AUTOMATED STUDENTS’ ATTENDANCE SYSTEM USING

RADIO FREQUENCY IDENTIFICATION

BY:

AKANBI, SAMSON OLAWUYI

(082293)

BEING A PROJECT REPORT SUBMITTED TO:

THE DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY

LADOKE AKINTOLA UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, LAUTECH

OGBOMOSO, OYO STATE, NIGERIA

IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT FOR THE AWARD

OF BACHELOR OF TECHNOLOGY (B.TECH) IN COMPUTER

ENGINEERING.

MAY, 2014

CERTIFICATION

This is to certify that this project work was carried out by

Akanbi, Samson Olawuyi (082293) of the department of Computer

Science and Engineering, Ladoke Akintola University of

Technology, Ogbomoso, Oyo State, Nigeria.

_________________

________________

Dr. I.A Adeyanju

Date

(Project Supervisor)

__________________

_______________

ii

Prof. O.J Emuoyibofarhe Date

(Head of Department)

DEDICATIONThis project work is dedicated to Almighty Allah, The Most

Gracious and The Most Merciful for making this project work a

reality through the provisions and sustenance which He provided.

iii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTAll praises, thanks and adoration are due to the Almighty, the

Creator, Cherisher and Sustainer of the heavens and the earth and

all that comes in-between them. I praise Him many times the

number of His creatures, the weight of His throne and all that is

in existence and unseen, for making my stay in LAUTECH a success

for me. Praise and adoration are due to His Majesty.

iv

My warm thanks goes to my project colleague, who is also a very

good friend of mine, Akeem Omotayo Sule, whom I shared this work

with, for his support and benevolence with which I steered this

project.

I want to humbly acknowledge all those who contributed in one way

or the other to the success of this project. The support I got

from my project supervisor, Dr. I. A. Adeyanju was benevolence;

God bless you sir. I equally appreciate the support and care of

my parent; Mr and Mrs. Fola Akanbi. May Allah reward you

abundantly and make paradise your final abode. To my siblings,

Sodiq, Ahmed, Saidat, Sami, Shuaib, Sultan, Zainab, Saheed and

Little Sophia a big thank you to you all. My most sincere

gratitude goes to Mr. Ololade Adedigba – a father and a mentor.

To my friends and colleagues viz; Yusuf Damilare Quadri, Azeez

Akeem Oyeyemi and Adeleye Taofik Ademola, thanks a bunch.

God bless you all!

v

ABSTRACTThe existing conventional attendance system requires

students to manually sign the attendance sheet every time they

attend a class. Such manual system poses a number of problems,

such as the unnecessary time consumed by the students to find and

sign their name on the attendance sheet, the accidental or

purposeful signing of students’ name, losing the attendance

sheet. This project describes the development of a student

attendance system based on Radio Frequency Identification (RFID)

technology.

The main aim of our project is having a system that can

automatically manage student’s attendance by flashing their

student card at a RFID reader and their presence is been clocked.

In general, our aim to develop a prototype of an Automated

Student System Attendance System was successful. The student-

login authentication process was successfully tested, which

prevents an unauthorized access into the system. Once a student

vi

is successfully clocked in, the details of the student is then

logged in to the database.

The developed Automated Student Attendance System using

Radio Frequency Identification technology was successfully tested

and it’s result show that it will significantly improve the

current manual process of student attendance recording and

tracking system, as required in the university environment.

TABLE OF CONTENTSDedication...................................................iiiAcknowledgement...............................................ivAbstract.......................................................vCHAPTER ONE - INTRODUCTION.....................................11.1 Preamble...................................................11.2 Statement Of Problem.......................................2

vii

1.3 Aim And Objectives.........................................21.4 Objectives.................................................21.5 Significance Of Study......................................31.6 Scope Of Study.............................................3CHAPTER TWO - LITERATURE REVIEW................................42.1 Automated Attendance.......................................42.1.1 ........................Background Of Automated Attendance

72.1.2................................Automated Attendance System

82.1.3...........................Benefits Of Automated Attendance

92.2 Manual Attendance System..................................112.3 Barcode Reader............................................122.3.1...........................................Barcode Elements

122.3.2 ................................Barcode Information Access

132.3.3..............................................Barcode Types

142.3.4..........................................Barcode Mechanism

162.3.5...........................................Barcode Printing

162.3.6..............................Barcode Hardware Requirements

172.3.7.........Benefit Of Using Barcode Mode Of Attendance System

19

viii

2.3.8....................................Types Of Scanner/Reader19

2.4 The Rfid Approach.........................................212.5 Rfid VS. Barcode..........................................222.6 Microcontroller...........................................232.7 Limitation Of Barcode Attendance System...................242.8 Limitations Of Rfid Readers...............................25CHAPTER THREE - METHODOLOGY...................................263.1 Radio Frequency Identification............................263.2 Hardware Component Of Rfid................................283.1.1........................................Rfid Reader And Tag

303.1.2..............................................Data Reporter

323.1.3...................................................Database

323.1.4.............................Graphical User Interface (GUI)

323.2 Software System Design....................................333.3 System Operation..........................................333.4 Conclusion................................................35CHAPTER FOUR - RESULTS AND DISCUSSION.........................364.1 System Result And Testing.................................364.2 Construction..............................................364.3 Implementation............................................374.4 Soldering.................................................374.5 Problems Encountered......................................38

ix

4.6 Casing And Boxing.........................................384.7 Testing...................................................39CHAPTER FIVE - CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION..................415.1 Conclusion................................................415.2 Recommendation............................................41References....................................................43Appendicies...................................................45

x

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 PREAMBLEThe emergence of electronic paradigm for learning

compared to traditional method and availability of almost

all information on the information superhighway (Internet),

nowadays have caused students to be less motivated to come

to the lecture rooms than ever before. Laziness on the part

of students, nonchalance to school work, extra social

activities that have no importance in aiding the objectives

of the institution and a lot more, may prevent students from

attending lectures. Sequel to these, lecturers and

administrators in most developing countries have had to come

up with ways to ensure a healthy participation from

students, and make sure that the student-lecturer

interactive relationship is kept intact. This in some cases

have come in simple forms like roll calls, while in more

interesting cases, can be in form of surprise quizzes, extra

credit in class, etc. These strategies are however time1

consuming, stressful and laborious because the valuable

lecture time that could otherwise been used for lectures is

dedicated to student attendance taking and sometimes

inaccurate. In addition to all these challenges, the

attendances are recorded manually by the tutor and therefore

are prone to personal errors (Arulogun O. T., 2013). There

arises a need for a more efficient and effective method of

solving this problem.

Manual attendance record system is not efficient and

requires time to arrange record and to calculate the average

attendance of each individual student. So there is a need to

design a system that will automatically arrange the record

and store the attendance of students (Azhar-Ud-Din, 2009).

In this work, an automated attendance system is

proposed using RFID. The system will contain attendance

records in electronic files containing details of absence or

presence of a specific student enrolment during a semester.

This project will try to organize the current university

attendance record system that will be much quicker and will

2

save time for instructors. The Attendance Record System will

allow the instructors to maintain a record of attendance of

students in their respective classes electronically. The

system will automatically update the attendance on the

server of the respective student as soon as the identity is

confirmed.

1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEMFor many institutions, automating the collection of

student attendance data, during lectures is still a manual

process. Even schools that have automated or computerized

processes such as registers, roll-calls and impromptu tests

still use manual methods, such as time cards or attendance

sheets–to collect time and attendance data. A Radio

Frequency Identification (RFID) device is proposed be used

to automate the attendance sheet for recording student data

efficiently in this project work.

3

1.3 AIM AND OBJECTIVESThis project is aimed at automating students’

attendance system using Radio Frequency Identification

Technology.

The objectives are:

1. To design an automated attendance system using

Radio Frequency Identification.

2. To implement the attendance system using RFID.

3. To evaluate the performance of the developed

system.

1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF STUDYAttendance system is a prominent factor that is

important to the success of any institution. The main idea

behind the proposed system is to capture student attendance

in a semi-automated way where the students are required to

flash their student card at the RFID reader. This way, the

student ID is instantly captured by the reader. Several

numerical and analytical methods have been in use with a lot

of complications and discrepancies and its time wasting

deficiency making it undesirable for solving the student

4

attendance problem. This study attempts to profess a

suitable scientific method to cater for student's attendance

system in a very convenient style and a very easy process.

1.5 SCOPE OF STUDYThis study is set out to describe how to automate RFID

system using an RFID system, created to control the

attendance activities in order to save time, energy and

stress involved in achieving an optimum attendance system.

CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 AUTOMATED ATTENDANCEAutomated Attendance refers to the techniques and

processes used in taking attendance in a well-organized

5

format so as to eradicate error and reduce stress.

Institutions of all sizes use time and attendance systems to

record when students start and stop lectures, and the

department where the work is performed. However, it is also

common to track meals and breaks, the type of lectures

attended, and the number of students that attended which

lecture. In addition to tracking when students attend

lectures, institutions also need to keep tabs on when

lecturers are not working. Some institutions also keep

detailed records of attendance issues such as who calls in

sick and who comes in late (Nagil, 2007).

The most common means of tracking student attendance in

the classroom is by enforcing the students to manually sign

the attendance sheet, which is normally passed around the

classroom while the lecturer is conducting the lecture.

There are numerous disadvantages of using such system

(Murizah et al, 2012). For instance, lecturers with a large

class may find the hassle of having the attendance sheet

being passed around the class and the manual signing of

attendance by students are burdensome and most likely6

distract them from teaching and getting full attention from

the students. Besides, as the attendance sheet is passed

around the class, some students may accidentally or

purposely sign another student's name (Murizah et al, 2012).

The first case leads to a student missing out their name,

while the latter leads to a false attendance record. Another

issue of having the attendance record in a hardcopy form is

that a lecturer may lose the attendance sheet. As a

consequence of that, lecturer can no longer trace the

students overall attendance record throughout the particular

semester. Apart from that, a lecturer also has limited

access to the single-copy record, e.g. only at the

workplace. In terms of attendance analysis, the lecturer

also has to perform manual computation to obtain the

students’ attendance percentage, which normally consume a

lot of time (Murizah et al, 2012).

A time and attendance system provides many benefits to

institutions. It enables lecturers to have full control of

all student lecture hours. Manual processes are also

eliminated as well as the staff needed to maintain them. It7

is often difficult to comply with labour regulation, but a

time and attendance system is invaluable for ensuring

compliance with labour regulations regarding proof of

attendance. Institutions with large student numbers might

need to install several time clock stations in order to

speed up the process of getting all students to clock in or

out quickly or to record activity in dispersed locations.

Depending on the supplier, identification method and number

of clocking points required, prices vary widely (Bardaki,

2012).

Having said the limitations imposed by the conventional

attendance recording system, we propose a solution in the

form of an attendance tracking system. The main idea behind

the system is to capture student attendance in a semi-

automated way where the students are required to flash or

insert their student card at a reader upon entering the

classroom. This way, the student ID is instantly captured by

the reader, after which the data is sent to the online

server for recording purpose. Such system promotes a more

organized and systematic student attendance recording.8

Having the attendance data instantly uploaded to the online

server prevents data loss, while allowing the data to be

available and accessible to the lecturers or other academic

staffs as long as they are connected to the internet. The

system might also help to automatically compute the

percentage of attendance for each individual student.

The time automated attendance sheet is efficient and

effective as it allows for the easy allocation of attendance

sheet. Also, it makes record keeping more organized; the

potential loss of attendance sheet is at its lowest rate.

Moreover, it is easy to track student absence while the

format of the absentees report is consistent. Furthermore,

it allows the delivery of report for student record to be

produced with ease. However, the cost to develop, manage and

maintain the attendance is low. The attendance system

process is fast and it improves productivity (Azhar-Ud-Din,

2009). Without an automated time and attendance system it

will be difficult for lecturers to notice students’ effort

and struggle in order to succeed in a course.

9

The goal is to provide the instructor with an easy,

time saving solution to attendance, record maintenance and

statistics. An attendance record for each and every student

is needed for each and every lecture and must be submitted

after the lecture. With time and attendance workflows that

are semi-automated or manual, the accuracy of attendance

data provided by students cannot be assured.

Many institutions use highly complex and manual

processes in order to compile and certify their time and

attendance information. Simplifying time and attendance

workflows and eliminating the use of paper time cards and

time sheets means that data is manually transferred less

frequently, reducing the amount of human error (Gatsheni et

al, 2007). Manual attendance record system is not efficient

and requires time to arrange record and to calculate the

average attendance of each individual student. Moreover,

systems can automatically alert parents via sms or email if

their kids do not turn up at school or arrive late. “It is

easier now, as we do not have to take the trouble of

checking the telephone registers to inform parents when10

students are late or absent. Previously, we had to call

parents by the first period or before recess,” said Karen

Wong, a teacher in Kranji Secondary, Hong Kong. Kelly Ng 25

January 2010. Asian schools automate attendance tracking.

Retrieved from

http://www.futuregov.asia/articles/category/e-government.

2.1.1 BACKGROUND OF AUTOMATED ATTENDANCEThis literature review is based on current and

existing technologies and research that has been done in

order to create a broad research based on existing and new

technologies. Research hypothesis is thus being described

comprehensively. University Students’ Attendance System

has been the bane of the university for a very long time.

Its importance in every University cannot be over-

emphasized. One method of tackling this problem is an

effective automated system that can describe an efficient

image processing algorithm that reads scanned hard copy

accurately, and further calculates the absence or presence

of an individual accordingly (Gunjan & A.K.Shete, 2013).

Automated Attendance system is used to track students’11

availability, as well as enhance class security. This

information is then used to monitor students’ attendance

and calculate students’ total number of appearances in

class. These devices can often be paired with a time and

attendance software that allows for easy and accurate

logging of this information (Chitresh & Amit, 2010).

2.1.2 AUTOMATED ATTENDANCE SYSTEMAutomated attendance system is a method designed to

collect, manage and stores exact records of an individual.

There are various modes of integrating automated attendance

system. Their differences are probably in terms of

applications, design, cost, functionality and mode of usage

in general (Chitresh & Amit, 2010). The common thing about

them is integration of several accessories like wireless

devices, compatible software, hardware requirement and the

likes all in a single device. The various types of automated

attendance system are:

Barcode Method - This is a binary code comprising of

field of bars and gaps arranged in a parallel

configuration and are arranged according to a pre-12

determined pattern (Palmer & Roger, 2012). The

sequence is made up of wide and narrow bars and gaps

and can be interpreted numerically and

alphanumerically. It uses Optical Laser Scanning for

reading the barcode device.

Biometric Procedure - This is defined as the science

of counting and measuring procedures involving

humans. It has a good way of identifying people

through several physical characteristics, these

features include hand printing, finger printing,

voice recognition, and also in recent time, iris

identification (Rao & Satoa, 2013). Biometric

recognition or simply biometrics also refers to the

automatic recognition of individuals based on their

physiological and or behavioral characteristics

(Aljawarneh, 2010), he also stated that biometrics

can allow people to confirm or establish an

individual’s identity based on “who is she”, rather

than by “what to possess” (e.g. an ID card) or “what

she remembers” (e.g. a password).

13

Optical Character Recognition (OCR) - This technology

was discovered in the 1960s. Its uniqueness is that

its characters can be read both in the normal way by

people and automatically by machine. The most

important advantage of Optical Character Recognition

system is its high density of information and the

possibility of reading data visually in an emergency

(Chitresh & Amit, 2010). OCR is applicable in

virtually all fields like in banking, academics,

various registrations, health and the likes. The

problem of Optical Character Recognition is its high

cost and difficulty in getting a compatible reader.

Smart Cards - A smart card is an electronic data

storage system, with computation manipulation

incorporated into a plastic card. Smart cards are

supplied with energy and a clock pulse from the

reader through the contact surface. There are

basically two types of smart card and are: memory

card and microprocessor card. Its main advantage is

that the data and code stored on a smartcard is

14

protected against undesired access, it is also

simple, safe and very cheap (Mohd et al, 2010).

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) Systems: This

has a very high density and also a very high reading

speed. In terms of energy and data transmission

methods (Dawes, 2004). RFID can be divided into two

types: Inductive coupling type and Electromagnetic

wave type.

2.1.3 BENEFITS OF AUTOMATED ATTENDANCEAutomated attendance system makes tracking students,

regularization in classes easier and more accurate to keep.

With the technology that is available today, time tracking

is automatic and is no longer a lengthy manual process for

staff. This means that it will give staff and administrator

more time to spend on other important tasks. Not only does

time and attendance equipment help make the time keeping

process that much easier, but they help lower the risk for

discrepancies which was much higher with the use of old,

manual system (Qaiser & Khan, 2006). One of the biggest

benefits of time and attendance equipment is the amount of15

options available as well as benefits which includes the

following:

It is efficient & effective, thereby recording student

attendance accurately, in so doing, the labour work

will be reduced as it also saves time apparently.

Automated attendance tracking system will provide

robust, secure and automatic attendance system.

Record keeping is more organized.

The potentials of lost attendance sheet is at its

lowest rate.

It is easy to track student absence due to the fact

that every student have its own unique code embedded in

his/her car

Report for student record is easy to produce as its

database system is unique and created in a precise

pattern.

Cost to develop, manage & maintain the attendance

system is low.

16

The attendance system process is faster as all its

process have been pre-determined and processed to

acquire a specific kind of result.

Elimination of paper cost.

Improved studies visibility.

Makes student and lecturers more productive through

rewards and allocations of marks to student.

Without an automated time and attendance system it will

be difficult for lecturers to grade student effort and

strives in order to succeed in course thereby

allocating marks friendly.

It provides students and staff ready access to benefit

information.

The more classes a lecturer takes, the greater the chances

of error and time wasting in collation of attendance but

automated attendance system eliminates all of that and

increases efficiency, improved timing and more reliance in

the course.

17

2.2 MANUAL ATTENDANCE SYSTEMManual attendance systems have been the foremost type of

attendance. This system requires you to issue, amass, check

through and adjust piles of paper sheet. This system is

becoming archaic due to the following reasons:

1) Forgetfulness – some students usually forget to put

their names especially during examination period and

this may ruinous.

2) Round Up and Selection – A lecturer may decide to use

one of his many attendance sheets for an assessment, a

decision that may end up affecting even the most

serious student in the class.

3) Administration – Providing an accurate total for a

manual student timesheet will be very difficult, time

consuming, and mostly inaccurate and this may

apparently be used for formulation of exam time-table

and policies.

4) Maintenance of Records – Every department should have a

proper and secure record of students, this may be

useful in the future for disciplinary measures,

18

character rating and the likes, and this may be

difficult to achieve using manual attendance system.

5) Ineffectiveness – A manual attendance system will be

ineffective in managing a very large class.

2.3 BARCODE READERBarcoding is also called Automatic Identification

(Auto-ID) invented in the early 1970s (Palmer & Roger,

2012). It is seen everywhere and used in almost all facets

of life like in Medicine, Academics, Government Agencies and

the likes. Barcode reader is becoming very popular on daily

basis, seen in various products, grocery and various forms

of identification. Providing a reliable data capturing

means, data storage, simple processing and an easy input to

a mobile phone device, computer system or similar data

device. A barcode usually has an embedded code which is

unique for different users which should be read first while

the outer code is that in thick, thin or the parallel lines

which are parallel to each other in the form of rectangles.

The biggest benefit of barcode reader is its data accuracy.19

For schools that cannot afford errors such as late-coming,

absenteeism in classes, using barcode methods to achieve a

near 100 percent accuracy in data report enables faster work

(Palmer & Roger, 2012).

2.3.1 BARCODE ELEMENTSThe barcoding elements are binary coding system

consisting of various processes, among which are:

I. Origin: A source of barcode is required. These can be

pre-printed or printed on demand.

II. Reader: There should be a provision for a reader to read

the barcodes into the computer. The reader includes an input

device to scan the barcode, a decoder to convert the

symbology to ASCII text, and a cable to connect the device

to your computer.

III. Computer system: You must have a system to process the

barcode input. This can be single-user, multi-user, or

network systems (Palmer & Roger, 2012).

20

2.3.2 BARCODE INFORMATION ACCESSBarcode can be in different formats, using diverse

methods for solving barcoding problems. They include:

1. Laser Barcode Reader: Laser barcode reader are ideal

for applications that require high speed reading of

linear codes, symbols and aggressive decoding technology.

It is traditionally made by code differentials.

2. Image Processing Base: This method uses wavelet base

methods (Allen, 2009). It usually gives more information

than the laser barcode reader that involves only coding

(Allen, 2009). It cuts across areas like engineering,

physical science, mathematics, computer science and other

related departments.

Barcode enabled device can be captured or downloaded

using several methods like mobile phone, personal computer

and the barcode device can be used as a barcode reader. They

only need to be programmed to encode and decode the barcode

image or code. This barcode enabled device will provide a

form of uniqueness to all students as all students will

automatically have a unique code encoded in their barcode

21

without guess from an intruder giving the student the

privacy and security they always wanted (Palmer & Roger,

2012).

The information access system includes a camera system

which will be used to capture the student barcode and a

communication system which will verify the student

identity before proceeding to the central database.

Coding system is expected to increase the performance of

barcoding system enabling mobile phone users to be able

to obtain barcode information through their devices

(Palmer & Roger, 2012).

There are basically three problems associated with barcode

paradigm, they includes:

1. Having a hardware device that can read specific

codes appropriately.

2. Also, having software that will be readily

compatible with the hardware in order to simplify

the processes in an accurate manner without a

single snippet of guess.

22

3. And lastly, the next task will be to decode the

barcodes which means the widths of the dark and

light region must be known.

2.3.3 BARCODE TYPES

Fig 2.1: An overview of the types of Bar Codes available.

There are several types of barcode depending on its

specification and use. They are as follows:

1. One Dimensional Barcode Type: these are usually made of

black gears printed in a white background. The length

and width of the bar and spaces have no significance

other than to make it easier for the scanner to find

the barcode. It has 12 numerical digits; the list tells

23

the type of product, the next 5 tells the manufacturer

while the last ones help the barcode scanner to

identify the contact.

2. European Article Numbering: This contains extra digit

as part of identification like one dimensional barcode.

It is a two level code designed to encode both letters

and numbers. It encodes 128 algol characters that have

become more standard for students. Each character is

made up of 9 elements, 5bars and 4 spaces.

3. 2-Dimensional Barcode: This is also called multi row

code and it begins a new trend aligning with database

containing part number, quantity, supplier and serial

number, its uniqueness is that it has a database in the

little space therein.

The main difference between 2D and 1D Code is that the

height as well as the length of the symbol stores

information, example of the 2D symbology are PDF417, data

matrix etc.

Other types of barcodes that are proprietary and are not

allowed for public use are listed below:

24

a. PDF417: These are the most commonly used 2-D

symbologies today invented by Yujiun Wang in 1991 at

symbol technologies. It consists of 17 modules each

containing 4 bars and spaces. (Shivang, 2008).

b. Data Matrix: This is designed to pack a lot of

information in a very small space, it can store

between 1 & 500 characters. The most popular

application for data matrix is the marking of small

items such as integrated circuit (IC) and printed

circuit board (PCB).

c. 3-D1 developed by Lynn Ltd.

d. Array fag invented by Dr. Warren D. Little of the

University of Victoria. The principal application

for the code is to track logs and numbers.

e. Aztec Code: This was invented by Andy Longacre of

Welch Allyn Inc.

f. Code 1: This was invented by Ted Williams.

g. Code 49: This was developed by David Allais at the

INT.

h. Data Glyph: This was developed by Xerox Pare.

25

i. Datastripe Code: This was originally called

softstrip and was developed by Softstrip.

2.3.4 BARCODE MECHANISMDirecting a light beam through the barcode where the

sensors detect the light bang reflecting from the back of

the barcode and convert light energy into electrical energy

with the aid of a transducer, resulting to electrical signal

that can be converted into data.

2.3.5 BARCODE PRINTING1. Ink-Jet Printing: This is the cheapest and also the

most effective water based.

2. Dot Matrix Printing: This is a system where a

pigment is transferred from a ribbon into the

substrate through a hammer or pin. Its problem is

the inaccurate dot placement and low resolution of

the printing technology.

3. Laser Printing: It used for small batch barcode

printing but it provides a good quality point but

26

also have many drawbacks and they cannot be used for

high volume printing and not very rugged.

4. Thermal Transfer Printing: This uses a heated print

head to create an image on a label. This is noted

for creating crisp, often glossy images.

5. Direct Thermal Printing: This utilizes heat, a

sensitive medium that blackens as it passes under a

printed head. Direct thermal printers are just solid

as thermal printers but thermal transfer alternative

is a better alternative.

2.3.6 BARCODE HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS1. Barcode Reader (LASER & IMAGER): Laser is the most

common and longest in use technology for scanners and

have been the industry standard for reading linear 1d

barcodes and have excellent reading performance while

Imager barcode scanner takes the particular image into

the barcode. It easily distinguishes the high contrast

black and white barcode and readily decodes it fast

even if they are badly printed. The imager is the

modern day scanner with more sophisticated tool.27

A. USB linear barcode scanner: these can be used in wide

variety of application and allows for easy data

transmission with a simple press in button. It also

offers an optional flexible stand with automatic in-

stand detection technology.

B. 2d barcode scanner: This is an Omni-directional reader

that is easily integrated into various applications.

C. Wireless scanner: This easily creates its own network

without internet connection and transfers data

wirelessly.

D. Bluetooth: This is a wireless technology standard for

exchanging data over short distances through various

means like short-wavelength through radio waves (Wiki),

or through personal area network (He & Zheng, 2009)

E. PDA with barcode images.

2. Barcode printer types:

A. Direct thermal printer.

B. Thermal transfer printer.

C. Common ink-jet or laser jet printer.

3. Network server

28

4. GPRS (Global packet radio service) enabled hand-held

device

5. Network options:

A. GSM (Global system for mobile communication).

B. Mobitex (an OSI-Open system interconnection) based open

standard

C. Wireless packet switched data network

D. IDEN (Integrated digital enhanced network) is a mobile

telecomm technology which provides its users with the

benefit of a trunked radio and a cellular telephone

(Bardaki, 2012).

6. Configuration Options:

A. Integrated radios

B. Tethered radios

7. Back - end support application server support

A. Database portability (ms SQL server support 2000,

my SQL, oracle) (Bardaki, 2012).

2.3.7 BENEFIT OF USING BARCODE MODE OF ATTENDANCE SYSTEMAutomated attendances have proven to be one the most

secure and easy to use attendance system at present. Some29

of its merits includes but are not limited to the

following:

i. It improves efficiency and reduces overhead.

ii. It is both cost effective and reliable.

iii. It eliminates the possibility of human error.

iv. It is fast and reliable.

v. It reduces employee training time, taking minutes to

master the hand-held scanner for reading the banner.

vi. They are inexpensive to design and print.

vii. Barcodes are extremely versatile, used in any kind of

necessary data collection.

viii. Improves student standard of living and attentiveness

as it increases their punctuality.

2.3.8 TYPES OF SCANNER/READERThere are different types of scanners used in

conjunction with most automated equipment. They are also

useful in most automated attendance tools. It has some types

like the Wand Scanner which requires human action to do

the scanning. It uses very simple light-like sources. It is

still popular because it is inexpensive and reliable. The30

light source used is always narrow (focused) enough to

distinguish between bars and stripes right at the wand tip

(Karthik & Karthikeyan, 2013). Also, we have the Hologram

Scanner, which behaves like mirror but are light weight and

can be monitored very easily. It is mostly a photographic

image that behaves like a 3-dimensional object when struck

by light of the correct wavelength (Tabassam & Khalil,

2010). It uses disk and its disk can be spun in all

direction to reflect light in different direction. More so,

Light-Detector Scanner is a photodiode scanner that uses

semiconductor part that conducts electrical current when

light shines on it, and without light, current will not be

conducted. It uses silicon or germanium photodiodes as its

most prominent photo-diode; it is also housed in a sturdy

case made of stainless steel. Additionally, Design Bar Code

Scanner requires that majority of light hit it (high

frequency) in order to keep its narrow path, shape and it

must reflect light in the chosen scan pattern while it is

spinning. The exact power of laser to be used will be a

choice based on longevity, efficiency and safety to the

31

user. Furthermore, Photo-Detector Scanner converts light

into electrical signal that can be read by a computer or

mobile phone consisting of a chemical substance sandwiched

between two plastic disks, consisting between 7 and 12

wedges each reflecting lights at different angles. We also

have the Pen Type Readers, which consists of a light source

and photodiode that are placed next to each other, in the

tip of a pen or wand while the photodiode measures the

intensity of the light source as the tip crosses each bar

and space in the printed code (Palmer & Roger, 2012). In

addition, Omni-Directional Barcode Scanner uses series of

straight or curved scanning lines of varying direction. They

use a laser and they produce patterns of beams in varying

orientation allowing them to read barcodes presented to it

at different angles. They are also better at reading poorly

printed, wrinkled or even torn barcodes.

2.4 THE RFID APPROACHRadio-frequency identification device (RFID) is a

wireless, non-contact use of radio-frequency electromagnetic

fields used to transfer data, for the purposes of32

automatically identifying and tracking tags attached to

objects. The tags contain electronically stored information.

Some tags are powered and read at short ranges (a few

meters) via magnetic fields (electromagnetic induction).

Others use a local power source such as a battery, else have

no battery but collect energy from the interrogating

electromagnetic field, and then act as a passive transponder

to emit microwaves or UHF radio waves (i.e. electromagnetic

radiation at high frequencies). Battery powered tags may

operate at hundreds of meters. The tag does not necessarily

need to be within line of sight of the reader, and may be

embedded in the tracked object. RFID tags can either be

passive, active or battery passive. It chip contains a radio

frequency electromagnetic field coil that modulates an

external magnetic field to transfer a coded identification

number (Arulogun O. T., 2013). RFID also requires a software

that will be compatible to your phone devices or personal

computer system. RFID tags can either be passive, active or

battery passive

33

1. Passive Reader Active Tags (PRAT): This only receives

radio signal from active tags (battery operated

transmit only) it can be adjusted from 1-2000 feet

thereby allowing for 968 flexibility in the application

such as a set protection and supervision.

2. Active Reader Passive Tags (ARPT): This has an active

reader which transmit interrogator signal and receives

reply from passive tag.

3. Active Reader Active Tag: Active tag is awoken with an

interrogator signal from the active reader

This system has an active reader, which transmits

interrogator signals and also receives authentication

replies from passive tags.

2.5 RFID VS. BARCODEAlthough, they are both similar in the sense that they

are both data collection technologies, meaning they automate

the process of collecting data. However they differ in some

areas.

1. RFID tag can be read if passed near a reader even if it

is covered by an object or when not visible WHILE34

Barcode needs its code and reader to be visible in

order to read it.

2. It can be read inside a case, box, carton or other

containers WHILE Barcode does not have such

flexibility.

3. It can read hundreds of tags all at a time WHILE

barcode can read one at a time.

4. RFID can be used in more varieties of applications than

barcode.

5. RFID can have several tags and read them simultaneously

despite having several serial numbers WHILE Barcode can

read codes on several serial numbers but this can only

be done one after the other not simultaneously.

6. RFID can also be affixed to cars, computer equipment,

books, mobile phones and the likes for monitoring WHILE

Barcode is limited.

7. Barcode is cheaper than RFID.

8. RFID is 15-20 times faster than manual & barcode

processes.

35

9. Most companies experience 95% reduction in time using

RFID.

10. RFID can read its code from as far as 100 feet or

several inches.

11. RFID deals mainly in frequency which makes

obstruction difficult to come by while barcode cannot

be read when dirt is covering the barcode or from

barcode.

12. RFID do not require (automation) need human

involvement in collecting data while most barcode

scanners require a human to operate (labour intensive).

2.6 MICROCONTROLLERA microcontroller is a small computer on a single

integrated circuit containing a processor core, memory,

and programmable input/output peripherals. Program memory

in the form of NOR flash or OTP ROM is also often

included on the chip, as well as a typically small amount

of RAM. Microcontroller is designed for embedded

applications, in contrast to the microprocessors used in

personal computers or other general purpose applications.36

Microcontrollers are used in automatically controlled

products and devices, such as automobile engine control

systems, implantable medical devices, remote controls,

office machines, appliances, power tools, toys and other

embedded systems. By reducing the size and cost compared

to a design that uses a separate microprocessor, memory,

and input/output devices, microcontrollers make it

economical to digitally control even more devices and

processes. Mixed signal microcontrollers are common,

integrating analogue components needed to control non-

digital electronic systems. Some microcontrollers may use

4-bit words and operate at clock rate frequencies as low

as 4 KHz, for low power consumption (single-digit

milliwatts or microwatts). They will generally have the

ability to retain functionality while waiting for an

event such as a button press or other interrupt; power

consumption while sleeping (CPU clock and most

peripherals off) may be just nanowatts, making many of

them well suited for long lasting battery applications.

Other microcontrollers may serve performance critical

37

roles, where they may need to act more like a digital

signal processor (DSP), with higher clock speeds and

power consumption. Radio-frequency identification.

(n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved May 22, 2014, from

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RFID.

2.7 LIMITATION OF BARCODE ATTENDANCE SYSTEMAttendance system is not just a hardware component but an

integration of several devices simulated together to form a

whole. Some of its limitations are highlighted below –

1. Students can be deceptive by giving their card/tag to

another fellow student to mark its attendance because

there is a room for checkmating identity.

2. Student can purposely come to classroom purposely for

attendance sake and after attendance routine; he/she

leaves because this system creates no room for

monitoring in/out of student.

3. It does not record the total numbers of time a student

was present in a semester class.

4. They are somewhat difficult to maintain, cost of

servicing and have limited functionality.38

Student record is one of the most important elements that

reflect their academic achievement in the higher academic

institutions which must be free of human errors and frauds.

This brought the idea of a more methodical and innovative

system needed to improve the process of recording and

reporting the attendance in higher institutions. History

have shown that student who does not attend class will

certainly engage with difficulties in passing exams and

having a solid knowledge base foundation for future purpose,

because the attendance system is a better prognosticator of

grade than any other factors in the school environment and

apparently increase student retention rates (Gatsheni et al,

2007). This apparently suggests that this system or

innovation have primarily become the yardstick for measuring

students’ success and performance in higher institutions.

2.8 LIMITATIONS OF RFID READERSSome common problems with RFID are reader collision and

tag collision. Reader collision occurs when the signals from

two or more readers overlap. The tag is unable to respond to

simultaneous queries. Systems must be carefully set up to39

avoid this problem whereas, Tag collision occurs when many

tags are present in a small area; but since the read time is

very fast, it is easier for vendors to develop systems that

ensure that tags respond one at a time.

40

CHAPTER THREE

METHODOLOGY

3.1 RADIO FREQUENCY IDENTIFICATIONRadio-frequency identification device (RFID) is the

wireless non-contact use of radio-frequency electromagnetic

fields to transfer data, for the purposes of automatically

identifying and tracking tags attached to objects. The tags

contain electronically stored information. Some tags are

powered and read at short ranges (a few meters) via magnetic

fields (electromagnetic induction). Others use a local power

source such as a battery, or else have no battery but

collect energy from the interrogating EM field, and then act

as a passive transponder to emit microwaves or UHF radio

waves (i.e., electromagnetic radiation at high frequencies).

Battery powered tags may operate at hundreds of meters.

Unlike a bar code, the tag does not necessarily need to be

within line of sight of the reader, and may be embedded in

41

the tracked object (Source: Radio-frequency identification.

(n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved May 22, 2014, from

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RFID).

The radio-frequency identification system uses tags, or

labels attached to the objects to be identified. Two-way

radio transmitter-receivers called interrogators or readers

send a signal to the tag and read its response. The readers

generally transmit their observations to a computer system

running RFID software or RFID middleware. RFID tags can be

either passive, active or battery assisted passive. An

active tag has an on-board battery and periodically

transmits its ID signal. A battery assisted passive (BAP)

has a small battery on board and is activated when in the

presence of a RFID reader. A passive tag is cheaper and

smaller because it has no battery. Instead, the tag uses the

radio energy transmitted by the reader as its energy source.

The interrogator must be close for RF field to be strong

enough to transfer sufficient power to the tag. Since tags

have individual serial numbers, the RFID system design can

discriminate several tags that might be within the range of42

the RFID reader and read them simultaneously. Tags may

either be read-only, having a factory-assigned serial number

that is used as a key into a database, or may be read/write,

where object-specific data can be written into the tag by

the system user. Field programmable tags may be write-once,

read-multiple; "blank" tags may be written with an

electronic product code by the user. The tag's information

is stored electronically in a non-volatile memory. The RFID

tag includes a small RF transmitter and receiver. An RFID

reader transmits an encoded radio signal to interrogate the

tag. The tag receives the message and responds with its

identification information. This may be only a unique tag

serial number, or may be product-related information such as

a stock number, lot or batch number, production date, or

other specific information. RFID tags contain at least two

parts: an integrated circuit for storing and processing

information, modulating and demodulating a radio-frequency

(RF) signal, collecting DC power from the incident reader

signal, and other specialized functions; and an antenna for

receiving and transmitting the signal. Signalling between

43

the reader and the tag is done in several different

incompatible ways, depending on the frequency band used by

the tag (Sim & Mansor, 2009).

An Electronic Product Code (EPC) is one common type of

data stored in a tag. When written into the tag by an RFID

printer, the tag contains a 96-bit string of data. The first

eight bits are a header which identifies the version of the

protocol. The next 28 bits identify the organization that

manages the data for this tag; the organization number is

assigned by the EPCGlobal consortium. The next 24 bits are

an object class, identifying the kind of product; the last

36 bits are a unique serial number for a particular tag.

These last two fields are set by the organization that

issued the tag. Rather like a URL, the total electronic

product code number can be used as a key into a global

database to uniquely identify a particular product.

3.2 HARDWARE COMPONENT OF RFIDTo provide a system for monitoring and automating

student attendance using Radio Frequency (RF) transmitters

44

and receivers, and querying about the objects using a

computer. An object represents a real world entity. This

system is based on RF transmitters that are tagged to the

objects of everyday use and have the capability of

transmitting signals and a receiver that detects the

transmission of the tagged object and stores its

corresponding location in the database which is created

specifically for information maintenance of the tagged

objects. Computer systems are used to query the location of

the tagged object by sending a message to database in form

of a query. The reader is connected to a Computer System.

This computer system fetches the location and other relevant

information from the database and encapsulates this

information into a message which is sent back to the

administrator (perhaps the Lecturer) that has requested the

information. The figure below provides an overview of the

whole process.

45

Figure 3.0: Overview of the attendance tracking process.

Figure 3.1: System Architecture of the web-based studentattendance system

Using RFID

The overall architecture of the system is illustrated in

Figure 3.1, where the three main components are shown. Each46

of these components will be described in the following

subsections.

3.1.1 RFID READER AND TAGAt the heart of an RFID system is a data carrier,

referred to as the transponder, or simply the Tag. The

designs and modes of function of the transponders also

differ depending on the frequency range, just as with the

antennas. In the Low Frequency and High Frequency range, a

unique, worldwide ID number is stored on the chip. This can

be connected to information in a database. There are coil

designs for these two frequencies in the transponders that

are used in the magnetic near field of the antennas

(inductive coupling).

An RFID antenna consists of a coil with one or more

windings and a matching network. It radiates the

electromagnetic waves generated by the reader, and receives

the RF signals from the transponder. An RFID system can be

designed so that the electromagnetic field is constantly

generated, or activated by a sensor.

47

In the Ultra High Frequency range, the transponder has

an EPC (Electronic Product Code) storage area that can be

programmed by the users. Dipoles are used here within the

antenna design. Communication is by means of a backscatter

method. Here, data transfer is not by means of inductance,

but by changes to the impedance at the transponder antenna,

resulting in backscatter. If you now switch this on and off

in time with the data flow to be transferred then this

results in an amplitude-modulated signal which the scanner

or antenna can then receive and process. Passive

transponders are now available with a storage capacity of up

to 10kbit, thereby allowing additional information to be

stored.

The RFID reader is capable of reading and retrieving

information stored inside the RFID tags. There are two types

of RFID reader, which are the active and passive RFID

readers. Active RFID reader can detect an active RFID tag

while passive RFID reader can only detect passive RFID tag

at a few centimetres away from the reader. The RFID reader

being used in the system is a low cost reader for reading48

passive RFID tags. It operates at 0~ 400C temperatures,

20~80% of humidity, 125 kHz frequency and 12V power supply.

The effective detection range of the reader is around 5-8cm.

Each RFID tag has a unique serial number or ID. There are

three types of RFID tags which are active, semi-passive and

passive. The main difference between these RFID tags is that

active and semi-passive RFID tags require internal battery

while passive RFID tags do not use any internal battery.

Adapted to our scope of work, the student cards being used

to identify each individual student are the RFID cards that

consist of passive RFID tag, which do not require internal

battery. When such cards are passed through the field

generated by a compatible Reader, they transmit information

back to the Reader. Figure 3 illustrates how data

transmission is performed between an RFID reader and a

student card (Dawes, 2004).

49

Figure 3.1: Data Transmission between an RFID reader and astudent card

3.1.2 DATA REPORTERData Reporter is a component that fetches all logging

data from the RFID reader such as the captured student ID,

time and date for every 30 minutes interval. The collected

data are then passed to the online server, which will record

the data into the database. This component should always be

kept up and running and needs to be automatically restarted

each time the operating system reboots.

3.1.3 DATABASEA database is defined as an organized collection of

data and tailored to our system, our database is employed to

50

mainly store the data captured by the RFID reader.

Secondarily the database is also used to store data gathered

from the online web-interface, such as class schedule and

students personal information. In offering more features to

the users, our online system can manipulate the recorded

student attendance record by querying the database for

complex data retrieval. This includes automated operation,

such as summarizing an individual student attendance by

calculating the attendance percentage for a particular

course.

3.1.4 GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE (GUI)The GUI component of the system is purposely developed

for friendly interaction with the users. Both types of

users, namely the students and academic staffs are given

unique access to their individual member area, where the

students can access their personal information, while the

academic staffs can monitor their students information. The

developed GUI is in the form of dynamic web pages, which are

database driven. This signifies that the information

displayed on the web pages are constructed based on the data51

extracted from the database. The web pages are categorized

into three modules, namely the Home Page, Registration Page

and the Log. The pages are developed using the Microsoft C#

(pronounced C – Sharp) language.

3.2 SOFTWARE SYSTEM DESIGNIn the development cycle of the system, decisions were

made on the parts of the system to be realized in the

hardware design and the parts to be implemented in software.

The software is decomposed into modules so that each module

can be individually tested as a unit and debugged before the

modules are integrated and tested as a software system in

order to ensure that the software design meets its

specification.

The program was written in Microsoft Visual C# programming

language for the front end while the backend was based on

Microsoft SQL Server relational database management system

(RDBMS).Visual C# was derived from C language and C++ and

enables the rapid application development (RAD) of graphical

user interface (GUI) applications, access to databases using

52

tools such as DAO, RDO, ADO, and the creation of ActiveX

controls and objects. Programming in Visual C# provides the

user with the ability to utilize a combination of visually

arranged components or controls on a form, specifying

attributes and actions of those components, and writing

additional lines of code for more functionality.

3.3 SYSTEM OPERATIONA careful observation of the trend of usage of RFID

tags leads one to consider the possibility of its

utilization for monitoring the attendance of students in

educational institutions, with the aid of program driven

computers. While every student given a specific RFID tag

attends the lecture through entrance door, a serial number

(related to each student’s matriculation number) of tag is

associated with the student database entry. So every time a

student uses his/her card, the entries will be entered into

the database with the time stamp. Consequently, the

attendance data then can be used to create many types of

reports like daily attendance details, monthly, weekly and

53

real time feedback to parents. The attendance score

calculation can be automated using the collected data.

The tag is activated when it passes through a radio

frequency (RF) field (125 kHz in this case), which is

generated by the antenna embedded within the reader box. The

program checks whether the tag is valid or not. If the tag

is valid, it will continue to the database program and

registers the student’s attendance for the course. If the

tag is invalid, the program gives a notification that the

tag has not been registered to any student and requires the

user to either supply a valid tag. Due to the reason of cost

and flexibility of implementation, this RFID attendance

design application uses a passive tag and thus for every

class, students would have to bring their tags close to the

reader (about 10 cm from the reader). On doing this, the

reader reads the tag and the application program records the

student’s arrival time and when leaving the class, students

will also have to bring their tags close to the reader

again. Each course lecturer has RFID tag that serves as the

control for the beginning and end of classroom lecture with54

additional time delay for end of class activation to allow

every student to record exit time on the reader. The

lecturer/instructor can call for information over any

student by using queries provided by the application. More

flexibility and unconscious interaction of students to the

developed system can be achieved by using active tags. This

will increase the overall cost of the system.

At the end of the semester, the lecturer can grade

students attendance scores in a particular course based on

some specific metrics provided in the application. The

selected metrics could be frequency of presence in class,

duration of stay in class, punctuality, etc. The program

gives the following output: student name, matriculation

number, tag ID number, department, the course in question

and the attendance status based on the specified metrics. A

privileged user can de-assign students from their specific

tag, and reassign the tag to other students if the situation

demands it.

55

3.4 CONCLUSIONAs the RFID technology evolves, more sophisticated

applications will use the capability of RFID to receive,

store and forward data to a remote sink source. RFID has

many applications as can be imagined. In this project, we

have utilized the versatility of RFID in implementing

functional and automatic student course attendance recording

system that allows students to simply fill their attendance

just by swiping or moving their ID cards over the RFID

reader which are located at the entrance of lecture halls

with a considerable degree of success and acceptability of

usage in our faculty. We hope that this system can shift the

paradigm of students’ lecture attendance monitoring in face-

face classroom and provide a new, accurate, and less

cumbersome way of taking student attendance in Nigerian

Higher Institutions.

56

57

CHAPTER FOUR

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

4.1 SYSTEM RESULT AND TESTINGTo ensure the system’s correctness and completeness,

system testing has been performed across the system

environment that includes the software and the hardware.

In general, our aim to develop a prototype of an

automated Student Attendance System using RFID technology

was successful. The user-login authentication process was

successfully tested, which prevents an unauthorized access

into the system. Once a student is successfully registered,

the student is given the access to clock in. Upon clocking

in with the tag or card, the unique tag ID is used to query

the database which then logs in the details of the student

with the current time stamp and date. On this Users List

page, all users’ details are displayed. In addition, the

administrator may choose to print the whole attendance of

the students. From the displayed list, the administrator is

allowed to add new users or to delete existing users. There 58

is a page called the View Registered Students, where the

administrator can view the details of all registered

students.

4.2 CONSTRUCTIONSince the physical realization of the project is very

vital, it is where the theoretical hypothesis of the whole

concept is been implemented practically. Here the paper work

is transformed into a finished hardware.

After carrying out all the paper design and analysis,

the project was implemented, constructed and tested to

ensure its working ability. The construction of this project

was done in three different stages.

1. The implementation of the whole project on a solder-

less experiment board (bread board).

2. The soldering of the circuits on printed circuit

boards.

3. The coupling of the entire project to the casing.

59

4.3 IMPLEMENTATIONThe implementation of this project was done on the

breadboard. The power supply was first derived from a bench

power supply in the school electronics lab. To confirm the

workability of the circuits before the power supply stage

was soldered. The implementation of the project on bread

board was successful and it met the desired design aims with

each stage performing as designed.

4.4 SOLDERINGThe various circuits and stages of this project were

soldered in tandem to meet desired workability of the

project.

The connecting cables were first soldered to the RFID

reader before connecting the reader to the microcontroller

board. Commercial applications using Radio Frequency

Identification and Detection like logistics, transport,

supply chain supervision, processing, manufacturing,

medicine, access control are also likely to grow by leaps

and bounds.

60

4.5 PROBLEMS ENCOUNTEREDLike every research and practical engineering work,

diverse kinds of problems are often encountered. The

problems encountered in this project and how they were

solved and maneuverer is listed below.

At the implementation stage of this project, the

communication between the controller and the RFID reader

used in this project was found failing. The problem was

traced to both items not operating at the same frequency as

designed. The oscillator was changed. Kindly refer to

Appendix I for the Bill of Engineering Materials and

Evaluation of this work.

4.6 CASING AND BOXINGThe third phase of the project construction is the

casing of the project. This project was coupled to a plastic

casing. The casing material being plastic designed with

special perforation and vents and also well labelled to give

ecstatic value.

The figures that follow show the pictures of the project.

61

Figure 4.2: Shows a view of the project.

4.7 TESTINGStage by stage testing was done according to the block

representation on the breadboard, before soldering of

circuit commenced on printed circuit board.

The process of testing and implementation involved the

use of some test and measuring equipment stated below.

1. Bench Power Supply: This was used to supply voltage to

the various stages of the circuit during the breadboard

62

test before the power supply in the project was

soldered. Also during the soldering of the project the

power supply was still used to test various stages

before they were finally soldered.

2. Oscilloscope: The oscilloscope was used to observe the

ripples in the power supply waveform and to ensure that

all waveforms were correct and their frequencies

accurate. The waveform of the oscillation of the

crystal oscillator used was monitor to ensure proper

oscillation at 16MHz.

3. Digital Multi-meter: The digital multi-meter basically

measures voltage, resistance, continuity, current,

frequency, temperature and transistorhfe. The process

of implementation of the design on the board required

the measurement of parameters like, voltage,

continuity, current and resistance values of the

components and in some cases frequency measurement. The

digital multimeter was used to check the output of the

voltage regulators used in this project.

63

64

CHAPTER FIVE

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

5.1 CONCLUSIONThe developed Web-Based Student Attendance System using

Radio Frequency Identification technology will significantly

improve the current manual process of student attendance

recording and tracking system, especially in a university or

school environment. The system promotes a semi- automated

approach in capturing the student attendance, i.e. by having

the students to flash their student cards to the RFID

reader.

In addition, a number of other advantages are gained by

having an online web-based system, acting as a central

repository of student attendance record. Firstly all

processes of managing the student attendance record are

performed online, allowing administrators and lecturers to

view or modify the users’ data through any computer via the

web browser, as long as they are connected to the Internet.

65

This way, no specific software installation is required. The

captured student attendance data are also processed and

analyse automatically with less risk of data loss, compared

to a manual filing approach. Specific to lecturers or

teachers, they can easily monitor their students’ attendance

online and this could improve the quality of teaching since

less time is needed to manage the student attendance record.

5.2 RECOMMENDATIONThe developed system can be improved and upgraded

further, e.g. by extending the system with new features and

modules or by improving the web-interface layout with new

display style. Better yet the system can be enhanced further

to offer another significant enhancement where the system

can be extended to monitor staff attendance record.

Furthermore, every good engineering design innovation

has limitations. This passive RFID based lecture attendance

monitoring system is not without limitation as a data

collection technology with accurate and timely data entry.

Hence, the limitation of this design would be improved upon

66

in future by considering the following salient

recommendations:

By incorporating a facial recognition application

that would serve to further increase the biometric

security of the system against impersonation by

erring students.

Usage of High Frequency (HF) active RFID tags

against passive Low frequency (LF) RFID tags for

better performance and flexibility of users.

Performance evaluation of combination of

thumbprint, facial recognition and RFID technology

to students’ attendance monitoring problem.

67

REFERENCESAljawarneh. (2010). A Web Client Authentication System Using

Smart Card for e-Systems: Initial Testing and Evaluation. In Digital Society, 2010. ICDS '10. Fourth International Conference on. 2010.

Allen, K. (2009). The RFID Assessment. Apress.

Arulogun O. T., O. A. (2013). RFID-Based Students AttendanceManagement System. International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, Volume 4, Issue 2.

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Appendix IS/NO ITEM UNIT PRICE

(Naira)

QUANTITY AMOUNT

1 PLASTIC CASING 1,200.00 1 1,200.00

2 TRANSFORMER (9V-

0-9V)

340.00 1 340.00

3 DIODES (1N4007) 20.00 5 100.00

4 CAPACITOR

(2,200µF)

150.00 1 150.00

5 CAPACITOR

(1,000µF)

150.00 1 150.00

6 CAPACITOR (10µF) 50.00 1 50.00

7 RESISTORS (14W) 5.00 20 100.00

8 RELAY (12V, 10A) 100.00 1 100.00

9 ATMEGA 328A 1,200.00 1 1,200.00

10 LEDs 10.00 3 30.00

11 RFID Reader 20,500 1 20,500.0071

12 PCB board(medium

size)

1000 1 1000.00

13 Soldering lead 240 1 240

14 Connecting wires 70.00 2 140.00

15 Socket outlet 800.00 1 800.00

16 IC socket 40.00 1 40.00

17 Ribbon cable 250.00 1 250.00

18 Adhesives 100.00 2 200.00

19 BC546 80.00 4 320.00

20 16MHz crystal

oscillator

150.00 1 150.00

21 22pF capacitors 30.00 2 60.00

22 Voltage

regulators

200.00 1 200.00

23 Printer cable 900.00 1 900.00

24 Bolts and nuts 100 1(dozen) 100.00

72

TOTAL N27,685 N28,320

73

Appendix IISource Codes.

namespace Automated_Attendance {

partial class Registration {

protected override void Dispose(bool disposing) {

if (disposing && (components != null)) {

components.Dispose();

}

base.Dispose(disposing);

}

#region Windows Form Designer generated code

private void InitializeComponent() {

this.Level = new System.Windows.Forms.TextBox();

this.Surname = new System.Windows.Forms.TextBox();

this.FirstName = new System.Windows.Forms.TextBox();

this.Matric_No = new System.Windows.Forms.TextBox();

this.Department = new System.Windows.Forms.TextBox();

this.Rfid_No = new System.Windows.Forms.TextBox();

this.sp = new System.IO.Ports.SerialPort(this.components);

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((System.ComponentModel.ISupportInitialize)(this.pictureBox1)).BeginIn it();

this.SuspendLayout();

this.label8.AutoSize = true;

this.label3.Text = "Matric No.";

this.label2.AutoSize = true;

this.label2.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(13, 65);

this.label2.Name = "label2";

this.label2.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(54, 13);

this.label2.TabIndex = 47;

this.label2.Text = "FirstName";

this.label1.AutoSize = true;

this.label1.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(13, 24);

this.label1.Name = "label1";

this.label1.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(51, 13);

this.label1.TabIndex = 46;

this.label1.Text = "SurName";

this.Level.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(116, 204);

this.Level.Name = "Level";

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this.Level.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(214, 20);

this.Level.TabIndex = 42;

this.Surname.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(116, 17);

this.Surname.Name = "Surname";

this.Surname.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(214, 20);

this.Surname.TabIndex = 45;

this.FirstName.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(116, 66);

this.FirstName.Name = "FirstName";

this.FirstName.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(214,20);

this.FirstName.TabIndex = 44;

this.Matric_No.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(116, 112);

this.Matric_No.Name = "Matric_No";

this.Matric_No.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(214,20);

this.Matric_No.TabIndex = 43;

this.Department.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(116, 250);

this.Department.Name = "Department";

this.Department.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(214, 20);

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this.Department.TabIndex = 41;

this.Rfid_No.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(116, 296);

this.Rfid_No.Name = "Rfid_No";

this.Rfid_No.ReadOnly = true;

this.Rfi d_No.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(214,20);

this.Rfid_No.TabIndex = 40;

this.ClientSize = new System.Drawing.Size(570, 384);

this.Controls.Add(this.Surname);

this.Controls.Add(this.FirstName);

this.Controls.Add(this.Matric_No);

this.Controls.Add(this.Department);

this.Controls.Add(this.Rfid_No);

this.Name = "Registration";

this.Text = "Registration";

this.FormClosing += new System.Windows.Forms.FormClosingEventHandler(this.Registrati on_FormClosing);

this.Load += new System.EventHandler(this.Registration_Load);

((System.ComponentModel.ISupportInitialize)(this.pictureBox1)).EndInit();

this.ResumeLayout(false);

77

this.PerformLayout();

}

#endregion

}

78