Homeless Support System Backend

Project Overview

A comprehensive backend system designed to facilitate the connection between homeless individuals and old age homes, with volunteer coordination. The system aims to provide a structured approach to helping homeless people find shelter and support through a network of volunteers and care facilities.

My Role & Contributions

As the backend developer, I was responsible for:

System Architecture & Design

• Designed and implemented the complete backend architecture using TypeScript
• Created comprehensive data models and schema design for multiple entities:
  • Homeless Persons
  • Volunteers
  • Old Age Homes
  • Transfer Management

Technical Implementation

• Developed RESTful APIs using TypeScript
• Implemented TSOA for automatic route generation and API documentation
• Integrated Swagger UI for interactive API documentation
• Set up PostgreSQL database with proper relationships and constraints
• Implemented proper DTO (Data Transfer Object) patterns for data validation and type safety

Technical Stack

Core Technologies

• TypeScript
• Node.js
• TSOA (Typescript OpenAPI)
• PostgreSQL

Tools & Libraries

• TSOA for API specification and route generation
• Swagger UI for API documentation
• Postman for API testing
• Express middleware for request handling
• Body-parser for request parsing
• CORS support for cross-origin requests

Development Practices

• Implemented type-safe development using TypeScript
• Followed DTO pattern for data validation
• Implemented middleware for request logging and error handling
• Proper error handling and validation using TSOA decorators

Project Structure

src/
├── controllers/     // API endpoint controllers
├── dtos/           // Data Transfer Objects
├── models/         // Database models and helpers
├── routes/         // Auto-generated routes
├── swagger.json    // API documentation
└── app.ts          // Application entry point

API Documentation

• Implemented automatic API documentation using Swagger UI
• All endpoints are documented with:
  • Request/Response schemas
  • Required parameters
  • Response codes
  • Clear endpoint descriptions

Testing

• Implemented comprehensive unit tests for all controllers
• API testing using Postman

Getting Started

npm install
npm run tsoa:routes  # Generate routes
npm run tsoa:spec   # Generate Swagger specification
npm run dev         # Start development server