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https://hackaday.com/2012/03/14/from-reference-design-to-usb-sound-card/ | From Reference Design To USB Sound Card | Mike Szczys | [
"digital audio hacks"
] | [
"dac",
"pcm2706",
"sound card",
"spdif",
"usb"
] | [Entropia] decided to try his hand at rolling is own sound card. He picked out a DAC chip, started his prototyping by studying the reference design from the datasheet, then
went through several iterations to arrive at this working model
.
He chose to base the board around the PCM2706. It’s a digital to analog converter that has built-in USB support; perfect for his needs. It’s got a headphone amplifier, but is also capable of putting out S/PDIF signals for a digital amplifier to pick up and use. Not bad for a part that can be had for right around eight bucks.
The first PCB he designed had a few electrical and footprint errors. But he was able to get it to run by adding some point-to-point jumpers, and bending the legs of his capacitors to fit the board area. With those issued accounted for he ordered a second batch of boards. These went together nicely, but the headphone output was incredibly loud. Turns out the filtering circuit had the wrong resistor and capacitor values. Changing them around, and swapping the audio output so that the correct channels were patched to the audio jack brings it to the first release version seen above. | 17 | 12 | [
{
"comment_id": "603490",
"author": "jejunerific",
"timestamp": "2012-03-14T21:19:01",
"content": "This guyis making a “pro” quality usb dac and headphone amplifier (as separate components designed to work together if desired). Seems like an interesting blog – lots of technical data and discussion."... | 1,760,376,934.63387 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/09/going-old-school-with-an-8051/ | Going Old School With An 8051 | Brian Benchoff | [
"classic hacks"
] | [
"8051",
"Intel 8051"
] | A while back, [Matt] bought a few 8051 MCUs and tucked them away for a future project. He just found these fabulous little chips in a component drawer and decided it was time to figure these guys out. Eventually, [Matt] stumbled across
this awesome resource
for 8051 programming.
The 8051 featured a still reasonably respectable 4k of ROM and 128 bytes of RAM – not too dissimilar from an ATtiny of today until you realize this 30-year-old chip has 32 IO pins. This microcontroller, along with its bigger brother the 8052, served as the de facto microcontroller standard for 20 years. You’ve no doubt taken a ride in a car that used one, and was even put to use doing low-level grunt work in early PCs.
[Matt] says he couldn’t find a Hackaday project featuring this 30-year-old microcontroller (not true, here’s one of those
tilty mazes
and an
electronic toll booth
), but even we have to admit we don’t feature much outside of the usual AVRs and PICs. Even though it’s 32 years old, the 8051 family still has some tricks up its sleeve like
playing audio CDs
. If you’ve got an 8051 project lying around,
send it in on the tip line
and we’ll probably throw it up. | 28 | 24 | [
{
"comment_id": "598861",
"author": "Jay Grizzard",
"timestamp": "2012-03-09T16:15:25",
"content": "Of course, the downside of hacking with the 8051 is… You have to use the 8051. Of all the microcontrollers I’ve used, it is by far the most painful. The memory model is insane!",
"parent_id": null... | 1,760,376,934.58151 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/09/pushingbox-alerts-you-of-your-cats-roaming-habits/ | PushingBox Alerts You Of Your Cat’s Roaming Habits | Mike Szczys | [
"home hacks"
] | [
"arduino",
"cat",
"cat door",
"notification",
"pushingbox"
] | Dogs may be man’s best friend, but cats are certainly a hacker’s best muse. They provide so many ‘reasons’ for projects, like this cat door which [Clement]
augmented to monitor the comings and goings of his feline friend
(
translated
). He’s using a web service we hadn’t heard of before called
PushingBox
to send notifications like Tweets and Emails from the Arduino monitoring that door.
The two white rectangles attached to the cat door in the image above are magnets commonly used for entry door monitoring. Using a pair of them along with reed switches lets the system differentiate between an incoming or outgoing cat. The Arduino is web-connected and running the PushingBox API to manage the notification messages. See a demo of the system in the clip after the break.
This would be a nice addition to
the cat door we saw [Dino] build
. Of course, if you really want to go all out with the cat hacks the next project should be
a GPS tracking collar
.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxlVAa3VC5U&w=470] | 5 | 5 | [
{
"comment_id": "598868",
"author": "Sven",
"timestamp": "2012-03-09T16:31:06",
"content": "How often does the cat rip the wires out of the exposed breadboard?",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "598893",
"author": "fartface",
"timestamp": "... | 1,760,376,934.388667 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/08/old-radio-old-phone-android-media-station/ | Old Radio + Old Phone = Android Media Station | Mike Szczys | [
"Android Hacks"
] | [
"htc",
"radio",
"wifi"
] | [Bjørn] combined some aging electronics he had around the house to create
this Android media center
. The enclosure is an FM-radio, but since he only listens to online media it wasn’t of much use to him. After sizing it up he realized it was a perfect candidate to receive his old HTC Hero Android phone.
The upper portion of the stock radio used to host controls for tuning the FM dial, adjusting volume, and switching the unit on and off. He cracked open the case, ditching the radio receiver and patching in to the amplifier. The volume knob was moved to the right side of the case, and a hole cut to receive the phone. Audio is pulled from the phone with the jack sticking out the left side. We’d love to see a future improvement using a right-angle jack (kind of
like this charging hack
) or patched directly into the phone’s circuit board. This way everything would fit inside the box.
Now he can listen to Internet radio, or stream some video like in the clip after the break.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6H-_9FWoZBM&w=470] | 19 | 12 | [
{
"comment_id": "598415",
"author": "Requiem",
"timestamp": "2012-03-09T00:31:13",
"content": "Depending on the model of Hero, I believe that their semi-proprietary USB jack actually carries audio (for use in HTC’s docks). I have an old Hero from Sprint that I plan on doing something similar with.",... | 1,760,376,934.344398 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/08/workout-timer-has-its-own-fight-bell/ | Workout Timer Has Its Own Fight Bell | Mike Szczys | [
"clock hacks"
] | [
"arduino",
"bell",
"ir",
"remote control",
"timer",
"workout"
] | This workout timer
turned out great. We think [Douglas] managed to end up with a professional look and a full range of features even though he was doing a lot of learning along the way.
He wanted a clock that was capable of counting up or down to time different segments of his workout. In order to be really useful it needed to have a remote control and a way to signal when time had run out. He grabbed an Arduino and started prototyping with an LED marquee at first, but after adding a second Arduino to deal with the display scanning issues he finally switched over to these LED segment displays.
The timer includes an IR receiver so that it can be controlled with a handheld remote. The large red bell to the side has a heck of a ding and is used to signal the start and end of timing. Perhaps the driver for that bell could be incorporated into
the home automation project from Wednesday
. Once the hardware decisions were finalized [Douglas] set out to build an enclosure that he could be proud of (mission accomplished!). Don’t miss the video after the break where he walks through all various aspects of the user interface.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECZYd6ET9P8&w=470] | 4 | 4 | [
{
"comment_id": "598527",
"author": "wmatl",
"timestamp": "2012-03-09T05:33:37",
"content": "Nice work.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "599255",
"author": "peter",
"timestamp": "2012-03-10T02:17:54",
"content": "Ya … but does it work... | 1,760,376,934.28579 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/08/led-tutorial-demystifies-several-control-techniques/ | LED Tutorial Demystifies Several Control Techniques | Mike Szczys | [
"LED Hacks"
] | [
"constant current",
"driver",
"mosfet",
"transistor"
] | Controlling LEDs is really quite simple. As you know, they need to be current limited which is as easy as applying Ohm’s law to your given set of values. To make things even more even there’s a slew of constant current LED driver chips out there that can be had for a song. But do you have any idea how those constant current circuits work? If not, then [Giorgos Lazaridis’]
guide on LED driving and controlling methods
will bring you up to speed in no time.
He starts out with the most basic concept, how to light an LED using proper current limiting resistors. But from there he moves on to the juicy bits. He builds a transistor-based constant current driver, then adds voltage regulation for the circuit as seen in the schematic on the left. He moves on to the more robust and efficient method on the right which pairs a MOSFET with that transistor circuit. This is the technique found on each pin of many of those constant current drivers and functions well regardless of the voltage input level.
He’s been producing videos to go along with these articles. After the break you can watch the episode that accompanies the schematic on the left.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fMc99rM6u4k&w=470]
[via
Reddit
] | 31 | 7 | [
{
"comment_id": "598375",
"author": "Bogdan",
"timestamp": "2012-03-08T22:59:54",
"content": "The PWM circuit described there is not the greatest. The Disc pin on a 555 is not meant to sink very high current and the fact that the transistor begins to act as a current source means that it is kind of ... | 1,760,376,934.456207 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/08/reinventing-the-clapper-with-a-knock-based-home-automation-controller/ | Reinventing The Clapper With A Knock-based Home Automation Controller | Mike Szczys | [
"home hacks"
] | [
"clapper",
"home automation",
"knock",
"piezo",
"toktoktok"
] | Clap On!… Clap Off!… was super awesome when The Clapper came out in the mid-eighties. Now [Mathieu Stephan] is trying to make the concept much more functional. He put together
a controller that lets you knoch on walls to control things around the house
. It’s called the Toktoktok project and uses small boxes to receive user input and control items like lamps and computers.
A piezo element picks up the noises made by a user. Above [Mathieu] demonstrates how sensitive the element is, picking up scratching and knocking anywhere along this wall and displaying it as a waveform on the computer monitor. Clever processing and filtering of these noises lets the device convert them into different commands. He covers all of this in the video after the break, then demonstrates a bunch of functionality such as waking up and starting audio playback from a computer just by tapping on the coffee table.
This isn’t the first time we’ve seen the concept. One of our favorites is
this door lock which listens for the secret knock
. But [Mathieu] is trying to extend the functionality and bring it to a more general market.
[vimeo http://vimeo.com/37957520 w=470] | 12 | 10 | [
{
"comment_id": "598332",
"author": "Aaron",
"timestamp": "2012-03-08T21:35:20",
"content": "Awesome hack!“Knoch”? Good God.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "598341",
"author": "Jonathan",
"timestamp": "2012-03-08T21:57:23",
"content"... | 1,760,376,934.09867 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/08/building-a-magnetic-rotary-encoder/ | Building A Magnetic Rotary Encoder | Mike Szczys | [
"cnc hacks"
] | [
"3d printer",
"as5043",
"magnetic",
"rotary encoder"
] | [Long Haired Hacker] has undertaken a high-resolution 3D printer build. He got his hands on some motors to drive the build platform but it doesn’t have a built-in encoder. He knows that optical encoder wheels can have problems due to dirt and grim as well as ambient light so he set out to find a better way of providing feedback to the controller. He ended up
building his own magnetic rotary encoder
which is shown above.
At the heart of the system is an AS5043 magnetic rotary sensor. The chip, which runs from $6.50-$11, can detect and report the rotation of a magnetic field with great precision. The rotation data can be read out in degrees using SPI, but it sounds like there’s also grey code output on a few pins if that suits your needs a bit better. The magnet which the chip measures is mounted in a sleeve milled to seat inside of a bearing ring.
The 3D printing method [Long Haired Hacker] has chosen uses a projector and light-cured resin to achieve
the kind of results seen in this other hi-res printer
. | 15 | 12 | [
{
"comment_id": "598308",
"author": "Colecoman1982",
"timestamp": "2012-03-08T20:51:34",
"content": "Just a minor correction. I’m assuming you meant to say “dirt and grime” instead of “dirt and grim” (unless you really did mean to suggest that a modern decedent of the famous fairy-tale recorders is... | 1,760,376,934.152548 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/08/hard-resetting-your-ford-touch-system-the-easy-way/ | Hard Resetting Your Ford Touch System The Easy Way | Mike Nathan | [
"Transportation Hacks"
] | [
"audio",
"Ford touch",
"fuse",
"reset",
"stereo",
"sync"
] | [Jeff Clymer] owns a Ford Focus, and while he’s generally happy with the car,
the “My Ford Touch/Sync” system can be buggy at times.
He spends a lot of time in the car each day, so when the entertainment center locks up as it is frequently known to do, he has to turn off the car and pull a fuse to reset the system. Since pulling a fuse while on the road is pretty impractical, he decided to install a reset button, making system reboots a breeze.
He started by disassembling various fuses until he found one with an easy to remove fusible link. Once it was in pieces, he soldered a pair of wires to the fuse terminals and connected everything to a normally closed momentary pushbutton switch. After adding an inline fuse holder and reinserting the original fuse, he installed the button into the back of his glove box
Now instead of physically removing the fuse each time his stereo locks up, he can simply push a button and be on his way. Here’s hoping a software fix is coming for [Jeff’s] car sooner rather than later! | 28 | 15 | [
{
"comment_id": "598222",
"author": "andar_b",
"timestamp": "2012-03-08T18:30:09",
"content": "Apparently he doesn’t actually use his glove compartment for anything. A button on the BOTTOM!?! Now he can’t stuff it full of junk like normal people. ;) lol",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
... | 1,760,376,934.518923 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/08/reverse-engineering-a-nokia-lcd/ | Reverse Engineering A Nokia LCD | Brian Benchoff | [
"Cellphone Hacks",
"Parts"
] | [
"lcd",
"lcd display",
"Nokia LCD",
"qvga"
] | LCD displays taken from old Nokia phones have been a staple of the hardware makers for years now, so we’re very happy to see [Andy]
reverse engineering a full color QVGA display
so we can move our grayscale projects over to a full-color display.
The screen in a Nokia 2730, 5000, and 7100 cell phone is a wonder of technology – its 18-bit color with a very high-resolution piqued [Andy]’s interest. He bought a second-hand Nokia 2730 off of eBay and started taking it apart. After checking out the schematics for the phone, [Andy] had a few breakout boards made; especially useful since he found a few connectors as well.
With a great deal of Googling, [Andy] found
another lost soul
who successfully broke into a similar LCD display and discovered it was command-compatible with a Magnachip LCD controller. The only way forward was to send a few of these commands over to the display and watch what happens.
[Andy] managed get pixels drawn on the screen, and found a few interesting features: hardware scrolling is enabled, as is changing between portrait or landscape orientations. From a second-hand phone on eBay, [Andy] now has a very nice QVGA display. We’re calling this a win, but you can judge the video after the break for yourself.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=493r8jG8A4E&w=470] | 16 | 12 | [
{
"comment_id": "598183",
"author": "Keith",
"timestamp": "2012-03-08T17:15:15",
"content": "Exceptionally nice work here!",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "598188",
"author": "george",
"timestamp": "2012-03-08T17:25:38",
"content": "E... | 1,760,376,934.687807 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/08/hackaday-links-march-8th-2012/ | Hackaday Links March 8th, 2012 | Jeremy Cook | [
"Hackaday links",
"News"
] | [
"3d printer",
"camera mount",
"makerbot",
"open source",
"pin headers",
"prusa mendel",
"reprap",
"time-lapse"
] | Solder Your Pin headers Straight
If you’re worried about how to
solder your pin headers straight
, why not try this simple trick and put them into a breadboard before soldering?
Etiquette for Open Source Projects
If you use or develop open source projects, it’s worth checking out [Phillip Torrone]’s
Unspoken rules of Open Source
article. You may not HAVE to do all the things he says, but it’s certainly a good starting point for being ethical with your hacks.
The [GoAmateur] Camera Mount
If you can’t afford a professional camera mount for your bike, why not
make one yourself
? As pointed out in the article, normal cameras aren’t really made for this, so do so at your own risk. If this isn’t shoddy enough for you, why not make a mount for your 4 year old dumb-phone (Env2)
out of a block of wood
?
A 3D Printer BOM
If you’re wondering how much a 3D printer will cost you, or where to source the parts, this
Bill of Materials
for a
Prusa Mendel
should help. We would assume this project will be updated as everything is built, so be sure to check back!
MakerBot Assembly Time-Lapse
Along the same lines, if you’re wondering about getting into 3D printing, this time-lapse of the
Thing-O-Matic being assembled
may give you some insight into what’s involved in getting one functional! | 9 | 6 | [
{
"comment_id": "598131",
"author": "Daid",
"timestamp": "2012-03-08T16:10:35",
"content": "I win:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CoAukVj06Ps8 hours to assemble my Ultimaker, on my own.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": [
{
"comment_id": "598422",
"author":... | 1,760,376,934.738288 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/08/toaster-oven-reflow-soldering-roundup/ | Toaster Oven Reflow Soldering Roundup | Brian Benchoff | [
"Tool Hacks"
] | [
"reflow",
"reflow oven",
"smd",
"toaster oven"
] | SMD components have a lot of advantages over the through-hole parts our fathers and grandfathers soldered. Working with these tiny surface mount components requires a larger investment than a soldering iron and a wire-wrap gun, though. Here’s a few reflow ovens that were sent in over the past week or two.
[ramsay] bought a 110 V toaster oven off of eBay. Even though [ramsay] is in England and has 230 V mains, everything in the oven is mechanical and works just fine with a higher voltage. His
first test
didn’t go quite as planned; the solder paste wasn’t melting at 120° C, so he cranked up the temperature and learned that the FR in FR-4 stands for flame retardant. Never deterred, [ramsay] decided to
build a controller
so the temperature ramps up and cools off at the right rates for the flux and paste to do their thing.
Solder paste has a
temperature profile
that requires the board to be kept at a temperature between 150° and 180° C for a minute or so before climbing up to 220° for a second so the solder will melt. [Nicolas] had the interesting idea of putting a
USB port in his toaster oven
and storing the heating profiles on his desktop. The build uses an MSP430 microcontroller to turn the relays powering heating elements on and off. [Nick] is working on a C# desktop app to monitor and regulate the oven temperature from his computer, so we’re fairly interested in seeing the final results.
Watching the SMD
self-alignment videos
on YouTube is a lot more fun than messing around with tweezers, stereo microscopes, and extremely fine soldering irons. If you’ve got a better idea for a toaster/reflow oven, send it in on our
tip line
and we’ll check it out. | 16 | 10 | [
{
"comment_id": "598092",
"author": "Ron Neely II",
"timestamp": "2012-03-08T15:16:29",
"content": "At work we just preheat the oven to 275F then put the boards in, increase the temp to 450F and set a timer for 5 minutes. At the end of the 5 minutes we check the boards and see if the solder’s reflo... | 1,760,376,935.044352 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/07/glove-based-touch-screen-from-a-crt-monitor/ | Glove-based Touch Screen From A CRT Monitor | Mike Szczys | [
"Multitouch Hacks"
] | [
"crt",
"fpga",
"glove",
"phototransistor"
] | Here’s a bulky old CRT monitor used as a touch-screen without any alterations. It doesn’t use an overlay, but instead
detects position using phototransistors in the fingertips of a glove
.
Most LCD-based touch screens use some type overlay,
like these resistive sensors
. But cathode-ray-tube monitors function in a fundamentally different way from LCD screens, using an electron gun and ring of magnets to direct a beam across the screen. The inside of the screen is coated with phosphors which glow when excited by electrons. This project harness that property, using a photo transistor in both the pointer and middle finger of the glove. An FPGA drives the monitor and reads from the sensors. It can extrapolate the position of the phototransistors on the display based on the passing electron beam, and use that as cursor data.
Check out the video after the break to see this in action. It’s fairy accurate, but we’re sure the system can be tightened up a bit from this first prototype. There developers also mention that the system has a bit of trouble with darker shades.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNXDjwqBhNY&w=470]
[Thanks Luc] | 23 | 14 | [
{
"comment_id": "597464",
"author": "ColonelPannick",
"timestamp": "2012-03-08T00:13:29",
"content": "Nifty to be done in an FPGA, but This is exactly the same thing as the C64 light pen, and every light gun for every gaming console up until LCD TV’s became a thing.",
"parent_id": null,
"dep... | 1,760,376,934.851697 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/07/10-camera-module-for-your-next-fpga-project/ | $10 Camera Module For Your Next FPGA Project | Mike Szczys | [
"Microcontrollers"
] | [
"camera",
"fpga",
"ov7670",
"papilio"
] | Here is [Voelker] showing off his FPGA-based camera hardware. He picked up an ov7670 camera on eBay for about $10 and
set to work pulling pixels and processing the images
. He’s now able to grab thirty frames per second and push them to his own Java display application. He’s using the Papilio board and if you want to give this a try yourself you might be able to
snag a free breakout board
(wing) for the unit.
[Voelker’s] approach is to grab each frame, and get it ready for quick serial transmission. The incoming frames are at 640×480 resolution. He scales that down to 80×60 and transmitted at 3M baud. The hardware resources used are actually quite light-weight. He wrote his own modules for transfer and photo processing using very little RAM for downscaling and one 128 byte buffer for data transmission. It sounds like he plans to use the camera to view and detect a line to create his own line-following robot.
Wondering where you’ve seen the ov7670 module before? It’s the part
used on the TRAKR robot
. | 23 | 12 | [
{
"comment_id": "597440",
"author": "hboy007",
"timestamp": "2012-03-07T23:11:51",
"content": "recently bought a bunch of Samsung AU-85 camera modules (containing a Biomorphic Bi8921 2MP sensor with on-chip jpeg compressor), they can produce up to 12 fps at 1600x1200px. Nice to see someone actually ... | 1,760,376,935.325221 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/07/can-bus-for-home-automation/ | CAN Bus For Home Automation | Mike Szczys | [
"home hacks"
] | [
"can-bus",
"home automation",
"node",
"pic"
] | Here’s one node on the new
home automation system
on which [Black Rynius] is working. So far he’s testing out the system with just two nodes, but plans to build more as the project progresses. He’s chosen to use the CAN bus for communications; a protocol which is most commonly found in automotive applications.
The biggest plus about using the CAN bus is that it requires just one pair of wires for communications. As you can see, there’s an old doorbell included on this board and he’s hoping to use the existing doorbell wire to connect between nodes. Each unit includes a PIC 18F4580 which has a CAN engine built into it for easy protocol translation. There is also an MCP2551 which handles the transmissions. You can read a bit more about the hardware choices
in his breadboarding post
.
So far almost everything is working as planned. He’s able to send and receive data between the two boards including temperature from a sensor and time from a DS1305 RTC chip. The one thing that vexes him is that doorbell. It draws too much current for the wall wart that’s powering the board, browning out the microcontroller and causing a reset. That’s not a hard fix and we look forward to more developments in the near future.
[via
Dangerous Prototypes
] | 19 | 9 | [
{
"comment_id": "597425",
"author": "Bryan",
"timestamp": "2012-03-07T22:36:56",
"content": "May the power of PIC compel you!It’s nice to see more Microchip brand projects",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "597441",
"author": "Steve-O-Rama",
... | 1,760,376,935.544399 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/07/short-and-squat-balancing-bot-is-extremely-stable/ | Short And Squat Balancing Bot Is Extremely Stable | Mike Szczys | [
"Robots Hacks"
] | [
"arduino",
"balancing",
"dualshock 3",
"IMU",
"mbed",
"playstation",
"ps3"
] | [Lauszus] really put together
an impressive self balancing robot platform
. It is virtually motionless when balancing in place, and that stability is never lost even when motoring across the room.
Part of the success behind this build is the use of quality components. He’s got a really nice set of motors with built-in encoders which give feedback to the balancing system. They work in conjunction with a gyroscopic sensor and PID code to keep the two-wheeled platform upright. An mbed board running 96 MHz provides plenty of computing power for the balancing system. But an Arduino can also be found on board. This was included to facilitate Bluetooth connectivity with the remote control as [Lauszus] didn’t want to port the code he had already written.
The fourteen minute video after the break shares the details behind how the PID controller is tuned and how [Lauszus] implements target angle and a few other factors. Of course he talks about the hardware choices, and demonstrates functionality by driving the bot around using a wireless PS3 controller.
The construction method which uses masonite strips and threaded rod does a good job of protecting the hardware mounted on it. We’re always a bit worried about these bots falling over and
some of the projects we see
offer little or no protection. Once thing that helps protect against a spill is a piezo buzzer which sounds when the battery is getting low.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N28C_JqVhGU&w=470] | 20 | 14 | [
{
"comment_id": "597377",
"author": "py",
"timestamp": "2012-03-07T21:25:02",
"content": "very nicewhy did you put the battery so high?it would be better to put it lower, no?",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": [
{
"comment_id": "597387",
"author": "GTech",
... | 1,760,376,935.66533 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/07/preheat-alarm-added-to-a-basic-kitchen-oven/ | Preheat Alarm Added To A Basic Kitchen Oven | Mike Szczys | [
"cooking hacks"
] | [
"buzzer",
"npn",
"oven",
"photoresistor",
"preheat",
"transistor"
] | [Justin] didn’t want to keep checking if the ‘oven heating’ indicator light had gone off before popping his unbaked edibles into the oven. Many models offer a buzzer to let you know when the chosen temp is reached, but for folks who own a basic oven model there’s just a light that tells when the heating element is getting juice. Not to worry, he plied his circuit design skills and built
a buzzer to alert him when the oven’s ready
.
It only took a few components to accomplish the task. [Justin] uses a pair of NPN transistors triggered by a photoresistor. One transistor is responsible for switching on the buzzer, the other transistor is driven by the photoresistor and controls the base of its companion transistor (see the schematic for a better understanding).
He designed and etched a small PCB to host all the parts. As you can see above, it mounts over the indicator light and is powered by a 9V battery. There’s an on/off switch to the right so the buzzer doesn’t keep triggering while cooking, and a potentiometer allows him to fine-tune the photoresistor sensitivity. | 21 | 12 | [
{
"comment_id": "597331",
"author": "Corey",
"timestamp": "2012-03-07T20:16:18",
"content": "As a Certified appliance tech, and a HaD troll Its my pleasure to inform you all that the oven is not properly preheated when the heating light turns off, intact most ovens take 20-30 minutes to properly pre... | 1,760,376,935.221433 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/07/adding-a-lot-of-twinkle-to-this-rebar-sculpture/ | Adding A Lot Of Twinkle To This Rebar Sculpture | Mike Szczys | [
"Hackerspaces",
"LED Hacks"
] | [
"festival",
"maui makers",
"rebar",
"sculpture",
"source"
] | Blinky lights have a way of attracting attention and that’s exactly what the members of the Maui Makers hackerspace were shooting for. The sculpture above is the logo for the Source festival, a Burning Man inspired music gathering in the Aloha state. For this year’s festival they went crazy, installing
twelve meters of RGB LED strip controlled by seven Arduino boards
.
The goal was to make the twelve-foot tall sculpture into a lighted interactive showpiece. In addition to the LEDs it includes a microphone, capacitance sensors, Bluetooth connectivity, and a piezo speaker. There’s one Arduino to rule them all, with another Teensy controller to drive an LCD display in the control box, and five Teensy boards to address the LED strips. They grabbed [Bill Porter’s]
Easy Transfer library
to facilitate communication between the microcontrollers (his libraries are becoming popular, we just saw his
mp3 shield library used in another project
on Tuesday).
The code which drives the LED animations is based on some Adafruit examples. We really enjoy the waving flag effect seen in the clip after the break.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8b8IzOB4I0&w=470] | 11 | 7 | [
{
"comment_id": "597295",
"author": "Zak",
"timestamp": "2012-03-07T19:15:36",
"content": "A few shift registers could have cut down most if not all of those slave arduinos.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "597306",
"author": "trebu",
"ti... | 1,760,376,935.265048 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/07/vintage-vt100-terminal-computing-with-a-beaglebone/ | Vintage VT100 Terminal Computing…with A Beaglebone | Mike Nathan | [
"classic hacks"
] | [
"beaglebone",
"DEC",
"pdp",
"serial",
"uart",
"vax",
"vintage",
"vt100"
] | A
cool little project came our way
, which we thought might be of interest to some of you vintage computer buffs. [Joerg Hoppe] wrote in to share a DEC VT100 terminal he resurrected in a novel fashion.
His “DECBox” system was created with a Beaglebone, which he uses to run a wide array of PDP11/VAX terminal emulators, thanks to
the SIMH project.
[Joerg] constructed an expansion shield for the Beaglebone that provides several UART connections, enabling him to connect it to his DEC terminal over a serial interface. Since he added several serial plugs to the Beaglebone, he can even run multiple emulator installations in parallel on different terminals without too much trouble.
[Joerg’s] efforts are mainly for a vintage computer display he is constructing, but setting up such a system of your own should be no problem. If you happen to have one (or more) of these boxes sitting around collecting dust, this would be an easy way to get them all up and running without bulky external hardware, since the Beaglebone tucks nicely into the rear expansion slot on a VT100.
Be sure to check out his site for more details on how his DECBox software package works as well as for more pictures of vintage terminal goodness. | 25 | 9 | [
{
"comment_id": "597250",
"author": "svofski",
"timestamp": "2012-03-07T18:26:32",
"content": "His “DECBox” system was created with a Beaglebone, which he uses to run a wide array of PDP11/VAX terminal emulators, thanks to the SIMH project.Excuse me but does it run PDP11 and VAX emulators or does it... | 1,760,376,935.60621 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/07/six-foot-speaker-shakes-buildings-to-their-foundation/ | Six Foot Speaker Shakes Buildings To Their Foundation | Brian Benchoff | [
"hardware"
] | [
"speaker"
] | In the first scene of
Back to the Future
, [Marty McFly] visits the unoccupied laboratory of [Doc Brown]. Seeing an 8-foot-tall speaker connected to a huge array of amplifiers, [Marty] immediately turns on the amps, plugs in an electric guitar, and promptly destroys the amps and speaker while being thrown across the room. This scene must have been a huge inspiration to [Dan] and [Kyle]; they decided to
replicate this gigantic speaker
for the 2011 UW-Madison Engineering Expo.
A speaker is a remarkably simple device – they’re usually just a coil of wire, a set of magnets on an iron frame, and a cone. [Dan] and [Kyle] wound hundreds of feet of copper wire around a fiberglass frame for the voice coil, used 8 and 10-inch steel pipe to secure the magnets, and pop riveted two sheets of polycarbonate together to form the cone. The result is a six-foot-diameter speaker in an 8x8x2 foot enclosure.
A speaker this size is only good for one thing: a ton of bass. The speaker can reliably reproduce frequencies from 5 Hz to 50 Hz, frequencies that are better felt than heard. There’s a video of the speaker in action after the break, but we’re pretty sure the best way to experience this insane device is in person.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bI-Ztvx0w9I&w=470] | 43 | 25 | [
{
"comment_id": "597172",
"author": "Aaron",
"timestamp": "2012-03-07T17:04:37",
"content": "Well, if thereisa brown note, this is a great way to find it.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": [
{
"comment_id": "597302",
"author": "Max",
"timestamp": "... | 1,760,376,935.401477 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/07/sensor-rig-finds-out-if-motorists-are-sharing-the-road-with-cyclists/ | Sensor Rig Finds Out If Motorists Are Sharing The Road With Cyclists | Mike Szczys | [
"Transportation Hacks"
] | [
"bicycle",
"camera",
"commute",
"distance",
"passing"
] | Apparently there’s some cause for concern when it comes to bikes and automobiles sharing the roads in Austin, Texas. [Christopher Stanton] wrote in to tell us there’s a law on the books now that requires motorists to give three feet of space when passing a cyclist. This is pretty difficult to enforce as there’s no solid proof like the radar gun provides when it comes to speed limits. The hardware above is seeking to help by collecting data on passing habits.
It measures and records the distance of each vehicle that passes you
while on the bike. The goal isn’t to ticket more drivers, it’s to collect statistical data that might help change dangerous driving habits.
As you can see, a front equipment rack hosts the hardware for easy installation on a bike. It has an arm that extends to the side the same distance as the handle bars. The HD camera with wide-angle lens is set to snap a photo which can be used to determine the bike and vehicle positions in the lanes, along with the distance readout from the sensor.
We’d certainly be interested in seeing the numbers for average passing clearance in a heavily traveled urban environment. Even with bike lanes, things can feel pretty tight on a busy day! | 120 | 35 | [
{
"comment_id": "597121",
"author": "st2000",
"timestamp": "2012-03-07T16:11:02",
"content": "Hum, there is a lens that SCUBA divers use to snap above/below split air/water shots. I am wondering if such an lens in employed here to give good focus of both the near distance-measurement-display and th... | 1,760,376,935.821384 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/07/foot-controlled-mouse-keeps-your-hands-on-the-keyboard/ | Foot-controlled Mouse Keeps Your Hands On The Keyboard | Mike Szczys | [
"Peripherals Hacks"
] | [
"foot",
"mouse",
"pedal"
] | A bit of mechanical ingenuity makes
building this foot-controlled mouse
into a fun project. It consists of a platform which hosts one pedal for each foot. The right foot controls the movement of the cursor, and the left is responsible for the buttons.
The guts of a wireless mouse do most of the electrical work for this hack. You can see that the optical sensor is mounted on the front of the right foot pedal. A ball bearing combined with a hinge provides motion on two axes. This moves the sensor past a piece of curved foam made by covering a ball with plastic wrap then spraying foam insulation around it. The pedal on the left has four buttons actuated by moving the toes down, up, left, or right. There’s a centering mechanism for this pedal which uses a rubber band
One thing we wonder about here is whether there is a need to lift and re-center the mouse/cursor? There is also no scroll wheel. But those issues are just waiting for someone to pick up the project and make their own improvements. | 27 | 18 | [
{
"comment_id": "597095",
"author": "Dax",
"timestamp": "2012-03-07T15:14:30",
"content": "Mouse sensors are nifty. If you come across a wireless mouse that uses one of the ADNS cameras, it’s very easy to interface to a microcontroller using the reference design in the datasheets. Just pull the came... | 1,760,376,935.883374 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/06/your-theme-song-greets-you-at-the-front-door/ | Your Theme Song Greets You At The Front Door | Mike Szczys | [
"home hacks"
] | [
"arduino",
"door",
"hall effect",
"magnet",
"mp3",
"music"
] | One thing you can look forward to when arriving at home after a long, arduous day at the office is
some peppy theme music when you walk in the door
. [Sebastian Sommer] built the system, and shows it off in the video after the break by dancing to James Brown’s
I feel good
.
The setup uses an Arduino as a microcontroller. It monitors a hall effect sensor on the jamb which detects a passing magnet on the door. We guess this means the system doesn’t know if you’re coming or going but perhaps a future upgrade would add an infrared beam to detect your legs as head out the door. The music itself is played by an SparkFun MP3 shield which has a decoder chip, microSD slot, and audio jack for the powered speakers. [Sebastian] grabbed a copy of [Bill Porter’s]
mp3 shield library
to get the project up and running quickly.
This is a pretty cool addition if you’re already
using an Arduino for a door lock
or vice versa. Or maybe you’re not home enough to make this hack worth it, in which case you simply must take this
music playing Tesla coil hat
along on your commute.
[vimeo http://vimeo.com/37957487 w=470] | 16 | 11 | [
{
"comment_id": "596620",
"author": "peter",
"timestamp": "2012-03-07T01:09:31",
"content": "I would have it do the standard sitcom applause as I walk in, like I’m being appreciated as I enter the scene.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": [
{
"comment_id": "596631"... | 1,760,376,935.933393 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/06/giant-pencil-used-as-an-etch-a-sketch-stylus/ | Giant Pencil Used As An Etch A Sketch Stylus | Mike Szczys | [
"Kinect hacks"
] | [
"etch a sketch",
"Kinect",
"labview",
"pencil",
"sdk",
"stepper",
"waterloo labs"
] | The gang over at Waterloo Labs decided to add a team-building aspect to a plain old Etch a Sketch. Instead of just twisting the two knobs with your own mitts, they’re
converting this giant pencil’s movements into Etch a Sketch art
.
The challenge here is figuring out a reliable way to track the tip of the pencil as it moves through the air. You may have already guess that they are using a Microsoft Kinect depth camera for this task. The Windows SDK for the device actually has a wrapper that helps it to play nicely with LabView, where the data is converted to position commands for the display.
On the Etch a Sketch side of things they’ve chosen the time-tested technique of
adding gears and stepper motors
to each of the toy’s knobs. As you can see from the video after the break, the results are mixed. We’d say from the CNC ‘W’ demo that is shown there’s room for improvement when it comes to the motor driver. We can’t really tell if the Kinect data translation is working as intended or not. But we say load it up and bring to a conference. We’re sure it’ll attract a lot of attention just like
this giant version
did.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WftiLoqHeZA&w=470]
[Thanks Maegan] | 5 | 4 | [
{
"comment_id": "596604",
"author": "N0LKK",
"timestamp": "2012-03-07T00:24:22",
"content": "Did Jerri ever get her giant etch a sketch controllable via the web?",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "596643",
"author": "Hirudinea",
"timestamp"... | 1,760,376,935.977257 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/06/monitoring-home-electricity-usage-via-a-tidy-wall-display/ | Monitoring Home Electricity Usage Via A Tidy Wall Display | Mike Nathan | [
"home hacks"
] | [
"attiny",
"electricity",
"power meter",
"xbee"
] | [Janne Mäntyharju]
wanted to get an idea as to how much electricity he consumed
in his new home, mainly to see if using his fireplace for additional heat had any effect on his bill. Luckily his power meter was mounted in the utility room of his house, making it easy to keep tabs on his usage.
His meter features a small LED that blinks a fixed number of times per consumed Kilowatt hour, so he mounted a photoresistor and ATtiny2313 above it to detect the light pulses. [Janne’s] server polls the microcontroller every 5 minutes over an XBee connection, recording the power usage in an SQL database for further analysis. From this database, he generates graphs showing both the temperature in his home as well as the average electricity usage for the specified time period.
[Janne] also wanted to make the data easily accessible,
so he constructed a wall-mounted display
using a Beagleboard and digital picture frame. The display not only shows his electricity usage, but it toggles between the weather, calendar events, IRC logs, and pictures from his security camera.
We’ve certainly seen
this sort of electric meter monitoring before
, but it serves as a quick reminder that given the right tools, watching your power usage (among other things) can be as easy as taking a quick glance over at the wall. | 16 | 10 | [
{
"comment_id": "596560",
"author": "JustAGuy",
"timestamp": "2012-03-06T23:20:48",
"content": "I’d love to have a power meter to begin with. ;)",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "596566",
"author": "mess_maker",
"timestamp": "2012-03-06T23... | 1,760,376,936.378808 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/06/3d-graphics-on-an-oscilloscope/ | 3D Graphics On An Oscilloscope | Brian Benchoff | [
"Microcontrollers"
] | [
"3d graphics",
"AVRmega",
"oscilloscope"
] | Armed with four wingtip-mounted Sienar Fleet Systems L-s9.3 laser cannons and a SFS P-s5.6 twin ion engine, the TIE Interceptor has become the scourge of the Rebel fleet, nearly capable of out-running and out-maneuvering the beloved A-wings of Nomad Squadron. Because of
[Matt]’s tireless work
, we can now visualize TIE Interceptors on approach with our
targeting computers
oscilloscopes.
[Matt]’s oscilloscope visualization of a TIE fighter is a huge improvement on
previous scope displays
we’ve seen, considering [Matt] used very minimal hardware to display 3D graphics. The build uses an ATMega88 along with a 10-bit DAC to draw lines on the screen. The capacious Mega88 with 8kB of flash and 1kB of SRAM was nearly filled to capacity with [Matt]’s project; to improve the rendering speed of the display, sine & cosine values are pre-computed and stored in flash along with division tables for common values.
The rotation of the TIE fighter is controlled by a serial connection to [Batt]’s desktop. It’s a very impressive piece of work that looks like it would fit into the cinematic aesthetic of
The Empire Strikes Back
. Check out [Matt]’s video of the TIE rotating in space after the break.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S019rSEhRbY&w=470] | 12 | 9 | [
{
"comment_id": "596351",
"author": "charliex",
"timestamp": "2012-03-06T19:11:06",
"content": "the old star wars arcade games used XY displays, that had scope hookups so you could diagnose, fancy scopes with blanking played it picture perfect.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies":... | 1,760,376,936.6913 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/06/brewing-up-gunpowder-with-household-products/ | Brewing Up Gunpowder With Household Products | Mike Szczys | [
"chemistry hacks"
] | [
"ammonium nitrate",
"gun powder",
"potassium chloride",
"saltpeter"
] | When the zombiepocalypse comes you’re not going to want to run out to the store for more ammo. But you can always reload great grandpa’s musket with
some homemade gunpowder
. All kidding aside, the invention and proliferation of gunpowder had a profound effect on the world. Here you can see just how easy it is to make with chemicals that are common in our modern world.
The two compounds that go into this experiment are ammonium nitrate and potassium chloride. Where can you get your hands on these materials? Instant cold packs use ammonium nitrate and water to start an endothermic reaction. The potassium chloride can be found in the grocery store as a table salt alternative.
The chemicals need to be measured by weight. [William Finucane] didn’t have a digital scale on hand so he made a balance using a wooden ruler, two plastic component drawers, and a Bic lighter as a fulcrum. With approximately equal parts of the two materials he sets about dissolving in water, filtering, and heating of the concoction to produce saltpeter. Combine this with powdered sugar and you’ve got gun powder. Don’t believe that it works? You can see the fiery goodness in the clip after the break.
Flammable and explosive materials are dangerous to work with, so you probably shouldn’t do this yourself. But then again, it can’t be as dangerous as
working with thermite
.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6AgjOrJgZpg&w=470] | 101 | 39 | [
{
"comment_id": "596294",
"author": "spaniard",
"timestamp": "2012-03-06T18:06:28",
"content": "This is not gunpowder, this mixture is more usable for making smoke bombs or even homemade rockets. You can improve the reaction by caramelizing the sugar in the mixture.",
"parent_id": null,
"dep... | 1,760,376,936.55082 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/06/freedom-toaster-dispenses-foss-for-free/ | Freedom Toaster Dispenses FOSS… For Free | Mike Szczys | [
"Linux Hacks"
] | [
"cd",
"dvd",
"foss",
"open source",
"vending machine"
] | The Seneca College Linux Club figured out a fantastic way to help promote Linux to a wider audience. They took some surplus hardware and
made an Open Source software vending machine
. That is and isn’t a play on words. The project itself is an open source project, and the goal is to dispense other open source software in the form of CDs and DVDs.
Their build page
shares all of the details. They acquired an older server cabinet which was on the way out from the IT department. It’s more than large enough to fit a person inside, which is overkill but it makes it much less likely that someone will try to walk off with the thing. Inside you’ll find a computer, two monitors (one is a touch screen for consumer use, the other is just an extra hidden inside for maintenance.
You must bring your own blank CD-R or DVD-R (but the burning is free). You can see the DVD shelf at waist-level on the fully painted kiosk above. The only thing we think is missing here is a USB port for brewing up a bootable USB stick.
[Thanks MS3FGX] | 21 | 15 | [
{
"comment_id": "596264",
"author": "Dax",
"timestamp": "2012-03-06T17:09:23",
"content": "The irony is, that once you got the CD, and try to install the software on your Linux machine, you’ll quickly find out that you’re missing dependencies or you’re running the wrong distro, or wrong version of s... | 1,760,376,936.311144 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/06/interesting-substrate-used-to-position-leds-of-this-word-clock/ | Interesting Substrate Used To Position LEDs Of This Word Clock | Mike Szczys | [
"clock hacks"
] | [
"assembly",
"attiny2313",
"plastic grid",
"word clock",
"yarn work"
] | [Ivan]
decided to build a Word Clock
as holiday gift for his parents. He pulled it off, but as you can see above, it meant a lot of point-to-point soldering. One small piece of proto-board is used to host the power supply and a few integrated circuits, with the rest of the device mounted on an interesting choice of material.
The substrate that holds the LED array for the display is a plastic mesh. You’ll find the stuff in any craft store, it’s meant for use in yarn work. It comes rated in several different sizes designated by holes-per-linear-inch. This is fantastic because it makes precision spacing a snap. The face plate itself looks great, especially when you consider that all of the letters were cut out from a piece of black foam board by hand. This bezel was then put in a picture frame, with a bit of tissue paper as a diffuser.
They tell us that the code was written in assembly for an ATtiny2313 microcontroller. It uses a DS1305 RTC chip to keep time and you might be interested to see how the communication protocol was implemented in assembly. The project is based on [Doug’s] Word Clock
which we covered in this links post
. | 5 | 4 | [
{
"comment_id": "596237",
"author": "ss",
"timestamp": "2012-03-06T16:23:41",
"content": "Nice work. Is it a bug that the clock skipped 5 to 12 o’clock? It jumped from 11:50 to 12.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "596258",
"author": "John V."... | 1,760,376,936.424002 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/06/dual-monitor-work-stations-aims-to-keep-you-on-the-treadmill-longer/ | Dual-monitor Work Stations Aims To Keep You On The Treadmill Longer | Mike Szczys | [
"home hacks"
] | [
"exercise",
"phototransistor",
"pic",
"treadmill",
"work station"
] | In an effort keep his workout schedule on track [Jamie]
built himself this dual-screen treadmill work station
. He picked up the treadmill for about $50 on eBay, and after some follies with its shoddy construction, ended up with a pretty nice setup.
The first rendition of this project was just a wooden shelf to hold a laptop. But after the treadmill fell apart, sending his laptop tumbling, he reinforced the machine and added a bunch of stuff in the process. There’s now some custom electronics used to track his progress. He painted a white square on the black belt that makes up the running surface. That is monitored by a PIC microcontroller via a phototransistor and op-amp. He uses a USB data acquisition card to feed the belt-revolution count to the computer for use in tracking his workouts.
The presence of a computer in his setup would make Internet logging a snap too.
The exercise bike
we looked at on Saturday used a direct Ethernet connection for its logging, but [Jamie’s] setup could be used in the same way. He just needs a script to bridge the collected data with an Internet logging site’s API. | 7 | 5 | [
{
"comment_id": "596209",
"author": "hawkeyeaz1",
"timestamp": "2012-03-06T15:40:03",
"content": "My work has been doing a big push for improving health, weight loss, etc (I work at a call center), and I was just thinking yesterday that something like this would be interesting.My only fear is a next... | 1,760,376,936.199382 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/05/8-bit-computer-project-lands-in-a-philco-radio-case/ | 8-bit Computer Project Lands In A Philco Radio Case | Mike Szczys | [
"computer hacks"
] | [
"8 bit",
"computer",
"enclosure",
"Philco",
"radio",
"veronica"
] | We’ve enjoyed seeing the development progress of Veronica, [Quinn Dunki’s] 8-bit computer project. It started out on a breadboard, then moved to edge-connected PCBs, and now [Quinn]
has given Veronica a body of her own
.
The donor is a Philco Model 42-327T and was produced in 1942. It was chosen because it is non-functional and missing several pieces. We wonder about the collector’s value of the piece but since [Quinn] snagged it from eBay there can’t be in huge demand right now. The teardown images are priceless. There seems to be no reasoning behind component placement for the beast. It looks more like a junk drawer packed full of relic components than something that actually worked once upon a time.
But we digress. After gutting the retro wooden case [Quinn] set out to fabricate her own face plate. Since she’s comfortable working with copper clad, she whipped up a negative design and etched the dashboard seen above. It mounts in the original dial opening, and hosts all of the controls she needs to work with the 8-bit computer. Just below is where the present buttons used to be located. You can just see
the hexout display
for reading data from the registers mounted in that void. | 17 | 7 | [
{
"comment_id": "595785",
"author": "Hirudinea",
"timestamp": "2012-03-06T02:58:11",
"content": "Very nice, but just some aesthetic nit picking, she had three perfectly usefull knobs on the front, should have used them for three of the switches and she should but a piece or plastic over the hex disp... | 1,760,376,936.74888 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/05/loading-programs-onto-a-trs-80-model-100/ | Loading Programs Onto A TRS-80 Model 100 | Mike Szczys | [
"classic hacks"
] | [
"basic",
"minicom",
"model 100",
"null modem",
"trs-80"
] | We’d guess that you don’t have a TRS-80 Model 100 computer sitting around. But we’ve heard that the decades-old hardware is built like a tank so if you search around you can probably get your hands on a working unit. The Model 100 boasted some nice features, one of which was a 300 baud modem allowing you to transfer data onto the device. [MS3FGX] wanted to give it a try but had to do some work to
get the Model 100 to communicate with modern hardware
.
This could have been a much more involved process, but since the Model 100’s modem uses common communications standards it’s really just a matter of hooking it up and choosing the right COM port settings on a computer. In this example a Linux box is used with the program Minicom. It is configured to communicate at 300 baud 8N1 (8 data bits, no parity bit, and one stop bit).
With software in place you’ll need to make your own cable. [MS3FGX] does this using a DB-25 connector for the Model 100 side, and a DB-9 connector for the serial port on the Linux box. He’s got a pin-out for the cable on the second page of his guide. It sounds like it should be no problem to use a USB-serial converter if you don’t have a serial port.
Once everything is in place you’ll be able to transfer BASIC programs from your computer to the Model 100. | 41 | 25 | [
{
"comment_id": "595686",
"author": "firestorm_v1",
"timestamp": "2012-03-06T00:42:11",
"content": "I used to have a couple of DOS scripts that would provide a menu list of what was on the m100 and what was on the host and via the script on the m100 you could transfer files (.BA and .DO only) back a... | 1,760,376,936.988855 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/05/reverse-engineering-an-oscilloscope-circumvents-vendor-crippleware/ | Reverse Engineering An Oscilloscope Circumvents Vendor Crippleware | Mike Nathan | [
"Tool Hacks"
] | [
"oscilloscope",
"python",
"reverse engineering",
"usb"
] | The crew over at the Hungarian Autonomous Center for Knowledge (H.A.C.K.) say they aren’t the most well-funded organization out there, so they were stoked when they found they could afford to bring a slightly used UNI-T UT2025B digital oscilloscope into the shop. As they started to tinker with it, the scope revealed one major shortcoming – screenshots were only accessible via a USB connection to a Windows computer.
Since they didn’t have any Windows boxes in house,
[András Veres-Szentkirályi] decided he would try reverse-engineering the protocol
so they could get access to this useful feature.
He set up a Windows VM, and using Wireshark on the host Linux box, [András] sniffed the data passing over the scope’s USB interface. He was able to identify what looked like image packets being sent to the VM, which he was able to decode using a small Python script. The resultant images were monochrome and they didn’t look quite right, but it was a start. As he dug further [András] found that he was overlooking some of the color data packed into the images, and after a bit of fiddling he got the sharp, colorful image you see above.
It turns out that while the scope has a monochrome LCD, it sends 16-bit color images over the USB interface – images that the Windows’ client degrades before displaying them on the screen. So in the end, he was not only able to get the scope working on any OS with the ability to run Python, he was able to grab far better images than the manufacturer ever intended – A very nice hack if we do say so.
Be sure to swing by the
H.A.C.K. wiki
as well as the project’s
github repository
if you have one of these scopes and are looking to wring some better images out of the hardware. | 28 | 12 | [
{
"comment_id": "595641",
"author": "bootdsc",
"timestamp": "2012-03-06T00:07:32",
"content": "Now that is a worthwhile hack. good job.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "595660",
"author": "gyro john",
"timestamp": "2012-03-06T00:19:54",
... | 1,760,376,936.806142 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/05/speechjammer-puts-an-end-to-annoying-speakers/ | SpeechJammer Puts An End To Annoying Speakers | Brian Benchoff | [
"Tool Hacks",
"Weapons Hacks"
] | [
"amplifier",
"speaker",
"SpeechJammer"
] | If you’ve ever had to deal with people disturbing your peace and quiet by yammering on with their cell phones, you might be interested in the
SpeechJammer
.
The idea behind the SpeechJammer is fairly simple: It’s very hard to speak if your words are recorded and played back to you a fraction of a second later. This is a real psychological phenomenon known as delayed audio feedback that also has a
beneficial effect on stuttering
.
According to the
researcher’s writeup
(PDF warning), the SpeechJammer works by measuring the distance to the ‘target’ with an ultrasonic distance sensor and records the speaker’s voice with a shotgun mic. The recording of the spearker’s voice is delayed for about a fifth of a second and then played on a speaker on the front of the gun.
The researchers tested two conditions: ‘reading news aloud’ and a ”spontaneous monologue.’ Subjects who were reading news aloud had their speech jammed more often than those with the monologue, but the results look fairly promising. There’s only one video of the SpeechJammer in action (available after the break), so we’d like to see a few Hackaday readers build their own ‘shut up gun’ and send in a demo with an annoying talker to validate the results.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=USDI3wnTZZg&w=470] | 67 | 40 | [
{
"comment_id": "595489",
"author": "pod",
"timestamp": "2012-03-05T20:13:52",
"content": "using this is so unfeasible, I love it :D",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": [
{
"comment_id": "596058",
"author": "woidoi",
"timestamp": "2012-03-06T10:58:27... | 1,760,376,936.910574 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/05/resetting-the-page-count-on-a-laser-printer/ | Resetting The Page Count On A Laser Printer | Brian Benchoff | [
"hardware",
"Peripherals Hacks"
] | [
"i2c",
"laser printer",
"printer",
"toner refill"
] | [Brian] really liked his Samsung color laser printer right up until it was time to replace the toner cartridges. A full set of toner cartridges sell for about the same price as the printer itself, so [Brian] figured he could simply refill the toner in the cartridges he already has. The printer sends out the ‘low toner’ warning based on page count and won’t print if the page count is too high, negating the economy of a toner refill kit. Luckily, [Brian] figured out a
dead simple way to reset the page count
so he can use those third-party refill kits.
All the configuration settings and page counts for the printer are stored on an I2C EEPROM. After dumping the data held on this EEPROM with an Arduino and sniffing everything going into the EEPROM with a Bus Pirate, [Brian] was nearly at his wit’s end. Thankfully, serendipity intervened. When [Brian] restarted the printer with the Bus Pirate attached, he noticed it took much longer to initialize. Printing a configuration report, he was trilled to see that all page counts have been zeroed.
The final hack that allows [Brian] to reset the page count and used refilled toner cartridges is a simple wire that ties the SDA line of the EEPROM to ground on boot. [Brian] used a momentary switch, but given this is a once-every-few-months operation, a simple wire would suffice. Check out [Brian]’s page reset demo after the break.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=077GLsEMV2E&w=470] | 101 | 50 | [
{
"comment_id": "595452",
"author": "yetihehe",
"timestamp": "2012-03-05T19:12:31",
"content": "Excellent, I’ve recently bought similar printer, but B/W. Thanks Brian!",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": [
{
"comment_id": "595569",
"author": "Brian",
... | 1,760,376,937.151864 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/05/pop-up-dragonfly-robot-could-be-the-future-of-business-cards/ | Pop-up Dragonfly Robot Could Be The Future Of Business Cards | Mike Szczys | [
"Repair Hacks"
] | [
"dragonfly",
"laminate",
"robot"
] | Engineers trying to be memorable at a job interview would be wise to pull one of these pop-up robots out of a wallet. This marvel of engineering uses
a laminate construction technique to build a robot as a pop-up assembly
. You can see the base used during the process, it’s a hexagon that serves as a scaffolding during the laminating process, and includes mechanical linkages that facilitate assembly.
The design calls for multiple layers of materials to be laser-cut to exacting specifications. Once all parts are completed, they are stacked using rods to align them, then fused together. One more trip through the laser cutter finishes the milling and the machine is ready for assembly. But with parts this small, you’ll want a solid method for putting everything together. The linkages we mentioned before allow for this when two parts of the scaffolding are separated. The only thing that makes this impossible as a business card is the need for a trip through the solder bath to cement the pieces in place. But perhaps some type of clasping mechanism could remove this need in the future.
Don’t miss the video after the break that explains the entire process. You’ll even get to see the little guy flap his wings. That’s all that it does for now, there isn’t any steering mechanism available as of yet.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxSs1kGZQqc&w=470] | 15 | 9 | [
{
"comment_id": "595441",
"author": "Stripe",
"timestamp": "2012-03-05T18:46:58",
"content": "As far as I understood, it’s some sort of piezo-like actuator connected to a simple lever that flaps the wings back and forth.If this was a proper flying robot, or an attempt at such, you’d need more than o... | 1,760,376,937.036182 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/05/control-your-pc-with-a-remote/ | Control Your PC With A Remote | Brian Benchoff | [
"Peripherals Hacks"
] | [
"infrared",
"keyboard",
"remote",
"Teensy"
] | Because his computer is gradually turning into an all-inclusive media display device, [Shawn] figured a remote to control the volume and a video playlist would be a reasonable addition. TV remotes for computers have been around for years, but [Shawn] decided to go the DIY route and
build his own computer remote.
For the build, [Shawn] used a
Teensy dev board
with an IR receiver module and the requisite
infrared remote library
. To translate infrared signals to keyboard commands,[Shawn] decided to base his project off a
previous build
that used a small program called AutoHotKey.
Right now the build can cycle through a pre-defined YouTube and Shoutcast playlist and change the volume of the currently playing track. There’s also support for moving the mouse with directional buttons on the remote, but we’re wondering if a better implementation would be using the
Windows multimedia keyboard scan codes
that
should
be supported by [Shawn]’s laptop.
Still, [Shawn] managed a very nice build that would fit into our computer battlestations quite nicely. Check out the demo of the remote in action after the break.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3O6VygUv7Qg&w=470] | 16 | 16 | [
{
"comment_id": "595369",
"author": "Aaron",
"timestamp": "2012-03-05T17:17:23",
"content": "Word of advice re AutoHotKey: If your hotkeys often stop working when the system is heavily loaded, and keep not working until their scripts are reloaded, and you’re running AHK on something newer than XP, y... | 1,760,376,937.207005 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/05/usb-dongle-generates-and-enters-your-passwords-so-you-dont-have-to/ | USB Dongle Generates And Enters Your Passwords So You Don’t Have To | Mike Nathan | [
"ATtiny Hacks",
"Security Hacks"
] | [
"attiny85",
"HID keyboard",
"password",
"security",
"USB dongle"
] | Like many businesses out there, [Joonas Pihlajamaa’s] employer requires him to change his password every few months. Instead of coming up with a complex, yet easy to remember password again and again,
he built a small USB device to do the work for him.
He dismantled an old USB memory stick, fitting it with an ATtiny85 with its required components on a small piece of perfboard. Using the knowledge he gleaned from his previous USB HID tinkering, he programmed the ATtiny to act as a USB keyboard which enters his password for him whenever he plugs it in.
The USB dongle not only types his password in for him, it can generate a new password with a few simple keystrokes whenever he desires. Obviously it merely takes someone getting their hands on his USB stick to compromise security, but it does beat a Post-It under the keyboard any day.
Continue reading to see a short video of his USB password dongle in action, and be sure to swing by his site for more details on how it was all put together.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpNSycoUCZM&feature=youtu.be&w=470] | 45 | 25 | [
{
"comment_id": "595331",
"author": "MS3FGX",
"timestamp": "2012-03-05T16:16:23",
"content": "Very nice implementation. This isn’t the first time somebody has made one of these (I believe HaD has featured at least one previously), surprised I haven’t seen these commercially produced yet.Unless I’ve ... | 1,760,376,937.290724 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/05/antique-phone-provides-a-soundtrack-perfect-for-restoring-old-cars/ | Antique Phone Provides A Soundtrack Perfect For Restoring Old Cars | Mike Nathan | [
"Arduino Hacks",
"classic hacks",
"Musical Hacks"
] | [
"adafruit",
"antique",
"arduino",
"Bakelite",
"generator phone",
"music",
"waveshield"
] | [Simon] is in the middle of restoring/building himself an Austin 7 Special out in his garage, and like most tinkerers, found that music helps to move the process along. He happened to have an old Bakelite generator phone out in the garage as well,
and figured that he might as well have it do something other than simply hang on the wall.
Playing music from the 1930 seemed like a fitting enough task, so he picked up an Adafruit Waveshield and spent some time wiring it up to the old telephone. His new radio works simply enough, piping .wav files through the handset, provided someone has cranked the phone’s generator recently.
While cranking the generator is required to play music, the Arduino is actually powered off a pair of AA batteries. The cranking is all cosmetic, but he did program the Arduino to slow the music down every once in awhile, requiring that the generator be turned to get things back up to speed.
It really is a neat way to repurpose the old phone, and we like the fact that [Simon] did not gut it to put this project together.
Continue reading to see a short video of his new music player in action.
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bn9XF-vrJ_s&w=470] | 8 | 7 | [
{
"comment_id": "595333",
"author": "MS3FGX",
"timestamp": "2012-03-05T16:17:20",
"content": "So you have to hold the phone up to your head to hear the music? Seems like it would be difficult to get much work done in that case…",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
... | 1,760,376,937.336513 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/04/dell-streak-screen-repair-yields-a-few-welcome-surprises/ | Dell Streak Screen Repair Yields A Few Welcome Surprises | Mike Nathan | [
"Cellphone Hacks",
"Repair Hacks"
] | [
"Atmel",
"Dell Streak 5",
"digitizer",
"microsd",
"repair"
] | [Rupert’s] friend cracked the screen on his beloved Dell Streak 5 phone and
handed it off to see if [Rupert] could repair it.
He says that the glass replacement was a relatively straightforward affair – a process he documented in thorough detail worthy of iFixit.
He did come across a few interesting tidbits along the way, including an Atmel Mega168P hanging out on the broken screen’s digitizer board, which now resides in his parts bin. The most intriguing thing [Rupert] discovered however was that the phone’s on-board memory chip wasn’t soldered in as he would have expected. Instead, he found a standard microSD slot with a 2GB card in tow. He didn’t happen to have a larger card on hand, but after researching a bit he did find out that
swapping the card is a relatively simple process.
If you happen to have one of these phones sitting around, or come across a damaged unit at any point, it definitely seems worth it to resurrect it and change the factory card out for something along the lines of a 32GB model. We certainly wouldn’t complain if we had a rooted 32GB Streak kicking around! | 23 | 12 | [
{
"comment_id": "594835",
"author": "Eviljohnstar",
"timestamp": "2012-03-04T20:35:28",
"content": "You can cut the case to avoid openinghttp://youtu.be/6w4AbtIGp8A",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "594839",
"author": "Graham",
"timestamp"... | 1,760,376,937.392828 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/04/quadrotor-squadron-plays-the-james-bond-theme-song-in-preparation-for-world-domination/ | Quadrotor Squadron Plays The [James Bond] Theme Song In Preparation For World Domination | Mike Nathan | [
"Musical Hacks",
"Robots Hacks"
] | [
"autonomous",
"GRASP",
"James Bond",
"quadrotor",
"U Penn"
] | If you weren’t already
a big fan of quadrotors by this point
, we’re pretty sure the video below will get you on the bandwagon in no time flat.
The video was debuted this past week at the TED2012 conference, giving [Daniel Mellinger, Alex Kushleyev, and Vijay Kumar] from the University of Pennsylvania GRASP Lab, a chance to show off their amazing robotics work. The team used a set of autonomous quadrotors to play the [James Bond] theme, complete with keyboard, drums, cymbals, guitar, and maracas.
The coordination of the robots undoubtedly took an incredible amount of time to orchestrate, but after watching the video we think it is well worth the effort. Now of course you can’t simply input a piece of sheet music into the quadrotor control system and expect them to play it, but we imagine that time will arrive before you know it!
Continue reading to see the [James Bond] theme song in full, and be sure to swing by the U Penn site to read more about the project.
Thanks to everyone who sent this one in!
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sUeGC-8dyk&w=470] | 19 | 15 | [
{
"comment_id": "594679",
"author": "oodain",
"timestamp": "2012-03-04T16:10:07",
"content": "o_oi want them, now.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "594681",
"author": "Dave",
"timestamp": "2012-03-04T16:28:48",
"content": "Oh. My. God... | 1,760,376,937.743567 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/03/easy-workout-logging-with-ethernet-enabled-exercise-bike/ | Easy Workout Logging With Ethernet-enabled Exercise Bike | Mike Szczys | [
"home hacks"
] | [
"bicycle",
"bike",
"ethernet",
"exercise bike",
"logging",
"reed switch",
"runkeeper"
] | It will be easy to keep your exercise routine on track if you don’t have to do anything at all to log your workouts. [Reefab] developed this add-on hardware for
his exercise bike that automatically logs his workout on the Internet
.
He’s using RunKeeper to store and display the workout data. They offer a token-based API which [Reefab] implemented in his Arduino sketch. The hardware to grab data from the exercise bike is quite simple to set up. A rare-earth magnet was added to the fly-wheel with a reed switch positioned next it in order to measure the number and speed of rotations. This is exactly how a consumer bicycle computer works, needing just one accurate measurement corresponding to how far the bike travels with each revolution of that wheel.
In addition to the networked-logging feature [Reefab] included a character display so you can follow your speed and distance data during the workout. | 6 | 3 | [
{
"comment_id": "594333",
"author": "Retroplayer",
"timestamp": "2012-03-04T01:58:57",
"content": "Hmm… every hack like this that I have seen adds some type of RPM sensor on to the bike, even bikes that already have cheap digital monitors. Why haven’t I seen any where the person hacked into the sens... | 1,760,376,937.785168 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/03/dyio-is-a-huge-robotics-development-board/ | DyIO Is A Huge Robotics Development Board | Brian Benchoff | [
"Robots Hacks",
"Tool Hacks"
] | [
"development platform",
"dyio",
"robots",
"sdk"
] | [Kevin] wrote in to tell us about the robotics development platform he’s been working on for the last few years. He calls his device the
DyIO
, and looks like an extremely easy way to get a robot up and running quickly.
Because the DyIO stands for Dynamic Input & Output, [Kevin] thought it was important to put 24 separate IO pins in his build. These pins can serve as 24 digital inputs or outputs, a few analog inputs and PWM outs, or even DC motor controls.
What’s really interesting is
the SDK
that [Kevin] and his team chose to build. With this SDK, you can program the DyIO in Java or just about any other language you would want. Already, [Kevin] and his team have built a few interesting projects around the DyIO, like a
hexapod robot
and
animatronic pokemon
. While we’re sure something awesome beyond imagination is waiting to be built with the DyIO platform, you can check out these already-completed builds after the break.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKUSfpVwS3E&w=470]
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_3gD6SjZqk&w=470] | 16 | 9 | [
{
"comment_id": "594211",
"author": "kevin mcguigan",
"timestamp": "2012-03-03T21:44:08",
"content": "Can’t seem to access the site to check out the board.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "594217",
"author": "alex camilo",
"timestamp": "2... | 1,760,376,937.839446 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/03/weekly-roundup-3311/ | Weekly Roundup 3/3/11 | Jack Buffington | [
"News",
"Weekly Roundup"
] | [
"weekly roundup"
] | In case you missed them the first time, here are our most popular posts from the past week:
In first place is a post about
a video by [Rear Admiral Grace Hopper] where she talks about how to visualize a nanosecond
using a piece of copper wire.
Coming in at second is one that we are pretty excited about here at HAD.
The Raspberry Pi has finally launched!
For those of you who haven’t been following its progress, this is a small (roughly the size of a credit card) Linux computer that costs only $35 for the better model! We can think of all sorts of things that we would like to use them for but alas, even we can’t get our grubby hands on them quite yet since they are already completely sold out.
Next we have
a weather station for the virtual weather within Minecraft.
This project uses a small LCD and an Arduino to tell you if you need to be wearing your virtual raincoat.
If you have been looking for
a way to anodize titanium at home
instead of sending out your parts to a service, here is a post for you.
Finally, we finish up with a post that we like a lot. It is about
three remote controlled ‘airplanes’ that were flown near the Brooklyn Bridge that look a lot like people
when seen from a distance. | 3 | 3 | [
{
"comment_id": "594269",
"author": "Philippe",
"timestamp": "2012-03-04T00:41:23",
"content": "That would be “Weekly Roundup 3/3/12”",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "594340",
"author": "Joel",
"timestamp": "2012-03-04T02:16:45",
"con... | 1,760,376,937.578328 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/03/very-easy-3d-scanning-software-with-reconstructme/ | Very Easy 3D Scanning Software With ReconstructMe | Brian Benchoff | [
"Kinect hacks"
] | [
"3d scanner",
"Kinect",
"reconstructme"
] | [Maxzillian] sent in a pretty amazing project he’s been beta testing called
ReconstructMe
. Even though this project is just the result of software developers getting bored at their job, there’s a lot of potential in the 3D scanning abilities of ReconstructMe.
ReconstructMe is a software interface that allows anyone with a Kinect (or other 3D depth camera) in front of a scene and generate a 3D object on a computer in an .STL or .OBJ file. There are countless applications of this technology, such as scanning objects to duplicate with a 3D printer, or importing yourself into a video game.
There are a few downsides to ReconstructMe: The only 3D sensors supported are the xBox 360 Kinect and the ASUS Xtion. The
Kinect for Windows
isn’t supported yet. Right now, ReconstructMe is limited to scanning objects that fit into a one-meter cube and can only operate from the command line, but it looks like the ReconstructMe team is working on supporting larger scans.
While it’s not quite ready for prime time, ReconstructMe could serve as the basis for a few amazing 3D scanner builds. Check out the video demos after the break.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHK6BLBJHU0&w=470]
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?fv=yC4wFvsznRg&w=470]
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?fv=ebnV7witwXg&w=470] | 16 | 7 | [
{
"comment_id": "594123",
"author": "jameswilddev",
"timestamp": "2012-03-03T19:30:18",
"content": "Anyone know if this can capture colour data? I don’t have a Kinect to try, but bloody hell, with .obj export this would be amazing for 3D scanning.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"repli... | 1,760,376,938.055312 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/03/building-your-own-portable-3d-camera/ | Building Your Own Portable 3D Camera | Mike Nathan | [
"digital cameras hacks",
"Microcontrollers",
"Misc Hacks"
] | [
"3d camera",
"Kinect",
"structured light",
"vga"
] | [Steven] needed to come up with a project for the Computer Vision course he was taking, so he decided to try building
a portable 3D camera.
His goal was to build a Kinect-like 3D scanner, though his solution is better suited for very detailed still scenes, while the Kinect performs shallow, less detailed scans of dynamic scenes.
The device uses a TI DLP Pico projector for displaying the structured light patterns, while a cheap VGA camera is tasked with taking snapshots of the scene he is capturing. The data is fed into a Beagleboard, where OpenCV is used to create point clouds of the objects he is scanning. That data is then handed off to Meshlab, where the point clouds can be combined and tweaked to create the final 3D image.
As [Steven] points out, the resultant images are pretty impressive considering his rig is completely portable and that it only uses an HVGA projector with a VGA camera. He says that someone using higher resolution equipment would certainly be able to generate fantastically detailed 3D images with ease.
Be sure to check out his page for more details on the project, as well as links to the code he uses to put these images together. | 12 | 7 | [
{
"comment_id": "594076",
"author": "Joe",
"timestamp": "2012-03-03T17:52:50",
"content": "I think this is a structure light scanner, not a 3D camera.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "594110",
"author": "Wm_Atl",
"timestamp": "2012-03-03T... | 1,760,376,937.890131 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/03/tutorial-series-shows-you-everything-you-need-to-salvage-transformers-from-microwaves/ | Tutorial Series Shows You Everything You Need To Salvage Transformers From Microwaves | Mike Nathan | [
"Repair Hacks"
] | [
"coil",
"microwave",
"rebuild",
"recycling",
"repair",
"transformer"
] | Transformers certainly have a tendency to increase the cost of any project, especially if you need a large transformer to get the job done. Microwave ovens are great sources of free transformers, though they are not always in the shape required for your next build.
[Matt] put together three great tutorial videos
covering the basics of salvaging Microwave Oven Transformers (MOTs), that anyone new to the process should watch before giving it a go. The first video covers MOT removal and disassembly, which is a time consuming yet easy process providing you follow [Matt’s] pointers.
The second video delves into transformer theory, and discusses how to achieve optimal performance when rebuilding an MOT or hand wrapping coils to fit your project specs. The third video in the series follows [Matt] as he rebuilds one of the salvaged transformers, documenting his pitfalls and successes along the way.
If you haven’t given much thought to salvaging MOTs, we definitely recommend taking a bit of time to watch the video series in full – it’s definitely worth it.
You can see the first video in the series after the jump – the rest can be found via the YouTube link above.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRoPHKpCYmg&list=PL2FD9A01DD3B7A5D7&index=1&feature=plpp_video&w=470] | 23 | 11 | [
{
"comment_id": "593985",
"author": "YT2095",
"timestamp": "2012-03-03T15:33:32",
"content": "LOL, I`v always taken off the secondary coil the hard way, but I have some lovely High Current PSUs using these MOTs.one of my faves, although it took a lot of trial and error working it out, is a 6.3VAC so... | 1,760,376,937.998351 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/02/snake-the-planet-makes-a-game-board-out-of-your-surroundings/ | Snake-the-Planet Makes A Game Board Out Of Your Surroundings | Mike Szczys | [
"Video Hacks"
] | [
"camera",
"projector",
"snake"
] | It’s Friday night and these guys are driving around town looking for a good spot to play a head-to-head game of Snake. It’s not that they need somewhere to sit (they travel with a couch and floor lamp for that purpose) it’s that
they’re using a projector and camera to make a game out of their surroundings
.
A white Mystery-Machine-style van has room for everything they need to make the traveling arcade happen. A mobile power supply provides juice to the camera and projector. To get started, the system takes a high-contrast black and white photo of the surface in front of it. Everything that appears below the white threshold becomes a wall on the game board, everything else is a playable area. Obstacles are formed by windows, doorways, pipes, signs, pieces of foam board the guys hang on a wall, and even your body if you stand in the way during scanning. From there the guys each grab a joystick and play
the hacker-favorite game of snake
.
After the break you can watch a description of how the system works.
[vimeo http://vimeo.com/37657491 w=470] | 17 | 8 | [
{
"comment_id": "593684",
"author": "t&p",
"timestamp": "2012-03-02T23:40:27",
"content": "I’m not into hipster things, but I find this one cool. Mostly for the idea friends going out and making a very cool hang out site, anywhere.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{... | 1,760,376,937.941066 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/02/using-the-parallel-port-as-a-logic-sniffer/ | Using The Parallel Port As A Logic Sniffer | Mike Szczys | [
"Linux Hacks",
"Tool Hacks"
] | [
"kernel",
"logic analyzer",
"logic sniffer",
"parallel port"
] | [Fernando] wrote in to share his take on building a logic analyzer. He’s
using the parallel port to capture data
and feed it to the display software of your choice.
The method depends on a custom kernel which alters the way the parallel port works. The kernel he compiled includes a method of intercepting the signals coming in from the hardware, passing that data to the /dev/parport* as it should, but also sending a copy to /dev/parportsnif*. It also creates a log file which is in the
OpenBench Logic Sniffer
format for easy use with various display software.
Of course this is easiest to use with a Linux system, but can also be run as a virtual machine under Windows. We’d plan on using a virtual machine within Linux as well since this is a custom kernel and will probably only see occasional use. | 26 | 13 | [
{
"comment_id": "593623",
"author": "my2c",
"timestamp": "2012-03-02T22:12:03",
"content": "– Very nice, I vote parallel ports get brought back. Jeez, my last build I found the hard way many MB’s don’t even have an IDE bus anymore so I could use a dvd drive I had laying around…",
"parent_id": n... | 1,760,376,938.117286 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/02/simple-hardware-and-python-drive-this-splunk-led-meter/ | Simple Hardware And Python Drive This Splunk LED Meter | Mike Szczys | [
"LED Hacks"
] | [
"led strip",
"meter",
"python",
"spi",
"splunk"
] | Want to monitor the company system without continually loading up the Splunk dashboard? It turns out that they’ve got their own Python package which makes pulling down data a snap. All [Rick] needed to do was
hook up an LED meter as an external display
.
It used to be that this would take a lot of wire and bit of soldering (or
some special Christmas lights
), but the advent of affordable LED strips has really taken the guess-work out of it. He’s using an RGB version acquired from Adafruit Industries. These strips are driven using SPI and multiple-colors mean you can display multi-dimensional data using one column. He chose to use a Teensy microcontroller, grabbing some plastic packaging for welding rods as the enclosure. These strips are extremely bright and to help soften the impact he added wax paper to the inside of the enclosure to act as a diffuser.
Looking for more projects that use strips like this one? They make fantastic
addressable accent lighting for your home
. | 2 | 2 | [
{
"comment_id": "593595",
"author": "Brian Benchoff",
"timestamp": "2012-03-02T20:56:51",
"content": "I submit to youBeBox Blinkenlights.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "593701",
"author": "Cyril",
"timestamp": "2012-03-03T00:14:21",
... | 1,760,376,938.154923 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/02/r2r-ladder-connects-multiple-buttons-to-one-adc-pin/ | R2R Ladder Connects Multiple Buttons To One ADC Pin | Mike Szczys | [
"Arduino Hacks"
] | [
"adc",
"button",
"r2r",
"resistor ladder"
] | If you’ve run out of I/O pins on a project and need a way to add user input you can find a slew of port expanders that work with various communications protocols like I2C and 1-Wire. But if you just want to add in some buttons without reaching for an extra IC you’ll love this hack. [John Boxall] shows
how to add four buttons using one ADC pin
.
The concept is nothing new. The buttons make up an R2R resistive ladder. When one of them is pressed, it completes the circuit for a voltage divider. The results are measured by the analog-to-digital converter of an IC to tell which button was pressed. The difficult part is calculating the resistor values. [John] is using eight resistors made up of just two different values. Every button and every combination of buttons has a unique voltage result which can be discerned by the chip. He even made a truth table so you don’t have to.
The example circuit seen in the video after the break uses an Arduino. But this concept is directly applicable to any microcontroller. And it should be quite easy to use an ADC interrupt to drive all of the button-read events.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZ49TgZkUW8&w=470] | 34 | 22 | [
{
"comment_id": "593578",
"author": "Alex Henrique",
"timestamp": "2012-03-02T20:26:35",
"content": "This site is unbelievable!!! That’s amazing!!! How many projects with arduino!! Thanks!!!",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "593580",
"author":... | 1,760,376,942.648056 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/02/browser-based-circuit-simulator-boasts-a-mountain-of-features/ | Browser-based Circuit Simulator Boasts A Mountain Of Features | Mike Szczys | [
"Toy Hacks"
] | [
"circuit",
"circuitlab",
"nerdkits",
"simulator"
] | CircuitLab is
an electronics simulator which you can run in a browser
. Above you can see one of the example circuits provided to help show the power of the application. You can build your schematic (perhaps you want to try [Jeri’s]
psu shut-off timer?
) in the editor mode, then switch over to the simulator to get data back from the components. In that mode, your cursor becomes a probe, and clicking on different parts of the circuit will return the calculated input and output voltages for that component. But wait, there’s more. It’s got time and frequency simulation in addition to the voltage simulator. This lets you look at waveforms fed through analog filters, or timing data like in the 555 timer circuit above.
Where does this fantastic tool come from? [Humberto Evans] and [Mike Robbins], the guys behind NerdKits developed this site. We’ve seen a lot of their hacks around here, like
milling solenoids and making them play a xylophone
. Check out the CircuitLab quick start video they put together after the break.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f52GV1IpwVk&w=470]
[Thanks Brian] | 22 | 15 | [
{
"comment_id": "593508",
"author": "lostalaska",
"timestamp": "2012-03-02T19:00:07",
"content": "Man, you guys have been on a roll lately with posts on things I’m interested in (3D Scanners, circuit diagrams). Another super useful post for something I’ll be playing around with this weekend.Keep up... | 1,760,376,942.777317 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/02/build-your-own-line-laser-for-3d-scanning/ | Build Your Own Line Laser For 3D Scanning | Mike Nathan | [
"Laser Hacks"
] | [
"3d",
"laser",
"scan"
] | [Valentin] wanted to experiment with 3D scanning some objects he had around the house, but says he didn’t want to buy a line laser for the project since they are pretty expensive. Fortunately, he had some random components sitting in his parts bin, and
he was able to build his own line laser without spending a ton of money.
His tutorial actually covers two different methods of building line lasers, both of which use parts that you likely have on hand already.
His first build involves gluing a small square mirror to a flat platform, which he then mounted on a salvaged DC motor. Once the motor starts spinning, the cheap laser pointer he has aimed at the mirror draws a perfect line across whatever medium he is scanning.
His second line laser uses parts donated from an old hard drive that he no longer used. He removed the drive’s read head from the chassis and mounted a small mirror on the actuator arm before firing up his laser. With the laser aimed at the mirror, he applied an unspecified AC current to the motor, which caused it to oscillate and draw a line similar to his first setup.
While they might not be professionally-built scanning lasers, [Valentin’s] efforts produced some decent images, as you can see on his site.
Continue reading to see a short video of his DC motor laser line in action.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mDvAilvoy6M&feature=player_embedded&w=470] | 32 | 21 | [
{
"comment_id": "593444",
"author": "macpod",
"timestamp": "2012-03-02T16:39:18",
"content": "I had to tackle this problem too once for a diy laser scanning build. If you hop on ebay you can pick up a laser line lens for about 1-4$. You can pick up an IR filter while there too!",
"parent_id": nu... | 1,760,376,943.18532 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/02/wind-powered-pov-weather-station/ | Wind-powered POV Weather Station | Mike Szczys | [
"LED Hacks"
] | [
"generator",
"POV",
"stepper motor",
"wind power"
] | The more we think about this one the more we like it. [Michael] built himself
a wind-powered persistence-of-vision weather station
. Okay, that sounds interesting, but he ups the ante when you find out what’s included in the system.
A stepper motor acts as the generator which powers the electronics.
As we’ve seen before
; if you spin the shaft of a stepper motor electricity is produced. [Michael] is actually spinning the housing of the motor, with the shaft mounted to the base that holds the weather station in place. This way, the electrical contacts are spinning along with the blades of the generator. By mounting all of the electronics on these blades he gets around the problem of transferring power onto a spinning platform.
A set of LEDs on the end of the blades display temperature and relative humidity readings. A hall effect sensor pulled form an old floppy drive syncs the display with the rotational speed. He’s even got a shunt system which keeps the input voltage at a safe level, and will act as a break in high winds to keep the rotors from spinning out of control. See what we mean? An interesting idea because a fantastic project when you build in features like these! | 23 | 12 | [
{
"comment_id": "593404",
"author": "Gary",
"timestamp": "2012-03-02T15:10:10",
"content": "Great.The next model could incorporate a wind speed and direction reading.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": [
{
"comment_id": "593676",
"author": "Michael",
... | 1,760,376,942.717914 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/01/monitoring-and-controlling-your-garage-door-from-afar-with-an-ip-camera/ | Monitoring And Controlling Your Garage Door From Afar With An IP Camera | Mike Nathan | [
"Android Hacks",
"digital cameras hacks",
"home hacks"
] | [
"android",
"garage door",
"power strip",
"relay",
"remote control"
] | Last year, [Mark Simonelli’s] wife asked him if
he could design something
that would allow her to remotely check if their garage door had been left open. [Mark] jumped at the chance to tinker with electronics and designed a system around an old TrendNet IP camera. When remotely connected to the camera using IP Cam Viewer Pro for his Android phone, [Mark] could watch the video stream and also trigger the garage door opener via a small relay circuit he built.
His remote opener worked well, but his camera unfortunately lacked any sort of IR vision/low light capabilities. Since his camera wasn’t very useful in the dark, he decided that he needed to
add some way to trigger a light
when remotely monitoring his garage. He figured the best way to do this would be to control a power strip-connected light using a circuit similar to the one he built to open the garage door itself.
He stopped by the hardware store and picked up a cheap power strip, disassembling it and removing the power toggle once he got home. He fitted it with a small 5v relay, which he connected to the camera’s terminal block. While he admits that it might not be the absolute safest solution, he can easily control both the light and the garage door with a simple swipe of his phone’s screen.
Continue reading to see his remote controlled power strip in action, and be sure to swing by his site to see more details about his camera-controlled garage door opener.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhQDw3Gr34Q&feature=player_embedded&w=470] | 41 | 16 | [
{
"comment_id": "593102",
"author": "Andrew",
"timestamp": "2012-03-02T01:27:44",
"content": "Or he could have used a microswitch or reed switch.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": [
{
"comment_id": "593217",
"author": "Mark",
"timestamp": "2012-03-... | 1,760,376,943.118731 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/01/bb313-breadboard-platform-makes-attiny-prototyping-painless/ | BB313 Breadboard Platform Makes ATtiny Prototyping Painless | Mike Nathan | [
"ATtiny Hacks",
"hardware",
"Microcontrollers"
] | [
"attiny2313",
"BB313",
"breadboard",
"breakout"
] | [John De Cristofaro aka Johngineer] uses various ATmega microcontrollers in his electronics projects, but he finds himself reaching for an ATtiny2313 or ATtiny4313 more often than not. He got tired of having to wire up pin headers, capacitors, and the like each time he started a project,
so he spent some time designing an easy to use breadboard platform around the chips.
Inspired by
LadyAda’s Boarduino
, his BB313 board features FTDI pin headers, an ISP programming header, a reset button, along with breakout pins that plug directly into any breadboard. Aside from sharing a similar layout, [John] says that the similarities end there. His board is designed for designers who program in C or C++, so Arduino code won’t run without some substantial modification.
The board looks like a pretty handy benchtop tool, and we’re pretty sure it would be a big time saver for anyone who uses these chips with any frequency. [John] says that the board cost about $6.50 to make when he put it together, but that prices might vary slightly depending on where you have your PCBs made.
Be sure to swing by his site if the design looks like it might be helpful. He has made the schematics, a bill of materials, and all the rest available for the taking.
[via
Adafruit blog
] | 8 | 8 | [
{
"comment_id": "593093",
"author": "Thatcher",
"timestamp": "2012-03-02T00:53:04",
"content": "The modifications aren’t sooo substantial! It’s pretty easy, actually.http://toasterbotics.blogspot.com/2011/08/attiny2313-with-arduino.html",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},... | 1,760,376,942.86519 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/01/minestation-an-external-weather-display-for-your-minecraft-world/ | Minestation – An External Weather Display For Your Minecraft World | Mike Nathan | [
"Arduino Hacks",
"computer hacks"
] | [
"arduino",
"minecraft",
"Minestation",
"nokia",
"shield",
"weather"
] | If you’re a big Minecraft fan, the folks at [radikaldesign]
have something that might be of interest to you.
(
Translation
) Inspired by some of their Minecraft-loving friends, they have developed Minestation – a weather station for your Minecraft game.
The concept is simple. Here in the real world we have the ability to look out the window and see what it is like outside, but many of us turn to digital weather stations, the Weather Channel, or the local news to get the real scoop. They decided that the world of Minecraft should be no different, so they constructed an Arduino shield that allows players to see weather conditions as they play.
The shield contains a Nokia 6100 LCD screen which displays all sorts of useful information. It features a clock and calendar that reflect in-game time, making it easy to know when night is going to fall. It also continually displays the player’s coordinates as well as what the weather looks like in that region. Having this information at hand when you’ve been slogging away in the mines (losing track of time and weather) seems like it could be pretty useful at times.
You can buy one of the devices at
Minestation.me
, but the design is completely open, so you can easily construct one of your own without too much hassle.
Continue reading to see a video of the Minestation in action.
[Via
HackedGadgets
]
[vimeo http://vimeo.com/31693272 w=470] | 7 | 7 | [
{
"comment_id": "593072",
"author": "Alex Rossie",
"timestamp": "2012-03-02T00:00:05",
"content": "ARGH I LOVE THIS SO MUCH!",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "593078",
"author": "Hackerspacer",
"timestamp": "2012-03-02T00:04:18",
"cont... | 1,760,376,942.818802 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/29/wav-playback-with-an-atmega32/ | WAV Playback With An ATmega32 | Mike Szczys | [
"Microcontrollers"
] | [
"ATmega32",
"ir",
"lcd",
"mmc",
"remote control",
"wav"
] | [Vinod Stanur] just finished another hobby project by
building a WAV audio player using a microcontroller
. He had started development a while back using a PIC microcontroller. But the chip he was using didn’t have enough SRAM to allocate as a playback buffer. When he got his hands on an ATmega32 his mind turned back to the project and he saw it through to the end.
He takes advantage of what he learned on several earlier builds. He’s using a TV remote as input, just like
his Snake game
did. Storage is provided by an MMC card, a trick he perfected with
this voice recorder project
. Instead of using a FAT library, he uses his own code to read the linked-list (File Allocation Table) for sector addresses, then he parses the WAV header and processes the file accordingly.
Playback uses two 512 byte buffers. One is feeding the output while the other is being populated from the memory card. When the output buffer is exhausted the two are swapped and the process continues. You’ll find [Vinod’s] demo of the project after the break.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMlm4ycDDKI&w=470] | 16 | 11 | [
{
"comment_id": "592140",
"author": "nymgeek",
"timestamp": "2012-03-01T00:21:58",
"content": "I must try something like this at some time. Maybe use the ADC to apply effects to an audio stream.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "592164",
"auth... | 1,760,376,943.241794 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/29/wardriving-for-zigbee/ | Wardriving For Zigbee | Mike Szczys | [
"Radio Hacks"
] | [
"802.15.4",
"n9",
"nokia",
"packet sniffing",
"RF",
"telosb",
"travis goodspeed",
"zigbee"
] | Wardriving started out as a search for unprotected WiFi access points before hot spots were prevalent. And so
this ZigBee protocol wardriving hardware
which [Travis Goodspeed] put together really gives us a sense of nostalgia for that time. Don’t get us wrong, we love our pervasive WiFi access and don’t wish to go back to simpler times. But if the radio signals your looking for are scarce, locating them provides a challenge.
Regular readers will recognize that [Travis] is interested in all things RF. One of his projects included
sniffing wireless keyboard packets out of thin air
and displaying them on the screen of his Nokia N900. This is right along those lines but he’s upgraded to an N9 phone for the display hardware. He switched up the RF hardware, using a TelosB (a board
he’s already familiar with
) to get on the 802.15.4 ZigBee spectrum. This dev board has an expansion port which let him use an RN42 module for wireless communications with the phone. This means the sniffing hardware can be hidden away in a backpack or jacket. After all, nobody will question someone walking around staring at a smart phone. | 9 | 7 | [
{
"comment_id": "592121",
"author": "Brian",
"timestamp": "2012-02-29T23:51:30",
"content": "I just came in here to say I aprove of the beer in the photo.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "592157",
"author": "TehBiOzZ",
"timestamp": "2012-... | 1,760,376,942.951788 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/29/semaphore-signal-replica-perfect-for-the-train-buff-in-your-life/ | Semaphore Signal Replica Perfect For The Train Buff In Your Life | Mike Nathan | [
"Arduino Hacks",
"classic hacks"
] | [
"arduino",
"model trains",
"reed switch",
"semaphore"
] | [John Philip’s] brother has a sizable room set aside for his model railroad setup, and he was looking for something interesting to add to his brother’s collection. Rather than construct something for the railroad itself, he decided that
an early 1900’s-style semaphore railroad signal
would make a great novelty item for the room.
The project started with [John] scouring the Internet for colored signal lenses. Once he found a set that worked for him, he crunched some numbers to ensure that the rest of the semaphore box stayed true to original scale. Inside the signal’s case you will find a small regulator board for his light source, an Arduino, and a motor controller board to actuate the arm.
To ensure that the signal arm is always perfectly positioned, he installed a pair of reed switches on either side of the case, enabling the Arduino to auto-calibrate the signal’s position each time it is powered on. At first, this control scheme might strike you as a bit over the top, but we really like the fact that the signal can always configure itself to function perfectly, even if someone tinkers with/bumps into/moves the arm at any point.
Be sure to stick around to see a short video of the semaphore signal in action.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMGhafXKVCM&w=470] | 6 | 6 | [
{
"comment_id": "592106",
"author": "dave",
"timestamp": "2012-02-29T23:21:58",
"content": "wait, what size where the lenses again?",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "592141",
"author": "bhelx",
"timestamp": "2012-03-01T00:24:33",
"cont... | 1,760,376,942.905348 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/29/hackaday-links-leap-day-2012/ | Hackaday Links: Leap Day, 2012 | Brian Benchoff | [
"Hackaday links"
] | [
"calendar hacks",
"cli",
"dual boot",
"key card",
"lock",
"marbles",
"Maximite",
"nyan cat",
"sequencer",
"youtube"
] | The Earth orbits the Sun every 365.256 days. Because this number isn’t a whole number, an extra day is tacked onto February every four years, unless the year is evenly divisible by 100, except in cases where the year is divisible by 400, or something like that. To commemorate this calendar hack, here’s some stuff that has rolled in over the last week or so.
Marble sequencer
[Brian] sent in this
marble-based sequencer
that sounds like someone is running MIDI into an Atari 2600. There are photoresistors in there somewhere, and it really reminds us of those
thingamagoop robots
.
YouTube CLI
[Mike] uses YouTube as his music library. While this is a perfectly acceptable way to listen to music, the user interface is terrible. To solve this problem, [Mike] is
downloading videos from the command line
, automagically converting them to MP3, and playing them over speakers. It works well with SSH, so we’ll call this a win.
Key card lock
[valenitn] just joined the MIT Media Lab, but something was terribly wrong with his keys – an ID card was required to get into the building, but a key was necessary to get into his office. He doesn’t
need the key anymore
, at least since he modded his office door. Check out
the video
.
Pop Tart Cat is everywhere
[skywodd] saw our writeup on the
Maximite Basic computer
and figured he could send in a project he’s been working on. He programmed his Maximite to sing the
nyan cat song
and then created a BASIC
music player
. Nice job, [skywodd].
Not sure if brilliant or insane
[Vikash] ran across a
forum post
where a user named [I Shooter] describes his setup to dual-boot Windows and Linux: [I Shooter] connected data cables to a pair of SATA hard drives, one loaded up with Windows, the other with Linux. The power cables are switched
using relays so only one drive is powered at a time.
[I Shooter] gets a ton of points for creativity, but there’s a reason this brute force hardware dual-boot setup isn’t more common. We wish there were pictures of this one. | 28 | 12 | [
{
"comment_id": "591950",
"author": "Brett W. (FightCube.com)",
"timestamp": "2012-02-29T19:31:54",
"content": "Yes, Century Years not divisible by 400 do not get an extra day added to Feb. Next one is in 88 years, the year 2100.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_leap_years",
"parent_id": nul... | 1,760,376,943.309212 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/29/projector-calibration-on-uneven-surfaces-made-easy/ | Projector Calibration On Uneven Surfaces Made Easy | Mike Nathan | [
"Arduino Hacks",
"Video Hacks"
] | [
"calibration",
"johnny chung lee",
"projector",
"video"
] | If you are thinking of building your own flight/racing sim setup at home, you might want to check this out. [Alex] from the Garoa Hackerspace in Säo Paulo, Brazil put together a slick setup that
makes projector image calibration a breeze.
When building a wraparound screen for such a simulator, you are likely to run into problems with both overlapping images and distortion from the curved projection. There are projectors that can easily adjust themselves to work in this sort of setup, but they are often very expensive, so [Alex] thought he would build a solution himself.
After studying
a paper written by [Johnny Chung Lee]
in 2004, he built
a prototype display calibrator last year
that used similar, though slightly tweaked methods to get the job done. This time around, [Alex] has improved his calibrator, making the process more precise and a bit quicker.
Light sensors and an Arduino are attached to the back of the projection medium, and a large broad scan of the screen is performed by the projector. His code then triggers an additional sweep of each corner to better estimate the exact edges of his projection surface. Since the video is tweaked in software rather than relying on the projector hardware to handle the task, the result is cheap and very accurate.
Don’t take our word for it though, check out [Alex’s] video demonstration below to see his calibrator in action.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=CvOBGdnUEzw&w=470] | 18 | 14 | [
{
"comment_id": "591902",
"author": "Nobody",
"timestamp": "2012-02-29T18:17:33",
"content": "Also done at Carnegie Mellon University:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgrGjJUBF_I",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "591912",
"author": "Rangerbob",
... | 1,760,376,943.667184 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/29/raspberry-pi-launched/ | Raspberry Pi Launched | Brian Benchoff | [
"hardware",
"News"
] | [
"Rapsberry",
"raspberry pi"
] | The Raspberry Pi
has been launched
. When we
first heard
of this board nearly a year ago, the idea of a $25 computer that displays 1080p video, runs Linux, and has enough ports to the outside world to do some
very
interesting stuff, we were cautiously optimistic. Now that the guys behind the Raspberry Pi are getting units out to the masses, we’re a little excited and also thinking about all the cool stuff we’re going to build.
The Raspberry Pi foundation is going with a licensed manufacturing setup with
RS Components
and
Premier Farnell
signing up to manufacture and distribute the boards. Right now it’s a strictly one-per-customer situation, but within a month or so you’ll be able to order as many as you would like.
Right now the foundation is focusing on the slightly more expensive ‘B’ model Raspberry Pi that includes Ethernet and USB over the $25 base unit. The ‘A’ model was originally slated to come with 128 MB of RAM, but due to some clever cost saving strategies, the team increased the base RAM to 256 MB.
Right now the only question we have is
if an American distributor has signed on
to sell this board; we’re sure something awesome will be built with this awesome little board. Commentors pointed out that
Newark
was
selling Raspis for the US market, but they’re out of stock. The best advice may be to wait a few months for production to catch up to demand. | 113 | 50 | [
{
"comment_id": "591848",
"author": "Nabil",
"timestamp": "2012-02-29T17:07:48",
"content": "Newark linkhttp://www.newark.com/raspberry-pi/raspbrry-pcba/dp/83T1943?Ntt=83T1943",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "591850",
"author": "John",
"t... | 1,760,376,943.844737 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/29/another-take-on-using-dead-batteries/ | Another Take On Using ‘dead’ Batteries | Mike Szczys | [
"Tool Hacks"
] | [
"batteries",
"boost converter",
"breadboard",
"psu",
"supply"
] | Here’s
another circuit that can be used to squeeze the remaining potential
from supposedly dead batteries. Just like
the AASaver
, we see this as a useful prototyping tool, providing juice for a breadboard even though it’s not reliable enough for long-term use (the batteries are just about through after all).
First off, the image above shows rechargeables instead of alkalines. We don’t recommend this as the circuit has no cutoff feature and the 0.7V input for the boost converter surely is below the recommended low-voltage limit for those cells. But that aside, we like the diminutive board which solders onto the end of a battery pack. It uses an SC120SKTRT which is a variable boost regulator capable of outputting 1.8-5V depending on resistor choices. You can leave the resistors off and it will default to 3.3V, set the output explicitly, or roll in some potentiometers and use your multimeter to tune the output.
This regulator costs more than the MCP1640 used in the AASaver, but it appears to use less passive components making for a smaller footprint. At a total of $3.50 plus the PCB (which will be a snap to etch at home) this is another great option to top off your next parts order.
[Thanks Uwe] | 8 | 4 | [
{
"comment_id": "591830",
"author": "mohonri",
"timestamp": "2012-02-29T16:18:23",
"content": "It doesn’t have to be limited to almost-all-used batteries, either. If you’ve got a project that needs 5V, you can use this with fresh batteries to get the voltage you need.",
"parent_id": null,
"d... | 1,760,376,943.716416 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/01/a-zoom-lens-for-your-webcam/ | A Zoom Lens For Your Webcam | Mike Szczys | [
"digital cameras hacks"
] | [
"handycam",
"lens",
"sony",
"webcam",
"zoom"
] | We need to find the kind of friends that [Dino] has. They seem to drop off all of their older, yet totally awesome, electronics with him once they’re through with the devices. One example of this is the Sony Handycam that came into his possession. He decided to crack it open and repurpose
the 20x optical zoom lens for use with a webcam
.
We always like [Dino’s] style. You can tell that he has no idea if he’s going to be able to pull off his goal, but at the same time he has an intuitive sense that he’ll make it happen. In the video after the break he starts off investigating what components are in the camera. At first the lens is passing no light at all, but he just strips down parts until he can see through it.
There are a couple of servo motors which control zoom and focus. He removes those before attaching the CCD from a Logitech webcam. At the end of his video he shows a demo of the functionality, which is pretty finicky when focusing by hand. But we think this hack would make a fantastic camera for soldering projects, it just needs a custom controller so the motors can be once again used to adjust focus.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKS5eI-VQxM&w=470] | 23 | 13 | [
{
"comment_id": "593009",
"author": "incognito53",
"timestamp": "2012-03-01T22:30:56",
"content": "I was just wondering why nobody has done a DIY on a megapixel ip security camera.. even if it required a mini hdmi connection to the chip that ran the ethernet controller, it’d be nice to have",
"p... | 1,760,376,943.612818 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/01/auto-power-circuit-for-an-arcade-machine/ | Auto Power Circuit For An Arcade Machine | Mike Szczys | [
"classic hacks"
] | [
"555",
"arcade",
"pinball",
"power",
"relay"
] | Some of the pinball machines which [Jeri Ellsworth] has restored have ended up in the break room at her work. We’re sure her coworkers are thankful for this, but sometimes they forget to turn off the power to the machines, and letting them run constantly means more frequent servicing will be necessary. She set out to fix the situation by building
a circuit that will automatically power the machines
.
We think the solution adds some much needed functionality. Instead of hunting for the power switch, you can now power the machine up by hitting the left flipper, and it will automatically shut off after about five minutes of not having that flipper button pressed. For this she grabbed a 555 timer chip and built a circuit to control the relay switching the mains power.
She added a magnet and reed switch to the left flipper switch assembly to control her add-on circuit. It connects to the base of a PNP transistor which controls a resistor network and capacitor. This part of the circuit (seen to the left of the 555 in the schematic) allows the timer to be re-triggered. That is, every time you press the flipper the 555 will reset the timer. Don’t miss the demo she filmed after the break.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5tg1UuPMJw&w=470] | 31 | 16 | [
{
"comment_id": "592959",
"author": "Alex Rossie",
"timestamp": "2012-03-01T21:29:34",
"content": "What is it with the funny camera angles.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": [
{
"comment_id": "592973",
"author": "Indyaner",
"timestamp": "2012-03-01... | 1,760,376,943.912063 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/01/klackerlaken-gets-the-common-man-excited-about-electronics/ | Klackerlaken Gets The Common Man Excited About Electronics | Mike Szczys | [
"Hackerspaces"
] | [
"bottle cap",
"bristlebot",
"ccc",
"throwie"
] | The
Klackerlaken is a combination of LED throwie and bristlebot
. The bauble is easy to build and really has no other purpose than to delight the masses. The diminutive devices were first seen in the wild at the 2011 CCC (Chaos Communications Camp) as a hands-on workshop. Check out the clip after the break and you’ll see why this really sucks in the spectators.
We’ve seen a ton of Bristlebots before (this
tiny steerable version
is one of our favorites) and were intrigued to see bottle caps used as the feet instead of the traditional toothbrush head. In fact, that video clip shows off several different iterations including two caps acting as an enclosure for the button cell and vibrating motor. Googly eyes on the top really complete the look on that one.
Decorating the robots with LEDs, fake eyes, tails, and feathers helps to temper the technical aspects that kids are learning as they put together one of their own. We’re glad that [Martin] shared the link at the top which covers the creations seen at a workshop held by Dorkbot Berlin. This would be a great activity for your Hackerspace’s next open house! Perhaps its possible to have follow-up classes that improve on the design, using rechargeable cells instead of disposable buttons, or maybe supercaps would work.
[vimeo http://vimeo.com/27589074 w=470] | 22 | 16 | [
{
"comment_id": "592897",
"author": "Aaron",
"timestamp": "2012-03-01T20:28:35",
"content": "“The common man”? “Delight the masses”?Classy.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "592908",
"author": "Sariel",
"timestamp": "2012-03-01T20:37:23",
... | 1,760,376,943.551098 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/01/a-one-bit-processor/ | A One-bit Processor | Mike Szczys | [
"Misc Hacks"
] | [
"1-bit",
"processing",
"processor"
] | Put on that abstract thinking cap, get out the pen and paper, and spend some time figuring out
how this one-bit processor works
. [Strawdog] came up with the concept one day during his commute to work (don’t worry, he takes the train… much safer than [Dave Jones’] frightening drive-time podcasts). He sketched it out on paper to make sure he knew where he was going with the project, then collaborated with Legion Labs to implement it in processing as an easier way to visualize its functionality. Since it’s one-bit there’s only room for one instruction. That instruction is a copy, then branch-if instruction. It copies the current bit to one address, and if that bit was one, it branches to a second address.
Going a bit fast for you? We think the description is fairly good, but if you can’t quite put it together from the article’s description, you may want to
build this 2-bit paper processor
and learn how it works first. It should teach you the basic concepts you need to understand the 1-bit version. As you can see in the image above, there’s also a single-step feature in the processing example that lets you analyze the effects of each instruction during program execution. | 30 | 11 | [
{
"comment_id": "592846",
"author": "Sheldon",
"timestamp": "2012-03-01T19:52:32",
"content": "Since it’s one-bit there’s only room for one instructionEr, in my world, bits can take two states (‘0’ and ‘1’) so that’stwoinstructions.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": [
{
... | 1,760,376,944.027597 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/01/rolling-digit-clock-is-a-wonderful-piece-of-engineering/ | Rolling Digit Clock Is A Wonderful Piece Of Engineering | Brian Benchoff | [
"clock hacks"
] | [
"analog display",
"arduino",
"clock"
] | A long time ago and on a scrounging trip he barely remembers, [Victor] bought a quartet of digits from an old Dutch Railways clock. These antique displays used a strip of plastic coated cloth that rolls around itself with the help of a motor to display the digits 0 through 9.
It’s been many years, but [Victor] finally got around to
building a clock
out of these single digit displays and we’re loving the results.
Because these displays were manufactured in a time when mechanical devices were king, [Victor] had to slightly modify each digit so they could display numbers with the help of a continuous rotation servo. The four servos are controlled by an Arduino – each digit changing one at a time to reduce current consumption – and a magnet and reed switch was added to each digit so the numbers could be repeatedly displayed.
Before [Victor] replaced the plastic servo gears with metal cogs, the clock was quite noisy. He’s since put each digit underneath a bell jar (actually a vase turned upside down), and we’ve got to say that [Victor] has a nice clock on his hands. Check out the videos of the clock changing digits to display the time after the break.
[vimeo=34147462]
[vimeo=37557095] | 16 | 6 | [
{
"comment_id": "592766",
"author": "derpa",
"timestamp": "2012-03-01T18:33:38",
"content": "It looks nice but it really shits the bed at midnight! Transition time is always a huge issue with these art clocks.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": [
{
"comment_id": "5... | 1,760,376,943.964647 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/01/microsoft-shows-off-their-transparent-3d-desktop-prototype/ | Microsoft Shows Off Their Transparent 3D Desktop Prototype | Mike Szczys | [
"Video Hacks"
] | [
"3d",
"depth camera",
"Kinect",
"microsoft",
"tablet"
] | We think most would agree that the Microsoft Kinect is a miraculous piece of hardware. The affordable availability of a high-quality depth camera was the genesis of a myriad of hacks. And now it seems that type of data is
making an intriguing 3D display possible
.
What you see above is a 3D monitor concept that Microsoft developed. It starts off looking much like a tablet PC, but the screen can be lifted up toward the user whose arms reach around it to get at the keyboard underneath. There is as depth camera that can see the hands and fingers of the user to allow manipulation of the virtual environment. But that’s only part of the problem. You need some way to align the user’s eyes with what’s on the screen. They seem to have solved that problem too, using another depth camera to track the location of the user’s head. This means that you can lean from one side to the other and the perspective of the virtual 3D desktop will change to preserve the apparent distance of each object.
Don’t miss the show-and-tell video after the break. As long as there’s only one viewer this looks like a perfect non-glasses alternative to current 3D hardware offerings.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGa1Q7NvsI0&w=470]
[via
Reddit
] | 44 | 23 | [
{
"comment_id": "592622",
"author": "MrX",
"timestamp": "2012-03-01T15:05:37",
"content": "LOL, seriously?",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "592624",
"author": "Gagan",
"timestamp": "2012-03-01T15:08:37",
"content": "hahaha",
"pare... | 1,760,376,944.293557 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/29/billiards-concepts-plied-to-position-acoustic-panels/ | Billiards Concepts Plied To Position Acoustic Panels | Mike Szczys | [
"home entertainment hacks"
] | [
"acoustic panels",
"billiards",
"reflection"
] | If you know your way around a pool table you should be able to apply those skills to improving the sound of your home theater. [Eric Wolfram] put together a post that discusses the issues caused by unwanted sound reflections and shows
how to position acoustic tiles
to solve the problem.
This is a companion post to his guide on
building your own acoustic tiles
. Don’t worry if you haven’t gotten around to doing that yet. With just a wood frame, dense fiberglass, and some fabric they’re simple to build. They’re also easy to hang but until now you might have just guessed on where they should go.
Once you have all of your speakers and seats in position grab a mirror and some post-it notes. Take a seat as the viewer and have a friend operate the mirror as seen above. With it flat against the wall, mark each spot with a sticky-note where you can see a reflection of one of the speakers. Finding the reflection points is just like lining up a bank shot in Billiards. With five speakers (5.1 Surround Sound) and six surfaces (walls, ceiling, and floor) you should be able to mark 30 reflections points. Now decide how wild you plan to go with the project. The best result will address all 30 reflection points, but you can get by with just the front marks if you’re a bit more conservative. | 30 | 11 | [
{
"comment_id": "592215",
"author": "kaye",
"timestamp": "2012-03-01T01:54:05",
"content": "I’ll certainly be using this idea when living room remodeling time comes.Also, it’s applied, not plied (in title). :)",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": [
{
"comment_id": "5... | 1,760,376,944.211597 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/13/avoid-shaky-camera-movements-with-gyroscopic-stabilization/ | Avoid Shaky Camera Movements With Gyroscopic Stabilization | Brian Benchoff | [
"digital cameras hacks"
] | [
"gyroscope",
"image stabilization"
] | Right after “no editing whatsoever”, the “shaky camera” is the bane of YouTube viewers the world over. [David] came up with
a nice solution
to the problem of shaky cameras that uses gyroscopes to even out the bumps of making a great movie.
Most cameras attached to moving frames – from the zip-line cameras at NFL games to police helicopters and aerial reconnaissance drones – have some sort of gyroscopic stabilization. Even though gyroscopic stabilization has been around for more than 60 years, the designs haven’t changed that much. [David] dug up a
few patents
dating from the 50s and set to work replicating the design.
[David] bought a pair of [Glenn Turner]’s fabulously heavy and expensive-looking
powered gyroscopes
and began bolting them onto a piece of sheet metal. Per the 1950 patent, the gyroscopes were mounted 90 degrees apart and bolted onto the camera.
From the video demo (after the break), there’s a marked difference between filming a stroll though a parking lot with the gyros on and gyros off. While the pair of motor driven gyroscopes look a little ungainly and are a bit too loud for our tastes, the solution is much less expensive than the $1600
professional gyro
[David] based his build on.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wh8-xxW1WgE&w=470] | 40 | 26 | [
{
"comment_id": "602049",
"author": "Zac D",
"timestamp": "2012-03-13T15:09:56",
"content": "I can understand the intent in this and it is an improvement over the shaking but it isn’t really stabilizing much over the jerkiness of his steps.I think the problem is that he he holding onto a rod directl... | 1,760,376,944.369864 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/13/control-an-arduino-from-android-over-bluetooth/ | Control An Arduino From Android Over Bluetooth | Brian Benchoff | [
"Android Hacks",
"Arduino Hacks"
] | [
"android",
"arduino",
"bluetooth",
"ioio"
] | Whether you’d like to do some real-time logging of data, or just want to control a project with your Android phone, [Thomas]’s
Arduino-Android Bluetooth connection
instructable is sure to be useful
[Thomas]’ build uses the very inexpensive JY-MCU Bluetooth module that’s available on eBay or
dealextreme
. This Bluetooth module ties directly into the Tx and Rx lines of the Arduino so a wireless serial connection between an Android device can be established. On the Android side of the build,
Python for Android
and the
Scripting Layer for Android
allow for reading wireless sensor data over Bluetooth.
While connecting an Android device to an Arduino is also possible with
an IOIO
or an
Android Open Accessory
dev kit, we haven’t seen much (barring
this
) about controlling or reading simple electronics with Android over Bluetooth. Sometimes you just don’t need an awesome dev board to bodge up a simple project, so we hope [Thomas]’s very nice instructable will help get a few more builds off the ground. | 10 | 8 | [
{
"comment_id": "602101",
"author": "nathangray",
"timestamp": "2012-03-13T16:13:37",
"content": "Also,http://www.amarino-toolkit.net/got me started",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": [
{
"comment_id": "789432",
"author": "matthew",
"timestamp": "20... | 1,760,376,944.663814 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/13/the-spud-gun-to-end-all-spud-guns/ | The Spud Gun To End All Spud Guns | Brian Benchoff | [
"Weapons Hacks"
] | [
"mapp gas",
"potato gun",
"spud gun"
] | In Norse mythology, Mjöllnir is the hammer of Thor, forged in a contest to create the most wondrous and munificent tool for the gods of Asgard. While we’re not aware if [MrCrowley] recently made a bet with Loki, his version of Mjöllnir, a
gigantic spud gun powered by MAPP gas
, is wondrous enough for our tastes.
Unlike most of the
other
spud
guns
we’ve seen, [MrCrowley] eschewed the use of PVC pipe and fittings in his build because that would explode on the first test fire. Instead, the gun uses galvanized and stainless steel for the majority of the construction. That’s not to say this spud gun is necessarily
safe,
though: as he demonstrates in the video after the break, golf balls exit the barrel with a comparable energy to most rifle rounds.
For an interesting take on an ignition system, [MrCrowley] built a
remote ignition system
out of a wireless doorbell and a 100kV stun gun. While this does allow for remote firing, the entire build seems safe enough – from behind the muzzle, at least – to be carried with a rifle strap.
It should go without saying that
this is incredibly dangerous
and you shouldn’t build this if you’re not planning on your last words being, “Wanna see something cool? Hold my beer.” That being said, [MrCrowley] knows what he’s doing, and you can check out the video of Mjöllnir in action after the break.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkGriGwCSJU&w=470]
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=edQx-9gMajk&w=470] | 74 | 26 | [
{
"comment_id": "601971",
"author": "Max",
"timestamp": "2012-03-13T13:18:16",
"content": "Great quote from the Keiichi Tsuchiya “What is power without control? Nothing.”This seems a bit lacking in control (aiming) but plenty powerful enough.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": [... | 1,760,376,944.622993 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/12/portal-mini-golf-hole-will-incinerate-your-ball-you-monster/ | Portal Mini Golf Hole Will Incinerate Your Ball…you Monster | Mike Nathan | [
"Misc Hacks"
] | [
"mini golf",
"portal"
] | One of [Tom’s] friends is celebrating a birthday soon, and he was asked to make a mini golf hole for the event. While most people would expect to bring beer or guac to the shindig, he saw this as an opportunity to
bring a little bit of Portal to life.
Near the end of the first Portal game, you are forced to pitch your companion cube into the incinerator, a scene which [Tom] thought would be the perfect mini golf hole. He started out by building an
iris door mechanism
, which he surrounded with chicken wire and some plaster, producing a fantastic-looking waste disposal pipe.
He added a ramp that leads up to the hole, then [Tom] got busy with the electronics portion of the fixture. Once the portal button at the end of the ramp is pressed, an Arduno triggers a pair of motors to open the waste disposal door and fire up a smoke machine. The result, as you can see in the video below, is nothing short of awesome.
[Tom] says he’s in the process of building a pair of turrets and a working golf ball portal as well, so if you’re a big Portal fan, be sure to check out his site for updates.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Kv2W6nft96c&w=470] | 38 | 10 | [
{
"comment_id": "601475",
"author": "Alex Rossie",
"timestamp": "2012-03-12T21:33:46",
"content": "Dude, spoiler alert.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": [
{
"comment_id": "601494",
"author": "chango",
"timestamp": "2012-03-12T21:54:15",
"c... | 1,760,376,944.445676 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/12/testing-an-open-source-pid-controller-with-steak/ | Testing An Open Source PID Controller With Steak | Brian Benchoff | [
"Android Hacks"
] | [
"beef tenderloin",
"osPID",
"sous-vide"
] | Sous vide cookers aren’t anything new, but [Phil] wanted to build the first
sous vide using the osPID
, an open source PID controller just released in the last month.
The build uses the osPID Open Source PID controller
we saw last week
that comes with inputs for a thermocouple and pair of relays capable of switching a hot plate or immersion heater. The osPID is based on the Arduino and was created by [Brett Beauregard], author of the
Arduino PID library
.
Getting to the meat and potatoes of the build, [Phil] connected a 300 Watt immersion heater to the osPID and put the heater in a bowl of water. A delicious looking cut of beef tenderloin was shoved into a ziplock bag and suspended in the bowl of warm water for a few hours. With the heater and thermocouple attached to the osPID, the temperature was set at 130° F and the entire device was left alone for a few hours. Looking at [Phil]’s recipe for
tenderloin with lemon parsley butter
whets our taste buds, so we’ll hope [Phil]’s dinner came out just fine. | 20 | 9 | [
{
"comment_id": "601330",
"author": "Mike",
"timestamp": "2012-03-12T17:33:49",
"content": "People think I’m anal enough already about following recipes. You know, measuring *exactly* 2.5 cups of water, etc. I can just see their reaction when I start complaining about “not following the temperature... | 1,760,376,944.514362 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/12/ecdb-offers-a-simple-intuitive-way-to-keep-your-electronic-inventory-organized/ | EcDB Offers A Simple, Intuitive Way To Keep Your Electronic Inventory Organized | Mike Nathan | [
"News",
"Tool Hacks"
] | [
"components",
"ecDB",
"electronic component database",
"organization",
"storage"
] | One of the most important tools for any hacker or maker is organization. You might consider it more of a concept rather than a physical tool, but regardless of how you like to frame it, ensuring your tools and components are (nearly) always where they should be is key. As the odds and ends add up, it can sometimes be hard remembering exactly what you have on hand –
that’s where the ecDB comes in handy.
Short for electronics component DataBase, the ecDB was created by [Nils Fredriksson], and offers a clean and intuitive way to keep tabs on what you have in-house. Many of us have used spreadsheets and notebooks to do the same, but ecDB allows you to record much more data than you could with either solution.
This is immediately clear within a moment or two of looking at the site’s interface. Not simply limited to listing part names and quantities, ecDB allows you to record manufacturer info, package type, and pin counts, while also allowing you to attach PDF datasheets and images of your components as well.
We really like system that [Nils] put together, and suggest giving it a spin to see if it will help you keep things organized in your workshop. | 59 | 40 | [
{
"comment_id": "601242",
"author": "raged",
"timestamp": "2012-03-12T15:37:20",
"content": "Very cool.Have you thought about export options?",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "601243",
"author": "ElectricMan",
"timestamp": "2012-03-12T15:3... | 1,760,376,944.849121 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/03/12/becoming-the-youtube-loading-animation/ | Becoming The YouTube Loading Animation | Brian Benchoff | [
"Arduino Hacks",
"LED Hacks"
] | [
"arduino",
"youtube"
] | Whether you’re used to dropped wifi connections, or your housemates are using up all the bandwidth for streaming, we’ve all see the spinning octet of disks that is the YouTube loading animation. [technocrat] thought it would be a great idea to actually become YouTube and set out on designing a
physical manifestation of the loading animation
.
[technocrat] used eight ping-pong balls as the main structure of the build. After drilling each ping-pong ball and gluing white LEDs in, the only thing left was to connect everything up to an Arduino. The code loops through each LED and provides the ‘light trail’ animation YouTube has burned into our memory.
To complete the build, [technocrat] attached his physical loading animation to a black t-shirt emblazoned with the YouTube logo to make everything more understandable. While it may not be as colorful as the
beachball of death
or as conceptual as the Windows ‘spinning hourglass’, we’re really liking this build. Check out the video after the break.
[vimeo=38217006] | 75 | 30 | [
{
"comment_id": "601157",
"author": "HackJack",
"timestamp": "2012-03-12T13:12:01",
"content": "First.Ownage! This rocks. I want to buy a kit. Thanks",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "601159",
"author": "ino",
"timestamp": "2012-03-12T13:1... | 1,760,376,945.003701 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/28/check-it-out-my-clothes-are-electric-no-seriously/ | Check It Out, My Clothes Are Electric. No, Seriously | Mike Szczys | [
"green hacks",
"Wearable Hacks"
] | [
"carbon nanotube",
"fabric",
"generator",
"nanotechnology",
"peltier",
"power felt"
] | Someday you may be able to use your crotch or armpits to recharge that cellphone. Heck, maybe there won’t even be a battery, just a capacitor which gets its juice from
Power Felt, a fabric that converts body heat to electricity
.
Now we mention the nether-regions because it’s funny, but also because it makes the most sense. Researchers have developed a fabric containing carbon nanotubes used in a way that generates electricity based on a temperature differential. We figure the areas on the body that have high heat loss would be the most efficient locations for the fabric since it is currently extremely expensive to produce (the hope is that mass-production would reduce cost by orders of magnitude). So we think battery-charging briefs are a definite possibility.
What we see here is a nano-scale Peltier electricity generator. It’s the same concept as
this candle-based generator
, except the increased efficiency of the Power Felt lets your wasted body heat take the place of the flame.
There’s a white paper on the topic but you can’t get at it without surrendering some [George Washingtons].
[via
Reddit
and
Megadgets
] | 19 | 9 | [
{
"comment_id": "591154",
"author": "austin",
"timestamp": "2012-02-28T19:18:51",
"content": "ok im not sure how this would work, on the one hand it seems taking heat into electricity should cause a loss of heat, so this should cool your down no?of course if it doesnt cool down the cloth would get w... | 1,760,376,945.28069 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/28/shoulder-mount-for-any-camera/ | Shoulder Mount For Any Camera | Mike Szczys | [
"digital cameras hacks"
] | [
"camera",
"PVC",
"shoulder rig"
] | Whatever your reasons may be, if you’re going to be holding a camera for long periods of time this shoulder mount will both steady the image, and help save you some aches and pains. [Kyle Jason] built the rig seen above
for just $20 by following this guide
.
[Knoptop] published the guide about a year ago. It doesn’t make use of any
special PVC connectors
, so you’ll have no problem finding everything you need at the hardware store. Connectors used include 45 and 90 degree angles, straight pieces, and a PVC conduit box to serve as the mounting bracket. After cutting, dry fitting, and welding everything together the rig really benefits from a couple of coats of paint. Don’t forget the grip covers to make the thing easy to hold onto.
Don’t want to read the build guide? After the break you’ll find [Knoptop’s] build video which is actually quite a fun eight minutes to watch.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sa7eeZgqRas&w=470]
[via
Reddit
] | 10 | 7 | [
{
"comment_id": "591125",
"author": "F4R4D4Y.dc414",
"timestamp": "2012-02-28T18:24:02",
"content": "Real nice until the black electrical tape gets a few minutes of sunlight and unwraps, leaving black goo all over your shoulder.I dont care if it’s 3M’s “33” brand at $8 a roll; you WILL get goo on yo... | 1,760,376,944.895799 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/28/doubling-up-on-the-usb-supercap-flashlight/ | Doubling Up On The USB Supercap Flashlight | Mike Szczys | [
"LED Hacks"
] | [
"capacitor",
"flashlight",
"joule thief",
"led",
"parallel",
"series"
] | [Antoine] wrote in to let us know that he soldiers on with his flashlight project. He’s
doubled up on the supercaps and tripled the LEDs
(
translated
).
The core concept has stayed the same since
the original version
. He wanted a flashlight that was small and used no batteries. This iteration came about as he looked at increasing the light output of the device. He’s switched to some warm-white LEDs which are easier on the eyes, but was unhappy with the charge life now that he’s using current at a faster rate. The solution, of course, is more potential from the capacitor. He’s now using two 10 Farad caps in parallel. We are a little skeptical about his capacitor theory and ended up
using this lecture
to defog the issue of parallel and series capacitance.
The upgraded hardware is right at home in that plastic egg like you’d find in a coin-op trinket vending machine. You’ll see there’s still a colored LED to warn when the charge is getting too low. | 28 | 10 | [
{
"comment_id": "591075",
"author": "Indyaner",
"timestamp": "2012-02-28T17:13:54",
"content": "plastic egg like you’d find in a coin-op trinket vending machineIn Europe we call it Kinderüberraschung. I guess you had to talk around it as they are illegal in the US?",
"parent_id": null,
"dept... | 1,760,376,945.108169 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/28/usb-slingshot-controller-is-for-the-birds/ | USB Slingshot Controller Is For The Birds | Mike Szczys | [
"Peripherals Hacks"
] | [
"accelerometer",
"angry birds",
"mbed",
"slingshot",
"usb"
] | This USB slingshot controller really brought a smile to our faces. Part of it is the delightfully silly promo video you’ll find after the break. [Simon Ford] combined nature and technology to bring
this USB-enabled slingshot
into existence.
The frame itself is from a branch he found in the Epping Forrest of London. He whittled away the bark, and hollowed out an opening in at the base of the ‘Y’ to receive an accelerometer board. It has a pair of female pin headers to interface with the mbed seen in the image above. But the real hack here is the code he wrote to translate accelerometer data into appropriate mouse movements. His success in the area makes this translate the virtual world of Angry Birds in a visceral experience of killing things with a slingshot.
We’re suckers for this type of project. Two examples that pop into mind are these
musical instrument hacks for Rock Band 2
.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a97bWORY4Og&w=470] | 11 | 11 | [
{
"comment_id": "591060",
"author": "atomsoft",
"timestamp": "2012-02-28T16:53:38",
"content": "Now this is AWESOME! lol great job! Wait until my wife sees this :)",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "591102",
"author": "japkin",
"timestamp":... | 1,760,376,945.046017 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/27/squeezing-the-juice-out-of-some-aa-batteries/ | Squeezing The Juice Out Of Some AA Batteries | Mike Szczys | [
"Tool Hacks"
] | [
"aa",
"battery",
"boost converter",
"breadboard",
"mcp1640",
"power supply"
] | [Ray’s] breadboard power supply lets you
drain the last traces of power from ‘dead’ AA batteries
. Electronics that are powered off of disposable alkaline batteries have a cutoff voltage that usually leaves a fair amount of potential within. Since many municipal recycling programs don’t take the disposables (you’re just supposed to throw them in the trash!) we love the idea of squeezing them for prototyping use.
His design uses just one IC, the MCP1640, along with a handful of passive components. The chip is a boost converter with a startup voltage of just 0.65V, which means the batteries themselves – normally starting life above 1.5V – can be used until they drop to about 0.3V each.
Above you can see the kit he is selling. But it’s an open source project and the circuit is so simple we’re sure you can build your own. Add that boost converter chip to your next parts order for around $0.40.
[Ray] made a nice demo video for the device which you can see embedded after the break.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ze7x_bq-c2A&w=470] | 75 | 31 | [
{
"comment_id": "590418",
"author": "No One",
"timestamp": "2012-02-28T00:03:21",
"content": "I love it. I hate having a pile of “used” alkalines around when I know that they’re still at almost a volt each!",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "59041... | 1,760,376,945.391021 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/27/this-image-contains-a-hidden-audio-track/ | This Image Contains A Hidden Audio Track | Mike Szczys | [
"Security Hacks"
] | [
"encoded",
"hidden",
"Rick Astley",
"Rick Rolled",
"ruby",
"steganography"
] | This image contains a hidden audio track which you’re very familiar with. Well, it used to. We’d bet we messed up the careful encoding that [Chris McKenzie]
used to hide data within an image
when we resized the original.
He’s using a method called
Steganography
to hide a message in plain sight. Since digital images use millions of colors, you can mess with that color data just a bit and the eye will not really be able to pick up any difference. Each pixel has had the eight least significant bits swapped out for the data [Chris] is hiding. Since the image uses 24-bit color, the largest possible change (going from 0 to 255) in those bottom eight bits will only result in a color change of about 0.15%. And that’s only for one pixel; in most cases the change will be much less.
He shows his work, both decoding and encoding using Ruby, and even provides a one-liner which lets you playback the audio without downloading anything (just make sure you’ve got all of the dependencies installed). Never gonna give, you, up…
[via
Reddit
] | 60 | 28 | [
{
"comment_id": "590374",
"author": "nordpol",
"timestamp": "2012-02-27T23:17:19",
"content": "This is just amazing. Wow.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "590379",
"author": "Amstrad",
"timestamp": "2012-02-27T23:21:48",
"content": "I... | 1,760,376,945.48277 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/27/display-twitter-on-an-arduino/ | Display Twitter On An Arduino | Brian Benchoff | [
"Arduino Hacks"
] | [
"arduino",
"arduino ethernet",
"ethernet",
"twitter"
] | If you ever wanted your name out on the Internet, now is your time to shine. [Chris] hooked up an
Arduino to the Internet
and is streaming the results of
combing through Twitter
live to the entire world.
The SocialBot9000, as [Chris] calls his build, is an Arduino Uno connected to an Ethernet shield and an LCD character display. The firmware uses the
Twitter API
to search for recent posts containing the phrase, ‘socialbot9000.’ A PHP script on the Arduino does all the heavy lifting and with the great
Bildr tutorial
on getting the Ethernet shield up and running, [Chris] was off to the races.
Because it’s extremely doubtful that everyone on the Internet could manage typing a message into Twitter that would be correctly parsed by the SocialBot9000, [Chris] put a
small form
up on the build log that will correctly generate the message and take you to your Twitter account for posting. After all that was done, [Chris] decided to have some fun and set up a
live feed
from a camera in front of the LCD display for the world to watch. | 14 | 9 | [
{
"comment_id": "590315",
"author": "Jacob Sayles",
"timestamp": "2012-02-27T22:26:22",
"content": "The next step is to make it do something fun! We hooked ours up to a relay that flashes a red light any time a tweet mentions @officenomads. Its amazing how much joy this brings around the office.",... | 1,760,376,945.536241 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/27/cheap-and-easy-logic-signal-generator/ | Cheap And Easy Logic Signal Generator | Brian Benchoff | [
"Tool Hacks"
] | [
"cmos",
"logic generator",
"ttl"
] | While function generators or analog signal generators are ubiquitous in their utility, we haven’t seen much of logic function generators on Hack a Day. Luckily, [Dilshan] sent in a really neat
8-channel signal injector
that is amazingly simple to build and comes with a great front end for editing patterns from your computer.
The
hardware
portion of the build is kept to a minimum with a PIC18F chip, USB socket, and header pins as the only major components. This board serves as the hardware output for the Kidogo software. This software provides a
very nice interface
to generate 5 volt logic signals on eight separate channels that will immensely help exploring your digital world.
With a great interface and very easy to build hardware, we can easily see the Kidogo hardware finding its way onto workbenches around the world. We’re tempted to build our own version using an AVR, but we would hate to ruin such a simple but useful tool. | 8 | 4 | [
{
"comment_id": "590292",
"author": "picture",
"timestamp": "2012-02-27T21:57:04",
"content": "“We’re tempted to build our own version using an AVR […]”Yeah… cos It is using a PIC microcontroller… it can’t be good.It is worth only if it is build around an AVR chip.That’s how the world rolls… I know.... | 1,760,376,945.574681 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/27/tethering-a-kindle-for-free-3g/ | Tethering A Kindle For Free 3G | Brian Benchoff | [
"hardware",
"Kindle hacks",
"Wireless Hacks"
] | [
"kindle",
"kindle keyboard",
"tethering",
"wireless"
] | [Excelangue] just posted a guide to
using the free 3G connection
in your Amazon Kindle to browse the Internet on your computer.
The hack requires a
Kindle Keyboard 3G
and the free worldwide Internet access that comes along with the purchase price. After jailbreaking the Kindle and applying a USB network hack, [Excelangue] managed to connect his laptop to the Internet through his computer. The process of tethering the Kindle’s 3G is remarkably easy, but we expect a one-click solution will pop up on the web sometime this week.
Of course we have to note here that tethering a Kindle is against the Amazon terms & conditions, and the data going through your Kindle is tied to a unique ID. If you do this, Amazon knows who you are and is more than likely
willing to brick your device
. [Excelangue] is looking into tethering to the Kindle over WiFi so Android and iOS devices can get in on the action, but he’s still in the process of experimenting with his build. | 94 | 43 | [
{
"comment_id": "590208",
"author": "Eric",
"timestamp": "2012-02-27T20:39:20",
"content": "I really wish this article had never been posted. Kindle users enjoy free 3G access for our Kindles and I would really hate for Amazon to have a reason to take it away from us.-Eric",
"parent_id": null,
... | 1,760,376,945.688357 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/27/finally-latex-in-html-files/ | Finally, LaTeX In HTML Files | Brian Benchoff | [
"Software Development"
] | [
"html",
"LaTeX",
"perl",
"typesetting"
] | Writing a paper in LaTeX will always result in beautiful output, but if you’d like to put that document up on the web you’re limited to two reasonable options: serve the document as a .PDF (with the horrors involves, although Chrome makes things much more palatable), or relying on third-party browser plugins like TeX The World. Now that [Todd Lehman] has finally
cooked up a perl script
to embed LaTeX in HTML documents, there’s no reason to type e^i*pi + 1 = 0 anymore.
For those not in the know, LaTeX is a document typesetting language that produces
beautiful output
, usually in PDF form. Unfortunately, when [Tim Berners-Lee] was inventing HTML, he decided to roll his own markup language instead of simply stealing it from [Don Knuth]. Since then, LaTeX aficionados have had to make do with putting TeX snippets into web pages as images or relying on the [; \LaTeX ;] generated from the
TeX The World
browser extension.
[Todd Lehman]’s perl script generates the PDF of his LaTeX file and pulls out all the weird font and math symbols into PNG files. These PNG files are carefully embedded into the HTML file generated from the normal text pulled from the LaTeX file. It’s a ton of work to get these document systems working correctly, but at least there’s a reasonable way to put good-looking LaTeX on the web now. | 23 | 20 | [
{
"comment_id": "590135",
"author": "Klemen Slavič",
"timestamp": "2012-02-27T19:15:17",
"content": "Actually, the accessibility of an image-based system is pretty lacking; investing in MathML with alternative rendering systems for non-supported browsers makes for a much better experience.Seehttp://... | 1,760,376,946.007465 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/27/visualizing-a-nanosecond/ | Visualizing A Nanosecond | Mike Szczys | [
"classic hacks"
] | [
"cobol",
"compiler",
"grace hopper",
"nanosecond"
] | We’re so glad to have run across this video where [Rear Admiral Grace Hopper]
explains how to visualize a nanosecond
. Now we had never heard of [Grace Hopper] before, but once you watch the clip (also embedded after the break) you’ll want to know who this person is. We work with divisions of seconds all the time when developing with microcontrollers. But those concepts are so abstract we never had a need to think about them as a physical distance. After all they’re a measure of time, right?
You can’t make it out, but she’s holding a length of wire between her hands. It is 11.8 inches long and represents how far electricity can travel in one nanosecond (one billionth of one second). She goes on to explain that this is a calculation of the distance which light can travel in one nanosecond, then really hits the concept home when she uses it to explain latency in satellite communications. For us, the waste of not putting a chip into sleep mode when it’s just stuck in the loop waiting for an interrupt is where we made the connection.
So back to the woman herself. We think you’ll really enjoy reading through
her Wikipedia biography page
. [Grace] was a computer science pioneer. She is credited with writing the very first computer compiler. She postulated and articulated the concepts that led to the development of COBOL, and popularized the term ‘debugging’. In short, she is one of the giants whose shoulders we all stand upon.
[via
Reddit
] | 98 | 47 | [
{
"comment_id": "590067",
"author": "Ed Minchau",
"timestamp": "2012-02-27T18:07:06",
"content": "You’d never heard of the woman who wrote BASIC?",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": [
{
"comment_id": "590083",
"author": "Stoneshop",
"timestamp": "201... | 1,760,376,945.883664 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/27/make-any-photo-3d-using-the-gimp/ | Make Any Photo 3D Using The Gimp | Mike Szczys | [
"digital cameras hacks"
] | [
"3d",
"gimp",
"stereoscopic"
] | Put your face close to the screen and cross your eyes until the two images above become one. You may need to adjust the tilt of your chin to make it happen, but when they come together you’ll see [John Lennon] pop out in 3D. This was made
using a 3D rendering script for The Gimp
.
The process is not entirely automatic, but it won’t take too long to mask off the outlines for different depth layers. The script makes three different layers from the image. One of them is a color-coded depth map that uses a custom color palatte to choose distance for each item. If you paint the background dark blue it will be processed at the furthest distance from the viewer’s cross-eyed perspective, yellow is the nearest.
[Don] mentions a parallel output and a cross-eyed output in his write up. We understand the cross-eyed version, but are just guessing that the parallel version would be used in a stereoscopic viewer that puts a partition between the two images so that each eye sees a different frame. You know,
like a View-Master
. | 24 | 16 | [
{
"comment_id": "590028",
"author": "D",
"timestamp": "2012-02-27T17:09:30",
"content": "I see the depth reversed… his face is farther than the background.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": [
{
"comment_id": "590165",
"author": "Volfram",
"timestam... | 1,760,376,945.750805 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/27/diy-quadcopter-for-around-200/ | DIY Quadcopter For Around $200 | Mike Szczys | [
"Robots Hacks"
] | [
"ATmega32",
"mosfet",
"quadcopter",
"xbee"
] | We think [FlorianH] did a bang-up job of
prototyping his Minima Quadcopter on the cheap
. The total bill comes in right around $200 and we’re very happy with the quality of parts as well as the results.
Here you can see the top of the double-sided board which he etched to host all of the components. At each corner there is a power MOSFET which drives the motor. At first glance we thought that the Xbee module was acting as the radio control and processer as well. But on the underside you’ll find an ATmega32 which is responsible for reading the Gyroscope sensor and Accelerometer, processing these signals and driving each MOSFET via PWM lines to provide stability.
You can see some flight tests after the break. [FlorianH] mentions that there is some oscillation in the feedback loop when both the gyro and accelerometer are used. But cut the accelerometer out of the equation and the platform is rock-solid.
This build uses carbon tubes to mount the motors, which we think will be a little more robust than
the all-PCB designs are
.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5ALTDcdjEM&w=470] | 28 | 15 | [
{
"comment_id": "590008",
"author": "kevin mcguigan",
"timestamp": "2012-02-27T16:20:52",
"content": "I must say that I am always amazed at what a person can come up with. I have a wish that I could be as able as most of the people that post their designs on this site. This is a great example of har... | 1,760,376,945.948236 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/27/light-painting-with-a-string-plotter/ | Light Painting With A String Plotter | Mike Szczys | [
"cnc hacks",
"LED Hacks"
] | [
"light painting",
"plotter",
"string"
] | [Matt Bell] sends a shout-out to Hackaday by creating
a light-painting of our logo with his string plotter
. He starts off by setting up a pair of stepper motors which each have a spool to wind and unwind a string. The plotter is made by suspending a stylus between these two strings. In this case, he’s using a wireless LED board (seen above) built from the remote control receiver/transmitter from a toy car. The link above is part of a Flickr set from which you can get the whole story by reading the captions of each image.
After the break we’ve embedded a clip of an in-progress light painting. You can see there’s some oscillation of the LED unit that makes it a bit less precise than
the CNC light painter
we saw a couple of weeks ago. It seems like
string plotters usually don’t have this issue
if the stylus has something to help stabilize it. We wonder if a piece of acrylic would help get rid of the shakes?
[flickr video=http://www.flickr.com/photos/mrbell/6922555211/ w=470] | 12 | 9 | [
{
"comment_id": "589936",
"author": "Cheery",
"timestamp": "2012-02-27T15:04:16",
"content": "The sound of that thing is cooler than what it does.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "589937",
"author": "Alex",
"timestamp": "2012-02-27T15:08:... | 1,760,376,946.234263 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/29/new-extruder-3d-prints-tasty-treats-using-chocolate/ | New Extruder 3D Prints Tasty Treats Using Chocolate | Mike Szczys | [
"3d Printer hacks",
"cnc hacks",
"cooking hacks"
] | [
"3d printing",
"chocolate",
"extruder",
"progressive cavity pump",
"thingiverse"
] | If you’ve never felt at home with a piping bag in your hands
this chocolate extruder
will come to your rescue. It can replace the plastic extruder head on your 3D printer (RepRap, Makerbot, most 3-axis CNC machines, etc.), letting you turn your digital creations into decadent reality.
The head uses
a progressive cavity pump
to feed the chocolate from a reservoir through the printing nozzle. It’s important to keep the chocolate warm or it will set up so when [Tomi Salo] designed the print head he included a heat shroud through which warm air can be circulated. He uses a shoe dryer to source the hot hair which is patched into the heat shroud with a length of tubing.
This extruder can be 3D printed but be careful what material you use. [Tomi] mentions that PLA is ‘sort of food-safe’ but ABS is not. We wonder if the design could be altered for milling out of aluminum or stainless? At any rate, if you’re going to give it a try you might find [Tomi’s]
advice on working with chocolate
useful.
[via
@clothbot
] | 18 | 6 | [
{
"comment_id": "591804",
"author": "Thatcher",
"timestamp": "2012-02-29T15:06:43",
"content": "How about HDPE? That’s often used for food packaging (milk).",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "591814",
"author": "Volfram",
"timestamp": "2012... | 1,760,376,946.187161 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/28/python-pic-useful-when-attached-to-a-computer/ | Python PIC Useful When Attached To A Computer | Brian Benchoff | [
"Software Development"
] | [
"PIC 16F",
"pyMCU",
"python"
] | [Richard] sent in a link to the
Python controlled microcontroller
he’s been working on. Unlike the previous
portable Python boards
we’ve seen, [Richard] thinks his pyMCU isn’t best used autonomously. This board is meant to be used only when connected to a computer and to serve as a bridge between the digital world of computers and our analog world.
We’ve seen boards running
lightweight Python interpreters
, but we’re fairly intrigued by the idea of this board only being useful when plugged into a computer. The on-board PIC 16F chip has enough digital, analog and PWM pins to just about any task imaginable, and there’s also a 16-pin LCD display header if you’d like some output with your microcontrollers.
[Richard] says he’s been working with PICs for longer than the Arduino is around, but depending on the level of interest he’ll consider developing an Arduino version of the pyMCU. All we know is that the pyMCU would be
awesome
to teach electronics and programming to the younglings, and we could certainly find a few more uses for the board when they’re done with it. | 34 | 17 | [
{
"comment_id": "591410",
"author": "macegr",
"timestamp": "2012-02-29T01:29:34",
"content": "Richard should consider using an 18F series PIC with USB. Not only are they better chips overall, but you can throw away the expensive FTDI chip and end up with a single chip USB solution. Microchip has CDC... | 1,760,376,946.30527 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/28/human-shaped-planes-troll-nyc/ | Human-shaped Planes Troll NYC | Mike Szczys | [
"Wireless Hacks"
] | [
"octocopter",
"plane",
"prank",
"quadcopter",
"rc",
"troll"
] | It looks like a genetic leap has unleashed the age of mutants, but this is really just a few guys
trolling New York City with some custom RC aircrafts
. The video after the break shows the fliers up close. They’re pretty much full size, we’d guess 5’10” from head to heel. The outstretched arms and body act as wings, while the legs act as ailerons and rudders. But from afar (or even a medium distance) it’s quite difficult to make out the flat surfaces… they look like office workers loosed from their cubicles.
Unfortunately we don’t have more than a flight demo to share with you. If you know where to find build info (or any extra details at all actually) don’t forget to
send in a tip
.
We wonder if these are the same guy who made
the flying hero we posted back in July
?
There’s another nugget of delight right at the beginning of the video. A sweet octocopter which looks
much like this one
was used to capture the aerial footage.
[Thanks Jonathan] | 30 | 22 | [
{
"comment_id": "591388",
"author": "Daddyoli",
"timestamp": "2012-02-29T00:13:38",
"content": "Wasn’t this posted a couple weeks ago ?",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "591391",
"author": "Techartisan",
"timestamp": "2012-02-29T00:29:29",... | 1,760,376,946.414779 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/28/15-toy-becomes-fully-programmable-robot/ | $15 Toy Becomes Fully Programmable Robot | Mike Szczys | [
"Robots Hacks",
"Toy Hacks"
] | [
"larson scanner",
"ultrasonic sensor",
"voice commands"
] | [Kevin] undertook a robot build partly for his own enjoyment, but also to include his kids in the action. He acquired a cheap toy and
packed it full of programmable goodness
. The starting point was a $15 toy called Rad 2.0. It’s a great starting point as it already included some motorized parts, and takes care of much of the mechanical issues like joints and structure.
The image on the left is the fourth update which [Kevin] has posted. The robot now responds to voice commands (with
the same syntax as Chippu
uses), moving its gaze to face forward or to either side. You’ll notice there’s a wireless webcam which lets him spy on what’s in front of the robot’s gaze. An ultrasonic range finder makes itself at home in the beak of the bot, and a Larson Scanner is nestled in the brow
using the kit from Evil Mad Scientist Labs
. Check out the video after the break for an overview of the hardware modifications.
The build log for this project is a forum post. That forum is run by [DJ Sures], a veteran at
taking cheap toys and making them awesome
. It seems like he’s taken a web forum and made it awesome too because the conversation about [Kevin’s] project is packed with constructive tips and encouragement.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZjXYblhqAI&w=470]
[Thanks DJ Sures] | 8 | 7 | [
{
"comment_id": "591381",
"author": "Carlos",
"timestamp": "2012-02-28T23:52:11",
"content": "Quickly someone retrofit a RC Blimp and call it Battleship Galactica.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": [
{
"comment_id": "591877",
"author": "DancesWithRobots",
... | 1,760,376,946.352835 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/28/building-a-flex-sensor-from-component-packing-materials/ | Building A Flex Sensor From Component Packing Materials | Mike Szczys | [
"Misc Hacks"
] | [
"flex sensor",
"foam",
"foil",
"tape"
] | Hacks like this one don’t help us recover from extreme pack-rat behavior. Driving home the point that one should never throw anything away [Peter]
built a flex sensor from component packing material
. It uses the black conductive foam in which integrated circuits are sometimes embedded for shipping. Above you can see the grey rectangle which is the sensor itself. in the background of the image, each component used in the build is labelled except for the tape.
The project starts with the foam being cut to the appropriate size and thickness. He does the same with some aluminum foil, then rips tape strips to act as the enclosure. Fine wire from some cable shielding serves as the two conductors for the sensor. He attaches each wire to an upturned piece of tape, followed by the foil, and finally the foam. When the two halves are assembled in the video after the break, [Peter] hooks up his multimeter to show the change in resistance as the sensor is bent.
We think it will take a clever calibration algorithm to get this working reliably, but it’s no more troublesome than
the optical flex sensors we saw in this links post
.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yOV17hp1Ulw&w=470] | 10 | 6 | [
{
"comment_id": "591264",
"author": "Steve-O-Rama",
"timestamp": "2012-02-28T22:10:32",
"content": "Neat idea. Can the video be re-done without hands touching the test leads, so body resistance isn’t factored into the reading? I can’t even tell which scale the meter is on, either.",
"parent_id... | 1,760,376,946.45861 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/28/motorcycle-engine-hack-like-having-an-old-f1-between-your-legs/ | Motorcycle Engine Hack Like Having An Old F1 Between Your Legs | Mike Szczys | [
"Transportation Hacks"
] | [
"engine",
"formula",
"motorcycle"
] | The difficulty of
rolling a 16-cylinder engine into a motorcycle
really boggles the mind. But that’s exactly what [Andreas Georgeades] is doing in his garage. It’s two straight-8 engines sandwiched on top of one another with a custom crankcase connecting them. And get this, those custom parts are being milled by hand, using time-tested techniques rather than modern computer assistance.
So, where does the complexity come in? Well first of all you’ve got to solve all of the problems that go along with combining two engines. It sounds like this isn’t a new concept, as older generations of Formula 1 engines used the technique. But we still think it’s the pinnacle of hardcore when it’s an enthusiast undertaking the challenge. Then there’s the issue of weight. The engine is bulky, but needs to balance in the frame. And you still must find a way for the rider to sit on the thing (even the most bow-legged of people won’t be able to get their hips around the thing).
Seems like something out of a Mario Kart game that should have no chance of being roadworthy. But we’re sure [Andreas] is going to prove us wrong.
[Thanks Th3BadWolf] | 25 | 13 | [
{
"comment_id": "591234",
"author": "Keithhorizontally opposed",
"timestamp": "2012-02-28T21:12:35",
"content": "Err.. those are flat 8s, not straight 8s. Straight would mean 8 all in a row. That is two sets of four horizontally opposed… then stacked on top of each other.",
"parent_id": nul... | 1,760,376,946.621438 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/28/reprogramming-promotional-usb-dongles-to-launch-custom-urls/ | Reprogramming Promotional USB Dongles To Launch Custom URLs | Mike Nathan | [
"computer hacks",
"Misc Hacks"
] | [
"bus pirate",
"eeprom",
"webkey"
] | The teachers at [Jjshortcut’s] school were each given a Webkey by the administration as a promotional item of sorts, but most of the staff saw them as useless, so they pitched them. [Jjshortcut] got his hands on a few of them and decided
to take one apart to see what made them tick.
He found that the device was pretty simple, consisting of a push button that triggers the device to open the Windows run prompt, enter a URL, and launch Internet Explorer. Since the microcontroller was locked away under a blob of epoxy, he started poking around the onboard EEPROM with his Bus Pirate to see if he could find anything interesting there. It turns out he was able to read the contents of the EEPROM, and since it was not write protected, he could replace the standard URL with that of his own web site.
While it’s safe to say that without a new microcontroller the Webkeys probably can’t be used for anything more exciting than launching a browser, [Jjshortcut] can always reprogram the lot and drop them in random locations to drive some fresh traffic to his web site!
[Thanks, Wouter] | 16 | 11 | [
{
"comment_id": "591192",
"author": "jjshortcut",
"timestamp": "2012-02-28T20:05:10",
"content": "Who is wouter?",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": [
{
"comment_id": "591195",
"author": "Mike Nathan",
"timestamp": "2012-02-28T20:08:26",
"con... | 1,760,376,946.511755 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2012/02/23/worried-about-haloween-this-year-why-not-a-giant-t-rex-costume/ | Worried About Haloween This Year? Why Not A Giant T-Rex Costume? | Jeremy Cook | [
"contests",
"Misc Hacks",
"Toy Hacks"
] | [
"CNC router",
"costume",
"T-rex"
] | Although some might note that [Jamie]’s creation could mistaken for a Velociraptor or even Allosaurus, his giant
T-Rex costume/model
is quite a feat of artistry. It stands at over 14 feet tall and 10 feet long. For comparison, the room that you see in the picture above measures 25 x 25 feet. If you happen to live in the Atlanta area, or are willing to travel, this costume is expected to make an appearance at Dragon*Con in 2012, so be sure to look for it there.
The whole thing is made from poly foam plank cut with a CNC router. It also has a metallic support structure. As noted in the article, you could, in theory, cut all these parts out by hand. Persistence would be required though, since there are over 140 parts!
[Jamie]’s making capabilities are obviously quite advanced at this point, but he’s trying to expand them by winning a router in the
Instructables Shopbot contest
. If you like his creation, be sure to vote for him! Check out the video of this costume in action after the break.
[youtube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3Cfp4OD0ME%5D
If you don’t see yourself winning a Shopbot any time soon, why not build your own (smaller)
CNC router from a kit
? | 12 | 11 | [
{
"comment_id": "587833",
"author": "Brett W. (FightCube.com)",
"timestamp": "2012-02-23T20:37:09",
"content": "Wow that is freaking cool! It’s got my vote ;-)I wish he would have made it stand up tall more, but I guess that’s not easy to do in the attic…",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
... | 1,760,376,946.561695 |
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