Posted August 3, 2013 by Chris

“This time we are going to build a remotely controlled car robot, with the next list of features:

Posted August 2, 2013 by Chris

“I bought a Lego Mindstorms kit last month to mess with, I’ve got some ideas for robot localisation that I want to try out. Anyway, the kit comes with a sonar range finder but I wanted a little more accuracy and smaller detection area….A couple of companies sell after market sensors for the NXT, Mindsensors and HiTechnic but it’s much more fun to design and build your own.”

Posted August 1, 2013 by Chris

“I’ve got a pre-paid electricity meter installed at my new place in Cape Town. It outputs a 1/1kWh pulse via a LED on the front panel. I thought it would be pretty cool to read and log the power consumption of my house. It’s also an excuse to play with WiFi and other fun stuff.”

Posted July 31, 2013 by Chris

“EGGN 482: Microprocessor and microcontroller architecture focusing on hardware structures and elementary machine and assembly language programming skills essential for use of microprocessors in data acquisition, control, and instrumentation systems. Analog and digital signal conditioning, communication, and processing. A/D and D/A converters for microprocessors. RS232 and other communication standards.”

Posted July 29, 2013 by Chris

“We came up with the idea because it could help us and others protect property and privacy. Traditional household security systems often require installation and detect based on opening of doors and windows. In the cases where installation is not possible and/or the area of interest has no door, our ultrasonic security system will come in handy because it requires no installation, and detects intruders based on their physical presence.”

Posted July 28, 2013 by Chris

“We chose this project because of a combined interest in brain-computer interfaces. In an attempt to balance cost, complexity, and sensor density, we decided to implement a NIRS-inspired system. After collecting data from the array, the results were sent to a computer and displayed in a Java GUI.”

Posted July 27, 2013 by Chris

“The goal of the Alaskan Ice Buoy project is to develop a buoy that collects environmental data from the Arctic and transmits that data back to Vermont. The project is also being used to gain experience with CubeSat Kit hardware, in hopes of using the CubeSat Kit platform to launch a satellite into space as a subsequent project.”

Posted July 26, 2013 by Chris

“The S/C structure resembles a cube of 60 cm side length and is based on a variant of the standard MicroSIL bus, built by SIL (Space Innovations Limited) of Newburry, Berks, UK, a commercial platform provider. The design is based around six honeycomb outer panels, and an interior double shelf, dividing the platform subsystems on the lower shelf from the payload instruments on the top shelf.”

Posted July 25, 2013 by Chris

“To maximize a photovoltaic (PV) system’s output power, continuously tracking the maximum power point (MPP) of the system is necessary. The MPP depends on irradiance conditions, the panel’s temperature, and the load connected.”

Posted July 24, 2013 by Chris

“The i2c-tiny-usb project is an open source/open hardware project. The goal of i2c-tiny-usb is to provide a cheap generic i2c interface to be attached to the usb. It is meant as a replacement for those simple and cheap printer port to i2c adapters. A USB solution has several advantages incl. the built-in power supply and a more future proof interface.”