Poking machine

poke

We may be showing our age here, but we have no idea what a 'poke' on Facebook actually means. Whether it's the passive-aggressive manifestations of online stalkers or an extension of  the 'like' button, all we know is [Jasper] and [Bartholomäus] built a machine that translates virtual pokes into our analog world. The "Poking Machine" as [Jasper] and [Bart] call it, syncs to your phone … [Read more...]

Nanoscale 3D printing

bridge

This 3D-printed model of the Tower Bridge is only 200 micrometers long. To put that into perspective, the distance between the towers is the width of a human hair. This model is the product of research at the additive manufacturing department of the Vienna University of Technology The models were fabricated much like normal stereolithography - a laser shines onto a vat of light-sensitive … [Read more...]

A Mannequin Head + Arduino + Webcam = Lots of Creepy Fun!

styrofoam head robot

This mannequin head was purchased years ago on sale for less than $3. As with many things one sees while shopping, it didn't have a purpose at the time, but seemed like it would be useful later. Add in an Arduino, some servos, and electronics parts that were acquire in a similar manner, and you have all the ingredients needed for a cool hack. The build is well documented in the video after the … [Read more...]

USB controlled SPÖKA night light

usb-controlled-spoka-nightlight

[wejp] picked up an IKEA SPÖKA night light, but he wasn’t entirely impressed with its functionality. Pressing the top of the ghost’s head causes it to cycle through a few colors, and pressing it a second time locks it into displaying the current color until its tapped again. Inspired by this SPÖKA hack which used a different version of the night light, he tore his down to see what he could … [Read more...]