[Jon Bennett] is an electrical engineer who specializes in embedded systems software. He was the first employee of Pebble Technology and the lead developer of the inPulse Smart Watch. He has studied at the University of Waterloo during which he completed several interesting internships, including working on Bluetooth and WiFi embedded software for the iPhone (Apple, 2007). Now, he has hooked up this pedestrian walk signal — picked up at an electronics surplus store — to the internet.

The web-enable project utilizes a Spark Core Wifi Module, which is an Arduino-like micro-controller with more power, to wirelessly connect to the device. With the click of a button, the hand signal can be flashed. The walking illuminated man can be triggered with another press. Messages can be sent scrolling across the LED’s flashing by in sets of two simply by hitting enter.

All the source code has been posted on Github in case anyone wants to create their own.

[Jon]’s previous work can be found in a few of our featured articles from a couple of years ago. There’s the Thrift Shop Wifi Router Robot he made that could be controlled through the internet. He also built this interactive bubble music visualizer, and this programmable RC car that can be driven by a computer.

What will he think of next??