Can You Help NASA Build A Mars Sim In VR?

May 12, 2022 by Zoe Skyforest 40 Comments

No matter your project or field of endeavor, simulation is a useful tool for finding out what you don’t know. In many cases, problems or issues aren’t obvious until you try and do something. Where doing that thing is expensive or difficult, a simulation can be a low-stakes way to find out some problems without huge costs or undue risks.

Going to Mars is about as difficult and expensive as it gets. Thus, it’s unsurprising that NASA relies on simulations in planning its missions to the Red Planet. Now, the space agency is working to create a Mars sim in VR for training and assessment purposes. The best part is that you can help!

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Making A Concrete Pinhole Camera

May 12, 2022 by Zoe Skyforest 9 Comments

A pinhole camera is a simple device that can be built out of virtually any simple closed chamber, and is a great way to learn about the basic principles of photography. [amuu] has created a version that can be readily made out of concrete, of all materials!

The photos captured by the camera featured some artifacts from light leaks and grit, but the results are enjoyable for their lo-fi, homebrew aesthetic!

The build starts with the creation of a mold for the concrete, using laminated sheets of foam. The foam is assembled with cut-up pieces of a ballpoint pen serving as cores in the mold. This provides a space for the film winders in the final product. The concrete is then mixed and poured into the mold, and allowed to set. Tapping or vibrating the mold is key to getting all the air bubbles out of the mixture.

Once set, the foam is mechanically removed from the concrete and the camera can be finished off. The internals are given a lick of black paint to improve the camera’s light-tightness. The shutter, pinhole, and film winder are then also fitted to allow the camera to function.

[amuu]’s first attempt to take photos with the camera lead to some results that were pleasingly lo-fi. There are overscan issues on the film and some other artifacts, but overall, the results are esoteric and fun. If you’re not a fan of the concrete camera, though, you can always consider making a 3D-printed pinhole camera instead!

Pitch Sequencer Turns Tascam Tape Deck Into Instrument

May 11, 2022 by Zoe Skyforest 4 Comments

The cool thing about magnetic tape is that by varying the speed at which you play it back, you can vary the pitch of the output. [Issac] decided to take advantage of this, executing a fancy digitally-controlled pitch mod on his Tascam Porta 02 tape deck.

The build uses a Raspberry Pi Pico, which employs PWM to control the speed of the tape drive’s motor. This is achieved with the use of an NPN transistor driven by the PWM output of the Pico. This allows accurate control of motor speed, and thus pitch.

With that sorted out, the project was fleshed out with an OLED screen and a rotary encoder. These allow various patches or scripts to be run on the Pico, controlling the motor speed of the tape player in various ways. With a bit of work, [Issac] was also able to create a function that converted MIDI note values into PWM values that determine various motor speeds.

The natural thing to do next was to put in a tape with a looping sample at a set pitch, and then vary it in a sequence controlled by the Pico. The 8 steps of the sequence can be manually set with the rotary control, and in future, [Issac] even plans to add a real MIDI input, allowing the system to act as a monophonic synth.

If you prefer other routes to pitch shifting shenanigans, check out this project. Video after the break.

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Easy Network Config For IoT Devices With RGBeacon

May 11, 2022 by Zoe Skyforest 25 Comments

When you’re hooking up hardware to a network, it can sometimes be a pain to figure out what IP address the device has ended up with. [Bas Pijls] often saw this problem occurring in the classroom, and set about creating a simple method for small devices to communicate their IP address and other data with a minimum of fuss.

[Bas] specifically wanted a way to do this without adding a display to the hardware, as this would add a lot of complexity and expense to simple IoT devices. Instead, RGBeacon was created, wherin a microcontroller flashes out network information with the aid of a single RGB WS2812B LED.

In fact, all three colors of the RGB LED are used to send information to a computer via a webcam. The red channel flashes out a clock signal, the green channel represents the beginning of a byte, and the blue channel flashes to indicate bits that are high. With a little signal processing, a computer running a Javascript app in a web browser can receive information from a microcontroller flashing its LEDs via a webcam.

It’s a neat hack that should make setting up devices in [Bas]’s classes much easier. It needn’t be limited to network info, either; the code could be repurposed to let a microcontroller flash out other messages, too. It’s not dissimilar from the old Timex Datalink watches which used monitor flashes to communicate!

Caulking Gun Becomes Useful Press Tool For Fuel Line Fittings

May 11, 2022 by Zoe Skyforest 29 Comments

The simple caulking gun is really useful when you’re working on some bathroom repairs or squirting construction adhesives about the place. However, with a few simple mods, it can become a great help in the mechanic’s workshop too.

It’s a great tool for cleanly pushing fittings into nylon fuel line.

This build consists of a series of 3D-printed parts that can readily be adapted to a garden-variety caulking gun. First up are a pair of fuel line clamps which are fastened together with nuts and bolts, The nylon fuel line is inserted between these, and the bolts are tightened up to hold the line firmly in place at the end of the caulking gun. The fitting to be installed into the line is then placed on the caulking gun’s plunger. It’s then a simple matter of pulling the trigger on the caulking gun to slowly press the fitting into the nylon line.

It’s a great hack which creates a useful linear press with just a few cents of PETG filament. If you find yourself doing a one-off fuel line job on a modern car, this could be just the tool you need. Parts are available on Thingiverse for those eager to print their own. The design is made for 3/8ths inch line, but could readily be modified or recreated to suit other diameters.

3D-printed tools can be useful in all kinds of ways, even in heavy-duty applications like press tooling. It often doesn’t have the same longevity of traditional metal tooling, but for small one-off jobs, the price saving is often more important than the hardiness of the tooling itself. If you’ve whipped up some great 3D-printed tools of your own, don’t hesitate to drop us a line!

A Simple Binary Coded Decimal Watch

May 10, 2022 by Zoe Skyforest 15 Comments

Analog and LCD watches are both useful designs, but ultimately are mainstream timepieces. Using a binary watch is an easy way to set one’s self apart as a tech enthusiast, while impressing your hacker friends to boot.

One such build comes to us from [vishalsoniindia], and it uses a single bare PCB which is designed to mate directly to a traditional watch strap. The single tactile button on board is used to activate the watch, showing the current time in hours and minutes in binary-coded decimal on the watch’s LEDs. Long-pressing the button puts the watch in setting mode to correct the time as needed.

The watch relies on an ATtiny85 microcontroller, a lightweight and compact design which is more than powerful enough to run a simple watch. It’s paired with a 74HC595 shift register to run all the LEDs from a minimum number of pins, and there’s also a TP4056 charging circuit on board to keep the lithium-polymer battery topped off.

A project like this is a great way to learn all manner of basic electronics skills, from PCB design, to SMD soldering and even working with basic logic parts like shift registers. As a bonus, you get a cool watch out of it to boot.

We’ve seen some similar designs over the years, as varied as the hackers that build them. Video after the break.

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Healing Wounds With The Power Of Electricity

May 4, 2022 by Zoe Skyforest 36 Comments

Once upon a time, even a simple cut or scrape could be a death sentence. Before germ theory and today’s scientific understanding of medicine, infections ran rampant and took many lives.

While we’re now well-armed with disinfectants, dressings, and antibiotics, scientists are continuing to investigate new and unique methods to improve the treatment of wounds. As it turns out, a little electricity might actually help wounds heal faster.

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