After checking out Make’s mini fume extractor, Eric decided to make his own. What he had lying around was a 24v fan that couldn’t quite fit in a single Altoids box, so he soldered two boxes together to get a single wider one. Two 9V batteries connected in series provide the power for the fan, […]
Tag Archives: DIY
DIY USB Infrared Toy
Arup built a USB Infrared Toy clone. He is working out some kinks, but we expect him to be enjoying his new toy in no time. You can get IR Toy v2 for $22.05, including world wide shipping. Via the forum.
DIY ultrasonic range finder
Zipppys123 is building a DIY ultrasonic range finder based on this design. Once it’s externally triggered a PIC12C508 is used to generate generate the ultrasonic pulse, and measure its echo. The ultrasonic pulse is amplified using a MAX232 TTL-to-RS-232 level converter, while the echo is amplified and demodulated using two op-amps and comparators. Via the […]
DIY high resolution 3D printer
Arhi tipped us about this amazing DIY high resolution 3D printer. It uses a projector to cure resin and, layer by layer, develop a 3D object. The developer wants to produce it as a low-cost, high-resolution 3D printer: I have been dreaming about having a 3D Printer at home for many years, but the ones […]
DIPtheDIL use dual row headers in a breadboard
After posting about SILtheDIL, we received another idea on how to break-out dual row headers. Victzh and Shaos made similar adapters that allow dual row headers to be used with a standard breadboard. They write: “it’s more like “DILtheDIP” or “DIPtheDIL” :)”. Via the forum.
Velleman K8062 3rd party firmware upgrade
Velleman K8062 DIY kit is one of the most successful DMX transmitters sold world-wide, but it is also one of the poorest performers. Velleman uses an antiquated slow speed USB protocol on a device that supports Full Speed USB. A community developed firmware upgrade that offers up to 80x times better performance is currently undergoing […]
7400 competition entry: Bad driver feedback display
Gagandeep built a “bad driver” feedback display. It’s a huge 40X16 LED matrix spanning ~80cm in width, and it’s designed to be placed on the rear windshield of a car. The spacing of 2cm between LEDs is enough to ensure that the driver doesn’t have an obstructed rear view. Using 2 74HC595 8bit serial in […]
7400 competition entry: Homemade 7400
Arup entered his Homemade 7400 into the Open 7400 Logic Competition. A video of it proving his concept is available below. At an earlier post I’ve said that I didn’t have 7400ICs in my drawer. Surprisingly, the local store was saying 74HC00 out of stock. Hence I decided to make my own 7400 IC. 7400 […]
Controllable aquarium moonlight strip
Theatrus build a controllable aquarium moonlight strip on the fish tank bubbler. Royal-blue Osram high power surface mount LEDs provide the lighting, and an ATmega88 the control. RS485 port is used for control. All of the design files should be available shortly. Its quite potent (visible with the main 6x80W T5s running). Its easy to mount […]
DIY door lock reminder
Pppd got tired of forgetting to lock his door so he made a door lock reminder. Once you open and close the door the device starts buzzing and doesn’t stop until you lock it. It is battery powered and uses ATtiny13, two reed buttons, and a buzzer – though you’d need to initially know the parts […]
AT42QT1010 touch panel underwater test
pppd did some some tests for his underwater touch panel using the AT42QT1010 and a DIY panel. The panel is constructed from aluminum sheets, foam, and duct tape. He is currently sorting out calibration issues, as right now it makes a great cat-drinking-water indicator. Via the forum.
Simple USB DIY Li-ion battery charger circuit
arup shared his USB DIY Li-ion battery charger circuit in the project log forum. The circuit uses both op-amps of an LM358 to control the charging of a single cell lithium ion battery. Charging automatically stops when the battery is full, and it is possible to charge batteries that have gone below the undervoltage limit. Power […]
Universal soldering iron driver update
arhi added PID control to the DIY soldering station. This graph shows that the temperature stays solid even on a wet sponge and in a glass of water: As you can see 280sec into the test I pushed the soldering iron on the dump sponge and held it there until 320sec then I let it […]
DIY rover hacking
hak8or posted his Rover hack in the project log forum: I am working on making a rover thing so I can finally have a mobile car that I can use for things such as just driving around, scaring my cat, and learn some things about mobile electronics such as battery power, power usage, motor drivers, […]
Seeed Studio toy hacking contest
Seeed is testing a new Grove kit for hacking toys. Grove is a set of pre-soldered sensors that plug into an Arduino shield. It’s an easy way to build a project without touching a soldering iron. They need some beta testers so they’re having a contest. The top prize is a $200 store coupon: […]
Do it yourself heart monitor
victzh posted picture of his DIY ECG using an Xprotolab mini-scope/logic analyzer in the project log forum. Some time ago I bought an excellent toy – Xprotolab mini-scope/logic analyzer by Gabriel Anzziani. I touched it signal legs, and immediately saw that it picks up 60Hz through my body. I looked around and found couple of simple and inexpensive ECG […]
Open Bench Logic Sniffer custom case
oakkar7 made a DIY Logic Sniffer case. Via the contact form. Get your own Logic Sniffer for $50, with free worldwide shipping.
A large scale 3D printer
The creative makers at Metrix Create: Space have had their first successfully print on the Big Robot, which is a CNC router table converted into a large extrusion based 3D printer. The basic technology is much like a RepRap, but the nozzle is about 6mm, while most RepRap nozzles are around 0.5mm. It currently prints […]
DIY solder mask ink now at Seeed Studio
This enamel coats homemade circuit boards with the same type of green protective solder mask used on professional PCBs. We were discussing DIY solder mask in the forum, now Seeed has it for sale (or will soon). A three pack with red, blue, and green is only $6.50. Seeed has a how-to tutorial. The paint […]
DIY oscilloscope
Squonk has some useful links if you want to build your own scope: A nice HDL example of an oscilloscope using a FIFO and trigger A 100 MHz input stage A firmware development/improvement for the DSO “Welec 2000a- series” The (sad) story about the DSO Quad portable scope (why sad?) Thanks Squonk! Via the forum.