The OwnWatch is a Arduino-compatible smartwatch

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Maker creates a fully hackable, Arduino-compatible smartwatch based on the Atmel | SMART SAM D21. 

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Moritz Wenzel has emerged once again, this time with the latest iteration of his Arduino-compatible, software and hardware expandable DIY smartwatch. An upgrade of his earlier device, Tardis, the OwnWatch is completely hackable and enables Makers to connect their Arduino projects with both the wearable itself along with its paired smartphone via Bluetooth.

“Currently, every company on the market [has] built their own smartwatch, nice small devices that makes your life a little bit easier and more comfortable. But for a Maker, a hacker, a hobbyist or a nerd who loves hackable devices and creating own projects, these ‘boring’ smartwatches are no real alternative,” Wenzel explains.

For the OwnWatch, the Maker improved upon Tardis’ original housing and its hardware, most notably by replacing its ATmega32U4 core with an Atmel | SMART SAM D21 Cortex-M0+ MCU and providing additional BLE support thanks to a new dual mode Bluetooth module. Aside from that, the wearable is packed with a plethora of sensors, including a gyroscope and accelerometer, three temperature sensors, a pressure sensor and an ambient light sensor.

Meanwhile, power is supplied by a 180mAh LiPo battery, and audio can be emitted through its built-in speaker or a set of headphones. OwnWatch is equipped with two tactile buttons that allow a wearer to navigate through the main menu and switch between various functions like the time, calculator, image viewer and settings, as well as return to the home screen. A pair of programmable indicator LEDs can also be found on its frontside.

Intrigued? Follow along with the Maker’s progress on his project page here.

Industruino Proto joins the Arduino AtHeart program

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Industruino Proto is a robust DIN rail mountable, Leonardo-compatible industrial controller with an LCD display.

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Now the latest member of the Arduino AtHeart program, the Industruino Proto is an Leonardo-compatible board housed inside a DIN rail mountable case. The unit itself is comprised of two parts: a self-contained, AVR powered main controller and a baseboard.

Built around the versatile ATmega32U4, the Industruino Proto features a prototyping area, an on-board LCD and a three-button membrane panel. This offers both Makers and professionals alike the ability take a breadboarded solution and quickly turn it into a neatly enclosed, finished looking product that’s ready for permanent installation. Whether employed for automation projects, data loggers or an interactive art installation, Industruino is a rugged, feature-rich and low-cost option for everyone.

Inside its enclosure lies the baseboard with a prototyping area for adding your own components, along with re-routable jumper connections for linking any point to either the MCU’s pins or external screw connectors.

“The Proto kit offers a large prototyping area to add your own circuitry as well as the following features: a 14-pin IDC expansion port to easily connect external modules, and a 2A switching voltage regulator taking any input voltage between 7-28V and generating a stable 5V output for the MCU and your own components,” its team writes. 

Meanwhile, the Industruino Proto’s integrated 128×64 LCD and membrane button panel enable accelerated UI development for visualizing and inputting your application’s data.

It should be noted that the Industruino Proto is sold in kit form, and according to its creators, can be assembled in less than three minutes. Key specs include:

• MCU: ATmega32U4 (or AT90USB1286)
• Operating voltage 5V
• Supply voltage: 7-28V
• Digital I/O pins: 17
• PWM channels: 6 (32U4 model) / 4 (1286 model)
• Analog input channels: 7, of which 6 are shared with digital I/O pins (32U4) / 5 (1286)
• DC current per I/O pin: 40 mA
• DC current for 3.3V pin: 50 mA
• Flash: 32KB (32U4) / 128KB (1286).
• SRAM: 2.5KB
• EEPROM: 1KB
• Clock speed: 16MHz

Intrigued? Head over to its official page to learn more, or watch its detailed overview below.

Turn your kitchen toaster into a reflow soldering oven

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Reflowster turns your standard toaster oven into an easy-to-use reflow soldering oven without breaking the bank.

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If you recall from its successful Kickstarter campaign last year, Reflowster is an Arduino-compatible, ATmega32U4 powered smart outlet designed to instantly turn your toaster oven into a reflow soldering station.

The system works by simply plugging in between your toaster oven and power outlet. An included thermocouple is inserted into the Reflowster and is placed inside the toaster oven to measure the temperature. From there, the toaster oven is put into “always on” mode which can typically be accomplished by dialing the timer back a few degrees.

“Reflowster does need to be paired with a toaster oven to work, but unlike many DIY solutions Reflowster requires no toaster modification — no need to cut cables or risk electrocution,” the team writes.

Meanwhile, Reflowster’s encoder and LED display allows Makers to easily navigate menus and choose either a standard soldering profile or a custom option.

“Once the reflow process is started, Reflowster turns the power to the toaster oven on until a soak temperature is reached,” its creators explain. “Reflowster waits for the configured soak duration and then turns the oven back on until the peak temperature is reached.”

Aside from the versatile ATmega32U4 MCU at its core, Reflowster is equipped with an LED status indicator, a three-digit LED display, a microUSB jack, a thermocouple port and a 15A relay-controlled outlet, along with the aformentioned encoder and button for menu navigation.

Being that Reflowster is fully compatible with the Arduino IDE, users can upload new code to repurpose Reflowster to do a wide range of other things. Indeed, the thermocouple, relay, LED display and encoder make the device a perfect platform for a variety of alternative projects such as a temperature controlled fan, circadian light timer, outlet with an automatic shutoff, easy bake oven, incubator and perhaps even a sous-vide machine.

Intrigued? Check out Reflowster’s official page here.

Maker builds a giant LEGO NES controller

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Baron von Brunk has created a fully-functional, Arduino-powered NES controller out of LEGO. 

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The original Nintendo controller is arguably one of, if not, the most iconic gaming accessories of our generation. After all, who could forget the clickety clack of the red “A” and “B” buttons and the black directional pad? Well, Maker Baron von Brunk — who you may recall from his Super Mario Bros. LEGO sprites — decided to pay homage to the device by building a freakin’ huge NES controller out of giant LEGO bricks and a series of tiles.

The gargantuan project was developed back in 2012 and released in 2013. At the time, it had used the circuitry from the original controller that was hacked apart and reattached to play actual NES games. Recently, von Brunk decided to revisit his earlier creation and make some changes, which included its aesthetics and electronics. In fact, he even used LEGO pieces to make the text.

The fully-functional LEGO gamepad sits atop a large folding table and features removable tiled plates as its ceiling. For this version, von Brunk removed the inner workings of the previous piece and employed an Arduino to serve as the brains of the operation. Unfortunately, this meant he could now only play computer games.

The embedded circuit powered is powered by an Arduino Micro (ATmega32U4), which is wired to eight momentary pushbuttons sitting beneath the large LEGO buttons suspended with Technic shock absorbers. When pressed, the bottoms make contact with the pushbuttons, thereby sending an electrical signal back to the Arduino, which is connected to the PC via USB.

von Brunk wrote an Arduino code that assigns the digital output pins to act as keyboard signals. He used an external gamepad and calibrated its buttons, which the computer reads as keystrokes. All of this is explained in his video below.

Interested? Be sure to watch it in action, as well as check out the first edition of the LEGO NES controller here.

This pocket-sized, modular synthesizer is based on Arduino

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The NS1nanosynth is a modern, analog/digital synthesizer that fits in the palm of your hand.

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Back in the 1970s, modular synthesizers were often bulky and expensive. Reproducing an exact patch was not only difficult, but virtually impossible. Throughout the years, these devices began to be largely supplanted in pop music by highly integrated keyboard synths, racks of MIDI-connected gear and samplers. Fast forward a few decades and products like littleBits’ synth kit have made piecing together a modular machine just as simple as interlocking LEGO bricks, not to mention tiny enough that it could fit in the palm of your hand.

Taking that one step further is Italian startup Soundmachines, who has pulled out all the stops with their latest DIY kit dubbed the NS1nanosynth. The all-in-one unit allows you to have fun by mixing together new and exciting combinations from over 20 different building blocks. These include a voltage-controlled oscillator, two low-frequency oscillators, an ASDR (attack, sustain, decay and release) envelope, lowpass and bandpass filters, a voltage-controlled amplifier, as well as an assortment of “micro” modules like mixers and multiples, sample and hold, sum/sub blocks, inverters, analog dividers, clock dividers, fixed voltage generators and sensors.

And that’s not all. Designed with the Maker crowd in mind, the NS1nanosynth is built around the Arduino Leonardo (ATmega32U4) and features both MIDI and USB support. The handheld synthesizer measures just 220mm x 85mm in size, enabling it to fit just about anywhere from your bag to your back pocket. What’s more, 5V/400mA of power is supplied either through the classic 5.5mm jack or via microUSB.

“You can, of course, get rid of everything and write whatever you want on a perfectly formed standard Arduino platform. It’s up to you to use your standard or custom libraries and do modulations, connect to wireless stuff, use the on-board dual DAC and quad digital potentiometer,” the Soundmachines crew writes.

Intrigued? Read all about the NS1nanosynth on its official page here, or watch its demo reels below!

Defend your personal space with this wearable device

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Maker builds an over-sized, electro-mechanical backpack with a shoulder-mounted, self-firing Super Soaker. 

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Don’t you hate when people invade your personal space and get up in your business? What better way to send a message than by squirting them with a water gun? However, having to manually target people with your soaker of choice can be a tedious task, especially if there is an entire army of time-wasting, close-talking friends or colleagues approaching you. Luckily, there’s an automated solution that will do the trick. Introducing the Personal Space Defense System (PSDS). 

The brainchild of DJ from Instructables, the system is described as an “over-sized, electro-mechanical backpack with a shoulder-mounted, self-firing water gun.” While this isn’t the first robotic buffer zone defender, it’s perhaps one of the coolest — and most applicable nevertheless. (Anouk Wipprecht’s Spider Dress is still pretty sweet, too!)

How it works is pretty straightforward: If someone encroaches upon your personal space, an embedded sensor pendant will detect the invader and the Super Soaker Electro Storm will blast a few shots of water towards them.

Aside from the stripped-down water gun, the Maker employed several electronic components to make the project a reality. These included an Arduino Micro (ATmega32U4), an IR distance sensor, a PIR motion sensor, a laser diode, a power switch, an illuminated switch, a 2200mAh 7.4V LiPo battery, a voltage regulator, a MOSFET, a bunch of resistors, a transistor and a capacitor, as well as a number of other off-the-shelf supplies.

The PSDS is comprised of three main parts: a shoulder-mounted water gun, a sensor-laden necklace and a trigger mechanism. As AJ explains, pressing the power button activates system while pushing the trigger button will toggle between armed and disarmed modes. Once the system is armed, the gun will flip up and the attached laser diode will power on.

What’s more, he removed the original case of the Super Soaker to reduce the weight and allow for easy direct electrical control. This enabled him to wedge the water gun and reservoir into a channel bracket and actuate it by a geared servo.

“For ease of mounting and added comfort, I designed the system to be mounted to a regular backpack. The pack provides a sturdy mounting point for the main tube and proto-board for the electronics,” AJ adds. “The gun assembly is a bit hefty, so to balance out its inherently wobbly nature, I created a counterweight that has a mount for a camera. I ended up attaching a GoPro.” (This will surely capture some hilarious clips!)

The program running the PSDS is a basic Arduino sketch, which the Maker has made available, along with the Bounce library that will need to be installed. Those wishing to build a personal space defending wearable of their own can head over to AJ’s Instructables page, where you’ll find a detailed breakdown of the project.

Made with Code helps design Zac Posen’s FLORA-powered LED dress

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Zac Posen teamed with Google’s Made with Code to create a black dress that displays a pattern created by LED lights.

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More and more, we’re seeing the fashion and technology worlds come together in ways never before imagined. There’s your less ‘out of the ordinary’ wearable devices like fitness trackers and watches, but then there’s smart garments that can do everything from react to your body’s temperature and mood to ambient sound. With the advent of conductive thread, mini microcontrollers and a burgeoning Maker community, the possibilities of what can be sewn and coded together are truly endless.

Demonstrating just that, Google’s Made with Code and Zac Posen teamed up to show how computer science can push the boundaries of what’s possible in fashion using technology developed by Maddey Maxey and electronics from Adafruit. Students had the ability to log onto Made With Code and select a mysterious LED-based project.

At the time, the girls had no idea as to what they were contributing to but were excited nonetheless. The result? An interactive dress converging Posen’s “Los Angeles at night” inspiration and the students’ coding skills that debuted at the finale of the Zac Posen Spring 2016 Fashion Show, which kicked off New York Fashion Week.

All eyes were on the LED-embedded dress worn by Coco Rocha as it dazzled the runway inside a packed auditorium at Manhattan’s Industria Superstudio. The black piece featured short sleeves and a mesh skirt, along with 500 tiny lights that were programmed to emit different animated patterns — all controlled by an Adafruit FLORA (ATmega32U4).

“There is nothing greater than the fulfillment of creating something and seeing it come to life — to light up,” Posen explains.

Not only did they get to have a hand in designing the LED sequences, but 50 girls had the chance to attend the show and witness their collaborative effort light up the catwalk. For those of us who couldn’t experience the magical moment firsthand, Adafruit was lucky enough to capture it for us all to see! Watch below!

[Images: Google, Adafruit]

Parse for IoT launches four new SDKs

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Parse for IoT has expanded its SDK lineup with four new kits built with Atmel and other industry leaders.

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The Internet of Things is one of the most exciting new platforms for app development, especially as more and more people interact with connected devices every day. But it also poses a host of challenges for developers, as they must wrestle with the complex task of maintaining a backend with a whole new set of constraints. Many IoT devices also need to be personalized and paired with a mobile companion app. Cognizant of this, the Parse team is striving to make it simpler.

At F8 this year, Parse for IoT was announced — an official new line of SDKs for connected devices, starting with an SDK targeted for the Arduino Yún (ATmega32U4). Now, Parse has shared that they are expanding their lineup with four new SDKs built with Atmel, Broadcom, Intel and TI. This will make it easier than ever to use Parse with more types of hardware and a broader range of connected devices. For example, you can build an app for the Atmel | SMART SAM D21 and WINC1500 — and connect it to the Parse cloud in minutes, with nothing more than a few lines of code.

“We’ve been excited to see the creative and innovative things our developer community has built since we first launched Parse for IoT at F8. Already, hundreds of apps for connected devices have been created with the new SDKs,” explains Parse software engineer Damian Kowalewski. “Our tools have been used to build exciting and diverse products like a farm-to-table growing system that lets farmers remotely control their equipment with an app (Freight Farms); a smart wireless HiFi system that syncs music, lighting and more (Musaic); and even a smart BBQ smoker that can sense when meat is perfectly done (Trignis). Here at Parse, we had fun building a connected car and a one-click order button. And we’ve heard that our SDKs are even being used as teaching tools in several college courses.”

As to what’s ahead, this lies in the hands and minds of Makers. From a garage hacker’s weekend project to a production-ready connected product, manufactured at scale — Parse can power them all. Ready to get started? You can download the new SDKs and access QuickStart guides here.

Playing 8-bit video games on an Arduino-powered Game Boy

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One Maker combined the case, buttons and LCD screen from his classic Game Boy with a pair of Arduino.

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Earlier this summer, Kevin Bates launched a Kickstarter campaign for his credit card-sized, 8-bit gaming system. For most of us, just one glance at the Arduboy conjured up childhood memories of playing our Game Boys in the backseat of our parents’ car or on the bus en route to school. But what if you could combine the two?

That’s exactly what Daniel O’Shea has attempted to do by converging the case, buttons, LED indicator and screen of his classic Game Boy with a pair of Arduino boards to create an Arduboy-like device on a larger scale. The Maker embedded the same brains as the Arduboy, the ATmega32U4, along with an ATmega328 as a coprocessor to handle the LCD controller.

Aside from that, he used a 2K dual-port RAM chip and an 8-bit flip-flop which together serve as a memory buffer between the Arduino Leonardo and Nano, and the Game Boy’s power PCB to get the negative 20V required by the LCD. At the moment, the entire setup is attached to a breadboard while he sorts out the interface.

“I had a breakout board made for the 21-pin connector which allows the ribbon cable from the Game Boy’s front daughterboard to connect straight into a breadboard for prototyping. And then started out with just the Nano and the daughterboard, working on hooking up all of the LCD’s control signals and getting something (anything!) to show up on the LCD – the awesome research into this by mARC at robotdialogs.com was a great foundation to be able to start from,” O’Shea adds.

Looking ahead, the Maker hopes to drop in a motherboard replacement for the retro-themed gaming system. This next step would include transitioning to a bigger FIFO and an MCU with more RAM, like the ATmega1284P or Teensy. He has already sourced the parts for the power switch, power jack and volume dial, and says that there is ample room for the new electronics on the original footprint.

Interested? Check out the Maker’s entire breakdown of the project on its original page here, and be sure to see it in action below.

Let this swiping bot pick your Tinder dates for you

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This Tinder robot will automatically choose users you find attractive based on your preferences. 

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Online dating has come a long way in recent years, especially with the advent of Tinder. While in search of Mr. or Mrs. Right, the app lets you quickly swipe your way to a potential match. But sometimes all that swiping can be tiring for your thumb. And so, Saurabh Datta has developed a robotic mechanism that can do it for you.

The project, which he calls Conditional_Lover, is a robotic swiper that employs a connected camera to analyze profile pictures and then approve or reject users with its two prongs that serve as fingers. To get started, you first select your preferences (age, smile, glasses and ethnicity) which the bot uses to perform actions depending on the extracted information from the Tinder images. As Datta explains, it is intentionally made just to act, not so much to learn. Meaning, don’t count on the device being a substitute for a human matchmaker.

Conditional_Lover was originally created as weekend project, based on the belief that tasks which don’t require human dexterity will eventually be delegated to machines. The unit itself consists of an Arduino Pro Micro (ATmega32U4), two styli attached to servos, limit switches, a Bluetooth module for communication, and a mounted webcam that looks down at the phone screen.

“The underlying intention was to see what it takes for conditional logics to appear as pseudo unconscious AI. A kind of idiosyncratic manipulation of rule-based behavior to achieve different ends, reflecting on human dependency over software decisions,” the Maker writes.

Needless to say, even if it’s just an experiment, the bot could very well be a sneak peek at the future of how online dating. Intrigued? Head over to Conditional_Lover’s page here, or watch it in action below!