Author Archives: Brett

Improving the Beginner’s PID – Introduction

In conjunction with the release of the new Arduino PID Library I’ve decided to release this series of posts. The last library, while solid, didn’t really come with any code explanation. This time around the plan is to explain in … Continue reading

Posted in Coding, PID | Tagged , , | 59 Comments

Arduino Uno Keeps Header Offset

The newest version of the arduino was announced last week. At first glance it seemed as though they got rid of the offset header spacing, but a closer look at the spec showed that it is still 0.16 inches. It … Continue reading

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This changes everything

A lot of my projects involve 120VAC, switching relatively slowly. Most people use mechanical relays in that situation, but I don’t like them; I try to avoid moving parts whenever possible. Up to this point, I’ve always used solid state … Continue reading

Posted in Electronic | Tagged | 3 Comments

PID Library ported to mbed

So the guys over at ARM took the arduino pid library and ported it for use with their mbed platform.  Nice little stroke to the ego there.  That’s not the main reason I’m excited though.   Because they’re a legit company,  … Continue reading

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DIY Safety Razor Handle

It’s terrifying.  I’m still in shock that it actually works, but it totally does. One dollar of materials and two or three hours of work, and I now have a safety razor of my very own. Why? Why would you … Continue reading

Posted in Mechanical, Projects | Tagged | 11 Comments

OpenSCAD: A Love Story

Ok, maybe that’s a bit strong, but I’d definitely say we’re dating. I heard about OpenSCAD from the Make Blog, and with a belly fully of thanksgiving turkey I tried it out. I agree with the Make post and the … Continue reading

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REALLY deconstructing a Doodle Pro

I didn’t really “deconstruct” the doodle pro in the last post. I split the housing apart with a screwdriver, and I didn’t even show pictures! What a gyp. For those of you that are interested in a little more, here … Continue reading

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Deconstructing a Doodle Pro (a.k.a Magna Doodle)

I’ve been really intrigued by various Etch-A-Sketch automation projects out there (here’s a few.) I’m excited by the prospect of a large, diy, low energy display. I’d love to use one to make a web-synced wall calendar. I can see … Continue reading

Posted in Mechanical | Tagged | 5 Comments

Success!

Constant Air + Constant Heat = Constant Smoke. Who knew? Constant Air Holes. There were tons of holes. To have complete control over the air I had to patch them all. Most of them were fairly easy. A little JBWeld … Continue reading

Posted in Electronic, Mechanical | Tagged , | 1 Comment

DIY BBQ Smoke Generator – 2nd and 3rd Attempts

I’ve had a few more gos at making smoke and, well, there’s still work to be done. 2nd Attempt There were two main issues with the first attempt. The smoke was intermittent, and I needed to manually shake the ramp. … Continue reading

Posted in Mechanical | Tagged , , | 4 Comments