ARES stands for “Arduino Response and Evacuation System”. Its main purpose is to alert house managers know when there is an emergency going on. When parties are taking place, it also alerts the DJ via a flashing LED strip. It was built for the fraternity I live in, so that we could avoid any dangerous situations.
ARES is comprised of two units, the main one, which is located downstairs, by the entrance, and the secondary one located upstairs, by the DJ. Both units run on Arduino (a Mega and an Uno) and they communicate with each other through WiFi, via 60mW Xbees. The main unit also includes a GSM shield that allows ARES to send notifications via SMS text messages.
The input ARES gets is from the doorbell, and the three buttons on top. In case the doorbell rings, a text message is sent that says so. If the first (green) button is pushed, ARES returns to normal (armed) state. When the middle (blue) button is pushed, ARES notifies the House Managers that their attention is needed. In case the emergency button on the right (red one) is pushed, ARES sends emergency text messages, turns the DJ table lights from white to flashing red and the music stops.
This system was created as a safety precaution, and was designed especially to facilitate the communication and evacuation in case of emergency during large parties.