IPhone Controlled R/C Car

October 17, 2008 by Caleb Kraft 22 Comments

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2EJ2kouK7U]

Is controlling an R/C car with its own remote too mundane for you? Do you feel the need to involve a web server and an iPhone in the process? This project might just be perfect for you. By connecting the R/C controller to a microcontroller board, and feeding it signals via a website from your iPhone, you can control the car as if you had the original controller in your hand. In case you missed it, he’s lugging a laptop, a circuit board, and the original controller along with him. They do make a few improvements though, such as speed control by using pulse width modulation. I guess that makes up for having to lug the computer around too.

[thanks Humberto]

Prototype This Schematics Posted

October 16, 2008 by Eliot 26 Comments

As promised, [Joe Grand] has uploaded the schematics from his part of last night’s episode of Prototype This. The device monitors the driver of a demo derby car and shuts it off if he becomes too enraged. He’ll be posting schematics for every episode as they’re released. The really interesting thing is that he scanned all of his development notes too. If you missed the episode, you can watch it on Discovery’s site. You can also grab a version that doesn’t idiotically force you to watch in full screen browser window from The Pirate Bay.

UPDATE: [Joe] has been responding to your comments.

PSP 3000 Teardown

October 16, 2008 by Caleb Kraft 51 Comments

If you absolutely feel an incessant need to see the innards of every new piece of equipment out there, you’ll probably be excited to see that the PSP 3000 has been disassembled and photographed. Apparently there isn’t much new here. The screen has been replaced with one that has 5 times the contrast ratio, twice the color range, and a refresh rate that is twice as fast. Other than that, there’s a built in microphone and a mystery “PS” button.

[via Engadget]

UberBong: Evaporative PC Cooling, Probably

October 16, 2008 by Caleb Kraft 24 Comments

We’re not 100% sure what exactly is going on here. It appears to be a massive evaporative cooling rig for a computer, though the title has us wondering if it doesn’t have any other uses. There isn’t much of a description, but we felt the sheer magnitude of this cooling system warranted some publicity. Some digging around shows that this was out in 2003, but it is new to us.

[via reddit]

Hack The Ben Heck Access Controller

October 16, 2008 by Caleb Kraft 4 Comments

[Ben Heck], in a display of true hacker spirit, has released a tutorial on how to mod the Access Controller. We have been waiting for it, but we can’t help but commend the detail he goes into. He lists pinouts, as well as digi-key part numbers for various replacement parts. Great job as usual [ben].

Prototype This Premiers Tomorrow

October 14, 2008 by Eliot 21 Comments

Discovery Channel’s new show Prototype This premiers tomorrow night at 10e/p. Every week the team will construct a new piece of unique machinery. The schedule for the first six episodes has already been published.

Mind Controlled Car, October 15
Boxing Robots, October 22
Traffic Busting Truck, October 29
Get Up and Go, November 5
Waterslide Simulator, November 12
Six-Legged All Terrain Vehicle, November 19

We initially reported on the show in August because it featured Defcon badge designer [Joe Grand].

UPDATE: [Joe] will be posting all of his schematics, source code, development notes, etc.

Wiimote Guitar Effects Control

October 14, 2008 by Caleb Kraft 17 Comments

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmuggHx_H5Y]

[Rob Morris] sent us this video of his Wiimote based guitar effects. Similar to our post yesterday about using the Wiimote to control a synth, he is using changes in orientation to effect the sound. He starts off with simple pitch modulation, but later in the video he’s doing, uh, we’re not sure but its kind of cool.