Peripherals Hacks

1560 Articles

How-to: USB Remote Control Receiver

October 30, 2008 by 126 Comments

Now that we listen to MP3s, and watch XVIDs or x264s, a computer is the entertainment center in at least one room of most homes. Unless you have a special HTPC, though, you’re probably stuck using the keyboard to pause, change the volume, and fast-forward through annoying Mythbusters recaps. PC remote control receivers range from ancient serial port designs (who has one?) to USB devices not supported by popular software. In this how-to we design a USB infrared receiver that imitates a common protocol supported by software for Windows, Linux, and Mac. We’ve got a full guide to the protocol plus schematics and a parts list.

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Flaming Lips Guitar Hero Mod

October 27, 2008 by 16 Comments

Here’s a fun little suprise that showed up in a recent Flaming Lips interview. Frontman Wayne Coyne built this custom guitar rig out of a double-necked Epiphone. It has a neck from a Guitar Hero controller, which triggers a built in KORG Kaossilator touchpad synthesizer. Checkout the video interview at around 1:55 for a demo. He went with the Guitar Hero controller because he feels that it’s replacing regular guitars in childrens’ perception of how guitar is played.

[via Joystiq]

Eavesdrop On Keyboards Wirelessly

October 20, 2008 by 71 Comments

[vimeo http://vimeo.com/2007855%5D

Every time you press a key on your keyboard, a small burst of electromagnetic radiation is let out. This radiation can be captured and decoded. Though it only affects some models, this is pretty serious. They tested 11 different keyboards and they were all vulnerable to at least one of the four methods of attack. Tests have shown that the data can be read through walls and up to 65 feet away. That is pretty scary stuff. Someone could be setting up in the apartment or office right next to yours to listen to every keystroke you type.  Check out the second video after the break.

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Tiny Arduino Ethernet Board

October 17, 2008 by 15 Comments

[sgk] built this tiny ethernet board to be used with the Arduino. It’s based on a WIZnet W5100 chip. The chip handles all of the TCP/IP communication and you talk to it via SPI. It’s compatible with the standard Arduino ethernet library. [sgk] hand soldered these boards including the 80pin LQFP main chip. His next project is to put the AVR and W5100 all on the same board. It sounds like he’ll use components larger than 1005 though.

Playstation Tank Controller

October 12, 2008 by 6 Comments

[stuart] wanted a more intuitive way to control his rover platform than the software solution he had been using. He settled on using a Playstation controller with an AVR to operate the rover wirelessly. He found a couple references for talking to the controller using SPI on a PIC and adapted that for his ATMega88. The code is available on his site. He removed the rumble motors from the controller and stuffed the chip plus the transmitter package inside. The Linx TX/RX pair are mounted to pluggable boards so he can use them on other projects. A video of the tank in motion is after the jump. Continue reading “Playstation Tank Controller” →

Vocal Mouse Control

October 10, 2008 by 15 Comments

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXmccs4GIqI]

Absolutely fascinating. The University of Washington is developing a vocally controled mouse interface. We’ve seen vocal control of the computer before, but it is usally responding to specific commands and words to carry out tasks such as opening files.  This system uses different vowels and sounds to create cursor motion.  You can see the same system used in the video above to control a robot arm as well.

[via BotJunkie]