Author: Zoe Skyforest

3790 Articles

Interfacing Broken PS4 Controllers With A Replacement PCB

September 7, 2022 by 5 Comments

[Becky] had some PS4 controllers that were sadly no longer functional. However, most of the buttons and joysticks still appeared to be okay. Thus, she set about designing a replacement PCB to breathe new life into these formerly bricked gamepads.

In the case of the PS4 controller, most of the buttons are of a membrane type, that talk to the main board inside via a series of contacts on a flex cable. Thus, [Becky] designed her PCB to interface with that to read most of the buttons. A breadboard and an LED came in handy to figure out which pads corresponded to which buttons on the controller. Replacement joysticks were sourced off Amazon to solder directly on to the replacement PCB.

[Becky] also took advantage of Fusion 360’s design tools to 3D print a simulcra of the final design. This helped get the fit just right inside the gamepad’s shell. Continue reading “Interfacing Broken PS4 Controllers With A Replacement PCB” →

Agrivoltaics Is A Land Usage Hack For Maximum Productivity

September 7, 2022 by 53 Comments

Land tends to be a valuable thing. Outside of some weird projects in Dubai, by and large, they aren’t making any more of it. That means as we try to feed and power the ever-growing population of humanity, we need to think carefully about how we use the land we have.

The field of agrivoltaics concerns itself with the dual-use of land for both food production and power generation. It’s all about getting the most out of the the available land and available sunlight we have.

Continue reading “Agrivoltaics Is A Land Usage Hack For Maximum Productivity” →

Hackaday Prize 2022: DIY Landslide Warning System

September 6, 2022 by 4 Comments

Landslides can be highly dangerous to both people and property. As with most natural disasters, early warning can make all the difference. [Airpocket] has built a cheap, affordable system that hopes to offer just that.

The system relies on a network of sensors built with Sony Spresense controllers, built into solar garden light enclosures which provide a watertight enclosure and a sustainable power supply. The controllers are paired with accelerometers to detect movement, and communicate over a WiSUN connection back to a Raspberry Pi 4B base station. When a deployed sensor station detects movement, it sends a message back to the base station, which sounds the alarm that a landslide may be imminent.

Early testing shows the concept works in theory. In practice, some improvements to reduce power draw and increase communication reliability are required. However, it’s a solid proof of concept for a simple landslide warning system.

Early warning is always key when it comes to things like landslides, tsunamis, and earthquakes. In fact, the US Geological Survey has done its own work on predicting earthquakes and providing early warning, too. Video after the break.

Continue reading “Hackaday Prize 2022: DIY Landslide Warning System” →

Hackaday Prize 2022: A Backup Battery Pack

September 5, 2022 by 10 Comments

These days, we’re all running around toting smartphones and laptops that could always use a bit more charge. Portable battery packs have become popular, and [Anuradha] has designed one that packs plenty of juice to keep everything humming.

The pack is designed to be charged via solar panels, at 18 V and up to 5 A of current. It’s intended to work with a Maximum Power Point Tracking module to ensure the maximum energy is gained from the sunshine available. For storage, the pack relies on 75 individual 18650 lithium cells, arranged with 3 cells in series, each with 25 in parallel (3s25p). They’re spot welded together for strength and good conductivity. Nominally, the output voltage is on the order of 10-12 V. The included battery management system (BMS) will allow an output current up to 100 A, and the pack can be used with an AC inverter to power regular home appliances.

Overall, it’s a tidy pack that’s more than capable of keeping a few devices charged up for days at a time. If you’re building something similar yourself, though, just be sure to package it well and keep it protected. So many lithium batteries can quickly turn fiery if something goes wrong, so store and use it appropriately! Fear not, however – we’ve got a guide on how to do just that.

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Hackaday Prize 2022: Drying Clothes With Ultrasound

September 4, 2022 by 29 Comments

Clothes dryers are great, and a key part of modern life, but they do use a lot of energy. [Mike Rigsby] decided to see if there was a more efficient method of drying clothes that could compete with resistive heating for efficiency. Thus, he started work on an ultrasonic clothes dryer.

In early testing, he found ultrasonic transducers could indeed blast droplets of moisture away from fabric, effectively drying it. However, unlike heat, the ultrasonic field doesn’t effectively permeate through a pile of clothes, nor can it readily be used with a spinning drum to dry many garments at once.

[Mike]’s current experiments are centered around using a basket-type system, with a bed of ultrasonic transducers at the bottom. The idea is that the basket will shake back and forth, agitating the load of clothing and allowing the different garments to effectively contact the transducers. It’s still a work in progress, but it’s an interesting approach to the problem. We’d love to see a comparison of the energy use of a full-scale build versus a regular dryer.

We’ve heard of the ultrasonic drying concept before, too, with the Department of Energy researching the matter. It could just be that we’ll all be using ultrasonic dryers in decades to come!

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Hackaday Prize 2022: Treadmill Becomes Human-Powered Generator

September 3, 2022 by 11 Comments

Running on a treadmill is a great way to workout, but what if the effort you put in could be put to use? This treadmill generator from [Amitabh Shrivastava] does just that.

The build starts with a regular old treadmill, which has a motor inside typically used to power the tread. Instead, the motor’s control electronics were removed, and it was repurposed to work as a generator. The output from the treadmill’s DC motor was fed directly to a DC-DC converter. This was then fed to an inverter that generates 120 V AC, which can power appliances that use up to 20-25W based on [tinkrmind’s] running performance.

It’s a fun way to generate power during a workout. If you don’t want your treadmill’s monitor to die in the middle of a Friends rerun, you’ll have to dig deep on those long runs. We’ve seen similar builds before too, with exercise bikes being a popular method of generating electricity. In fact, that’s [Amitabh]’s next project! Video after the break.

Continue reading “Hackaday Prize 2022: Treadmill Becomes Human-Powered Generator” →

Hackaday Prize 2022: A Cooler For Your Footwear

September 2, 2022 by 15 Comments

Sweaty feet can be uncomfortable, and the smell generated in one’s shoes isn’t much to admire, either. In an effort to help solve this issue, [Revoxdyna] has created a cooler for one’s feet that should help out in hot conditions.

Modern shoes, particularly sneakers, are often ventilated, but it’s not always enough. This build takes things further, using active cooling. Water is pumped through tubes and into a copper insole which cools the sole of the foot. It’s achieved thanks to a pump assembly that mounts to the rear of the shoe in a 3D printed housing. The water itself is chilled with a thermoelectric cooler, which helps remove heat from the shoe area.

There is some bulk to the design, which would prevent its use in performance applications in its current form. However, we could imagine companies like Nike leaping at the chance to build some very fancy, high-tech shoes along these lines in future. After all, they already managed to create power laces, and this is even cooler again! Pun definitely intended.

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