DIY Cashierless Checkout: Build an AI-Powered Item Recognition Counter with ESP32-S3

Every part needed, pre-tested for compatibility, with an AI build companion trained on this exact project. Shipped from Bengaluru in 3-5 days.

Imagine a counter that automatically identifies each item you place on it — no barcode scanner, no manual entry. With this kit, you'll train and deploy a YOLOv5 model on an ESP32-S3 that recognizes up to five SKU items in real-time, while a load cell verifies weight and calculates the total cart cost, published via MQTT to any dashboard. It's the core of smart retail automation, ready for your hackathon or startup prototype.

What You'll Build

You'll assemble a compact item recognition counter with a 1.8-inch TFT display showing recognized items, weight, and total price. When a product is placed on the pad, the OV2640 camera captures an image, the ESP32-S3 runs inference using a quantized YOLOv5 model, and the HX711 load cell confirms the weight — cross-verified with the item's known weight. All transactions are timestamped by the DS3231 RTC and logged to a microSD card for audit.

What You'll Learn

• Train, quantize, and deploy a YOLOv5 object detection model on an ESP32-S3 microcontroller
• Integrate a load cell with HX711 to perform weight-based item verification
• Build an MQTT-based cart total system that publishes real-time billing data to a dashboard
• Design a complete edge-AI pipeline from image capture to data logging on microSD

Kit Contents

Why Buy This Kit Instead of Sourcing Parts Separately

Who This Kit Is For

This advanced kit is tailored for final-year B.Tech ECE/EEE students building capstone projects, participants of Smart India Hackathon working on retail automation, and makers prototyping IoT solutions for Tinkering Labs. If you've experience with microcontrollers and want to push into edge AI, this kit bridges the gap from concept to working demo with everything you need.

Built and Backed by Compoden

Every Compoden kit ships with an AI build companion trained on this exact project — accessible via a QR code on the box, with WhatsApp and email backup. We've spent 10 years

Choose your assembly option:

• Soldering Kit — 25W soldering iron, 60/40 solder wire, flux, and small perfboard for permanent assembly.
• Breadboard Combo — 800-point full-size breadboard with 65-piece jumper wire pack for solderless prototyping.