Overview
The Food Locker is a locker-style meal pickup system designed to help students get meals faster while reducing pressure on dining staff, while adhering to COVID-19 social distancing requirements on campus. It was born out of a need to safely and efficiently serve thousands of students during the height of the pandemic.
Initial Motivation
As UCSD’s dining halls struggled with long wait times and unsafe crowding during peak hours, my team set out to design an MVP that could deliver the same food experience without the physical bottlenecks. Inspired by the Amazon Locker, we wanted to build a platform that would let students order ahead and pick up meals from dedicated lockers with zero contact.
Key Features
- Contactless Meal Ordering: Students can browse, select, and order meals via a mobile-friendly web interface
- Locker-Style Pickup System: Orders are assigned to specific lockers to eliminate in-person lines and reduce wait during peak meal times
- Order Throughput Optimization: Reduces peak-hour congestion and dining hall occupancy by 60% through staggered meal pickups and timely order status notifications