Latest Consumer Electronics Technical Articles

This project brief provides the instructions for building a weight-sensitive LED lamp with an Arduino Uno and a handful…

This project brief provides the instructions for building a weight-sensitive LED lamp with an Arduino Uno and a handful of commercially available parts.

To complete this project, we add backlight control and temperature-sensing functionality to the clock we built in the…

To complete this project, we add backlight control and temperature-sensing functionality to the clock we built in the previous installments.

We continue our design of a clock that uses analog ammeters to display time and temperature. In this installment, we…

We continue our design of a clock that uses analog ammeters to display time and temperature. In this installment, we examine the second of the two circuits that enable the timekeeping function.

This project turns old-school analog ammeters into a working clock that can also display the ambient temperature.

This project turns old-school analog ammeters into a working clock that can also display the ambient temperature.

The phase-locked loop (PLL) is widely used in contemporary analog and digital communication systems. In this article, we…

The phase-locked loop (PLL) is widely used in contemporary analog and digital communication systems. In this article, we develop a nonlinear model for the analog PLL by analyzing its key components.

In Part 2 of this two-part series, we turn our hardware assembly into a functioning soundboard by adding the necessary…

In Part 2 of this two-part series, we turn our hardware assembly into a functioning soundboard by adding the necessary code in Arduino IDE and uploading soundbites.

Learn how to turn an ATmega328 microcontroller and an assortment of readily available parts into a dedicated hardware soundboard.

Learn how to turn an ATmega328 microcontroller and an assortment of readily available parts into a dedicated hardware soundboard.

Follow my upgrade of a handheld game controller as I add a new 1.8-inch color LCD for animated graphics and an…

Follow my upgrade of a handheld game controller as I add a new 1.8-inch color LCD for animated graphics and an accelerometer module for motion control input.

In this Radio Shack Classic Circuits Remix, we add modern microcontroller functionality to the vintage Electronic Timer…

In this Radio Shack Classic Circuits Remix, we add modern microcontroller functionality to the vintage Electronic Timer project for the Science Fair 65-in-1 kit.

In this article, we explore the advantages of introducing an air gap to the magnetic core of an inductor.

In this article, we explore the advantages of introducing an air gap to the magnetic core of an inductor.

This article demonstrates the operation of an LTspice shift register and discusses details of its schematic and timing…

This article demonstrates the operation of an LTspice shift register and discusses details of its schematic and timing relationships.

In this article, we use a SPICE model for 90 nm CMOS to plot key electrical relationships of an NMOS transistor.

In this article, we use a SPICE model for 90 nm CMOS to plot key electrical relationships of an NMOS transistor.

Current briefly flows through both transistors during logic-level transitions. This article explores the resulting power…

Current briefly flows through both transistors during logic-level transitions. This article explores the resulting power dissipation and provides some helpful LTspice tips for measuring current and power.

When a CMOS inverter switches logic states, power is consumed due to its charging and discharging currents. Learn how to…

When a CMOS inverter switches logic states, power is consumed due to its charging and discharging currents. Learn how to simulate these currents in LTspice.

This article explains dynamic and static power consumption in a CMOS inverter circuit.

This article explains dynamic and static power consumption in a CMOS inverter circuit.

This article discusses the following basic concepts related to magnetic materials: the magnetic dipole moment,…

This article discusses the following basic concepts related to magnetic materials: the magnetic dipole moment, magnetization vectors, susceptibility, and permeability.

Though both standards have long been used for serial communication, RS-485 offers valuable features that aren't available…

Though both standards have long been used for serial communication, RS-485 offers valuable features that aren't available from RS-232. Learn more in this article.

In this project, which uses the Arduino IDE, we create and demonstrate a digital drawing pad using an ESP32-based e-paper…

In this project, which uses the Arduino IDE, we create and demonstrate a digital drawing pad using an ESP32-based e-paper display dev board, rotary encoders for drawing control, and an accelerometer for shake detection to initiate an erase.

Learn how to design the battery array that best fits your system’s power requirements. This article will help you…

Learn how to design the battery array that best fits your system’s power requirements. This article will help you interpret battery specifications, estimate operating life, and understand the relationship between capacity, load, and environment.