I'm working on a headphone stand that has a USB DAC/headphone amplifier built in, along with circuitry to detect when the headphones have been hung up, thereby switching the DAC output to a line out (to drive speakers, or whatever).
It's a shameless amalgamation of a DIY post on Reddit[1] and some design aesthetics from an existing DAC/headphone amp[2] that I really like. I'm currently at the point where the internals are close to finalized enough to order boards and do integration testing, and starting work on modeling the enclosure, which will involve some mix of CNC milling, mandrel bending and welding.
Yeah, right now, I have some dinky 2.1 speaker setup, and there's a remote control box that feeds back to the subwoofer to control the volume and expose a headphone port. I have to plug/unplug when I want to switch, and the volume control button/wheel has low resolution because it's so small.
The Reddit link uses a Windows program to do it, but I wanted it to be universal because I dual-boot, so doing it in the DAC/amplifier seemed like a better approach. :)
I don't think the photos are exactly up-to-date, but I currently have an STM32F429 DISCO dev board, configured with a ladder DAC, so I can generate the analog keypresses for the safelock via my laptop, the board also sets a pin high to force my oscilloscope to trigger and capture the voltage from my ucurrent, which is hooked up to the battery of the safe-lock.
A 40 digit calculator using a Ras Pi, Java, 7-segment readouts, MAX7219 chips driven slightly out of spec (ab)using the SPI pins. Two 4x4 keypads to form an 8x4 keypad so it will be a scientific calculator. Found a Java library to do transcendental functions using BigDecimal. All of this on a breadboard. (I'm a software guy who doesn't know which end of a soldering iron to pick up.)
Other project. A 64x64 RGB LED display driven by a Teensy 3.2, in C++. A friend who does hardware but not so much software sent a beautifully assembled rig in a very nice enclosure.
I've been developing a Motorola 68K-based retro computer. The goal is somewhere around Atari ST-era sophistication, but it isn't quite there yet. Currently has a UART, some switches, some LEDs, and a periodic timer. Still needs keyboard input, video output, removable storage, and a slightly smarter interrupt controller.
The website has a bunch of broken links to missing material, as I haven't gotten around to writing it yet. All the schematics, gerbers, and firmware source code are up though, so it should be reproducible.
I imagine that the first test pilot will be a computer. Submarines are really nicely simple systems, which is why it is possible for a bunch of amateurs to build one.
The port holes will be acrylic windows in a window frame with O-ring seals. The O-ring will be placed on the side facing away from the water such that when the pressure rises on the window, the pressure on the seal rises as well, making it even more water proof. Same idea for the hatch.
Not really a side project but we're scrappy and it's basically out of someone's garage. We're building applied AI hardware and software, personal AI companions and an interface for autonomous intelligent agents in an AGENT-SERVICE-INTERFACE model.
I'm developing an open hardware microwave vector network analyzer [1]. A previous switched single receiver prototype have worked for measuring S11 (reflected power, useful for antennas) up to about 4 GHz. I'm currently working on bringing up a full two port four receiver version that should work up to about 10 GHz.
Presently, none, but I have had a few ideas I've been wanting to get started on when I have more time for a hardware side project.
The first one to come to mind is an LED lighting setup that shift's it's color temperature according to the time of day, à la f.lux[1] or Redshift[2]. LED continue to improve for general lighting purposes, but it can't be good for my sleep patterns to have daylight temp lighting in my home right up until bedtime. It would be really nifty to the lighting in my home adjust to warmer temperatures with the solar day like my computer screens do.
I'm working on a device that mounts to a baseball cap and uses infared LEDs to block your image from digital cameras (at least the ones that don't have infared filtering, i.e. most surviellance cameras, which need to see at night). First attempt was underwhelming: https://sr.ht/SBGV.jpg
Currently obtaining much more powerful LEDs. Next version is going to need cooling and an external power supply :D
I'm currently converting a cargo van into a camper van suitable for full-time living. I bootstrapped the project out of a garage in two weeks and will now be doing most of the work in SF out of the van itself. It's an exercise in woodworking, metal working, solar/electronics, and interior design. I'm documenting the build on Instagram (same username) if anyone wants to follow along.
A lighting desk for lighting live bands. The other desks on the market don't support the busking that this is designed for. The aim is 'no friction between the music and your lights'.
36 motorised faders, 2 DMX universes built in, up to 8 more with ethernet adapters. uses two Beaglebone Blacks and a Raspberry Pi 2, as well as 42 Atmel ATTiny828s. GUI code written in Python using pyside, and the other stuff written in Go.
I'm building a USB-connected OPL3 synthesizer. I'm using an Arduino Nano as a command processor, so that the host computer sends register change commands, and the Arduino manipulates its output pins accordingly to actually send the data to the hardware.
When I've got that working, I'll make some modifications to Dosbox, to make it pass through Adlib/Adlib Gold commands over serial to the device.
Not yet, I'm in research / learning / pooling resources for pcb fab on a desk, all-in-one. I've done CNCs before as a hobby, film scanners and stuff like that and I have some concepts which I think could yield an 'affordable' all-in-one pcb. You give the machine gerbers, you get (a few layered) pcb out. Maybe even a pick and place inside, but that's further down in concept. One step at a time, as time permits.
Out of curiosity, how are you planning on handling plating for vias and through-holes?
The desire to stop handling chemicals (I have no convenient means of proper disposal) has got me using the on-line prototype services for anything multi-layer (though I've thought about using my CNC mill for some simple single layer stuff).
That's the thing. I have to build several prototypes first in order to see which will be less hassle. Initial idea was to have the machine handle chemicals and a contained disposal system. On the other hand I could do it with hollow 'jackets' (that's how we call it, grommet is probably the proper name).
I have to balance two ideas into a concept first and then prototype. Those two primary ideas are:
1) have end-user buy as basic things as possible in order to produce PCBs (not rely on my chain of supply / custom shit). This is in order for machine to be as usable as possible, no matter where you live and to keep costs for you down as possible.
2) Have the workflow as hassle-free as possible with the best possible result.
Sometimes, those two ideas are clashing. Ultimately, it would be a machine built out of commonly available parts. For most parts, at least. And, I would provide pre-built machines as convenience. BOM for protos is already at around 7k-10k Euros, and it will take some time to build and refine on what I'll see from protos. Ultimately, I want a sub 2k Euros machine ready, out of the box, experience for end user. Maybe even less if I opt for smaller FR4 boards. From everything I've pooled so far together, on paper, it's doable. I just need to find a bit of time. I already set some time and cash after May next year just for this (after I finish a TV series I'm working on - my day to day job).
In my opinion, I think an affordable desktop PCB factory could open a lot of possibilities for people. If you had a machine and only things you would need to buy are FR4 boards and some commonly available and cheap chemicals and have the machine 'print out' a pcb for you, maybe even with parts placed, and have the exhaust for fumes and disposing system safe and easy and cheap... We need this. I need this.
I did something similar a couple years back except thermally by monitoring the dryer exhaust temp and ran into a problem where apparently "permanent press" means cold air for the last 10-15 minutes. Ok then that meant a timer initiating when the temp drops below whatever. I would imagine this will show up in your current monitoring where the heating elements turn off but the tub keeps spinning. Of course you may be monitoring a gas dryer LOL. Good luck it'll be fun.
I'm adding flow meters to my keggerator so I can detect when someone pours themselves a beer from one of the taps.
The plan is to have a camera take a photo, do some facial recognition to see if its either one of my flatmates or myself, then optionally post the pic to #beertheif on twitter or start playing some music based on the chosen beer.
That sounds really fun :) I've heard good things about the Swissflow flow meters, for monitoring beer flow to the tap, but they're _really_ expensive :(
I've been looking at which flow meters to get but as
deutronium says swissflow meters are quite expensive, however at the same time I don't really trust cheap meters to be in contact with my beer. Making them myself might be a good project!
Two other non-contact methods I've seen are direct mass measurement (probably ebay the scales, it'll be like $500 new) or the most innovative thing I've seen is flow rate meters watching the CO2 source. See you can measure flow rate of the beer but that can get weird with bubble formation and sterilization but CO2 is clean and biologically boring and single phase. You can buy a flow rate meter with digital output for immense expense but its easier to use an analog one with a webcam. Big fun!
Measuring the co2 flow rate is an idea I hadn't considered! I only want to know when beer is being poured and not actually how much has been poured so measuring co2 may be a bit simpler for cleaning and actually wiring up too (although the wiring issue is specific to my setup)
Home automation with old industrial hardware: an Allen Bradley SLC 503.
I read and write data to the SLC with a python script on a RaspberryPI, which also serves up an interface to the SLC and historical data using Flask and MySQL. I've got the thermostat, a door switch, and a few lights hooked up.
I VPN in when I'm on the road just to keep tabs on things. I've never enjoyed how 'closed' commercial home automation is, and this was the result.
The only person I ever saw get a human off the ground was this guy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=soxxPyaAT1k and several build vids. He would have really benefited with some fly by wire help
Terrafugia is awesome. They have tremendous respect from me.
But I dislike any type of folding wings. They will need to make a massively strong hinge/joint for this type of machine since the entire car hangs off that hinge. This makes is heavy, inefficient, painful to maintain, vulnerable in fender benders, etc, etc.
I'm rebuilding engineered bacteria which can take pictures [1]. I'm using new proteins which will make the bacteria more reliable and use cheaper materials to take pictures. I hope to create some pretty sweet looking images to hang on the wall.
I've got one of those IKEA Dioder strips, and I've got it hooked up to a RasPi. There's a node library (of course) that lets you set it to any RGB color and even supports transitions.
Next step would be to make it flash when messages come in - different color for Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, etc. - and having it integrate with the Philips Hue and Alexa.
I haven't worked with electronics since college, so I was trying to find a suitable project.
I unconscioussly bought some components and a couple of CHIP computers and I wanted to do something that interacts with the real world (sensors and actuators), but servo-based actuators seemed a bit lame.
Initially, I was going to use two motors and a spring per DOF in order to simulate a muscle ("variable stiffness joint", according to the previous post - I was going by intuition).
But then I read that direct drive was possible (the motor's magnetic field acts as the "spring") and that once that you have a suitable motor controller built all the rest is software defined, and I found the sweetspot for a project.
Such a motor controller is sufficient to keep me researching and prototyping for some time!
If I succeed with this, I'm planning on researching how to do some sort of artificial skin for robots. For the moment the idea revolves around connecting a USB camera to a bunch of fiber optic threads from a cheap lamp such as http://prosites-lottofun9.homestead.com/files/fiberlamp2.jpg and try to detect pressure on loops of the fiber by changes in the light source. That way you can cheaply and efficiently have a huge number of data points, with off-the-shelf components... but if someone does it beforehand I'll also be happy!
85 comments
[ 3.0 ms ] story [ 139 ms ] threadhttps://blog.buildbotics.com
I cannot understate how much I have been waiting for a good UX/UI on a CAM that doesn't require running HUGE closed-source packages.
It's a shameless amalgamation of a DIY post on Reddit[1] and some design aesthetics from an existing DAC/headphone amp[2] that I really like. I'm currently at the point where the internals are close to finalized enough to order boards and do integration testing, and starting work on modeling the enclosure, which will involve some mix of CNC milling, mandrel bending and welding.
I really like throwing away money, apparently.
Blog here: https://nuclearfurnace.wordpress.com/
[1] - https://www.reddit.com/r/3Dprinting/comments/529qyp/smart_he...
[2] - https://www.jdslabs.com/products/151/the-element/
The Reddit link uses a Windows program to do it, but I wanted it to be universal because I dual-boot, so doing it in the DAC/amplifier seemed like a better approach. :)
I don't think the photos are exactly up-to-date, but I currently have an STM32F429 DISCO dev board, configured with a ladder DAC, so I can generate the analog keypresses for the safelock via my laptop, the board also sets a pin high to force my oscilloscope to trigger and capture the voltage from my ucurrent, which is hooked up to the battery of the safe-lock.
https://www.anfractuosity.com/projects/safe/
I'm also trying to get some iron nanoparticles, if I can find them cheap enough, in order to try to optically image a floppy disk.
I've got some images from one in the link below, but that was using a magnetic developer, with much larger particles.
https://www.anfractuosity.com/projects/optical-magnetic-stri...
Other project. A 64x64 RGB LED display driven by a Teensy 3.2, in C++. A friend who does hardware but not so much software sent a beautifully assembled rig in a very nice enclosure.
No blog.
http://coderjames.bitbucket.org/
The website has a bunch of broken links to missing material, as I haven't gotten around to writing it yet. All the schematics, gerbers, and firmware source code are up though, so it should be reproducible.
I have an electronics/IT background so building something so mechanical is a fun learning experience.
http://ubaad15.org
Asteria page: https://getasteria.com/
Baqqer page: https://baqqer.com/projects/asteria
[1] - https://github.com/loxodes/vna
The first one to come to mind is an LED lighting setup that shift's it's color temperature according to the time of day, à la f.lux[1] or Redshift[2]. LED continue to improve for general lighting purposes, but it can't be good for my sleep patterns to have daylight temp lighting in my home right up until bedtime. It would be really nifty to the lighting in my home adjust to warmer temperatures with the solar day like my computer screens do.
1. https://justgetflux.com/
2. http://jonls.dk/redshift/
Currently obtaining much more powerful LEDs. Next version is going to need cooling and an external power supply :D
Maybe a red one: MAGA. ;)
36 motorised faders, 2 DMX universes built in, up to 8 more with ethernet adapters. uses two Beaglebone Blacks and a Raspberry Pi 2, as well as 42 Atmel ATTiny828s. GUI code written in Python using pyside, and the other stuff written in Go.
No blog, just a single facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ManyHandsLighting/photos/a.79431027....
When I've got that working, I'll make some modifications to Dosbox, to make it pass through Adlib/Adlib Gold commands over serial to the device.
The desire to stop handling chemicals (I have no convenient means of proper disposal) has got me using the on-line prototype services for anything multi-layer (though I've thought about using my CNC mill for some simple single layer stuff).
I have to balance two ideas into a concept first and then prototype. Those two primary ideas are:
1) have end-user buy as basic things as possible in order to produce PCBs (not rely on my chain of supply / custom shit). This is in order for machine to be as usable as possible, no matter where you live and to keep costs for you down as possible.
2) Have the workflow as hassle-free as possible with the best possible result.
Sometimes, those two ideas are clashing. Ultimately, it would be a machine built out of commonly available parts. For most parts, at least. And, I would provide pre-built machines as convenience. BOM for protos is already at around 7k-10k Euros, and it will take some time to build and refine on what I'll see from protos. Ultimately, I want a sub 2k Euros machine ready, out of the box, experience for end user. Maybe even less if I opt for smaller FR4 boards. From everything I've pooled so far together, on paper, it's doable. I just need to find a bit of time. I already set some time and cash after May next year just for this (after I finish a TV series I'm working on - my day to day job).
In my opinion, I think an affordable desktop PCB factory could open a lot of possibilities for people. If you had a machine and only things you would need to buy are FR4 boards and some commonly available and cheap chemicals and have the machine 'print out' a pcb for you, maybe even with parts placed, and have the exhaust for fumes and disposing system safe and easy and cheap... We need this. I need this.
Our BOM is about $35 - $45 right now before bulk discounts.
http://blog.sheasilverman.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/778...
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSerQdiZrYwMojO9M8Hi...
The plan is to have a camera take a photo, do some facial recognition to see if its either one of my flatmates or myself, then optionally post the pic to #beertheif on twitter or start playing some music based on the chosen beer.
https://mobile.twitter.com/toms_beer_keg/status/799323771043...
I read and write data to the SLC with a python script on a RaspberryPI, which also serves up an interface to the SLC and historical data using Flask and MySQL. I've got the thermostat, a door switch, and a few lights hooked up.
I VPN in when I'm on the road just to keep tabs on things. I've never enjoyed how 'closed' commercial home automation is, and this was the result.
My friend was looking into the material strength and feasibility while I was looking into the software.
We intend to use a 3d printer to build a small scale model and progressively keep making it bigger.
We would love to collaborate if that's ok with you.
Based in Canada (Toronto) and we put ~10 hrs/week max on this project.
[0] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Yn2uyQJ1jc
[1] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PAdCt6qgj9k
But I dislike any type of folding wings. They will need to make a massively strong hinge/joint for this type of machine since the entire car hangs off that hinge. This makes is heavy, inefficient, painful to maintain, vulnerable in fender benders, etc, etc.
digital theramin - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZxVEUxaw1w
3d printer - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFOR1YPwFMM
stacked focus camera rig - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ovWjnzBGUw
more deltabot - http://imgur.com/a/05G1L
more theramin - http://imgur.com/a/lvLE4
slayer exciter - http://imgur.com/a/5Rwtm
mame cabinet - http://imgur.com/a/hzE1x
polywell - http://imgur.com/a/Tsg40
I'm rebuilding engineered bacteria which can take pictures [1]. I'm using new proteins which will make the bacteria more reliable and use cheaper materials to take pictures. I hope to create some pretty sweet looking images to hang on the wall.
[1] - http://www.nature.com/news/2005/051121/full/news051121-8.htm...
Next step would be to make it flash when messages come in - different color for Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, etc. - and having it integrate with the Philips Hue and Alexa.
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12536041
I haven't worked with electronics since college, so I was trying to find a suitable project.
I unconscioussly bought some components and a couple of CHIP computers and I wanted to do something that interacts with the real world (sensors and actuators), but servo-based actuators seemed a bit lame.
Initially, I was going to use two motors and a spring per DOF in order to simulate a muscle ("variable stiffness joint", according to the previous post - I was going by intuition).
But then I read that direct drive was possible (the motor's magnetic field acts as the "spring") and that once that you have a suitable motor controller built all the rest is software defined, and I found the sweetspot for a project.
Such a motor controller is sufficient to keep me researching and prototyping for some time!
If I succeed with this, I'm planning on researching how to do some sort of artificial skin for robots. For the moment the idea revolves around connecting a USB camera to a bunch of fiber optic threads from a cheap lamp such as http://prosites-lottofun9.homestead.com/files/fiberlamp2.jpg and try to detect pressure on loops of the fiber by changes in the light source. That way you can cheaply and efficiently have a huge number of data points, with off-the-shelf components... but if someone does it beforehand I'll also be happy!