Posted April 4, 2015 by Chris

"The platform, using dual element PIR sensors, rotates itself independently to direct air flow to whatever position a person moves to. In addition, the fan includes another setting that allows precise rotation between two people. These modes are selectable by the user. The running mode is displayed on an LCD."

Posted April 3, 2015 by Chris

"So it was one day when I found myself in an antique store just idly browsing the shelves, that I was intrigued by a stack of old QRS piano rolls. …I wondered if anyone had ever gone about trying to scan a piano roll to replicate them in MIDI format. I had a few vague ideas of how to accomplish such a thing, so I bought a roll for a mere $2 and brought it home….."

Posted April 1, 2015 by Chris

"The Odhner Arithmometer was a very popular pinwheel calculator invented in Russia in 19th century by a Swedish immigrant called W. T. Odhner. Like most of pinwheel calculators, it worked with an engine formed by a set of linked wheels which could perform the four basic mathematical operations within a machine of reduced size."

Posted March 31, 2015 by Chris

"Raspberry Pi is a great project computer, it’s cheap ($35), runs Linux (or Risc OS) and has lots of resources available aroudn it. When mine arrived, I didn’t really know what to use it for, but then it hit me: I can build an emulator box for all the NES and SNES games that I loved to play as a child."

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Posted March 29, 2015 by Chris

"50 ohm BNC, SMA, and N terminators with various BNC, SMA, N, APC7, F, UHF connectors and inter-series adapters; or any other RF connectors you can find around the house. White gets nickel or stainless steel and black gets gold top pieces."

Posted March 28, 2015 by Chris

"The circuit in the picture is a sound sensor that measures both the overall strength of sound and the amount of audio energy in a specific frequency of up to 4kHz. This allows it to detect whether a tone of a particular frequency is played: it compares the audio energy in that frequency to the total amount of energy, and if the ratio is high enough, say above 1/8, it concludes that somebody is playing the tone."

Posted March 27, 2015 by Chris

"The PiDP-8/I is a modern replica of the 1968 PDP-8/I computer. …It’s an open-source hardware project, so schematics, design files & software are available here. During 2015, I will also offer the PiDP as a kit. There are great economies of scale with some of the parts when they are bought in bulk so group ordering parts for a kit makes sense."

Posted March 26, 2015 by Chris

"So what is A biomass gasifier? Basically is a chemical reactor that converts wood, or other biomass substances, into a combustible gas that can be burned for heating, cooking, or for running an internal combustion engine. This is achieved by partially combusting the biomass in the reactor, and using the heat generated to pyrolyse or thermally break down the rest of the material into volatile gasses."

Posted March 25, 2015 by Chris

"In robotics, infrared is commonly used both in communication and in object detection….By blinking an infrared LED, the signal becomes more unique and therefore more discernible from other light sources. Even as intensity varies based on lighting, angle and distance, the constant rate of blinking can be relied upon for recognition."

Posted March 24, 2015 by Chris

"This week I built a Jacob’s Ladder in a double helix shape! It only takes a neon sign transformer, a block of wood, and some copper tubing."