Stapler hack fastens infinitely large sheets of paper

infinity-stapler

It's not called the infinity stapler, but we think it should be. This magnetic hack allows you to use a plain old stapler to fasten very large pieces of paper. The limiting factor has always been the distance between the stapler's hinge and where the staples come out. To get around this, the crimped connections between the base and the dispenser were drilled out. Larger holes were then drilled … [Read more...]

Hackaday Links: March 20th, 2013

giant-fresnel-lens-is-dangerous-fun

Giant fresnel lens is dangerous fun Here's an interesting, and rather dangerous, use for those old big screen TVs that are frequently listed for FREE on Craigslist. With the lens from the old TV built into an adjustable wooden frame, [Grant] was able to melt a stack of pennies, instantly burn wood, melt spots in concrete, and serve his family a cooked egg... Cool. Projection mapping app helps … [Read more...]

Building a linear motor

linear-motor

We admit that this project doesn't have very many details available, but it was just too neat for us to pass up. It's a small linear motor which [ligonapProduktion] built after seeing a very brief description of a commercially available version. The video after the break shows him testing the motor. In this screenshot he's holding the center shaft while the coil assembly moves back and forth. … [Read more...]

Hacking grandfather clock accuracy while it’s still ticking

grandfather-clock-tweaking

[Keith] got his hands on a few grandfather clocks. Apparently the price tag is greatly reduced if you are able to get them second-hand. The mechanical timepieces require weekly winding, which is a good thing since you'll also need to correct the time at least that often. But this drift got [Keith] thinking about improving the accuracy of these clocks. He figured out a high-tech way to adjust the … [Read more...]

Magnets keep the shower curtain from groping you

stop-shower-curtain-groping

We guess we're glad to hear that other also suffer from the phantom shower curtain liner. On occasion the shower curtain will start closing in on us around the bottom of the shower. We're not certain of the phenomenon that causes it. Perhaps it's static electricity like when a comb repels a stream of water. It could be an issue with rising air though... who know. But [Sk84life0129] has had enough … [Read more...]

Tablet interacts with magnets, how does that work?

nexus

Making computers interact with physical objects is a favorite of the HCI gurus out there, but these builds usually take the form of image recognition of barcodes or colors. Of course there are new near field communication builds coming down the pipe, but [Andrea Bianchi] has figured out an easier way to provide a physical bridge between computer and user. He's using magnets to interact with a … [Read more...]

Revolight clone

revolight-clone

[Fabian.E] wanted to light up the rims on his bike, but didn't want to shell out a bunch of clams to get it done. He came up with this system which uses magnets and reed switches to light up one arc or each bicycle wheel. He calls it the lightrider and it's based on the revolights concept. That design uses a microcontroller which is capable of animating patterns when the wheels aren't … [Read more...]