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

Canon IR Remote Control

After striking out at the Electronics Flea Market Saturday, I stopped at Fry's for a fresh pair of clippers and soldering tips, and picked up a small case too-- a Serpac M4. I used some free protoboard Laen sent me (THANKS!) to build a simple Arduino-compatible circuit to fit inside it, with a single button and IR LED, powered by three LR44 (AG13, 357, etc.) button cell batteries; basically a mutetater circuit with one LED instead of four.

Following Martin Koch's code example, I got the circuit to trigger my 350D's shutter, making it functionally equivalent to a Canon RC-5 remote control. Using an ATmega168 is overkill though: most pins go unused, and it nearly drained the three LR44 batteries when left on all night.

I figured putting it to sleep would solve the power consumption problem, so I modified the ArduinoSleepCode example from the Arduino Playground to make the D2 button both wake it up from sleep and trigger the shutter. It doesn't need to be awake for any time at all really before going into "SLEEP_MODE_PWR_DOWN": the wake up function triggers a shutter release event; currently it sleeps after five seconds. This will be a key feature of the mutetater and a more complete intervalometer-- using a button or a DS1337 clock alarm to wake up when needed.

Files:

• Arduino sketch (zipped),
• EAGLE CAD schematic file,
• EAGLE CAD board file

Mute-tater lives!

I've been working on the mutetater program and board, and have it mostly sorted out, including the bulk of the mounting details. I etched a small 1-sided board to hold my old Arduino Mini, with transistors rigged like the TV-B-Gone v1.2, and headers for four LEDs, a button, ftdi programming cable, and 5V power. I'm using a Bodhilabs "VPack" with a single cr2032 to get 5V, and its header works nicely for mounting a power switch. It all fits in the foam potato, so now to figure out the button and LED mounting.

Prioritizing Projects

Too many parts and projects lying around-- need to nail down an order and finish something soon!

PPAC should be the first priority-- I've gotten it to work, but attempts at packaging it have been held up by the fact that I'm still not sure about UI and whether I even want to use high pressure air or a pump. Would be great for a contest, but not unless it's (1) done and (2) demonstrated through video. First-things-first time:

• EAGLE: set up with display, jog/shuttle, RTC, buttons, switch, power, and output. Don't worry about whether output is to relays or oo's,
• Arduino: get a good program working on the breadboarded circuit,
• Figure out best fill/empty plan,
• THEN start laying it out in 3D for the final build.

Next up (while figuring out ppac fill/empty plan) is a working growduino with relays, no sensing, no logging, and no solar-- don't try everything at once! Better to get something growing.

The invervalometer is so close, but needs:

• To be reeled back to the breadboard after the stuffing problem-- Arduino OK?!
• Panasonic-capable trigger,
• Serious power system consideration.

The mutetater should be a simple build:

• Limit to Sony since that's easy to read, and I have Samid's old Sony TV,
• Breadboard > potato should be simple using a dorkboard with female header pins.

IR receiving success

Following this example on rtfa.net, I'm reading remote codes from all of my Sony remote controls-- works like a charm! Need to make sense of the Arduino timing code, then I'll try the RC5 example from 5volt.eu.

Update: I programmed all of the codes for my RMT-V203A and even took it apart to put the window back in and to try getting FF to work-- still no good. Found a list of Sony VCR codes and commands, and it looks like that's them, with 1408 added, or 10110000000.

Mutetater: IR work

I was able to get an IR LED to snap the trigger on my Rebel XT following jaycee's example in the Arduino forum-- pretty simple code.

It looks like I'll need to use more complicated, standard remote control protocols for "mute"-- RC5, RC5X and RC6 come up in searches, and Allesandro Lambardi did much of the legwork programming Arduino to read RC5 signals.

Time to dig through the TV-B-Gone threads at Limor's forums...

Ping... ing... ing...

Using a bunch of Arduinos for projects, it makes sense to post about it to help keep track of what I'm doing.

Current in-progress projects:

• PPAC: Princess and the Pea Alarm clock: "pea" inflates to eject whiny princess (or, um, me) from bed,
• Intervalometer-in-a-jar or "intervalomejar": time lapse camera controller with beam break, light level, and audio triggers,
• Mutetater: TV mute control with a potato (seriously),
• EL-wire suit: audio level meter of EL-wire,
• Cheapo general-purpose PID-based temperature controller,
• Growduino w/logging, solar power,
• Smart shower controller,
• [more...]