Putting people over Megahertz

Open source hardware can probably best be defined as hardware that has been made publicly available. The primary advantage of open source hardware? The concept allows DIY Makers and engineers to modify, improve, distribute, make and sell the design (or hardware based on that design).

According to the Open Source Hardware Association (OSHWA), open source hardware uses readily-available components and materials, standard processes, open infrastructure, unrestricted content and open-source design tools to maximize the ability of individuals to make and use hardware. Simply put, open source hardware offers people the freedom to control their technology – while sharing knowledge and encouraging commerce through the open exchange of designs.

Atmel-powered Arduino boards – which epitomize the above-mentioned philosophy – illustrate the numerous advantages associated with an open source approach. Indeed, Arduino has already managed to link the rapidly growing Maker Movement with both the corporate world and educational communities.

As Brock Craft, author of “Arduino Projects for Dummies” confirms, the boards are wildly popular in schools, with science and computing teachers in secondary institutions using the platform to teach kids the principles of programming and computational thinking.

“[Of course], Arduino is also used in colleges and universities, [where] they are often found in design programs, particularly in product design, because Arduinos can quickly be used to prototype products that do physical things – like toasters or dispensers or remote controls, for example,” Craft told ItPortalPro.

“It is also widely used in digital arts programs for making interactive artwork, music, and performances. [Yes], there have been similar products on the market for many years and education curricula have used other alternatives. But what makes Arduino different – and is driving teachers to use them – is that Arduinos are easy to use. And if they need help, it’s easy for teachers and students to get it in the extensive online communities.”

In addition, Craft noted that Arduino boards are being deployed throughout the corporate world, as the hardware is used by designers, architects and engineers for prototyping purposes.

“It’s very easy to try out design by building a prototype so that they can see what solutions work and toss out those that don’t. This is much easier to do early in the design process before more money has been spent on bringing an idea to fruition; Arduino can play a key role here,” he added.

And why not? As Arduino co-founder Massimo Banzi wrote in a recent Makezine article, Arduino boards are essentially a mashup of open technologies wrapped up in a unified user experience.

“From the out-of-the-box experience we want to know how long it takes to you to go from zero to something that works,” Massimo explained. “This is very important because it creates a positive reinforcement that you are on the right path. The longer that time is, the more people you lose in the process.”

According to Massimo, “we are all on the edge” of a new step in the Maker Movement.

“Some of you are surely working on the next big thing. Please keep at it, but keep in mind the overall experience,” he continued. “[Yes], you can put a processor that is 100 Mhz more than another one, but the way you interact with it makes a huge difference to people because it’s more important to take care of the experience people have when they learn than to give them power they don’t know what to do with.”

Massimo reiterated the notion of “people over Megahertz” earlier this week during the New York Hardware Innovation Workshop (HIW), which kicks off right before the 2013 World Maker Faire in NYC.

“Every time you design a system to do everything, you end up with a system designed to do nothing. The challenge is to build a platform that solves a simple problem for a specific group of people: beginners for example,” Massimo emphasized during a panel discussion about the evolution of microcontrollers (MCUs). “Our boards are not the most powerful, but they enable people to get ideas into products very fast. It’s people over Megahertz.”

Atmel kicks off AVR Hero Maker Faire Contest

Atmel is challenging Makers, designers and engineers to develop new AVR-powered gadgets and gizmos with commercial potential. So do you have what it takes to be a Master Maker? Are you super with a soldering iron? Great with a glue gun? Awesome at Arduino? Mighty with your microcontroller abilities?

If you think you have what it takes to be a Master Maker/AVR hero, submit your masterpieces today! We’ll feature the projects and the people will vote. Along with great fame, respect and worshipful gazes, we’ll also be giving amazing prizes to go with your new title. 

What will you get? Well, our Master Maker winner will receive a $1,000 cash prize, one-year discount on Atmel products, four tickets to upcoming (local) Maker Faires and some cool Atmel swag!

Each of the four runners up will receive a $500 cash prize, two tickets each for upcoming Maker Faires and awesome Atmel swag. We’ll also advise winners and the four runner ups on how to launch their respective projects on Kickstarter or IndieGoGo, all while granting access to Atmel experts who can help facilitate the transition from prototype to product.

So, how does the contest work? Well, after a period of public voting (September 9, 2013 – December 31, 2013) a panel of Atmel judges will select the top entries based on:

• Idea quality – Is it original, creative and substantially different? How so?
• Design quality – How complete is your design? Is it robust, repairable and resilient? Is it pretty? Easy to use? Do you have a working model?
• Market potential – How would you get your masterpiece to the masses? Will they demand it? What would you need? How much would it cost? And, is it scalable?

Interested in learning more about our contest? Click here to submit your AVR project today!

Atmel and Arduino: Inspiring DIY Makers

Atmel MCU Applications Manager Bob Martin recently went on camera to discuss Atmel’s unique relationship with Arduino, Maker Faire and the DIY Maker Movement.

As Martin points out, Atmel’s 8- and 32-bit microcontrollers have been the MCUs of choice for Arduino since the boards first hit the streets for DIY Makers way back in 2005. More specifically, he attributes the success of Arduino to its easy-to-use, free cross-platform toolchain and its simple do-it-yourself packages with Atmel MCUs.

“These factors helped initially steer the Arduino team to choose our AVR microcontrollers – and today, both our AVR and ARM-based MCUs,” Martin explained.

The Atmel MCU Applications Manager also noted that one of the coolest Maker technologies to surface in recent years is 3D printing technology, an industry expected to be worth $3 billion by 2016. To be sure, says Martin, almost every major 3D printer is currently based on Atmel AVR MCUs.

As previously discussed on Bits & Pieces, the Maker Movement is growing exponentially by taking advantage of 3D printers, inexpensive microcontrollers, robotics, CAD and the ability to control machines with computers, tablets and smartphones.
According to Larry Magid, a technology journalist who writes for the San Jose Mercury News, we are all Makers to a certain extent, even if some of us don’t know it yet.

“All of us – even Leonardo da Vinci – were late comers as far as the Maker movement is concerned,” he explained. “Our prehistoric ancestors millions of years ago, figured out how to turn stones into tools so that they could make things. Only they didn’t have fairs, books and websites to document the process.”

Similarly, Will.i.am, the technophile founder of The Black Eyed Peas, recently offered a ringing endorsement of the Maker Movement and related culture on Facebook.

“Every young person is going to be inspired to be a maker from now on,” said Will.i.am. “It’s like how everyone used to want to be a musician, an actor, an athlete — but a maker is what people are going to want to be.”

Indeed, as Arduino’s Massimo Banzi once famously noted, “You don’t need anyone’s permission to make something great.”

Come see Atmel @ the 2013 World Maker Faire!

The long-awaited 2013 World Maker Faire kicks off September 21st in the New York Hall of Science (NYSCI). We’ll be there at the Atmel booth in the Arduino pavilion. Will you? Don’t worry if you can’t make it to out to the Big Apple, because you can still follow all the goings on via Twitter – just look for the hashtags @makerfaire, @atmel and @arduino.

For those of you attending the Faire, Atmel’s booth will be taking center stage at the show with a number of uber-cool exhibits and demos including:

• Hexbug/hovercraft hacking: Watch Atmel employees hack traditional Hexbugs and hovercrafts using Arduino boards.
• MakerBot: We’ll be showcasing the wildly popular AVR-powered 3D printer and providing 3D samples over the weekend.
• Pensa: This company uses Arduino boards to make their flagship DIWire, a rapid prototyping machine that bends metal wire to produce 2D and 3D shapes.
• Infinity Aerospace: The ArduLab – powered by Atmel’s versatile ATMega 2560 microcontroller – is a highly capable experimentation platform ready for space right out of the box. Sensor mounting is straightforward, with unique functionality addressing the technical challenges of operating in space.

Additional exhibitors at the Atmel World Maker Faire booth include Fuzzbot (robots), Evil Mad Scientist and Colorado Micro Devices. We’re looking forward to seeing you at the Atmel booth, so don’t forget to follow us at @makerfaire, @atmel and @arduino!

Atmel is also slated to host a public media/industry analyst panel on Friday, September 20th, on the maker community and education. Members of the panel include Atmel’s Reza Kazerounian, Co-founder of Arduino Massimo Banzi, Atmel maker and Hexbug guru Bob Martin, university engineer professor Annmarie Thomas, EDN’s Executive Editor Suzanne Deffree, 12-year old CEO and maker Quin (Qtechknow), and MAKE Books Senior Editor Brian Jepson. The panel will be moderated by Windell H. Oskay of Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories.

Tune into our live Twitter feed of the panel starting at 11:30 am ET on September 20th under #Atmelmakes or visit our recently launched microsite for more details. Interested in attending? Please email pr@atmel.com. Also, be sure to join us when Bob Martin presents Prototyping is as Easy as Uno, Due, Tres.

The Ardruino Uno is an excellent lab tool for technicians and h/w engineers who have a specific design in mind. In this presentation, we will show how Atmel’s MCU apps lab uses the Uno to test harnesses for LED lighting stress testing, SBC reset response and power supply stress testing on a regular basis for the weather station prototype.

When: Sunday, September 22, 2013, 12:30PM – 1:00PM ET
Where: Make: Electronics Stage

The Maker movement is growing exponentially

Do you worry that we’re becoming a culture of technology consumers, rather than a society of creators? Well, so does Larry Magid, a technology journalist who writes for the San Jose Mercury News.

“I don’t expect everyone to be designing the next electric vehicle, killer tablet or even smartphone app or Web page, but I do like it when people – especially children and teens – are actively engaged in creating their own innovations,” Magid opined in a recent Mercury article.

“It doesn’t have to be complicated. It could be as simple as creating your own blog or posting impressive graphics on Pinterest or using some of your digital photographs to create a calendar or picture book. Even posting cool comments on Twitter or Facebook is an act of creation, if you put some thought into it.”

Magid says he is particularly encouraged by the Maker Movement which seems to be growing exponentially by taking advantage of 3D printers, inexpensive microcontrollers, robotics, CAD and the ability to control machines with computers, tablets and smartphones.

Source: Wikipedia

As previously discussed on Bits & Pieces, thousands of hackers, modders, makers and veteran DIYs recently gathered in Silicon Valley to showcase their creations, many of which are powered by Atmel microcontrollers. What did every exhibit have in common? The notion that people can “make” their own things.

“What I liked most about the Faire were all the school and youth projects on display,” he explained. “Working with the UC Berkeley’s Lawrence Hall of Science, the Tech Museum of Innovation and the Bay School, the organizers of the Faire this year showed off their ‘Young Makers’ projects that included student-made microscopes, toys, balloon projects, solar vehicles and much more.”

Magid also highlighted a new book written by Sylvia Libow Martinez and Gary Stager titled “Invent to Learn: Making, Tinkering and Engineering in the Classroom,” which he described as a “part philosophical treatise, part hands-on recipes and part inspirational.”

Projects outlined in the Maker book range from creating customized projects to programming computers and mobile devices to designing wearable computers such as a biking sweatshirt with flashing turn signals. There is also a section on how to build LEGO robots and advice about incorporating Atmel-powered Arduinos into a wide range of DIY devices. The truth is, we are all Makers to a certain extent, even if some of us don’t know it yet.

“All of us – even Leonardo da Vinci – were late comers as far as the Maker movement is concerned. Our prehistoric ancestors millions of years ago, figured out how to turn stones into tools so that they could make things. Only they didn’t have fairs, books and websites to document the process,” he concluded.

Silicon Valley Maker Faire 2013 wrap up

After telling you about all the cool things at Maker Faire that were powered by Atmel chips, I thought I would balance things out showing some Maker things that don’t have chips at all.

A Steampunk styled land-based submarine at the 2013 Maker Faire.

It does not take long hanging around Maker to see that there is this whole Steampunk esthetic. In fact I would describe Maker as a science fair crossed with Burning Man. Out in the parking lot, there were big motorized cupcakes, just big enough to hold a driver, that were scooting around to the delight of the kids. Also a huge Rube Goldberg style installation where a bowling ball rolled through all kinds of obstructions to trigger a huge weight that would fall on a car, crushing it a little further towards flat each demonstration. There was a stylized dragon that sped around, avoiding the cupcakes, and propane spewing art sculpture the size of a tree. There were also Maker projects and food booths outside. The outside part of Maker Faire is why you should bring a hat and some sunscreen.

Speaking of kids, one of the greatest things about Maker is that it is a family-friendly event.

A cadre of young Makers gets intoxicated on LEGO® blocks.

There is a Bay Area LEGO Users’ Group for the adults doing giant projects.

Some budding Makers getting ready to craft a stuffed octopus that doubles as a glove, a Glovetopus.

Here a whole gaggle of Maker Fair attendees has a blast expressing their artistic side.

I think one thing fundamentally different about Maker compared to a science fair is that Maker promotes and encourages the artistic side of technologists.

This locomotive not only looks good, it also burns real coal.

The amazing thing about this model locomotive is that is hand-built, not made from a kit.

There seems to be a linkage between the Maker community and model train enthusiasts. There was a great outdoor display at Maker, with some fantastic model trains.

Maker Faire had a whole hall dedicated to robot wars.

There was some intense work going on the pit next to the robot war pen.

Robot wars. There are a lot of fun things at Maker, but sparring robots has to top my list. Designing  complex electro-mechanical systems is great instruction for these young technologists. They are the innovators and competitors that will keep America’s and the world’s economy humming along.

“Dave X” shows off a home-made firework that you can build. No, that is not real powder in the thing.

Explosives. What could be more fun? The Western Pyrotechnic Association had a booth at Maker Faire 2013. They can make sure you are following all state and federal laws as you make home-made fireworks. For that giant unit in the picture, you have to drive out of California to set it off. The trip to Nevada or Arizona just adds to the anticipation. The Association organizes events where everyone gets together to try out their handiwork. I guess you can think of them as single-use model rockets. Too late for the 2013 Winter Blast, but there is always 2014 to look forward to.

The Drone Dudes came up from Hollywood to Maker 2013.

Drone Dudes had an awesome octo-copter at the Faire. They hang an HD camera on the bottom of the drone and do filming for the movie industry. Now there may be Atmel chips inside it, I just forgot to ask I was so blown away by the hardware. Over the next few years you will start to see directors and cinematographers take advantage of this new technology, like when they saw how Google Earth zooms can make a great establishing shot, or how Bullet cams for the Matrix movie can do slow motion with perspective changes. I don’t think this gorgeous South Dakota night sky video uses bullet cams—but it is interesting to speculate how he did the dolly shots while time-lapsing. I suspect a really smooth robotic setup.

The Epilog laser can cut and engrave objects as well as cut them out of thin stock.

The Epilog Laser people were at the Maker Shed. The unit they showed won’t cut a razor blade yet, but that is some crazy power you probably would not want in your garage anyway.

The G&M Honey folks had a nice display at Maker.

G&M Honey is all about local production of food. So they can set you up to keep honey bees, and I think they can even sell the honey to local restaurants. They will even come get that bee hive out of the trunk of your car or the wall in your house.

This camera booth can feed images to Autodesk’s 123D photo-to-3D model software.

Autodesk had this camera booth that provides images to their 123D 3-D model creation software. My ME pal Dave Ruigh tried the software a few months ago and could not get good results. He said it would be easier to just build the thing in Solidworks. I suspect he did not feed the software the kind of images it needed. This booth would be the perfect test bed to see how well the software performs. Next time I will bring a Sportster engine case and see how it does with that.

Here were some weird 3D shapes at Maker Faire 2013.

I don’t know if this strange shape was made from a model or is just some type of Styrofoam bubbles. The wooden models are interesting too. I did not have time to get the story; it was a drive-by snap, so there you have it.

Jeri Ellsworth was at the Faire with her new company Technical Illusions.

Occasional eFlea attendee Jeri Ellsworth was at the Maker Faire this year with a demo of her new company Technical Illusions. They project a 3-D game image out of a headset, but get this– the headset also has a camera so the 3-D is projected properly on to tables, walls and other surfaces. Too cool, no wonder Jeri has not been down to the eFlea breakfast for a while.

Maker Faire is really getting some traction all over the world. It looks like people have a real hunger to get their hands on technology and warp and weave it into whatever strikes their fancy. If you have never been to a Maker Faire, you should give it a try. The 120,000 people who came to San Mateo all had a great time. There is another big Faire in New York Sept 21&22, as well as franchised Faires in Detroit July 27&28 and Kansas City June 29&30. There is even a Faire coming to Rome Oct 3-6.

Atmel is everywhere at the 2013 Maker Faire, episode 6

So after seeing Atmel in the parking lot, and a hexapod 3-D printer, a Geiger counter, a bike lite, and an art installation powered by Atmel, I should mention some of the cool Atmel technology that we had at the booth.

The Internet of Things will create a network effect of gizmos making our life better.

Michael Koster brought a whole slew of Atmel devices all supporting the coming wave of connected gizmos that will comprise the Internet of things (IoT) [here, here, and here].

Michael Koster (right) helps a curious visitor at the Atmel Booth at Maker Faire 2013.

Atmel also had some commercial hardware you can buy, including a Kickstarter project that got fully funded and a gorgeous electric bicycle.

Steve from Puzzlebox shows how you can control a helicopter with your brain waves.

Another cool company at the Atmel booth was Puzzlebox. They brought their brain-controlled helicopter. Using an available Nerosky headset, Faire-goers were amazed to see that they could concentrate and make it fly. In the foreground is a nerf crossbow, where you can just think about it—and it will launch. The ever-playful Puzzlebox folks had you put on a safely face shield and pointed the launcher at you, and you could think about it and it would fire the nerf bullet into your face shield.

The Faraday is an ebike that uses Atmel chips.

The back of the Faraday eBike has a charging port and tail tight.

When I saw the Faraday bike, I was impressed by its quality and retro design. I thought the only cool thing was the LED tail light. It took a while, but I finally grokked that Faraday is a complete electric bycicle. The two frame tubes are stuffed with those same good-ol’ 18650 Li-ion batteries used in laptops and Teslas.

Clever Atmel employees hacked this HEXBUG Spider toy so it would follow an IR (infrared) source.

We also has a stack of HEXBUG Spider toys which we were giving away. The really cool thing was a hack one of Atmel’s FAEs (field application engineers) did so that it would follow the heat from your hand.

Andy Turudic at the Atmel Booth, Maker Faire 2013.

And here is a picture of fellow Croatian Andy Turudic at the Atmel booth. We were right next to the Arduino booth and we had some Arduino hardware to show off, as well as our own, and an Atmel powered 3-D printer by MakerBot.

Dan, an Atmel FAE, shows off the MakerBot 3-D printer powered by an Atmel chip.

Maker was a great time. I encourage all of you to attend. There is another big one in New York, and franchised ones in Detroit and Kansas City.  And for you continental engineers— there is even a Maker Faire in Rome.

This DIY Arduino magnetic levitation vehicle inspires future engineers

Team Antipodes – an all-girls robotic team from Pacifica, California – has participated in a number of prestigious DIY competitions within the rapidly growing Maker Movement over the years.

Most recently, the Antipodes crew was spotted next to the Arduino and Atmel booths at Maker Faire in the Bay Area showcasing a DIY remote controlled (RC) model maglev with electromagnetic propulsion.

As the folks at the Arduino blog note, a maglev is just like a conventional train but instead of wheels it has magnets – and levitates!

“At the 2010-2011 FTC (FIRST Tech Challenge) World Championships in St. Louis, Dean Kamen challenged the competitors to create something extraordinary, something that would change the world,” an Antipodes blog post explained.

“We immediately thought to complete our original vision of a remote controlled hybrid maglev model that would inspire future engineers (other kids) and companies to make maglev advances that would build on our hybrid maglev idea.”

The maglev, which won the Maker Faire Editor’s Choice blue ribbon, is powered by Arduino’s UNO and wireless Protoshield, along with a number of other components you can read about here.

Atmel Makers make mainstream news

At Atmel, we’ve known for a while now that embedded computing is the future, but it’s nice to see the mainstream media catching on! 

ABC recently made it down to Maker Faire in San Mateo, where the crew spent a significant amount of time hanging out at the Atmel booth, talking Internet of Things and, of course, Arduino.

The ABC video even features our very own engineering rockstar, Bob Martin, who spent most of Maker Faire Hexbug hacking.

“There are billions of these parts out there now, it’s in everything,” said Martin.

CEO of Faraday Bicycles, Adam Vollmer also got some ABC airtime to explain the power behind the peddles.

“We got an ambient light sensor that looks at how bright it is, and turns the light on automatically, we’re going to have bluetooth, so it will talk to your phone, it will track where your bike is, how far you’ve ridden, you can adjust the pedal assist,” he explained.

ABC even managed to catch up with Arduino Co-Founder, Massimo Banzi to get his opinion on the open source board revolution.

“I see all this amazing stuff that people are doing, and I am constantly still finding moments where I go, wow,” Banzi said.

You can see more of ABC’s Maker Faire coverage here.

Super Mario question mark lamp lights up Maker Faire

The light of nostalgia was burning bright at Maker Faire last week, thanks to product designer Adam Ellsworth of 8bitlit and his Super Mario question mark block lamp.

The custom-made, touch-activated lamp brings your room one step closer to Mushroom Kingdom, not just with its funky yellow aesthetics, but also its classic Mario Bros. sounds.

Every time you touch (or punch) the lamp on, it rewards you with the classic coin “ding” sound, while every eighth punch triggers the extra life “1-UP” sound for added happiness.

The lamp is made from laser-cut plexiglass and uses four energy efficient LED lights. It comes attached to an 11 foot power cord, but can also double as a bedside lamp with the additional purchase of a custom acrylic stand. Best of all? It runs on Atmel’s AT Tiny Chip.