⚡ ParkPing ⚡

A privacy-first, QR-based vehicle communication platform.

📖 About The Project

ParkPing solves a very common, frustrating modern problem: Blocked Vehicles. When your car is blocked by someone else's vehicle, your only options usually are waiting endlessly, honking aggressively, or hoping they left a phone number on their dashboard.

Leaving personal phone numbers visible on the dashboard is a major privacy and security risk. ParkPing eliminates this risk by replacing phone numbers with secure, anonymous QR Code Stickers.

With ParkPing:

1. Register your vehicle and generate a unique QR code.
2. Stick the QR code on your car window.
3. If your car is blocking someone, they simply Scan the QR code.
4. They tap a button on the web app, and you instantly receive a Live In-App Notification (and SMS via Twilio) telling you to move your car.
5. Your personal phone number is never exposed to the public.

✨ Features

• 🛡️ 100% Privacy: Vehicle owners can be contacted without ever exposing their real phone numbers or names.
• ⚡ Live Desktop Notifications: Real-time polling and native browser push notifications alert the owner instantly.
• 📱 Responsive Neon UI/UX: A stunning dark-mode interface with neon accents, optimized for both desktop and mobile devices.
• 🛡️ Anti-Spam Cooldown: Built-in rate limiting prevents users from spam-pinging the same vehicle owner (1-minute cooldown per vehicle).
• 🔒 Secure Authentication: JWT-based user authentication and encrypted passwords.
• 💬 Twilio SMS Ready: Backend is pre-configured to send text messages to vehicle owners (requires Twilio API keys).

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🛠️ Tech Stack

Frontend

• Framework: Angular 18 (Standalone Components)
• Styling: Custom CSS Grid/Flexbox, CSS Variables (Neon Theme)
• Libraries: angularx-qrcode for dynamic QR sticker generation
• HTTP Client: Built-in Angular HttpClient configured with JWT Bearer Interceptors

Backend

• Runtime: Node.js
• Framework: Express.js
• Database: MongoDB (Mongoose ORM)
• Security: bcryptjs (password hashing), jsonwebtoken (auth)
• APIs: Twilio SDK for SMS dispatch

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🚀 Getting Started

Prerequisites

Make sure you have the following installed on your machine:

• Node.js (v18 or higher)
• Angular CLI (npm install -g @angular/cli)
• MongoDB (Running locally on mongodb://localhost:27018 or via Atlas)

1. Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/ravithakur776/Parkping-Project-.git
cd Parkping-Project-

2. Setup the Backend

Open a terminal in the root directory:

cd backend
npm install

Create a .env file in the /backend directory:

PORT=5001
MONGO_URI=mongodb://localhost:27018/parkping
JWT_SECRET=your_super_secret_jwt_key
TWILIO_ACCOUNT_SID=your_twilio_sid
TWILIO_AUTH_TOKEN=your_twilio_token
TWILIO_PHONE_NUMBER=your_twilio_phone

Start the backend server:

node index.js

3. Setup the Frontend

Open a new terminal window:

cd frontend
npm install

Start the Angular development server:

ng serve

Open your browser and navigate to http://localhost:4200.

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📸 Usage Workflow

1. Sign Up: Create a new account with your Name, Email, Password, and Phone Number.
2. Dashboard: Go to your dashboard and click "+ Add Vehicle".
3. Generate: Enter your vehicle model and plate number. The app generates a unique QR Code.
4. Download & Print: Download the QR code image and stick it to your windshield.
5. Scan: Anyone who scans it will be taken to a secure URL (e.g., /requests?vehicle=XYZ).
6. Alert: When they press "Notify Owner", you receive an instant dashboard alert and/or SMS!

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🤝 Contributing

Contributions, issues, and feature requests are welcome! Feel free to check issues page.

📝 License

This project is open-source and available under the MIT License.