QR scanner hardware: from phones to turnstiles
Most events need no dedicated QR scanner hardware at all: the QRACCESS mobile app turns the phones your door staff already carry into scanners. And when you do want physical access control hardware — a parking barrier, a pedestrian turnstile, the door of a rental — QRACCESS drives it through one standard, off-the-shelf relay. The access decision (shift, quota, dates) always lives in QRACCESS, never in the device.
- Works with any barrier or turnstile that has a dry-contact input
- One standard relay (Shelly Pro 1) covers every brand
- Capacity, quotas and date windows are validated in the dashboard
- No dependence on any manufacturer's proprietary cloud
Phones as scanners: the hardware you already own
For most events, the only QR scanner hardware you need is in your pocket. Each member of your door team signs in to the app as a scanner user and their phone becomes a scanner: every scan is validated against the event's rules and logged under Records.
- The app scans online and offline, so a door with poor signal keeps working.
- Sizing the door team? See how many scanners does my event need.
- Prefer fixed equipment? Wall-mounted QR readers (Control iD, Kimaldi) integrate in online mode — see the turnstile section below.
From QR scan to open door, step by step
The recommended pattern is server-authoritative: the hardware only obeys; all the business logic is resolved by QRACCESS.
1 · Scan
The QRACCESS app or a wall-mounted reader scans the attendee's or guest's QR code.
2 · Validate
The dashboard checks, inside a safe transaction, that the access is due: correct shift, quota for that ticket type, venue capacity and, where it applies, a valid date window.
3 · Trigger
If the access is valid, QRACCESS sends a pulse over the network to the relay, which closes a dry contact for one second.
4 · Open
That dry contact acts on the barrier's open terminal, the turnstile release or the electric door strike — exactly like a push button.
5 · Record
The pass is logged as a validated entry, with its time and its scanner, available in the event's records.
The compatible relay: Shelly Pro 1
A DIN-rail relay with a dry-contact (potential-free) output rated up to 16 A, WiFi and Ethernet, controllable over HTTP on the local network with no cloud behind it. It is the only thing you need to add for almost any barrier or turnstile to work with QRACCESS.
Brand-agnostic
CAME, BFT, FAAC, Nice or Roger barriers and ZKTeco, Turboo, Gunnebo or Argusa turnstiles all open by closing a dry contact. The same relay works for every one of them.
No proprietary cloud
No barrier manufacturer publishes a stable public API. With the relay, QRACCESS does not depend on their platforms: it talks to the device directly over HTTP on the LAN.
Clean installation
It mounts on the DIN rail of the control cabinet. The dry-contact wiring to the command terminal must be done by a qualified installer.
Test it yourself
The relay is driven by a plain HTTP request. You can test the opening pulse from a
browser or with curl before it is even wired to the barrier, to verify that the pulse
works.
# Opening pulse (Gen2 RPC API): switches on, then off by itself after 1 s
GET http://<RELAY-IP>/rpc/Switch.Set?id=0&on=true&toggle_after=1
# Classic equivalent form
GET http://<RELAY-IP>/relay/0?turn=on&timer=1
# Test from a terminal
curl "http://192.168.1.50/rpc/Switch.Set?id=0&on=true&toggle_after=1"- The toggle_after=1 parameter makes the relay switch itself off after one second: that is the opening pulse.
- The relay can be protected with a username and password; QRACCESS stores those credentials encrypted.
- The device must sit on a network that the dashboard or a scanner can reach; no ports need to be opened to the internet.
- Important: this pulse only opens. Whether the access is valid (shift, quota, capacity, dates) is always checked by QRACCESS before it is sent.
Official manufacturer documentation: Shelly Gen2 Switch API · RPC protocol.
Compatible access control hardware
Any piece of equipment with a dry-contact open or release input is a candidate. These are the ones we have verified against manufacturer documentation.
Parking barriers
CAME, BFT, FAAC, Nice and Roger: they open through their dry-contact command terminal. The manufacturer's API is not needed.
Pedestrian turnstiles
ZKTeco, Turboo, Gunnebo and Mecanizados Argusa: they release the passage through one dry contact per direction. Advanced option: a Wiegand reader or a QR reader in online mode (Control iD, Kimaldi).
Doors and rentals
For a building entrance with an electric door strike, the same relay. For a room with a temporary, date-limited PIN, API-enabled smart locks such as Akiles or Nuki.
Other brands with a dry-contact input usually work the same way. Tell us what equipment you have and we will verify it.
Where to buy it
For now, the compatible relay is bought directly from the manufacturer or its distributors; it is a standard component available on the open market. QRACCESS tells you how to configure and test it.
- Manufacturer's site: Shelly Pro 1 (and its distributor network).
- There is no single official list price; check it with the distributor before buying.
- The electrical installation and the wiring into the barrier or turnstile cabinet must be done by a qualified installer.
Coming soon: we are evaluating offering the relay pre-configured and ready to use, available directly from the QRACCESS dashboard. If you would like to join the first trials, write to us.
Try QRACCESS with the hardware you have today
Create an account and set up your first event or access point from the web dashboard. The phones you already own are the only scanners you need to start — see pricing for what it costs per event, and the platform overview for everything the dashboard does.
Create a free account Request a demo
Dashboard: https://control.qraccess.com