Editorial

Esta é a Newsletter Nº 259 que se apresenta com o mesmo formato que as anteriores. Se gostar da Newsletter partilhe-a!

Todas as Newsletters encontram-se indexadas no link.

Esta Newsletter tem os seguintes tópicos:

• Novidades da Semana
• Ciência e Tecnologia
• Documentação
• Projetos Maker

Faz hoje anos que nascia, em 1682, o matemático e inventor britânico John Hadley. Ele aperfeiçoou os métodos de rectificação e polimento de lentes telescópicas. Hadley melhorou o telescópio reflector (introduzido pela primeira vez por Newton em 1668) e produziu o primeiro deste tipo com precisão e potência suficientes para serem úteis na astronomia. Tinha um espelho de 6 polegadas. Ele também é conhecido pelo octante reflectivo (1730) usado no mar para medir a altitude do Sol ou de um corpo celeste acima do horizonte, dentro de um segundo do arco. Era o ancestral do sextante náutico moderno.

Faz também hoje anos que nascia, em 1838, o químico industrial belga Ernest Solvay. Ele inventou o Processo Solvay (1863), um processo comercialmente viável de amónia-soda para a produção de carbonato de sódio, amplamente utilizado na fabricação de produtos como o vidro e o sabão. Embora meio século antes, A.J. Fresnel tinha mostrado (1811) que o bicarbonato de sódio podia ser precipitado a partir de uma solução salina contendo bicarbonato de amónio; muitos obstáculos de engenharia precisavam ser ultrapassados. O projecto bem-sucedido de Solvay usava uma torre de carbonatação de alta eficiência e 80 pés de altura, na qual salmoura amonizada escorria de cima e dióxido de carbono subia do fundo. Placas e tampas de bolhas ajudaram a criar uma superfície maior sobre a qual os dois poderiam reagir, formando bicarbonato de sódio.

Faz igualmente hoje anos que nascia, em 1850, o metalúrgico e inventor britânico Sidney Gilchrist Thomas. Ele desenvolveu com seu primo Percy Gilchrist, o processo Thomas-Gilchrist que elimina a impureza do fósforo de certos minérios de ferro no conversor Bessemer. O fósforo faz com que o aço seja frágil e de pouca utilidade. No entanto, a maioria dos minérios de ferro de fontes britânicas, francesas, alemãs e belgas era fosfórico. Thomas concebeu a ideia de incorporar cal (ou magnésia ou calcário magnesiano com propriedades químicas básicas semelhantes), como revestimento do conversor Bessemer. Gilchrist, químico industrial de uma grande indústria siderúrgica, confirmou essa ideia em 4 de Abril de 1879. Thomas registou uma patente em 1878. Até a escória de resíduos era lucrativa para a indústria de fertilizantes artificiais.

Faz também hoje anos que nascia, em 1867, inventor e aviador americano Wilbur Wright. Ele com o seu irmão Orville, inventou o primeiro avião a motor, Flyer, capaz de voo controlado e sustentado (17 de Dezembro de 1903). Orville fez o primeiro voo, no ar por 12 segundos. Wilbur fez o segundo voo, cobrindo 260 m em 85 segundos. Em 1905, eles tinham melhorado o desenho, construído e realizado vários vos longos no Flyer III, que foi o primeiro avião totalmente prático (1905), capaz de voar até 38 minutos e viajar 39 km. O modelo A foi produzido em 1908, capaz de voar durante mais de duas horas.

Por fim, faz hoje anos que nascia, em 1894, o matemático russo-americano Jerzy Neyman. Ele foi um dos principais arquitectos da estatística teórica moderna. Os seus trabalhos sobre testes de hipóteses (1928-33) ajudaram a estabelecer o assunto. Durante 1934-38, ele deu uma teoria dos intervalos de confiança (importante na análise de dados); teoria estatística estendida a distribuições contagiosas (para interpretação de dados biológicos); escreveu sobre amostragem de populações estratificadas (o que levou a aplicações como a Pesquisa Gallup); e desenvolveu o modelo para experiências aleatórias (amplamente relevantes nos campos da ciência, incluindo agricultura, biologia, medicina e ciências físicas). As suas pesquisas posteriores aplicaram estatísticas à meteorologia e à medicina. Em 1968, ele foi premiado com a prestigiada Medalha Nacional da Ciência.

Na Newsletter desta semana apresentamos diversos artigos científicos assim como projetos de maker. É apresentado o livro "Low Level Measurements Handbook - 7th Edition".

João Alves ([email protected])

O conteúdo da Newsletter encontra-se sob a licença Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Earth-Size, Habitable Zone Planet Found Hidden in Early NASA Kepler Data

"A team of transatlantic scientists, using reanalyzed data from NASA’s Kepler space telescope, has discovered an Earth-size exoplanet orbiting in its star's habitable zone, the area around a star where a rocky planet could support liquid water. Scientists discovered this planet, called Kepler-1649c, when looking through old observations from Kepler, which the agency retired in 2018. While previous searches with a computer algorithm misidentified it, researchers reviewing Kepler data took a second look at the signature and recognized it as a planet. Out of all the exoplanets found by Kepler, this distant world – located 300 light-years from Earth – is most similar to Earth in size and estimated temperature. This newly revealed world is only 1.06 times larger than our own planet. Also, the amount of starlight it receives from its host star is 75% of the amount of light Earth receives from our Sun – meaning the exoplanet's temperature may be similar to our planet’s, as well." [...]

Intel and QuTech Demonstrate High-Fidelity ‘Hot’ Qubits for Practical Quantum Systems

"Intel, in collaboration with QuTech, today published a paper in Nature demonstrating the successful control of “hot” qubits, the fundamental unit of quantum computing, at temperatures greater than 1 kelvin. The research also highlighted individual coherent control of two qubits with single-qubit fidelities of up to 99.3%. These breakthroughs highlight the potential for cryogenic controls of a future quantum system and silicon spin qubits, which closely resemble a single electron transistor, to come together in an integrated package. “This research represents a meaningful advancement in our research into silicon spin qubits, which we believe are promising candidates for powering commercial-scale quantum systems, given their resemblance to transistors that Intel has been manufacturing for more than 50 years. Our demonstration of hot qubits that can operate at higher temperatures while maintaining high fidelity paves the way to allow a variety of local qubit control options without impacting qubit performance.” –Jim Clarke, director of quantum hardware, Intel Labs Why It’s Important: Applying quantum computing to practical problems hinges on the ability to scale to and control thousands – if not millions – of qubits at the same time with high levels of fidelity. However, current quantum systems designs are limited by overall system size, qubit fidelity and especially the complexity of control electronics required to manage the quantum at large scale." [...]

New 2nd Gen AMD EPYC™ Processors Redefine Performance for Database, Commercial HPC and Hyperconverged Workloads

"AMD (NASDAQ: AMD) today announced it is extending the 2nd Gen AMD EPYC™ processor family with three new processors that combine the balanced and efficient AMD Infinity architecture with higher speed “Zen 2” cores for optimal performance on database, commercial high-performance computing (HPC) and hyperconverged infrastructure workloads. The three new processors, the AMD EPYC™ 7F32 (8 cores), EPYC™ 7F52 (16 cores) and EPYC™ 7F72 (24 cores), expand 2nd Gen AMD EPYC performance leadership into workloads that can leverage up to 500 MHz of additional base frequency, and large amounts of cache, making AMD EPYC™ the world’s highest per core performance x86 server CPU*.1 The AMD EPYC 7Fx2 processors provide new performance capabilities for workloads in the heart of the enterprise market including database with up to 17% higher SQL Server® performance2 compared to the competition, hyperconverged infrastructure with up to 47% higher VMmark® 3.1 score (using vSAN™ as the storage tier in a 4-node cluster) compared to the competition for a new world record3, and commercial high-performance computing (HPC) with up to 94% higher per core computational fluid dynamics individual application performance4 compared to the competition. “AMD EPYC continues to redefine the modern data center, and with the addition of three powerful new processors we are enabling our customers to unlock even better outcomes at the heart of the enterprise market,” said Dan McNamara, senior vice president and general manager, server business unit, AMD. “With our trusted partners, together we are pushing the limits of per core performance and value in hyperconverged infrastructure, commercial HPC and relational database workloads.” A Balanced System That’s More than Gigahertz The new 2nd Gen AMD EPYC 7Fx2 processors provide leading per core performance and breakthrough value, while adding the highest per core performance of the EPYC family. The performance of these new processors comes from a balanced architecture that combines high-performance “Zen 2” cores, innovations in system design like PCIe® 4 and DDR4-3200 memory5, and the AMD Infinity architecture, to provide customers with optimum system performance that enables better real world application performance. " [...]

CIMON-2 Masters Its Debut on the International Space Station

"CIMON-2, the latest version of the artificial intelligence-powered astronaut assistant developed has successfully demonstrated its capabilities on board the International Space Station (ISS) in initial tests. The ball-shaped, free-flying voice-controlled assistant demonstrated its functionalities while interacting with European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Luca Parmitano. CIMON-2 was launched to the ISS on December 5, 2019, from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on board the supply flight CRS-19. It is scheduled to remain there for up to three years. Nearly two months after the successful deployment of CIMON-2 in February, the project team has now completed its initial analysis. CIMON-2 was tested on its autonomous flight capabilities, voice control of navigation and other tasks." [...]

Device Simulator Express expands to the BBC micro:bit and Adafruit CLUE

"Last summer, a group of Garage Interns teamed up with Adafruit to create Device Simulator Express, a Microsoft Garage project. The VS Code extension enabled makers, hobbyists, and student developers to program the Adafruit Circuit Playground Express, with or without the physical device. Today, we’re excited to announce that a second team of interns has built upon the original Garage project to add two boards during their internship: the BBC micro:bit and the Adafruit CLUE. Try the VS Code extension now. Expanding to the micro:bit and the CLUE Typically in the Garage Internship, students will work in teams to create a new product or experience from scratch, responding to a challenge from an engineering or product sponsor (check Ink to Code or Seeing AI for some fan favorites). But, recently, the Garage Internship in Vancouver has been experimenting with a team from one cohort passing the baton to a second team to expand upon the intern project." [...]

Scientists Develop High-performance Lithium-sulfur Batteries

"Recently, research groups led by Prof. LIU Jian and Prof. WU Zhongshuai from the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics (DICP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have developed Fe1-xS-decorated mesoporous carbon spheres as the nanoreactor, which can be applied as lithium-sulfur battery cathode. The nanoreactor showed excellent polysulfide catalytic activity and cyclic stability. The study was published in Advanced Energy Materials on Apr. 16. Lithium-sulfur batteries have a high theoretical energy density of 2600 Wh kg-1 and theoretical capacity of 1675 mAh g-1. They are promising as a high-energy battery." [...]

Scientists develop safer lead-based perovskite solar cells

"A team of National Science Foundation-supported researchers at Northern Illinois University and the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colorado, report in the journal Nature on a potential breakthrough in the development of hybrid perovskite solar cells. Perovskite solar cells convert light into electricity and are potentially cheaper and simpler to produce than traditional silicon-based solar cells. But the top-performing hybrid perovskite solar cells typically contain lead, raising concerns over its potential leakage from damaged cells. Led by Tao Xu of NIU and Kai Zhu of NREL, the team has developed a technique to sequester the lead in perovskite solar cells, minimizing potential toxic leakage. A transparent lead-absorbing film is applied to a conducting glass on the front of the solar cell. The sequestration film contains strong, lead-binding phosphonic acid groups but does not hinder cell capture of light." [...]

New measurements reveal evidence of elusive particles in a newly-discovered superconductor

"Particle chasing—it’s a game that so many physicists play. Sometimes the hunt takes place inside large supercolliders, where spectacular collisions are necessary to find hidden particles and new physics. For physicists studying solids, the game occurs in a much different environment and the sought-after particles don’t come from furious collisions. Instead, particle-like entities, called quasiparticles, emerge from complicated electronic interactions that happen deep within a material. Sometimes the quasiparticles are easy to probe, but others are more difficult to spot, lurking just out of reach. Now a team of researchers at the University of Illinois, led by physicist Vidya Madhavan, in collaboration with researchers from the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the University of Maryland, Boston College, and ETH Zurich, have used high-resolution microscopy tools to peer at the inner-workings of an unusual type of superconductor, uranium ditelluride (UTe2)." [...]

Transparent and self-healing electronic skin

"NUS scientists have taken inspiration from underwater invertebrates like jellyfish to create an electronic skin with similar functionality. Just like a jellyfish, the electronic skin is transparent, stretchable, touch-sensitive, and self-healing in aquatic environments. It can be used in everything from water-resistant touchscreens to aquatic soft robots. The team, led by NUS Materials Science and Engineering Assistant Professor Benjamin Tee, worked with collaborators from Tsinghua University and the University of California Riverside spending just over a year to develop the material. Its invention was featured as the front cover of the journal Nature Electronics on 15 February 2019. Asst Prof Tee has been working on electronic skins for many years and was part of the team that developed the first ever self-healing electronic skin sensors in 2012." [...]

The cold eyes of DUNE

"How do you detect a particle that has almost no mass, feels only two of the four fundamental forces, and can travel unhindered through solid lead for an entire light-year without ever interacting with matter? This is the problem posed by neutrinos, ghostly particles that are generated in the trillions by nuclear reactions in stars, including our sun, and on Earth. Scientists can also produce neutrinos to study in controlled experiments using particle accelerators. One of the ways neutrinos can be detected is with large vats filled with liquid argon and wrapped with a complex web of integrated circuitry that can operate in temperatures colder than the average day on Neptune. Industry does not typically use electronics that operate at cryogenic temperatures, so particle physicists have had to engineer their own. A collaboration of several Department of Energy national labs, including Fermilab, has been developing prototypes of the electronics that will ultimately be used in the international Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment, called DUNE, hosted by Fermilab." [...]

Reducing delays in wireless networks

"Congestion control system could help streaming video, mobile games, and other applications run more smoothly. MIT researchers have designed a congestion-control scheme for wireless networks that could help reduce lag times and increase quality in video streaming, video chat, mobile gaming, and other web services. To keep web services running smoothly, congestion-control schemes infer information about a network’s bandwidth capacity and congestion based on feedback from the network routers, which is encoded in data packets. That information determines how fast data packets are sent through the network. Deciding a good sending rate can be a tough balancing act. Senders don’t want to be overly conservative: If a network’s capacity constantly varies from, say, 2 megabytes per second to 500 kilobytes per second, the sender could always send traffic at the lowest rate." [...]

Pushing the Limits of 2D Supramolecules

"Scientists at the University of South Florida have reached a new milestone in the development of two-dimensional supramolecules – the building blocks that make areas of nanotechnology and nanomaterial advancement possible. Since the 2004 discovery of graphene, the world’s thinnest (one atom thick) and strongest (200 times stronger than steel) material, researchers have been working to further develop similar nanomaterials for industrial, pharmaceutical and other commercial uses. Thanks to its conductive properties and strength, graphene can be used in microelectronics to fortify mechanical materials and has recently enabled precise 3D imaging of nanoparticles. While work to develop new supramolecules capable of further applications has seen some success, those molecular formations are either small – less than 10 nanometers in size – or arbitrarily assemble, limiting their potential use. But now, new research published in "Nature Chemistry," outlines a profound leap forward in supramolecular progress. “Our research team has been able to overcome one of the major supramolecular obstacles, developing a well-defined supramolecular structure that pushes the 20-nanometer scale,” said Xiaopeng Li, an associate professor in the USF Department of Chemistry and the study’s lead researcher." [...]

AI techniques used to improve battery health and safety

"Researchers have designed a machine learning method that can predict battery health with 10x higher accuracy than current industry standard, which could aid in the development of safer and more reliable batteries for electric vehicles and consumer electronics. The researchers, from Cambridge and Newcastle Universities, have designed a new way to monitor batteries by sending electrical pulses into them and measuring the response. The measurements are then processed by a machine learning algorithm to predict the battery’s health and useful lifespan. Their method is non-invasive and is a simple add-on to any existing battery system. The results are reported in the journal Nature Communications. Predicting the state of health and the remaining useful lifespan of lithium-ion batteries is one of the big problems limiting widespread adoption of electric vehicles: it’s also a familiar annoyance to mobile phone users." [...]

New electronic cooling technology to enable miniaturization of quantum computers

"VTT researchers have successfully demonstrated a new electronic refrigeration technology that can enable major leaps in the development of quantum computers. Present quantum computers require extremely complicated and large cooling infrastructure that is based on mixture of different isotopes of helium. The new electronic cooling technology could replace these cryogenic liquid mixtures and enable miniaturization of quantum computers. Researchers at VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland have developed a new purely electrical refrigeration method where cooling and thermal isolation operate effectively through the same point like junction. In the experiment the researchers suspended a piece of silicon from such junctions and refrigerated the object by feeding electrical current from one junction to another through the piece. The current lowered the thermodynamic temperature of the silicon object as much as 40 % from that of the surroundings." [...]

New boron material of high hardness created by plasma chemical vapor deposition

"Yogesh Vohra, Ph.D., uses microwave-plasma chemical vapor deposition to create thin crystal films of never-before-seen materials. This effort seeks materials that approach a diamond in hardness and are able to survive extreme pressure, temperature and corrosive environments. The search for new materials is motivated by the desire to overcome limitations of diamond, which tends to oxidize at temperatures higher than 600 degrees Celsius and also chemically reacts with ferrous metals. Vohra, a professor and university scholar in the University of Alabama at Birmingham Department of Physics, now reports, in the journal Scientific Reports, synthesis of a novel boron-rich boron-carbide material. This film, grown on a 1-inch wafer of silicon, is chemically stable, has 37 percent the hardness of cubic diamond and acts as an insulator. Equally important, experimental testing of the new material — including X-ray diffraction and measurement of the material’s hardness and Young’s modulus — agrees closely with predicted values computed by the UAB team of researchers led by Cheng-Chien Chen, Ph.D., assistant professor of physics at UAB." [...]

Hot qubits made in Sydney break one of the biggest constraints to practical quantum computers

"A proof-of-concept published today in Nature promises warmer, cheaper and more robust quantum computing. And it can be manufactured using conventional silicon chip foundries. Most quantum computers being developed around the world will only work at fractions of a degree above absolute zero. That requires multi-million-dollar refrigeration and as soon as you plug them into conventional electronic circuits they’ll instantly overheat. But now researchers led by Professor Andrew Dzurak at UNSW Sydney have addressed this problem. “Our new results open a path from experimental devices to affordable quantum computers for real world business and government applications,” says Professor Dzurak." [...]

Researchers develop fast, micrometer-size electro-optical modulator

"Researchers at the George Washington University developed and demonstrated for the first time a silicon-based electro-optical modulator that is smaller, as fast as and more efficient than state-of-the-art technologies. By adding indium tin oxide (ITO)—a transparent conductive oxide found in touchscreen displays and solar cells—to a silicon photonic chip platform, the researchers were able to create a compact device 1 micrometer in size and able to yield gigahertz-fast, or 1 billion times per second, signal modulation. Electro-optical modulators are the workhorses of the internet. They convert electrical data from computers and smartphones to optical data streams for fiber optic networks, enabling modern data communications like video streaming. The new invention is timely since demand for data services is growing rapidly and moving towards next generation communication networks. Taking advantage of their compact footprint, electro-optic converters can be utilized as transducers in optical computing hardware such as optical artificial neural networks that mimic the human brain and a plethora of other applications for modern-day life." [...]

Scalable quantum bits operate under practical conditions

"QuTech, a collaboration between TU Delft and TNO, has managed to control qubits in silicon at temperatures over 50 times higher than previously. The increase to practical temperatures represents a crucial leap towards a functional quantum computer. Qubits are the building blocks of a future quantum computer and operating at a higher temperature opens up the possibility of integrating both qubits and their controlling electronics onto one standard chip. The researchers published their findings in Nature today. “This is the first time we can present qubits that are hot, dense and coherent,” said principal researcher Menno Veldhorst. “We are talking about qubits that are compact, and which function with high quality at a relatively high temperature – something that is particularly crucial for practical applications." [...]

Critical “Starbleed” vulnerability in FPGA chips identified

"FPGA chips are part of many safety-critical applications. They have one particular valuable feature: they are individually reprogrammable – but with this feature also comes a risk. Field Programmable Gate Arrays, FPGAs for short, are flexibly programmable computer chips that are considered very secure components in many applications. In a joint research project, scientists from the Horst Görtz Institute for IT Security at Ruhr-Universität Bochum and from Max Planck Institute for Security and Privacy have now discovered that a critical vulnerability is hidden in these chips. They called the security bug “Starbleed”. Attackers can gain complete control over the chips and their functionalities via the vulnerability." [...]

Ceramic Based Flexible Electrolyte Sheets for Lithium Metal Batteries

"Researchers at Tokyo Metropolitan University have developed a new method to make ceramic-based flexible electrolyte sheets for lithium metal batteries. They combined a garnet-type ceramic, a polymer binder, and an ionic liquid, producing a quasi-solid-state sheet electrolyte. The synthesis is carried out at room temperature, requiring significantly less energy than existing high-temperature (> 1000°C) processes. It functions over a wide range of temperatures, making it a promising electrolyte for batteries in eg electric vehicles. For more information see the IDTechEx report on Lithium-Ion Batteries for Electric Vehicles 2020-2030. There is a global demand to shift to cleaner renewable energy sources." [...]

UCI-led Team Designs Carbon Nanostructure Stronger Than Diamonds

"Researchers at the University of California, Irvine and other institutions have architecturally designed plate-nanolattices – nanometer-sized carbon structures – that are stronger than diamonds as a ratio of strength to density. In a recent study in Nature Communications, the scientists report success in conceptualizing and fabricating the material, which consists of closely connected, closed-cell plates instead of the cylindrical trusses common in such structures over the past few decades. “Previous beam-based designs, while of great interest, had not been so efficient in terms of mechanical properties,” said corresponding author Jens Bauer, a UCI researcher in mechanical & aerospace engineering. “This new class of plate-nanolattices that we’ve created is dramatically stronger and stiffer than the best beam-nanolattices.” According to the paper, the team’s design has been shown to improve on the average performance of cylindrical beam-based architectures by up to 639 percent in strength and 522 percent in rigidity. Members of the architected materials laboratory of Lorenzo Valdevit, UCI professor of materials science & engineering as well as mechanical & aerospace engineering, verified their findings using a scanning electron microscope and other technologies provided by the Irvine Materials Research Institute. “Scientists have predicted that nanolattices arranged in a plate-based design would be incredibly strong,” said lead author Cameron Crook, a UCI graduate student in materials science & engineering." [...]

Illuminating the future of renewable energy

"A new chemical compound created by researchers at West Virginia University is lighting the way for renewable energy. The compound is a photosensitizer, meaning it promotes chemical reactions in the presence of light. It has many potential applications for improving the efficiency of modern technologies ranging from electricity-producing solar panels to cell phones. The study, published March 16 in Nature Chemistry , was conducted by researchers in Assistant Professor of Chemistry Carsten Milsmann’s lab with support from his National Science Foundation CAREER Award. These technologies currently rely on precious metals, like iridium and ruthenium, to function. However, only limited supplies of these materials remain in the world, making them nonrenewable, difficult to access and expensive." [...]

Eindhoven researchers present revolutionary light-emitting silicon

"Emitting light from silicon has been the ‘Holy Grail’ in the microelectronics industry for decades. Solving this puzzle would revolutionize computing, as chips will become faster than ever. Researchers from Eindhoven University of Technology now succeeded: they have developed an alloy with silicon that can emit light. The results have been published in the journal Nature. The team will now start creating a silicon laser to be integrated into current chips. Every year we use and produce significantly more data." [...]

Graphene heterostructures with black phosphorus, arsenic layers enable new infrared detectors

"MIPT scientists and their colleagues from Japan and the U.S. have calculated the parameters of photodetectors comprised by layers of graphene and a combination of black phosphorus and black arsenic. These sensors are able to detect radiation with energy less than the band gap of the constituent layers without graphene. It is also easy to modify them in order to increase their sensitivity to the required wavelength of light. Such sensors could replace any far-infrared and terahertz radiation detectors. The research findings were published in the journal Optics Express. The new sensors will benefit many areas of science and technology." [...]

Researchers create tiny self-powered temperature sensors

"A team of researchers from the University of Oxford, Delft University and IBM Zurich have demonstrated that graphene can be used to build sensitive and self-powering temperature sensors. The findings pave the way for the design of highly sensitive thermocouples, which could be integrated in nanodevices and even living cells. On-chip temperature sensors that are scalable, reliable and can be incorporated into nanodevices are essential for future thermal management in CPUs. By determining the local heating in certain segments of a CPU through the distribution of temperature monitors along critical points, feedback can be provided to a control system. In response, thermal management could allow for the redistribution of the thermal load through spot cooling or load distribution, for instance among different computing cores, avoiding hot spots and enabling a longer device lifetime as well as saving energy. Such temperature sensors should have a small footprint, high accuracy, consume a minimum amount of power and be compatible with established nanofabrication techniques." [...]

Researchers discover ‘crazy powerful’ quasar

"An international team of researchers, led by Physics and Astronomy professor Sarah Gallagher, has detected the most energetic wind from any quasar ever measured – an outflow travelling at nearly 13 per cent of the speed of light with enough energy to dramatically impact star formation across an entire galaxy. The extragalactic tempest lay hidden in plain sight for 15 years before being unveiled by innovative computer modeling and new data from the international Gemini Observatory on Hawai’i’s Maunakea. “While high-velocity winds have previously been observed in quasars, these have been thin and wispy, carrying only a relatively small amount of mass,” said Gallagher, a Science Advisor to the President of the Canadian Space Agency. “The outflow from this quasar, in comparison, sweeps along a tremendous amount of mass at incredible speeds. This wind is crazy powerful, and we don’t know how the quasar can launch something so substantial.” The discovery was made using observations from the international Gemini Observatory, a program of National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab. This powerful outflow stems from a quasar known as SDSS J135246.37+423923.5 which lies roughly 60 billion light-years from Earth." [...]

Device turns shells of sea creatures into power for medical, augmented reality, cellphone devices

"An innovation using material derived from the shells of crabs and other sea creatures may soon provide a new option for powering medical sensors, phone screens and other devices. A team from Purdue University used chitosan – an abundant natural biopolymer from marine crustacean shells – to create triboelectric nanogenerators. TENGs help conserve mechanical energy and turn it into power. “We have taken an innovative approach to using typically wasted shell material and turned it into functional, self-powered devices,” said Wenzhuo Wu, the Ravi and Eleanor Talwar Rising Star Assistant Professor of industrial engineering in Purdue’s College of Engineering, who led the development team. The chitosan-based TENGs present efficient energy conversion performance and tunable biodegradation rate. “Such a new class of TENGs derived from natural biomaterials may pave the way toward the economically viable and ecologically friendly production of flexible TENGs for self-powered nanosystems in biomedical and environmental applications,” Wu said." [...]

New Photon-Counting Camera Captures 3D Images with Record Speed and Resolution

"Megapixel image sensor could bring significant improvements to augmented reality and LiDAR systems for autonomous vehicles Researchers have developed the first megapixel photon-counting camera based on new-generation image sensor technology that uses single-photon avalanche diodes (SPADs). The new camera can detect single photons of light at unprecedented speeds, a capability that could advance applications that require fast acquisition of 3D images such as augmented reality and LiDAR systems for autonomous vehicles. “Thanks to its high resolution and ability to measure depth, this new camera could make virtual reality more realistic and let you interact with augmented reality information in a more seamless manner,” said Edoardo Charbon from the Advanced Quantum Architecture Laboratory (AQUALab) at École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland. Charbon developed the idea for the new camera and is the founder and head of AQUALab, where the image sensor was designed. In Optica, The Optical Society's (OSA) journal for high-impact research, the researchers describe how they created one of the smallest SPAD pixels ever devised and reduced the power consumption of each pixel to less than 1 microwatt while maintaining speed and timing precision. The new camera can acquire images at up to 24,000 frames per second." [...]

Applying mathematics to accelerate predictions for capturing fusion energy

"A key issue for scientists seeking to bring the fusion that powers the sun and stars to Earth is forecasting the performance of the volatile plasma that fuels fusion reactions. Making such predictions calls for considerable costly time on the world’s fastest supercomputers. Now researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) have borrowed a technique from applied mathematics to accelerate the process. The technique combines the millisecond behavior of fusion plasmas into longer-term forecasts. By using it, “we were able to demonstrate that accurate predictions of quantities such as plasma temperature profiles and heat fluxes could be achieved at a much reduced computational cost,” said Ben Sturdevant, an applied mathematician at PPPL and lead author of a Physics of Plasmas paper(link is external) that reported the results. Fusion combines light elements in the form of plasma — the hot, charged state of matter composed of free electrons and atomic nuclei — that generates massive amounts of energy." [...]

Low Level Measurements Handbook - 7th Edition

" Keithley Instruments, Inc., a world leader in advanced electrical test instruments and systems, announced today that it has published the seventh edition of its well-regarded Low Level Measurements Handbook: Precision DC Current, Voltage, and Resistance Measurements. This 250-page reference, which Keithley first published in 1972, describes theoretical and practical considerations involved in the measurement of low DC currents, high resistances, low DC voltages, and low resistances. Among other updates, the seventh edition incorporates information on the latest electrical measurement tools and techniques, including those developed for characterizing today's nanoscale devices and high power semiconductors. " [...]

Memory Game Box

"This project is an altered version of https://www.instructables.com/id/Arduino-Simple-Me... Changes I've made: "Arduino Simple Memory Game" to "Memory Game Box" Appearance Delay time (Script) This is a little memory game to pass time with if you're bored! You can also use this game to test how good your memory is. :)" [...]

Phone Coffer

"I'm addicted to my phone, which I can not focus on my homework. Every day when I go home, I play with my phone first, then about 10 p.m. I started my homework, which is too late. So every day I went to bed at 2 a.m., causing me exhausted. Which I decide to make a phone coffer, when every day I went home I need to put my phone into the coffer, and until I finish my homework, I can go ask my mom for the password, and take my phone out. My mom will sometimes change the password to prevent me from taking my phone out before I finish my homework." [...]

Mesmerizing Ferrofluid-Display: Silently Controlled by Electromagnets

"Disclaimer: This Instructable will not provide a straight forward way to build a big ferrofluid-display like our "Fetch". That project is so big and expensive that anyone who want to build something similar will almost certainly have different design requirements than we did. Therefore we will instead focus what we've learned from building "Fetch", which traps you should avoid, and which details you should pay the most attention to - as well as some tips and tricks for handling ferrofluid in general. The team behind this project is currently discussing options for making a smaller, more affordable, ferrofluid-display for more realistic replication by hobbyists. When that work is done we will write a more detailed, step-by-step, Instructable and link to it here. To give a realistic perspective of the timeline we're working by, it is unlikely that such a project will be done before the end of 2021." [...]

6x8 LED Matrix

"This is an LED matrix based off of Nova Technologies' 5X3 LED Matrix, but because the resources I have access to are limited, I have changed a lot of how this matrix works. Instead of using individual LEDs with another controller, I have used RGB LED strips with individual ICs on each of them, connected into 8 columns of 6 LEDs. Not only does this make the matrix bigger, it also allows us to use CRGB colors instead of just one color. *Note: I know the code can be simplified if the LEDs are all chained together, but I wanted to try something new, so I separated the LED strips into 8 strips of 6. * Sources: Original Project: https://www.instructables.com/id/Arduino-5X3-LED-Matrix-to-Run-Alphabets/ CRGB colors: https://github.com/FastLED/FastLED/wiki/Pixel-reference You will need: Jumper wires: these are needed to connect the LED matrix to the circuit board so you can control it. Single-strand wire (optional): used to create more distance between the LEDs on the LED strip." [...]

MIDI Pad

"Occupation during confinement. Good morning all. Here is my prototype V3, waiting for the end of confinement to make my PCBs and return to the workshop to create the case. The assembly is identical to my first here, with the difference that, the keys (in the code) are declared as a "for (int i = 0; i and not defined as a Notes, " MIDI.sendNoteOn (52, 127, 1); " with a value, which allows you to play the piano as much as drums and bass on Ableton. You will find in my code only one potentiometer to declare, to you to write the continuation and to adapt to your needs. You must play with the library , connect to Loopmidi and hairless midi serial and have fun." [...]

8x8 LED Display Board

"This is a Matrix display board, you may upload the words or patterns you like. By adjusting the power supply, HIGH or LOW, the project I made could let people in fear back see the words or patterns. The making process is written below include the materials and a plastic case that you can put your board into it and protect it. With slightly changes of the code and a list, they support you to create your unique shapes. " [...]

Mechanical Seven Segment Display Clock

"A couple of months ago I built a two digit mechanical 7 segment display which I turned into a countdown timer. It came out quite well and a number of people suggested doubling up on the display to make a clock. The problem was that I was already running out of PWM IO on my Arduino Mega and didn't have enough available for the second or third digits. I was then pointed in the direction of these PCA9685 16 channel PWM drivers which operates over an I2C interface. These made it possible to drive the 28 servos I needed all using the two I2C pins on an Arduino. So I got to work building a clock which now uses a DS1302 real time clock module to keep the time and two 16 channel servo drivers to control the 28 servos used to make up the display, all powered by an Arduino Uno." [...]

How to Make a DIY Raised Planter Box

"Planter boxes are a classic Springtime project and we’ve always wanted to design and build one in our own style. At the time of writing this, Jaimie is 8 months pregnant with our second child...which makes gardening...difficult. So, doing a DIY Raised Planter Box seemed like a great way to help her not need to lean over in the garden but still be able to get some exercise and spend time outdoors. We spent quite a bit of time coming up with a DIY planter box design that was both simple and fun to build but was also stylish and modern looking. We also have Raised Planter Box Plans with exact dimensions on our website: https://thewickedmakers.com/product/raised-planter-box-plans/ You can build this planter box in an afternoon with simple tools and materials and if you use an outdoor wood like Cedar or Redwood, it will last many years! We recommend watching the video above and following along with the written steps!" [...]

Wi-Fi-Controlled WS2812B Individually-Addressable LED Yard-Stake Lights for an E1.31 Light-show

"Have you ever driven around your neighborhood during the Christmas season, to observe all the wonderful lighting displays neighbors have put up, and come across those houses whose lights are synchronized to music? (If not, you should really check out some of the awesome videos of light-show houses on YouTube! You can check out mine too!) I've always wondered how I could make a light-show like those houses, and I've finally discovered the "secrets of the trade." There are a few different components that go into making a really high-quality light-show on your house, and in this instructable I will be focusing on one essential part: the LED lights themselves. While many light-show makers use LED panels/matrices and "mega-trees" to display complex effects, I decided to take a more minimalistic approach and create simple vertical LED bars that can be easily stuck into the ground using stakes." [...]

Arduino Based Watch - OLED, Menu, RTC

"Have you ever wanted a device which is too large for a watch but yet too small for a clock? Well, it is, but it can easily be made into a watch, and also easily be made into a clock (like a mini clock, you know what I mean) Note: This is Open Source as I have decided to make it, but still credit me if this is used in other projects or taken inspiration Note AGAIN: This is an Unfinished Project and with an Arduino nano, a smaller watch can be made. Lets Start! " [...]

Track COVID-19 Outbreak by ESP8266

"This little gadget will help you to be up to date about the coronavirus outbreak and the situation in your country. This is an IoT based project which displays the real-time data of cases, deaths and recovered people by the coronavirus ( COVID-19 ). It uses a Wemos D1 Mini Pro board which is based on the ESP8266 Wifi module to get data from the worldometers via ThingSpeak API. I have used an 0.96" OLED display for making a dashboard for all the realtime data. Note: I made this project for fun and learning. The COVID-19 data display in this project is completely based on information on www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/ ." [...]

8x8 Led Matrix Clock & Anti-Intrusion Warning

"In this Instructable we'll see how to build a 8x8 Led Matrix Clock activated by motion detection. This clock can be used also as anti-intrusion device that send a warning message if a motion is detected to a telegram bot!!! We'll do with two different objects: The digital clock, controlled by a Wemos D1 mini A central control unit (rasperry) where mosquitto is running (a MQTT broker) that make the interface between the clock and the telegram bot This architecture is thinked to manage the communication between other devices, with different functions (ie. temperature sensors, relay, ...), to the telegram bot Supplies: Part list of the Digital Clock: - Wemos D1 Mini - Wemos D1 Mini - RTC shield8x8 Led Matrix with MAX7219 - PIR sensor - Breadboard - Cables - USB charger Part list of the Central Control Unit - Raspberry PI - USB charger" [...]

220V DC to 220V AC: DIY Inverter Part 2

"Hello everyone. I hope you all are safe and staying healthy. In this instructable I will show you how I made this DC to AC converter that converts 220V DC voltage to 220V AC voltage.The AC voltage generated here is a square wave signal and not a pure sine wave signal. This project is a continuation of my previews project which was designed to convert 12Volts DC to 220V DC. It is highly recommended that you visit my previous project first before continuing ahead i this instructable. The link to my DC to DC converter project is : https://www.instructables.com/id/200Watts-12V-to-2..." [...]

Music Rhythm LED Flash Light

"In this project, we will make a Music Rhythm LED Flash Light circuit using Microphone and BC547 on breadboard and PCB where the led strip lights will blink with the music rhythm. The microphone will sense the music rhythm and generate an electric pulse which will amplify by the transistor and the connected led strip will start blinking. I will share all the required details for this Music Rhythm LED Flasher project link complete circuit diagram, breadboard layout, component list, PCB Garber file, the working principle so that you can easily design this Music Rhythm LED Flash Light at home. Supplies: 1. 1k resistors 2no 2. 10k resistors 2no 3." [...]

Arduino Fan Controller

"Hello! In this short instructable i will show my very simple but yet useful gadget. I created this for the son of my friend of mine for educational purpose, for a school presentation. This is an arduino nano based simple controller using a nokia 5110 display, BC547 NPN transistor, a 3 wire (12V) pc fan, 2 leds and a DS18B20 temperature sensor. As you can see in the picture it is a simple and basic setup. " [...]

Wink Detector

"This instructable explains how to make a “wink-detector” from a modified AD8232 ECG (electrocardiogram) sensor, an LM324-N quad op-amp, an Arduino Uno R3, and a home-made head-band. The detector has two outputs ... one for when you wink your left-eye ... and one for when you wink your right. Normal blinks, which involve both eyes, are ignored. Applications for this circuit include: game interfaces assistive technology Few tools are required ... just a soldering iron and a sharp knife. The sensor modifications, which can be reversed, require that you: cut two tracks add two solder bridges/shorts add a short wire link The estimated cost of components is $15.00" [...]

Desktop Ring Clock

"As you can see from the photo above in this project, I would like to show you the construction of an office clock. Normally, such a project requires the purchase of a WS2812 LED ring, right? Projects that use LED strips in different watch constructions designs, in most cases, project the LED's light laterally on the wall. But I wanted to make an office clock, the LED light had to be projected in the front. With the 60 LED/m LED strip at hand, I thought I'd try to use it for this purpose. The idea was that the body, in which the string of LEDs are mounted, should reflect the light as best as it can." [...]

2x 7-Segment Display With 3 Pins From Arduino

"Ever being bothered by the insufficient pin on your Arduino to create the number of outputs you desire? Hello everyone, in this instructable I would like to share to you about my idea: driving 2 common cathode 7 segment display that has a total of 20 pins, 18 usable while using only 3 pins from Arduino. Of course this is no magic, the Arduino does not drive the 7 segment leds directly, this requires additional parts which are shift register and 7 segment driver integrated circuits, namely the famous IC 74HC595N and IC CD4511 respectively. The idea of employing a 74HC595N shift register is to increase the number of digital outputs depending the number of IC is used. It is usually more than enough. Only 3 pins required to drive a 595N IC and giving out 8 outputs in bits, meaning 8 digital I/Os, or 8 ON/OFFs." [...]

Online Weather Station (NodeMCU)

"Hey guys! I Hope you already enjoyed my previous instructable "Arduino Robot 4WR" and you are ready for a new one, as usual I made this tutorial to guide you step by step while you make your own electronic project. During the making of this project, we tried to make sure that this instructable will be the best guide to assist you while you chose to make your own electronic based project, so we hope that this instructable contains the needed documents. This project is so handy to make specially after getting the customized PCB that weve ordered from JLCPCB to improve the appearance of our electronic device and also there is enough documents and codes in this guide to allow you create your beautiful weather station. We've made this project in just 2 days only, just one days to get all the needed parts and finish the hardware making and the assemble, then one day to prepare the code to suit our project and hen we have started the testing and the adjustments. What you will learn from this instructable: Making the right hardware selection for your project depending on its functionalities.Understand the weather station workflow.Prepare the circuit diagram to connect all the choosen components.Produce your own PCB design.Solder the electronic parts to the PCB.Assemble all the project parts.Start the first test and validate the project." [...]

Simple Pocket Light

"You may have seen plenty of these simple lights all over the place (instructables/youtube), This is nothing different really but just sharing what I made. This project uses very few materials and is very simple to make. My soldering and design skills are quite mediocre, I just began electronics as a hobby so bare with me. I had a few old phone batteries lying around and they are still capable of holding about 65% charge so its good enough for this project, the lithium ion battery in this project can also be replaced by a suitable AA or AAA or even a 9V battery, you only need to change the resistors accordingly. If you were having my exact thoughts at this moment you would have realised that as voltage of the batteries reduces the brightness of the light also decreases gradually (like i mentioned earlier crappy design), I could probably add a constant current / constant voltage design later. I used 10 ohm resistors as that is what i had, the led's that I have used are 5730 normal white which are rated at 3V and 150ma(max), the resistors in this design are not the most suitable for these LED but for my need it was not required to be on max current and also at max currents these led's last much shorter, so at max battery voltage of about 4.1V I get 110ma and at about 3.7V I still get about 70ma per LED which is half its brightness." [...]

How to Make a Fart Tracker

"1. Principle Taking advantage of the ability to volatile harmful gases in CCS811air quality sensor, selecting Nano as the main control to receive values of harmful gas concentration from CCS811 sensor and map data to the LED brightness via the function map (). The closer the distance from the sensor to the releaser, the brighter the LED. 2.My Story Hi, my old friend in my childhood, who has tried to find out the fart by smelling, how are you today? It happened in my primary school. I remember that the class would always add transfer students every year." [...]

Smartphone Controlled Infinite Clock

"I have seen many projects of Infinity Mirrors and Infinity Clocks on Instructables, so I decided to make mine. It may no be very different from the other ones... but I did it myself, so it is ! In case you don't know it already: What is an infinity clock?An infinity clock uses multiple reflections between a mirror and a semi-reflective mirror to give the illusion of great depth while it is only one centimeter deep! The time is indicated by LEDs that reflect many times between these interfaces and give this impression of depth. Multiple reflexions give the impression of depth The LEDs are addressable and multicoloured, so it is easy to use them to make light animations. I wanted to make it interactive and changing, so I added a Smartphone control using Bluetooth communication." [...]

Diy Short Circuit Protector

"Hi in this instructables I will show you how to make a simple dc short circuit protector Components Needed 1)6v relay 2)1k resistor 3)2x led 4) tactile switch" [...]

Cube Infinity Mirror

"Have you ever imagined you accidentally fall into an infinite space and embark on a wonderful journey? Imagine infinite size, we can also make our own infinite cube infinity mirror. let's do this" [...]

HomeMade SlowCooker

"For a long time now I have wanted to own a SlowCooker. Unfortunately, I couldn’t decide on which one I should get. I like the expensive ones where you can set the temperature digital but, being Dutch, there is no way I'm spending that kind of money! Now I have a little more time on my hands due to the COVID-19 crisis, I decided instead to just make one myself. I had this ceramic hot plate lying around which I was already using for my pot roasts. And after diving into my parts collection, I dicovered all I needed to buy was a 4 euro temperature sensor!" [...]

Simple and Small Programmable Lab Power Supply

"Any workshop must have a good lab power supply. Somehow it happened that a PC power supply was always enough for me. But when power was needed at 30, 40 and 50 Volts, the situation slightly changed. After a short two-month deliberation, the DPS5015 module was ordered. This unit is rated at a maximum of 50 Volts and 15 Amperes. And this post is about how this Chinese module turned into a compact, mobile and pretty cute laboratory power supply unit with the ability to connect an additional external power source." [...]

S7ripClock - Basic Edition

"Another redesign (stopped counting them) of something I did before. So welcome to the latest iteration of "S7ripClock", a modular 7 segment clock built using led strips. The modules (2 digits) only use a single piece of led strip and can be used for other projects. Or simply build the clock as it can be seen in the pictures/video. This is my first creation on Instructables, so hopefully I haven't forgotten something important. If you think there's something missing, leave a comment." [...]

HotKeys Keyboard With Custom Profiles

"Being an Industrial Designer, I need to access more than 7-8 software which includes Solidworks, Photoshop, Illustrator, Keyshot, Indesign, etc. on a daily basis and yes few games also. So, I experienced two issues from which this device comes to its existence. Scattered Keys - The complete hand travels over the keyboard in search of a key that exists at the opposite corner like ESC and ENTER key. Similarly, there are more than 15 keys that I use only in Solidworks and those are scattered all around the keyboard. So, instead of changing my keyboard preferences, again and again, I looked for a mini keyboard that can be customized according my needs." [...]

Heart Visualizer | See Your Heart Beat

"We have all either felt or heard our heart beating but not many of us have seen it. This was the thought that made me start with this project. A simple way to visually see your heartbeat using a Heart sensor and also teaching you basics about electronics and robotics along with being fun to use and appealing to look at. I hope you have fun making it! ELECTRONICS Arduino Nano Servo SG90 MAX30100 Pulse Oximeter SpO2 and Heart-Rate Sensor Module 4.7kohm resistors (x 3) Micro USB Female jack (power input) Perfboard Male and female pin header connectors FASTENERS M3*10mm (x20) M3*10mm (x20) M3*25mm (x4) M3 Nuts (x50) OTHER MATERIALS Acrylic sheet Standoff 40mm (x2) 25mm (x4) Brass rod 16.5cm length 2mm diameter TOOLS Soldering Iron 3D printer" [...]

Monitor Your Garage Door using a Wemos D1 mini

"A garage door opener with monitoring state (open/close) using an ESP8266. So a few years back, I was doing some cleanup in my basement and I found a storage box full of electronic items (stuff that I paid 10c for a pack of capacitors somewhere in 1988!) when I was in college … I was ready to give everything away when a colleague at work (funny part, he too has an electronic background and is very involved in electronic projects, especially with 3D printing – see his channel Science3D) showed me how tinkering was done today using either an ESP8266 or Raspberry Pi. Must of all, how easy it was to connect the ESP8266 to a computer using an Arduino IDE or Visual Studio Code!! After poking the internet for sites like Hackster.io; hackaday.com; instructables.com, etc. I decide it was time for me to give back to the community and share my projects… I’ve done a project to open my garage door using a web interface and a keypad with the help of a Raspberry Pi v3." [...]

20A/40V Integrated Power Module for DC Brushless Motors (BLDC)

"This project is based on STK984-090A which is a fully-integrated inverter with current rating 20A and supply voltage 40V DC. It has been designed to drive the Brushless DC Motors (BLDC) and permanent magnet synchronous motors (PMSM), the module works as output driver which include power stage and current sense circuitry, header connector provided to interface with Arduino or other micro-controller for PWM inputs and current feedback. Screw terminals help to connect the motor and power supply. INA168 IC is a current sensor and measures the current across the internal sense resistor and provides an output voltage. This voltage can be feed to Arduino analog pins to detect the current flowing across the MOSFET’s. LM317 voltage regulator provides 5V DC to power the current sense IC INA168 and other logic circuitry." [...]

Greg’s Harp

"Greg’s Harp is a new string robot I made for my friend Gregor. After the Pythagotron which is a single stringed bass roboter, this is my first attempt to combine three string units to make a polyphonic instrument. Pitch actuators While the Pythagotron features a motor driven carriage which shortens the string to the desired pitch by sliding up and down, for Greg’s Harp I came up with the concept of motorized frets. They make quick changes between chords possible. Since every moFret needs a dedicated servo and driver, we tried to keep the number of needed moFrets low but still enough to allow for playing every possible triad (e.g. c-minor in at least one inversion)." [...]

Single 18650 LiPo Battery to 5V Boost Converter

"This small board is based on the CS5171 boost converter from ON Semiconductor. The board is configured to be used with a single 18650 LiPo battery. The circuit converts single-cell 3.7V LiPo battery voltage to 5V with a load current up to 400mA. Board has been designed to fit on the backside of a single-cell battery holder with a screw. The CS5171 IC is a 280 kHz switching regulator with a high efficiency, 1.5 A integrated switch. " [...]

BandoMIDI

"For years I owned a soundproofed cabin where I played the bandoneon without bothering anybody. I sold this cabin while moving to another flat and faced again the issue of practicing silently. As my day-to-day job is embedded systems, I slowly thought about turning my instrument into a MIDI one. That's how that project came to life. Please find here everything required to make you own (and feel free to contact me)! What it does." [...]

Autopilot for Sailing Boats (Automatic Steering System)

"Let's take a break during navigation while Autopilot follows the route, control it with remote control! Story Preface: I love sailing alone because when a man is on the sea with his sailing boat he got everything he needs to evolve to a greater level. Sailing in raw sea with bad weather can be very hard but if he choose good weather days with sun and nice wind the enjoy will be at maximum. Happiness means infinite horizons, perfect athletic technics, optimal choices, but also human things as a good coke and a tasty sandwich! Exactly in this time come in help Autopilot: it works instead of you meanwhile you have your 5:00pm tea & biscuits on the sea. :-) What Autopilot can do for you: A sailing boat does not have an engine and cannot go along a programmed path from harbour to the beach, then to the fishing spot, turn around the Lighthouse and back, all itself, it cannot." [...]

ESP8266 Digital Radio

"Digital Radio made just from an ESP8266 and a speaker I wanted a simple, easy to make wifi radio with only an ESP8266 and a speaker. The Code is not mine, but I want to show others how to make it running, because it is realy interresting to see how much power the ESP8266 actualy has. " [...]

Reuse Old Laptop's Touchpad to Control a Stepper Motor

"I made this project a few months ago. A few days back, I posted a video of the project on r/Arduino on Reddit. Seeing people getting interested in the project, I decided to make this Instructable where I have made some changes to the Arduino code and added a feature. So, without further ado, let's get started! For this project, you will need: An Arduino microcontroller board A PS/2 touchpad from a laptop(Try to get one with a Synaptics chip onboard) *A ULN2003 stepper motor driver(For unipolar stepper motors(5-wire)) *An L298N stepper motor driver(For bipolar stepper motors(4-wire)) 6 male to female jumper wires(2 for power and 4 for digital signals) A stepper motor A 5-12 volt DC power source(Depending on the stepper motor) Here, the setup is powered from a mobile phone charger that supplies 5-volts to the Arduino board and the stepper driver. Even though the stepper motor is rated for 12-volt, you can use a lower voltage supply if the torque requirements of the motor are not high because using a lower voltage supply will keep the motor as well as the driver cooler." [...]

LPG gas detecting and alerting system using BOLT IOT

"This project uses Internet of Things technology to detect and alert LPG gas leakage. In this project the device detects the LPG gas leakage and alerts the person by sending a sms, and a Email. The person may be present in a different part of the house or he might not be present in his house and might have gone outside unaware of the gas leakage. I decided to make this project because many people die because of there silly mistakes and when they commit those mistakes no one is there to tell them if they are home alone. The device has a BOLT WIFI module integrated with a MQ-2 LPG gas sensor and a BUZZER. The gas sensor collects the data and sends it over the cloud i.e Digital Ocean.If the gas value crosses a threshold, immediately a sms and an email is sent to the person and the buzzer starts giving sound to alert the person." [...]

ISS Tracker with an ESP8266

"This project notifies you when the ISS rises above the horizon and it is time for you to go out and watch it. With this project you always know when you can observe the International Space Station in the sky: An OLED display shows you the time and duration of the next pass, and as soon as the ISS rises above the horizon, an LED signals that it's time to go out. The ISS orbits the Earth every 90 minutes - not always directly above your head, but you still have several opportunities every day to observe its overflight. The best time to do this is early in the morning or late in the evening at dusk. Here the ISS is illuminated by the sun and the sky is still/already dark enough to be seen with the naked eye. How the ISS Tracker works The main building block for this project is the API of open-notify.org - a free service that calculates when the ISS will be visible in the sky at your location." [...]

PULSE OXIMETER for EMERGENCY use during CORONAVIRUS DISEASE

"This simple project want help people and institution in this Emergency. A pulse oximeter for fast reaction to the Covid-19. This simple project want help people and institution in this Emergency. The difficult reperibility of fundamental device that in standard situation are the base in all the Hospitals is a huge problem, as also the shortage of personal protection devices.." [...]

DIY Ultra Sensitive EMF Detector

"A simple to build, but very sensitive electromagnetic field detector. This is a simple device capable of detecting very weak electromagnetic fields. The relative field intensity is displayed on the LCD display and at the same time are given a buzzer sound signalization and LED light signalization. In this case the sensor is a plain copper wire, with a 1.5mm diameter, but you can use any piece of wire or metal tile. Sensitivity can be adjusted via code, and also by changing the value of the resistor connected between A0 and grounding. With the help of a switch, one of the two values of the resistor is selected, and thus the degree of sensitivity of the device." [...]

Make Your Own Tetris Game with Meadow

"In this project we're going to learn how easy is to make our very own Tetris game with a 2 axis analog joystick and a MAX7219 LED dot matrix display. To write the logic for these peripherals, we'll use Meadow.Foundation, and use the Graphics Library to implement the gameplay (which we've made an intro project on a TFT SPI display). Meadow.Foundationa platform for quickly and easily building connected things using.NET on Meadow. Created by Wilderness Labs, it's completely open source and maintained by the Wilderness Labs community. If you're new working with Meadow, I suggest you go to the Getting Started w/ Meadow by Controlling the Onboard RGB LEDproject to properly set up your development environment. " [...]

WiFi Netspeed Monitor

"ESP tool to measure the performance of an WiFi network. The data is transferred to the Circus-Of-Things platform for viewing and monitoring. The telephone and Internet providers are promising high availability. At least when they compete for you as a customer. The reality then often looks like that it happens frequently that you are offline at home. OK, I admit that it was worse in the past." [...]

Advanced Irrigation System

"Redesigned approach with Implementation of Decision Tree for better parameter analysis with alert and control provided by 3rd party app. The Smart Irrigation System is an IoT based device which is capable of automating the irrigation process by analyzing the moisture of soil and the climate condition (like raining). Soil Parameters like soil moisture, pH, Humidity are measured and the Pressure sensor and the sensed values are displayed in an OLED panel and also on a mobile application. The need of automated irrigation system is to overcome over irrigation and under irrigation. The purpose of smart irrigation system is that to defeat the conventional methods of irrigation done by farmers. The conventional methods were the one in which the farmer did everything manually by user interaction with the motors, pump etc." [...]