Flask Backend

This section will deep dive into the Flask backend and the API endpoints that are used in our project.

What you will need:

We will not be going over installing any software as it is a straightforward process.

• Python
• Flask
• MongoDB - for storing data
• Postman (optional) - good for testing API endpoints

Setting up the Flask Backend

1. Head to our GitHub repository and clone or download the project to your local machine.

   • Ensure you have the dev branch selected.
   • Head to the directory SafeStep/App_Prototype and open the project in your preferred IDE.
     1. Open Android Studio and click File -> Open ->
     2. Navigate to the SafeStep/App_Prototype directory and select the Server folder.
     3. Click OK and your project should now be open in your preferred IDE.

2. Set up your Environment Variables:

   • Create a .env file in the root of the Server directory.
   • Add the following environment variables to the .env file:

     MONGO_URI=<your_mongo_uri>
     SECRET_KEY=<whatever_secret_key_you_want>
   • Replace <your_mongo_uri> with your MongoDB URI.
     • Go to MongoDB and create an account.
     • Once signed in, follow the instructions to create a new cluster.
     • Follow the instructions to connect to your cluster and get the URI.
   • Replace <whatever_secret_key_you_want> with a secret key of your choice.
     • Can be any string of your choice.

3. Once you connect to your MongoDB cluster...

• Create two collections in your database:
  • users
  • data
    • Make this a time series collection.

4. Install the required dependencies:
   • Open a terminal in the Server directory and run the following command:

     pip install -r requirements.txt
5. Run the Flask server:
   • In the terminal, run the following command:

     python app.py
   • You should see the following output:

     * Running on Running on http://127.0.0.1:5000/
     • This means the server is running successfully.

Endpoints

• GET /
  • Returns 'Hello World! I exist!'
  • Used to check if the server is running, that's all.

User Endpoints

• POST /register

  • Registers a new user.
  • Requires a JSON body with the following fields:
    • username
    • password
  • Sets up every user with a default profile. (all fields are empty).
  • Returns a JSON message with confirmation or error message.

• POST /login

  • Logs in a user.
  • Requires a JSON body with the following fields:
    • username
    • password
  • Provides a JWT token for the user to use for authentication.
  • Returns a JSON message with confirmation or error message.

• GET /data

  • Returns the last 10 data entries from the database for the user.
  • Requires a JWT token in the header.
  • Returns a JSON message with the data entries if successful.

• GET /data/latest

  • Returns the latest data entry from the database for the user.
  • Requires a JWT token in the header.
  • Returns a JSON message with the data entry if successful.

• POST /data

  • Adds a new data entry to the database.
  • Requires a JSON body with the following fields:
    • data
      • temperature_data
      • pressure_data
  • Requires a JWT token in the header.
  • Will check if the data is 'abnormal' and mark it as such.
  • Returns a JSON message with confirmation or error message.

• GET /profile

  • Returns the profile information for the user.
  • Requires a JWT token in the header.
  • Returns a JSON message with the profile information if successful.

• PUT /profile

  • Updates the profile information for the user.
  • Requires a JSON body with at least ONE of the following fields:
    • name
    • email
    • dob
    • height
    • weight
    • doctor_name
    • doctor_email
  • Requires a JWT token in the header.
  • Returns a JSON message with confirmation or error message.

Good to know

• There is a config.py file for setting up the server with different configurations.

  • Such as in Development mode, or Production mode.
  • Default is Development mode.
  • This is useful for setting up different environments for testing and production easily.

• The helper.py file contains helper functions for the server.

  • is_abnormal - checks if the data is 'abnormal' and marks it as such. (If x value is > x mark as abnormal)
  • convert_old - converts the obj accordingly:
    • object -> list
    • object -> string
    • object -> dictionary