperatures and
humidity.

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Following are the advantages of Embedded Systems:
1. They are designed to do a specific task and have real time performance
constraints which must be met.
2. They allow the system hardware to be simplified so costs are reduced.
3. They are usually in the form of small computerized parts in larger devices
which serve a general purpose.
4. The program instructions for embedded systems run with limited computer
hardware resources, little memory and small or even non-existent keyboard
or screen.

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 CHAPTER 4
PROPOSED SYSTEM

4.1 BACKGROUND OF THE PROJECT

The software application and the hardware implementation help the
microcontroller read the data from the Finger print verify the data with the already
stored data and take the next action. The system is totally designed using Finger
print module and embedded systems technology.
The Controlling unit has an application program to allow the microcontroller
interface with the Finger print module, the reader reads the data from the tag,
passes the data to the microcontroller and the controller verifies this data with the
already existing data in the controller’s memory and then implement the
commands directed by the controller section. The performance of the design is
maintained by controlling unit.

4.2 PROJECT DESIGN

The implementation of the project design can be divided in two parts.
 Hardware implementation
 Firmware implementation

Hardware implementation deals in drawing the schematic on the plane paper

according to the application, testing the schematic design over the breadboard
using the various IC’s to find if the design meets the objective, carrying out the
PCB layout of the schematic tested on breadboard, finally preparing the board and
testing the designed hardware.

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 The firmware part deals in programming the microcontroller so that it can
control the operation of the IC’s used in the implementation.
In the present work, we have used the Orcad design software for PCB circuit
design, the Keil µv3 software development tool to write and compile the source
code, which has been written in the C language. The Flash magic programmer has
been used to write this compile code into the microcontroller. The block diagram
discusses about the required components of the design and working condition is
explained using circuit diagram and system wiring diagram.

4.3 BLOCK DIAGRAM OF THE PROJECT AND ITS DESCRIPTION

In this project biometric and image processing based voting system is implemented
for the secure voting. The Arduino microcontroller is used, it 8bit microcontroller.
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When the person place the finger in the finger print sensor, it take the image and
compare to the database, if the biometric is not present automatically alert. And the
feedback is print via the thermal printer.

4.4 POWER SUPPLY

The input to the circuit is applied from the regulated power supply. The a.c.
input i.e., 230V from the mains supply is step down by the transformer to 12V and
is fed to a rectifier. The output obtained from the rectifier is a pulsating d.c voltage.
So in order to get a pure d.c voltage, the output voltage from the rectifier is fed to a
filter to remove any a.c components present even after rectification. Now, this
voltage is given to a voltage regulator to obtain a pure constant d.c voltage. The
block diagram of regulated power supply is shown in the figure 4.4.1

Fig 4.4.1 components of power supply

4.5 TRANSFORMER
Usually, DC voltages are required to operate various electronic equipment
and these voltages are 5V, 9V or 12V. But these voltages cannot be obtained
directly. Thus the a.c input available at the mains supply i.e., 230V is to be brought
down to the required voltage level. This is done by a transformer. Thus, a step
down transformer is employed to decrease the voltage to a required level.
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4.6 RECTIFIER
The output from the transformer is fed to the rectifier. It converts A.C. into
pulsating D.C. The rectifier may be a half wave or a full wave rectifier.
In this project, a bridge rectifier is used because of its merits like good
stability and full wave rectification.

4.7 FILTER
Capacitive filter is used in this project. It removes the ripples from the
output of rectifier and smoothens the D.C. Output received from this filter is
constant until the mains voltage and load is maintained constant. However, if either
of the two is varied, D.C. voltage received at this point changes. Therefore a
regulator is applied at the output stage.

4.8 VOLTAGE REGULATOR

As the name itself implies, it regulates the input applied to it. A voltage regulator is
an electrical regulator designed to automatically maintain a constant voltage level.
In this project, power supply of 5V and 12V are required. In order to obtain these
voltage levels, 7805 and 7812 voltage regulators are to be used. The first number
78 represents positive supply and the numbers 05, 12 represent the required output
voltage levels

4.9 ATMEGA 2560

The ATmega2560 is a microcontroller and it has 54 digital input/output
pins (of which 14 can be used as PWM output 16 analog inputs, 4 UARTs
(hardware serial ports), a 16 MHz crystal oscillator, a USB connection, a power
jack, an ICSP header, and a reset button. It is simply connected to a computer
with a USB cable or power it with an AC-to-DC adapter or battery to get started.
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The Arduino Mega2560 can be powered via the USB connection or with an
external power supply. The power source is selected automatically. External
(non-USB) power can come either from an AC-to-DC adapter (wall-wart) or
battery. The adapter can be connected by plugging a 2.1mm center-positive
plug into the board's power jack. Leads from a battery can be inserted in the
Gnd and Vin pin headers of the POWER connector.

Fig.4.9.1 ATmega 2560

The board can operate on an external supply of 6 to 20 volts. If supplied with
less than 7V, however, the 5V pin may supply less than five volts and the board
may be unstable. If using more than 12V, the voltage regulator may overheat and
damage the board. The recommended range is 7 to 12 volts.
The ATmega2560 has 256 KB of flash memory for storing code (of which 8
KB is used for the boot loader), 8 KB of SRAM and 4 KB of EEPROM.

AUTOMATIC SOFTWARE RESET

Rather than requiring a physical press of the reset button before an upload, the
Arduino Mega2560 is designed in a way that allows it to be reset by software
running on a connected computer. One of the hardware flow control lines (DTR)

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 of the ATmega8U2 is connected to the reset line of the ATmega2560 via a
100nf capacitor. When this line is asserted (taken low), the reset line drops long
enough to reset the chip. The Arduino software uses this capability to allow you
to upload code by simply pressing the upload button in the Arduino
environment. This means that the boot loader can have a shorter timeout, as the
lowering of DTR can be well-coordinated with the start of the upload.

This setup has other implications. When the Mega2560 is connected to either a
computer running Mac OS X or Linux, it resets each time a connection is made
to it from software (via USB). For the following half-second or so, the boot
loader is running on the Mega2560. While it is programmed to ignore
malformed data (i.e. anything besides an upload of new code), it will intercept
the first few bytes of data sent to the board after a connection is opened. If a
sketch running on the board receives one-time configuration or other data when
it first starts, make sure that the software with which it communicates waits a
second after opening the connection and before sending this data.

4.10 FINGER PRINT MODULE

Finger print module is an input device used for Fingerprint processing which
includes two parts: fingerprint enrollment and fingerprint matching (the matching
can be 1:1 or 1:N). When enrolling, user needs to enter the finger two times. The
system will process the two time finger images, generate a template of the finger
based on processing results and store the template. When matching, user enters the
finger through optical sensor and system will generate a template of the finger and
compare it with templates of the finger library. For 1:1 matching, system will
compare the live finger with specific template designated in the Module; for 1:N
matching, or searching, system will search the whole finger library for the
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matching finger. In both circumstances, system will return the matching result,
success or failure.

4.11 LCD DISPLAY AND SWITCHES

Switches here function as an input that gives command to the controller
what to do and LCD display as output that directs the users how to use the module
and also to display the final results.

The firmware programmed in ATmega2560 is designed to communicate

with Finger print and operates according the commands received from the
Switches. Therefore, after receiving the data from Finger print and processing and
validating, it takes the data from switches and comparing with the data base and
updating the data base and displays the command and display the result with
respect to the switch operations.

The switches are used to activate the controller for registration during
enrollment, for comparisons to the database while identifying the user, for
selecting the party while casting the vote, finally for display of results.
LCD screen functions as interface between the user and microcontroller,
which displays messages that facilitates the user to know when to register and
when to vote, and also whether their vote is valid are not.
It displays “welcome” messages initially and “enrolling” message during
enrollment, “identifying” message when controller is comparing the data base
whether the user is valid are not, if valid displays “please vote” message, if not
displays “no access” message, and finally displays the result with party name with
their respective number of votes.

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 CHAPTER 5
SYSTEM WIRING DIAGRAM AND WORKING PROCEDURE

5.1 WORKING PROCEDURE

Voting machine using Finger print is basically an embedded system that
makes the things easy in the polling booths during the time of elections. The
project Finger prints technology and embedded systems to implement the
application.

The user, who wants to poll his vote, has to submit the identity proof at the
counter at the polling booth. In this project, the necessary and, up to an extent, the
sufficient material, the user no need to carry with him is the Voter card.

Voter card is nothing but a Finger Print which stores the details of the person
like the name of the user, location of place, mobile number for contact etc. When
the user is asked to show his Finger print. The Finger print module reads the data
present.

The working of EVM can be explained in three modes

1. Enrolling mode
2. Identification and vote casting mode
3. Results
When the power of Ballot unit is turned on, the ballot unit awaits a “READY
SIGNAL” from controller. After getting “READY SIGNAL”, ballot unit displays
its “welcome to EVM” message on LCD indicating that the machine is ready and
waits for user input. The mode of operation depends on command given by the
user from the switches.
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5.2 ENROLLING MODE
If enrolling mode command is given, the controller waits for input and activates
the scanner to accept the finger print, displaying “Enrolling…”on the LCD display.
The candidate’s finger print is scanned and generates a unique characters code.
During the character code generation, “GENRATING CHARACTER CODE…” is
displayed on LCD. This unique code is stored in the EEPROM memory of the
controller for the future reference. After all enrollments the system is ready for
vote cast.

5.3 IDENTIFICATION AND VOTE CASTING MODE

Before casting the vote the candidate has to check for validity .so after user
pressing the identify button the controller displays “identifying ...”message. During
this mode the fingerprint of the candidate casting the vote is compared with the
finger prints already enrolled in the memory. If it is matched a message “PLEASE
VOTE……” will be displayed on LCD. Once the voter presses the button
corresponding to the candidate of her/his choice, a four-bit code is generated and
sent to the control unit. Once the casting is over message is displayed to whom
they voted for.”No ACCESS...” message will be displayed if the same user tries to
cast again. The machine returns to the identifying mode and starts all over again
for next voting.

5.4 RESULTS MODE

The contestant name and the secured votes will be displayed on the LCD when the
controller receives results instruction through the switches.

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5.5 FLOWCHART

Fig 5.5.1 flowchart of EVM

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 CHAPTER 6
FINGERPRINT MODULE
6.1 R303A SERIES FINGERPRINT IDENTIFICATION MODULE

Fig 6.1.1: photograph of finger print module

Fingerprint module’s processing, shown in figure 6.1 includes two parts:
fingerprint enrollment and fingerprint matching (the matching can be 1:1 or 1:N).
When enrolling, user needs to enter the finger two times. The system will process
the two time finger images, generate a template of the finger based on processing
results and store the template. When matching, user enters the finger through
optical sensor and system will generate a template of the finger and compare it
with templates of the finger library. For 1:1 matching, system will compare the live
finger with specific template designated in the Module; for 1: N matching, or
searching, system will search the whole finger library for the matching finger. In
both circumstances, system will return the matching result, success or failure.
The following table gives the specifications of finger print module R303a
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 Table 1: Specifications of fingerprint module

6.2 SERIAL COMMUNICATION

When the FP module communicates with user device, definition of J1 is as
shown in the below table:

Table 2: Pin description of FP

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6.3 HARDWARE CONNECTION AND FEATURES

Via serial interface, the Module may communicate with MCU of 3.3V or 5V
power: TD (pin 2 of P1) connects with RXD (receiving pin of MCU), RD (pin 3 of
P1) connects with TXD (transferring pin of MCU). Should the upper computer
(PC) be in RS-232 mode, please add level converting circuit, like MAX232,
between the Module and PC. Serial communication protocol the mode is semi
duplex asynchronies serial communication. And the default baud rate is 57600bps.
User may set the baud rate in 9600～115200bps Transferring frame format is 10
bit: the low-level starting bit, 8-bit data with the LSB first, and an ending bit. There
is no check bit.

6.3.1 RESET TIME

At power on, it takes about 500ms for initialization. During this period, the
Module can’t accept commands for upper computer. Electrical parameter (All
electrical level takes GND as reference)

6.3.2 POWER SUPPLY

The logic levels and their corresponding voltage levels are given in the table
below

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 Table 3: logic levels and power supply specifications

6.3.3 SYSTEM RESOURCES

To address demands of different customer, module system provides
abundant resources at user’s use.

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6.3.4 NOTEPAD

The system sets aside a 512-bytes memory (16 pages* 32 bytes) for user’s
notepad, where data requiring power-off protection can be stored. The host can
access the page by instructions of PS Write Notepad and PS Read Notepad.

6.3.5 BUFFER
There are an image buffer and two 512-byte-character-file buffers within the
RAM space of the module. Users can read & write any of the buffers by
instructions.
Note: Contents of the above buffers will be lost at power-off.
6.3.6 IMAGE BUFFER
Image Buffer serves for image storage and the image format is 256*288
pixels. When transferring through UART, to quicken speed, only the upper 4 bits
of the pixel is transferred (that is 16 grey degrees). And two adjacent pixels of the
same row will form a byte before the transferring. When uploaded to PC, the 16-
grey-degree image will be extended to 256-grey-degree format. That’s 8-bit BMP
format. When transferring through USB, the image is 8-bit pixel, that’s 256 grey
degrees.

6.3.7 CHARACTER FILE BUFFER

Character file buffer, CharBuffer1, CharBuffer2, can be used to store both
character file and template file.

6.4 FINGERPRINT LIBRARY

System sets aside a certain space within Flash for fingerprint template
storage, that’s fingerprint library. Contents of the library remain at power off.
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Capacity of the library changes with the capacity of Flash, system will recognize
the latter automatically. Fingerprint template’s storage in Flash is in sequential
order. Assume the fingerprint capacity N, then the serial number of template in
library is 0, 1, 2, 3 … N. User can only access library by template number. System
Configuration Parameter to facilitate user’s developing, Module opens part system
parameters for use. And the basic instructions are SetSysPara & ReadSysPara.
Both instructions take Parameter Number as parameter. When upper computer
sends command to modify parameter, Module first responses with original
configurations, then performs the parameter modification and writes configuration
record into Flash. At the next startup, system will run with the new configurations.

BAUD RATE CONTROL

The Parameter controls the UART communication speed of the Module. Its
value is an integer N, N= [1, 12]. Corresponding baud rate is 9600*N bps.

SECURITY LEVEL
The Parameter controls the matching threshold value of fingerprint searching
and matching. Security level is divided into 5 grades, and corresponding value is 1,
2, 3, 4, and 5. At level 1, FAR is the highest and FRR is the lowest; however at
level 5, FAR is the lowest and FRR is the highest.

DATA PACKAGE LENGTH

The parameter decides the max length of the transferring data package when
communicating with upper computer. Its value is 0, 1, 2, 3, corresponding to 32
bytes, 64 bytes, 128 bytes, 256 bytes respectively.

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SYSTEM STATUS REGISTER
System status register indicates the current operation status of the Module.
Its length is 1 word, and can be read via instruction ReadSysPara. Definition of the
register is as follows:

Table 4: Definition of register

Note:
Busy：1 bit. 1: system is executing commands; 0: system is free;
Pass：1 bit. 1: find the matching finger; 0: wrong finger;
PWD：1 bit. 1: Verified device’s handshaking password.
ImgBufStat：1 bit. 1: image buffer contains valid image.

Module password
At power-on reset, system first checks whether the handshaking password
has been modified. If not, system deems upper computer has no requirement of
verifying password and will enter into normal operation mode. That’s, when
Module password remains the default, verifying process can be jumped. The
password length is 4 bytes, and its default factory value is 0FFH, 0FFH, 0FFH,
0FFH. Should the password have be modified, refer to instruction SetPwd, then
Module (or device) handshaking password must be verified before the system enter
into normal operation mode. Or else, system will refuse to execute and command.
The new modified password is stored in Flash and remains at power off.

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Module address:
Each module has an identifying address. When communicating with upper
computer, each instruction/data is transferred in data package form, which contains
the address item. Module system only responds to data package whose address
item value is the same with its identifying address. The address length is 4 bytes,
and its default factory value is 0xFFFFFFFF. User may modify the address via
instruction SetAdder. The new modified address remains at power off.
Random number generator Module integrates a hardware 32-bit random
number generator (RNG) (without seed). Via instruction GetRandomCode, system
will generate a random number and upload it.

Communication Protocol
The protocol defines the data exchanging format when ZFM-20 series
communicates with upper computer. The protocol and instruction sets apples for
both UART and USB communication mode. For PC, USB interface is strongly
recommended to improve the exchanging speed, especially in fingerprint scanning
device.

DATA PACKAGE FORMAT

When communicating, the transferring and receiving of
command/data/result are all wrapped in data package format.

26
 Table 5 : Definition of data package
The new modified password is stored in Flash and remains at power off.
MODULE ADDRESS
Each module has an identifying address. When communicating with upper
computer, each instruction/data is transferred in data package form, which contains
the address item. Module system only responds to data package whose address
item value is the same with its identifying address. The address length is 4 bytes,
and its default factory value is 0xFFFFFFFF. User may modify the address via
instruction SetAdder. The new modified address remains at power off. Random
number generator Module integrates a hardware 32-bit random number generator
(RNG) (without seed). Via instruction GetRandomCode, system will generate a
random number and upload it.

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 CHAPTER 7

SWITCHES AND PUSHBUTTONS AND LCD DISPLAY

7.1 SWITCHES AND PUSHBUTTONS

This is the simplest way of controlling appearance of some voltage on

microcontroller’s input pin. There is also no need for additional explanation of how
these components operate.

Fig 7.1.1 switch bounce patterns

This is about something commonly unnoticeable when using these

components in everyday life. It is about contact bounce, a common problem with
mechanical switches as shown in figure 7.1.1. If contact switching does not happen
so quickly, several consecutive bounces can be noticed prior to maintain stable
state. The reasons for this are: vibrations, slight rough spots and dirt. Anyway, this
whole process does not last long (a few micro- or milliseconds), but long enough to
be registered by the microcontroller. Concerning the pulse counter, error occurs in
almost 100% of cases.

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 Fig 7.1.2 Switch interfacing with microcontroller

The simplest solution is to connect simple RC circuit as shown in figure

7.1.2 which will suppress each quick voltage change. Since the bouncing time is
not defined, the values of elements are not strictly determined. In the most cases,
the values shown on figure are sufficient.

If complete safety is needed, radical measures should be taken. The circuit

(RS flip-flop) changes logic state on its output with the first pulse triggered by
contact bounce. Even though this is more expensive solution (SPDT switch), the
problem is definitely resolved. Besides, since the condensator is not used, very
short pulses can be also registered in this way. In addition to these hardware
solutions, a simple software solution is also commonly applied. When a program
tests the state of some input pin and finds changes, the check should be done one
more time after certain time delay. If the change is confirmed, it means that switch
(or pushbutton) has changed its position. The advantages of such solution are: it is
free of charge, effects of disturbances are eliminated and it can be adjusted to the
worst-quality contacts.

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7.2 LIQUID CRYSTAL DISPLAY
LCD stands for Liquid Crystal Display. LCD is finding wide spread use
replacing LEDs (seven segment LEDs or other multi segment LEDs) because of
the following reasons:
1. The declining prices of LCDs.
2. The ability to display numbers, characters and graphics. This is in contrast to
LEDs, which are limited to numbers and a few characters.
3. Incorporation of a refreshing controller into the LCD, thereby relieving the
CPU of the task of refreshing the LCD. In contrast, the LED must be
refreshed by the CPU to keep displaying the data.
4. Ease of programming for characters and graphics.

These components are “specialized” for being used with the microcontrollers,
which means that they cannot be activated by standard IC circuits. They are used
for writing different messages on a miniature LCD.

Fig 7.2.1 LCD display

A model as shown in figure 7.2.1 here is for its low price and great possibilities
most frequently used in practice. It is based on the HD44780 microcontroller
(Hitachi) and can display messages in two lines with 16 characters each. It displays
all the alphabets, Greek letters, punctuation marks, mathematical symbols etc. In
addition, it is possible to display symbols that user makes up on its own. Automatic

30
shifting message on display (shift left and right), appearance of the pointer,
backlight etc. are considered as useful characteristics.

PINS FUNCTIONS
There are pins along one side of the small printed board used for connection
to the microcontroller. There are total of 14 pins marked with numbers (16 in case
the background light is built in). Their function is described in the table 6.1 below:

Pin Logic
Function Name Description
Number State
Ground 1 Vss - 0V

Power supply 2 Vdd - +5V

Contrast 3 Vee - 0 – Vdd

D0 – D7 are interpreted as
0 commands
4 RS
1 D0 – D7 are interpreted as
data
Write data (from controller
Control of 0 to LCD)
5 R/W
operating 1 Read data (from LCD to
controller)

0 Access to LCD disabled

1 Normal operating
6 E
From 1 Data/commands are
to 0 transferred to LCD

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 7 D0 0/1 Bit 0 LSB

8 D1 0/1 Bit 1

9 D2 0/1 Bit 2

Data / 10 D3 0/1 Bit 3

commands 11 D4 0/1 Bit 4

12 D5 0/1 Bit 5

13 D6 0/1 Bit 6

14 D7 0/1 Bit 7 MSB

Table 6: Pin description of LCD

LCD SCREEN:
LCD screen consists of two lines with 16 characters each. Each character
consists of 5x7 dot matrix. Contrast on display depends on the power supply
voltage and whether messages are displayed in one or two lines. For that reason,
variable voltage 0-Vdd is applied on pin marked as Vee. Trimmer potentiometer is
usually used for that purpose the connections are as shown in figure 6.4. Some
versions of displays have built in backlight (blue or green diodes). When used
during operating, a resistor for current limitation should be used (like with any LE
diode).

Fig 7.2.2 power supply connection to LCD

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LCD BASIC COMMANDS
All data transferred to LCD through outputs D0-D7 will be interpreted as
commands or as data, which depends on logic state on pin RS:
 RS = 1 - Bits D0 - D7 are addresses of characters that should be displayed.
Built in processor addresses built in “map of characters” and displays
corresponding symbols. Displaying position is determined by DDRAM
address. This address is either previously defined or the address of
previously transferred character is automatically incremented.
 RS = 0 - Bits D0 - D7 are commands which determine display mode. List of
commands which LCD recognizes are given in the table 6.2 below:

Execution
Command RS RW D7 D6 D5 D4 D3 D2 D1 D0
Time
Clear display 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1.64mS

Cursor home 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 x 1.64mS

Entry mode set 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 I/D S 40uS

Display on/off control 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 D U B 40uS

Cursor/Display Shift 0 0 0 0 0 1 D/C R/L X x 40uS

Function set 0 0 0 0 1 DL N F X x 40uS

Set CGRAM address 0 0 0 1 CGRAM address 40uS

Set DDRAM address 0 0 1 DDRAM address 40uS

Read “BUSY” flag (BF) 0 1 BF DDRAM address -

Write to CGRAM or
1 0 D7 D6 D5 D4 D3 D2 D1 D0 40uS
DDRAM

33
Read from CGRAM or
1 1 D7 D6 D5 D4 D3 D2 D1 D0 40uS
DDRAM

Function Value Operation

I/D 1 Increment by
1
0 Decrement by
1
S 1 Display shift
on
0 Display shift
off
D 1 Display on
0 Display off
U 1 Cursor on
0 Cursor off
B 1 Cursor blink
on
0 Cursor blink
off
R/L 1 Shift right
0 Shift left
DL 1 8-bit interface
0 4-bit interface
N 1 Display in two
lines

34
 0 Display in one
line
F 1 Character
format 5x10
dots
0 Character
format 5x7
dots
D/C 1 Display shift
0 Cursor shift

Table 7: LCD command description

LCD CONNECTION
Depending on how many lines are used for connection to the
microcontroller, there are 8-bit and 4-bit LCD modes. The appropriate mode is
determined at the beginning of the process in a phase called “initialization”.
In the first case, the data are transferred through outputs D0-D7 as it has
been already explained. In case of 4-bit LED mode, for the sake of saving valuable
I/O pins of the microcontroller, there are only 4 higher bits (D4-D7) used for
communication, while other may be left unconnected.
Consequently, each data is sent to LCD in two steps: four higher bits are sent
first (that normally would be sent through lines D4-D7), four lower bits are sent
afterwards. With the help of initialization, LCD will correctly connect and interpret
each data received. Besides, with regards to the fact that data are rarely read from
LCD (data mainly are transferred from microcontroller to LCD) one more I/O pin
may be saved by simple connecting R/W pin to the Ground. Even though message

35
displaying will be normally performed, it will not be possible to read from busy
flag since it is not possible to read from display.

LCD INITIALIZATION
Once the power supply is turned on, LCD is automatically cleared. This
process lasts for approximately 15mS. After that, display is ready to operate. The
mode of operating is set by default. This means that:
1. Display is cleared
2. Mode
DL = 1 Communication through 8-bit interface
N = 0 Messages are displayed in one line
F = 0 Character font 5 x 8 dots
3. Display/Cursor on/off
D = 0 Display off
U = 0 Cursor off
B = 0 Cursor blink off
4. Character entry
ID = 1 Addresses on display are automatically incremented by 1
S = 0 Display shift off
Automatic reset is mainly performed without any problems. If for any reason
power supply voltage does not reach full value in the course of 10mS, display will
start to perform in an unpredictable manner. If voltage supply unit cannot meet this
condition or if it is needed to provide completely safe operating, the process of
initialization by which a new reset enabling display to operate normally must be
applied.
Algorithm according to the initialization is being performed depends on
whether connection to the microcontroller is through 4- or 8-bit interface. All left
36
over to be done after that is to give basic commands and of course- to display
messages. The algorithm is as shown in the figure 6.5

Fig 7.2.3 algorithm for initialization of 8-bit LCD

CONTRAST CONTROL
To have a clear view of the characters on the LCD, contrast should be
adjusted. To adjust the contrast, the voltage should be varied. For this, a preset is
used which can behave like a variable voltage device. As the voltage of this preset
is varied, the contrast of the LCD can be adjusted.

37
 CHAPTER 8

THERMAL PRINTER

8.1 INTRODUCTION

The CSN-A2-T is a thermal printer that's very easy to interface from any
electronics project involving at least a simple microcontroller. Printing is straight
forward – to print, the voltage should be between 5 and 9V on the power pins and
send text to the serial RX pin at 19200 baud, 8 bits, no parity.

Fig 8.1.1 image of CSN-A2-T

38
8.2 GENERAL SPECIFICATION

ITEM SPECIFICATION
Print method thermal direct line printing
Paper loading method easy paper loading
Paper width 58mm
Print width 48mm
Resolution ration 8dots/mm(384dots/line)
Life of printing head 50km
Printing speed 60mm/sec.; Max.:80MM/sec.(voltage
8.5V）
Character size ANK: 9x17,12×24; GBK: 24×24
Chinese character fonts GB18030: 12x24 or 24x24dots
Outline dimension（WxHxD mm) 111x65x57
Installation(WxH mm): 103x57
Embedded depth 50 mm
Paper roll specification (width:58mm, Max. diameter:39mm)
Interface RS232C/TTL/parallel/USB
Input power DC5-9V or 12V
Operating temperature 5°C~50°C
Storage temperature -20°C~60°C
Operating humidity 10°C~80°C
Storage humidity 10°C~90°C
Table 8: specification of thermal printer
8.3 Features
 Low-noise direct thermal printing method
 Fast printing speed, low noise
 Can support Max.39mm (diameter) paper roll, which is biggest
paper roll of the same models.
 Optional serial interface (RS232C/TTL)/parallel/USB port
 Rich of graphics / curves / characters print function
 Easy paper loading structure
 Support 5V-9V/12V wide power voltage

39
8.4 WORKING

Thermal printing (or direct thermal printing) is a digital printing process which
produces a printed image by selectively heating coated thermo chromic paper,
or thermal paper as it is commonly known, when the paper passes over the
thermal print head. The coating turns black in the areas where it is heated,
producing an image. Two-color direct thermal printers can print both black and an
additional color (often red) by applying heat at two different temperatures.

Thermal transfer printing is a very different method that uses a heat-sensitive

ribbon instead of heat-sensitive paper, but uses similar thermal print heads.

A thermal printer comprises these key components:

 Thermal head: generates heat; prints on paper

 Platen: a rubber roller that feeds paper
 Spring: applies pressure to the thermal head, causing it to contact the thermo
sensitive paper

In order to print, thermo-sensitive paper is inserted between the thermal head and
the platen. The printer sends an electric current to the heating elements of the
thermal head, which generate heat. The heat activates the thermo-sensitive coloring
layer of the thermo sensitive paper, which changes color where heated. Such a
printing mechanism is known as a thermal system or direct system. The heating
elements are usually arranged as a line of small closely spaced dots.

The paper is impregnated with a solid-state mixture of a dye and a suitable matrix.
When the matrix is heated above its melting point, the dye reacts with the acid,
shifts to its colored form, and the changed form is then conserved in meta stable
state when the matrix solidifies back quickly enough (a process known
as thermochromism).
40
 CHAPTER 9

SOLAR PANEL
9.1 PHOTOVOLTAIC CELL
The solar photovoltaic technology is the most commonly used technology for
the conversion of solar energy to solar power. A solar cell, also called a
photovoltaic cell is an electrical device that converts the energy of light directly
into electricity by the photovoltaic effect. It is a form of photovoltaic cell
which, when exposed to light, can generate and support an electric current
without being attached to any external voltage source. The operation of a
photovoltaic (PV) cell requires 3 basic attributes:

• The absorption of light, generating either electron- hole pairs or excitation

• The separation of charge carriers of opposite types.
• The separate extraction of those carriers to an external circuit.

Photovoltaic cells are made up of special materials called semiconductors such as

silicon, which is currently and most commonly used. Basically, when light strikes
the cell, a certain portion of it is absorbed within the semi-conductor material. This
means that the energy of the absorbed light is transferred to the semi-conductor.
The energy knocks the electron loose, allowing them to flow freely. A typical
photovoltaic system employs solar panels, each comprising of a number of solar
cells which generate electrical power.

The power output from a solar cell depends on the area of the cell and the
efficiency of the solar cell. The power output of a solar PV cell is a product of cell
efficiency in percentage, cell area in square meters and solar insolation.

41
9.2 HOW DO SOLAR CELLS WORK
Solar (or photovoltaic) cells convert the sun’s energy into electricity. Whether
they’re adorning your calculator or orbiting our planet on satellites, they rely on
the photoelectric effect: the ability of matter to emit electrons when a light is shone
on it.

Silicon is what is known as a semi-conductor, meaning that it shares some of the

properties of metals and some of those of an electrical insulator, making it a key
ingredient in solar cells. Let’s take a closer look at what happens when the sun
shines onto a solar cell.

Sunlight is composed of miniscule particles called photons, which radiate from the
sun. As these hit the silicon atoms of the solar cell, they transfer their energy to
lose electrons, knocking them clean off the atoms. The photons could be compared
to the white ball in a game of pool, which passes on its energy to the colored balls
it strikes.

Freeing up electrons is however only half the work of a solar cell: it then needs to
herd these stray electrons into an electric current. This involves creating an
electrical imbalance within the cell, which acts a bit like a slope down which the
electrons will flow in the same direction.

Creating this imbalance is made possible by the internal organization of silicon.

Silicon atoms are arranged together in a tightly bound structure. By squeezing
small quantities of other elements into this structure, two different types of silicon
are created: n-type, which has spare electrons, and p-type, which is missing
electrons leaving ‘holes’ in their place.

When these two materials are placed side by side inside a solar cell, the n-type
silicon’s spare electrons jump over to fill the gaps in the p-type silicon. This means
42
that the n-type silicon becomes positively charged, and the p-type silicon is
negatively charged, creating an electric field across the cell. Because silicon is a
semi-conductor, it can act like an insulator, maintaining this imbalance.
As the photons smash the electrons off the silicon atoms, this field drives them
along in an orderly manner, providing the electric current to power calculators,
satellites and everything in between.

43
 CHAPTER 10

SOFTWARE TOOL DESCRIPTON

10.1 SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS

Software : Arduino 1.8.2

Language : Embedded C

OS : Windows XP/7.

10.2 ARDUINO

Arduinos is an open-source computer hardware and software company, project,

and user community that designs and manufactures single-board
microcontrollers and microcontroller kits for building digital devices and
interactive objects that can sense and control objects in the physical and digital
world. The project's products are distributed as open-source
hardware and software, which are licensed under the GNU Lesser General Public
License (LGPL) or the GNU General Public License (GPL),permitting the
manufacture of Arduino boards and software distribution by anyone. Arduino
boards are available commercially in preassembled form, or as do-it-
yourself (DIY) kits.

Arduino board designs use a variety of microprocessors and controllers. The

boards are equipped with sets of digital and analog input/output pins that may be
interfaced to various expansion boards or Breadboards and other circuits. The
boards feature serial communications interfaces, including Universal Serial
Bus (USB) on some models, which are also used for loading programs from
personal computers. The microcontrollers are typically programmed using a dialect

44
of features from the programming languages C and C++. In addition to using
traditional compiler tool chains, the Arduino project provides an integrated
development environment (IDE) based on the Processing language project.

10.3 APPLICATIONS
 This project can be used as a voting machine that can prevent rigging during
the elections in the polling booths.
 Fast track voting which could be used in small scale elections, like resident
welfare association, “panchayat” level election and other society level
elections.
 It could also be used to conduct opinion polls during annual share holders
meeting.
 It could also be used to conduct general assembly elections where number of
candidates are less than or equal to eight in the current situation

10.4 FUTURE SCOPE

 Number of candidates could be increased.
 It could be interfaced with printer to get the hard copy of the result almost
instantly from the machine itself.
 It could also be interfaced with the personal computer and result could be
stored in the central server and its backup could be taken on the other
backend servers.
 Again, once the result is on the server it could be relayed on the network to
various offices of the election conducting authority. Thus our project could
make the result available any corner of the world in a matter of seconds.

45
 CHAPTER 11

CONCLUSION

The implementation of Finger print based voting machine using

microcontroller is done successfully. The communication is properly done without
any interference between different modules in the design. Design is done to meet
all the specifications and requirements. Software tools like Arduino, Arduino
compiler to dump the source code into the microcontroller, Orcad Lite for the
schematic diagram have been used to develop the software code before realizing
the hardware.

The performance of the system is more efficient. Reading the Data and verifying
the information with the already stored data and perform the specified task is the
main job of the microcontroller. The mechanism is controlled by the
microcontroller.

Circuit is implemented in Orcad and implemented on the microcontroller board.

The performance has been verified both in software simulator and hardware
design. The total circuit is completely verified functionally and is following the
application software. It can be concluded that the design implemented in the
present work provide portability, flexibility and the data transmission is also done
with low power consumption.

46
 REFERENCES

1. Asif Ahmed Anik, Rayeesa Jameel, Abul Farah Anik, Nowroze

Akter,Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering American
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http://www.thedailystar.net/economic-implications-of-political-
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3. R. Jameel, S.U.Hani, T.Aziz, “Impact Study of Integrating Solar Plant in an

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7. Ashok Kumar et. All “Electronic Voting Machine-A Review”,
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