Taking an Arduino as its core, the eyepiece uses an ultrasonic distance sensor and an infrared temperature sensor – accurate to 0.02 degrees fahrenheit – to control a set of colored LEDs. When the temperature drops below 80f, the light turns blue; above 80f, and it turns red. According to McRoberts, it’s capable of picking up a hot item – such as a coffee cup – from 2-3 feet away.

As for proximity, a green LED blinks faster depending on how close the object you’re facing is to you. McRoberts says he is already used to augmenting his senses – he wears a hearing aid – and quickly adapted to the lights, though the reaction from those around him has been more mixed.

“Socially wearing the device is another story. Of course here at OCAD-U it I easily accepted and met with great curiosity and fanfare but in public people don’t understand what it is. Hearing aids are well accepted for their sleek, tight form factor so that I am sure is a huge part of why people are uncomfortable with it. I have been asked most of all if the device is recording them. It has no camera or the capability to record any of the incoming information. But just like a hearing aid it provides what is missing and gives the wearer new information in a usable way” Gregory McRoberts

While the more high-profile demonstrations of augmented reality have generally focused on overlaying a view of the real-world with computer generated graphics – such as directions – there’s a whole other segment of research looking into so-called mediated reality. Steve Mann, widely referred to as the father of wearables, has been working on not just adding to our existing senses but in effect giving humans extra senses in areas we wouldn’t normally have them, such as increasing the range of our vision using HDR techniques.

Mann’s own eyepiece uses high-speed image capture and processing to combine data from three differently exposed frames shot almost simultaneously, allowing the researcher to see detail that the unaided human eye would not normally be able to perceive. The technology – which he wears permanently – has got him into trouble, however; Mann was allegedly assaulted in a French fast food restaurant for refusing to take off the wearable.

[via Adafruit]

Among other things, the Esplora comes with a temperature sensor, an analog joystick with a central push-button that’s reminiscent of the clickable joysticks on the Xbox 360 and PS3, a set of four push buttons, a three-axis accelerometer, a buzzer, and a microUSB port. On the upper left corner of the controller is where you’ll find the reset button and a group of LED status lights. The Esplora is also expandable, as it features two TinkerKit inputs and outputs, along with a TFT display connector, so you can connect a color LED screen or an SD card.

Since the board is already equipped with everything it needs to run, all you’ll have to do is connect it to a computer using the microUSB port and you’re on your way. Users can program the Esplora using Arduino’s downloadable software, and the company has set up a getting started page for those who are eager to get things moving. It can also appear as a regular old keyboard and mouse when connected to a computer, which means there are potential applications beyond just gaming for the Esplora.

It’s relatively inexpensive too, with the standard edition coming in at €41.90 ($54 US) and the retail edition demanding €44.90 ($58). It should be compatible with all of Arduino’s software as well, so this is one user-friendly controller. Are you planning on picking one of these up?

It has an integrated 16-bit GPU and a mounting bracket as well. The display uses the EarthSEMPL programming language to allow users to design custom macros, graphical objects, fonts, and images. That easy-to-use programming language makes designing the user interface quick and easy.

The 3.5-inch LCD has a resolution of 320 x 240 and supports 65,000 colors. The screen has a brightness rating of 250 nit and supports resistive touch technology. The 16-bit GPU has 4 MB of flash memory and offers USB 2.0 and Arduino Shield interfaces.

The display operates on 6 to 9 volts of power and draws less than 200 mA. The display operates the temperature range of -20 to 60°C. For a limited time, the display is available for $79 it should make for an easy-to-use integrated display for many DIY projects.

I would love to have this little gadget called the Cryoscope. It would be the perfect thing for letting a little kid figure out exactly what they need to wear on any given day. The Cryoscope is a cool little DIY gadget that was created by a guy named Robb Godshaw, who is an industrial design student at the Rochester Institute of Technology. The device is impressively simple in its construction with only a few parts that anybody familiar with computers will recognize.

The Cryoscope uses a solid little cube, a peltier element, heat sink, cooling fan, and RGB LED. An Arduino controller operates all of those parts. The controller receives the weather temperature data from an app that operates on the web. The way it works is incredibly simple, the controller either allows the aluminum cube to heat up or cool down. The hot or cold temperature created is passed to a simple metal cube that sits over the top of all the parts. All you need to do to know what the temperature is going to be like is simply walk up and place your hand on the outer aluminum cube, and you can feel what the weather will be like. Check out the video to get a better idea about how the thing works.

Cryoscope from Robb Godshaw on Vimeo.

[via CNET]

On the Arduino Blog, new updates listed for the development environment include a new file extension, toolbar icons, and color scheme as well as a progress bar on compilation and upload. Furthermore, language changes include modifications to the Serial class, addition of DHCP and DNS support to the Ethernet library, a new SoftwareSerial library, multi-file support in the SD library, modifications to the Wire library and UDP class, etc. The team is expecting to push the updated reference for Arduino 1.0 live in the next day or two.

To download the Arduino 1.0 release, we’ve linked you here. Also, check out the release notes here. Congratulations to the Arduino team for their first official software release! And to developers and would-be-DIY developers, happy building! We look forward to see what awesome DIY projects you’re working on, and be sure to send us a tip if you think it’s really something news-worthy.

[via Arduino Blog]

The dude took an Arduino board and cobbled together a system that replaced the LED light that showed when the clothes were done and notified him over the network. He removed those LEDs and soldered wires to the place the lights used to be and connected to the Arduino. The Arduino unit senses when the lights would activate and shoots a signal across the network.

The Arduino device uses an Ethernet shield to allow the monitoring of the washing machine from any computer hooked to the network. I think you could do the same with a wireless video camera and that might be easier, but admittedly not as geeky.

[via Hackaday]

The research gang spent two man-years developing the SenseCam. After coming up with the .NET Gadgeteer they were able to develop a similar product in a matter of hours. The .NET Gadgeteer platform is a combination of flexible hardware and .NET-based software that allows users to create small gadgets in a few hours or less. The gang behind the project thinks it has great potential for fast device prototyping and it will be offered as a retail product.

The .NET Gadgeteer software is available as a download now and the retail hardware needed is up for pre-order at GHI Electronics. The system comes with a bunch of different modules that can be connected to give different functionalities. The modules allow the system to take photos, play sound, sense the environment, communicate with other devices, and interact wit the user. The kit also has USB ports for attaching to a computer. The pre-order kit sells for $249.95 and is called the FEZ Spider Starter Kit. Shipments are set to start on September 30.

Each of the sticks has a USB port and an accelerometer as well. The stick in the left hand is for the hi-hat and the right stick has two modules that allow it to work for the snare drum and crash cymbals. The person also took care of the bass with air foot pedals using some hacked flip-flops.

The flip-flops have a pair of sensors inside with the left foot handling the bass drum and the right has a light sensor for the hi-hat pedal. This set up is really cool. Check out the video below to see the system in action. This thing sort of reminds me of the Korg Wavedrum we saw back in April.

[via TechCrunch]

Over on Make there is a new cable that will allow you to connect the iPhone to an Arduino box without having to jailbreak the device. The cable will also work on the iPad and iPod touch as well. The cable plugs into the docking connector on the Apple device and has a RS232 port on the other end that allows connectivity to the Arduino board or any other device that does serial protocol.

The kit Make is selling in its Maker Shed pairs that cable with a RS232 to TTL serial adapter and the minitronics survival Pack with components and sensors to use. The kit gets you ready to make your own DIY apps. Supplies are limited to start and the kit sells for $59. What would you create with this kit?

[via Make]

He doesn’t turn or move around. He simply bounces up and down and nods his head to the beat. His little plastic cranium and other body parts are printed using a 3D printer called the Thing-O-Matic. The bot uses three little solenoids to move the head. The builder notes if you don’t have a 3D printer you can just use cardboard or something else. I bet you could carve a nice likeness from a foam block.

The bot is controlled by an Arduino Uno device with three transistors and a few other parts added to the board. The hair on the bots head is made from cut wire ties. The build instructions even have the software you need for your little bots so they can dance when you hit keys on a keyboard. The project is cool and the robots are very cute. Check out the video to see them bob to the beat to some sort of techno. The builder missed a prime opportunity to break out some Young MC.

[via Make]

The Android Open Accessory system is built on open-source Arduino. It will will allow externally accessories connect to an Android-powered device via USB and eventually Bluetooth. This could essentially mean the start of a whole slew of “Made for Android” devices such as docks, speakers, or even an exercise bike. This opens up a whole world of possibilities now for external accessories to work with Android.

Google is offering an Android Device Kit or ADK for developers. The kit comes with a sample implementation in the form of a USB accessory along with all the hardware design files, the code for the accessory’s firmware, and the Android application that interacts with the accessory. To get involved with the Android ADK, visit here.

The pins on the controller are fed into the Arduino, and then there’s a key-mapping app on the phone itself which translates the button-presses into inputs the retro games can recognize. That way, you can reprogram the mappings to suit other games.

Best of all, Bruno has released his source code so that you can replicate the mode yourself. All it needs is a tidy external enclosure and it would be reasonably portable, too, though if you’re lacking in Arduino skills then you may be better off looking to something like the iControlPad.

[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/22722692[/vimeo]

[via MAKE]

The duders over at cookinghacks put together an Arduino based geiger counter. It’s set up to click a speaker at every pulse for an immediate indication of radioactivity. And what’s a geiger counter without ominous clicking? The Arduino microcontroller counts the pulses per minute. Using this measurement the microcontroller calculates Sieverts per hour. This is the standard measurement for the energy that the body absorbs from radiation sources.

They put together a kit that contains everything you need to put one of these babies together You can get it over this-a-way, at their store. They are marketing the device as a cheaper homebrew alternative to commercial radiation sensors. Oh yeah, it’s all open source, they released everything onto the web to make sure that our friends in Japan can check themselves before they wreck themselves on stray radioactivity. But for you, do you want your kid to win the next science fair? This’ll beat a paper mache volcano any day of the week.

[via Dangerous Prototypes]

The bot is controlled by the user’s gestures using a hacked Kinect controller and turned into robotic movement of the Arduino controlled claw. The claw uses servos to move it around. I really like the part of the video where the dude tries to lean forward and move the box he is attempting to pick up and the claw jumps at his face.

The Kinect device is used to gather positional data from the user that allows the control of the claw and position of the claw within the range of motion. The thing needs some tweaking, but it’s a very interesting project and might be good for practicing for those claw grab machines at the store.

Kinect Controlled Delta-Robot from Enrique Ramos on Vimeo.

[via Make]

Video demo after the cut

In fact, you can replace the explosion sound with anything you like, since it loads a sample from a 2GB memory card. That means you could have it shout “Go Team Victory!” or “Heck Yeah Says I!” if the mood so takes you. There’s even some code in there to make sure it doesn’t accidentally activate if you make a fist, pat someone on the back or slap the table in a 19-century bar manner. Brilliant stuff.

[via Hack a Day]

Video demo after the cut

HALO uses an array of ultrasonic sensors to figure out potential obstacles in the surrounding space, but rather than translate them into radar-style “pings” or “clicks”, it uses vibration motors embedded into the headband. The closer you are to an obstacle, the more frequent and/or powerful the vibrations are.

At the heart of it is an Arduino Mega 2560 controller, and it runs off a single 9V battery. Struebing has put together an Instructable showing how the whole thing goes together, and the whole thing can be reasonable inexpensive – certainly in comparison to training up a guide dog.

Next step is to apparently migrate from Arduino to the Cellbots platform, in which the phone itself acts as the brain for the robot.  It’s unlikely to make it to Mars, perhaps, but with the parts (including the phone) coming to under $600 – though the rover itself is around $5k – we’re hoping they at least publish the instructions so we can make our own.

[via Android Community - thanks mdNomad!]

Video demo after the cut

The build is actually a combination of a couple of earlier projects, one to produce the amazing mechanical iris and the other using – you guessed it – an Aduino to recognize a secret-knock code.  The engraving, meanwhile, was done with a homemade CNC machine.

You’ll be pleased to hear that the knock code BFarn is using in the video isn’t his regular one, so sneaky YouTube-primed burglars won’t be able to break in.  No word on how much it cost to put together.

[via BoingBoing]

The handiwork of Human Informatics, the Reader is designed for homes and schools that have no budget for PCs and no internet connection for downloading content.  It’s built using three Atmega328p microcontrollers complete with an SD card reader and microUSB port; display output is via a composite video port.  There’s also infrared support, audio and four hardware buttons.

Interestingly, the expansion headers are compatible with Arduino shields, opening up various avenues of flexibility.  No sales availability as yet – Human Informatics are looking for a partner to help them commercialize – but the estimate is that in bulk they could get the price down to just $15 per unit.

[via technabob]

Video after the cut

For those unaware, the Monotron is Korg’s latest analog lovely, set to hit shelves at under $70 and packing a ribbon controller, a true analog synth with VCO, VCF and LFO controls, and the same analog filter as found in the Korg MS-10 and MS-20.  There’s also an audio input, which allows you to pipe external sources through that filter.

The Arduino is used to send gate signals to the Monotron, and by varying the voltage levels it changes the pitch.  In the second demo, the Nunchuk is used to more intuitively control the Monotron, rather than scrabbling around on its knobs and ribbon keyboard.

iElectribe, Monotron and Arduino:

MonoChuck: Wii Nunchuk controlled Monotron:

[via Sound On Sound forums]

Video demo after the cut

They enlisted the help of an Arduino microprocessor, and integrated a WiFi hub into the base of the coil gun.  Although the wooden barrel looks cumbersome, the motorized pivot keeps it moving pretty swiftly.  We’d like to think they’d release instructions for us to make our own, but we can’t see Apple approving the control software for the App Store.

[via Hack a Day]

Video demo after the cut

The software can – by jiggling the servos about and thus controlling the angle of the board – get the ball to move to any point.  That point could be stationary, it could be moving (so, say, the ball moves in a circular pattern) or it can even track your mouse pointer.

Unfortunately there’s no sign of the Arduino code, so if you want to build something like this yourself then you’ll need to figure it out on your own.  Slap in a few slightly quieter servos, however, and it would make the perfect desktop distraction.

[via MAKE]

Video demo after the cut

When that happens, the full tweet is automatically shown on the display, and the bird leaps out and – somewhat incongruously – cuckoos to alert you.  Of course you can easily change the keyword, and thus be updated whenever someone mentions your own username or some topic you’re particularly interested in tracking.  Just don’t make it Justin Bieber else you’ll never get any peace.

The chumby components hook up to an Arduino microcontroller, which is responsible for triggering the mechanical parts of the clock.  Baig created a custom chumby widget for the software side, which hooks into the Twitter API.

[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/10394638[/vimeo]

[via MAKE]

Video demo after the cut

“The system uses a PC application (written in C#) to receive gauge data from Live For Speed via UDP (using OutGauge), which it then sends over USB (serial protocol) to the Arduino board. The Arduino board processes the received data and activates the corresponding lights in the dashboard module” Alex Rosiu

So far the full beam, turn signal, traction control, parking brake, shift and redline lights are all hooked up and working.  Next on the list are the fuel tank and water temperature dials, before he moves on to creating an H-pattern gearshift from the guts of a force-feedback joystick.

It’s all linked up to Live For Speed, and the physical indicators perfectly mimic the on-screen virtual dials.  While we’re all for huge, high-resolution displays here at SlashGear, we’ve also a major soft spot for authentic physical dials, gauges and blinky lights; why hasn’t a third-party peripheral manufacturer filled the niche for a standalone dashboard for racing sims yet?

[Thanks Andrew!]

That sixty is made up of 24 digital I/O pins, 18 pwm pins and 18 analog inputs, along with six external interrupts.  Even though you’ve already stacked two boards on top of the base Arduino, you can still add a further one (which will also plug into the base) such as a network shield or similar.

As for why you might do it, there are plenty of advantages to having extra CPUs during testing.  John David himself describes the extra security in terms of WAF:

“While testing my larger bots, I always use 2 Arduinos to decode the drive and failsafe r/c channels separately. That way if something goes way wrong or the code doesn’t work as it should, you have a way to shut the thing off before it busts a hole in the wall and your wife tells you no more inside testing”

[via Hack a Day]

That’s because the Arduino Nano 3.0 is intended for breadboarding, where the compact dimensions will leave more space for other components.  There are 14 digital I/O pins – six of which provide PWM output – and eight analog input pins, together with 32KB of flash memory (though 2KB of that is reserved for the bootloader).

If you’re wondering what all the fuss is about, the Arduino is an open hardware design that’s easily programmed in a C++ derivative.  It’s commonly used to drive prototype hardware projects or interface between physical sensors and a computer; more information here or you can find previous Arduino projects we’ve covered here.

[via MAKE]

Video demo after the cut

Three hours before the alarm is set to go off, the numerals change from green to orange.  Then, an hour before it’s due, they switch to red.  The idea is that you can squint at the alarm clock in the night and tell roughly how much time you have left in bed without actually needing to decipher the actual time.

If you’re short-sighted then that could be a particularly handy feature.  The Instructable is seemingly based on this previous IllyClock, as shown in the video below.

Video demos after the cut

Parrot are yet to announce pricing for the AR.Drone, but we’re not expecting the quadracopter – which is remotely controlled from an iPhone or iPod touch, and can beam live video back to the user’s handset from an onboard camera – to be cheap; similarly, putting together your own (basic) version from off-the-shelf parts isn’t inexpensive either.  The Quaduino NG team estimate around $505 (excluding a suitable controller).

The end result lacks the design finesse of the Parrot version, but it potentially much more flexible since Arduino is so terribly open to tinkering.  Future mods to the AeroQuad include the same sort of live video feedback as the AR.Drone has, together with an LED display board and improved auto-pilot skills.

Quaduino NG video demo:

AeroQuad video demo:

[via MAKE]

The best laid plans don’t necessarily go as expected, however, and Matt had to get around the fact that his digital photo frame doesn’t actually have a one-minute frame shift.  Instead he used an Arduino clone wired into the guts of the DPF that triggers the next-image button every minute.

His tutorial includes that code, but of course if you’ve got a suitably equipped frame you won’t have to go to such efforts.  People are already suggesting different ways of displaying the time other than words – we’re particularly keen on the idea of lots of different clocks and watches.

[via MAKE]

Video demo after the cut

The tank uses an XBee wireless connection, and the TouchOSC app to convert Open Sound Control signals into serial commands that the tank can understand via Processing.  In fact, you don’t need an iPhone to do all of this; anything that can squirt signals into Processing will do the trick.

Chris generously offers up his Arduino code, too, so a brief shopping spree at SparkFun and you can be up and running reasonably quickly.  Anybody tempted?

[via Hack N Mod]

That network connectivity includes XBee support and ethernet, and there’s an SPI SD card socket and Flash, I2C port expander and a CAN socket.  The whole thing measures 150 x 180 mm and gets its 5v of power from a USB hook-up.  There are also plenty of push-buttons and rotary controls.

The Embedded Artists’ LPCXpresso baseboard is available for preorder now, priced at €69 ($104), and is expected to begin shipping in January 2010.  We’re looking forward to seeing what developers and tinkerers come up with next; while there’s a soft spot in our hearts for the Arduino, we’ll always welcome more choice in the hobby microcontroller arena.

embed overview video:

The first generation of the system attempts to recognize the first few words in the tweet – it monitors a different Twitter stream for each hand – and then shuffles the indicators around to the appropriate point.  If the message can’t be interpreted that way, it points to “read me”.

Video demo after the cut

Future versions, however, may be tied into Latitude so that location can be automatically figured out, and the somewhat jerky servos may be replaced by stepper motors for a more clock-like movement.  I might be tempted to throw in a small display that would actually show the tweet itself, but maybe they don’t have LCDs in the Harry Potter universe; having never read the books I wouldn’t know.

[via MAKE]

Video demo after the cut

Built into the knob board is a mercury switch used to trigger the screen-clear action.  As with the original toy, shaking the laptop harder clears the screen faster and more completely; of course, in the original there was less chance of hard-drive damage after particularly vigorous shaking.

Project builder Michael has released the source code for the Arduino, and so if you’re tempted you could build one yourself.  Using a Tablet PC or an old UMPC would mean you could create something that looked more like a proper Etch-a-Sketch, too.

[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/7367464[/vimeo]

[via MAKE]

Video demo after the cut

Kyle’s intent was to allow for multiple voices, controlled by the electronically modified didgeridoo, and that could be tweaked in real-time by the player themselves.  You can hear the results in the first video, below.

Of course, once you’ve wired up your didgeridoo with Bluetooth it seems a shame not to mangle the visuals, too, and so Kyle used a Sandin Image Processor – think Moog for video –  that automatically does strange things to the picture depending on the sound.  Check out the second video for the trippy results.

[via MAKE]

To make things more interesting, the box only allows fifty attempts at locating the correct geocache position.  Press the button on the front and the display wakes for a short period, displays the distance from the secret location, a countdown of how many attempts are left, and then goes back to sleep.  Thanks to the Arduino’s power management systems and the use of a Pololu module, standby draw is 0.01 microamps, which means the four AA batteries should easily have enough juice for the fifty attempts and powering the servo that unlocks the box.

Mikal gave his friend the Reverse Geocache Puzzle with no instructions, and instead expected the happy (but presumably frustrated) couple to figure things out themselves.  There’s also a secret “back door” which he used to gain access during tested, cloaked in some suitably fear-inspiring error messages.  Full details on his project build page.

[via Hack a Day]

Video demo after the cut

With that in place, anybody sending an @mbedmicro message would be picked up by the mbed server, a text-to-speech sound file created, and then that file sent to Billy.  The tail flapping and lip movements are triggered by an accompanying movements file, that’s also created on-the-fly by the mbed microcontroller.

The star of the show is the mbed chipset, and in fact that’s Dan Ros’ real motivation.  Priced at $60 (for a limited, introductory period; normal price $100), the mbed has an ARM Cortex M3 core, ethernet, USB, serial and other connections, and drag-and-drop loading of binary instruction files.  It’s intended for rapid prototyping, as you can see in the second video below, and has just gone on sale today.

[via Hack a Day]

The Arduino itself is actually detachable from the internal chassis, with the individual connections being made to a custom “shield” board.  That allows the microprocessor to be removed and connected up to a computer for easy reprogramming.

Obviously this is just the case – the rest of the Hifiduino project deals with turning the board into a DAC with a rotary control, 4 x 20 LCD display and remote control for volume – but it’s a good looking case and that’s reason enough for us.  The only thing which might have made it better is actually using an old hard-drive platter for the rotary control, rather than the machined knob.

[via MAKE]

Video demo after the cut

LEDs embedded in the long controller strip give visual feedback as to your movements, and the full length of the Airpiano is equivalent to an octave’s worth of notes.  Of course, since you’re firing off midi messages it’s just as easy to trigger samples, clips, or multiple other things.

Connectivity is via USB, which makes it portable, and accompanying software is used to assign presets and transpose notes.  The Airpiano went on show as part of the Berlin Design Festival; unfortunately there are no plans, as far as we’re aware, for a commercial release.

[via Designboom]

Video demo after the cut

The BakerTweet uses an Arduino board and Linksys WiFi adapter, all bundled up in a bakery-proof, simple to use box.  The dial scrolls through a list of baked goods, and the sturdy button sends out a pre-configured tweet.  A web-interface allows you to customize the messages or add new products.

The first BakerTweet has been installed in the Albion Cafe in London, and you can follow their Twitter feed here.  No word on how much it cost, but apparently they’re working on a tutorial so that other businesses can put together their own; alternatively, ask nicely and they’ll sell you a custom one.

[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/3972081[/vimeo]

[via we make money not art]

As with many other hacks we’ve seen recently, the NewsAlarm relies on an Arduino board for its primary link between the basic circuits of the smoke alarm and Jer’s MacBook.  A simple app monitors NewsWire according to preset keywords, and whenever the keywords – say, regarding Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper – start to flag up in more then 25-percent of the new stories the alarm is triggered.

Jer plans to put together a simple, dedicated breadboard for the NewsAlarms, using a wireless link rather than the current USB connection to the MacBook.  He even wants to construct a whole bank of NewsAlarms, at which point he’ll probably deafen himself.

[via Make]