As a preview of his latest book, Arduino Project Handbook: 25 Practical Projects to Get You Started, Mark Geddes takes us through the project to create a simple plant monitor. In this project I’ll introduce a new type of analog sensor that detects moisture levels. You’ll set up a light and sound alarm system (an […]
How to build a plant monitor with Arduino Read More »
Vacuum fluorescent displays (VFDs) are one of those beautiful pieces of bygone technology that you just don’t see much of anymore. At one time they were a mainstay of consumer electronics, but today they’ve largely been replaced with cheaper and more energy efficient displays such as LEDs and LCDs. While they might be objectively better
A SCRATCH BUILT VFD CLOCK WITH INNER BEAUTY Read More »
After a youth spent playing with Amigas and getting into all sorts of trouble on the school computer network, I’ve always had a soft spot in my heart for hardware from the 80s and 90s. This extends beyond computers themselves, and goes so far as to include modems, photocopiers, and even the much-maligned dot matrix
ARDUINO CONVERTS SERIAL TO PARALLEL: THE PARALLELOSLAM Read More »
Coffee machine manufacture Victoria Arduino is opening its new showroom in London on 28 March in collaboration with its local importer VA Machinery. Victoria Arduino’s showroom will introduce the company’s products to its United Kingdom partners at the River Thames near the London Bridge. The showcase will provide a space for roasters, baristas, technicians and
Victoria Arduino opens showroom in London Read More »
The $120 to $165 “SparkFun Autonomous Kit for Sphero RVR” extends the $250 Sphero RVR robot with an Raspberry Pi Zero W, a pan-tilt camera, GPS, and an optional ToF distance sensor. SparkFun Electronics recently completed a successful Kickstarter project for its Sphero RVR, a four-wheeled tank-treaded robot that offers optional programming via a Raspberry Pi,
RPi Zero W based robot kits offer pan-tilt cam, GPS, and ToF sensing Read More »
A feline’s appetite is rarely sated, and cat owners around the world are routinely treated to an early morning wake up call to remind them of this fact. To solve this problem, many turn to automated feeders. However, such devices usually handle only dry foods, with a simple hopper system. [Vikram Hao] instead went above
AUTOMATED CAT FEEDER HANDLES WET FOOD WITH APLOMB Read More »
Those Gadget Masters who have school age children may be interested in this one: the Arduino Science Kit Physics Lab. The package been designed to support “scientific exploration” for school kids between 11 and 14. Experiment with forces, motion, magnetism, and conductivity. Students will make their own hypothesis like real scientists, then check their assumptions,
Arduino Science Kit targets 11- to 14-year-olds Read More »
LoRa is a useful technology if you need to send data a long way at low power levels. Leveraging this, [5Volt-Junkie] decided to build a small pager named the LoRaNicator. Those who love a detailed build log will enjoy this. The pager features everything up to and including the kitchen sink. A Cortex M0+ runs the
CUSTOM LORA PAGER DESIGNED WITH CARE Read More »
While robotic arms can handle a wide variety of tasks, the specific job at hand will have a major influence on the type of end effector used. For sorting ferromagnetic parts an electromagnet might be enough, while for more accurate location a mechanical gripper could be employed. If you’re working with particularly delicate objects or
THIS FORCE CONTROLLED ROBOT GRIPPER IS LESS LIKELY TO BREAK STUFF Read More »
Potentially, one of the great things about having a device connected to the network is that you can update it remotely. However, how do you make that happen? If you use the Arduino setup for the ESP8266 or ESP32, you might try [scottchiefbaker’s] library which promises to make the process easy. Adding it looks to be simple.
LIBRARY MAKES ESP OVER THE AIR UPDATES EASY Read More »
