21 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 caught our attention on Kickstarter and Indiegogo over the last seven days. 

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Sensel Morph

This pressure-sensitive, multi-touch input device enables you to interact with the digital world like never before. Sensel has already well surpassed its goal of $60,000 on Kickstarter.

O Watch

This Arduino-compatible smartwatch is designed to help kids get started with hands-on programming and 3D printing. Eight-year-old Maker Omkar Govil-Nair is currently seeking $15,000 on Kickstarter.

3Dsimo Mini

This all-in-one pen can 3D print, solder, burn and cut. 3Dsimo is currently seeking $35,000 on Kickstarter.

FABtotum PRISM

This add-on module is bringing SLA 3D printing to the FABtotum personal fabricator. The Italian startup is currently seeking $50,000 on Indiegogo.

SmartHalo

This compact device attaches to the handlebar of your bike and provides you with easy-to-read GPS, distance, speed and other performance data. CycleLabs has already well surpassed its $50,649 goal on Kickstarter.

Sensly

This portable sensor can detect pollution levels and feed that data directly to your smartphone for real-time updates. Altitude Tech is currently seeking $15,699 on Kickstarter.

Westinghouse Nucli Smart Lock

This smart lock is redefining home security by enabling owners to see who is at their door and interact with them from wherever they are. Westinghouse Security is currently seeking $50,000 on Indiegogo.

The Beast

This 3D printer is so large that it can create four identical objects during a single print in completely different colors and materials. Cultivate3D  is currently seeking $7,129 on Kickstarter.

RageBridge 2

This no-frills, robust dual-channel DC motor controller is ideal for robotic and vehicular drivetrain applications. Equals Zero Designs is currently seeking $5,000 on Indiegogo.

TESPA

This Arduino-compatible, Wi-Fi development platform lets you create IoT projects in just minutes. Sharnon Tulabadi is currently seeking $30,000 on Kickstarter.

MYNT

This super thin Bluetooth tracking tag also functions as a remote control. Slightech is currently seeking $50,000 on Indiegogo.

MetaWear C

This highly-integrated Bluetooth sensor module can power solutions the size of a button and runs on a coin-cell battery. MbientLab is currently seeking $4,000 on Kickstarter.

REMOVU S1

This rainproof, three-axis gimbal for GoPro cameras is equipped with a Bluetooth remote control. REMOVU has already well surpassed its goal of $20,000 on Indiegogo.

DreamMe

This unique gadget allows you to see the time and other information projected from your smartphone on the bedroom ceiling. Yvonne Joh is currently seeking $7,971 on Kickstarter.

Butterfleye

This wireless camera connects to your smartphone and keeps you in touch with your home while you’re out and about. Butterfleye has already well surpassed its goal of $100,000 on Indiegogo.

JuiceJuice Sparks

These addressable, sound-responsive and smartphone-controlled lights enable you to turn any occasion into a dance party. Leeward Bound is currently seeking $75,000 on Indiegogo.

LumiPocket LT

This personal fabricator isn’t just a 3D printer, but a laser engraver and a PCB etcher as well. Lumi Industries is currently seeking $44,411 on Kickstarter.

GlowTie

This programmable LED bow-tie is powered by an ATmega32U4. Nagle Industries is currently seeking $88,000 on Kickstarter.

Bikiros

This smart bike accessory ensures that your children are safe while learning proper riding skills. Bikiros is currently seeking $45,000 on Indiegogo.

VGADuino

This small graphic card shield for Arduino boards can be connected to any kind of TV or monitor with RGB or AV ports. Masih Vahida is currently seeking $1,000 on Kickstarter.

Pulsar

This wearable board lets you wirelessly control bright, colorful LEDs from any PC or smartphone. Acrobotic Industries is currently seeking $5,000 on Kickstarter.

Did you happen to miss last week’s notable campaigns? If so, you can check them out here. Also, if your project is powered by Atmel MCUs and you’ve been featured on our blog, be sure to download the respective badges here for use in your ongoing marketing efforts. 

RageBridge 2 is a next-gen motor controller

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RageBridge 2 is a no-frills, robust dual-channel DC motor controller for robotic and vehicular drivetrain applications.

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Equals Zero Designs was 2012 by MIT mechanical engineering graduate Charles Guan and electric vehicle and robot builder Adam Bercu. The collaboration was initially launched with the hobbyist and Maker community in mind, with hopes of designing products that would fill the voids in the market for which no confident solutions exist. This ultimately led to the introduction of a DC controller they called RageBridge, which flew off the shelves in a matter of months.

“Motor controllers have been historically one weak leak in an otherwise robust design. They can be expensive, compication and often overrated,” Guan explains. And now a few years later, the duo has returned with the latest generation of their board.

RageBridge 2 is a no-frills and robust dual-channel DC motor controller for robotic and vehicular drivetrain applications, all integrated onto a single ATmega328P powered board. Each channel can drive motors between 8V and 40V at 50A continuously per channel. This ultra-wide input range maximizes versatility and enables it to be used in a variety of different systems. Meanwhile, a large and fully-isolated heat sink base allows you to attach it to a metal chassis for even better thermal performance.

Since the launch of their first version, they have taken the best traits of the earlier device’s design and enhanced its packaging, reliability, as well as the accuracy and speed of the current limiting algorithm. Among the noticeable upgrades include newer MOSFETs, optimized switching speeds, a “single channel” option, and automatically-selecting inputs that let you simply plug in an analog joystick and have an instant electric vehicle controller.

RageBridge 2 differs from most DC motor controllers available today because of its user-selected active current limiting feature. As its creators note, the ability to maintain a set current ceiling greatly can drastically improve the reliability of DC motor systems. With just a turn of a screwdriver, users can easily adjust the RageBridge 2’s current ceiling. The motor output current is sample 15,000 times every second, and if it is over the threshold, the output voltage is reduced each cycle until the current falls under the limit.

“The vast majority of controllers simply do not have any protection. That means a sudden short, drivetrain lockup, or motor failure will destroy the controller as it tries to flow the motor stall current. Sizing a controller to handle motor stall current is very impractical and expensive, often resulting in controllers being many times bigger than they need to be,” Bercu writes.

“Many popular DC motor controllers today advertise ‘overcurrent protection.’ But often, they mean is the controller will shut down upon a certain current threshold, and often requires a power cycle or the load to drop to zero before enabling again. This means that under heavy acceleration, your robot or vehicle might just turn off all of a sudden, leaving it (or you) stranded. Once again, the controller has to be many times overrated in order to handle the load.”

Interested? Guan and Bercu are currently seeking $5,000 on Indiegogo and plan to begin shipping the first batch of RageBridge 2s in late October 2015.