When we need precision and repeatability, a stepper motor is always the solution. With the way it is designed, a stepper can only move from one step to the next and fix in that position. A typical motor has 200 steps per revolution; if we tell the motor to go 100 steps in one direction,
Arduino Stepper Motors Continue Reading
Designing a custom plate for the Arduino Robot, adding jumbo LEDs and displaying readings from an ultrasonic distance sensor to the LCD. My previous post on the Arduino Robot described how I took the Runaway Robot sketch and modified it work with the PING ultrasonic distance sensor. This post is still based around the same
Johnny 6 is Alive! Continue Reading
For a number of years, my colleague Andrew has had an old IBM mainframe CPU kept in storage, waiting to be transformed into something new. Hailing from a long-lost era of computing (the system in which this module was used was the 4381, first announced in 1983) – this is a far cry from what
Designing and building a coffee table Continue Reading
At the fpv-community.de Forum I read about a DIY Weller station designed by Martin Kumm. Basically an Arduino shield to drive a Weller soldering tip. As there is not much to it, the board simply contains an precision OpAmp, a power MOSFET, 2 buttons for adjusting the temperature and a display to show the current
Soldering Station Continue Reading
I’ve been meaning to put some content on here for a while and recently I got around to getting an Uno and motor shield. Given I also have access to a 3d printer and have a shedload of microswitches, semis and other goodies knocking around – Robocar is an obvious choice! I’ve had a few
How to build an Arduino Robocar Part 1 Continue Reading
Quite a lot of coffee is consumed at work but real statistics are missing. For the coffee machines with a can it can be interesting to have a visualization with coffee left in can, water in machine, time left until machine is finished, estimated time until can is empty. This would probably require a modified
Connected coffee Machine Continue Reading
Project Description DishShamer solves the age-old problem of getting your roommates to wash their dishes. The kitchen is a communal space. When one individual fails to keep this shared environment clean, there can be two outcomes: conflict and socially awkward confrontations, or placing unfair cleaning burdens on the responsible roommates. By tracking who checks out and returns
Chatty Coasters are interactive coasters that listen for silences and insert provocative conversation starters into them. Chatty Coasters are interactive drink holders that listen for silences in conversation and insert provocative questions into them. In order to encourage healthy, thought-provoking conversation in kitchens, Chatty Coaster waits for drinkers to rest their cup on it and breaks
Chatty Coasters Continue Reading
Smart Shop Window A SmartLiving Experiment where using a QR code to control a light in a shop window. For this experiment we use a Grove LED (representing the shop’s light) and a Smart phone to access the control switch. It’s an ideal starter project to become familiar with the Arduino, Grove and using your
A Smart Shop Window Experiment with Arduino Continue Reading
When my colleague @thegibertchan first set up his homemade “Clapper” in our office, I knew immediately that I had to learn how it was made. The way it works is simple. A small microphone listens to two claps (within four seconds of each other) and it triggers a switch to turn on or off. Gilbert
Build a smart “Clapper” with SmartThings and Arduino Continue Reading
