Posts with «radio shack's the great create» label

Tracking Solar Brightness with a Homemade Sun Logger

The Sun Logger, a data logging device, combines several components we’ve used in previous Weekend Projects. You may recognize the light-sensitive photoresistor (Optical Tremolo Box) and the Arduino Uno microcontroller (Touchless 3D Tracking Interface). These parts, when combined with a 74AHC125 Level Shifter and SD card socket mounted on a homemade “shield,” will record the levels of light shining down on your project box. That data, recorded every 15 seconds to the SD card, can be exported later to any popular spreadsheet software and graphed, giving you a visual representation of light changes over time. This data could aid in knowing where best to plant a garden, or simply to understand changes of light intensity throughout the seasons in your micro-climate.

And while this project is readymade for recording levels of sunlight, the Arduino has a total of six analog inputs (labeled A0 – A5) and could easily record other variables. For example temperature, motion, or barometric pressure. Makers looking for a mid-level Arduino build, or knowledgeable coders looking to solder together their first homemade shield, the Sun Logger is a great project to build!


Filed under: Arduino, MAKE Projects, Weekend Projects
MAKE » Arduino 06 Sep 23:49
74ahc125  arduino  data logger  enclosure  log  logger  make projects  perfboard  photoresistor  project box  radio shack's the great create  radioshack  sd card  solar  sun  sun logger  weekend projects  

Build a Touchless 3D Tracking Interface with Everyday Materials


Combine low-tech materials with some high-tech components and build a completely Touchless 3D Tracking Interface. Explore capacitive sensing by using several panels of cardboard lined with aluminum foil. These panels, when charged, create electric fields that correspond to X, Y, and Z axes to create a 3D cube. With the aid of an Arduino microcontroller and some supplied code, movements inside the cube are tracked as your hand moves around inside the field.

For Weekend Projects makers looking for an introduction to Arduino, this is a great project to learn from. Once you’ve gathered all your parts, this project should only take a couple hours to complete – you’ll be playing 3D Tic Tac Toe before the weekend is over!

Once your touchless 3D tracker is up and running, what you do with it is only limited by your own imagination! The original implementation of this project comes from media artist Kyle McDonald, who has suggested the following uses and applications:

  • Make an RGB or HSB color picker
  • Control video or music parameters; sequence a beat or melody
  • Large, slightly bent surface with multiple plates + a projector = “Minority Report” interface

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Filed under: Arduino, MAKE Projects, Weekend Projects
MAKE » Arduino 10 Aug 21:00
3d  alligator clip  aluminum foil  arduino  capacitance  capacitor  cardboard  interface  make projects  processing  radio shack's the great create  radioshack  touchless  tracking  weekend projects