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Build an Audio Detector

Build an Audio Detector

Detect audio with an electret microphone and a TI CC3200 Wifi microcontroller. This handy project will allow you to set up an audio detection device that can be used to catch your roommate stealing things from the fridge or send you an alert if the noise in your room goes above a certain threshold.


How to Use a DHT11 with a PIC16F628A and LCD

How to Use a DHT11 with a PIC16F628A and LCD

How to read humidity and temperature from a DHT11 and display it on a LCD with a PIC microcontroller. In this example we're going to use a PIC16F628A.


Ambient Light Monitor: Understanding and Implementing the ADC

Ambient Light Monitor: Understanding and Implementing the ADC

Part 2 in the "How to Make an Ambient Light Monitor" Series. Our smart ambient light monitor will need to digitize and analyze signals from an optical detector, so it is time to explore the EFM8’s integrated analog-to-digital conversion functionality.


Projects Aug 05, 2015 by Robert Keim
Ambient Light Monitor: Measuring and Interpreting Ambient Light Levels

Ambient Light Monitor: Measuring and Interpreting Ambient Light Levels

Part 3 in the “How to Make an Ambient Light Monitor” series. The project continues by building an ambient light sensor circuit on a breadboard, digitizing the circuit’s output signals, and interpreting the digitized measurements.


Projects Aug 05, 2015 by Robert Keim
Transmit Temperature with Raspberry Pi

Transmit Temperature with Raspberry Pi

How to interface a Raspberry Pi to an I2C temperature sensor (TMP102) and then publish the data to a Google sheet and graph.


Ambient Light Monitor: Display Measurements on an LCD

Ambient Light Monitor: Display Measurements on an LCD

Learn how to use an EFM8 microcontroller to convert current and voltage measurements to digits that can be displayed on an LCD. We'll discuss a convenient way to report analog-to-digital conversion values that represent current and voltage amplitudes.


Projects Jul 26, 2015 by Robert Keim
How to Display an Image on an LCD using an EFM8 Microcontroller

How to Display an Image on an LCD using an EFM8 Microcontroller

Use the EFM8’s USB functionality to transfer an image from your PC to an LCD.


Projects Jul 24, 2015 by Robert Keim
How to Make an Interactive TCP Server with NodeMCU on the ESP8266

How to Make an Interactive TCP Server with NodeMCU on the ESP8266

Learn how to connect your device with Linux Screen using the built-in Lua interpreter to set up the file system and connect to the network. Then, learn how to automate the scripting process with Luatool and put it all together with a basic TCP server that can interact with a pulse-width modulated LED, a potentiometer, and a switch.


Projects Jul 22, 2015 by Patrick Lloyd
Guts of the IoT: Building NodeMCU from Source for the ESP8266

Guts of the IoT: Building NodeMCU from Source for the ESP8266

Compile and install NodeMCU on the ESP8266 IoT chip using Linux tools and the ESP Open Source SDK


Projects Jul 18, 2015 by Patrick Lloyd
Introduction to Arduino SPI Library with LTC1286 and DAC714

Introduction to Arduino SPI Library with LTC1286 and DAC714

Introduction to the Arduino SPI Library with example sketch for the LTC1286 12 Bit ADC and the DAC714 16 bit DAC.


Projects Jul 17, 2015 by Aaron Dennis
Communicating with an EFM8 Microcontroller via USB

Communicating with an EFM8 Microcontroller via USB

Many embedded applications benefit from a communications interface that allows for convenient data transfer between a PC and a microcontroller. This article explains how to use the virtual COM port library from Silicon Laboratories to send data from a Windows application to an EFM8 microcontroller.


Projects Jul 17, 2015 by Robert Keim
Raspberry Pi – Setup and Management

Raspberry Pi – Setup and Management

When you buy a Raspberry Pi, you just buy a printed circuit board which doesn’t even come with a power supply or operating system. This tutorial is concerned with getting your Raspberry Pi set up and ready to use.


Projects Jul 15, 2015 by Tim Youngblood
Use a PICAXE Microcontroller to Read and Display Temperature

Use a PICAXE Microcontroller to Read and Display Temperature

The 08M2 is the smallest member of the PICAXE family of microcontrollers; it is inexpensive, versatile, and easy to program using free software.


Build Your Own Alarm System with an LM386 Amplifier and an NPN Transistor

Build Your Own Alarm System with an LM386 Amplifier and an NPN Transistor

Build an analog booby-trap alarm system with an LM386 amplifier and an NPN transistor. This alarm system is activated by a trip sensor that sets off a screeching noise, alerting everyone and scaring off thieves.


Projects Jul 13, 2015 by Patrick Lloyd
Displaying Characters on an LCD with an EFM8 Microcontroller

Displaying Characters on an LCD with an EFM8 Microcontroller

Learn how to design characters using an image editor and display them on an LCD controlled by an EFM8 microcontroller.


Projects Jul 13, 2015 by Robert Keim
Controlling an LCD via SPI: An Introduction to Project Development with an EFM8 Microcontroller

Controlling an LCD via SPI: An Introduction to Project Development with an EFM8 Microcontroller

A simple LCD control project with an EFM8 evaluation board demonstrates basic principles of embedded development.


Projects Jul 08, 2015 by Robert Keim
Keep Your Cool: Monitor Temperature with an Arduino

Keep Your Cool: Monitor Temperature with an Arduino

The LM35 is an ideal temperature sensor for measuring ambient temperature. It provides a linear output proportional to the temperature, with 0 V corresponding to 0 degrees C and an output voltage change of 10 mV for each degree C change. LM35s are easier to use than thermistors and thermocouples because they are so linear and require no signal conditioning.


Projects Jun 28, 2015 by Tim Youngblood
Feel the Rainbow: Sensing Color with an Arduino

Feel the Rainbow: Sensing Color with an Arduino

Since different colors reflect different levels of light, you can use a photoresistor or a phototransistor to sense different colors.


Projects Jun 26, 2015 by Tim Youngblood
Reading and Writing Files from an SD Card with an Arduino

Reading and Writing Files from an SD Card with an Arduino

In some Arduino applications, it is advantageous to be able to store and retrieve information locally. You can do this with a Secure Digital, or SD, card. An SD card is a non-volatile memory card used extensively in portable devices, such as mobile phones, digital cameras, GPS navigation devices, handheld consoles, and tablet computers. Another type of SD Card is the Micro SD card. Measuring only 15 mm x 11 mm x 1 mm, it is the smallest memory card available. It is about one-quarter the size of a normal-sized SD card, or about the size of a fingernail.


Projects Jun 23, 2015 by Tim Youngblood
Reading Sensors with an Arduino

Reading Sensors with an Arduino

The ease with which an Arduino can obtain sensor values is one of the features that makes it so useful.


Projects Jun 18, 2015 by Tim Youngblood