14 smart crowdfunding campaigns you may want to back this week

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Every Friday, we’re taking a look at some of the smartest, most innovative projects that have caught our attention on Kickstarter and Indiegogo over the last seven days. 

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Widerun

This bike trainer allows you to connect to VR headsets, from Oculus Rift to Samsung Gear VR, and bring the great outdoors inside. Widerun is currently seeking £30,000 on Kickstarter.

ErgoDox EZ

This open-source mechanical keyboard is fully customizable to fit any of your needs. ErgoDox EZ is currently seeking $50,000 on Indiegogo.

mDrawBot

This 4-in-1 drawing robot kit can be assembled into a variety of configurations capable of doodling on walls to eggs. Makeblock is currently seeking $50,000 on Kickstarter.

kSafe

This smart and lockable cookie jar will only open if your goals have been achieved. kSafe is currently seeking $50,000 on Kickstarter.

Konekt Dash

This cellular development kit for both Arduino and Raspberry Pi is powered by Konekt’s global data plan and works without Wi-Fi. Konekt is currently seeking $10,000 on Kickstarter.

DuoPad

This multi-touch trackpad provides PC and laptop owners (using Windows 8, 8.1 or 10) all the touchscreen features and functionalities of their favorite mobile device onto any computer monitor. DuoPad is currently seeking $30,000 on Indiegogo.

Abode

This new home security and automation company provides a self-installed, professional-grade solution with no contracts. Abode is currently seeking $100,000 on Kickstarter.

SLIIP

This a smart pillow-mobile device combination is designed to reduce snoring and provide you with a better night’s sleep. Polegame Inc. is currently seeking $100,000 on Kickstarter.

Jamstik

This six-string, MIDI guitar pairs with your iOS device and teaches you the fundamentals through its accompanying app. Zivix is currently seeking $50,000 on Kickstarter.

Aivvy Q

These self-learning headphones personalize music channels based on your genre preferences through actions, locations and time of day. The Aivvy team is currently seeking $125,000 on Kickstarter.

3DFormer

This pen draws 3D models right in thin air. 3DFormer is currently seeking $20,000 on Kickstarter.

Ares

This drone allows you to use your iPhone or iPad to draw a flight path and easily capture high-resolution aerial photos and video. Ares is currently seeking $50,000 on Kickstarter.

Jambé

This electronic instrument may look and play like a drum, but works with your iOS device to give you unlimited sounds and playability. Sensorpoint is currently seeking $100,000 on Kickstarter.

PocketDock

This pocket-sized smartphone dock can also serve as a travel stand and nightlight. Cozy Industries is currently seeking $25,000 on Indiegogo.

mDrawBot is a 4-in-1 drawing robot kit

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This drawing robot kit can be assembled into four different configurations: mScara, mCar, mSpider and mEggBot.

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If there’s anything we have learned in recent months, it’s that Makers love robotic art. Frankly, who can blame them? It’s pretty awesome. For those unfamiliar with the genre, robotic art refers to any artwork that employs some form of robotic or automated technology. The future behavior of such installations can then be altered by input from either the artist or the participant, which differentiates these from other types of kinetic pieces.

From a bot that can draw on beach sand to one that plots based on heart rate, do-it-yourselfers continue to find innovative ways to leverage the next-gen technology to create fascinating projects. Looking to help facilitate this creativity is the Makeblock team, who has recently launched a new Kickstarter campaign for its mDrawbot, a four-in-one drawing robotic kit that can be easily assembled into a few configurations.

The kit is comprised of over 60 Makeblock components along with some screws and nuts, all powered by an ATmega328 based Makeblock Orion main board. (Though the team does admit that an Arduino Uno can also be used.) Beyond that, custom mDraw software enables users to control any one of the four completed robots: mScara, mCar, mSpide and mEggBot. Once the program is installed, users can simply import SVG images, convert MBP to SVG format, customize a number of parameters, and in the near future, even use a gray-scale laser engraver to etch a project. Designed with convenience and ease-of-use for Makers in mind, each kit can be pieced together in less than an hour.

As its name would suggest, mScara is a SCARA (Selective Compliance Articulated Robot Arm) driven by stepper motors. By installing a pen on mScara, the device can draw pictures on any flat surface. Replacing the pen with a laser diode can even transform it into a desktop engraver.

Next, mSpider is capable of scribbling pictures on a wall or a whiteboard as two stepper motors control the movement of mSpider though strings. Theoretically, it can draw in a huge range by increasing the length of its strings.

Ideal for Easter decorations, the mEggBot can be tasked with doodling on things that would otherwise be improbable to print on, including letters on eggs or decorations on ping-pong balls.

Finally, mCar is a three-wheel vehicle that is driven by a pair of stepper motors as it draws its own movement tracks on a surface. What’s more, if chalk is used instead of a pen, the gadget can sketch things on the floor.

“mDrawBot is a drawbot (or four drawbots), and it’s more than a drawbot. You can re-use the Makeblock robot parts in countless new projects and it’s easy to extend the kit with new parts,” the team writes.

Only limited by their imagination, Makers can do anything from add an accelerometer and gyro sensor to devise a two-wheeled self-balacing vehicle, or throw in some other Makeblock mechanical parts to transform it into an XY plotter. Better yet, the team also plans on offering various upgrade packs including both a Bluetooth module and a laser engraver in the near future.

Interested? Head over to its official Kickstarter page, where the team is already well on its way to garnering $50,000. Shipment is expected to begin in May 2015 — just in time for Maker Faire Bay Area!