Category Archives: Uncategorized

Blink proximity detection

This detector works by flashing an LED and comparing photocell readings with LED off and on to subtract ambient light and determine if there is an object in front of the robot which the LED light is reflecting from. Since … Continue reading →

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RGB LED Illumination for Figurine Display Box

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If I had a 3D printer . . . .

. . . I’d print me some of these: Reason: I go for walks with my MP3 player, and when the battery dies midway, I have to swap out a new battery. But carrying a battery in a pocket is … Continue reading →

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The Computer Inside You

When I was a kid back in the 1960s, I mentioned to some other kids on the school bus that I had read a science-speculation article about being able to integrate computers with the human brain. I thought it was … Continue reading →

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Schematic Diagrams in Sketchup

Paint and Sketchup are the only drawing programs that I know how to use. Paint has become miserable with Windows 7, so that it is almost impossible to draw a straight line, let alone a schematic diagram. So I thought … Continue reading →

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RGB display for timer

Today I spent some time thinking about possible simple products that I could market while I continue to work on my robot. One thought that came to mind was a color-coded illuminated egg timer. It would have an RGB LED … Continue reading →

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VU Meter Blues

This microphone break out board does not work, maybe because it needs some capacitors and resistors. So next I’ll try the one that Sparkfun is offering. BTW, I guess someone was in a hurry when they packed the box at … Continue reading →

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Flicker Object Detection

Can a small robot detect objects by flicking a light on and off? If so, then all I need to do in order to add object detection capability is add a small lamp to my robot at a cost of … Continue reading →

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A lamp for Grisbot

If Grisbot is to detect nearby objects by flashing a light on and off, it will need to carry its own lamp. So I went to Radio Shack and bought a few candidates. (NOTE: The packages shown on the right … Continue reading →

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Object detection by photocell

A photocell is a poor substitute for a camera, but it’s a lot cheaper too. So the question for grisbot is whether a photocell is sufficient to detect an object nearby. Here’s one possible solution. Suppose an object — say, … Continue reading →

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