Jawi let us know that the “Big box of parts” is on it’s way to Spain. He took out the items pictured above, and then passed it along: The MCP2021 LIN transceiver The minuino board + 328 AVR; The AVR dev.board; Some SMD leds; An iPod dock connector; The bluetooth adapter from Roving Networks. We […]
Author Archives: DP
Little Wire kit is now available at Seeed Studio
Ihsan let us know that his pet project Little Wire is now on sale at Seeed in DIY kit form. The Little wire is an open source hardware, tinyAVR based multi-tool. Hi ! The day has come. The product is orderable at Seeed studio right now :) Thanks everyone for their interest and good words […]
#FreePCB via Twitter to 2 random RTs
Every Tuesday we give away two coupons for the free PCB drawer via Twitter. This post was announced on Twitter, and in 24 hours we’ll send coupon codes to two random retweeters. Don’t forget there’s free PCBs three times a every week: Hate Twitter and Facebook? Free PCB Sunday is the classic PCB giveaway. Catch […]
MSP430 based intelligent fan controller
Kenneth needed to tame an old PC that was just too loud. He designed a fan controller based on the 16bit MSP430 microcontroller that adjusts the speed of 3 fans depending on the temperature of the CPU. Source code and schematics are available. During the Maker Faire Salvage Crawl last month, I picked up a […]
DIY electronic derailleur for the back-wheel bicycle transmission
Here is an instructable on how to add a servo motor to your back-wheel derailleur with electronic control. This is one part of a much larger fully automatic bicycle project to make gears change automatically based on parameters such as heart rate, cadence, incline, speed, gps, etc…
Workshop Update for June 11th, 2012
Today a new box of prototype PCBs arrived from Seeed, and we made some updates on the list of our most commonly used parts. We worked on the USB IR Toy 3D model which we’ll use in our new sales page. Work continues on the DIY DP Badge, the PIC12F1840 has been routed, and only […]
Stained hardwood case for the Bus Pirate v4
Here’s a stained maple-wood case for the Bus pirate v4, milled by Vince at the Xerocraft hackerspace in Tuscan Arizona. The Bus Pirate is an open source hacker multi-tool that talks to electronic stuff. It’s got a bunch of features an intrepid hacker might need to prototype their next project. The Bus Pirate is sold […]
PARTS LIBRARY: Bourns 3306F trimmer resistor
After a few problems with standard Eagle trimmer footprints, we added the Bourns 3306F trimmer to our Eagle parts library. It seems to be a pretty common-ground footprint. We used a larger than recommended pin-hole diameter so it will work with other common trimmers too. We use trimmers as adjustable voltage dividers, such as for […]
PIC16F882 development board for workshops
Here’s an Arduino styled PIC16F882 development board built for a university microcontroller noob workshop. A MCP2200 USB-to-Serial IC handles the USB communication, while the board features all the support circuitry required by the PIC, such as the 5v power supply, quartz oscillator, and the ICSP programming header. The board was initially developed for a workshop […]
DIY tiny Bus Pirate clone
Johannes made a small Bus Pirate clone: Goal was to have the backside clear of anything (hence pure SMT) and make it as small as possible (the place I got the PIC from unfortunately just had the “freakingly” huge SOIC). Plus mess around with negative silk screen :).
App note: Useful analog circuits for digital systems
Here is an oldie, but a goodie. The late analog guru Jim Williams describes lots of analog circuits that were used in digital systems. Most of these are now integrated into digital ICs, some are still in use today. The pristine, regimented symmetry of digital circuit boards is occasionally interrupted by an irregular huddle of […]
Free PCB Sunday: Pick your PCB
We go through a lot of prototype PCBs, and end up with lots of extras that we’ll never use. Every Sunday we give away a few PCBs from one of our past or future projects, or a related prototype. Our PCBs are made through Seeed Studio’s Fusion board service. This week two random commenters will […]
App note: 112W Boost driver for long strings of LEDs
Maxim shows how to build a 112 watt DC-DC boost driver for long strings of LEDs. The driver is current controlled,with adjustable output from 0 to 1.5Amps. This reference design is for a high-voltage boost current source for very long strings of LEDs. Applications that use long LED strings include, but are not limited to, […]
App note: Interfacing a 3volt microcontroller to 5volt peripherals
It can be a challenge to interface 5volt stuff with modern 3.3volt microcontrollers like an ARM or MSP430. This app note covers several circuits for voltage translation on input, output, and bidirectional pins. The interfacing of the 3-V MSP430x1xx and MSP430x4xx microcontroller families to circuits with a supply of 5 V or higher is shown. […]
App note: Digital compass reference design
A PIC18F2520-based digital compass using magneto-resistive sensors to measure the magnetic field in 3-axies: This application note will focus on a simple, low-cost, hand-held digital compass design using a Microchip PIC18F2520 microcontroller. This compass application can be integrated into your own design, or as a building block in an advanced navigation tracking device similar to […]
Workshop Update for June 8th, 2012
Today we investigated bug reports in the PC Keyboard, SPI, and logic analyzer mode of the Bus Pirate. We also continued to work on the new sales pages for our projects. The first batch of Bus Pirate v3.6 with a new form factor is now on sale at Seeed. Darlington transistors are added to the […]
Warning: Ping-Pong balls are very flammable
In response to yesterdays post about the 8×16 LED matrix which used ping-pong balls as diffusers, Josh send this video and warns that the Ping-Pong balls are made of a very flammable material (nitro-cellulose). So If you are making a project using them as diffusers, keep in mind they catch fire very easily. I had […]
Getting your stuff built: how to shop, conduct business, stay alive, and eat your way through Shenzhen
When we Bob at the Shenzhen Maker Fair he was learning to get his portable scoreboard manufactured. He’s been blogging about his experience in China, and documented the steps he took to get his project up and running. In 2012 I was chosen for the first year of HAXLR8R, a Chinese hardware startup accelerator to […]
Free PCB coupon via Facebook to 2 random commenters
Every Friday we give away some extra PCBs via Facebook. This post was announced on Facebook, and on Monday we’ll send coupon codes to two random commenters. More PCBs via Twitter on Tuesday and the blog every Sunday. Don’t forget there’s free PCBs three times a every week: Free PCB Sunday. The classic. Every week, […]
Week in (p)review June 08, 2012
Here’s a summary of major developments over the last week. Free PCB Friday is coming up soon. WORKSHOP VIDEO: Parts we stock and part storage 3D Model: PIC32-DIP breakout board HOW-TO: Open Source USB stack for PIC microcontrollers EAGLE PART: Incremental encoder with switch Copy parts between libraries in Eagle Library supports all PIC hardware […]