Hackers are buzzing with ideas from Pi-powered arcade machines and drones to the home automation and low-cost tablets. 10 coolest uses for the Raspberry Pi article tells that TechRepublic has delved into the Raspbery Pi’s developer forums, and here’s our round-up of the best ideas so far, ranging from the eminently achievable to the massively ambitious. You can use your Raspberry Pi for example as media streamer, arcade machine, tablet computer, robot controller and home automation controller. Rasberry Pi homepage offers also some more interesting projects like Retro games and a retro joystick.
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Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.tomshardware.com/news/raspberry-pi-smart-mirror-uses-ai-for-facial-recognition
Tomi Engdahl says:
3 Simple Raspberry Pi Sense HAT Projects for Kids and Families
https://www.tomshardware.com/how-to/raspberry-pi-sense-hat-projects-for-kids
Tomi Engdahl says:
Digitalize Your Hi-Fi System with Raspberry Pi
Based on a Raspberry Pi, HiFiBerry HAT and touchscreen, this audio system was designed and finished to match up with existing equipment.
https://www.hackster.io/news/digitalize-your-hi-fi-system-with-raspberry-pi-1ea58d50db9e
Tomi Engdahl says:
How to Use Raspberry Pi and Arduino Together
https://www.tomshardware.com/how-to/use-raspberry-pi-with-arduino
Connect an Arduino board to your Raspberry Pi and take advantage of unique capabilities like a built-in ADC chip.
Tomi Engdahl says:
“Digital Ventriloquism” Brings Interactivity to Otherwise Silent Objects Through Clever Projection
https://www.hackster.io/news/digital-ventriloquism-brings-interactivity-to-otherwise-silent-objects-through-clever-projection-0702a2f27199
Built using a Raspberry Pi and Arduino, the proof-of-concept allows a smart speaker system to throw its voice to dumb household objects.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Jeremy Cook Converts an Old Keurig Coffee Maker Into an Automatic Plant Watering Machine
https://www.hackster.io/news/jeremy-cook-converts-an-old-keurig-coffee-maker-into-an-automatic-plant-watering-machine-2d53de2f0c14
Have an old Keurig coffee maker lying around? Turn it into an automatic plant watering machine with a Raspberry Pi Zero W.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.tomshardware.com/how-to/raspberry-pi-sense-hat-projects-for-kids
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.hackster.io/news/digitalize-your-hi-fi-system-with-raspberry-pi-1ea58d50db9e
Tomi Engdahl says:
Turn your Raspberry Pi homelab into a network filesystem
Add shared filesystems to your homelab with an NFS server.
https://opensource.com/article/20/5/nfs-raspberry-pi
A shared filesystem is a great way to add versatility and functionality to a homelab. Having a centralized filesystem shared to the clients in the lab makes organizing data, doing backups, and sharing data considerably easier. This is especially useful for web applications load-balanced across multiple servers and for persistent volumes used by Kubernetes, as it allows pods to be spun up with persistent data on any number of nodes.
Whether your homelab is made up of ordinary computers, surplus enterprise servers, or Raspberry Pis or other single-board computers (SBCs), a shared filesystem is a useful asset, and a network filesystem (NFS) server is a great way to create one.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Compatible with any 40-pin Pi, or other SBC with Pi-style GPIO pinout, the new HAT offers support for third-party mPCIe cellular modems.
Lynx Embedded’s Pi.Lynx.LTE HAT Brings mPCIe Cellular to Any Raspberry Pi or Compatible SBC
https://www.hackster.io/news/lynx-embedded-s-pi-lynx-lte-hat-brings-mpcie-cellular-to-any-raspberry-pi-or-compatible-sbc-c9afea0ef1bb
Compatible with any 40-pin Pi, or other SBC with Pi-style GPIO pinout, the new HAT offers support for third-party mPCIe cellular modems.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Compatible with any 40-pin Pi, or other SBC with Pi-style GPIO pinout, the new HAT offers support for third-party mPCIe cellular modems.
Lynx Embedded’s Pi.Lynx.LTE HAT Brings mPCIe Cellular to Any Raspberry Pi or Compatible SBC
https://www.hackster.io/news/lynx-embedded-s-pi-lynx-lte-hat-brings-mpcie-cellular-to-any-raspberry-pi-or-compatible-sbc-c9afea0ef1bb
Compatible with any 40-pin Pi, or other SBC with Pi-style GPIO pinout, the new HAT offers support for third-party mPCIe cellular modems.
Lynx Embedded has released the design files for the Pi.Lynx.LTE on GitHub, with the board itself available to buy on the company’s Tindie store for $49.90 per unit
https://github.com/LynxEmbedded/pi.Lynx.LTE
Tomi Engdahl says:
BitScope has announced a new revision of its Raspberry Pi cluster computing solution, the Cluster Blade, with support for the new 8GB Raspberry Pi 4 — supporting up to 96 boards in a single module with shared power and cluster control.
BitScope Cluster Blade Packs Up to 96 Raspberry Pi 4 Nodes, Boasts Support for the New 8GB Model
https://www.hackster.io/news/bitscope-cluster-blade-packs-up-to-96-raspberry-pi-4-nodes-boasts-support-for-the-new-8gb-model-63935888bf25
Designed for industrial-grade cluster computing using Raspberry Pi 4 single-board computers, the Cluster Blade replaces the Quattro.
https://bitscope.com/blog/JK/?p=JK38B
Tomi Engdahl says:
The Pi Sniffer is portable, pocket-sized, Pi-powered device from Tenable for viewing real-time status and decrypting packets on the fly.
The Pi Sniffer Is an Inexpensive Wi-Fi Sniffer Designed to Fit in Your Pocket
https://www.hackster.io/news/the-pi-sniffer-is-an-inexpensive-wi-fi-sniffer-designed-to-fit-in-your-pocket-c3af064bca23
The Raspberry Pi-powered device features a 128×64 OLED Bonnet for viewing captured data in real-time.
Tomi Engdahl says:
For his latest Element14 Presents projects, Dave Darko designed a BD-1 companion bot — with a Raspberry Pi and a couple Arduinos — that will look great on the shoulders of any Star Wars fan.
Raspberry Pi 4 Animatronic BD-1 Companion Robot #StarWars
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=I2XKRSir-Oo&feature=youtu.be
Tomi Engdahl says:
Connect to BBSes and the Internet Using the PiModem
The PiModem was designed using a Raspberry Pi Zero W and uses its onboard serial port to communicate with the computer.
https://www.hackster.io/news/connect-to-bbses-and-the-internet-using-the-pimodem-787f94786327
Tomi Engdahl says:
This Raspberry Pi Network and Power Monitor Sends Outage Notifications
https://www.tomshardware.com/news/this-raspberry-pi-network-and-power-monitor-sends-outage-notifications
Tomi Engdahl says:
Portable Video Looper Is Easy As Pi
https://hackaday.com/2020/06/15/portable-video-looper-is-easy-as-pi/
Once powered on, the Pi Zero W stuffed inside this baby Magnavox waits for a thumb drive to be inserted and says as much in nice green text on the screen. Then it displays the number of video files found on the drive and gives a little countdown before looping them all endlessly.
Vintage Portable TV with USB Pi Video Looper
https://www.reddit.com/r/RASPBERRY_PI_PROJECTS/comments/h0dn9t/vintage_portable_tv_with_usb_pi_video_looper/
Tomi Engdahl says:
The Raspberry Pi 1 through Raspberry Pi 3 Model B+ and even the Raspberry Pi Zero can now see Vulkan support via a new unofficial “RPi-VK-Driver” that is offering even better performance than the Broadcom OpenGL driver.
A NVIDIA Engineer In His Spare Time Wrote A Vulkan Driver That Works On Older Raspberry Pi
https://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=RPi-VK-Driver
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://hackaday.com/2020/04/29/raspberry-pi-waters-your-lawn-serves-html/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://hackaday.com/2020/04/27/a-raspberry-pi-video-intercom-system/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://hackaday.com/2020/06/19/plantm-if-you-gotm-and-keepm-alive/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://hackaday.com/2020/06/01/linux-fu-raspberry-pi-desktop-headless/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://hackaday.com/2020/06/01/easy-internet-for-retro-computers-with-the-pimodem/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://hackaday.com/2020/05/25/boot-your-pi-over-usb/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Setting up two-factor authentication on your Raspberry Pi
https://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/setting-up-two-factor-authentication-on-your-raspberry-pi/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://hackaday.com/2020/05/20/zram-boosts-raspberry-pi-performance/
Tomi Engdahl says:
How to Use Raspberry Pi and Arduino Together
https://www.tomshardware.com/how-to/use-raspberry-pi-with-arduino
Tomi Engdahl says:
Customize your Raspberry Pi operating system for everyday use
Lighten up your Raspberry Pi even more by installing Raspberry Pi OS Lite.
https://opensource.com/article/20/6/custom-raspberry-pi
Tomi Engdahl says:
Use this script to find a Raspberry Pi on your network
Identify a specific Raspberry Pi in your cluster with a script that triggers an LED to flash.
https://opensource.com/article/20/6/find-raspberry-pi
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.hwhardsoft.de/english/projects/pimkrhat/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.cnx-software.com/2020/05/26/19-rackmounts-support-up-to-12-raspberry-pi-sbcs/amp/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Raspberry Pi ePaper Photometer
This cheap, six-channel colorimeter features an Inky pHAT, a spectrometer breakout, a couple push buttons, LEDs, and cables.
https://www.hackster.io/news/raspberry-pi-epaper-photometer-e8f256bdd8b2
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/wess-wonderful-minecraft-user-notification-display/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Tensorflow on edge, or – Building a “smart” security camera with a Raspberry Pi
https://chollinger.com/blog/2019/12/tensorflow-on-edge-or-building-a-smart-security-camera-with-a-raspberry-pi/
Tomi Engdahl says:
One of our fave makers, Wayne from Devscover, got a bit sick of losing at Scrabble (and his girlfriend was likely raging at being stuck in lockdown with a lesser opponent). So he came up with a Raspberry Pi–powered solution!
Using a Raspberry Pi High Quality Camera and a bit of Python, you can quickly figure out the highest-scoring word your available Scrabble tiles allow you to play.
Be a better Scrabble player with a Raspberry Pi High Quality Camera
https://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/be-a-better-scrabble-player-with-a-raspberry-pi-high-quality-camera/
Using a Raspberry Pi High Quality Camera and a bit of Python, you can quickly figure out the highest-scoring word your available Scrabble tiles allow you to play.
Software
Firstly, the build takes a photo of your Scrabble tiles using raspistill.
Next, a Python script processes the image of your tiles and then relays the highest-scoring word you can play to your touchscreen.
The key bit of code here is twl, a Python script that contains every possible word you can play in Scrabble.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Arduino based Goggle Chrome Dinosaur Game Automated Version
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sgMLiQz6qd8
Tomi Engdahl says:
8x8x8 LED cube powered by an arduino
https://github.com/itsharryle/LED_CUBE
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=T5Aq7cRc-mU
Tomi Engdahl says:
This system tracks the health of a bee colony by monitoring the temperature and humidity in and out of a the hive for years.
(via The MagPi Magazine)
https://magpi.raspberrypi.org/articles/beemonitor
Tomi Engdahl says:
How to Block Malicious Ads using Pi-hole and a Raspberry Pi
https://medium.com/the-kickstarter/how-to-block-malicious-ads-using-pi-hole-and-a-raspberry-pi-8c094f5abf0e
Block malicious advertisements, AKA malvertisements, using Pi-hole and a Raspberry Pi.
Advertising is not inherently malicious. It helps promote new products and businesses, generates revenue for content creators, and increases competition. These benefits are shared among consumers and companies alike.
Unfortunately, bad actors take advantage of advertisements to infect your devices with malware. Malvertising, or malicious advertising, is the use of online, malicious advertisements to spread malware and compromise systems (Samarasinghe, 2020). Clicking a malicious online advertisement can infect your device and compromise your data.
In this article, we will walk through how to use a DNS sinkhole called Pi-hole to block internet advertisements on a Raspberry Pi running Raspberry Pi OS.
Pi-hole acts as a DNS sinkhole for several advertising domains. Some domains are known to be malicious and will be blocked at the network level. This is beneficial since you do not need to configure any settings at the individual device level. Your entire network will benefit from Pi-hole if configured correctly.
Tomi Engdahl says:
This simple scalar network analyzer can be controlled by a Raspberry Pi for measuring the frequency response of filters and networks.
Build Your Own RF Lab: Scalar Network Analyzer
https://www.hackster.io/news/build-your-own-rf-lab-scalar-network-analyzer-d1fd1ce02215
A simple scalar network analyzer that can be controlled by a Raspberry Pi for measuring the frequency response of filters and networks.
Merrifield’s design accomplishes an SNA’s functionality via implementation of a DDS Synthesizer chip, an ADC, and a logarithmic amplifier chip. The AD9850 DDS is responsible for outputting the sweeping sine wave while the AD8307 logarithmic amplifier conditions the signal input into the SNA for the log of the signal’s envelope before passing it on to the ADC for digitizing.
https://hackaday.io/project/164610-scalar-network-analyser
Tomi Engdahl says:
If you don’t have the money or space for a laptop, you can use a Raspberry Pi with a MIDI controller to spin one the ones and twos.
Learn How to Use Your Raspberry Pi for DJ’ing
https://www.hackster.io/news/learn-how-to-use-your-raspberry-pi-for-dj-ing-2894d71e3799
If you don’t have the money or space for a laptop, you can use a Raspberry Pi with a MIDI controller to spin some jams.
The equipment of choice for DJs has evolved over the years. In the early days of DJ’ing as an art of its own, it was common to just have a pair of turntables and a basic mixer. These days many DJs use laptops to mix tracks digitally in real time. But if you don’t want to spend the money on laptop or don’t have the space for it, you can use a Raspberry Pi with a MIDI controller to spin some jams.
https://github.com/dennisdebel/pi_dj
Tomi Engdahl says:
This Raspberry Pi Oscilloscope Is Great for Guitar Visualizations
https://www.hackster.io/news/this-raspberry-pi-oscilloscope-is-great-for-guitar-visualizations-12eb15b2874e
Jeremy Cook recently built a Raspberry Pi oscilloscope, and it is perfect for producing projected visualizations during guitar performances.
Raspberry Pi Oscilloscope with Digilent Analog Discovery 2 [All-In-One]
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hWqfwTcn86o&feature=youtu.be
Tomi Engdahl says:
“Hello, is that France? play French music from the 1920s”
Pick up the rotary phone, choose a country on your map, and listen to music from any era from around the world with this Raspberry Pi-powered retro build:
https://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/travel-the-world-with-a-retro-musical-phone/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Printer/Plotter Designed Using Servos, Strings, and Pulleys
https://www.hackster.io/news/printer-plotter-designed-using-servos-strings-and-pulleys-f9cbb9756550
The Raspberry Pi-powered device was created using an assembly of metal parts, SG90 servos, string, and pulleys.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Protect Your Credit Card By Building a Skimmer Detector with a Raspberry Pi
https://medium.com/hacksters-blog/protect-your-credit-card-by-building-a-skimmer-detector-with-a-raspberry-pi-f670f94ffcb2
Tomi Engdahl says:
How to Create a VPN Server With Raspberry Pi
Have a spare Raspberry Pi lying around? Turn it into a VPN server and enjoy safe browsing anywhere you go.
https://www.pcmag.com/how-to/how-to-create-a-vpn-server-with-raspberry-pi
Tomi Engdahl says:
This Raspberry Pi-Powered Device Ensures That You Always Win at Scrabble
https://www.hackster.io/news/this-raspberry-pi-powered-device-ensures-that-you-always-win-at-scrabble-1a9c25a8fbcc
Scrabble is a game that is hard for a computer to play, which is what makes this DIY computer vision system so impressive.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Wes’s wonderful Minecraft user notification display
https://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/wess-wonderful-minecraft-user-notification-display/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Developer Jan-Rainer Lahmann, aided by his son Robert, has published a guide to turning a Raspberry Pi into a quantum computer — inspired by Hassi Norlen’s Qrasp project, and powered by IBM’s open source Qiskit framework.
Jan and Robert Lahmann Get a Quantum Computer Running on Your Raspberry Pi in Under 30 Minutes
https://www.hackster.io/news/jan-and-robert-lahmann-get-a-quantum-computer-running-on-your-raspberry-pi-in-under-30-minutes-4b972010009d
Based on IBM’s Qiskit, and inspired by Hassi Norlen’s earlier Qrasp project, the Lahmanns’ guide should get you up and running in no time.
“Inspired by the Qrasp project developed by Hassi Norlen, this post describes in detail how to install and run Qiskit — IBM’s open source quantum computing software framework— on a Raspberry Pi in order to turn it into a quantum computing simulator and use it to access real IBM quantum computers.”
The tutorial walks through the setup of a Raspberry Pi SBC in headless mode with a suitable Python environment and various dependencies, then installation of IBM’s Qiskit framework. Launched three years ago, IBM’s Qiskit was originally developed to interface with IBM’s own Q Experience prototype quantum devices — but also comes with a handy simulation mode, allowing for experimentation with quantum computing concepts on traditional computing hardware.
With Qiskit installed and Jupyter notebooks set up, the Lahmanns move on to configuring a Raspberry Pi Sense HAT add-on — using the 8×8 RGB LED matrix as a display to visualize the quantum computing experiments.
RasQberry: Quantum Computing is the Coolest Project for Raspberry Pi
https://medium.com/qiskit/rasqberry-quantum-computing-is-the-coolest-project-for-raspberry-pi-3f64bec5a133
Quantum computers typically operate at temperatures close to zero Kelvin (minus 273.15 °C, or −459.67 °F). So if we could turn a Raspberry Pi into a quantum computer, this must be the “coolest” project for Raspberry Pi.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Rob “drtorq” Reilly has published a guide to creating and installing an Amazon Web Services IoT Connect Kit on a Raspberry Pi — as a precursor to bringing Alexa support not only to his skeletal sidekicks Barkley and Hedley but to any other device too.
Rob “drtorq” Reilly Showcases Python-Powered AWS MQTT on the Raspberry Pi via Simple Connect Kits
https://www.hackster.io/news/rob-drtorq-reilly-showcases-python-powered-aws-mqtt-on-the-raspberry-pi-via-simple-connect-kits-06ba1b2097d4
Designed to bring Alexa integration to his skeletal sidekicks Barkley and Hedley, Reilly’s guide shows a simple way to set up AWS IoT.
EDGE / IOT / OPEN SOURCE
Dr. Torq: Install an AWS IoT Connect Kit on the Raspberry Pi
https://thenewstack.io/install-an-aws-iot-connect-kit-on-the-raspberry-pi/