Author Archives: mw12

Android-Arduino linkup

By | May 13, 2011

Been a bit quiet on here recently, so here’s something interesting – Google have released an Android Open Accessory SDK for Android 3.1 and 2.3.4. It will allow USB devices to talk to your phone or tablet and the test implementation is based on an Arduino Mega (with a USB host shield). Kind of topsy-turvy […]

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Palantir Box

By | March 17, 2011

Well it took a few rounds to get it right but we finally got a Palantir box cut and put together. It’s made of laser-cut acrylic from RazorLab, superglued (yes I know we should use DCM but..) and with the top held on with magnets. The Arduino fits in quite neatly and is now back […]

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Stuffed catfish

By | February 23, 2011

Both our aquaria have cories (Corydoras) in them, Sterbai in one and Peppered in the other. These mini catfish are peaceful, only a bit shy, and make excellent scavengers with their gravel snuffling. They’re also cute, funny and unexpectedly venomous. So we made we made some stuffed silk ones.

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Arduino article on Make

By | February 14, 2011

The Editor of Make has just posted an interesting little article on why he thinks the Arduino wins as a platform. On a totally unrelated note – the Palantir write up has been updated. Mostly hardware stuff at the moment – more software once it’s done!

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Open Source Hardware

By | February 10, 2011

The first full version of a proposed Open Source Hardware definition has been posted. Particularly interesting is this executive summary: 1. Documentation: Establish and facilitate the right to repair 2. Necessary Software: Operates using Free Open Source Software 3. Derived Works: The right to fork the project. 4. Free Redistribution: Pay for parts, not permissions. […]

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Smart Fishtank

By | February 8, 2011

‘Palantir’ is our project to develop an Internet of Things enabled aquarium equipment monitor. It connects a series of temperature, pressure and various other sensors to an WiFi enabled Arduino. The resulting data is forwarded to a remote server for processing, management and storage, with interfacing to the web and an Android app (with hopefully […]

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