Portable Soldering Station Runs On Drill Batteries

June 22, 2023 by Zoe Skyforest 37 Comments

Power tool batteries are a convenient portable power supply for all manner of different things. [Zachary Goode] noticed that Ryobi was using them to power soldering irons, but no such tool existed in the DeWalt range. Thus, he set about to build such a rig himself.

The build relies on a simple 3D-printed adapter to suck power from a DeWalt drill battery. It’s a little piece of plastic with spade terminals inserted to act as the contacts. Armed with this tool, [Zachary] included it as part of a simple compact portable soldering iron design that relies on the off-the-shelf T12-952 controller board. This allows him to use the rig with a wide variety of common soldering iron handpieces, like his favored Hakko FX-951. The design also features a lithium-ion battery protection circuit of [Zachary]’s own design, to make up for the fact that DeWalt don’t integrate them into their battery packs.

The high power density of lithium rechargeable batteries has led to a proliferation of portable soldering irons in recent years. Some are even completely handheld, with no external wires or power supplies to speak of. If you’ve been whipping up your own gear to solder on the go, don’t hesitate to drop us a line!

Adapter Lets Digital Gamepads Work On The Tandy Color Computer

June 22, 2023 by Zoe Skyforest 2 Comments

The Tandy Color Computer came with analog joysticks, quite unlike most computers and consoles of the early 1980s. Many games of the era actually worked best with digital input, so [Gadget Reboot] whipped up a converter board to allow Nintendo gamepads to work with the computer.

The build relies on an earlier breakout board that [Gadget Reboot] built in order to read early Nintendo gamepads and output a digital 5 V signal. Meanwhile, the Tandy Color Computer is expecting variable o-5 V signals from the X and Y axis pots in its standard joysticks. To convert the gamepad button presses into voltages for the CoCo, the build uses a CD4066 analogue switch IC. When no controller buttons are pressed, the 4066 is set up to output 2.5 V on both the X and Y axes. Pressing up or down, or left or right on the D-pad, outputs 0 V or 5 V respectively as required. This essentially lets the controller’s D-pad act as a digital joystick for a computer that never actually had one.

It’s a neat hack that might make playing certain games on the Color Computer significantly easier. It’s also just neat to interface a different controller to the old hardware. In the early 80s, computers were simple enough that this could all be achieved with a minimum of dumb circuitry.

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China Plans Its Own Megaconstellation To Challenge Starlink

June 22, 2023 by Zoe Skyforest 39 Comments

Satellite internet used to be a woeful thing. Early networks relied on satellites in geostationary orbits, with high latency and minimal bandwidth keeping user demand low. That was until Starlink came along, and provided high-speed, low-latency internet access using a fleet of thousands of satellites in Low Earth orbit.

Starlink has already ruffled feathers due to concerns around light pollution and space junk in particular. Now, it appears that China may be readying its own competing constellation to avoid being crowded out of low orbits by the increasingly-popular service.

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A Pico-Based ZX Spectrum Emulator

June 21, 2023 by Zoe Skyforest 23 Comments

The ZX Spectrum was a popular computer of the 8-bit era. Now, it’s possible to emulate this machine on a microcontroller so cheap that it’s literally been given away on the front cover of magazines. Yes, we’re talking about the Pico ZX Spectrum project.

The project consists of all the necessary code to emulate a ZX Spectrum upon the hardware of the RP2040 microcontroller that makes up the Raspberry Pi Pico. The community has then taken this code and run with it, using it as the basis for all manner of different ZX Spectrum builds. If so desired, you can go barebones and use the Pico to run a ZX Spectrum off a breadboard with HDMI video output. Alternatively, you can build something like the PicoZX from [Bobricius]. The handheld computer features a PCB-based housing, along with an LCD and an integrated keyboard. Other configurations support features like USB keyboards, VGA outputs, and working sound output.

It’s great to see a classic 8-bit computer reimagined in all kinds of new tribute form factors. The Spectrum was always beloved for its neat all-in-one design, and there are several modern remixes that riff on that theme. The fact that they can all be powered by a cheap single-board microcontroller is all the more astounding. Video after the break.

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FPGA Breakout Board For DIP Package Shenanigans

June 21, 2023 by Zoe Skyforest 22 Comments

FPGAs are supremely flexible and powerful devices. However, they usually come in QFP or BGA packages that are altogether difficult for hobbyists to play with. The DIP-FPGA breakout board aims to solve that problem by using a carrier PCB to put an advanced chip in a friendlier form factor.

The board itself fits a DIP-20 form factor when soldered up with regular-pitch pin headers. It features a MachXO2-1200HC FPGA from Lattice Semiconductor. That’s the same chip as used on similar the TinyFPGA A2. With 18 GPIO, a DIP-20 layout is just about enough pins to take care of business. It’s intended specifically for use on breadboards or via regular IC sockets. There’s also a six-pin programming port laid out on the board that you can use with pogo pins or header connectors as you desire.

If you want to do some fancy signal stuff in an easy-to-prototype form factor, this could be the setup for you. If you want to buy one ready-made, they’re available on Tindie for the curious. In the meantime, consider whether this beefy FPGA Arduino concept could also propel your next project to greater heights.

DingoQuadruped Is A Cheap Canine-Like Robot

June 21, 2023 by Zoe Skyforest 11 Comments

Robot humanoids are cool, but also a bit hard to make work as they only have two legs to stand on. Four-legged robots can be a bit more approachable. The Dingo Quadruped aims to be just such an open-source platform for teaching and experimentation purposes.

The robot is based on the Stanford Pupper, a robot platform we’ve discussed previously. It bears a design not dissimilar from the popular Spot robot from Boston Dynamics. Where Spot costs tens of thousands of dollars, though, Dingo is far cheaper, intended for cheap production by students and researchers for less than $1,500.

The robot weighs around 3 kg, and is approximately the size of a shoebox. Control over the robot is via a wireless game controller. Each leg uses three high-torque servo motors, which are elegantly placed to reduce the inertia of the leg itself. A Raspberry Pi runs the show, with an Arduino Nano also onboard for interfacing analog sensors or additional hardware. The chassis itself has a highly modular design, with a focus on making it easy to add additional hardware.

If you want to get started experimenting with quadruped robots, the Dingo might just be the perfect platform for you. Video after the break.

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New Wearable Detects Imminent Vocal Fatigue

June 15, 2023 by Zoe Skyforest 2 Comments

“The show must go on,” so they say. These days, whether you’re an opera singer, a teacher, or just someone with a lot of video meetings, you rely on your voice to work. But what if your voice is under threat? Work it too hard, or for too long, and you might find that it suddenly lets you down.

Researchers from Northwestern University have developed a new technology to protect against this happenstance. It’s the first wearable device that monitors vocal usage and calls for time out before damage occurs. The research has been published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

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