Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Workshop!

After over a month of planning, boxing, and finally moving into a new home, I'm ready to get back to projects working in a dedicated workshop/office space!

Arduino-based projects, all within reach:
  • Mutetater: get it working for the Sharp TV I have, at least. This is more a challenge of IR encoding/decoding than anything else, so I'll reel back my code and try to re-approach the examples I've looked through before.
  • Resurrect Growduino for an herb garden on the upper desk, easy since there are power outlets available so I can sidestep solar power issues for now and get stuff growing.
  • Net-enabled coffee grinder timer so it can be controlled through a simple web interface, via an iPhone on the local network. I think it would mostly involve working with the ethernet shield, then maybe "shield-ifying" the grinder timer or building ethernet capability into the single-PCB circuit. Then I can start building out a control system for the Gaggia Classic.
  • Remote-controlled curtain system for the TV. Mostly involving IR decoding, simple (MOSFET) motor control, some limit switches, mounting hardware, and sewing.
  • PPAC: um, why aren't the relays firing?! Buttons work, so I need to disassemble it and check the output pins, then position the "pea" for exciting wake-up sequences.
  • Intervalometer ("intervalomejar"?): get a simple one working for timelapse using the FSM (Finite State Machine, not Flying Spaghetti Monster) library.
I'll add more later, just want to get a list going so I can start building some test sketches. Other tech to sketch for more complex projects:
  • PID for temperature and motor control
  • Temperature sensing for PID control: thermocouples