10 Easiest IoT Projects for Students

We bring you 10 easiest IoT projects for students that will amaze you with its simplicity.

IoT or Internet of Things is an advanced technology that is slowly starting to take over the world. Many industries now prefer IoT as it can be used for different applications. It is predicted that by the end of 2020, more than 50 billion devices will be connected with IoT. Pretty amazing, right? Speaking of billions, you may want to check out which are the 10 best Internet of Things stocks to buy right now.

It seems that the future is indeed now, as everyone is talking about how fascinating IoT is. But learning it may not be a piece of cake. It requires knowledge of coding and work, work, and some more work. In order to master the complex procedures of IoT, you must learn while you do it and that means lots and lots of projects. You can start with some simple IoT projects that you can easily find on the Internet or you can stick to our list of suitable IoT projects for beginners.

The definition of IoT states that the Internet of Things (IoT) is, “the interconnection of uniquely identifiable embedded computing devices within the existing Internet infrastructure.” So, IoT are actually embedded systems and smart objects connected to the Internet with unique IP address. Our mobile phones actually serve as a remote control for IoT devices. This extensive guide on Code Project can help you learn more about IoT. If you are interested in learning about IoT so that you can find your own projects and build IoT devices, there are plenty of online courses, both free and paid that you can choose from. If you have the basic knowledge and you are eager to improve, this 4-week course may be ideal for you. Upon completing the course, you will be able to do lots of things including define the impact of IoT on society, define what an embedded system is, describe interactions of embedded systems with the physical world, etc. You can find more information in the introductory part of the course where you will also see exactly what kind of things you will learn during the course.

When it comes to projects, finding an idea can be equally hard for some of the actual work. Be it a science fair project or a college one; it requires some time to think of a great idea that will get you a good grade. However, if you are looking for some project ideas for an upcoming science fair, we wrote about winning science fair projects for high school a while ago, so check it out.

We decided to find some great IoT ideas which are not too complex for beginners. The projects we selected for our list today include cheap projects with components easily found online (you can order them from eBay or AliExpress) and those projects with detailed step by step instructions. This is of utmost importance for beginners looking for some easy IoT project ideas. We searched through SimpleIOThings, Electronics Hub (on this website you can also find IoT projects for CSE students as well as IoT projects for ECE), and several other websites to find simple projects to inspire you. Check out our 10 easiest IoT projects for students.

10. Alarm Clock

If you are looking for IoT projects using Raspberry Pi, this is a great one. If your regular alarm clock isn’t enough, you can build a super cool alarm clock controlled via a phone app. It’s all possible thanks to Raspberry Pi, and you can even program different radio stations according to different alarms. To start the project, you need to flash an 8GB SD card. The rest of the details on this cool project can be found in the following instructions.

9. Humidity and Temperature Sensor

We are continuing our list of easiest IoT projects for students with a weather monitoring system which is one of the IoT projects using Arduino. You will build an electronic device that can sense the temperature changes and send updates to you regardless where you are. You can receive a text message and an email to notify you of weather changes. For this project, you will need a DHT sensor to detect the temperature/humidity, Arduino microcontroller, and a WiFi module. Using these guidelines, you can easily learn how to build this device at home.

8. Smoke Alarm Notifier

For this easy project number 8 on our list of easiest IoT projects for students, you don’t have to code or even invest a lot of money. You can easily make your own smoke alarm notifier for as little as $10. You will need an ESP8266 development board, a project boy enclosure, MicroUSB cable, a USB wall charger, a microphone sensor, and some tools. You can purchase all these things on Aliexpress or eBay as they are cheaper even though delivery may take a while depending on where you live. You can follow this tutorial on how to make your smoke alarm notifier that will alert you via text message or email if any smoke is detected.

7. WiFi Door Sensor

You can easily build amazing useful devices such as a WiFi door sensor which ranks 7th on our list of easiest IoT projects for students. And the best part is that it won’t cost you a lot of money, too. This can be very useful if you want to keep an eye on what’s going on at home. For example, you want your freezer doors to stay shut, and with a device like this, you’ll always know if you or a family member forgot to close them. Basically, you’ll need things already mentioned in the previous project description, so make sure you buy an ESP8266 development board, a micro USB cable, a USB wall charger, and tools like a pair of pliers and a hacksaw. To create the device and connect it to WiFI, you need to sign up for an IFTTT account (If This Then That) and then download the app. Here are the rest of the instructions so you can complete your project.

6. Baggage Tracking Device

There is always a possibility for your baggage to get lost and so this device is perfect. Thanks to a simple baggage tracking device, you can know at all times what happens with your baggage. For this project, you will need an Arduino Pro Mini, 1 GSM module with battery and antenna, four jump wires, and one breadboard. Start by disconnecting everything from its power source and then set up the hardware. Watch this video below to see the details on how to create a baggage tracking device.

5. IoT Doorbell

For this project number 5 on our list of easiest IoT projects for students, you need Raspberry Pi 1 Model B, a USB webcam, and a few online services as described in the project. This is a very cool and useful project which connects your doorbell to the Internet, so you never miss it again. With the help of Raspberry Pi and AWS platform, you can build a device that will alert you anytime someone presses your doorbell. You will receive an email or SMS, and so you will know when someone is at the door no matter where you are. Read the full description of the project to learn more about how to make an IoT doorbell.

4. Multi-Room Music Player

Thanks to IoT, you can now build a multi-room music player which is ideal for background music when you are having dinner or a party. You no longer need to leave the room every time you want to turn the volume on change a song. You will need Raspberry Pi Model B, IDE cable connector, DPDT latching signal relays, and a few other things.

3. IoT Candle

This interesting IoT project ranks third on our list of easiest IoT projects for students. It is about connecting your candle to the Internet with basic programming and inexpensive sensors. For the project, you will need a candle, a Grove Flame Sensor, and a publishing board. With some basic knowledge and by carefully following the instructions in these hardware and software tutorials, you can make your own IoT candle.

2. IoT Smart Bulb

A bulb that is connected to WiFi? The world of the Internet of Things is truly amazing. For this project, you will need a DHT22 temperature/humidity sensor, 1x Particle Photon, 1x Piezo Buzzer, a resistor, and a 12-pixel RGBW NeoPixel ring. You will also need some tools like wire strippers and cutters, a soldering iron, a lighter, and a heat shrink. Here are detailed instructions on how to create you IoT smart bulb.

1. Automated Blinds

How cool would it be to have automated blinds? Very! That is why we ranked this project first among 10 easiest IoT projects for students. This is the cheapest way to build automated blinds without making any changes to your blinds, and it is also great for beginners as it requires basic knowledge. You can control the blind from your phone regardless of where you are. Of course, it can inspire you to create an even better system!  For the project, you will need a NodeMCU CH340, MG995 servo, a mics small tube, 5-6 feet of nylon rope, and aluminum brace for c clamp. Check out the video below, and make your automated blinds.