Building a real-life version of the Star Trek tricorder has been the goal of engineers and hackers alike since the first time Dr McCoy complained about being asked to work outside of his job description. But while modern technology has delivered gadgets remarkably similar in function, we’ve still got a long way to go before we replicate 24th century Starfleet design aesthetic. Luckily there’s a whole world of dedicated hackers out there who are willing to take on the challenge.
[Taste The Code] is one such hacker. He wanted to build himself a practical gadget that looked like it would be at home on Picard’s Enterprise, so he gathered up the components to build a hand-held heart rate monitor and went in search for a suitable enclosure. The electronics were simple enough to put together thanks to the high availability and modularity we enjoy in a post-Arduino world, but as you might expect it’s somewhat more difficult to put it into a package that looks suitably sci-fi while remaining functional.
Internally his heart rate monitor is using an Arduino Pro Mini, a small OLED screen, and a turn-key pulse sensor which was originally conceived as a Kickstarter in 2011 by “World Famous Electronics”. Wiring is very simple: the display is connected to the Arduino via I2C, and the pulse sensor hooks up to a free analog pin. Everything is powered by 3 AA batteries delivering 4.5 V, so he didn’t even need a voltage regulator or the extra components required for a rechargeable battery pack.
Once everything was confirmed working on a breadboard, [Taste The Code] started the process of converting a handheld gyroscopic toy into the new home of his heart rate monitor. He kept the battery compartment in the bottom, but everything else was stripped out to make room. One hole was made on the pistol grip case so that a finger tip could rest on the pulse sensor, and another made on the side for the OLED screen. This lets the user hold the device in a natural way while getting a reading. He mentions the sensor can be a bid fiddly, but overall it gives accurate enough readings for his purposes.
If you’re more interested in the practical aspects of a real-life Star Trek tricorder we’ve seen several projects along those lines over the years, including a few that were entered into the Hackaday Prize.
I do not see any resemblance to any Star Trek device.
What’s with the superlatives, non-sequitors (excuse me Nomad), lately involving the comparison of devices that don’t even remotely remind anyone of anything out of the Trek universe ?
I just don’t see it (and I’m an old school TOS fan that can quote episodes down to Capt Kirk’s nuances).
First an ‘exo-comp’, and now this ? come on… give us a break.
I don’t know, l think it looks a lot like a TOS era Phaser Pistol – just missing most of the Phaser mount…
im guessing its same ppl who say it resables a device from star trek who think “STD” is also star trek lol
Sexually Transmitted Disease?
Come to think of it, Dr. McCoy must have been pretty good at clearing up whatever Kirk caught while boldly going where no earthling had gone before.
Do you remember the combination to the safe?
12345
Maybe move on past the 60’s then. This is exactly the kind of thing they would have passed off as an alien weapon in TNG/DS9 era.
Wonderful project. Your video was of excellent quality. Very self-explanatory and you went to the steps well. Thanks for a great video.
a better design would be usable in either hand.
“But while modern technology has delivered gadgets remarkably similar in function, we’ve still got a long way to go before we replicate 24th century Starfleet design aesthetic. ”
Similar in some, greatly different in others.