NFC and terminals
Use NFC staff cards and tags on the kiosk, plan for attendance terminals, and connect doors, turnstiles and barriers.
Agoo is in early access. This page describes the feature as it ships to early-access organisations; screens are illustrative.
The kiosk can do more than check visitors in. With NFC, staff tap a card to clock in and regular visitors tap to check in. Dedicated attendance terminals and door integrations extend Agoo to staff entrances, turnstiles and vehicle barriers.
| Feature | Available |
|---|---|
| NFC staff cards on an iPhone kiosk, for clock-in | Now |
| NFC staff cards on an Android kiosk with NFC, for clock-in | Now |
| Cards for recurring visitors | Planned |
| Doors, turnstiles and barriers through relays | Planned |
| Doors, turnstiles and barriers through webhooks | Planned |
| ZKTeco and Hikvision attendance terminals and access control | Planned, later |
| HID, Kisi and Openpath access control | Planned, last |
NFC cards and tags
NFC cards, key fobs and stickers can be linked to a person in Agoo. Holding one to the kiosk then:
- clocks a member of staff in or out, on an iPhone kiosk or an Android kiosk with NFC, or
- checks a recurring visitor in or out, such as a cleaner or driver with a standing pass (planned).
To clock in by card, the employee taps Staff clock-in (or Clock in or out on a clock-in-only device), chooses Tap your card and holds the card near the top of an iPhone, or where the kiosk shows on an Android device. The kiosk recognises the card itself, even offline, and nothing is sent to check it.
Which readers
| Kiosk | Reads NFC with |
|---|---|
| iPhone | Its built-in reader, near the top of the phone. |
| iPad | None: iPads have no NFC reader. Staff use their staff QR badge or PIN instead. |
| Android tablet or phone with NFC | Its built-in reader; the kiosk shows where to hold the card. Check the specification: many budget tablets don't have NFC. |
Which cards
Use 13.56 MHz NFC cards or tags (the kind phones and tablets can read, such as MIFARE cards). Many staff ID cards are already this type, so you may be able to reuse them.
Older proximity cards won't work
Some older door-access cards use 125 kHz proximity technology, which phones and tablets can't read. Tap one on an NFC-capable phone first: if nothing happens, you'll need new cards or stickers for Agoo.
Link a card to a person
- Open the person in Console → People and, under Clock-in, select Link a card.
- Type the card's number. It's printed on many cards; if it isn't, hold the card to a phone with an NFC reader app, which shows it (for example 04:A2:2B:1C:33:5E:80).
- Select Link the card. It works on every iPhone kiosk, and every Android kiosk with NFC, at the person's sites from their next sync.
When a card is lost, open the person and select Unlink next to it. It stops working at once, and the next sync reaches kiosks that were offline. Clocking in by card is switched on in Console → Settings → Organisation → Clock-in methods, or for one site under Settings → Sites; see Clock-in methods.
Attendance terminals
An attendance terminal is a dedicated face and card reader mounted at a staff entrance. Clock-ins from terminals go to the same timesheets as the kiosk and the Workspace app. Biometric terminals are included on Pro and Enterprise; connecting them to Agoo is planned.
- ZKTeco and Hikvision terminals will connect to Agoo through an integration that is planned. Our Attendance terminal kit (GH₵5,290, excluding VAT) is configured to sync with Agoo through this integration, so it ships then. Kiosk kits and badge printers can be ordered now.
- Until then, staff can clock in at the kiosk by staff QR badge, PIN or NFC card (on an iPhone or an Android device with NFC), or on their phones. Face clock-in (Growth and above) is planned.
- Other terminals you already own can send clock-ins to Agoo through the REST API (Pro and Enterprise), which is available as a preview. Your developer or installer can find the details in Developers.
Face matching is for staff only, on the basis your organisation chooses, with a fallback that a supervisor reviews; it's never used for visitors. See Face clock-in.
Doors, turnstiles and barriers
Agoo can open a door, turnstile or vehicle barrier when a visit is approved or a pass is scanned, so the guard doesn't have to.
| Approach | How it works | Available |
|---|---|---|
| Relay | A network relay wired to the door or barrier's "open" input. Agoo triggers it when a visitor at that gate is approved or scans a valid pass. | Planned |
| Webhooks | Agoo sends an event, such as visit.checked_in, to your access-control system, which decides to open (webhooks are on Growth and above). | Now, with webhooks in preview |
| ZKTeco and Hikvision | Direct integration with their access-control controllers and turnstiles. | Planned, later |
| HID, Kisi and Openpath | Direct integration with these access-control platforms. | Planned, last |
Door and barrier integrations are usually done with your security installer. Plan them per gate: each gate in Console → Settings → Sites can have its own door or barrier.
Badge printers
Supported badge and label printers (AirPrint, Brother QL, Zebra and ESC/POS receipt printers), label sizes, setup and troubleshooting.
Offline mode
What keeps working on the kiosk and guard devices during network and power cuts, how sync works when the connection returns, and how to prepare for dumsor.