Just like the garage computer explosion of the 70’s through the 80’s, which brought us such things as Apple, pong, Bill Gate’s hair, and the proliferation of personal computers, the maker movement is the new garage hardware explosion. Today, 135 million adults in the United States alone are involved in the maker movement.
Enthusiasts who want to build the products they want, from shortwave radios to personal computers, and to tweak products they’ve bought to make them even better, have long been a part of the electronics industry. By all measures, garage-style innovation remains alive and well today, as “makers” as they are called continue to turn out contemporary gadgets, including 3D printers, drones, and embedded electronics devices.
Making is about individual Do-It-Yourselfers being able to design and create with tools that were, as of a decade or two ago, only available to large, cash-rich corporations: CAD tools, CNC mills, 3D printers, low-quantity PCB manufacturing, open hardware such as Arduinos and similar inexpensive development boards – all items that have made it easier and relatively cheap to make whatever we imagine. For individuals, maker tools can change how someone views their home or their hobbies. The world is ours to make. Humans are genetically wired to be makers. The maker movement is simply the result of making powerful building and communication tools accessible to the masses. There are plenty of projects from makers that show good engineering: Take this Arduino board with tremendous potential, developed by a young maker, as example.
The maker movement is a catalyst to democratize entrepreneurship as these do-it-yourself electronics are proving to be hot sellers: In the past year, unit sales for 3D printing related products; Arduino units, parts and supplies; Raspberry Pi boards; drones and quadcopters; and robotics goods are all on a growth curve in terms of eBay sales. There are many Kickstarter maker projects going on. The Pebble E-Paper Watch raises $10 million. The LIFX smartphone-controlled LED bulb raises $1.3 million. What do these products have in common? They both secured funding through Kickstarter, a crowd-funding website that is changing the game for entrepreneurs. Both products were created by makers who seek to commercialize their inventions. These “startup makers” iterate on prototypes with high-end tools at professional makerspaces.
For companies to remain competitive, they need to embrace the maker movement or leave themselves open for disruption. Researchers found that 96 percent of business leaders believe new technologies have forever changed the rules of business by democratizing information and rewiring customer expectations. - You’ve got to figure out agile innovation. Maybe history is repeating itself as the types of products being sold reminded us of the computer tinkering that used to be happening in the 1970s to 1990s – similar in terms of demographics, tending to be young people, and low budget. Now the do-it-yourself category is deeply intertwined with the electronics industry. Open hardware is in the center in maker movement – we need open hardware designs! How can you publish your designs and still do business with it? Open source ecosystem markets behave differently and therefore require a very different playbook than traditional tech company: the differentiation is not in the technology you build; it is in the process and expertise that you slowly amass over an extended period of time.
By democratizing the product development process, helping these developments get to market, and transforming the way we educate the next generation of innovators, we will usher in the next industrial revolution. The world is ours to make. Earlier the PC created a new generation of software developers who could innovate in the digital world without the limitations of the physical world (virtually no marginal cost, software has become the great equalizer for innovation. Now advances in 3D printing and low-cost microcontrollers as well as the ubiquity of advanced sensors are enabling makers to bridge software with the physical world. Furthermore, the proliferation of wireless connectivity and cloud computing is helping makers contribute to the Internet of Things (IoT). We’re even beginning to see maker designs and devices entering those markets once thought to be off-limits, like medical.
Image source: The world is ours to make: The impact of the maker movement – EDN Magazine
In fact, many parents have engaged in the maker movement with their kids because they know that the education system is not adequately preparing their children for the 21st century. There is a strong movement to spread this DIY idea widely. The Maker Faire, which launched in the Bay Area in California in 2006, underlined the popularity of the movement by drawing a record 215,000 people combined in the Bay Area and New York events in 2014. There’s Maker Media, MakerCon, MakerShed, Make: magazine and 131 Maker Faire events that take place throughout the world. Now the founders of all these Makers want a way to connect what they refer to as the “maker movement” online. So Maker Media created a social network called MakerSpace, a Facebook-like social network that connects participants of Maker Faire in one online community. The new site will allow participants of the event to display their work online. There are many other similar sites that allow yout to present yout work fron Hackaday to your own blog. Today, 135 million adults in the United States alone are involved in the maker movement—although makers can be found everywhere in the world.
6,820 Comments
Tomi Engdahl says:
AMAZING home-made INVENTIONS
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BH6ASDeGW8c
homemade inventions homemade transport, handmade, crafts, inventions, DIY inventions, inventions new, with his own hands, life hacks, self made, homemade, homemade weapons, homemade car, homemade equipment, homemade, homemade inventions, inventors, Kulibin, new inventions homemade, amazing homemade, incredible, crazy,
Tomi Engdahl says:
DIY Syringe Pump Saves Big Bucks for Hacker’s Lab
http://hackaday.com/2017/02/26/diy-syringe-pump-saves-big-bucks-for-hackers-lab/
If you had a choice between going to your boss and asking for funds for a new piece of gear, would you rather ask for $3000 to buy off-the-shelf, or $200 for the parts to build the same thing yourself? Any self-respecting hacker knows the answer, and when presented with an opportunity to equip his lab with a new DIY syringe pump for $200, [Dr. D-Flo] rose to the challenge.
Syringe Pump
https://www.drdflo.com/syringe
Dr. D-Flo built two of Naroom’s open source syringe pumps for $200 each. While building Dr. D-Flo realized that these pumps could be used for a food 3D Printer. What exactly does that mean?
Tomi Engdahl says:
What Does a Hacker Do With A Photocopier?
http://hackaday.com/2017/02/24/what-does-a-hacker-do-with-a-photocopier/
The Stuff You Can’t Do With the Work Copier
Amateur Copier Repair
I decided to try cooling down the fuser. That would perhaps stop the paper sticking so much and then it would freely pass through to the output rollers. I dialled things down from 170 to 140 degrees.
I decided to go the other way — I cranked the fuser temperature up to 185 C, hit Start, and waited with bated breath. Not entirely to my surprise, I got ten copies out, no problem.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Gadget Freak of the Year Creates a Cheap Mine-Detection Tool
David Prutchi wins the top prize for a Design News Gadget at the Pacific Design and Manufacturing show in February 2017.
https://www.designnews.com/gadget-freak/gadget-freak-year-creates-cheap-mine-detection-tool/42291808652537?cid=nl.x.dn14.edt.aud.dn.20170228.tst004t
Sometimes cool gadgets double as public service equipment. The DOLPi polarimetric camera can help de-mining teams see if mines are hidden in natural terrain. While the mines are not detectable by the naked eye, the DOLPi is designed to detect human-made materials. At the Pacific Design and Manufacturing show in Anaheim, Calif. earlier this month. David Prutchi was awarded the Design News Gadget Freak of the Year for this cool and useful gadget.
Gadget Freak Case #276: See UFOs and Explosives With a DIY Polarimetric Camera
https://www.designnews.com/governmentdefense/gadget-freak-case-276-see-ufos-and-explosives-diy-polarimetric-camera/145405935146361?doc_id=279719&image_number=1&piddl_msgorder=thrd§ion_id=1362
It’s no secret that there are entire wavelengths of light invisible to the human eye. Animals and insects have eyes that can filter light and polarize it to all sorts of benefits like seeing in the dark and hunting prey. For a more in-depth definition you should consult your old college physics book, but the idea of polarized light is that it oscillates on a single plane, as opposed to scattered around like normal sunlight or lamp light.
You’ve probably seen cameras use polarization filters to enhance or remove certain colors in a shot. But this is really only the tip of the iceberg. Long story short, if a human could see in polarized light he or she would be able to detect all sorts of things normally invisible to the naked eye.
Enter the polarimetric camera.
Design News reader David Prutchi has come up with a project – the DOLPi – an affordable, Raspberry Pi-based polarization camera that anyone can use to see polarized light.
Prutchi has included a whitepaper with highly detailed build instructions, a parts list, and Python source code to run the camera.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Unique Planetary Gearbox can be Custom Printed for Steppers
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/02/unique-planetary-gearbox-can-be-custom-printed-for-steppers/
Stepper motors are a staple in all sorts of projects, but it’s often the case that a gearbox is needed, especially for applications like the linear drives in CNC machines and 3D printers. In those mechanisms, a high-torque, low backlash gearbox might be just the thing, and a 3D printable split planetary harmonic drive for the popular NEMA 17 motors would be even better.
Each revolution of the planets around the fixed ring rotates the output ring by one tooth, leading to almost 100:1 reduction.
‘Harmonic’ Planetary drive for NEMA17
96.6667:1 ‘Harmonic’ Planetary reducer for NEMA17
http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2122538
This reducer is designed to be mounted on top of a NEMA 17 standard stepper motor. It has a high reduction ratio of 96.6667:1 in a very small package (only 20mm tall, and 80mm in diameter). In the tests i concluded, reducer didn’t show even the slightest signs of backlash, but i can’t guarantee it won’t be an issue after prolonged use. This design also eliminates the wobble of the output which can be observed in 3D printed harmonic drives, and it’s required to remove that wobble if the device is to be used in an actual mechanism which needs to perform accurately/precisely.
If you encounter any problems, please contact me so i can improve the design based on your input
Tomi Engdahl says:
The Fab Lab Next Door: DIY Semiconductors
http://hackaday.com/2017/02/25/the-fab-lab-next-door-diy-semiconductors/
You think you’ve got it going on because you can wire up some eBay modules and make some LEDs blink, or because you designed your own PCB, or maybe even because you’re an RF wizard. Then you see that someone is fabricating semiconductors at home, and you realize there’s always another mountain to climb.
http://sam.zeloof.xyz/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Hackaday TTLers
Where DIY DIP/SSI/MSI CPU makers meet and discuss other TLA (three letters acronyms)
https://hackaday.io/project/8449-hackaday-ttlers
Tomi Engdahl says:
DIY Syringe Pump Saves Big Bucks for Hacker’s Lab
http://hackaday.com/2017/02/26/diy-syringe-pump-saves-big-bucks-for-hackers-lab/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Affordable EpiPen alternatives, and helping kids walk: Highlights from the UW health innovation challenge
http://www.geekwire.com/2017/affordable-epipen-alternatives-helping-kids-walk-highlights-uw-health-innovation-challenge/
An affordable EpiPen alternative, an electricity-free anesthesia machine and a device to help children walk were the winning projects at this year’s Hollomon Health Innovation Challenge, which culminated Wednesday at the University of Washington in Seattle.
The challenge is a science fair on steroids, giving university students from across the state a chance to make connections and win funding that could help develop their school projects into startups.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Make food production data open source, urges MIT Media Lab
http://www.techworld.com/personal-tech/make-food-production-open-source-says-mit-media-lab-3655322/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Simple Marble Machine Captivates the Eyes
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/05/simple-marble-machine-captivates-the-eyes/
Marble machines are the kind of useless mechanisms that everybody loves. Their sole purpose is to route marbles through different paths for your viewing pleasure. They can be extremely complicated contraptions, and sometimes that is the precisely the point. However, even a simple mechanism can be delightful to watch. [Denha] just uploaded his latest creation, using a spring as elevator and a simple zig-zag path.
Spiral lifter Marble Machine
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpxZTVxiBDA
Tomi Engdahl says:
Making Laser Cutter Designs Work in a 3D Printer
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/03/making-laser-cutter-designs-work-in-a-3d-printer/
The main mechanical tools in a hacker’s shop used to be a drill press and a lathe. Maybe a CNC mill, if you were lucky. Laser cutters are still a rare tool to find in a personal shop, but today’s hackers increasingly have access to 3D printers. What happens when you have a design for a laser cutter (2D parts) but only have access to a 3D printer? You punt.
[DIY3DTECH] has a two-part video on taking a 2D design (in an SVG file) and bringing it into TinkerCad. At that point, he assembles the part in software and creates a printable object.
Tomi Engdahl says:
I LOVE LAMP
Explorations into creating lamps with flexible light-emitting surfaces
https://hackaday.io/project/20121-i-love-lamp
Tomi Engdahl says:
Kestrel Computer Project
https://hackaday.io/project/10035-kestrel-computer-project
The Kestrel project is all about freedom of computing and the freedom of learning using a completely open hardware and software design.
From the main project website:
No back doors. No hardware locks or encryption. Open hardware means you can completely understand the hardware.
No memberships in expensive special interest groups or trade organizations required to contribute peripherals.
No fear of bricking your computer trying to install the OS of your choice. Bootstrap process is fully disclosed.
Designed to empower and encourage the owner to learn about and even tweak the software and the hardware for their own benefit.
Built on 64-bit RISC-V-compatible processor technology.
Kestrel Computer Project
Aiming to build a full-stack, open source, and open hardware home computer.
http://kestrelcomputer.github.io/kestrel/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Light Replaces Electrons for Giant Vector-Graphics Asteroids Game
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/08/light-replaces-electrons-for-giant-vector-graphics-asteroids-game/
One iconic part of Asteroids was the vector display. Each item on the field was drawn as a unit by the CRT’s electron beam dancing across the phosphor rather than raster-scanned like TV was at the time. The simple graphics were actually pretty hard to create, and with that in mind, [standupmaths] decided to take a close look at the vector display of Asteroids and try to recreate it using a laser.
[Seb] was able to code a reasonably playable vector-graphic version of Asteroids on a large projections screen. Even the audio is faithful to the original.
All [Seb]’s code is posted on GitHub, so if you have a laser projector handy, by all means go for it.
Recreating Asteroids with Lasers
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FkHjG759ABY
Tomi Engdahl says:
Move Over Baofeng, Xiaomi Want To Steal Your Thunder
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/08/move-over-baofeng-xiaomi-want-to-steal-your-thunder/
To a radio amateur who received their licence decades ago there is a slightly surreal nature to today’s handheld radios. A handheld radio should cost a few hundred dollars, or such was the situation until the arrival of very cheap Chinese radios in the last few years.
The $20 Baofeng or similar dual-bander has become a staple of amateur radio. They’re so cheap, you just buy one because you can, you may rarely use it but for $20 it doesn’t matter. Most radio amateurs will have one lying around, and many newly licensed amateurs will make their first contacts on one.
The Baofengs and their ilk are great radios for the price, but they’re not great radios. The transmitter side can radiate a few too many harmonics, and the receivers aren’t the narrowest bandwidth or the sharpest of hearing.
Perhaps some competition in the market will cause an upping of the ante, and that looks to be coming from Xiaomi, the Chinese smartphone manufacturer. Their Mijia dual-band walkie-talkie product aims straight for the Baofeng’s jugular at only $35
This class of radio offers more to the hardware hacker than just an off-the-shelf radio product, at only a few tens of dollars they become almost a throwaway development system for the radio hacker.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Open Source Firmware For A Cheap Programmable Power Supply
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/07/open-source-firmware-for-a-cheap-programmable-power-supply/
A few months ago, someone clued us in on a neat little programmable power supply from the usual Chinese retailers. The DPS5005 is a programmable power supply that takes power from a big AC to DC wall wart and turns it into a tiny bench-top power supply. You can pick one of these things up for about thirty bucks, so if you already have a sufficiently large AC to DC converter you can build a nice 250 Watt power supply on the cheap.
[Johan] picked up one of these tiny programmable power supplies. His overall impression was positive, but like so many cheap products on AliExpress, there wasn’t a whole lot of polish to the interface. Additionally, the DPS5005 lacked the ability to be controlled over a serial port or WiFi.
This programmable power supply is built around an STM32, with the programming pads exposed and labeled on the PCB. The changes [Johan] wanted to make were all in software, leading him to develop OpenDPS, a firmware replacement for the DPS5005.
After some work, [Johan] managed to figure out how to interact with the buttons, current limiter, ADC goodies, and the TFT display. An application was written with a vastly improved UI, with support for an ESP8266 plugged into the UART pins.
Right now, [Johan] has a significantly better power supply that can be programmed over WiFi. All the code is available
OpenDPS Design
https://johan.kanflo.com/opendps-design/
The OpenDPS device can be controlled via the UART port and you can either connect an FTDI adapter or an ESP8266. The latter is the most fun. A simple serial protocol is used
there is a Python script to talk to the OpenDPS device
Any good old ESP8266 board with the UART exposed will work. Connect GND, RX and TX, build and flash esp8266-proxy (don’t forget to set your wifi credentials) and you should be good to go.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Laser Harp I
Affordable and pretty simple to build framed laser harp using cheap laser pointer modules and a Teensy 3.2
https://hackaday.io/project/20208-laser-harp-i
Framed laser harp with up to 16 beams, MIDI over both USB and 5-pin DIN, adjustable octave and transposition, plus a whole bunch of selectable scales. Estimated cost less than €50.
Tomi Engdahl says:
DIY programmable (SCPI) bench power supply
Bridging the gap between professional and DIY/hobbyist bench power supply
https://hackaday.io/project/9491-diy-programmable-scpi-bench-power-supply
Open source project of complete modular dual channel bench power supply. It started with idea to build decent device that includes BOTH hardware and software features that can be found in professional equipment. Also it would be simple or at least modular enough to be understandable without huge effort. Thanks to that its hardware parts could be easily build “as is” by anyone who has intermediate soldering skills or can be modified or partially reused in similar project.
http://www.github.com/eez-open
Tomi Engdahl says:
Tea Making The Mechanical Way
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/13/tea-making-the-mechanical-way/
[Dorian Damon] has an automated solution to getting the crucial dunking process right. He’s made an automatic tea bag dunker. The teabag is mounted on a slide operated by a crank, and the crank is driven through a pair of bicycle hubs. Motive power comes from a mains shaded-pole motor
http://www.doriandamon.com/projects/tea-dunker
Tomi Engdahl says:
Laser Cutting a 3D Printer
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/14/laser-cutting-a-3d-printer/
The concept of self-replicating 3D printers is a really powerful one. But in practice, there are issues with the availability and quality of the 3D-printed parts. [Noyan] is taking a different approach by boostrapping a 3D printer with laser-cut parts. There are zero 3D-printed parts in this project. [Noyan] is using acrylic for the frame and the connecting mechanisms that go into the machine.
The printer design chosen for the project is the Prusa i3. We have certainly seen custom builds of this popular design before using laser-cut plywood for the frame.
All Lasercut 3D Printer (Prusa I3) Under 200$ Outstanding Performance No Printed Parts!
http://www.instructables.com/id/All-Lasercut-3D-Printer-Prusa-I3-Under-200-Outstan/
Tomi Engdahl says:
PBX blade for multiple extension home telephony
https://hackaday.com/2013/06/19/pbx-blade-for-multiple-extension-home-telephony/
It looks like a consumer good, but this PBX server blade was built by [Benoit Frigon] over the last couple of years. It brings multiple telephone extensions to his home service.
The device runs Asterisk open source PBX software. Because it will be on all the time he wanted something that doesn’t draw a lot of power. The 500 Mhz system seen on the left has just a half a gig of ram. It’s enough to do the job and at 10 Watts it’s not going to break the bank when it comes to paying the electric bills.
Projects » Asterisk PBX
http://www.bfrigon.com/posts/projects/pbx/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Scrap Wood and Metal Combined for DIY Mecanum Wheels
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/15/scrap-wood-and-metal-combined-for-diy-mecanum-wheels/
Some scrap wood, a few pieces of sheet metal, a quartet of old gear motors, and a few basic hand tools. That’s all it takes to build an omni-bot with Mecanum wheels, if you’ve got a little know-how too.
For the uninitiated, Mecanum wheels can rotate in any direction thanks to a series of tapered rollers around the circumference that are canted 45° relative to the main axle.
How to Make a Robot with Mecanum wheels at Home
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNGLovxtgDI
DIY : Learn how to make a remote control car with homemade Mecanum wheels (Omani Directional wheels). Not Limit to 360 Degree!
Tomi Engdahl says:
Hardware Tribes Growing Up Around Artisanal Electronics
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/15/hardware-tribes-growing-up-around-artisanal-electronics/
Consumer electronics are design beasts that must serve many masters. There’s a price point for the product itself, a ceiling for the feature set (lest it not be ‘user friendly’), and to take the risk of actually manufacturing something there needs to be proof of the market. A lot of great things make it through this process, but some really unique and special gear goes completely around it.
So is the story of this AND!XOR hardware badge being built for DEF CON 25. This is not the official conference badge, but the latest in a growing trend of hardware/firmware engineers and hackers who design their own custom gear for the conference, trying to one-up not just the official badge, but the other hardware tribes doing the same.
AND!XOR DC25 Badge
https://hackaday.io/project/19121-andxor-dc25-badge
Tomi Engdahl says:
Retro rack and backplane computer
Old style modular system for development of retro computers
https://hackaday.io/project/20132-retro-rack-and-backplane-computer
Tomi Engdahl says:
Know the soul of the high-performance employee, then we can build the 10,000 things.
Well-being and retention can only come through understanding.
https://hackernoon.com/know-the-soul-of-the-high-performance-employee-then-we-can-build-the-10-000-things-ad753ffd9b7f
58% of high-performance employees say they need more quiet work spaces
http://www.cnbc.com/2017/03/15/58-of-high-performance-employees-say-they-need-more-quiet-work-spaces.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
Modular Open-Source AV Receiver
A specification and reference design for a modular audio/visual receiver
https://hackaday.io/project/20469-modular-open-source-av-receiver
Tomi Engdahl says:
Endurance Test Machine Is Not Quite Useless
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/20/endurance-test-machine-is-not-quite-useless/
It seems [Pete Prodoehl] was working on a project that involved counting baseballs as they fell out of a chute, with the counting part being sensed by a long lever microswitch.
But for [Pete], we guess the microswitch was what floated his boat — likely because it was cheap, easily available and replaceable, and reliable. Well, the reliable part he wasn’t very sure about, so he built a (not quite) Useless Machine that would conduct an endurance test on the specific switch brand and type he was using. But mostly, it seemed like an excuse to do some CAD design, 3D printing, wood work and other hacker stuff.
The switches he’s testing appear to be cheap knock-off’s of a well known brand. Running them through the torture test on his Useless Machine, he found that the lever got deformed after a while, and would stop missing the actuator arms of his endurance tester completely. In some other samples, he found that the switches would die, electrically, after just a few thousand operations.
Ideally, these microswitches ought to have been compliant to the IEC 61058 series of standards. When switches encounter real world loads running off utility supply, their electrical endurance is de-rated depending on many factors. The standard defines many different kinds electro-mechanical test parameters such as the speed of actuation, the number of operations per minute and on-off timing.
A (not quite) Useless Machine
http://rasterweb.net/raster/2017/03/09/a-not-quite-useless-machine/
I started this project with a goal in mind: test microswitches.
When I was younger, my dad used to have a subscription to Consumer Reports and I remember years ago reading about how they tested things, like using a machine that opened and closed laptops repeatedly to see how many times it could be done before it broke or wore out. One of my goals is to do that sort of thing, but with things we build for exhibits. This is a start.
Tomi Engdahl says:
DIY Conductive Glass You Could Actually Make
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/20/diy-conductive-glass-you-could-actually-make/
Transparent, conductive glass is cool stuff and enables LCD panels and more. But the commercial method involves sputtering indium-tin oxide, which means a high vacuum and some high voltages, which is doable, but not exactly hacker-friendly. [Simplifier] has documented an alternative procedure that uses nothing more than a camp-stove hotplate and an airbrush. And some chemistry.
Make no mistake, this is definitely do-it-outside chemistry.
https://simplifier.neocities.org/optglass.html
Tomi Engdahl says:
Tiny Electric Motor Runs on Power from an LED
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/21/tiny-electric-motor-runs-on-power-from-an-led/
If you were not aware, LEDs can also work in reverse: they deliver tiny amounts of current, in the microamp range, when illuminated. If you look on YouTube you can find several videos of solar panels built with arrays of LEDs, but powering an electric motor with a single 3 mm LED is something that we’ve never seen before. [Slider2732] built a small electric motor that happily runs from a green LED in sunlight.
The motor uses four coils of 1,000 ohms each.
Building motors is definitely an enjoyable activity, these small pulse motors can be built in just a couple of hours.
Motor powered by a 3mm LED
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xGcRCk8SDHw
Tomi Engdahl says:
DIY printer and linear drives
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IgU__c4NgrM
Tomi Engdahl says:
2017 Hackaday Prize Begins Right Now
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/20/2017-hackaday-prize-begins-right-now/
This is Hackaday’s global engineering initiative that encourages people to direct their skill and energy to make the world a better place. We call it the Hackaday Prize, but it’s far more than that. Join a community of talented people who enrich their own lives by seeking out new challenges and new technologies, then pioneers a way to combine them to Build Something that Matters.
Tomi Engdahl says:
The Think Tank at the Chicago Unconference
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/23/the-think-tank-at-the-chicago-unconference/
On Saturday the Hackaday community turned out in force to try something new. The first Hackaday Unconference was held in three places at the same time, and I was in Chicago and was amazed at the turnout and variety of presentations. The image above sums up the concept quite well, everyone shows up ready to give an eight minute talk, but as a whole, no one knows what to expect. Well, we should have known to expect awesome and that’s what we got.
As usual, people are excellent… to one another and in adapting to the fluid nature of the day. Pumping Station: One, a renowned Hackerspace in the Avondale neighborhood near downtown Chicago
https://pumpingstationone.org/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Poor/Lazy-man’s Phaser/cat-toy
Minutes start-to-finish! Or a few hours if you don’t know what you’re doing, or are picky.
https://hackaday.io/project/20034-poorlazy-mans-phasercat-toy
Replace a TV-remote’s IR-LED with a laser-diode. Bam! (or Pew!)
Tomi Engdahl says:
Soda Bottles Used as Heat-Shrink for Wood Joinery
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/23/soda-bottles-used-as-heat-shrink-for-wood-joinery/
Nobody is likely to confuse it with the beautiful joinery that makes fine furniture so desirable. But as a practical technique, using plastic bottles as heat-shrink tubing for composite joints is pretty nifty, and the pieces produced are not without their charm.
Undertaken as an art project to show people what can be done with recycled materials,
The plastic used in soda and water bottles, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), turns out to shrink quite a bit when heated. Rings cut from bottles act much like large pieces of heat-shrink tubing, but with more longitudinal shrinkage and much more rigidity. That makes for a great structural component
Micaella Pedros uses heat-shrunk plastic bottles to join furniture
https://www.dezeen.com/2016/06/30/micaella-pedros-royal-college-of-art-graduate-showrca-joining-bottles-wood-furniture-recycled-plastic/
According to Pedros, the strength of the plastic joints depends on the shapes of the objects being linked and also on the grooves in the wood. Deeper ridges allow the plastic to form a stronger hold, and stop the separate parts from moving and weakening the joint.
The process could be used to join offcuts of wood together, extend the length of pieces of timber, join processed and green wood, or even link wood and stones together. Pedros suggests it could also be used to fix broken furniture.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Low-Cost Programmable Power Supply
https://hackaday.io/project/19647-low-cost-programmable-power-supply
Chinese “LM2596 DC/DC buck converter with voltmeter” + “some wires” + “Forth” = “programmable power supply”
Programmable power supplies are essential for test automation but they are expensive. This project brings the cost for hobby lab equipment to an extreme low by using a very cheap Chinese DC/DC buck converter with µC-based voltmeter, code from the Hackaday “eForth for cheap STM8S Value Line gadgets” project, and carefully chosen trade-offs.
So far, the following features have been implemented:
* modification instructions for an off-the-shelf DC/DC converter
* scriptable with interactive console (that was easy)
* remote control, and interactive programming through RS232
* programmable output voltage and ON/OFF
* user interface with 2 keys and a 3 digit 7S-LED display
* input and output voltage display, and monitoring
Tomi Engdahl says:
Make Your Own Soda Fountain Machine with This Easy Video
http://interestingengineering.com/video/make-your-own-soda-fountain-video/
Tired of pouring drinks at parties? Want to make the kitchen a bit more interesting? Or, do you just have free time on your hands and want to build something nifty to impress family and friends? YouTube’s The Q pieces together this simple cardboard soda fountain machine with ease.
Tomi Engdahl says:
ACROBOTIC Industries
Open-Source DIY Electronics Startup in Pasadena, CA
https://hackaday.io/acrobotic
ACROBOTIC is a small, bootstrapped Open-Source electronics startup dedicated to the design of hardware and software products for use in education, DIY, hobby, arts, science, and more!
https://acrobotic.com.
Tomi Engdahl says:
CNC Turns Empty Cans into Action Figures
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/26/cnc-turns-empty-cans-into-action-figures/
Recycling with CNC: Soda POP Robots
http://community.carbide3d.com/t/recycling-with-cnc-soda-pop-robots/4796
Tomi Engdahl says:
MRRF 17: Lulzbot and IC3D Release Line Of Open Source Filament
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/25/mrrf-17-lulzbot-and-ic3d-release-line-of-open-source-filament/
Today at the Midwest RepRap Festival, Lulzbot and IC3D announced the creation of an Open Source filament.
While the RepRap project is the best example we have for what can be done with Open Source hardware, the stuff that makes 3D printers work – filament, motors, and to some extent the electronics – are tied up in trade secrets and proprietary processes. As you would expect from most industrial processes, there is an art and a science to making filament and now these secrets will be revealed.
IC3D Printers is a manufacturer of filament based in Ohio. This weekend at MRRF, [Michael Cao], founder and CEO of IC3D Printers announced they would be releasing all the information, data, suppliers, and techniques that go into producing their rolls of filament.
https://www.lulzbot.com/filament-freedom
Tomi Engdahl says:
Design Contests: Worthy, Worthless, or In Between?
http://www.eetimes.com/author.asp?section_id=36&doc_id=1331510&
There are many design contests in which to participate, but deciding whether to do so involves many hard-to-assess and personal factors.
Design contests are very popular, and with good reason: The “winner” gets a prize, publicity, and perhaps opportunity to execute the idea. These contests vary in scope from modest (“design a 5-V/1-A power supply with 95%+ efficiency”) to very ambitious, such as the SpaceX Hyperloop Design Competition, in which the winning team is being funded to build a prototype, or NASA’s Small Electric Airplane Challenge.
I have mixed views about these contests. Some, such as the Hyperloop, will let the winner advance to the next stage with resources that are otherwise unavailable. They also encourage some serious and innovative thinking, backed by solid analysis. Other contests seem to be primarily publicity stunt
Obviously, the individuals and teams who spend their time and energy—and often money—on these design contests have different motives, incentives, and rationales. Some have ideas and time, some look for the publicity (how much you get varies widely), some need to do something anyway, some want the prize money (often less than the costs incurred), and others have the innovation urge and the contest is the final spark that gets them to act on it.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Series 1 3D printed 3D Freeform carving machine
Carve 3D objects using a gamer joystick
https://hackaday.io/project/19624-series-1-3d-printed-3d-freeform-carving-machine
Mechanized freeform rotary carving machine for sculpting in a variety of materials. I am designing and building these machines to help makers and artists make!
Sculpt anything or ANYONE you like!
Machine is a nice portable lightweight solution for the casual or serious artist and maker.You can use Styrofoam for a cheap carving medium and so you will never run out of media!
Low build cost allows every maker to build one.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Hacker Calculus
Isaac Newton was a hacker. Let’s take calculus back to its roots and make it accessible to everyone
https://hackaday.io/project/20621-hacker-calculus
. Many hackers are self-taught and avoid powerful math tools that might let them take creations to the next level. We aim to create a structured set of modules consisting of hands-on 3D printing and electronics projects, with thorough text documentation and minimal supporting algebra. These modules will teach calculus in this hacker style both for self-learners and others, like the visually impaired, who need hands-on learning.
Tomi Engdahl says:
[Joe Grand’s] Toothbrush Plays Music That Doesn’t Suck
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/27/joe-grands-toothbrush-plays-music-that-doesnt-suck/
It’s not too exciting that [Joe Grand] has a toothbrush that plays music inside your head. That’s actually a trick that the manufacturer pulled off. It’s that [Joe] gave his toothbrush an SD card slot for music that doesn’t suck.
The victim donor hardware for this project is a toothbrush meant for kids called Tooth Tunes. They’ve been around for years, but unless you’re a kid (or a parent of one) you’ve never heard of them. That’s because they generally play the saccharine sounds of Hannah Montana and the Jonas Brothers which make adults choose cavities over dental health.
http://www.grandideastudio.com/tooth-tunes-hack/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Casting Machine Bases in Composite Epoxy
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/27/casting-machine-bases-in-composite-epoxy/
When you’re building a machine that needs to be accurate, you need to give it a nice solid base. A good base can lend strength to the machine to ensure its motions are accurate, as well as aid in damping vibrations that would impede performance. The problem is, it can be difficult to find a material that is both stiff and strong, and also a good damper of vibrations. Steel? Very stiff, very strong, terrible damper. Rubber? Great damper, strength leaves something to be desired. [Adam Bender] wanted to something strong that also damped vibrations, so developed a composite epoxy machine base.
Epoxy Granite Machine Frame || How To
https://www.adambender.info/single-post/2017/03/25/Epoxy-Granite-Machine-Frame-How-To
Tomi Engdahl says:
3 Ways Requirements Documents Kill Product Development Projects
https://www.designnews.com/design-hardware-software/3-ways-requirements-documents-kill-product-development-projects/24388564156526?cid=nl.x.dn14.edt.aud.dn.20170328
We all agree that a requirements document is an essential part of the product development process, but can this document actually lead to the downfall of a project?
1. It Doesn’t Exist
It’s pretty tough to start a project and get everyone moving forward in the same direction if you don’t have a requirements document. However, this happens far more often than you may think.
Early startups often struggle here. “We are just trying to prove feasibility,”
2. Requirements Doc Is Really a Specification Doc in Disguise
Too many developers forget that a requirements document is meant to describe what the product will do. Because engineers are problem solvers, our brains love to jump quickly to solutions, and we often fall in love with those early solutions.
3. Requirements Doc Doesn’t Include Design or Usability Requirements
Many times, developers will populate the document with the most well-known items. “It has to be portable; it must fit in the trunk of a car; it must have a display.”
These are all important requirements, but also very simple ones.
Design requirements should go beyond this by gathering a deeper understanding of the user and their needs through various forms of research to discover hidden and unmet user needs.
Conclusion
Taking the time to create a stellar requirements document can prevent wasted time by eliminating redundant tasks.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Learn From The Experts
How to maximize the value of prototyping.
http://semiengineering.com/learn-from-the-experts/
I attended the technical track with experts from ARM, NVIDIA, Intel and Synopsys, who talked about their experience in accelerating software development, hardware verification and system validation leveraging prototyping. Their papers and presentations were full of tips and tricks on how to maximize the value from prototyping.
The ARM presenters——both named Peter—explained how the ever-increasing complexity and density of the latest ARM CPU and GPU cores, in addition to the continual demands for improved time-to-market, requires new, improved and innovative verification, validation and debug techniques. They highlighted how increased adoption of prototyping helped ARM to shift-left their IP verification activities and thus provide higher quality IP to their customers.
If you ever wondered how to prototype latch-based designs, the Intel presenter, laid out a step-by-step approach on how to effectively overcome some of the challenges that latch-based designs have typically imposed on FPGA-based prototyping. He went over a case study explaining how Intel was now able to prototype their Atom CPU where originally they could only use an emulator.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Make a PVC Drill Press
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/31/make-a-pvc-drill-press/
There are two types of people in this world: people who think that PVC is only suitable for plumbing, and people who don’t even know that you can use PVC to carry water. Instructables user [amjohnny] is clearly of the latter school. His PVC Dremel drill press is a bit of an oldie, but it’s still a testament to the pipefitter’s art. And you can watch it in action in the video embedded below.
Things we particularly like about this build include the PVC parallelogram movement, springs around tubes to push the Dremel head back up, and the clever use of a T-fitting and screw plug to hold the press in its lowest position. We wonder how one could add a depth stop to this thing.
PVC Dremel drill press
http://www.instructables.com/id/PVC-Dremel-drill-press/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Musical String Shooter Makes Sound Visible
http://hackaday.com/2017/04/02/musical-string-shooter-makes-sound-visible/
One reason we really like [Rulof]’s hacks is that he combines the most unlikely things to create something unexpected. This time he makes a fast-moving loop of cotton string undulate in time to music.
Musical String Shooter • uncontainable Loop! DIY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7TMlMZl3lo
Tomi Engdahl says:
Jaw-Dropping, IC-Free Pong on an Oscilloscope
http://hackaday.com/2017/03/31/jaw-dropping-ic-free-pong-on-an-oscilloscope/
Pong may not be much anymore, but it’s the granddaddy of all video games, and there’s still a lot to learn by studying its guts. And what better way to do that than by having it all laid out before you as you play? All it takes is 200 discrete transistors and two large handfuls of passives tacked to a piece of copper clad board to get a version of Pong executed without a single chip that’s playable on an oscilloscope.
https://www.eevblog.com/forum/projects/oscilloscope-pong-for-1-or-2-players/