Product design and interface

DashStash

A student concept for a heated pickup locker that holds delivery orders until a driver scans in.

Student concept. Not affiliated with DoorDash.

Open interactive demo

DashStash 2x2 heated pickup locker render with the pickup-code screen column and four heated cubes

Problem

The restaurant counter fails in two ways. Orders can disappear and food cools while it waits.

Theft

Orders sit unsecured on the counter. Someone can take a bag, and the driver waits while the kitchen remakes it.

Cold food

The meal cools while it waits for pickup.

Research

Three weekends on the road

I dashed as field research to watch restaurant handoffs directly. I completed 200+ deliveries and reached Platinum.

Fieldwork 3 weekends

Deliveries 200+

Status Platinum

Interactive model

Same cube. Stack it.

Hold140–165°F

Setpoint155°F

This stack2 × 2

Load~270 W

ControllerMega 2560

Bag targetUnder $5

Tap a phone. DashStash reads that pickup QR.

Door clearance check

Door swing: --

Kitchen order loading

Auto-refill after pickup A new name and order # loads into the cell

DashStashHelp

Enter your pickup code

Find your code in the DoorDash app

⚠ INTERLOCK: Cell warming (138°F). Requires 140°F safe temp.

System

DashStash 2x2 render with the top-right cube open, showing the fan, temperature readout and handle — Cube open: fan and temperature readout inside, door on a side hinge.

Heat

Each cube heats toward a 155°F setpoint and holds within 140–165°F.

Control

One Arduino Mega 2560 controls relays, magnetic locks, and the QR camera from the screen column.

Scale

Stack a row or add a column. A 2×2 unit stays on one 15 A circuit.

Hold range140–165°F

Setpoint155°F

Bag magazine16 bags

Bag targetUnder $5 per bag

Power~40 W per cube

Circuit2×2 on one 15 A circuit

ControllerArduino Mega 2560

ElectronicsRelays in screen column

LocksMagnetic lock on each door

CameraOne QR camera in screen column

Beachhead

Point of attack: Midwest fast food.

Market penetration

Same-region new customers

Campus diningMidwest876 campuses

Grocery pickupMidwest11,997 stores

Ghost kitchensMidwestNo public data

Point of attack 53,908

Fast food locations Midwest

Market expansion

Same segment, colder and wetter

Fast foodNortheast46,923 locations

Fast foodPacific NW (WA+OR)8,564 locations

Campus diningNortheast768 campuses

Ghost kitchensNortheastNo public data

Ghost kitchensPacific NW (WA+OR)No public data

Sources: US Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023. NAICS 722513 and 445110. NCES Digest of Education Statistics 2023, Table 317.20, degree-granting institutions, 2022–23. Midwest and Northeast are US Census regions.

Competition

Pickup lockers already exist

Apex is one example. DashStash's product difference is a 140–165°F hold.

Hold140–165°F

Still open

The internals, physical screen, hinge and lock mechanics, and bag hatch are not finished. The heat plate is in progress.

Weather target

Target, not built yet: a gasketed front, a sealed screen bezel, and coated boards.

Cycles target

Target, not tested yet: hinges and a bag hatch that can survive a busy restaurant.