CCCKC Soldering Workshop - Jan 10, 2009
December 22nd, 2008
Free Soldering Workshop
CCCKC Soldering Workshop
Please RSVP by contacting Carol at the HMS
Beagle Science Store (816) 5879998, seating is
limited.
Date: January 10, 2009
Time: 1:00pm to 4:00pm or
4:00pm to 7:00pm
Location: HMS Beagle Science Store
180 English Landing Drive
Parkville, MO 64152
Unlock the world of electronics by learning to solder.
This workshop is designed to help you get the feel for soldering electronic components on circuit
boards. We will concentrate on through hole electronic components used by most DIY kits popular
among hobbyists and inventors.
We will cover soldering safety, care for the soldering iron, proper soldering techniques and how to
remove parts using desoldering tools. We’ll finish the session by building the MintyBoost kit.
The MintyBoost lets you recharge your iPod or other USB connected devices from 2AA batteries all
tucked inside an Altoids tin.
Featured Project: MintyBoost
Featured Project: MintyBoost
Bring your own Altoids tins
Preorder your MintyBoost through the HMS
Beagle store $22.95 by Dec. 26, 2008
Or you can purchase online directly from AdaFruit
Industries www.adafruit.com
About HMS Beagle Science Store:
The coolest store in KC
Check out their science blog.
About CCCKC – Cowtown Computer Congress Kansas City
CCCKC is a grassroots organization of tinkerers, hackers, explorers, artists, inventors and technology enthusiasts in the Kansas City area.
For more information go to: www.CowtownComputerCongress.org
Check out our CCCKC Blog.
Wearable Arduino Project.
December 15th, 2008
I worked on a prototype recently that is going to be part of a wearable device. The project used an Arduino Mini Pro. This is a great device, very compact and operated at the required 3.3V target voltage. We needed a platform for attaching the electronic circuitry that would be flexible and heat resistant so I bought some ironing board fabric. I poked some wires through the fabric to see how well it would survive the heat from a soldering iron and it did great. I bought a needlepoint hoop to stretch out the fabric that helped keep everything in place while assembling this device. Once assembled the fabric will be cut to size and sewn into clothing.
Arduino mini pro attached to fabric in a wearable electronics project.
Looking for Flexible Circuit Alternatives
A promising DIY approach looks like silkscreen using a Diazo photo emulsion to create the screened image. The next challenge is finding a conductive ink compatible with the silkscreen process while remaining flexible. A trip to the art store didn’t provide any off the shelf solutions. Actually there are several challenges with this process. Affordability of ink, keeping the ink pliable after curing, maintaining a high level of conductivity, and attaching electronic components without solder.
My next step is to experiment mixing my own paints. Figure 2 shows some screen printing paint for shirts I bought. I’ve tried some initial tests using powdered conductive materials, graphite, aluminum, and copper.
Homebrew experiment using metalic powder and silkscreen tee shirt paint.
For more details check: Desktop Fabrication: Wearable Electronics Circuitry
Gustav, The Hackerspace Butler
December 4th, 2008
Early in October, I found a spooky life size robotic butler at a yard sale, and I couldn’t help myself. The robot has servos to move the head, the eyes, the chest (breathing), and a speaker mounted in the chest. Out of the box, the robot would say things and move its head and eyes when someone walks by, but I don’t like keeping things working as they do out of the box.
Me with Gustav right after I took him out of the box (and gave him my hat)
Immediately after I got home, I cut the wires running from the base of the robot where the microcontroller and motion sensor are to the body of the robot where all the servos are. After some discussion with CCCKC members, I decided the first hack for this would be to hook the eyes and the head to a remote control. To do this, I bought a $15 remote control car from RadioShack and clipped the wires. A little soldering, and I now had a remote control for the robot’s head and eyes.
There was still the chest servo that I wanted to hook up, but the car’s radio only had 2 channels and I was already using them both. The chest servo was originally activated during a “sleep mode” in which the robot would start snoring. Since snoring isn’t very scary, I decided to just have this servo move in and out on its own. This required the design of a circuit. Since I have next to no experience designing circuits, this cheap hack requires 3 separate battery packs, but hey, it works.
Here is the circuit that makes Gustav's chest move in and out
This circuit is a 555 timer hooked up to a DPDT relay via a transistor. The result is the servo moves in one direction for about 4 seconds, and then switches and moves the other direction for 4 seconds. As I said, it’s a cheap hack, but it works.
I ended up lending the robot to a not-for-profit haunted house in North Kansas City, and it was a huge hit. I plan on putting this robot in the hackerspace for anyone to hack, so ideas are welcome in the comments.