JAN18
Voltmeter gauge transformed into a clock
I felt like we needed another geeky clock in here, so here is one made out of a an analog voltmeter gauge.
It is actually disguised as a voltmeter gauge, not made out of one. Voltmeter-like scale is printed on a paper and placed on a wooden box. The inside of a box consists of minimal part count and the main component is the servo actuator which is controlled by a PIC18F1320 microcontroller. The PIC micro is also used for time keeping with its internal Timer1 which is configured to interrupt on every 25ms at 8MHz clock or 10ms at 20MHz clock. The code and the schematics are on the project website, so you can build this stealthy looking clock.
Source: Jon Chandler
JAN15
Starting your car without a key
You probably didn't have your car stolen and now you have to start it with a screwdriver like this guy, but you might like it anyway. You might like this even more if you had an RFID tag implanted under your skin!
After implanting an RFID tag in his hand, Jeffie figured out that it would be cool to put it to some use. So, he bought an RFID reader and installed it into his car, wired it up with a starter and now when he wants to go for a ride he just has to wave his hand around the RFID antenna. Pretty cool, but with RFID simulators now available it might pose a huge security risk.
Source: Jair2K4
JAN11
AVR development board - update
Back in September, we reviewed an AVR development board from Protostack. The board was capable of taking an ATmega8, ATmega168 or ATmega328 microcontroller and at less than $10, it was quite affordable.
Well protostack have just released a new version of the board and it's looking even better. This version brings 4 improvements, namely: new power supply section, the 6 pin ISP interface changed from 1x6 pin to 2x3 pin, new section for mounting dual row headers or similar components, power busses now have better markings, the board is available by itself or as part of an ATmega8 or ATmega168 development kit.
The developments kits include a microcontroller and other supporting components to help you get started.
JAN6
Emergency Excuse Generator - EEG
Tired of making up new excuses and half-truths? Now you can download them from the Internet and into your pocket-sized device for daily use :-)
This is a device that generates a fresh new excuse on a press of a button that you can use to get out of work or school. It uses 20x4 LCD display and Microchip PIC16F960 microcontroller with a random generator to generate a line of text. You can customize the generator itself or even try the online version! Schematics and firmware are on the project page, so go and build one and try not to use it all the time.
Source: Alexander Avtanski
JAN1
Happy New Year 2010!
We wish a *very* Happy New Year 2010 to all of our visitors!
DEC31
Useless piece of electronics - a prank?
I have seen this today on Hack-A-Day and it really made me laugh, simply because it is funny as hell!
So, as you can see it is a wooden box but inside is a servo motor, servo controller and some batteries. When you push the button,... I don't want to ruin this for you, just see the video! Servo motor is controlled with NE555 timer, no Arduino - I thank the Lord.
Pretty scary at first but really cool stuff, so don't forget to check out the video after the break!
Source: SaskView via Hack-A-Day
DEC29
New Year's POV project
New Year's Eve is coming fast, and if you want to stand out from the crowd this is the project for you. I know we have seen a lot of these POVs before but since this one is about the New Year's Eve it is logical that we feature it.
Being a classic hand-held POV it is built around a microcontroller (Atmel ATtiny26 in this case), has 8 bright LEDs and onboard 3V Lithium battery so it will last for a few hours of spin. It also has a few jumpers for setting different modes, but in video we can see just two: "happy new year 2010" and "infernoz".
Source: Infernoz
DEC21
DIY AC amp sensor for Tweet-a-Watt
Ok, this might not be some blinky and spectacular thing but it is a very good starting point for something that might become pretty serious.
We all know what Tweet-a-Watt is. It is a device based on a Kill-a-Watt device that you can buy in your local store and it measures current consumption up to 15A (1.8kW). The problem with this thing is that it uses shunt resistor inside to measure the current, so the current that can pass through that shunt is limited. Now, if only we could measure the current through the load's wire without redirecting it through a device, than the measured current would practically be unlimited... well, we can! By using some wire and a C-clamp we can make a clamp-on ampere meter. Next thing would be to configure the ZigBee module to read this induced AC mV value and we have our own Tweet-a-Watt!
Source: hydronics
