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C-BISCUIT: Schematic Design for the RCB—Power, Stepper

C-BISCUIT: Schematic Design for the RCB—Power, Stepper

We’ll continue our discussion of the C-BISCUIT demo bot by looking at portions of the RCB schematic that weren’t covered in the previous article.


Projects Oct 07, 2016 by Robert Keim
The Affordable LiDAR Movement—Researchers Aim to Drastically Reduce Sensor Costs

The Affordable LiDAR Movement—Researchers Aim to Drastically Reduce Sensor Costs

As of today, we are always looking to innovate our products as well as create new ones to make things more simplistic. Whether it be fully autonomous vehicles, agriculture, or marine surveying, companies are engineering a more efficient and cost-effective LiDAR systems to make these a reality.


News Sep 29, 2016 by Donald Krambeck
Industrial Instrumentation and Control: An Introduction to the Basic Principles

Industrial Instrumentation and Control: An Introduction to the Basic Principles

In part one of this instrumentation and control (I & C) series, we'll go over the fundamental terminology and concepts used when working with industrial plants.


Engineer Spotlight: FarmBot’s Rory Aronson Explains the Challenges and Benefits of Automated Farming

Engineer Spotlight: FarmBot’s Rory Aronson Explains the Challenges and Benefits of Automated Farming

FarmBot is an automated system that can plant, weed, and grow vegetables organically. Here at AAC, we interviewed Rory Aronson of the brilliant FarmBot team to get a better understanding of this invention!


News Sep 23, 2016 by Robin Mitchell
C-BISCUIT: Schematic Design for the RCB—Microcontroller, Motor Controller

C-BISCUIT: Schematic Design for the RCB—Microcontroller, Motor Controller

In this article we’ll take a close look at two sections of the custom-designed control board for the C-BISCUIT demo bot.


Projects Sep 21, 2016 by Robert Keim
Engineer Spotlight: Kunal Chaudhary on Designing IoT Home Automation (Inspired by Hal9000)

Engineer Spotlight: Kunal Chaudhary on Designing IoT Home Automation (Inspired by Hal9000)

The Dot uses location to add context to notifications.


News Sep 19, 2016 by Ebony Calloway
Build an Arduino BLE-Enabled Indoor Air Quality Monitor

Build an Arduino BLE-Enabled Indoor Air Quality Monitor

Use an Arduino/Genuino 101 with iAQ-Core air quality and HIH-6131 temperature/humidity sensors to make an Indoor Air Quality Monitor with Bluetooth low energy (BLE) connectivity.


Create a PID Controller on the NI myRIO—The Hardware

Create a PID Controller on the NI myRIO—The Hardware

In this short project article series, we will implement a simple PID controller using LabVIEW with a hobby DC servo motor and NI myRIO.


Projects Sep 12, 2016 by Mark Narvidas
C-BISCUIT: Robot System Architecture

C-BISCUIT: Robot System Architecture

The C-BISCUIT saga continues as we combine the various system components into a demo bot.


Projects Sep 08, 2016 by Robert Keim
Understanding MOSFET On-State Drain-to-Source Resistance

Understanding MOSFET On-State Drain-to-Source Resistance

This technical brief covers some useful details regarding a common MOSFET parameter referred to as on-state resistance.


Soft Robotics Octopus Arms Bring Flexibility to Robotic Movement

Soft Robotics Octopus Arms Bring Flexibility to Robotic Movement

Cephalopods have no rigid structures in their bodies and can adjust their bodies to fit the size and shape to the environment. A robot with similar properties would have an advantage in search and rescue environments if it could squeeze through openings other robots could not.


News Aug 25, 2016 by Mark Hughes
Build a Wireless “Tipping Bucket” Rain Gauge, Part 3—Receiver, PICAXE, and LCD

Build a Wireless “Tipping Bucket” Rain Gauge, Part 3—Receiver, PICAXE, and LCD

Here's a rain gauge that empties itself and that you can read from your easy chair. Best of all, you can build it, yourself.


Google DeepMind Is Using Machine Learning to Cut Its Energy Usage

Google DeepMind Is Using Machine Learning to Cut Its Energy Usage

Google's artificial intelligence company, DeepMind, is using machine learning to help reduce energy use in Google's sprawling data centers.


News Aug 19, 2016 by Donald Krambeck
Build a Wireless “Tipping Bucket” Rain Gauge, Part 2—Adding the Transmitter

Build a Wireless “Tipping Bucket” Rain Gauge, Part 2—Adding the Transmitter

A tipping bucket rain gauge is a clever way to measure rainfall. Learn how to add wireless capability, a PICAXE microcontroller, and an LCD display to your weather station.


Build a Wireless “Tipping Bucket” Rain Gauge, Part 1—Assembling the Bucket

Build a Wireless “Tipping Bucket” Rain Gauge, Part 1—Assembling the Bucket

A tipping bucket rain gauge, an RF transmitter and receiver, a PICAXE microcontroller, and an LCD can make a great addition to your weather station.


DEF CON 24 Roundup: 2016 Hacker Conference

DEF CON 24 Roundup: 2016 Hacker Conference

A roundup of the top stories from this year's DEF CON Hacking Convention in Las Vegas.


News Aug 08, 2016 by Kate Smith
What Does Elon Musk’s Master Plan, Part Deux Have in Store?

What Does Elon Musk’s Master Plan, Part Deux Have in Store?

A discussion of Musk's past success and future plans.


News Aug 04, 2016 by Seth Schaffer
TDK Acquires Tronics, Adds More Sensors to IoT War Chest

TDK Acquires Tronics, Adds More Sensors to IoT War Chest

TDK's acquisition of Tronics is a harbinger of the upcoming realignments in the sensor industry.


News Aug 03, 2016 by Majeed Ahmad
Tesla vs Google: Do LIDAR Sensors Belong in Autonomous Vehicles?

Tesla vs Google: Do LIDAR Sensors Belong in Autonomous Vehicles?

Elon Musk has made some bold comments about Google's self-driving car that uses LIDAR. However, Google is using LIDAR for different reasons than Tesla would in their Autopilot systems.


News Jul 24, 2016 by Donald Krambeck
Rapid Analysis of BJT Switch/Driver Circuits

Rapid Analysis of BJT Switch/Driver Circuits

This technical brief explains a quick, straightforward procedure for evaluating a switch/driver circuit based on an NPN bipolar junction transistor.