Packing A Jeep Wrangler Full Of Hacks

July 5, 2013 by Mike Szczys 66 Comments

Picking just one image to show off all of the hacks done on this Jeep Wrangler is a tough order. We decided to go with this custom ceiling console as it features the most work done in a confined area.

Give the video walk-around a bit of time before you decide it’s not for you. [Eddie Zarick] spends the first moments touting his “Oakley” branding of the vehicle in decals, emblems, embroidered seats, zipper pulls, and more. But after that you’ll get a look at the pressurized water system we previously saw. Pull open the back gate and there’s a nice cargo cover he built that includes a cubby hole which stores the soft sides when he wants to take the top off. There are several other interesting touches, like the police radar spoofer that he uses to scare the crap out of speeders. Ha!

The ceiling console we mentioned earlier was completely custom-built. It includes a CB, scanner, HAM, and seven-inch Android tablet. There is also a set of push buttons which control the various bells and whistles; well, spotlights and inverter actually. Just add a commode and he’s ready to live out of his car.

Continue reading “Packing A Jeep Wrangler Full Of Hacks” →

Google Science Fair Finalist Explains Squid-inspired Underwater Propulsion

June 30, 2013 by Mike Szczys 15 Comments

google-sciencefair-finalist-squid-propulsion

Meet [Alex Spiride]. He’s one of the fifteen finalists of the 2013 Google Science Fair. A native of Plano, Texas, [Alex] entered his squid-inspired underwater propulsion system in the 13-14 year old category.

The red cylinder shown in the image inlay is his test rig. It is covered well on his project site linked above. You just need to click around the different pages using the navigation tiles in the upper right to get the whole picture. The propulsion module uses water sprayed out the nozzle to push the enclosure forward. The hull is made of PVC, with a bladder inside which is connected to the nozzle. The bladder is full of water, but the cavity between it and the hull is full of air. Notice the plastic hose which is used to inject pressurized air, squeezing the bladder to propel the water out the nozzle. Pretty neat huh?

We think [Alex’s] work stands on its own. But we can’t help thinking what the next iteration could look like. We wonder what would happen if you wrapped that bladder in muscle wire? Would it be strong enough to squeeze the bladder?

You can see all fifteen finalists at the GSF announcement page. Just don’t be surprised if you see some of those other projects on our front page in the coming days.

Continue reading “Google Science Fair Finalist Explains Squid-inspired Underwater Propulsion” →

Hackers In Africa Are Building Their Own Aircraft

June 27, 2013 by Mike Szczys 78 Comments

hacked-heli

While you’re trying to come up with an idea for your next project this guy’s been building his own helicopter from whatever parts he can find. He’s just one of the aeronautical hackers featured in a story in the Daily Mail. The article’s narrative leaves us with many questions, but there’s enough info to make it worth a look.

In addition to the heli seen above there are also a couple of airplane builds to gawk at. Africa has already produced a couple of very ingenious hacks like [William Kamkwamba’s] projects which improved his village infrastructure. He gained enough notice from his work to land a scholarship to continue his education and that opportunity has also been afforded the creators of these aircraft.

At first we figured this helicopter project was possible because of lack of air traffic regulation in this part of the world. That’s not the case as [Onesmus Mwangi] — who makes his living as a farmhand — has been forbidden to fly the craft by local police. There may be another opportunity for him to fly later in life. He’s received funding to study aircraft maintenance abroad.+

Unfortunately we couldn’t find any video of this thing in action. If that’s unacceptable to you try getting your fix from this human-sized octocopter.

[Thanks Brandon]

Prototyping A Maglev Train Using LEGO

June 26, 2013 by Mike Szczys 20 Comments

lego-maglev

Serious research using not-so-serious equipment? We don’t know about that. What’s wrong with using LEGO as a research platform for a Maglev? This team has been doing so for quite some time and with great results.

A Maglev is a vehicle based on the principles of magnetic levitation. Similar poles of magnets repel each other and this concept can be used to create a friction-less track system. But this raises the problems of braking and locomotion. The build log linked above covers the conception in what is the eighth iteration of the research project. But the video below offers the most concise explanation of their approach to these issues.

The researchers are using magnets positioned in trench of the track as a kind of magnetic gear to push against. A series of electromagnets on the Lego vehicle ride in that track. The can be energized, working as a linear motor to push against those permanent magnets. But how do you know which direction of travel this will cause? That problem was solved by adding a hall effect sensor between each electromagnet. Before switching on the coil the hall effect sensors are polled and a timing scheme is selected based on their value. This is used to push the train up to speed, as well as slow it down for braking.

Continue reading “Prototyping A Maglev Train Using LEGO” →

Wetlev 2 Water Jet Pack Marginally Less Lethal Than Prior Version

June 22, 2013 by Mike Szczys 9 Comments

wetlev2-test-run

You’ve got to admit the thought of tooling around the lake on your own personal water jetpack is a seductive proposition. This is the second summer in which [Toby Gardner] has been trying to work out the kinks on his build. Last year he got out of the water, but the jetpack was pretty hard to control. Over the winter he redesigned the nozzles of the water jets and they seem to be doing quite a bit better.

The fact that the build will be in frequent contact with water makes it a bit harder. They need to have parts that won’t corrode but can stand up to the pressure. Stainless steel was the obvious choice, and for the refinements they were able to get quite a few off the shelf parts to start from. He built a mold for forming the backpack and took it out for a spin. We don’t get a great look at the new version from afar. But watch the videos below and you’ll see last year it tried to drown him, this year it seems to float.

Why is he building rather than buying? Have you seen the price of the original version?

Continue reading “Wetlev 2 Water Jet Pack Marginally Less Lethal Than Prior Version” →

Raspberry Pi Replaces A Volvo Nav System

June 17, 2013 by Mike Szczys 24 Comments

[Reinis] has a Volvo S80. One of the dashboard features it includes is a 6.5″ LCD screen which periscopes up to use as a navigation system. The problem is that Volvo stopped making maps for it around five years ago and there are no maps at all for Latvia where he lives. So it’s worthless… to you’re average driver. But [Reinis] is fixing it on his own by replacing the system with a Raspberry Pi.

That link leads to his project overview page. But he’s already posted follow-ups on hardware design and initial testing. He’s basing the design around a Raspberry Pi board, but that doesn’t have all the hardware it needs to communicate with the car’s systems. For this he designed his own shield that uses an ATmega328 along with a CAN controller and CAN transceiver. The latter two chips patch into the CAN bus on the car’s On Board Diagnostic system. We didn’t see much about the wiring, but the overview post mentions that the screen takes RGB or Composite inputs so he must be running a composite video cable from the trunk to the dashboard.

No Space In The Garage? Build A Lamborghini In The Basement

June 8, 2013 by Brian Benchoff 5 Comments

It took 17 years, but [Ken Imhoff] finally got the car of his dreams. This isn’t a, ‘go down to the dealership’ situation. No, [Ken] built a Lamborghini Countach by himself in his basement.

The build process started off by fabricating a wooden frame to which hand-crafted aluminum panels were attached. The frame of the car was welded out of tubular steel, and slowly, over the course of 17 years, a custom Lamborghini Countach took shape.

When the car was complete, there was one problem left to solve – how do you get a car out of a basement? Rent a backhoe and knock out a wall, of course. Replacing a few cinder blocks in a properly reinforced wall is a lot easier than cutting a Lambo chassis in half, it seems.

It’s an amazing piece of artistry that is a testament to [Ken]’s skill in metalworking, welding, and pretty much any other skill we can think of.