ELECTRONICS © WEARABLES © MICROCONTROLLERS ECTS Paoli HINTEL'S EDISON The Maker- Friendly, Stamp-Sized Computer ” MECH RUNNER Building a 25mph Boot \ 7 makezine.com[WEEKEND PROJECTS aweReD BY Q== BE SAFE, BE BRIGHT AND LOOK COOL T00! Build the EL Cycle. STEVE HOBLEY HAROWARE HACKER When you go fora bicycle ride at night, ‘output voltage will then be transformed Fast. afem words abot steppe motos. They ically you want tobe visible to other cyclists, into 1OO*VAC needed toiluminate two eerecaeea apiece pedestrians and vehicles onthe road, sections of ELwie. Ulimately, you'l deo andyen Oi ers aor, This isnot only for your safety but for need to make some adjustments to the ieameematate ee Sree others as well. Popular options include design of the project to accommodate purchase hen onine tn Motortype KPSEKM2-O18s solid or flashing front and rear lights, your bioycle’s geometry and mounting poe eerio lite benepraahie ‘reflective or brightly colored outerwear points, but the schematic—located at ‘resistance and the motor tums froey then you probably and LED accessories designed to attach _http:/m8k.me/tEtin2m—remains the awardees wes ane ‘everything from wheal spokes to valve caps. same. You'll also require basic workshop ‘askis find which wiresare the collends, Youcan use asec ck Sateen exenent meteor ele et LEDs and other light sources typically and standard hardware for fitting infint! resistance betwoon them. Thasearethe cals require a battery, which has to be everything together. “ens an il ge usthe mos power utp Once you continually recharged or replaced, But icuanplateghtate un paauyieses bbelhschaalahlbt elon tourer anor tare ep nrae light—from the very act of bicycling? . TO 20 wher ng ‘Turn that pedal-power into electricity to illuminate two strands of EL wire wrapped around a bicycle frame. It looks ‘reat and provides everyone else with (ceyou'vefoundagodmato thenest step stofindawhe. ineskate atidd visibility of you and your ride. eco pres rho Sy remove to nrg fr anne : hod iy pokingcat tw nser withapon. Tan wonsdto findawayot cau te whet thentor spd measured he berate Did | mention how cool it looks? ‘priser sane plywodto seas oshings, Atthe heart of EL Cycle isa bipolar stepper motor—a brushless DC electric, motor When coupled with aninine skate Having hooked upouwhed he ex raskistopreparethe asforers. Were ging tus vo wheel that rotates by rubbing up against ‘transformers as stand-alone parts or salvage them from AC power adapters. [recommend a transformer theo ery ral ee will provide you with continuous power side and the EL wire tothe HIGH vottage sie, Wired like this, the transformer will ake our motor output elosu,|used seme UA" pywao, luted #6 woud rows (/8"lng Ye arac thotrnatrmer to the pyc. eu Euroconsectrintotwo4-arninl eck nwt toro (LOW valtageend ack (WH volage ta these locks, Use rubber ands obo he Exacaneceboesin place AdvertBuild the EL Cycle. radioshack com/DIT PARTS EL Wire Blue (2) RadioShack Insulated conduit holders" and" two of each Power inverter for ELwie/tapelpanel (2) RacoShack Vinyl tubing > 12-position European-style mini terminal strip RadioShack Enclosure RadioShack. D Zener diode (4) RatoShck Heat shrink tung RadioShack Transformer (2) RadioShack ‘Speaker wre 2-conductor search RadioShack, om for "speaker wis” 1 plywood uber bands Inn skate wheat iptes RadiShack #6 wood screws Bipolar stopper mator > i nuts and bolts Adhesive tape Bicycle TOOLS > Solderingivon RadaShack Halping hands RadiShack ‘Adjustable wrench © Vise O Solder RadioShack Heat gun RadioShack © Dillan dri bits Wire strippefoutter RadioShack Philips screndrivr D Saw o laser cutter Thel2V Zee dads ae amet ith that wected—tiswllthe AC waveform theta: ‘atom ofthe ee. seed thon, wrapped thane kong and coneed thon ar es LO steer acs, th leas roe Wo po ented the enlsure inverter hou ad ante hata black (HGH lag emialblecks. Later the EL wire ibe con leads. Eachoheeofthamnrisslea civ ent vid powerte tala 20'e EL wie, ich und the a O Next weave to couple th stapperto the bike frame otha the rear wheal ean i 4 hemor and ght he wr, The metal pate bs hatcomes wt the enclosure is & eexingabracert bald i i racket thei isha Noun! heeosxta th seat tbeandthe Teper vivo theta This prided protectin rth EL ie ae QeCOLUMNS Welcome 08 Reader oweredrand Input 09 Protyaphy 8 Teman ¥ Bring the Bids Back Home 10 onshore manutacturing Fully Immersed 11 creator of Nem The Worst Maker in the Room 12 Made on Earth 14 echnaogy Over the Top 112 i dy Intel Edison: Rapid Prototype 26 . The surprising maker b c tiny. powerful come ‘ASmorgas-Board 22 Photographic Memory 28 Wearables and loT are diving diversity in the each ir to spot faces DIY Conductive Ink 30 Underware 53 Mix emade batch u 7 dodert are the cutting edg basic chemists wera Under the Hood 34 Open-Source Smartwatch 54 4 de Bul» conectedwateh em nf components on ren Body Boards 35 Omen at wearer ses, Captivating Couture 5 Projects on the Runway 36 nt she trea fashion she Non show Mind-Reading Beanie 60 Get Your GIF On 61 What to Sense 38 Howto sl wearable elec 4Fun Flora Projects 42 matrix and wear Brin 0 life with this 2 makershed.com8u8 uP Gear UP BOX” lil 9 anette 3D PRINTER UP for Everyone www.UP3D.com MAKING MADE EASY... NOW WITH BLUETOOTH LOW ENERGY CoM anao yee A ale! sst $49 at parts.arrow.comCONTENTS SKILL BUILDERS Digital Potentiometer 94 Create patterns in ight and Extreme Zoom 98 Howto Usea Breadboard 100 PROJECTS Shishi-Odoshi Rocking Fountain 62 with gentla knocking DIY “Magic Shel Chocolate Dip 65 Macically hardens: Dirty Dish Detector 66 Use real-tim soft tatreck dh pe-ups Maker Trainer R/C Airplanes 68 Butea ‘Smart Rat Trap 72 canturyroden contol Infrared Shooting Arcade 76 robe them thiRLED Build-a-Bin Customizable Picking Bins 78 3 Fun Things toCNC 79 The fais u ih irt Backyard Climbing Walt 80 mil give ida real airing wal thot cubles asa hids' playground Workshop Light Doorbell 81 Can't hear the door? Hack a eles dootbel for visual cue Tracking Planes with RTL-SDR 82 Map commercial ight in soltware-deined radi. Remaking History 84 Vfrevetadants. When Projects Fail 86 How a project gone wrong ted o-acafeet in science and tech, Sure-Fire Projects for Young Makers 88 How to make full-body stop mation animati 123: Keyboard Refrigerator Magnets 89 Use old keyboards to make alphabet refrigerator magnet Crypto Currency Tracker 90 Know the current values of dgtal currencies in real-tim jox Fan Beef Jerky 91 Use an ordinary box fan and ai 3 Printer Hacks and Mods 92 Get the most from your 30 Toy Inventor's Notebook 93 Make a magic, moving Vale tine’s Day card makezine.com/43 TOOLBOX Tool Reviews 102 Recommendations for unig and useful maker toals, to {and materials. New Maker Tech 105 the horizan for electronic Books 106 Text tools fr your b vedside table 30 Printer Reviews 108 We test 30 rmakershed.com~ > MAKEZINE COM/SUBSCRIBE“The urge to miniaturize electronics did not ‘exist before the space program. I mean, my ‘our grandparents had radios that were ‘uriture in the living room. Nobody at the ‘time was saying, gee, | want to carry that inmy pocket” Nell deGrasse Tyson regg Brockway Seon Batter Shor te sertaoe ——BROTOSRAPHY Sioverneme — SiuEthenon URTRIS™ Seevic ‘Mike Senese er “SEIOR SALES a Heather Harmon CUSTOMER SERVICE ‘COMMUNITY EDITOR Jutiann Brown ee Kirk renfatnirecom Katy Thornton ceieb eat ose ae — os saseene Ero eee ce CeciyBenzen haat castor nonce nN indy Lum Hep vaca BrigteKunde = ssocarepaccueen Lawige Glasgow Ryan Austin macros dana See EE” eee eee Ket aman TYler Winegarner guexr geamecs ‘Sabrina Merlo tints a oe ee amare care eee GretaLorge foe Mirandala 525800" Yindoraan rome cok mange, ee Welch ao Marteevincent — oeeyponroeans PROURAMS BTA HGRICATONEDTIOR anaciieoRecTOR wae = PustisHep sy fina acknas rane communce ——Suamnetuston aS pina sents me ae DIRECTOR OF ONLINE VICE PRESIDENT OF MARKETING SERVICES: ‘Dale Dougherty aan Horst oc seat uum fone ae Witmer Keliyeters Johanna ding career (Craig Couden Seon Ws osionee awwccronoF varwerne cations Meister coer eiron Josh Wright coorouitoR Repautcn Laurie Barton wen prooucERS trick McCarthy Sarah Slagle ried the USA by fincsieooxs atom Ee brian Jepson avd Beauchamp CONTRIBUTORS eee, Syme ec era = A & ee Rehan Resear Seem SERGE | retest | mectenne : Remioerress, Gerhart | taco | ge | aie iemm | Inoldberad Schemes Etec, | Someta | Sawyer’ | ewan’ | falletghme | Sach rere icieerest | Sram | cue, | teats | tearoom | mest gosemcssiee | seein | Sees, | Satacard | cathontey | SkNeaean Brewin {itetnetody | oroatsteataw | oteraccessores | Pater —Aovodd | UE.USa. anda eno Mamstee | steam: | lelScne™? | recone | Stat cvemceanomreme | Samy | a | Mette, | trent | canoueae feomsoreecremm | cimcas | coors, | Sere | reaver, | carats SREP winaseae, | Tatrcacead” | Slcrtcnwn | etmaasoaa | Sacettas Fete weigetiaty | Bermacaa! | Recmege | Semresane | test early Ons Pease ina given day, Bocts(page dé] | hand Theendsof | could secretly rate martes owmucnotit | seacecondary | thetingerswous | pour my own Sees i ‘wasoverhanging, | meansoffuture | alsoglow, mak- ‘drinks atthe pub. on ae a fp |e ao onto et =. SSremex © makershed.comeevee) Maker Profile: JOS Labs JDS Labs in Glen Carbon, llino's, makes high-end DIY amplifiers and objective digial-to-analog converters (ODAC) based on fpen source hardware designs Founder John Seaber is using his msseteonTormach PCNC 770 to streamline Gitesccw the manufacturing process and — produce high-quality products for the image-conscious audiophile marketplace. Torah PONG 770 Sees 3 seta S6B50 “For us, product appearance is just as important as sound quali audiophiles will return a product that performs well because it’s visually Unpleasant. Cases we machine in-house higher quality than those we had machined by outside shops, because we now have the ability to iterate design and ‘manufacturing changes” Tormach PCNC mils are the utente maker machings, Whether youre @ ‘maker, fader, innenatin oO Dulder a TTormach PCNC wil enable your ideas vith real GNC capetiliy and precision. ‘Dont lot your tools hold back your inngvetion ~ vist view tormach.com. Read the full story at: www.tormach.comiljdslabs ee eT ae ere ee ce ~ PRINTS esr A 20 30 Printers * Ipfrg.com create The Future we aaa osama 8S, é.. we Pirclee Q ror Mb, armen | vuyrait: Sessa [SSIS ‘once Metis | ein ke a eee arsREADER INPUT DIY Lego Cars and Google Glass, and a More Balanced Makerspace this is nitpicking, but the “Geek Club’ image on page 29 of [Make: Volume 40] has some Cer ee oa ete Perec Ee cn Lac acd Se ene Cay ee a ea eee ee ony women are at sewing machines. What's with that? | know our real makerspaces typically have Ce en ea ere ns Ee Preset ecg aed eee oe en ae a og ee eee ee ee ed Pe eee eee ee women ete eas aceon Beyond the illustration, though, we do havea re ee ed Ora ere eee) re gee ea ne een ee eT » Hollo, my name is Clayton. lam I3 years ld, Over the last 2 months Ihave been working on a DIY Google [Make] Volume 38's section on High Tech DIY.Using an Arduino Esplora and Arduino robot screen Ihave made glasses that have three voice controls, software, and temperature. I mounted the Esploca on the side of glasses |3D-printed earlierand puta headband on thebackto kept from tipping to one side are extremely comfortable. Inf them around my house and tel my parents the temperature ust for fun! Clayton, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada FROM THE TWITTERVERSE: 2 Inspired by the cover of newest issue of mag, kiddo made this de-moto run Lego car tonight. Runs; MAKE AMENDS: KNOW you are aware of this, but on page 86 of Volume 41, Dan Spangler says you get “several thousand pounds per square inch af hold-down force securing your workpiece” when you use a vacuum table on your CNC router. That would be nice, butt ain't possible. I'm sure it was a type or editing erro, right? Kevin Hansen Port Townsend, WA [AUTHOR DAN SPANGLER REPLIES: Of course you're correct Kevin, what | meant was several thousand pounds of hld-down force securing the entire workpiece on a ‘ypleal router bed. Thanks forthe sharp eye, In the Tinkering Toys guide in Make: Vol 41, we erroneously named the wood-plank and brackets set on page 99 as Kapla Blocks. These in fact are from Brackitz (brackitz com), with prices starting at $30. Our apologies. © rmakershed.commakezine.com/43, [AS AMAKER, TENAYA HURST IS ALLIN. She's got her own website witha store that sels electronic kits, Her personality shines ina rap video she produced and starredin called "Im So Maker.” She oes by Garduinowoman an Twitter. She teaches a wide range of workshops for adults and children at summer camps and ‘makerspaces. She calls her business Rogue Making, and she s an evangelist fr the ‘company that praduces Linino,a gig she get through a connection made at her frst Maker Faire. Tenaya says that she's always been a maker, yet she recalls the specific day when she discovered olectronics.It ‘was March 16,2013, She was atthe Tech Museum of Innovation in San Jose where she worked as a lab instructor and was ‘asked to participate asa facilitator nan (Open Make session, Her colleague, Romie Littrell, had created ‘a conductive lab coat that could be “played! like a musical instrument, just by touching it. He explained that he had put an Arduino in the pocket of the coat and used pieces of conductive fabric as sensors, ‘When you shook someone's hand, which grounded the circuit, person could ‘play’ the pads by touching ther,” says Tenaya, “It generated all kinds of sounds,” The lab coat was a revelation to her and an intraduetion to the world of wearables, “My mind was ‘completely blown,” she says. "You start playing the fabric Uke a keyboard. I was just so excited.” That lab coat set her on a journey that can be an example to young makers everywhere. After that event, Tenaye sought out people who could help her learn more about Arduino, She attended a workshop arganized ty Make-SF and learned soldering through a project called Bliplace, a nichel-sized microcontroller with sensors ‘and LEDs that reacts to ambient sound. She started to make her own necklaces ‘and earrings, and she began wearing them in public, They started conversations that atverwise might not have happened.“ gets other people's minds going,” says Tenaya. This is what fashion realy does, ‘and wearables do tin startling fashion — PEOPLE. \LIZE THAT AFTER THEY DO A FEW | EXP! THEY E OUT | attracting peopl to interact with you. She loves teaching, confessing that she started teaching electronics te others even before she understood everything she was doing, “wanted to help people realize that alter they doa fev experiments, they begin to igure out what they want todo,” she says. ‘You'l start dreaming of your own electronic projects: Tenaya is more into the electronics than the fashion “I want to add electronics to garments that already exist,” she says, oting that she works with LilPad. “ike to ‘make things that are interactive Her path is one that more girs wil follow to discever making fer themselves, which can prepare them for careersin science WELCOME ‘and technology. A new research report from Intel intel y/makehers} coins a wonderful term, "MakeHers,” and their survey of tween and teen girls found that one in four has made things using technology in the past year, and seven in 10 would have a desire to learn to create with electronics The report notes that git‘and women makers are more tkely than men} to siscover making theaugh various paths, especially relying on personal connections ‘as resources throughout their making process. The report adds, “girls who make, design, and create things with electronic tools develop stronger interest and skis in ‘computer science and engineering” One ofits recomamendationsis that parents {and schools “support and customize making projects based onthe identities and interests of participants, whether aesthetic, joyful, or related ta helping others.” Renee Wittemyerof intel, who led the research effort, told me: While the report takes a look atthe role ofgiris and women in making, the recommendations support increasing participation and diversityin making at large for everyone. This means inspiring not only girls and women, but underrepresented ‘minorities, boys, and men wiho may nat be excited with ‘technology for technology's sake.” Making creates alternate pathways into the fel of computer science and engineering by building on individu interests ‘Theresa huge need for mentors, both ‘women and:men, who help girls and boys develop their dream projects. It's.not just ‘about sharing skills, but also, as Tenaya ‘shows us, sharing the passion for making, ‘AnnMarie Thomas, in her back, Making ‘Makers, gives this advice to parents: ‘Whatever its you love to make, be sure thatthe children in your tives get to see that passion.” I'sthe stuf that dreams are made of © BY DALEDOUGHERTY, Eyecutive Chairman of Maker Me ‘makezine.com 9SOAPBOX a the Bids Back Home | Eialem munya you Cla eeatenleleessre! DK—B oatelelbIccCOlabl ela ITHAS BECOME COOL TO BUILD THINGS. AGAIN. Products like the Pebble wateh, MakerBot, and the Nest Thermostat have ‘captured the imagination of the consumer wortd, New platforms like Arduino and Raspberry Pi make it easier than ever to prototype a hardware idea, and more ‘companies are trying to manufacture those ideas stateside Tesla Motors, one ofthe most provocative companies in the wortd right now, isa marquee example. One of the ‘most striking features of the company is their vertical integration its Fremont, California, manufacturing facility houses the production tear as well as the engineers and designers, While very commen in traditional manufacturing that practice had become unusual since the late 1970s, when ‘the offshoring movement began to place the designers and the producers of any given ‘widget further land father} apart, both geographically and culturally thas become increasingly common to “design it here, bull there Yet, since the Great Recession, perceptions around manufacturing have shifted significantly and today more and ‘more of itis being reshored nationwide. 0 makershed.com All of the advancements and interest have produced a nasty side effect, however: Many entrepreneurs without previous ‘manufacturing experience make huge assumptions about the process and its ‘many complesities, From the outside, i seems prety easy — Wal-Mart and Best Buy are teeming wth plastic toys, onsum- er electronics, and devices for ust about anything. Entrepreneurs can be pretty surprised to learn the vast ferences between shipping code and shipping a physical good! So, how can a hardware startup benefit from the resurgence in American ‘manufacturing? When my co-founders and I started Beam Technologies (makers of a connected toothbrush! in early 2012, we had never developed and mass manufactured anything before. We made tons of mistakes, and learned alot about the process, Perhaps most importantly, we realized that we could learn fram Testa — we too could use vertical integration to our advantage even with a product far tess complex than car. We decided to bring aur entire supply chain within a day's drive of our office, which came with some distinct benefits, both tous and to the suppliers, such as: + In-House Quality Control. instead of wating on a shipment ta come in from thousands of miles away, our conn employees can do quality control in realtime. Entrepreneurs can learn direct from industry experts on how adjustments — many of them very tow cost — can vastly improve the consistency and quality ofthe parts coming off the line. Being able to physically meet and compare drawings and prototypes allowed us to resolve simple fting issues that plagued the first toothbrush, + Speed to Market. Any startup is going tehave an irregular and awkward early growth, Changes to parts, molds, and packaging wil inevitably need to be made. Having suppliers in the same time zone ‘who can react to your needs quickly can be the difference between a smart pvat to grow faster and a + Build better relationships. In-person ‘meetings with manufacturers lead to familiarity with, and excitement for, your products. I leads toa congratulatory dinner when the commercial pats rll off the line. And when things go wrong ‘neither end, mutual respect is much ‘more likely te survive It may also lead to lower upfront costs, delayed payments, payment plans, or other mechanisms to ‘make the financing issues easier. It gies ‘manufacturers a reason towerk with you instead of dedicating machine time toa ‘more established player, failed business, Even nave startups can learn howto build things more efficiently from experienced ‘manufacturing and tooling experts. the developers and the producers of a product are interacting directly al ofthe advantages ‘of quality, corsmunication, and speed should ultimately lead to a better produc fr you ‘company, and for your customers, © Pies e oat BeanLISA Q, FETTERMAN IS THE CO-FOUNDER ‘AND CEO (CHIEF EATING OFFICER] OF ‘THE HARDWARE STARTUP NOMIKU, which makes “immersion circulators that allow amateur chefs to affordably experiment with sophisticated sous vide cooking techniques. Fetterman and her two co-founders originally funded their device by raising nearly $400,000 on kickstarter in 2012. Two years later, they went back to Kickstarter and raised more than $750,000 tofund a new, improved model with wi-fi connectivity and a companion mobile app. Her favorite sous vide dish is miso bass lfind the recipe at it lymiso-bassh Is there something magical about the combination of food and technology that allows you to tap into two very connected communities at the same time? Yes, thats exactly whats happening People n the tech community recognize that not alot of tech is going on in the kitchen, So we are net thinking about incremental innovation — we're not making ‘a phone screen tha's just slightly wider. The changes that we're starting to see are super dramatic. Both sides —the food side and the tech side — recognize that and they feel it dearly. When something new comes. around in food and tech it definitely makes a splash You made the first Nomiku in China. But you've decided to make the next version in the USA. What do you think you'll miss most about China? InChina, the infrastructure is already there Inthe US,, we're going to have to build our ‘own infrastructure. Prototyping isn’t as easy in the US. Noit’s not. In Shenzhen, China, where we were, it was like a supermarket for electronics. We lived right next tot, and we'd go in and get whatever we needed. And prototyping, thatit was lke lhad the thought 10 minutes ‘ago and now lam testing it out ona real prototype, mean, wow, it was so rapid MAKER PRO Ona How did that change when you started prototyping in the U.S.? ‘Are you saving money? Yes, primarily because ofthe quality of 30 printers. | can now 30 print 2 part for ‘around $300, and put everything together into a prototype for Uke $600 to $800. Thats fora fully functional prototype, versus the ‘$6,000 that it cost prototyping with our Contract manutacturer in China Has working on the Nomiku project ‘caused you to have new respect for everyday cooking gadgets? ‘Actualy| ave always been amazed by things like a $6 toaster. How can tbe so cheap, and stil work as advertised? Just achieving thats so hard. |am constantly ‘amazed by the Vitamix blender, which is. made in the United States. think they are a bastion of hope for everybody who wants ‘tomake a high-tech kitchen appliance. tis ‘50 durable and does exactly what it saysit will do — nothing more, nathing less. That's what makes people happy. But geting there issohard Your new model allows users to connect to it over ‘a mobile device. Is that just an Internet of Things gimmick? Not at all What like about the Internet ‘of Things is thatit connects everyone, Community is what makes We always wanted to bring that with our appliance and now we literally can, We're making it easier to share recipes with top ches, great scientists, and your next door neighbor Cooking and the internet are so natural together, and the Internet of Things is @ way to make that happen — its actually connecting you to other cooks. think ‘everybody vill benefit if every single piece ‘of technology has this kind of community ‘makezine.com 11''M GENETICALLY PREDISPOSED To DO THINGS TWICE. My dad would eagerly ‘make stuff, only to have my mom tell him todo it over again, nicer and better: | could make along list of stuff ve made that failed including some that scared my wite and scarred me. Ideas for new projects come at any time of day or right; my sketchbook keeps me an track. Joting down possible solutions foc ideas is the start of any project, | make itarule not to get too detailed — I'd rather be testing and making as soon as possible. It’s better to act on that intial ignition before new projects pop up. Going from sketch to dirty hands needs to happen fast. Ths pro= cess leads to some obvious fails, but those are part of the process. Atoo-detaled idea cn the drawing board will result in hurdles before leven begin, so Id rather ty fal, and etry. The mistakes never stop me; they fuel ‘a wish to overcome the problem and learn firsthand. Iwill sometimes be advised to drop my proposed solution, but like a chil will stubbornly try anyway. Hove figuring out what went wrong and doing it all over again, When finally gett right, I've become 2 bet- ter maker, ready forthe next Approaching new projects witha naive attitude gives mea chance to refine my task as Igo, Learning by doing is great ‘mantra; this involves feiling to succeed, My wife went away one weekend, andi set out tomake a foldable ladéer for our attic. After 2 quick sketch to figure out what materials | needed, I started building, Hinges and Locks were essential parts ofthe plan. After hours putting it together, and attaching the ladder 66Going fro) tothe ceitng, | got ready for the one small step. Luckily, lwas only halfway up when the thing collapsed and | fell tothe floor. My sore back and wounded maker pride faded by the day's end and what was left was the joy of ailing, learning firsthand the impact 165 pounds have on a foldable ladder We have a ladder now, though it's not foldable. Its not as impressive as my first idea, but | ‘make itup and down from the atic alive ‘A mantra | continuously repeats quantity equals quality. The more | make, the bigger the chance that l make something great. | have boxes filled with sketchbooks, a testa ‘ment to this philosophy. They are filled wth oot stupid, crazy, and useless ideas, but once in ‘awhile combining two of them makes gold ove sharing my mistakes. | brag when they work, but also when they "work ‘The mishaps and redo’s open upa fruitful discussion, People will help and give advice, telling stories oftheir own misses and fils. ‘great mistake means you're aiming high, ‘and by sharing, you wil most probably succeed ver the years ve wound up with many misfit projects, but love them all. ve come up with a name for these hard to describe projects, partly tojustiy to my wife the many hours spent on making an electri- cal ear-cleaner, When friends and family ‘ask why | made something, my best reply is “because.” Sol made up a new word lin Norwegian): Hvorfrdi which translates into two words, why Unvortor] and because ford. doesn't matter what you make —or whether you're any goad at it — as long as you make it Its making for mak= ing)s own sake, When | failed a typography course at San Francisco's Academy of Art callege, the teacher who failed me told me ‘something | stil strive to ive by: “Think it, make it, and move on.” Some day Il make that a tattoo. © 12 makershed.comWhat can you make with ShopBot CNC? With ShopBot CNC —think of it of printing — you cé 1ape real materials like wood, MVerar iat do you want to make? ba elo for real with a ShopBot. __ShopBotTools.com ae 288-680-4466 ae eT Laser cut even the most elaborate designs with ease. LASER Whether you're working with wood, acrylic, paperboard or just about anything else, Epilog Laser systems precisely cut the components you need, Your vision combined with Epilo's power equals spectacular creation,SM A D |= The world of backyard technology Get oP Siterainalecheconn OrMace on Earth? % \é makershed.comBRICK MENAGERIE Pee ott Perera, Pee oad ee ‘gnome. Cees aay cy} Perales Artist Sean Kenney’s Peed Cee botanical gardens and Peer features huge foxes, frogs, ec constructed entirely of the Pee ee Rie Seen Tey carve out a shape or add ea re eee Ts think ahead as you'r ee rey ee ee eee ee as erat since the spring of 2012, and will migrat Preece oe) ‘makerine.comMADE ON EARTH MAGICAL, MUSICAL POLYHEDRON eee ee Soe Mer aL ecu ec ny sculpture titled Frabjous, he had no way of knowing it would inspire an Austin, ieee eee ee es diameter interactive, musical version. Named The Cathedral of Celestial Mathgic, eee ee eeu et Re cee the center ofa 50-foot-wide pentagonal structure with four arches shaped like ae Participants are encouraged to experiment and play with the sculpture, ce eet eee CE ete ne at Burning Man, Art Outside, and SXSW, and Pieper says she's even witnessed a Pere ee cer on errant tes Ue nee eee ented friends} roughly nine manths to go from concept to creation, including grant \writing and fundraising. “It's been pretty incredible to witness how much effect ee ee ore eee acts SOc See‘The future is destined to bring us technology composed of fungus, acording to Phit Ross, amushroom artist and engineer of sorts. A lving computer sounds socrazy butt also very reachable," he says. Ross hasbeen experimenting with mushrooms since the 0s, ‘when he bacame intrested in their mecicinal properties and health benefits. Once he found they were infritly renewable and understood the materials could conform tothe shapes and conditions ofthe environment, theartst began creaming up mere complex forms. Mushrooms, Ross says, are a “sal-extinguishing organic materia that can be used to create habitats fr hurnans on Earth or even in space. He is currently working ona protaype, envisioning a demonstration building on the San Francisco waterfront ta show how ‘mushrooms can be used as builcing materials. When we're done witht. we can jst push the building] nto the bay” Ross says, “Mushrooms change the poitcs and aesthe- of pollution” Laura Rena MurrayMADE ON EARTH -WAY GAME PLAY ercrssnc coves Everybody gather round the Hexacade, a six-person, custom Peer eed eae Cae ce founders of Two Bit Circus, an “entertainment engineering” aL etree cry Pee ee SR ee eco eaten tte ete ea Ue er later updated by repurposing an aluminum equipment case tohold the circuitry inside. An Intel NUC mini computer runs the programs, which are coded in Python. The games include ping-pong, marble racing, anda light-cycle experience {similar to Tron). The black vinyl decal around the controls was etched with a laser cutter, and the outside body was Sec ee eatery protective layer, and the whole setup comes is on wheels — Two Bit Circus made several units, which they keep ina RSS en ae carsHEART OF STEEL [ MAKEZINE.COM/ STEAMPUNK-ROBOT Thomas Willeford, of Brute Force Studios, isa giant among makers in the steampunk ‘community. When Jef Mach, ‘organizer ofthe Steampunk World's Fair, wanted a giant robot, he enlisted Willefard to create it Over 15 feet high and more than 1,000 pounds, the robat is constructed of %-inch plywood sheathed in Masonite. Itis finished with furniture tacks ‘and painted to look like riveted metal. Though unmanned, the torso is big enough to fita person inside, and the shoulders, elbows, and wrists are poseable. Ittook 45 12 hour days to build, with 17 people assisting at one time or another. intended the robot to be a symbol of how creative steampunk can be,” says Mach, He also wants to support cancer awareness in the steampunk community A plaque on the robot is dedicated to “Hearts of Steel, Usting, among others, CJ Henderson, a writer and editor of steampunk literature who recently lost his battle with cancer — Andrew Terranova ‘makezine.com 17makezine.com/wires-and-thread ELECTRONICS SHRINK. POWER REQUIREMENTS LESSEN. Capabilities compound. Processing speeds skyrocket, Interfac- ing options multiply. Today's microcontrollers and microsized computers greatly surpass those of even just ayear ago, ‘making almost ary project feasible, And some of the hottest projects right now come from the wortd of wearables. What isa wearable, exactiy? Some call the space “wearable electronics” others “wearable computing." We see it as sore. thing far broader than that. Wearable technology can be ad- vanced electronic sensors and displays combined with everyday apparel, ke Io Flament’s brainwave-sensing beanie [see page 601 and Jonathan Cook’s Open-Source Smartwatch [page 54 butit also includes the futuristic under-the-skin projects ofa few daring body augmenters [page 53), as well asthe mechani cal technology in Keahi Seymour's Bionic Boots (page 44) In this section we wil guide you through these examples and ‘more. But frst we'll explain al the atest trends in electronics prototyping beards — including advanced wireless communi- Cation protacols — and which boards ta keep an eye on Allo them smaller and more powerful than ever. © makezine.com 2PECIAL ECTION Pe 1°) .c7 N10) IF YOU'RE OLD ENOUGH TO REMEMBER ‘THE 80S AND THE HUGE RANGE OF PERSONAL COMPUTERS that sprung up in the early years ofthe industry froma different manufacturer and based ‘around. different CPU — then the current state ofthe micracantraller board market may seem familiar In the last year and a half, we've seen an explosion of new boards, ‘and there doesn’t appear to be any reason toexpectthe trend to slow down in the near future. But the microcontroller market ist the personal computer market. The forces driving change are very different, and be- cause ofthat, it’ unlikely that we'll trade the current diversity fr a monaculture, Instead, something much more interesting is going tohappen. THE THIRD ESTATE “Most ofthe new boards being released will disappear — almost without a trace — within a fewemonths. The ones that do hang around tend to be those that form com- ‘munities around them. Right now the two largest of these communities belong to the Arduino and Raspberry Pi. Even as other boards are doing interesting things and have sizable presences in some markets, those are the two names that tend to dominate the corwersation around micracontrollers and single board computers Building communities from scratchis. hard. So for anew board to become com- ‘monplace it typically has to either win over an existing community or co-opt a com- ‘munity that exists butisn't tied toa specific board. A growing number of new board manufacturers are taking the latter path, ‘appealing toa community nt traditionally ‘associated with makers: web developers. Perhaps surprisingly, there's a history ‘of hardiare hacking inside the Nodes ‘and Javascript communities. But withthe arrival of the Tessel and the Espruino, bath ‘of which run Javascript right onthe board itself, developers can now hack hardware in their native language. However, unlike the communities that have grown around the Arduino and the Raspberry Fi, the thing that helds this ‘community togethers the language, not the board. It stands to reason then that this third community might not setle ona single board. There's room for more than one player and possibly more than one way to do Javascript rmakershed.com(WITH CC3000) ONLY erence enn Sree een Leprol anna PO PHOTON LIGHT BLUE BEAN The BeagleBone Black, which some see asthe main competitor tothe Raspberry P is puting a lot more efor into publicizing the inclusion ofthe Cloud? development ‘eviranment and its awn BoneScript — a Nodes library specially optimized forthe Beagle family and featuring familiar Arduino function calls. Similarly, other Linux-based boards such asthe Weld are naw support ing Javascript-based development environ- ments out ofthe box. WIRELESS EVERYWHERE Far along while, getting networking of any kind to work with the Arduino was pretty dificult; getting wireless networking to ‘work was mare dificult stil. In my view, this is one ofthe factors that contributed tothe maker popularity of the Raspberry Pi, as ‘well as Dig's XBee ratio. With a new generation of wireless radios arriving in the market — natably Texas In- struments’ CC3Q000 — things have changed radically I's just not that hard anymore. ‘Almost every new board cornes with a bul in radio of some kind, with Bluetooth LE or icf being the most popular. Good examples ofthis include the Light Blue Bean, the only Arduino board | kaaw of where uploading the sketch is done over Bluetooth LE, and the new Sparkio Photon board, which has onboard wi-fin a package the size ofa postage stamp. Priced under $520 i's almost aposter child for the next generation of network-enabled microcon= troller boards WEARABLES AND THE INTERNET OF THINGS ‘The reason the micracontroller market probablyisn't going to evolve into a mono- culture is that boards aren't general- purpose computers. Microcontrollers are used to control a varity of things, and that means that there isn'ta single-use case, ‘There will almost inevitably continue to be alot ofcversity in both architecture and form facter. One thing that’s driving that diversity at the momentis the rise ofboth wearable electronics and the Internet of Things. Both ‘ofthese trends are having a huge influence ‘on microcontroller designs, with boards ‘tending to be smaller, more power-eficent, ‘and have builtin radios — escential for wearable-use cases where you can't plug your board into a wal socket. You can see this clearly inthe current generation of boards appearing on Kickstarter and other crowefunding platforms, including the makezine.com 22PECIAL ECTION | CONTROLL MICROVIEW MetaWear, the MicroView, and, ofcourse, the Light Blue Bean again. ‘Agoad example of taking this to an ex- treme isthe ESP8266 wi-fi serial transcelv- ‘er module. At just $5, this tiny module was originally intended to allow you to connect your project tothe internet cheaply and sim- ly. But the adlition ofa community-uilt CC SOK makes ita microcontroller board in its own right — anda very affordable platorm forthe Internet of Things. MAKER TO MAKER PRO Despite what you might have read else ‘where, the maker movement didn't invent the microcontroller. There's a vast — and previously unreachable — enterprise market out there, a market thal’ happy with a bag of surface-mount chips and an indecipherable 400-page manual. One of the interesting developments within the last year or i that this market has started to pay attention to things going on inthe maker world, And the maker world has started to take notice of it The evidence ofthis comes from two d- rections and converges inthe middle, From the maker world we have the Raspberry Pi Compute Module — a board intended to allow you to embed the brains of the Plinto ‘a commercial product. While from the in- dustrial world we have Inte’ Edison board, ‘hich pretty much has the same mission (see page 24 We're already seeing commercial products such as the OTTO camera, which integrates the Compute Module, spun out from the maker community. And na doubt ‘we'll see the same from the Edison module once i's more widely available. NO PROGRAMMING REQUIRED AAtthe opposite end ofthe spectrum are products such as ittleBits that require virtu- ally na programming, Initially seen by many asa toy, the system is now being taken far ‘more seriously Several larger companies have even used to take ideas from mack- ups to actual products The introduction ofthe Arduino bit and, ‘more significantly, the cloudBit — which adds the billy o snap an internet connec: tion onto just about anything and automate it—makes the system simple to get to grips with and infinitely flexible, The arrival of the bitL.ab, a marketplace for user-generated bits, opens the system to both makers want- ing to tinker and pro makers hoping to add ‘unique abilities. Similar systerns such asthe Kickstarter~ funded BLE-connected range from SAM labs and the Wunder Bar Internet of Things. starter kt from Relayr are now starting to (iteD Edison atu you rake? CLOUDBIT ‘appear. However you do have to wonder whether they! take off. With several years head start, ilteBits has had a big advantage building ts community. ARDUINO AND RASPI, THE NEXT GENERATION With arge communities heavily invested in the current form factors and sofware stacks, both Arduino and the Raspberry Pi Foundation have less room tobe radical about their next steps, However isnot just more ofthe same from the two big players in the board market. Due toarriveon the market soon, the new Arduino Zero is bult around an ARM processor. I's obvious that this board is intended, with time, to replace both the Uno ‘and the Leonardo and move the company to ‘2 32-bit platform. Beyond that, the Arduino ‘at Heart program vil allow them to control the explosion of next generation Arduino ‘compaties like the Apollo board. “The Raspberry Pi Foundation alsa has re- leased new model A+ (see page 26) and B+ boards, replacing the original model A and respectively. n the two years since the launch ofthe original i, there have been a Uot of complaints about how the board was put together, although none of these prob lems seemed to hinder the massive success ofthe board. Nevertheless, the new model 2) makershed.commakezine.com/wires-and-thread APOLLO is aimed at putting these criticisms to rest, ance and forall, ‘Beyond the two new models | think we could wall expect further — perhaps more specialized — boards from the Raspberry Pi Foundation. However | see the introduction oftheir HAT standard for expansion boards ‘as locking them inte the current form factor for same time to come, WHERE NOW? | think the next sic months to ayear is go- ing to se the board market evolve along similar lines tothe previous 12 months. The proliferation of bard designs will continue {and if anything, we should expect more new boards, nat fewer: However most af these new boards are going to disappear just as rapidly as they arrived, and beyond this we might see a perio of consolidation in the marketplace. Inthe near term, the trend towards smaller boards and onboard radios vill ‘continue. The Espruino, for instance, wil soon come in Pico. Although | do wonder whether, as withthe Arduino before it, we'll see some sort of default standard- ization in te footprint of these smaller boards. And perhaps from there fourth ‘community wil form around a board in the wearables space. © makezine.com 25eC SiMe m EB (intel) Edison What will you make?BRIAN KRZANICH STOOD IN FRONT OF A PACKED AUDIENCE AT THE 2014 CONSUMER ELECTRONICS SHOWCASE in Las Vagas, backed by 2 sea of oversized blue display screens, The Intel CEO had just finished presenting a smartwatch and headset — new wearable projects that the ‘company was collaborating on — when he reached into his pocket and pulled out what ‘appeared to bean SD card, The CES cameras steadied focus on the tiny board between his fingers as Krzanich ‘explained that what he was holding was ‘actually a full Pentium-class PC. The modole was equipped with wi-fi, Bluetooth, and more, he continued, all designed to help people create powerful new tech products quickly He called it the Edison. The crowd love it, and the tiny computer became one of the big storia ofthe January ‘event, Its reveal had al the sickness of any prominent consumer-device product launch, But beneath its tidy package the Edison has the surprising imprint of the maker movement The story begins in Portland, Oregon, in January 2013 atthe biannual Intel TechFest, ‘an internal networking conference for senior engineers, A team from Intel labs in China, led by Sun Chan, presented a stamp- sized microcontroller called the PIA [short for Pervasive intel Architecture] —a board ‘with huge potential for makers Michael McCool, @ software architect and principal intel engineer based in Tokyo, 100k intrest in the small chip with powerful processors, McCool, wha often develops and demos projects at Maker Faires fostered ‘a relationship with Chan and his team, and began to consult on the project, providing technical expertise along with insights for ‘mechanical design. The now multinational PIA team continued to work onthe project, refining technical specifications, and soon after found a new advocate in Intel CEO Krzanich ‘One of our teams from Inte lbs in China knew | was a maker and interested in the ‘maker movement, s0 they brought Edison to me for a review.” Krzanich explains, "When I sawit | knew where it would lead us," he Continues, hinting at multiple development kits and online community resources, With Krzanich’s go-ahead came a new deadline: The PIA team had to have a prototype ready to be unveiled at CES 2014, just three months away, (One particulary challenging aspect of transitioning the board rom prototype to product, explains McCool, was thatthe tearm ‘wanted to retain the original intention of an SD card form factor. “The problem is they couldn't find any cases that could fit around itbecause the tolerances were so tight. The off-the-shelf cards wouldnt fit In tue maker fashion, McCool tackled the problem by designing a cast-resin ‘mold and embedding the card into epoxy, tutiizing a workspace that was afar cry from the gleaming-white clean rooms shown in Intel commercials. “The masters for these ‘molds were milled in the Tsukuba, Japan Intel site, but the actual encapsulation and pouring were done on [my] ktchen table, he explains with a laugh, But even with custorn molds, obstacles remained. For example, the silicone sealant he used held the PCBs in place by thei exposed contacts during pouring. “It wasa real challenge to get the resin te flow into the tiny space around the prototype PCB.” Alter much experimentation, he found that First heating the resin in a warm-water bath reduced the viscosity significant, ‘As the team scrambled ta get ready for the CES 2014 reveal, other groups at inte worked to take Edison from a lab initiative toaconsumer good, looking for companies who could integrate the beard into a new product for the launch, Ed Ross, senior director of inventor platforms fr the New Devices Group, found just the team for the task in Rest Devices, ‘a Boston-based startup witha specialty in rapid prototyping The firm jumped into the assignment, met the one-month deadline, and joined Krzanich onstage at CES to demo a baby-monitering onesie called Mimo which uses communication V0. After the CES debut, the team continued torefine and augment Edison's capabilties, ‘swapping the original Quark processors for the newer, more powerful Atom cores and adding RF shielding absent in the epony- enclosed prototypes. Ultimately these up- grades required a change in size and shape, but the diminutive computer still impresses atjust 1.4°x1". Intel officially released Edi- sonto the public in September 2014, just 11 ‘months after Kreanich had given the project the green light.@ ison to handle sensor and makezine.com/wires-and-thread Preparing an aversion ofthe isn fr resin ncapsltion using silicone mals. The method was ‘sedi ie of standrd ces, Plinth resin mae it possible to see the neal. Fest Devices Eison-pomered Mino Smart Baby Ment, Feunhed with atl at 8S 2010 makezine.comad Be frst! cpoeatis Ran Paty) eco) ec Devices Group. ‘COMPUTER VISION IS A PROCESSOR-DEMANDING TASK, but thanks toa dual-core Atom processor, the Intel Edison handles it with ease, The Edison ships witha highly custom Linux image, but you'llonly need to add a few software packages and custom code 10.get Open — a wildly popular approach to computer vision — ‘operational and recognizing human faces in photos. 1. FLASH THE EDISON WITH THE LATEST FIRMWARE Follow the flashing instructions onthe Intel documentation page at akezine.comgorflashing-edison to update your Edison withthe latest image. ‘Then run the Edison configuration script configure_edison ~-setup {And follow the setup prompts to configure a hostname and root password and to set up wifi access, 2.SSH INTO THE EDISON (On Windows, download and install Puty,an SSH client. Then point Putty to your Edison. (On OSX or Linux, open a terminal and type ssh reatGedison. toca NOTES yw changed the strane, enlace econ in this ess with the new name yu created AEDT: 3. INSTALL THE LATEST IOT DEVELOPER KIT LIBRARIES. “Type in the fllowing commands, and note this is actually one long line with spaces between intel-totdkand the URL, and on both, sides ofthe > character echo +/(1otdk. intel .con/repos /1-4/ Antelgalactic” > /etc/opkg/intel-dotde.conf “sre intel-iotdk htt Update the package repository, then upgrade al the packages: pkg update opkg upgrade 4, ADD AN UNOFFICIAL PACKAGE REPOSITORY ‘Access to every package isnot available without adding repository locations t the aokg/base-feeds conf file. By daing this, you'ladd an enormous number of campiled applications, saving you the hassle of comping rom source, NOTE: Ufc epostris ae quite common across most iu istbtions. ‘Add the following lines to base-feeds cont lecho "src/gz all http://repo.opkg.net/edison/repo/all src/e2. eaison http://repo.opkg. net/edison/repo/edison sre/gz core2-32 http://repo.opkg.net/edison/repo/core2 32" >> (evc/opkg/base-feeds.cont Update the repository index again, since you just added n: 2) makershed.commakezine.com/wires-and-thread package locations: pkg update Next, install NumPy, OpenCY, and OpenCv-Python. opkg install python-nunpy opency python-opency nano That's it! ll the necessary packages are installed, Time to start hacking code! 5. PROGRAMMING WITH PYTHON AND OPENCV Launch nano and specify filename to use. Then import the 3 required Python libraries: nano ~/FaceDetection.py import unpy Amport v2 import urllib Dowmicad and place our sarnple photo [seen here at right)in the Edison's web server directory with the new filename, injog. Print ("Downloading Tnages and Necessary Files") urllib.uriretrieve(http://cdn-makezine..com/make/43/ Intel_CES_Tean.png, '/usr/ib/edison_confgtools/ public/in. dpe") Next, downtead the XML file that defines the parameters forthe Tae Cee at) Open facial-recagrition algorithm, This ile is also saved to the pubic directory ofthe Edison's web server as haarcascade_frontal ace_altxm the original color image, which you'l save as a new fie Uurlldb.urlretrieve(*hetps://raw.githubusercontent.com/ | for (x,y,wsh) in faces: rtseez/opency/master/data/naarcascades/haarcascade_ evz.rectangle (ine, (x59), (xtwsy+h) (255,848) 2) Frontalface_alt.xnl", '/usr/Lib/edison_config_tools/ v2. dmurite("n_facefound.png’ ing) public/naareascade frontalface_alt.xml') Finally save the text file by pressing Cirl-X on your keyboard, When prompted to save the fil, type ¥ and Enter. Import the photo using OpenC¥ and corwert it to grayscale for use in the facial-recogntion process: ng = cv2.inread( /usr/lib/edison_config_tools/ 6. WEB PAGE SETUP public/in. jpg") Download a simple HTML fle which wll display the pre- and post Bray = cv2-cvtColon(ing,c¥2.COLOR_SGRZGRAY) processed images on the Edison's onboard web server wget hetp://edn.makezine .com/nake/43/Opencv. hts] Using the Open ibraries, create the facial-recognition algorithm ‘and process the grayscale image: Change directories tothe web server's public directory: Facecascade = ed /use/Iib/edison_confe_tools/pu cv2.CascadeClassitier(‘haarcascade_frontalface_ alt.xnt") ‘7.VIEWING THE IMAGES faces = Now head on over to http//edison local/OpenV.him\ to view the facecascade.detecttultiscale(gray, scaleFactor=1.2,ninl eighbors-5, minsizes(30, 36), flags = cv2.cv.CV_HAAR_SCALE_INAGE) Before and After images, with a box around each detected face! GOING FURTHER "Now that OpenGV and Python are configured on your Edison, be The faces variable now contains an array of rectangular coordi- | sure to see the official documentation for great example code and nates that surround each face that OpenCy found inthe image. ideas at makcezine.com/ao/opency-python-tutoriais, Open¢Vcan ‘These coordinates are then used to draw a box around each face in| detect all kinds of shapes, analyze video, and much more. @ makezine.com 2makezine.com/wires-and-thread WV ibatel R= ma Telaal-anarclelo some basic chemistn ‘THANKS TO RECENT SCIENTIFIC ADVANCES, YOU CAN BUY CONDUCTIVE INKS IN THE FORM OF PENS, PAINTS, AND EVEN PRINTER CARTRIDGES, but have you ever wondered ifyou could make your own? You can, and following a simple process devel oped by the University o llinois Urbana-Cham paign Materials Research Laboratory is actualy quite easy ta produce the conductive ink at home. The following steps have been adapted from the UIUC paper titled “Reactive Silver Inks for Patterning High-Conductivty Features at Mild Temperatures,” and have been simplified for the ‘amateur chemist. CAUTION: +. he PREPARATION Clean all glassware and tools and lay them aut on your work surface tis important to read through all ofthe steps, and make sure that you under: stand them thoroughly before beginning ‘1. MAKE A VORTEX MIXER Rather than using an expensive laboratory vortex mixer, you can make your vn using 22" belt and a circular piece of wood Cut circle approximately 2%" in diameter from ‘apiece of "thick wood, Dilla centered hale lange enough to fit the shaft ofthe 2" bolt. Drilla second '4" hole halfway into the wood, slighty off-center and overlapping the centered hole (Figure @) Place the 2" bolt in a bench vise, and then use a hacksaw to remove the bolt head, Insert the bolt shaft inte the center hole unt itis lush with the bottom ofthe 4" hole, and then secure it with hot glue. 2. MAKE THE INK Pour oughly mi of ammonium hydrosdeinto ‘glass beaker: Using a dispensing syringe, draw exactly 2.5m out ofthe beaker and deposititnto the testtube Figure @) Place the weight boat ona dgtal scale and tare the scale, Measure out exactly 1g fst acetate powder Figure @) and peuritinto the test tube Insert the bolt of your homemade vortex mixer into the electric Halding the top ofthe tet tube frmiy place the base ofthe test tube against the tein the vortex miter Figure @). Siwy in- Pour appreximately 0 5mL of formic acid into a second glass beaker: Using anew dispensing syringe, draw exactly 0.2m of formic acid out of the beaker (Figure @ Drip one drop of formic acid int the mixed solution inthe test tube (Figure @, then vortex ‘mix sing the same method from step 2. Repeat this process untill 0.2m of formic acid has been mixed ‘After mixing, the solution wil be a gray or Black color. Place a stopper inthe top ofthe test tube, and set the test tube aside to react for at least 12 hours (Figure @, following pagel makezine.com 2PECIAL ~ ECTION . 3. FILTER THE INK the material have a smooth surface. After 12 hours, the solution should look clear with | Using a paintbrush, apply the ink to your mat gray sediment of ster partclesin the bottom —_| rial of choice; a stencil can be used to create com- Figure. inorderto use the nkin anit | plxpfterns Alowthe nto ry nt tums toa printer or airbrush, these partles mustbe | dul gray clr filtered out to avoid cogging. Hea the material to 90°C (192° for atleast 15 Removethe plunger fram answdispencing | minutes, You can use toaster oven oho pate syringe and place a.2ym syringe fiteronte the | asa heat cure. syringe tip, Fill the syringe withthe prefitered solution, and replace the syringe plunger |Figure@) Pressing stowy but firmly on the plunger, force the solution through the fiter and into a re) Food preparation, glass vial for storage TIPS FOR USE The ink s quite fragile and will easly scratch off ‘most materials, T increase adherence, scl the target surface before ink application. Once the ink 4, USING THE INK Before using the ink, it's important to choose ‘suitable material to deposit it ont. In order to boost the conductivity of is dry, apply clear nal polish to protect the traces. the ink, it must be heated 10 90°C Unfortunately you cant solder onto the dry (192°F}, so any material you ink, 2s molten solder wil leach the siver coating choose must be able to with- | away. youhave a CircuitWritersilver-based ink stand atleast that much heat | pen, you can use i to create pads on the traces, Using thisink on porous | wihich can then be carefully soldered to.@ ‘materials such as paper or fabric wilnotresultina | For complete step-by-step instructions and conductive coating, soit | photos see makezine.cor/diy-canducive-nk ¢ is recommended that 1 makershed.com: a7 my Nett ers ects anr ee acim Maker Shed The official store of Make:PECIAL ECTION UNDER T BODIES AREN'T STATIC, THEY DONT HAVE STRAIGHT LINES, andaaftera whi they tend to get dirty, So wearable systems embed- ded in garments, and accessories have tobe robust, flexible, and, ideally, washable {oratleast remov- able). Here'sa {ook under the hood — or hoodie, asitwere—at the main compo- nents of wearable devices. CONTROL ‘Weareble-spectic microcontrollers are small s0as abe comfortable and discrete On the father hand the estinetie shapes and colors can funtion a a decorative element Several of boards available are hand washable Imus the ower source. Read the documentation caretuly 2. INPUT/OUTPUT Inplace of pins, these board have metal eyelets ‘which you can loop conductive thread through to ‘ew sot cet connectons. Some boards also hove snaps — or eyelets large enoughto solder on snaps — for easy remo CONDUCTIVE TEXTILES ‘A material containing male, such as iver or ‘Stainless sea, through whieh an electrical cur rent can flows sad to be conductive, Wearable ‘jstems can make use ofthese materilsin a variety of ways, sucha: + Thread for making circuits + Fabric for capacitive tou HE HOODIE mY, ble 4, SENSORS Sensors gather information about the environ ‘meni, the user oF both Examgles ofthe former include gh, temperature, mation ACC}, and location [GPSI. Examples of te latter include heart ate [ECG brain waves (EES), and muscle tension EMG) A few wearable microcontrollers have asic sensors onboard, Other manufactur fs offer a range of external sensor modules that connect to the main beard 5. POWER When scoping outa wearable dasign ane othe first things to considers the power requirement Do you jst want iluminate a few LEDs, or do youwwant to runa servomotor? Boards than Integrated holder fora lithium coin fatter are nice fr low-power projects that need tobe sel contained, However boards witha standard JST connector (wth or without circu to charge LiPo batteries} are more versatile. Racca 6. ACTUATORS (One generic way to describe a wearable system is In sponse toX, where Xs the input rom 2 seneor, happens, Actuators such 25 LEDS, bu {ers or speakers, and servomotors are what ma things happen. 7. NETWORKING To communicate wih smart devices the internet, crothor wearable systems, younced wireless connect In adden to vif and Bluetooth, wearable-riendl options include: ‘BLE, which as lower power consumption than classic Bluetooth, range of Som, a ata transmission rate upta 1 Mops ‘+ NFC,a radiofrequency field witha range of ‘approximately 20cm and data transmission rate upto about 400 Kopshed 1072 erent 1 aa er ee eel Beta LILYPAD ARDUINO ONES to “sie sesarimaontaepore WATCH From the eay-t0-sewtabs tothe fct that itis washable, the LilyPad, remains gret choice for projets that ned to work with e-texes. There ar four core boards With 2 pins, si analog, the Main board is handy fyou | | RINTOO reed alo of npts and output for your projet. The othr three boards + Sab vse comiorinso hove 11 pins, four anatag |The imple and SimpleSnap are the same oars Dimongane 138138" astaras code is concerned, bu the Snap has permanently atached LiPo battery and snap tabs that allow tebe easily removed. The USB version has a LiPo charge circuit. The real poner af LijPad san ecosystem that features numerous sencors and outputs, rom switches to XBee breakouts XADOW + $20makerine.com/go/xadow ‘Dimensions 10.8" ‘Seeed's Xadow has a diverse selection of compatible modules, from a ba- Printoo is currently the only rometerto a sersort3 ll GPSanenna Thin paie connector sed | Nata MeMeesE toatach he various modules ean Rely vie maintain tabi, baleen ile fo fet he eink ike Sqm tig FLORA inthe maker ea, ‘lesible peper-thin oe + $20 dtr eonvproducl659 “Sinenon 178 and conuct ink afte th design ussite LyPad hearty senble motes thy ante fe hese ‘available for the Flora — from high-end GPS antennas to color light sensors wil be realy helpful in more — gives the system an edge when complex functionality is required. discrete projects. daft so ates the darter Gemma, at 69 toto or sal permanent projects that ont equte-lot off. An upcoming Arn IDE BITALINO ipported erlnwl atu an ne sneha mere USE comes. Passes Stenson TINYLILY MINI + $10 tinycireits.com/pro + Dimensions 0.55" la, intl. htt “The TinyLily Mini rom TinyCircuits puts surprising power and VO options ‘Ma cunt aalble intoa dime sized package Is compatible wit LivPad an Aino have Fa TIGA ie le ‘ever 2 micro-USB adapters required to unload sketches, tte as th 8, DA, accelerometer. an ight style kt ith th inal tinsesng modoles detached. SQUAREWEAR ‘ut the people btin it ane + $22 rayshoby.nelcaraqrwear-20 ‘ounched ana Kkstatr * Dimensions 1.7» 1.7 ‘campaign tration ‘The open-suree, Aruino-compatibleSquareWear 2.0 packs 3 atnto a they caling Bina compact ooipan. Rather than having an ecosystem otwappable medules, fe | elton at they $y all itsitended as an alin one solution. has buon min US, recharge earaistatet ini able von cm battery and onboard ight and temperature sensars laa teats makezine.com 35eee Fett} Pe reverts) ct corer Nine designers blending appare PAC) PRA cna ‘ON THE RUNWAY IS OFTEN A CON- Cae ea Cara aeons sald for how makers use technology: ‘The projects they create can anticipate where consumer technology is headed. eee ers Co eto Poe en tated 1 Ce eed i ee a) e eR as Ce en ue Ley er eens Ce eed eee) ed Preaecg Pm! Panny x omer ‘or something totally new? Grab the teres oyna! PR ny Perera eee Peat Pann t oer > Cans Peer CE ee eea aan Land technology erg ay en ai) PernaFORWARD Sebastian Pa Tema recy ES i} Bi ci ny? ro en Cece cau) i were does RUC re aoios Us ca ei rd W) \ acs ith ose by 9 Set IN SL b ec et Pang MSO POD eons Pent Be A cama atts sate Perse Scoprofessor Cee Bienes coeur tl beers coments How to select ¢ and use @ SSnsolrs in wearable electronics WHAT TO me) 1) = Tey Og eC Sea aes con De en eared ee nie ieee Ce ee i Ce er en eee Ed oe gees When working with sensors, a good Pee ec Ce eee ae ees Pree eee es ‘+ "What different sensor (or sensors) could recs SCL Cie re Light, pressure, presence, etc] Senet een Seance SO cee Tes Oe Ca een ay Cee aed en ee ee en CO ee ‘that wll it the bill. But oap in mind that this is just the tip ofthe iceberg. Once you have a project idea in mind, you should go Serene cee sees etal ino Ce eee ry that flex sensors sense a flex or a bend, Se eee eee eect Sed pee cy ted ee ets eee eee rod eee Ee ‘The biggest challenges in working with flex sensors are positioning and protection, eee Ca flex of your elbow, the sensor needs to bePositioned inthe sare place on your elbow ‘everytime. Creating a secure pocket forthe Pee oe ea pe a gee aad See flexing is a pretty rigorous and strenu- ee eee Cer eee eee cere ee ee eT protect them with some sort of material. er eee are Se ee ee eT Frere mogen Heap, Seb Madgwick, Tom a ree ena ea es Tiel tod Bodies often touch and get touched. One Sere force-sensing resistors (FSR). FSRs have 2 De eee eer See ea ee ae ener et ey similar to flex sensors. ey eet ee ge ee ee eee FIGURE @: FSR circuit diagram ro ae en ead eee mae Ce eee ee een ee eee eae STRETCH Se ene ce ey and contraction ofa rib cage with each breath, properly positioned stretch sensors Ce tet nT Se ees is simply a conductive rubber cord whose eee cee ees Se eee eee cro core) Se ed Cee eee cs eee rere ete ty itby the meter and cut it to whatever length ct Fm areata See at with. They can also be elegantly incorporat- ee a FIGURE i: “Acoli” by Sarah Kettley, CT ee ea Fe et eats eee |into garments through weaving, knitting, and embroidery techniques. Feu el PANIES NC) People are active and mobile creatures. Sn ae cs ‘ward toud noises, and crouch down to Cte A i Ce eee ck Pree ee ee ts ‘sense movement, ono as Deer ested Fe eee er eerie But there are also far more sophisticated ‘sensors that you can use. Accelerometers measure acceleration or changes in speed ‘of movement. They can also provide a good eT ea er Accelerometers have a set number of ee er ie ee ceo Deere rue pie er Samad eee ei erometer, ADXL 235, Flora Accelerometer ree ce eT Cet cee Cee t ta ee ee Cee ett terre POE Ee ce ere terete Den ne Ce eer Ce eee oi’ Ree en ee eee os eee ee a Cea a Ueno} Se et eed Se a eeu ae nt Se Se ene Reet et is happening within someone's body. A great place to start sensing these biometrics is ean Optical heart rate-sensors, such as the ees cost solution for measuring pulse. This type of sensor measures the mechanical flow of blood, usually ina finger or earlobe. ence ee) eed Per ee oa eres varying analog voltage that can be read by ps neaeu Ze ts CO eee FIGURE @: Pulse sensor circuit dagram Coe ee Pee eet et Co ee ee Rey Pee etnaheart through two conductive electrodes Ce ened must be pressed firmly against the skin, Cee ae een ed wirelessly transmit a signal with every iene oe agen ed Fe ore a custom-designed, printed circuit board eee ee eee tes Polar heart rate monitor band and blinks in ee Toad SE ee La close or far away something is from the De Eee as detecting nearby objects, walls, or even eee eee een Se as Ce ee eect ncn) tomonitor. FIGURE @: Ultrasonic and infrared prox- eee) eC en age) McRoberts is a wearable seeing ad device eee ctr fNuctuating data gathered by an infrared ee ee ee cy eee tet Pee eters Ceti ee eee increases, but same have the reverse relationship. This can be quickly deter- De een TLS pened Ce ae a Tne aay The photocell is a great sensor to work with because itis small, easy to manipulate, See Mae ence) Cee entce Pete ogee ete Te ee ec reer Cae FIGURE @: “Perform-o-shoes” by Andrew ‘Schneider are music-controlling footwear that have a photocell embedded in the bot- Rete eee ed Oe ee eee ern le letras: es, potty and ee on reson Pre ae Peony, erPECIAL ECTION THINK BACK TO ‘YOUR FIRST WEAR- ABLE TECH EXPERI- ENCE: maybe it wos the communicator badges in Star Trek, the palm flow in Lagan’s Run or the man-turned-machine in Terminator. These devices could sim plily communication, ‘monitor life functions, ar even transform Physical bodies, We all loved it and we're still seeking it science fiction to be real because we want to feel special, aware csials and powerful. That's why wear able tech is our now, and the Flora microcontroller is our BFF. Flora. tiny but mighty microcontroller from Adafrut that is stiteh- and solder-friendly see page 26) Its got a built-in USB jack for easy Arduina program: ‘ming and also JST jack for fast battery plug-in, The best partis this microcontroller loves NeoPix dls, Ifyou haven't seen NeoPiels, imagine mege-bright RGB LEDs with the abilty to talk to each other. Adafruit’s NeoPixe brary for Arduino has made this an easy task, so anyone can make a wear- able light show. So, what da you want to be? What willbe your transformation? Check out these four fabulous projects and make your own sci-fi real ie, © There's music duo that just beats them all ‘when itcomes tonerdy chic tech. They're French ‘and they got popular inthe late "70s — you had better be thinking Daft Punk or no Quizzo for you. These headphones by caitlinsdad are tke ‘alight organ forthe ears, making you an instant Daft Punkee. This mod is. combo hack of two Adafruit tutorials, and i's sweet! The headphones use ‘a Flora and two NeoPixel LED Rings facing the SOUND REACTIVE HEADPHONES speakers forthe light show, Not only does this soften the lighting, butt creates 2 mysterious effect. Meanuile, the microphone amplifier board works its magic syncing the LEDS to the ‘music. You should use a soldering fan for this project, and be prepared to tidy up the wires atthe end, It's a great build for your Ustening pleasure — or nol asa friend will probably steal them from you. {makezine.com/goflight-up= headphones) rmakershed.comDISCO DRESS You've always wanted Lady Cage's futuristic fashions, and row you don't have to wait. This dress by maker Sarnuel Clay has 40 dancing LEDs that are sure toget attention. Willyour ight pattern be hula-hoop, sparkles, raindrop, spiral, or random col- ors? Let your emations be your guide — you're sure to look glam with any of ther, This dress-hacking project is for someone comfort with sawing, as you'll need to stitch six LED strips to the lin ing ofa dross. I you're cray, you can also choose to create casings of sheer ribbon for the strips. Far the wiring inside, you ‘may want to consider Adafrut's incredibly flexible silicone wire, Once you've got everything as- sembled, ust program the Flora with your favorite pattern and you'll be off dancing in no time. Yeu go, madern Marilyn Monroe, (makezine.com/gof light-up-dress) makezine.com/wires-and-thread SUPERHERO ACTION BANDS What's one thing all superheroes rn have incommon? They've gota special power, or atleast a device that makes them boss, These action bands by designers Niki Selken and ‘Annelie Kalla will make you the tower of power, Move your arm and show of your color-changing lights and sounds, Feel free to sock like Batman, chop like a Ninja Turtle, or ward off bullets like Wonder Wornan. Your powers are about tobe known. These bands are a family-friendly project involving some sewing and ight soldering, The fabric base is ‘hacked headband with decora tive laser-cut pieces (which can be simplified for young ones with felt scraps). A Flora reads an accelerometer to capture the arm movement, whichis then ‘sent to a magical NeoPixel and piezo speaker for heroic fun. Have your cape and video camera ready. (wearabytes com/superhero-action-bands) ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELD DETECTING DRESS fe liven a complicated world surround ee a ee ee ee ee Se ee ee ee yourself needing a spacesut or planet The zipper is more than just decoration, Ce oe De eet eae ee ee Ce eee ee) Be rca eee oe nC ee ee eee et an et ae otc makezine.com 42THE FASTEST MAN ON EARTH ‘TO STRAP ON AND RUN WITH THE BIONIC BOOTS IS A FEELING LIKE NO OTHER. Asyou begin to stride, you feel the springs storing energy, Then you push off, and you feolthe enormous pawer released, akin to acquiring your onm slice ofa superpower: I built the Bionic Boots simply because | wanted that experience. Ever since | was "2years old, Ive been dreaming of one day dropping into the African savanna and. running with cheetahs, Initially the concept was to emulate and experience the sensation and speed of running Uke a fast animal. still have the ssame goal, but the invention is evoking through the use of future technologies to reach new endeavors. | want to produce a viable form of environmentally sound transportation oer ary terrain, bei city streats or off-road trails — and torun faster than any man alive The first spark of inspiration came from watching a natura history program on kangaroos and how they were able to store energy in their large Achilles tendons, enabling ther to move at high speed over dificult terrain with an efficient gat. made ‘my frst drawings at 12, andthe inventions that came along years later were nat too dissimilar to those originals, ‘quarter century later, m on something 1¢ 200th prototype. These boots are How | built Bionic Boot to run like an ostrich om Ee ‘made from aluminum and carbon fiver, with elastic tendons. n them, I stand 7 feet tall, and can run 25 mph. Inthe intervening time, | went to college ‘and moved, in 1999, to America. I studied transport design and won a Royal Society for the Arts award forthe boots, and used that grant to goto California, the birthplace of so many recreational sports mountain bikes, skateboards, iberalass surfboards) ‘and to bring the Bionic Boot into the public domain, I already had an aesthetically pleasing ‘and working prototype, but it would be one of many. I tend bar six days a week to pay for patent fees and material costs and have ‘worked upto the X14 (2014] prototype. MECHANICAL ANIMAL The boots work by basically giving plantigrade [that is, flat-footed) humans a mechanical advantage, allowing therm torunon their toesin aigitgrade fashion, the way fast land mammals such as greyhounds and cheetahs do, By raising ‘me an my toes the boots lengthen my legs ‘and stride, which increases speed and efficiency, There are two levers, a main one and ‘ne forthe toes. Bath are attached to rubber extension springs that mimic the aforementioned kangaroo tendons. The makezine.com 5PECIAL ECTION essces/s00e 000% main ever provides the majority ofthe propulsive force. As the boot lands, the 18-inch lever stretches the springs: then as they contract, the lever swings through a pivot past the heel, propelling the main ever and springing the User like a catapult. The smaller toe lever hasa rubber and foam grip. which gives, purchase over uneven terrain, Depending ‘on the conditions, one, two, or possibly three interchangeable toes with differing sizes, and tread patterns can be added To build the boots, leveraged metalwork, carbon-fiber molding, and spring building, The inital main boot was designed and constructed by making an anatomically correct copy of the boot tselt. Later, my friend Cart Ricitelli made a mold oft, and laid carbon fiber into the mold to produce the current prototype with the best strength-to-weight ratio so far. Aireraft grade aluminum (6061 and "7000 series) was used forthe other major components. All were constructed without the use of CNC milling machines or casting ‘methods, but instead were cut, shaped, and polished using only a hand dil, angle arinder, and hacksaw, ‘The spring systern is made of natural rubber from speargun spring bands, cut to specific length, with custom-made grommets to attach to the rubber. These canbe added or subtracted to adjust forthe weight of diferent users or the running style or cadence desired ‘Myinvention has been designed — and has evolved — for fast running as a form ‘of transportation. While the top speed is formidable, the stilts are not designed for maneuverable running (2. turning) lam not the only inventor to design ‘augmenting boots, There are other proto- types and products that use different spring -systems, though my invention pre-dates the patents on the most similar ones, One example, originally sold as Powerbiocks Inow Pro-Jumps) trom Germany, also uses a pivoted lever to ‘add stably, buts designed more lke traditional stilts, allowing you to jump vertically lke a pogo stick. Young athletes use them for parkour-styie extreme sports, [Not to be confused with kids’ springy Moon ‘Shoes, which simply suspend the fet in ovat frames, ike two trampotines.| “The differences between the two are not ‘only in the main function but also in the spring: The Pro-Jumps use a fiberglass leaf spring, whereas mine feature natural rubber as an extension spring to store potential energy. Additionally, because of the material, the Bionic Boots weigh in at just ‘sk pounds, around two pounds ess than the Pro-lumps. But one feature thats truty unique isthe pivoted toe, which gives the landing ‘some dampening from the stiff impact ‘ofthe large spring, as well as maneu- verabilty and extra purchase on uneven terrain, ve used them on everything from ptholed and cobblestoned streets in New York and London to California beaches, peaks in the Rocky Mountains, and even in shallove water BIONIC 5-205 — Hsuninm potatype wing ‘asta hing to hl the eg, 3 tabla lover, and asl te. Sing thr tubing. a rogesin fam th orginal bungee sping Gs makershed.com 8-208 — fst us of aon fieron ‘the exsleton AT incest potty is Lrger witha mae power spring and langer std, ut gates ceased the weigh a & X10-2010 — Aluniun potty with decreased hight fr inereasedmazewe ality. urease ie bight an Gceaes ‘th amount of omer aed tthe spingmakezine.comn/wires-and-thread FARTHER AND FASTER ‘There's stil alot todo, future improvements ‘othe Bionic Boot to extend the distance and speed, 'm planning an onboard electronic feedback control system to help ‘coordinate the power and propulsion to give the most effective timing of power output throughout the running cadence, thus providing maxirmum cffciency and power expenditure. 'd also like to explore 2D printing, specifically with titanium oF carbon fiber — even a 10 percent weight reduction could give incredible results Collaboration with ‘companies like Lacal Motors, which printed ‘a car with carbon fiber-infused ABS, or Renishaw, which printed a titanium bicycle, ould help imprave the boots’ performance. The “muscles” could be adapted 100, perhaps to include pneumatic like Festo’s“luidic muscle” which enabled that company’s Bionic Kangaroo. uses pneumatic pressure to contract the muscle asain is added. In nature, a kangaroo recavers energy from jumping and stores it for the next leap In aboot, that could mean greatly increased speed and distance. Inthe end, the Bionic Boots could become a whole interlinked exoskeleton built solely for speed, approaching that of an astrich or even a cheetah, | can see avision ofa prototype | sketched many years ago, encompassing afull- powered protective suit with onboard readouts of speed, distance, system power outputs, and more. Its my bionic conception of future transportation. @ The Bionic Boots could become a whole interlinked exoskeleton built solely for speed, approaching that of an ostrich or even a cheetah v X10 (rev.)-2010 enol ship, ne trance stele does se alin tbs forma spr. the seated mata provides the tenth fiteedthe | X14-2011 ‘nase, molded t exconpassthe anatomy tf mle. The shape trast the fren the bot asthe main eesteohesthe sping Fist fallen fier X12- 2012 — Acard tue edeedweght ut aed det the tgh foc ole when ning Dole tne increased mbit on vorven tara 14-2014 — longer ner springs twinrese pve. dnre-ctaluinom lover pois strangle mecha compen. Raitt iter single. makezine.com 47PECIAL ECTION vi: s::0055/BY NICOLAS HUCHET FORCE DOES NOT COME FROM MUSCLES BUT FROM MUTUAL ASSISTANCE. Unity makes us stronger. | appreciate this because | am not shaped lke Sylvester Stallone Since an accident with @ hydraulic press 12 years ago, | wear a myoprosthesis — an electrical hand that | can control by ‘muscle sensors. There are new models that are much better, but they are very expensive tried them all from RSLSteep- rs bebionic to Ottoback’s Michelangelo — but even $50,000 models were lacking, It was a moat point; my favorite was nat overed by health care. At firs, | thought this was unfair, that | would not benefit from the articulated, carbon-fiber fingers, the variable speed, ‘4 grip patterns, and myoelectric sensors on the bebionic. But then | remembered how lucky | was to have the version | had, thanks to decades of research and access tofirst-world health are, What about people without that access? makezine.comPECIAL ECTION we 1 HAD DISCOVERED AAWORLD WHERE WE SHARE KNOWLEDGE MUCH DIFFERENTLY FROM THIS CRAZY WORLD WE ARE USED TO. ‘There are a few options. Alternative prosthetics — many 3D: printed, articulated, and open fab labs, and even companies, are beginning to fil the gops. California-based Not Impossible Labs built a lightweight 3D- printed hand based on the open-source Rabohand, which itself has been downloaded more than 9,000 times from Thingiverse ‘Aoose coalition of volunteers called e-NABLE includes Robo: hand creators ivan Owen and Richard van As, and boasts eight different designs as well as video tutorials for making ther. Others are based on the hands of InMooy, the open-source, ‘3D-printable robot from France. I's the basis fora design by ‘Ananya Cleetus, a 17-year-old gir rom Pennsylvania, for Help isat Hand, a robotic prototype she brought tothe White House Science Fair The Open BioMedical initiative is working on several open-source hands ofits own, and the Open Prosthetics Project shares dozens of designs, how-tos, and advice The list goes on. But | dide't know about any of them. didn't even know about 3D printing, in October 2012, while walking through Rennes, France, ‘where | lve, passed an exhibition where strange machines, like something from science fiction, were depositing layers of ‘material ont platforms, They were 3D printers. ource — built at universities, Lentared, asking "Excuse me, i it possible to make a robotic hand with this? Because | have a prosthetic hand." Usually when people see my disability they try not to look at itor ask what happened, but their reaction was diflerent. They were excited, They wanted to know hawt worked, "We can download ‘a robotic hand on Thingiverse and make the pieces with this 3D printer." one sad. "Here is one called InMoov, the guy is using Arduino and its open source.” I didn’t understand a word they were saying. But | knew what they meant: I's possible to design an inexpensive bionic hand that you can make yourself, then share your work sa other people can improve it and share it further, |had discovered a world where we share knowedge much differently from this 2y world we are used to | was looking at things differently, it vas my revolution, my change. 1unched the project a few months late, in February 2013, with the LabFab in Rennes. But it was a truly international effort: printed digits rom Rennes; muscle sensors from the U.S.:and design input from Brazi. The founcation isa 3D-printed hand, equipped with actua- tors to move the digits and joints, fishing line to connect the actuators to those joints, muscle sensors and a socket where 5) makershed.comArduino bran. Its allbult fora That's vastly lower sum than typical hands, which run from 38,000 to $80,000. For decades, a German company call Dttobock dominated the relatively small market. Touch Bionics| ‘appeared in 2003, and it uit -limb, the first prosthetic hand with articulated cigits. Then RSLSteeper released the fist three versions of bebioni, DARPA pushed for advancements 2s, well growing number of injuries from Iraq and Afgha e afew things in common, not least their articulation and multiple degrees of freedom, ora low tobe durable and reasonably lightweight, with an opposable thumb, It should reach a maximum open size at least large enough to grab ac bottle, yet cl precisely enough to hold a coin, a pen, or the cable to your headphones. t must grasp laterally —in a neutral position, like hold 1d pal Andit helps to design something fun to build and with an attractive aesthetic. ut fr erded a prototype. Along with my collabPECIAL ECTION NICOLAS HUCHET Inctudinglivesound ‘makes music pay darums.and raves you want tobs ofhisinternational from LabFab Rennes, | presented the frst prototype, with ‘3D-printed plastic, some fishing ine, and an old Nesquik box, atthe Tu Imagines? Construts! festival in Rennes in June, 2013, with Bael Langevin, the creator of Moo rom there, things took ff We got invited tothe frst European Maker Fare in Rome. | learned how to use a 30 printer and we made a second slighty improved prototype ‘We got invited to Geek Picnic, a science and technology festival in St. Petersburg, Russia, and brought a third prototype to World Maker Faire New York Again and again, we were asked the same question What's that? i's a device for which there is great need, Inthe United States, insurance may pay for a prosthesis, In Colombia, they give you a hook; and in Russia, not much else. Spain is really suffering — kids have access to prosthetics, but often, ‘adults won't because of the price. And that's not even ‘mentioning emerging countries. Bionico is not yet robust enough to be a prosthesis tsa prototype, but with it we've traveled the world as self- financed volunteers. So what da we do naw? We may arganize a crowdfunding campaign. We may look fo sponsors who share our philosophy of a utopia of health for everyone. Above all, we want to create an international network and database devoted to improving low-cost prosthetics, Thisis an open-source project, which means. youcan partcigate or make it yourself. The prosthetic-hand fields very small, but if we build a bridge between countries ‘and people, we can make it better and stronger, and go further, faster. As the American philosopher Sylvester Stallone sai, “Big arms can meve rocks, but big words can move mountains." © 5? makershed.comSubder fe lavita: ‘SURE, WEARABLES ARE GREAT, BUT THEY'RE STILL EXTERNAL DEVICES — accessories we have to don, that we can lose, break, or have stolen. They do cool things, but dont inherently change anything about who we are. But there's ‘small community thinking beyond wearables. . These self-described biohackers create DIY implantable systems to augment human ities and transcend the limits of biology Common entry-level biohacks include neodymium magnets embedded in fingertips to ‘sense magnetic fields and pick up small abjects| ‘and RFID ot NEC chips in hands for unlocking phone screens or interacting with other compliant devices. And then there are some individuals who are pushing even those limit. HACKED SYNESTHESIA NNeitHarbisson was born colorblind, nd no jus ‘rix-up-red-and-green colorblind; to him the whole word looks like a black-and-white TV — everthing grayscale. But thanks ta snorkel-Uke device ‘aunted ta his head, Harbisson listens to calor ‘small camera translates the sible spectrum into sound — differen frequencies fr diffrent hues — anda chip transmits it to him via bone conduction. The ‘evice is so integrated wth Harbison person that he now bi 3s color passively, even experiencing the sounds of coors his dream Te IN-EAR HEADPHONES, Parente Rich ee has 2 magnetin his inger ei but he wantee more. In 2013, Lee had sed, was submerged i ‘wo magnets implanted in hs head, er ‘one inthe ragus ofeach ear Using a witha smartphone-size homemade amplifier wor around his planted is forearm. neck, he can listen to music thraugh Sern ‘the magnets, The signal fom hie MPS ey player runs tough a coil creating an nn) electromagnetic field that causes the eee magnets to vibrate, plying music. vena Le'scallworks with almost anything ers you can pluga headphone jackinto, es tke a metal detector A piezo contact ee miclets him “hear through walls, and corsmunity hooking his coil up toa rangefinder Poe eos ‘grants chide version of sonar. Lees See ae aso combining lie-dtection, sess Coie analysis, and voce recognition appsinto a = _apetception-enhancing tool. Take that, eee nent eee Spidey sense! . makezine.comPECIAL ECTION Programming \ = _-Microduino 8MHz Voltage > regulator Battery.MY OPEN-SOURCE SMARTWATCH com: bines readily available breakout boards, ‘careful soldering, and 2 20-printed frame ‘tomake a one-of-a-kind timepiece that lisplays notifications from your smart: phone andis easily customizable in function ‘and appearance. The watch dasignis straightforward, consisting of four major sections: a battery charging circuit vibrating motor for silent alerts, programmable Arduino-compatible core with power regulation and Bluetooth LE, ‘and an OLED display with pushbutton Breadboarding the project is a snap. Wiring itinto a small enclosure meant forthe wrist is quite another matter. Break out your fine point soldering iron and follow the complete instructions at oswatch.org, BATTERY CHARGING A3.1Y 500mAh LiPo battery is wired to a JST connector and a two-position sth, ‘Switched to the right, the circuitisin battery ‘mode, Switched lef i's ready for LiPo charg- ing via the JST connector [Figure @) PROGRAMMABLE CORE Within the 0-printedfrarme an 8MHz Microduino microcontroller is connected to programming port, @ Bluetooth Low Energy board for communicating with your smartphone or other devices, and a voltage regulating circuit (Figure @) VIBRATING MOTOR The simple vibrator circuit consists ofa diode, ‘1K and 330 resistors, capacitor, NPN transis to, and motor. The circuits then connected to the Microduino to buzz your wrist when new calls or alerts come in [Figure @), PUSHBUTTONS AND OLED DISPLAY Four momentary pushbutton switches are wired to three pull-up resistors internal tothe Microduino and a single external 10K pull- down resistor (Figure @) ‘An OLED screen and two small LEDs are wired directly to seven of the digital pins on the Microduino to display time, text, alerts, and more Figure @).© TIME REQUIRED: 20-40 HOURS: cost: $75-$125, MATERIALS Microduino-Core+ microcontroller module, BMH, 3.3, ATmega6aaPA rATmegal2BaP from sone tage regulator, 3.3V Pololu #2114, Motor, vibration Pools #2265 “Tactile switches, momentary push- button (4) Acar #sen scat teem Sereen, OLED Adafut #938, Battery, LIPo.3.7v 500mAh ‘Acatrut #1570 Switch, power Adafruit #805 ‘Connector, JST-PH2-pin Adstrut #1769 ra, fine daft 91446 LED sequins Acatruit #1758 ‘Charger, LiPo, Micro-USB Adafut #1304 Jumper wires, female Adatiuit #266 dumper wires, male Adatruit #758 Blustooth LE chip Mouser Electronics MEOH SLENZA, mouserccr Watch strap Amazon #W/S-NATO-BS- Pataca ta 30 printed parts abe es free Resistors 1ko, 1k (and 380() “Transistor, NPN ‘capacitor, O1MF Diode TOOLS TOI Friend Maker shed #KAD22 vor simi FTOFUSS: Brogrammer (CC Debuager Texas Instruments ACC BESUGGER,toprosiam the sluetooth chip ‘Computer, PC sluetooth rograrrs re Pecan [Arduino microcontroller board 3 ‘tra, to burn the Bootloader and dbus Soldering ron, temperature-controlied Solder with fuxeore Tubeof flux Wire cutters/strippers fine Rotary toot Sandpaper ‘cyanoacrylate (CA) glue ‘kasuper glue Epoxy quick set Muttimeter “Tweezers Solder sucker Helping hands aka third hand tool readboard JONATHAN COOK "5a rode manager by doy a hacker yi ‘and an artist when he as the time, He has been ~“ Ioringhislowattecholoy& eeatvty ince FRecouapickupe penclanga sscerng en. fl For complete step-by-step build instructions see makezine.comopen- e-simariviatcn makezifgomPECIAL ECTION I f & 5 % Nap ’ CAPTIVATING COUTURE Illuminated clothing is one ofthe more, ahem, vsibie branches of wearable technology soi's no surprise that afew fet of EL wire can turn heads and add an extra dimension ta your outfit. But that looks downright old-fashioned compared to these fantastic light-up creations, Some of these projects show that less is more. And the rest show that more is more, Take note: Is not how bright you are, is how stylish you lookin the light. © PROXIMA Laura Dempsey, Hannah Newton, SAIT RADLab makezinecom/ga/proxima Port wearable, part interactive duct, the ferme ‘dancer's jackets programmed to ight up bared ‘on the proximity of REID tage worn by the male dancer. The lights fall him ashe moves ‘round her —the closer he gets the more the LEDs sparkle TECH TIE 1.0 Jett de Boer with Grant McKee and ‘Shannon Hoover makefashion org Tech Te wil finitely turn heads onthe street Sinteen small, OLED screens cycle through diferent animations controled by aSeeed adow Main Bard. Version 15 on the way with e-paper sereens, mare functions, and smartphone conto NEBULA PENDANT Vlad Lavrovsky Wi et the ambient ght aroun you dictate how your jewels shine? Integrating conductive ‘thread, high-efciency LEDs, and BGA- interface integrated circuits, the pendant scatters colored ight across the wearer's skin and clothing fora czaing, unique piece of jewelry, Sj makershed.commakezine.comn/wires-and-thread SYNAPSE DRESS ‘Anouk Wipprecht vimoo com 106431616 This 0-prntad dress) measures tention ees and heartbeat through =) sensors attached to the ‘ware and reacts by lighting up LEDs. The datas logged long wth ‘vdeo roman onboard ‘webcam in one to ‘review emotional triggers crrernensol igh Siotaertine, 7 ‘makezine.com 57FIBER OPTIC DRESS KINISI Natali Waleh Katia Vega Se makershed.comGALAXY DRESS res ILLUMINATING FASCINATORS LcH Designs DRAPER 2.0 Lumitats Make its makezin sakezine.comPECIAL ECTION .. BEAN Pre aes EVER WANTED TO VISUALIZE YOUR BRAIN ACTIVITY? Electroencephalograptiy EEG) uses electrodes placed against the scalp to detect the tiny electrical changes that occur when neurons fire. By amplifying these signals through a com: puter, you can obsery Using an off-the-shelf EEG module, you can make a beanie wth lights that change color and intensity in response tothe wearer's level of a tention and relaxation. You can even use the hat to controlinterfaces on your computer! The lap and double-layer knit hide the electronics, soit looks. and feels just like @ comfortable cap. brain activity in real-time. HOW IT WORKS ‘A NeuraSky ThinkGear ASIC Module [TGAM) circuit bard is connected toa TinyLily Arduino ‘compatible microcontroller (see page 36] running ‘a program that translates brain activity int ight through four NeoPixel RGB LEDS. No meditica tions are made tothe TBAM software or hardware —rather, you integrate the ThinkGear chip into the circuit va a simple mechanical adaptation that allows you to connect itt the board The TinyLilyis easly accessible via a micro USB connector hidden inside the hat’s pern-por. This lets you create interactive “brain art” on your computer, using a programming language such as Processing. Simply connect to your computer via USB lor wirelessly ifyou make the hat with Bluetooth), and import the real-time serial stream into Processing, Then customize the Processing MIND-READING Wg Mae Mcemiekecoce Aten sketch sothat eels of attention? and "rear fon’ vl conralverebles such eo ope, UNDERSTANDING ELECTRODES An EEG device has two types of electrodes: the EEG alectrade, which records brain signal from the scalp, and the reference electrode, which tells the EEG device what “no brain signal” looks Uke (i.e. baseline. built the hat with a dry EEG electrode — constructed from copper fll, cond: tive fabric, foam, and conductive tape — which provides a decent signal quality andi less messy than traditional gel EEG elactrades. You'l need to ensure constant contact of this electrode with your forehead, and ta keep the area sweat free. MAKE YOUR OWN This project requires soldering and some sewing. Detailed stop-by-stop instructions can be found at GET GLOWING! Put on the hat, placing the reference electrode cover the mastoid bone behind your ear. Snap the ‘sensor wie tothe electrode and switch the hat ‘on, The lights in the pom-pom should begin to flicker as the ThinkGear chip starts processing your brain activity. Take slow, deep breaths to rlax and watch as the color changes, Then try focusing ona difficult mental math exercise and ‘watch as the pom-pom glows the opposite hue! @ TIME RE $100-$130 MATERIALS Beanie, double-layer knit witha wide, feld-over flap Copper foil sheet, thin Conductive fabri, non- Foam, hish-density Copper tape Weatherstripping adhesive tape, Vs" wide RGI74 shielded wire for tlectrodes, ECG snap lead Electrode, small adhesive, cne-time-use, with snap. Sch as Sparkfun SEN 12969 ‘Neurosky ThinkGear ASIC Module PCB con be hacked Nom tinefies hoscsot Flora Neopivel RGB LEDs (4) TinyLily Arduine-compatibie microcontroller TinyCircuits mini FTDIUSB adaptor ‘Yar, thiek white for por om ins tutorials onine) Feit or microfiber fabric Theoad Battery extension with ST Battery lithium lon, 3.7V Soomah ‘Switch, tactile pushbutton with leads Connectors, 4pin: male (1) ‘and female) Wire, insulated, 0.8mm exe but sty Kapton or electrical tape TOOLS Soldering iron and solder Wira stripper Scissors Sewing needle 10 FLAMENT ‘Sa nerosenc tent witha pas Sonora us a tinkering with Di electrons, amin © Get complete step-by-step instructions and photos at @ makershed.comA= uk we ” GET YOUR GIF ON v 1 WANT TO ROCK BIG ANIMATIONS ON YOUR LED WEARABLES? There's an easy way toddownload animated GIFs onto a 16x16 RGB LED matrix using Processing software, ‘Arduino, and the Teensy microcontroller. We designed this project for our new MeU Square ‘matrix but you can seit with any home-built NeoPixel LED grid. We've made it easy — all the required code and libraries are on our Github page at github com/MeULED: 1. FIND A 16x16 ANIMATED GIF Search Google Images fora subject you tke, then use the Search Tools to narraw it dawn, First select Size->Exactly and enter 16 for height and width, Then select Type->Animated. Or you can scale any existing animated GIF to 1616 in image-editing software, 2. TURN THE GIF INTO AN ARDUINO PROGRAM Open our Processing sketch Converter. Teensypde. It automatically turns your GIF into an Arduino program [also called 2 sketch]. Just select your GIF, then choose a filename and directory for your Arduino sketch, U_Square 6 3. CONFIGURE YOUR ARDUINO SKETCH (Open your Arduino sketch in the Arduino IDE. You can agjust the GIF playback speed by changing the Metro AnimateTimer value usually 70 to 100s normal. The smaller the ‘number, the faster the animation moves ‘You can also adjust the setBrightness value but do not exceed 40! These LEDs suck up a lot of pawer, anda 16x16 displaying white at full brightness will draw up to 1S amps. Unless your matrix is plugged into the wall and is designed for 15A of current craw, do nat go past 40 or you'll do some serious damage 4, UPLOAD THE SKETCH TO THE TEENSY Connect the Taensy to your computer's USB port, then press the Upload button in Arduino. IF Teensyduino is installed correctly, it should pop up and upload the code, That's it. Your ‘matrix has gotits GIF on! © TIME REQUIRED: 30-90 MINUTES cost: $150-$250 MATERIALS MeU Square LeD matrix A New open-source wearable T5s16 RGB LED display you cenputinto clotvng, sp singin 2018 ~oR- ‘Teensy 31 microcontroller ‘arduine compatible, USS- bbased, $20 From 3 RGB LEDs, WS28128 type (256) such as NeoPa Késtrie eles, Youll naye to Solder or connect the Leos Yourself ina zig-zag configu ration, You can also use 60- CeO sts (Adair #138) Ordalsy-chain our Bes moatibes (ada #1687) Read the NeoPhel Uber sudeat ean acatut Battery tthium lon, ‘OoomaH sures Spark in #8283, You can also use ‘a power supply, but be aware Ofthebighiness setting of the LEDS (see Step 3). TOOLS Computer with the following, Software: ‘Arduino 1DE1.0.50r1.0.6 ‘heetiom ‘Arduino ibraries fiom ‘dlafrt-GPX-Lbray. ‘afte NeoPivel aap. eohaatine SimpleTimer, an Metro-Arduino- Wiha Teansyduno fee rom i, Ths ads-on is requres ‘toupload code ta the Teersy Laing the Arduino De. Processing fee from Processing libraries trom the Github page controlps ‘ndgi-anmation Project code: MeU Square Git-ConverterTeonsypoe fromthe Gthub page ROBERT TU evo ineracve and reactive eM auras. ond ar OAD Unwersiy in Teron For complete step-by-step instructions and video, st makezine.com 6Me ieee nied Fist leleeMUIrey ella nore cis Carehungry ee away, from your garden« DeneIN JAPANESE, SHISHI-ODOSH! MEANS. “DEER SCARER.” THIS TYPE OF FOUNTAIN ‘SLOWLY FILLS WITH WATER, AND THEN SUDDENLY TIPS — making a gentle knocking ‘sound that will chase away any critters ‘eating your garden, Many Zen gardens also use these rocking fountains asa meditation ‘aid, Here's how to build your own, 1, SELECT YOUR BAMBOO Each node is a barrier inside the bamboo. You'll want one upright piece to have few or nornodes, as you'll need to run tubing ‘through it. For the rocking piece, you want ‘nade in the middle, which wil form the bottom of the scoop that fills with water. ing with bamboo isnot tke \warking with dimensional lumber. Bamboo surfaces are irregular, and size and shape change along the length. Be prepared to aust instructions accordingly. 2. DETERMINE DIMENSIONS | built a small fountain to fit in a planter just 8° ‘across, and used 6 or 8 linear feet of bamboo. Marty Marfin in the Make: Labs built one 3 tall [shown here] and used about 20° total Whatever size you design, you'll need a large-diameter piece for the top beam, 2 upright pieces that fit int this beam, anda smaller-diameter piece for the spout, which also fits into the bear, Choose another fairly arge-diameter piece for the water scoop, 3. CUT AND DRILL BAMBOO Ct your beam and uprights to tength. Measure the tops of the uprights carefully and drill holes in the beam to accept them Figure Drilla third hole centered inthe front of the beam, sized to accept the spout, But leave the spout piece extra tong, as you" figure cut te inal long after some testing. Testft the uprights, then drill a" hole near the bottom of one of them for routing the "tubing. | used Forsiner bits; they leave beautifully clean holes (Figure Ql Cutthe water scoop pece so it's got about the same length on ether side of anode 4, CUT STEEL RODS Use a hacksaw to cuta length of Su” rod to span your uprights, plus a few inches on either side, This will be the axis of the water scoop, Cuta shorter rod to fit between your Uprights without touching; you'll use this to test the pouring action [Figure @). 5. MAKE THE WATER SCOOP Drill a %e" hole just behind the central node and straight through the center of the bamboo. Insert the shorter, test axis through the hole, and clamp itin a bench vise so the axis is straight up. Now trim one end of the bamboo at ‘a shallow angle of about 30°, keeping the saw perpendicular to the ground (Figure @). Just cut offa litle; you may have to trim more later. 6. THREAD THE TUBING Feed the "tubing up through the upright you drilled [Figure @), int the top bear, makezine.com/projects/43 Drill with an extea long bit — or just hammer 8 piece of rebar ~to punch through any nodes blocking your path makerine.com 2PROJECTS ‘and out the spout. You can use a piece of rod ‘or another tool to help guide the tubing, 7. TEST THE POURING ACTION Determining exactly where to mount the water scoop onthe uprights is key. Dryfit the tiamboo frame together and use a temporary crosspiece of wood or bamboo to help support Trim the tubing it needed, and connect itta the pump. My pump came with a vale that can partially resrit the water flow. ‘You want itto pump as stowiy 2s possible Run the pump and adjust the height of the water scogp between the 2 uprights to see how itworks (Figure @). You may need to adjust te length ofthe spout and/or the scoop so that water ean pour from one tothe ather Wl ommend testing the pump outside — i get splashy 8. MARK AND DRILL. Once you've found the right placement for your water scoop, mark the uprights where the test axisis aligned. Disassemble the frame and tubing, and drill %s" holes at your marks (Figure @). Reassemble. 9. INSTALL THE WATER SCOOP: Push the axis rod through the first upright, tapping gently with a hammer if needed. Cut 2 short pieces of small-diameter bamboo. You'll use them as spacers to keep the scoop from moving too far from side to Shishi-Odoshi Fountain makezine.com/pro} side, Place one spacer on te rod, then the sc00p, then the second spacer (Figure @) Now push the rod all the way through the far side ofthe second upright. I you wish, cover the exposed ends ofthe od with 2 more short pieces of bamboo to match the spacers, 10. MAKE THE KNOCKER In some traditional fountains, the water scoop tips down and strikes a rock ora basin to create the deer-scaring noise. This one uses lower crosspiece lashed to the frame to provide the desired knocking sound when the scoop tips back up. Test for desired location, then use thin rope to lash it on (Figure O). 11. TROUBLESHOOT AND ADJUST Check the flow of water and the rocking action. ‘Adjust the spout angle if needed. I found | heeded to straighten the vinyl tubing inside the spout by inserting a short collar of ¥" PVC pipe to better direct the flow. Your mileage may vary. Ifthe water scoop doesn't tip and dump after it fill, the back of the scoop weighs too much. You may have te saw some off to adjust the balance. IFit spills but then doesn't flop back into position, the front end is too heawy. Trim the front or add some weight inside the back end. Now put your rocking fountain in your garden to make a space thats peaceful __ ANDREWTERRANOVA fer you — and for your plants. © = fsancbectrcalensineer writer andekectonicsand robotics + Tanks to Gato Soucy (tamtonsouceycon) in =) ercfanetetnlaketsboes Sebastopol, Calf, fo the bamboo and phato location, oman ancibastausht robotesinprimarysehoo! anereatetrobohisexhats Get more photos and tps, and share your build fortheCaldeens Museum ot at makezine com/japanese- water fountain. Somerset County New Jersey. oe makershed.com| PROJECTS makezine.com/projects/43 tan by vique Fla ei ‘Magic Shell” Cuotoiata Dip Magically hardens in seconds — easy to make in minutes! THIS DELICIOUSLY SNAPPY, ‘YETFUDGY CHOCOLATE DIPIS ‘SURPRISINGLY SIMPLE TO MAKE, reading just chocolate, coconut oil and sweetener. The secret is the saturated fat inthe coconut oil, which hardens wien chilled, We liked Max Falkowit’s recipe (makezine.com/go/masic-shell) using gourmet bittersweet chaco- late balanced with a touch of corn syrup. So we made our own version ‘with honey as the sweetener, and it didn't disappoint 1.Combine ingredients ina ceramic or glass bow. 2. Microwave in 15-second bursts, stirring wellin between, until, completely melted. 3,Store at room temperature and stirifit separates, 4, Drizaleit on ice cream — or dip ice cream bars or cones right init 5. Let harden about 30 seconds, or unl the glossy appearance takes ‘on armatte finish. Crunch!® ‘See mare phatos and share your recipe and tps at nskezine-com/ projecis/diyemagic-shell. makerinecom «5PROJECTS vision software toalert you espileup. JASON KRIDNER {saveteranofTexasins ‘menisand cofounder ofthe nonprofit engin Foundation promotingthe esignanduseof opensource software and haréware in ‘embedded computing sneer and maker anda lifelong bibicholic Heisa former tive: ‘year esident of Fux Factory, ‘ocaganizer for Weld Maker Faire (NYO) andzdvocatefor allthings geekathon, 1S YOUR SINK FULL OF DIRTY DISHES LEFT BY UNKNOWN SHIRKERS? Do you require better clscipline around your home or hackerspace to slay on top of the kitchen chores? The Dirty Dish Detector combines an affordable BeagleBone Black single-board computer and a Logitech webcam — along with plenty of open- source software — to alert you the instant dishes get Leftin the sink. The key free computer-vison software called OpenC¥, which can recognize ‘shapes Uke a sink ora bowl and figure out when something's changed. ‘You can find step-by-step instructions on the project page online at makezine.comvdirty-dish {detector Here's how it works: 1. CONFIGURE THE BEAGLEBONE BLACK Uplate the BeagleBone Black's MicroSD card to runthe latest Debian operating system, which includes OpenC¥ and Python ibrares (Figure @) ‘Then, configure it to automatically connect with your wisi network, 2.3D PRINT AN ENCLOSURE (OPTIONAL) You could use a plain project box but we 3D-printed 2 BeagleBone Black enclosure by Logic Supply that also accommodates the USB ‘hub (with alittle drilling) and the webcarn. The 30 files are free on Github (Figure @). NOTE: ris project assumes some familiarity with the command tine, along vith the ability to administer your local area network. Alte experience with coding (be it Python, PHP. or ever HTML! wil go far in this project. Alf the necessary code is supplieg and documented on the project page online, but you'll want to customize it foyour liking Gh makershed.comeagleBone slack Kit ker shea #MSGSEEK2 » Webcam, widescreen suchas the LogtechiC270 MicroSD card. » ACadapter with USB, SVAGA » AC adapter plus, M-type »USBhub,4-port >» USB wi-fl dongle, Netgear G54/NI50, Tools » Computer with USB port » Hot glue gun » Nippy cutter »» 3D printer (optional) oZipties » Hardware, various for ‘mounting the proiect 3. INSTALL THE DETECTOR ABOVE YOUR SINK How you mount the Dirty Dish Detector is upto you. Some craftiness willbe necessary, depending ‘on whether you have cabinets above your sink wiat they're made of, and how many sinks you need to detect Figure @). Pace the Dirty Dish Detector at an adequate istance to cover as much of your sink or sinks as possible. Experiment with the webcams lens and angle before you install your Detector 4. RUN CLOUD9 AND PROGRAM THE BOARD ‘The BeagleBione automatically connects te your Wicflnetwork. Use the Cloud? IDE to interface with your Detector and program it, using the ready-made Python scripts we provide. 5. CAPTURE CLEAN AND DIRTY SINK IMAGES Now youl train” the Open software to understand whats seeing. First testthe comera byrunning the script camera-testpy Then run the sink-orptypy erp o take a picture of your empty sink (Figure @). This gives OpenCV a reference image to compare against when it processes photos, loking for culprit cups and dry dishes Then throw some dishes inand take another picture by running the sink lates py script (Figure OL NOTE: coo tighting i important for rt able detection. Turn on any available kitchen tights and experiment 6. SET UP NOTIFICATIONS AND AUTOMATION (Once the system knows what to compare against —aclean sink — you can program it to send ‘an email and/or MMS when an unclean sink is ddotected. In fact, thase notifications will happen with every “status change” inthe sink, soyoullbe ‘notified not only when the sink goes from “clean to"dirty,” but also vce versa Lastly, go back out tothe command line and set up a crontab to automate the system to take a ‘photo every S minutes. The webcam's status LED will ght up whenever the seript uns. Nowy you've gota tireless partner in your fight against unwashed dishes! ‘Do you have another idea for a robust, self contained Dirty Dish Detector? Perhaps you dsigned an enclosure to blend into your kitchen ‘environment? How about a Dirty Dish Detective that also snaps a photo of the perpetrator and ‘weetsit for public shaming! Share your ideas on the project page online. @ For complete step-by-step instruction images, ecg ree aera at tet.PROJECTS Maker Mak THINK WE'VE ALL BEEN FASCINATED BY FLIGHT AT ONE POINT IN OUR LIVES. Whether that fascination leads to folding paper airplanes or piloting full-sized aircraft, we all dream to make something fl, And many of us get there using radio-controlled [R/C] hobby aircraft, Plenty of toys can give you limited control of flying erat, but to get the full sense of fight you need to dive right into the R/C community. You'll soon be doing exciting activities like acrobatics, speed trials, formation fying, combat, slope soaring, and aerial photography. However, it can be daunting to get started with your first R/C plane. What motor and speed controller should you get? How should you charge the batteries? What is a BEC and why do you need one? How do you fy?! To answer all these questions Make: created Maker Hangar, a one-stop, free resource that anyone can use to easily get into the R/C hobby. Maker Hangar consists of 23 video tutorials, three aircraft you can build, and a community ‘of more than 1,000 members all sharing pictures, videos, and knowledge. Jein us at LEARN TO BUILD AND FLY — ALL FROM VIDEOS ‘The Maker Hanger video series covers the basics of electronic R/C aircraft components, then shows how to build, set up, and fly your first trainer airplane. Following that you'l build a tricopter that's great for aerial video, FPV (first-person view!, and just fun flying — find it in the next Make: magazine — anda smaller, tougher trainer plane to hone your fying ils. 3 Turn the page foranup-close look at the = Maker Trainer planes and get building! 5 ie makershed.comeet ea See see! Pa eee earn Electric Speed Controllers (ESCs) ee ree) See eae ee ecru R/C Receivers: Connections and Placement Maker Trainer Plane: Big, stable, easy to een ery era act en Coy Installing the Electronics BE eer htt) AS ne esos ine.com/projects/43 eee Cerra Pret Eo en Co anos ee ee) un Modifications: Bomb Dropper, Landing are Maker Hangar Tricopter: Smoother fligh Cer een) Oo ea) Se ea Rene a omer rk age een Dea eee ed durable, and a faster build, too En ae a to Assembly to Programming Pr eesPROJECTS Maker Trainer R/C Airplanes Sene30"«20" (4) Plywood ete2me2 Popsicle sticks (3) Socket cap screws, Mastemm (3) Lock nuts, M3 (4) Push rods, ‘Ser0.047"(2) Packing tape, heavy duty ‘Ska carton sealing p= ‘Wood square dowels: Mavoannnas (2) andveeeaS6"(1) Electronics: ‘Motor, brushless ‘utrunner | 600KV, NTM Prop brive 28-36 ‘Motor hardware, NTM Prop brive28 Series Propeller, 4", APC .ESC,308, Turigy Plush UPobatteries, 2200man38 (2) ‘Servomotors, 9g Micro (Bora) cet esenosifyou ‘nant ue contol ‘Servaextensions, 12" (2) R/C transmitter, 4 channels R/C receiver, 4+ channels rmakershed.com Maker Trainer Super stable for beginners, jumbo sized for payloads ‘THE ORIGINAL MAKER TRAINER USES ALL. ‘STANDARD ELECTRONIC R/C PARTS AND WAS DESIGNED WITH A LARGE FUSELAGE ‘TOMAKE IT EASY TO WORK INSIDE. Flight characteristics were taken very seriously oo — the Maker Trainer has almost a 5-foot wingspan, soit can glide for tong distances and carry plenty of weight. Because the plane is big and heavy, it's algo more stable and can fy in mile winds; although ifyou're a beginner it s preferable to fly inno winds until your reaction times decrease ‘and your confidence grows, This plane is also very crash-resistant I's got ‘a double-layered fuselage and a wooden spar running the length ofthe wing, and its propeller is mounted behind the fuselage to protectitin the ‘event ofa crash, “Another big consideration with this big plane: how to transport itt the flying fel. For portability the wings fold back parallel to the fuselage. This drastically decreases the dimensions ofthe airplane so you canfitit in the back seat of almost any car. Allin all, the original Maker Trainers a great first plane ifyou want a very stable and durable trainer and dont mind spending a ttle more time and money to built. Watch the orginal Maker Trainer how-to video senesat Rated Nea 08 OES) PLES) ERE ae ns Ten OG) FY in tight spat eee Our nen Pee Pe reue nny eet en ey Cees pet eee cas Pea cg Sor Deas Make: Motor Shield eee Sloot Ee} Cae These autonomous chop great for aerial photog- aaa en ee Ted Cee eee Pera Pees trea) rege eet aes Po eos CerMaterials Airframe: " Feam board, RL Adams Readl-Board, Syet™30"™20" (2) » Maker Trainer parts kit Sistem vesshcatisysom, hreudess »30-ptinted motor mount »30-piinted conte, hors (6) Socket cap screws, assem (4) Hex nuts, M25 (4) Push rods: 4'*0.047" Ghso9er (2h 25¢n0.047 (1) Push redcoonectors (5) Electronics: Motor, brushiess outrunne, 1400kv, HURC 300 "sive Wonder » Propeller, 8°%3, Slow Fly » Electron speed controller (esc), 188, » LiPo batteries, .300mAh 35(2) » Servomotors, 9a Mero (3) Get senosiFyou nant racer conta » Servo extonsions, 18" (2) Geta youre nstallng rdder servos. R/C transmitter,6+ channels » R/Crecelver,4v channels Tools -srlphrege "cutting board * Scewehvar eat "Seasons *Sprayashesive "ey kniesichson - Packing tape. heavy duty »Sandoaper “Brilland its “ele “Hot atue gun > eyanoanate (CA) ste sonpe gue ~ cutters * ers "Soldering ron andsoler APC \— et Maker Trainer 2 Our most durable, compact, quick to WE DESIGNED THE NEWEST MAKER TRAINER ‘TOBE SMALLER, EVEN MORE RUGGED, AND EASIER TO FLY THAN THE ORIGINAL. The motor is still safety tucked in back, but the MT2 is half the size and weight of the MT, soit doesn’t need tobe folded and it's more rigid and resilient to crashes. No wood supports are needed, only two sheets of foam beard, Build it in just afew hours. ‘The plane has amazing flight characteristics too. With ts KFm2-type stepped airfoil the MT2 is completely resistant to stalls and has a flight speed envelope from walking speeds to high speed full-throtle passes. I's also capable of rmild acrobatics such as loops, rolls, and fat spins. Naturally it does get thrown around by the wind alittle more than its larger brother 1. LAY OUT THE PLANS ‘Download the PF plans, print them out, and tape them to the 4" foam board 2. CUT OUT THE FOAM Cut the pieces, then score the foam to free up all the control surfaces, 3. ASSEMBLE THE WING Use spray adhesive to glue the 2 parts of the Fm? airfoil lining up the wingtips and leading edge. Use sandpaper to taper the leading edge. 4. TAIL BOOMS AND FUSELAGE Fold and glue the fuselage and tal booms. 5. GLUE THE PLANE TOGETHER Cue the tall booms to the wing, the elevator to the booms, the vertical stabilizers to the booms, and finally the fuselage tothe wings. build, and fun to fly plane 6. PAINT (OPTIONAL) Waterproof the plane with polyurethane, and then tape off any design and spray-paint 7. INSTALL THE ELECTRONICS Mount the motor and glue the servos in place. 8. CONNECT CONTROL. ‘SURFACES Mount the control horns in the plane's, control surfaces, then link them to the 9. PLUG IN ALL THE WIRES Plug the ESC and servos into their corresponding ports in the R/C receiver. 10. PROGRAM THE RADIO Make sure all control surfaces are moving the right way and atthe proper proportion. 11. FLY ‘Tweak the center of gravity until les without dipping, and trim the plane to make itty level. The Maker Trainer 2is the perfect fun-fying, durable, cool-looking trainer for anyone wanting tolearn to ly R/C airplanes. Build ane!® Watch the complete Maker Tainer 2 how-to video series at makezine.com/makerhangar, ‘makezine.com 71enc Arduino + desperation 2lst-century rodent control. ita reMWELIVEONASHALL SLANOWITHALARGEPOPULATINF ATS, ‘PimeRegurea: Tans aeryocacthr mah epson eyes lems Ae a state wn sre nh ap waive had to make a trap as clover as the rats. Materials Rather than an enclased cage, which they seem to avoid, we used a suspended basket that leaves an unobstructed view t rat eye level. IMMANUEL, " Cantos vate She ‘The cage is suspended by two neodymium magnets. When an infrared ADAM, ‘#\KSPB8, makershedicom proximity sensor detects @ rat below, ittriggers two electromagnets that -1SA,AND_ i rsbherrentrir circ ponal repel the suspension magnets, dropping the cage over the rat. oc MER her severt years andatl the tapos gradalyrmprove.The gna Bemachoardumpes, sensitty is recalbrated every 10 minutes in software running on an paymgnac Wik Se Arduino, An RGB LED indicates trap status, a buzzer sounds the alarm eee center positive ‘when something gets caught, anda handle makesit easy o cay Se poe fom Cortes and sae par 1, BUILD THE CAGE micanadas west “tnsoanyeetoe 1A. MARK PLYWOOD where the went » Transistor, NPN, 283906 Mark outyour plywood as shownin the cuting eiagram (Figure @) wetanrecensare |_| LED, Ras.commenexthode Ay posteresitsf » Speaker, 0350320 (tone!) 1B. DRILL HOLES irexpertnen » Rely SPOT,SV OC, ype Using hole saws or Forstner bits, drill the two 1$hs" holes in the base autodidacisio nse » Slleon power rectifier IFigure ©) and the two 1%" holes intersecting the cage rim ‘logan INaoov 2) Cril wo oles inthe mide ofthe cage op the same distance “Infor pronimity sensor apartas the emitter and receiver on your sensor [about Then drill Paccuean wo" holes inthe top, 5" apartandin ne withthe sensor hoes hese eee ar for mounting the disc magnets. » Magnet wir 30 ANG, 70" “ Pantend screws, 6 (6) 1¢.cUTTHE PLYWOOD srt (2) Using a jigsaw, cutout the base, rim, and top [Figures @ and @). (rit, » Threaded rods, Yie"6"(2) a hole first to ge the blade started Touch up with 120-git sandpaper. eel * PVC pie, 10,5'tnath Fr "PVE pipe fitings, 90° 1. ASSEMBLE THE CAGE ai Wrap a 7°58" strip of metal mesh around the cage tp and staple in : -Pirnceaateda2 place (Figure @. Staple the other end of the mesh eylinder into the Plywood, %"*6"x5V" ‘cage rim [Figure @. If your rodents are voracious chewers, staple 2 —_ > Metal mesh, Y", 7458" ‘smal piece of screen over the sensor holes inside the cage. ‘ska hardware cloth » Electrical tape and heat shining 1E. PAINT [OPTIONAL] » Masking tape ‘Paint optional) Tools » Soldering ton and solder Stapler > Side cutters digsaw » Drill and bits Hole saws orForstner bits ates > Hot glue gun | » Lighter minitorch » Sandpaper Mess onone SY »» Magnetic compass or se SSC ad ‘noble device » Computer running Arduino IDE tee dowload tom arcuna.s/en/MarvSorware es on plywood, puta small nai inthe center . » Project code donnioac the tif wire with erook at each end Yo keep your pene free Arduino seteh fer ‘i ew er sihuncom/Pastonyetnests place as you draw the crt frake-cmatat ve Give the base and cage a coat of paint or two to makeit lok snappy. ("Po fi oO {waar < \ \ ¥ makezine.com 72PROJECTS ‘Smart Rat Trap TIP: ake acing jig to prevent your pipe from rolling when you dil Just ari rough a small Bock af wood using 2 it the same diameter a your pip 2. BUILD THE SUPPORT FRAME. 2A. CUT THE PVC PIPE CCutyour PVC pipe into 4 sections: a 19%” cross- bar, two 12%" uprights, and a 6" handle. 2B. DRILL THE PVC FRAME Drill two 5A" holes 5* apart through the handle Drill a matching pair centered inthe erossbar. 20. ASSEMBLE THE FRAME Use 2 PC elbows toattach the crossbar tothe Uprights, making sure te bolt holes are parallel, with the uprights. Drill pilot holes and fasten the elbows with" #8 pan head screws. (You could se cement, but screws make itremovable) 3. MAKE THE ELECTROMAGNETS 3A. WIND THE COILS \Wind 2 nuts onto each threaded red, 1" apart, "ihe" from one end, Wrap electrical tape over the threads between nuts [Figure @). Measure out 39 of magnet wire Tape itto the threaded rod between the ruts, leaving 6” of extra wie fwrap this around the bolt shaft out ofthe way for no (Chuck the threaded od in your drill, and cover the exposed threads with masking tape so they won't damage the wire’ insulative coating. [Now carefully wind the wire on between the 2 nuts (Figures @ and @I. Secure it with a layer of tape, again leaving 6” of wire hanging out Repeat forthe other electromagnet, making sure the direction of winding is the samme 3B. TEST POLARITY Hook each electromagnet up toa 12V power source briefly, with the lead from the outside of the col connected to positive (+), Use a magnetic compass for smartphone compass appl as shown tadetermine the magnets polarity (Figure @) Record which end ofthe compass needle (south oF northl points toward the active electromagnet. 4. CONNECT THE ELECTRONICS 4A MAKE THE ELECTRONICS PLATFORM Guta 6°54" rectangle of" phywood, Ori apair of "holes throught apart. Use smal beads of hot gue toattach the Arduino, capacitor, and 5V relay onto the platform board youre using a speaker, lus that on too (Figure 48. WIRE THE BREADBOARD Stick a mini breadboard onto the platform next ta the Arduino, Wire the transistor as shown in the wiring diagram, withthe 1kO current-limiting resistorbetweenits base andthe Arduino pn D12 [Figure @). For audio and visual feedback of trap status, ad the RGB LED and speaker as shown. Holéing the RGB LED withthe angest eg second fram the tft, the pinout from ltt rights Red, Common Cathode, Green Blue. Solder 31000 resistor to the common cathode anda 500 resistor onthe red leg Puta smal piece of eat-shrink tubing aver each eg including the resistors. Then shrink larger piece ever them al [Figure QI. Connect the eathade to ground the red leg to D7 green to 105, and blue oS onthe Ari Connect the speaker between GND and DB. ‘40. SOLDER THE DIODE AND CAPACITOR Solder silicon power diode between the capacitor’s negative -] terminal and the relay’s common (COM) terminal: the diode's cathode [marked with a tine around the diode] should be connected to the relay [Figure @). 14. SOLDER THE RELAY Runa wire trom te capacitors positive} terminal othe rely’ normaly open INO] terminal Solder another wire onto the same relay terminal and plgitnt the Arduino Vin pin ‘Solder a silicon power diode across the relay’s coi Solder a wire tothe relay pin where the diodes anode is attached, and connect the other edt the transistor’ collector athe breadboard Runa wire trom te other relay coil terminal [cathode side of the diode] to the Arduino’s +5V sin. Strip this end ait extralong so you con solder another wireto it Figure @) 4€, WIRE THE SENSOR Your sensor should havea 3-pin female plug on the end ofits lead, Cut3 pieces of appropriately colored hockup wie, and use these to extend your sensors leads. Plug the black iead int the [Ardung's OND, and the yellow ead [signal into {A, Solder the sensor's power wire tothe relay power wie at the Ardvin’s #5 pn Figure @) Glue the sensor onto the bottom ofthe electronics platform, making sure the infrared emitter and recenver math the 2hols dried in the top ofthe cage [Figure @). 4F, INSTALL THE ELECTROMAGNETS Insert the 2 threaded rods into the holes in the electronics platform and secure them with nuts underneath Cut the electromagnet leads to length. Use a ‘mini torch, lighter, or sandpaper to remove the shellac from the ends of the leads. 5 makershed.commakezine.comyprojects/43 Solder the leads from the outside of both electromagnets windings tothe relay’s common Icon pin. Solder the wires from the inside of the coils ‘onto the capacitor’s negative [-] wire atthe Arduine's GND pin, 5. FINAL ASSEMBLY 5A. ATTACH THE SUPPORT FRAME Ingertthe PYC frame into the heesin the bose {Figure Ql From the underside of the base, dil 2 pilot holes from the inside of each pipe, then secure the pipe vith #8 pan head scree. ‘5B. ATTACH ELECTRONICS AND HANDLE Slide the electronics assemblys threaded rods Up through the holes inthe horizontal crossbar. Thread down 2ruts to clamp itn place. Use 4 ‘more nuts to attach the handle ontop (Figure 5c, INSTALL THE PERMANENT MAGNETS Thread wo ¥'" bolts through the holesin the top ofthe cage. Secure with 2 nuts onthe bottom Test the polarity of 2 neodymium magnets, then srap them onto the bolt heads rented so they repel the electromagnet Figure @) Fer example, the electromagnets north poles down, then the permanent magnets north ple should face up — lke repels ie Final squeeze the cage ino place between the support posts ‘5D. PROGRAM THE ARDUINO Dowmicad the Arduino sketch fram Github and upload it tothe board, SE, TEST! Slide the cage up untilit snaps anto the magnetic ‘supports (Figure @), then plug your AC/DC ‘adapter into the Arduino’s pawer jack, The LED vill link green wile the Arduino caliprates the ‘sensors threshold, then turn solid green once its set and ready to trigger. Test the trap by sipping a rodent-sized object, under the center of the cage, The LED wil ach red and the Arduino wll close the relay with 2 lick to fire the electromagnets, dropping the ‘cage. Ablue LED means the trap has been triggered and may contain a rodent. Ifthe relay clicks but the trap doesn't drop, don't worry Your magnets are probably too strong for the electromagnets to counteract, Cut some smal squares of tape and stack thern on top ‘of your permanent magnets until theyre weak ‘enough to be dislodged. Your trapis done! SMART RAT TRAP: WIRING DIAGRAM ROBLED "35h! OBO SS IR Proximity Sensor ‘Speaker ~ Resistors 770 (3), 1000 (6) “nar LED Rasesnaat 760162 = nfrarad caver Mouser Becrones see tSOPS2138 » Sewvomoter merase © Speakers mm 2) "GbDs igh brightness: red Grande) Surten momentary peaetesy » Capacitors, O3UF (2) > Head 2in “Diode IN«Oo4 "Battery older: 6xAA (1) ‘and ena) + Hookup wie, 22 AWG » Projet box (optional) “PVE ips, 2a couplers (2) Foam mounting tape, ‘dovblesiged Old bookcase or shelves ‘TOBUILD AN ATTINYZ@DIP- ADAPTER: » Power supply, 8 300mA » Voltage regustor SV » Capacitors, OF (2) Resistor, 10kO. » DIP socket, é-pin » Meader, 6-pln » Prototype board Tools » Soldering ton and solder » Wire cutters » Pliers, needlenose » Handsaw or PVE pipe cutter > Di anabies ‘OPTIONAL, IF YOURE PROGRAMMING YOUR OWN, CHIPS: AVR ISP programmer » Computer with AVR Drogramming software such Bs Avestude (armel om) or AAVROUDE (fee ram nongnu owwancude) » Project code Downioed IrgunfeVioo nex sr ‘margetREVIOD her, ree acadehiml makezine.com 77PROJECTS yl tw > Customizable Picking Bins Get organized! Instantly (etesievelt trees ace) bins, then cut them by ead eae Diao wa FUSS ALOT ABOUT HOWTO ORGANIZE TOOLS 2. INPUT YOUR BIN DIMENSIONS Faceted: AND PARTS SO THAT PEOPLE CANEASILY FIND — Gottothe Buld-2-Binwob page at Cost: ANDUSE THEM. Thisis . rfotherfuld-a-binghp $0-$20 immy day-to-day business sling robot kis, a5 and input your bin's dimension, along wth rmuchasitisat my locathackspace. What ve the thickness ofthe material you'll be cuting DAN figured out so far is that everything has to have (Figure ©). Build-2-Bin will automatically draw ROYER, decatedhomeadcessthatsveryvisble and _adagram of yourbinto match your dimensions. BN ) cacytocccess. Picking bins hita sweet spot Black ines show where to cut red ines show 25 Bm songtornt that meets alotof needs. whore to fold Censtucicn Theyre stackable; theyre open in the fron \irite down your dimensions, as you might TObdson they've got oor fr alabelon there; there’s _wantto make moreof the same sie later Findowmorecaiemeeae n0lidto loses hard to put them ona shelf the i rome wrong way they con be made without ue, tape sayhiinpersonat Wort or fancy tools; they canbe made fro reycod uid-0-8 Maker Fae in New York input values. It is possible ‘materials; and you can see what's inside without designe, Use tye opening anhing i Inspfed by Wie picking in and Rahulboties heavy cardstock,or ‘page that generates the plans for you to make 3. SAVE THE DXF FILE ee similar bins in your favorite sizes Build-a-Bin also generates @ drawing file inthe DAF format which can be eed by most ser » lu or tae entra) 1. DESIGN YOUR BINS ‘cutter software. (You can also print the DXF Here's a sketch of a basic bin [Figure @J. For your drawing tomake ge * connection depth. Build-a-Bin automatically calculates the cutting.) Ltueciterectonal) | eight adept tthe opening, You" needto Store iyourworkspaceis tite mine — salland/or save this DXF fe to niuerananatiyteles tered youmight antic designavorelyot _yourcompute, Just bin sizes that can stack on each other: copy the text from ye makershed.commakezine.com/projects/43 the DXF File window (Figure @) and save it sa plain tot il. Then change the fie extension from. tod and you're good to go. 4, CUT YOUR BINS ‘Send the DXF filet your laser cutter and cut out as mary bins ‘as you like [Figures @ and @). Ifyou don't have a taser cutter, open the DXE file in Inkscape and print it out, then useilt as a template to cu your bins by hand. 5, SUPER MAGICAL ORIGAMI TIME! Cultalong the back tines, crease an fold on the red tines. Sot the back ofthe box together st en the top and finaly help onthe ‘ror [Figure @), iting its tab through the matching hole. Yo! Label he front and stack on your shel ke tlabel mine tke Battleship squares [A3, BS, etc.) so if they get moved it's obvious. and they find their vay hore. 6. NOW MAKE MORE Corrugated cardboard is ideal fr these bins; cheap and recyclable. You can also use bristleboard or heavy paper cardstock. The Make: Labs had good results cuting Coroplast corrugated plastic It's a litle harder to fold but it's tough and durable and it looks great. © + Special ng to Evan Jones and in Wea x elpng to improve te Buld-a-insrigt ‘See more photos and show us yourbins at maiezine.com/build- bin, Tweet a picture of your bin and tag t #oulab, 3 Fun Things to Le [6 We asked our friends at Other Machine Co, {othermachne.col for fun project they like to cut with their new (Othermil, desktop CNC mil for circuit boards and other small projects 1. CHOCOLATE MILLENNIUM FALCON Ed Lewis instructables.comVid/Chocolate-Millennium-Falcon Chocolate may nat be the first thing that comes to mind when you think CNC, but with CAD files, machining wax, and food {grade silicone, you can milla Millennium Falcon chocolate mold thatll make Han Solo swoon, Pew pew nom nom! 2. PCB HUMMINGBIRD NECKLACE ‘Sam DeRose Instructables corrVid/PCB-Hurmmingbird-Necklace-on-the- Othermitt Cut this sweet litle bird straight out ofa blank PCB and etch the Circuit on one side and a decorative patter of your choosing on the other. Bonus LED backlighting brings ambiance on the go, 3. INTERACTIVE DIGITAL DISCO BALL Colin Willson instructables.corrVid/Digital-Disco-Ball Mill out custom-shaped circuit boards that actually it tagether to forma futuristic disco ball. Inside, distance sensors connected to {an Arduino change the brightness of speciic LEDs according to how much activity they detect. No parking on the dancefloor. ‘makezine.com 77PROJECTS Backyard Climbing Wall 3uild a real training wall that dc \Wtten and photographed by Benton Calhoun tsafatherot fourwnoloves sharingoutdocr activities with his kids Inbetween, hebapxotessor creme Time A iple ‘Weekends Cost: $400-$450 | cuimseo i ich SCHOOL AND COLLEGE, BUT HAD TO CUTWAY BACK ONCE MY WIFE AND HAD Materials CHILDREN. It was frustrating to be so out of shape. For Dimensional conditioning my forearms, for training climbing moves, Groandase, and jst for fun ve wanted a climbing wal for along Dimensional time But i’strcky tod space or aninor citing Member, wall and to conine myer thats not going to SEReRa%e ——Sevcusty deractirom th decor. Sora decid to sethangers2*6 tr ying an outdoor val gov myself the additonal » Clay and/or : " ‘ ff Challenge of making it double asa kids’ play structure I thoroughly enjoyed building it — mostlyin 1-to 3-hour chunks at night after the kids went to bed, using oodlghts from the house and a headlamp. Ifl'd dane itallat once, | think | could've finished in 3 or & days. The kids and | have gotten years of fun out of it, and its > Tenutsand sill going stron bolts, 3" = ” »-Climbinghotds Sndanchore 1.PLANIT Plywood, ‘mage a rough SketchUp drawing to play with diferent Shootin angles for my climbing panels Figure @ so they'd . les for my climbing panels Fig % ne provide a variety of “terrain,” and thought about how: Tools toincorporate a two-tier kids’ fort on the back, with Chelan sew monkey bars and side. » Bilanddilbits Then | madea detailed SketchUp model to plan the major supports [Figure @) and help me writea bill of materials, You can grab ita onl and pay withitin 30, ubles as an awe ids playground o- ~@ 2. SET POSTS AND MAJOR SUPPORTS Dig holes 4" deep forthe 6x6 posts, and 2-3' deep for the xd posts, It's tricky to set the big 4xés.in the hole; so you may want to ask a friend to help. used 24s nailed to stakes toalign the posts vertically then tamped clay soil back into the hole to firm up the post. |also used some conerete forthe big posts ‘Attach the 2x8 cross braces. 3. FRAME IT For the overhangs, use metal hangers to attach 2x6 jist to the 2xBs First cut these to length and then cut angles te match the angled 2x4 wall studs, The trickiest partis cutting the notched bottom of the angled 2xds so they sit onthe lower 2x8, Once everything is screwed together, strengthen the ey oints with carriage bolts. ‘8 makershed.commakezine.com/projects/43 Workshop Light Doorbell Can't hear the door? Hack a wireless doorbell to turn ona light too. Witten and photographed by Jason Poel Smith 4, PREPARE THE PANELS Use a spade bit to drill holes for 4” T-nuts where youwill place your climbing holds. Ilaid out a grid ‘of 8 squares, then offset the holes O° to 3" to get some pseudo-random patterns while keeping good hold spacing. For weatherproofing paint the panels on both sides with primer and textured paint. Justa spoontul ‘of sandin a gallon of standard exterior paint gave the Materials WHENI'MUSING POWER TOOLS IN MY WORKSHOP, right fel for me. Plugin I can't hear the doorbell ring, So| modified a wireless Final poundinthe T-utsfromtheback Irecom- ff MHIESS doorbell system to turn ona light in addin o playing @ mend stiniess steli you can aforit sed zinc powered tone at my workbench Here's how to doit nuts. and ater years, ust hasmade some ofmy ff» Extension hold impossibie to move ars sccust 1 HACK THE WIRELESS DOORBELL “Tuigmebuin, Extend the speaker wires, connect lead to negative DC 5, MOUNT THE WALLS AND HOLDS lewrwattase power, and solder the 2 switches to the output ransistr. Screw the panels tothe framing, Istrted atthe ae bottom and worked up fwiseon 2, BUILD A CONTROL CIRCUIT Get some holds. Leck online: bought most ofmine J *RelaKt2Y ——-Mycireuit uses 555 mer chip sneBey Bl the as on tewalandgetcimbing” finan, pomered ound that mar holds = more fun. Gscomect bythe doorbell unit. When pin lalso bolted achainanchoratthe top ofeach panel J S2MMEETO is triggered by the doorbell pin Ithrough the 258] 0 support top roping, although we ones i Mcaeraritargerntay eesterant mainly boulder: »S88emerte amount of ime, based on resistor x Gnlookn oo and capacitor values you choose, "Ss6ueq), 3, CONNECT THE RELAY AND LAMP 6. FINISH THE PLAY STRUCTURE ‘The main fort platform hasa ladder and a back entrance behind the big overhang, A smaller ladder OOUF Solid-state relays require power to operate, Connect leads to the top platform, which is protected by a " Curtboard the 555' pin 1 tothe relay’s negative input, and pin 3to section of premade deck ating -Jumperwares. the ays postive input Slice the extension cord to con- Imad monkey Meat necttherely athe ight socket, bars from 4° metal pies Pipe set between two enclose 4, MOUNT ITALL 2atswithoindtoles Too Is I puta translucent ron pane onan old project box. Plug dried halfway into Sremeiiver the doorbelnt the extension card, and then int the wal, them, And made a "SStsenngiton __Nowvwhen someone rings your doorbel the ight tums slide by bending 3 = ‘on. Use the switches to toggle the tone or light on or off. pieces plywood ff *Krfe | Sitentmede light ont is good when someone'sasoep. © then covering them sca witha sheet of tin ssNotguegun _Formore construction ips and photos visit the project Fe bolbubstath (ptiona page at makezineconvught-doorbel, aedworkegeate ff "goagest —- JASON POEL SMITH has an undergraduate degree in For more construction tips and photos, visit the project page at makezine com/backyard= climbing. wall ‘mechanical and electrical engineering and spends most of histimechasinghisnew baby and making the video series ‘DIVHads andHow'Tos" youtubecominakePROJECTS Tracking Planes with RTL-SDR -. BY | " 7 4 es aN = Follow commercial flights and map their exact locations in the sky with an inexpensive software-defined radio ‘SOFTWARE-DEFINED RADIOS (SDR) ARE GAINING IN POPULARITY, AND IT'S NOT HARD. With an inexpensive RTL ‘and property configu mmercial airplane @ makershed.cominto the BeagleBone Black's USB port Connect an Ethernet cable to the Ru-45 jack ‘and. 5V power supply tothe barrel ack. Ifa barrel jack supply isnot handy, power can be supplied over the micro-USB port, but remember, amperage is limited at 500m per USB specification That'it! The physical build is done. 2. SSH AND UPDATE DEBIAN The BeagleBone Black should be booted and the blue LEDs lashing quickly Rather than ‘connecting @ monitor and keyboard tothe device, connecting remotely over SSH is preferable WINDOWS USERS: CDownlead and install an SSH program such as Putty, Set up 2 connection to beaglebone local as the root user. By defaull, there is nota root password set. (OSX AND LINUX USERS: You already have an SSH client installed on your system by default, but you need to open a terminal session and type: ssh reotabeaglebone.1ocal Ibeaglebone. local doesn't work, use 192.168.7.2 instead. Ifa password prompt ‘appears, simply hit return, ‘Now, regardless of platform you should have a ‘command prompt on the Beagle. Refer tothe first image if unsure. Update the Debian package ist apt-get update and then (optionally upgrade the system: apt-get upgrade 3. LIST USB DEVICES List any USB devices attached tothe BeagleBone. Asusb ‘The output should show an RTL device, such as: us G61 Device 062: 10 ebde:2838 Realtek Semiconductor Corp. RTL2838 DVB-T lino device is sted ather than the two Linux Foundation root hubs, make sure the RTL-SDR USB dongles firmly inserted into the Beagle and try the command again 4, INSTALL CMAKE AND LIBUSB Debian doesn't come with a campiled package for rtl-sdr, $0 you'll ned ta build it from source. It's nat dificult to do and the following steps walk you through al the command-tine jargon. First, install emake, an alternative build system that’s used by a number of ope apt-get install caake Building ril-sdr requires a specific USB library, Install it ike so: apt-get install Libusb-1.0-0-dev 5. CLONE THE RTL-SDR REPO Cone the code from the git repositar [repo of the project. ait clone git://git.oseocan.org/rtl-sdr.git source projects, 6. CONFIGURE AND BUILD Change directories tothe cloned repo: ed reser Configure the build with emake: ‘emake «/ -DINSTALL UDEV _RULES-ON Then build with make, and install: make make install 7. CLONE DUMP1090 Change working directories to the root cd Clone the dump1090 repository: jit clone https: //github.com/Melcolnnobb/ ‘sump 090 dump2050 CChange directories tothe dump10%0 cloned irectory and compile: cd cump10se/ make 8. NOW TRACK PLANES! Rn dump1090 in interactive mode, with the web interface runing on por 8081 4am ~snteractive --nat tert B61 Now pont a web browser ta beaglebone ‘ocal 8081 to see the dump10%0 web interface (Figure ©) Yeul'seea marker foreach plane inthe ait, accurately plotted ona Google map! Clicking cn the bogey shows fight information such a longitude latitude, airspeed, and aia the fight path the plane has taken Figure @) Youcan switch toa dark map scheme (Figure G@linstead ofthe usual Google Maps colors or even use the alternative slution, OpenstreetMap | hope tis project captures your imagination ‘and demonstrates how powerful SOR-based projects canbe. Watch for mere col SDR projects Coming soon in Make! © net-hetp- See complete step-by-step screenshots and share your RTL-SDR projects at makezine.corn/ projectstracking-planes makezine.com/projects/43, aglebone local 80 192.168 28081 inte makezine.comPROJECTS | remiacing History Joseph Gay-Lussac and the Technology of Fireproofing | , (OMN aM SMG L$ 10 MAKE BEFORE HOMES WERE ELECTRIFIED, PEOPLE LIVED IN CONSTANT DANGER OF CLOTHING ‘AND SURROUNDINGS CATCHING ON FIRE from the oil Lamps [see this column in Moke: Volume SS 2) and cooking tres used in daly lie. As the study 4) of chemistry became mere rigorous, scientists st began to think about how to protect people from this hazard The person who first delved ‘systematically int the problem was Joseph Louis GayeLussac, a 19th-century French polymath Gay-Lussac was a giant in the history of chemistry Born during the turbulence of the ench Revolution, the youthful Gay-Lussac moved to Paristo study wit the eminent scientist Claude Berthollet. Bertholet wasa cise friend othe late Antoine Lavoisier, who had written the ‘seminal book on chemistry. Gay-Lussac rose quickly tobecome a professor of physicsat the Sorbonne, and while he’s best remembered for investigating the properties of gases. his discoveries i inorganic chemistry make him the father of modern fieprooting as wel Ins Paris taboratory Guy-Lussac docu mented a host of experiments tat pioneered the art and science of making a combustible world a bit safer. The hey this success was his work with one particular substance: boron Yirsulur often called brimstone is the element most closely associated with starting fre, then boronis the element most associated with stopping them. Boron is a goad fie retardant because it chemically transforms the materials it treats, notably paper and fabric, inhibiting the spread t lame and promoting the formation ofa protective layer of char that acts asa fire barrier Boron compounds have been widely used since antiquity, but pure boron itself vas not isolated ‘a: makershed.comuntil 1608. At that time, Gay-Lussac and rival Humphry Davy, one of England's leading scientists IWwhom we met in this column in Make: Volume 20] were locked ina heated competition to isolate boron and thus lay claim to boing its discoverer. ‘By 1808, Davy had discovered and named five ‘elements — barium, calcium, strontium, sodium, ‘and potassium — and elt confident he was close toisolating his sixth: the elusive boron. Word reached Gay-Lussac that Davy thought he was ‘lose. in fact, many modern scholars believe Davy indeed isolated boron but was unable to prove it] So, across the English Channel, Gay-Lussac redoubled his efforts, Abandoning caution, he adopted a dangerous laboratory technique involving highly reactive pure potassium metal, ‘and by taking tis risk, soon isolated a substance he called “bore.” Gay-Lussac was able to verify to the satistaction of his peers that what he found was indeed a new element. FIREPROOFING PAPER, CLOTH, AND WOOD In 1821, when Guy-Lussac was experimenting with methods to make materials resistant to fire, he saturated fabrics with boron salts and found that boron compounds could indoed prevent loth, paper, and other cellulose-based materials from burning Figure @). His success in finding fireproofing chemical that wouldn't affect the color of cloth — or turnit poisonous — was@ breakthrough. You can use Gay-Lussac’s discoveries to make ‘a combination fire-resistant hiking stick and ‘campfire poker — a handy, muitiourpose item ‘that's ideal for overnight hike into the wilderness. You'll use a sight variation of Guy-Lussac’s original methods, but the principles are the same ‘As always, undertake this project at your own risk. MAKE A FIREPROOF WALKING ‘STICK/CAMPFIRE POKER 1.Goto a nearby forest and look for a downed branch thats 1"-114"in diameter, relatively straight and without cracks or knots. stick that reaches to your sternum isa good length, Remove any small branches with a hatchet or ‘saw. Remove the bark witha knife and file off ary rough spots. I desired, you can drill a 4" hole near the top end fora leather or rope loop 2. Weigh and mix the boric acid powder and borax ina hall-gallon of hot water inthe bucket. Stir vigorously untithe chemicals are completly lisotved (Figures © and @) makezine.com/projects/43 WILLIAM, GURSTELLE isacontibuning ecitorot Moke magazine His rewrbook, Defending Your Caste Bult pul Crssbows Moats and Mores availabe 3. Picea piece cfotton lath inthe boric acid solution, saturating it thorough. Remove the loth and hla itover the bucket, allowing the excess Seluton to drain back into the bucket Hang theiter up tory (Figure) 4.hen the lathis dry testa corer by holding a match tot The clot should char and turn black butt should not actually ignite and burn (Figure) Youcan fine-tune the performance etyourreprooting solution by slightly adjusting the proportions of the. borates and water 5. When satistied with our fireproofing solation, pour some ina all naraw container, and soak the end af your stick nit overnight Figure @) Remove the stick rom the solution andlet dry. 6.Younow have an all-in-one hiking stck/ campfire tending stick [Figure ). Use the stick to move firewood around ina campfire to imarove flame height and fuel use. Your sticks quite fre resistant Figure @), but isnot entirety fireroot, so don'tlet the tip get toohot or itll eventually ignite. [But even then, Ive found that this treatment wil slow the spread of fares How does boron prevent the wood or clath fram igniting? Gay-Lussac found that fre does not ceccur iar can be prevented from reaching the surface of organic materials by chemically coating the material bers, When applied to wood, both boric acid and borax mett into thin, glassy film {hat reduces the amount of volatile, flammable gas thatthe wood releases, causing the material tocatcne, thats, thermally decompose into char not actually go up in lames. © Wihat wou you fireprot? Share ideas and tips nthe project page makezrecomorate- Fegan makerine.comPROJECTS Amateur Scientist When Projects Fail: My DIY wearable gadget never sold — but it led to my first article, a kit company, and a career in electronics and science. it . PROJECTS THAT FAIL ARE RARELY PUBLISHED — BUT THEY TEACH VALUABLE LESSONS THAT OFTEN LEAD TO SUCCESS. If you've spent much time designing and building projects you know this wel. | certainly do, Some of my falled projects made a major impact on my career in electronics and science. During my senior year at Texas A&M University in 1964, Texas Instruments announced the development ofa power~ ful LED that emitted several milliwatts of invisible near- infrared, about the same power output as.a small flashlight. My great-grandfather had been totally blinded by a dyna- rite explosion when he was a young man, and the new LED gave me an idea for building a travel ad fr the bind, So Ihitchhiked to Dallas to meet Edward Bonin, one of Ts LED engineers. ‘The new LEDs cost $356 each, about $2,671 in today’s ‘money, Dr Bonin said he would ve me, 2 rank amateur, one of the LEDs could build circuit that would generate the pulses needed to make the travel ai, | modified a 2-transs tor Morse code practice osclator board sold bya radio and TWrepar shop for 99 cen and sent to Bonin. He approved the circu and entit bac, together wit three ofthe sophis- cated LED. | quickly buit and documented a prototype (Figure @) and within a few days built a working travel aid that measured 2x2" Figure QI. Flashes of invisible infrared emitted by the aid were reflected by objects up to 10 feet away. The reflected IR was detected bya silicon salar cell, and the resuilantphotecurrent was amplified by 3 transistor amplifier (salvaged from ahearing a) and senttoan earphone, which emitted atone The closer the objec, the louder the tone tested the travel aid with more than 20 blind ctilden and adults, worked well, but the need tohalditin one hand was a drawback Eventu- ally | assembled the entire device ona pair of sunglasses. Alte electronics were installed inside two 4"-dameter brass tubes mounted on the temples Figure @), the LED transmitter inane tube andthe receiver in the other. tiny tearing aid earphonein the receiver tube was coupled othe user's ear through short length ofplastc tubing The eyeglass aid worked well. also received an Industrial Research 100 Avard anda 1987 runner-up Rolex Avard, Butinthe end, the ro ect Thad spent years developing wasa failure eas ‘a makershed.commakezine.com/projects/43 ‘Te hearing aid companies | approached about manufactur- ing the travel ad responded that the potent bility was ‘much too risky What would happen if Blind ser weaving the travel aid ellinto a hole or vas otherwise injured? Tough te travel aid was never manufactured, it taught sme more about solid-state electronics and optics than my friends majoring in electrical engineering were learing ‘They were building old-fashioned vacuum tube circuits in their ab courses, while was working wth transistors and state-of the-artinfrared-emiting diodes. The trave-aid circuits led to several new projects. used the LED pulse ganerator ccuit to flash a tracking ight in night-taunched model rockets was fying to test anew kind ‘of guidance mechanism Figure @). Alter George Fyn, the editor of Modet Rocketry magazine, watched one of those fights he asked me to wrtean article about the light asher. ‘twas published in September 1969 (Figure @l. Ed Roberts and were then assigned othe Laser Dsion ‘ofthe Ai Force Weapons Laboratory. We often talked about selling electronics kis through magazines like Popular Elec- tronics and RadiEtectronizs. When the light flasher article ‘ws published, we decided to forma compary to build and sellight flashers and other model rocketry gear. We clledit Micro instrumentation and Telemetry Systems [MIT eventually left MITS to pursue a new career as.an electronics writer. Ed stayed and introduced a string of new products. wrote the instruction manuals for same of ther. also introduced E6 to Leslie Solomon, the techrical editor of Popular Eecrovics In 1974 Ed learned about the 8280, Intts new B-bit micro~ processor, and soon began work on a microcomputer based ‘onthe new chip. The hobby computer ers took of when Ed's Altar 8800 appeared on the cover ofthe January 1975 issue ‘of Popular Electronics. When Paul Allen saw the magazine, he immediately bought a copy and tookitto show his friend Bill ates. They soan called Eto say they were developing aversion of BASIC forthe Altair, and you know theres of the story [see my column in Make: Volume 42, "The Kit That Launches the Tech Revolution’) Sometimes wonder how this story might have ended had iy reat-grandfathernot been blinded, ori I hadntinvent- ‘ed the frstinfrared LED. Ofcourse it’s impossible to know in advance what might come rom a ited or abandoned project — and that's motivation enough to press ahead. GOING FURTHER Have you developed a project that filed for technical or ‘other reasans? Think about hawt might have advanced your knowledge, and tll us at makezine.comMvhen-project-fail ‘And consider beginning a new project that's got onlya marginal chance for success. My view is that every project is lke a course in tech school or college, for the spinofis from a failed project are sornetines as significant as those from the ‘great successes.@ IW ebioney aed tet conTRte The Theory and Construction of a e Transistorized Tracking Light for Night Launched Model Rockets by Copt. Forrest makezine.com 6?P| ROJECTS Pixilation: rire Stop-Motion Animation: ‘MICHELLEHLUBINKA or Maker Media, ipschoos es and aries petink making Digital camera il or video Computer with video eatting software Ay i rk We the stop Motion, Teipod (optional bt Paper and pen (optional) for storyboards to plan you Props (optional) such as hairs costumes cara beardborestohide'n Let your magination ear TIPS tory jump ito tn picture. For along fight taking video, then de PIXILATION IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE KINDS OF ANIMATION, BOTH TO MAKE AND TO WATCH, Think ofitas full-body, stop-motion animation. It get you up out of your comfy seats and active! In stop-motion animation, ike that of Ray Harryhausen, Wallace & Gromit, or Gumby, you ‘animate an inanimate object by taking a picture, ‘and then moving the object alte bit and taking another picture. You string these pictures or frames’ together in video-edliting software to create the illusion of motion, People in pisations ‘appear to slide around without moving ther legs, change places in the blink of an eye, or even fy That's why it’s called piuation — its about turning your subjects into magical pixies ofa sort. 1. PLAN SOME SHOTS, Visit for stop ‘motion videos to inspire you. Then incorporate these sly and surprising motions into you storyboards: Disappear/Reappear, Walk Through Walls, Magically Transforming Objects, Make Things Ooze or Blow Up, Sliding/Scooting, Fhying 2, DECIDE ON YOUR FRAME RATE Experiment with 8 frames per second [FPS] fora faster shoot, or 24 FPS for smoother motion een 3, SETUP YOUR CAMERA AND STAGE 4, TAKE PICTURE #1 Putyour actors in their places on the stage this is called “blocking’) and take a picture 5, MOVE, CLICK, REPEAT Move everyone in the scene inerementally — changing thei lacations, moving a limb, etc. Take your second picture, Move again, take a third 6.REPLACE THINGS. Magicalty swap one actor for another or for an ‘object ofthe same size or color. Cover ther with ‘a coat or blanket, then shrink them to nothing! ‘7. WATCH YOUR VIDEO ‘Simply hit Pay in iStopMotion. n other software, lay out your pictures ona timeline and specify their duration based on your frame rate. 8. SHARE Upload your video and show the world! @ Get more tips and share your pisilation videos on the project page at rmakershed.comPROJECTS makezinecor/projects/43 XZ Keyboard ALWAYS TRY TO FIND WAYS TO REUSE THE PARTS FROM MY OLD ELECTRONICS. | had a couple of ‘old keyboards lying around, so decided to use the keys to make alphabet refrigerator magnets. 1, REMOVE THE JASONPOET. KEYBOARD KEYS ee Use a narrow screwdriver to pry mn How Te the keysoff the keyboard. Inmost J proiectviteo «cases they wll just pop right oft series Look atthe backside ofthe keys. Hetsaliion Ifthe mounting tabs stick out fomsotmakang past the body ofthe key, then you sndhuspropets need to trim them sothat you can saielrom imountthe magnets sh withthe J Setronics backside. You can ether cut the everythingin tabs with wire cutters orjust break | between them off with needtenose pliers You will 2. CUT THE MAGNETS need: INTO SQUARES Now get some magnetic advertisements or magnetic business cards, Use scissors or From magnetic auvertsements, car ‘a knife ta cut the magnetic sheet Sens, orbusiness into squares that are the same —_— size a he backof teks. ase ects 3. GLUE THE KEYS TO +» Pliers, needienose THE MAGNETS » Hot glue gun Apply a large drop of hot glue to the back of one of the keys. > Then press the key onto one of the magnetic squares that you cut ‘out. You want the bare magnet side to be facing out so thatit can stick tothe fridge better. » Repeat this process with all the keys, @ Check out step-by-step photos at ‘makezina.comn/orojects/keyboard- : ‘efrigerator-magnets ‘makerine.com 67PROJECTS A Weekend Cost: $100-$160 ateri: Make: Raspberry Pi ‘Starter Kit valor Shed item SRK from Leb, 16.2 Maver Shes aware AC Adapter Micro US: Use racioshack ¥2; Computer fo connecting feyourRacpbery Pi Etheret eable or con fectina Raspberry PIto - yourheme network 7 sa Te on > & 4 8 a area femme CNL enn Crypto Currency Tracker Know tl your favorite digita renc al-time WHAT'S IN YOUR BITCOIN WALLET? IS. DOGECOIN REALLY HEADED “TO THE MOON"? The Crypto Currency Tracker constantly monitors the value of three digital currencies — Bitcoin, Ltecoin, and Dogeccin — and compares them against the US. dollar. You can buildit easily using the inexpensive Raspberry Pi computer. The software is built on Raspbian Linuxand uses Python scripts to make JavaScript Object Notation {JSON} requests for each respective digital currency ‘market index, The code pulls the currency values from the internet then displays both previous and current values. acker 1. BREADBOARD THE COMPONENTS. Insert the Pi Cobbler, 162 LOD, and a 10K potention readboard Then wire up the potentiometer and LCD following the detailed instructions at into alarge 2, HOOK UP THE RASPBERRY PI Connect the ribbon cable to the Raspberry Pi with its white stripe [pin 1] near the edge ofthe board, Insert an SD card flashed with Raspbian Linux. Finally, connect an Ethernet cable, HDMI cable, keyboard, and a USB. ‘micro cable with wall wart to power the Pi 3. CONNECT TO THE RASPBERRY PI Log in with username pi and password raspberry. Write down the IP address, shown during boot-up Yo install and configure software over SSH. can useitto 4, INSTALL THE PYTHON ENVIRONMENT Connect to the Pidirecty (with keyboard, ‘moniter, and Ethernet) ar use SSH. Log in to the Pi and fram the command line execute: sudo apt-get install python-dev sudo apt-get install. python-setuptools sudo easy install -U distribute S5.INSTALL GIT, PIP, AND RPL.GPIO git, for cloning software repositories: sudo apt-get install git Install pip, a package manager for Python: sudo apt-get install python-pip Then use pip to install rpi.gpio, a Python ‘module for controlling the Raspberry P's input-output pins: sudo pip install rpi.gpio 6. INSTALL THE TRACKING SOFTWARE Now you're ready to clone the Crypto Currency Tracker repository it clone 7 ine/vp : Change directories to what was ust cloned a ~/npt4-rasperry-pi-crypto currency-tracker and set up the 162 LCD library git submodule init ait submodule upd Finally run the tracking software as rot: sudo «/crypto_currency monitor You're tracking! The project code is open source and easy to modify or fllowing other ‘currencies. So nex ime you want to appraise your digital coin, dont reach for your phone —use your awn custorn tracker. © Get step-by-step instructions and video at 0 makershed.commakezine com/projects/43 PROJECTS 12 1° ww Box Fan Beef Jerky JERKY 1S THE ON-THE-GO SNACK THAT HAS FUELED NATIVE AMERICANS, PiO- 5 NERS, AND ASTRONAUTS. PS ALIKE Ani's 23) to make at home. Tis method, popu- terized by Aton Brown, uses an ordinary box fan and air fiters to dry the meat 1.SLICE IT te Buy your desired cut of beet mn (sirtoinis a good choice), and ‘ slice it into thin strips using a ir long, thin blade, hn 2. MARINATE IT Choose @ marinade and et the meat soak inthe refrigerator | "Peet for é-Bhours. Make suretoin- | nite clude ingredients that help the | kitchen meat stay moist and tender. container or plastic boas Honey isa good choice. Remorse airfiters, 3. DRY IT ayers Remove the meat from the Srarcondtoner marinade and pat rywitha |" Bungeecord etka eepeier wi Box fan paper towel. Place the strips (on top of alarge clean air filter [make sure it cont fiberglass]. Continue stacking ‘meat and fiters until yu run i ‘out of meat, Place one final air filter on top and put the stack of fiters on a box fan, Use a bungee cordta secure the filters, then turn on the fan, Let the fan run and enjoy that sweet, sweet meat smell for 8-12 hours. Once the meat is dehydrated, enjoy! @ Check outstep-y-step phatase meleche ‘com/projects/bax-fan- beet ery makerine.com 91PROJECTS ERICCHU!s 3 yoyohacies robotbailer and incisal design studentat Calforia Pa Collageot the artsinsan Francisca Hels aformer a! ‘Make Labsengineeting snterandD printer guru ‘Sam Murs 3D Printer Mods and Hacks Better, stronger, faster — get the most from your printer i DESKTOP 3D PRINTERS KEEP GETTING BETTER 2s users keep coming up with lever upgrades. Try these three to get your ‘machine printing its best. 1. HEATED GLASS BED ‘The right glass and where togetit Whether you're printing on bare glass for LAr witha layer of glue for ABS, parts ‘sear to magically pop right aff the glass ‘when ithas cooled — no prying or excessive force needed. There are reports of successful printing ‘on ordinary window glass, butt can crack ‘due to thermal shock, Borosilicate glass, ‘hich is used for oven windows, is heat- resistant enough for most printable plastics. LLulzBot, Airwolf 30, MeMaster-Carr, and ‘afew other stores sell precut sheets for ‘around $25 for 2 200mm«200mm bed. Custom-cut sheets are more expensive and harder to find — there areonlya few vendors and most requir a price quote — but Voxel Factory (voxelfactory.com) in Montreal offers custom sheets for $s, 2 makershed.com 2, ASTROSYN STEPPER MOTOR DAMPERS Less noise, more accuracy ‘These dampers from Astrosyn are escen- tially two steel plates held together bya hard rubber center. The rubber absorbs the noisy vibrations ofthe stepper motor and thus reduces the amount transferred to the chassis ofthe printer. The unit lias over a standard NEMA stepper (like the NEMA 17 shown herel. Two threaded holes allow the damper to be screwed securelyto your ‘machine (didn't have short enough screvs, 0 lused some hex nuts as spacers} Linstalled dampers to the x- and y-axis motors on an Ultimaker. There's a noticeable reduction in noise, though not as ‘much as I'd hoped. Other printer designs, may benefit more, particularly delta styles. Astrosyn is based in the UK, soit's harder to source these in the Urited States, eought mine from a user inthe "Delta robot 3D printers” Google Group for around $7 shipped each, There are also a few stores that sell these in the US. fora bit more. 3. CROSSFLOW FAN New, effective way to cool prints ‘The crossfiow approach to cooling prints is ‘an experimental alternative method. Instead ‘of mounting a litle axial fan to the head of the printer, you mount a wide crossitow fan [commonly used in air conditioners! to the chassis of the printer and aimit over the entire print area Uttimaker forum members are testing this method with very positive results in PLA: better bridging, less warp on large parts, and sufficient coating on small fea- tures. ABS seems to not benefit as much, {and in some cases may suffer detam= inations, Flow the thread in Utimaker forums (makezine.com/goferossfiovd to (earn more. lus news, pret, Sndtpelate st Faketshed com na| PROJECTS makezine.comprojects/43 Toy Inventor's Notebook WANT TO SEND YOUR, VALENTINE A REALLY SPECIAL MESSAGE THIS FEBRUARY ‘6TH? Here’s an animated pop-up card you can make for Valentine's Day. When you slowty open the card, a hand sweeps. across and moves the heart shaped planchette over the Ouja board, spelling out the message: HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY" Its both mysterious and romantic, perfect for any secret admirer to make and send, It's also easy to make: Just go cnline to makezine.com/ouija-be- ‘mine and download the 2 graphics files, Print them on cardstock, or laminate a paper printout onto thin cardboard, Cut aut the hand and the lang tab onthe solid lines [don't forget to cut out the circular hole in the planchetiel. Use a small °%"-dlameter punch to make the two holes inthe hand and one hole ithe tab. Score and stightly bend the tab on the dotted line Carefully score and fold the body of the card on the dotted tne CCutthe slot and the small hole in the card witha sharp hobby knife To assemble, use a brass brad to fasten the tabto the hand, then thread the tab through the sit in the card. Finally, fasten the hand to the card with a second brass brad [The brads even look tke 2itle brass buttons! (Check the action by opening and closing the card and make any fine adjustments to the brads for smooth and easy moverent. Well one, mystery Valentine! @ Download the graphics for printing, and see the finished ‘card inaction at makezine.corn/ ‘ulja-be-mine. makezine.com 92SAIL 22ers ~ ROUOILDER ee SEE ee > — 1 a y DIGITAL "~ POTENTIOMETERS CHARLESPLATT Create patterns in light and sound — \ no microcontroller necessary = lamalyrkingunsssninsize | betwen the resistors are called "tps hyou erin Stereo systems the digital have 127 resistors (as inthis examplal here are : : poteiiomsterneedsnoadjst- 128 possbetaps, ncuding those at the end of ae fen because asta ts theta Dag ptrtometers hype hve fluctuating resistancecanchange the color or 8,692, 6,100, 18, 256, o 02 taps brighness of ght he loudness or requency Two ins wth the remarkably unimaginative ota sound oranyother parameters that depend names"A andB-prodde acces tothe endsof onvotageand curren theta la third pin know asthe Wr, corlecirencied omental hare STEPS ON ALADDER Although th resistance between the Wiper Sealed inside the chipis ladder ofresistors. | and Aor Bchanges nama ret steps, the Figure@ shows the idea. The connections transition is smoath enough for many purposes, ‘such as adjusting the volume ona stereo, Figure @ shows the pinouts of the AD5220 128 {amily of digital potentiometers (which include the ADS220ENZ10,AD52208NZ50, and AD- 427 a7 5220BNZ100, having a total internal resistance 128 226 ‘of 10K, 50K, and 100K respectively. Pulses at 125 125 lel} P| 7 4 oy ‘lock svoc ‘ Up/Down Chip Select 3 3 8 2 2 Wiper 5 makershed.commakezine.com/projects/43 Atest out tat fates ed pa down wt oe eed es eee binary eee ea tier st) Cree tie oat the Clock pin move the Wiper connection one stop ata time, while the logic state of the Up/ Down pin determines whether the Wiper will ‘advance toward Aor B, The Chip Select pin must be graunded to activate the chip. The AD5Z20 needs a SVOC power sup- pl. which you can provide using an LM7805, voltage regulator with a 9V battery. Aand B ‘are functionally identical, se you can apply voltage either way around, but the potential difference must never exceed SY. TIMING THE RESISTANCE It you control the chip using pushbuttons, you'll have to debounce them to get rid of their voltage spikes. However i's easier land more interesting) to control the chip electronically, and | suggest using an Intersil 7555 for this purpose. A plain old 555 timer ates voltage spikes, which the digital pot may misinterpret as clock pulses. Figure @ shows atest circuit in which | connected the ends of the resistor ladder press the ito, vor 220, (pins 3 and 6 ofthe AD5220] between the ower supply and ground. As the Wiper ‘moves between them, its voltage (on pin 5} will vary between OV and SVC, Begin with the red LED disconnected. Power up, and the yellow LED should flicker toconfirm that the timer is sending pulses The AD5220 always starts with the Wiper in the center ofits range, and the Wiper voltage will gradually increase, because the Up/ Down pin [pin 2) is connected through a 10K resistor to ground. You'll see your meter displaying the voltage as the Wiper climbs the ladder. Now hold down the pushbutton to connect pin 2 with SVDC, and the output will, count down almost to OV [the actual value will depend on the internal resistance of your power supply) Connect the red LED in parallel with your ‘meter, press the button to make the chip count down, and the LED fades out com- pletely around 1.6VDC. This happens because an LED, like any diode, requires a minimum voltage to function at all. specified a red LED because it requires less forward voltage than other colors, Awhite LED, for instance, requires atleast 3.2VDC. (These useful facts, and many more, are contained in my Ency- clopedta of Electronic Components, Volume 2, which should be available around the time motor Fea 20m ‘makezine.com 95+SKILL BUILDER Digital Potentiometers ele ) makershed.com you read this — see page 107 for more info.) Ifyou want the LED to remain dimly visible atthe low end of the range, you need to add a resistor between pin 3 of the digital potentiom- eter and ground. And while you're at it, adda transistor, because we shouldn't really drive the {ADS220 so close ta its maximum rating of 20mA, Figure @ shows the lower half of the previous circuit rewired for this purpose. A 6.8K resistor now gives the Wiper a minimum (of around 2VDC instead of OV. This should stop the LED from going completely dark. Also, the series resistor for the red LED has been changed from 220 ohms to 100 ohms, because the transistor adds some effective resistance tothe circut. The current through my LED ‘maxes out at 18mA and drops almost ta OmA. Use your meter to checkif yours does the same. Now substitute @ pF timing capacitor for the 10pF timing capacitor, and the LED shoul fade in and out quickly and smoothly NEXT STEP: FULL AUTOMATION! Let's replace the pushbutton with something that wll reverse the cycle automatically. The ‘output from another [slower] timer could be applied to the Up/Down pin, butt would tend todrift out of sync with the first timer. What we ‘need isa component that counts 128 cycles, then reverses the state of the Up/Down pin, counts another 128 cycles, reversesit again — and soon, That sounds lke a job for a counter chip! In fact an 8-bit binary counter runs through 256 cycles, which just happens tobe 2x 128. After the first 128 steps, the output changes from OTTTIIIT to 10000000, so the most-significant- bit pin goes from low to high. Itthen stays high for another 128 cycles, at which point it changes {rom high to low. Just the thing! This is why | chose a digital potentiometer that has 128 taps, ssowe could make it step up and down with an B-bit timer. The final circuit and schematic are shown in Figure @ , using a %4H1C4520 timer chip, which Contains two 4-bit counters, chained together. Alofits outputs are unconnected except for the ‘most-significant-bit pin MAKING IT MULTICOLORED Build two addtional copies of this circuit, one driving a green LED and the other driving a blue LED. Agjust the speed of the timers so that they are slightly out of phase. Now if you mix the light {rom the LEDs, it wil run through all the colors. ‘of the spectrum ina pattern that seems random. You will ave te increase the value forthe & 8 resistor forthe green LED, so thatthe minimum voltage of the Wiper matches the minimum forward voltage of the LED. You'll need todo the ‘same forthe blue LED. This will be @ matter of trial and error,makezine comvprojects/43 @ sng ptt sisting 62 tl an Now HEAR THs Sota gind mony stings Hoshi ste Vvea S05 ner ‘tenatequacy tnd ng ret rar gl eta bth Distros etn tna ner gest Aas ay coer ‘bare anisonposho srs alg imattn The pando cyte que acre enn trot ae or eters snunov totus nearer reir Ls crs ass don cnutaighanion sites Sabres for the counter at the Up/Down pin of the digital pronto anyhoo Stren uous gree theater FSR oa oe ‘aioe urging eet ter etn be eb Te OKs othe sos2neanrnatun ts Hos rune cosa toh tele thay opal ay oun est 120 | Monprtsced Sc cra aur (|| Sees |) | cour 2n2222 aK {rom the aigital pot through an amplifier to | loudspeaker, and hear a very precise trian- ular sound wave. Inthe timer that sets the frequency, remove the timing resistor, substi- tute another digital potentiometer, controtit with ‘an LFSR, and you'll get avery different kind of random music. Ot course, digital potentiometers were never intended for this kind of weirdness. But that's, ‘what makes itso much fun.@ [errecreracen tt} makezine.com 97‘SKILL BUILDER | microscopic Photography Bd Mount your phone to a microscope for stunning close-ups GExtreme ZOOM ve always been fascinated by high- resolution photos of insects. The amount ‘of detail at that small scales impressive ‘and also surprising because it surrounds us on adaily basis, but goes unnoticed without abit of effort anda microscope. You don't need ‘a fency camera — even aceliphone camera will provide good results. Withalittle practice, you be able to capture and share your own high-quality images of the microscopic wort. Ideally you'll want alow-magnification, binocular microscope that pravdes light from ‘above the specimen, But ifyou already have ‘a conventional monocular microscope that provides light from beneath the specimen, you can easily use that as well ‘CREATE ADEQUATE LIGHTING Evenif your scope already has a ight that shines dovrward, youll ikely need to add ore — the greater the ight, the better the images. ‘One solutions to take apert desk amp thet has a ercular fluorescent tube surrounding a magniying glass. Remove the glass, and check thatthe ight canbe positioned so that it surrounds your specimen without interfering ith the microscope itself Figure @) “Another optian isto buy two or mare goose- neck amg, suchas Janso from hea [shown in Figure @), These lamps are really handy for tos of projects, and don't need to be modified for use ith your microscope, MOLD A CAMERA MOUNT You can attach your cellphone or point-and- shoot cemerato the microscope with a meldable plastic such as instaMorph or Shapelock These products come in pelt form and ae softened by immersing them in hot vater. The pelts frm abiob that has the consistency of rmodeling clay, and canbe wrapped around your microscope eyepiece and cameracor phone. The plastic wll retain ts shape ater cools (Figure ands Sseuiuberom nat sticky, so the camera can be easily removed. esas Be sure to havea property lit specimen in ‘8 makershed.comthe microscope with the camera turned on ‘while appbving the moldable pasti. Very sli misalignments wil cause some ofthe image toe lost I made a small hook with the plastic {or my cellghone mount which hold the phone surprisingly wel Figures @ anc ©) Ifyou have a camerawith a removable lens Isuchasa DSLR}, youll getthe best results by removing both the camera ens andthe microscope eyepiece, and connecting the camera directly tthe top ofthe microscope. This can be accomplished ty disassembling a broken camera lens and salvaging lens mount thelp couple the microscope barrel to the camera with moldable plastic Figure @) or by using a machined or 30-printed adapter Ithere are lots of shared designs online at mmakezine.comgo/microscope-adaptesh ADJUST CAMERA SETTINGS Your camera's focus should be lacked to infinity if possible. This way, the knab on the microscope will control the facus, and the camera's autofocus ‘mechanism will not continually try to adjust. The camera's exposure should also be set ‘manvally so that multiple images have the same brightness. Many cameras also allow a custom white balance tobe set through a menu function, ‘which improves overall quality. You can do this, by placing a piece of white paper under your microscope, ané activating the function with all. of your lighting positioned as it normally would be fora real specimen, Using a wireless or wired remote control will, ‘allow you to take photos and tur the focus knob tan the microscope without disturbing the ca mera at all CAREFULLY COLLECT SPECIMENS You conmourtinsects and other object ery effectively tha pin and a pice of madling lay orputy igure @) You can check windows fr dead insects, butifyou want to photograph living insect hat you've found. it can be difficult to kilt without damaging it. One method isto place the insect ina small jar and carefully spray in some gas froma canned “duster The gas will displace the ‘oxygen inthe jar, and kill the insect as humanely ‘8s possible without ruining its detail ‘SHOOT MULTIPLE IMAGES (nce youre taking photos of tiny objects, yout notice that very litle ofthe image isin focus at any ven time, ke this tiny purple lanthanum hexaboride crystal Figure @) This isa physical imitation ofthe opis, but it can be overcome witha clever trick: Take 100r mare photos ofthe specimen at diffrent focus settings, and combine ther so that alla the sharp parts ofeach photo are combined into an image that is completly in focus. This technique is clled focus stacking, and can be accomplished wih Adobe Photoshop or a free program such as CombineZM. Set up your camera as described above then adjust the microscopes focus knob so that the highest part of the specimen sin focus, Take a picture, then tur the focus knob so that a sight tower part of the specimens in focus, and take another picture. Continue this unt the bottom ofthe specimen sin focus. Copy all the images to your computer, and use the focus-tacking program to combine them into‘ sharp image [Figure @) hope these techniques allow you to explore the microscopic word and share your creative vision afi. You may nd new ways to photograph insects, ice crystals, lant, rock formations, and other everyday wonders. @ makezine.com/projects/43 makerine.comSKILL BUILDER | powtouseasreadboard ue sama BREADBOARD! |p. BY ATTACHING tery Sen hl gastro i etsy ae Wyo “ete caeson et the onto ahd Fond conan iat USUALLY A BREADBOARD HAS A SLOT DOWN THE MIDDLE |] THE HOLES, CALLED TIE-POINTS, ARE THE SAME CALLED A TRENCH. TUE WIDTH 15 DESIGNED 50 MANY DISTANCE APART AS THE PINS ON MANY ICS AND OTHER INTEGRATED CIRCUITS (ICS) FIT RIGHT ACROSS IT. COMPONENTS. OF CONNECTED HOLES RUN PERPENDICULAR ‘A BREADBOARD'S LONG EDGE USUALLY HAS TWO DISTRIBUTION || TO THE BUSES. TO CONNECT COMPONENT LEADS, BUSES FOR CONNECTING POWER AND GROUND. PUT THEM IN THE SAME ROW. ‘SHORT PIECES OF WIRE CALLED SUMPERS ARE USED TO CONNECT DIFFERENT ROWS. USING A SOLDERLESS BREADBOARD ALLOWS YOU TO GET YOUR CIRCUET UP AND RUNNING GUICKLY $0 YOU CAN TEST TT. ONCE YOU HAVE IT DUST RIGHT, YOU CAN) BUILD A MORE PERMANENT VERSION ON PERFBOARD OR A PCB! 0), makershed.com‘THE TRANSISTOR WILL TURN ON THE LED WHEN THE VOLTAGE TO ITS BASE LEAD GOES UIGH. IN THE LIGHT, THE PHOTORESISTOR HAS A LOW RESISTANCE, AND THE TRANSISTOR BASE VOLTAGE STAYS LOW. eaebages COLLECTOR Ti eres ‘TO TURN THE LED ON AND OFF, TUIS clRcurr uses AN WPA) TRANSISTOR. MAKE ‘SURE THE “BULGE” 15 FACING THE RIGHT Way, FIRST, CONNECT THE CURRENT SOURCE (I THIS] CASE, THE RED LEAD OF A OV BATTERY CLIP) AT THE makezine comvprojects/43 ABIG ONE (100k) FoR THE TRANSISTOR BASE AND A ‘SMALL ONE (470) FOR THE LéD. oocoee aap ouocee aoao mnooeee egseeaeo oonoee uomno uooeee ougeeco FINALLY, CONNECT THE BLACK LEAD OF THE BATTERY CLIP (GROUND). ATTACH A BATTERY TO THE CLIP, WHAT HAPPENS WHEN) YoU COVER THE PHOTORE- SESTOR WITH YOUR THUMB? WHAT HAPPENS WHEN) You ‘SHINE A LIGHT ON IT? HOW COULD YOU REARRANGE ‘THESE COMPONENTS TO MAKE 4 "LIGHT DETECTOR"? makezine.com 10)GoPro Hero 4-Series Cameras $ varies {feature ever asked of them, minus the one that ays made them special Every camera isa compromise. Anyone: wants te capture the worldaraund them wants ‘a camera that is easy to use, produces stunning \were cheap to buy, easy to use, and offered a great image. Their Achilles’ heel was that th image quality wasn't quite good the expectations of high-end users While last year's Hero 3+ brought tho: discussions down toamurmur, the Hero 4 Silver and Black cameras finally silence the argument. Shooting up to 4k video at 30 fps (Black edition only, the new cameras offer professional-tevel quality, and finally give users some contrat over expasure and color balance. ‘The new nighttime photography settings provide incredible long-expasure and tim lapse options. ‘cameras compromi is their cost, Itwould be a stretch to call the previous cameras disposable, but they were at least expendable. At $400 and $500 for th Hero. Silver and Black editions respectively, youre likely to doa lot of hemming and hawing before you hang your Hero 4 out in the wind — ‘even though that’s where GoPro cameras do their best work. And while the new base model GoPro Hero camera still hits that expendable price paint, i's missing so many of th features that make the more expensive cameras soexcellent. — —Iyler Winegarner Pe rendmakezine.com/43 | SHAVIV DEBURRING TOOL SET $20: vargus.com/shaviv Det worryifyouhave never heard of deburring a tolstare 9 they end to be indy lta you weifnd the ace by ox home improvement store. That sath be atte yous Sebucringtel youwieuse Yourself altos ines you Farored herp edge and burs wth ile or worse wth sonipapes Tio Shove Mangollassort- mat gives you allyou ned to fetated wit handle somplaet genera purpeee bandeatht ever ester tmonshapes ander and anerending bade ler for reaching in ther space, Sort Deutsch HOWARD LEIGHT BY HONEYWELL SYNC STEREO EARMUFFS $36 : howardleight.com/ear-muffs/sync ‘As a busy dad with a short commute, I seldom get to just rock out anymore really escape into “the metal." The only exception is when I'm doing chores with obnexiously loud power toals, I've used Bluetooth headphones and loved the convenience, but their volume couldn't compete withthe noise of a weed whacker or other Loud tools. My ears were doubly blasted, my enjoyment of Van Halen halved. 'Now I'm loving the Sync earmuff — an industrial-grade hearing protector styled lke over-ear DJ headphones, with high-quality audio builtin fand a re~ movable audio cord for when you just want earmuffs. They automaticaly cap the audio volume at a safe 8248, but that’s all you'll need, asthe 25dB noise reduction rating means you'lbe blissfully untroubled by the racket of your ‘angle grinder, rottiller, or toddler's tantrums while attempting to get things done around the house or workshop. —Keith Hammond BONDHUS BALL HEX ALLEN WRENCHES ~ $26 : bondhus.com yal Ball hex drivers are the way to go for robotics projects and anywhere else you might need to access hex fasteners. This Bondhus set comes with separate inch and metric sets with GoldGuard ‘and BriteGuard finishes that make the Lawrenches easy to clean and identity. The straight hex on the short end is best for higher torque applica- tions, and the ball hex tip allows for {Quicker spinning and easier access. instead of having to enter ahex-head ‘screw straight on, ball hex tips can fit screws ata slight angle, These Bondhus drivers are strong, urable, and very inexpensive for USA-made tools. sD ‘makezine.com 102BLACKFIRE CLAMPLIGHTS $28+ : blackfire-usa.com ‘The Blachfire Clamplight isa handy hands-free LEO flashlight that's built around a powerful I-watt Cree LED that outputs up to 100 \. lumens for 26 hours ona single set of 3AAA batteries. Ithas decent performance stats, but where the Blackfire really excelsis inthe packaging. The flashlight’s body is 2 spring-loaded clamp that allows itto grab onto a range of objects, such asa pipe or the edge ofa table ‘The head pivots around on two axes to provide illumination right where you need it there is nothing for the flashlight to clamp onto, flipthe Clamp pads down, and the mini stand allows the light to sit unsup- VAMPLIERS MINI $30 : vampiretoots.com Like the other Vampire Tools I've used, the Vampliers Mini are eugged, ‘made from high-quality materials, and simply 2 joy to use. Although smaller and slighty less flexible in their use than the “original” Varn~ pliers, the Minis are made of equally high-quality, ESD-safe handle materials and fabricated flawlessly, with vertical serrations for grip ping screws. Unlike the original, there's a key-ring hole on the handles for transport, and the lack ofa spring makes them easier to store in their closed state, ''d probably still recommend the standard Vampliers to anyone who ‘doest spend their whole day working on smaller electronic proj- ects, but these pliers are fantastic for general plying tasks and screw ‘extraction, making them a great addition to anyone's toolbox, Ew ported ona floor or tabletop Eric Weinhotfer MAXXPACKS CUSTOM BATTERY PACKS $ varies : maxxpacks.com For some projects, a AA or AAA battery holder and a few kaline or rechargeable batteries will do. But for projects that involve motors or high-drain components, finding a suitable battery pack isn't always easy. I needed two rectangular block-shaped 9.6V NIMH battery packs for arecent robotics project, and could not find any off-the-shelf products that were perfectly fitting. | utimately learned about MaxxPacks and found a suitable pack in their online store. Not only that, they were able to build it with the connector I needed too. Buying the battery packs from MaxxPacks was great experience, and|m satisfied wth the quality and quick service. The control freak in me laves that | knew everything about the chosen battery packs before | ordered, including discharge rate, capacity, and even the brand of cells the packs were built wth $0. oe makershed.comlest fener cnn duino is thinkin ry oer CLC ao ee ee ere eet Cee eee eee hat’s going on inside that chp. NAVIO AUTOPILOT SHIELD There are a number Sec tei ar Eee) Sey ae controllers, analog PIPE! oat et Prec ea te for autona Dee ts ee ees? ace jou can easily use other soft Sort Pee ee ee) ay makezine.com/43 POLOLU DRV8835 DUAL MOTOR DRIVER SHIELD FOR ARDUINO $7: pololu.com There are numerous Arduino-compatible motor shields that allow for easy control of motors, servos, and stepper motors, but most are one-size-fits-all designs that are meant to satisfy many differ ent needs, Pololu’s new DRV8B35 dual motor driver shield isa simpler, smaller, and very inexpensive shield that can be used to control one or two small brushed OC motors he shield can deliver 1.2 continuously (15 4 peak] along both channels, 2.4413 A peak] when both channels are connected together in parallel. It features six screw-down terminals — two are for an external 1.5 Vto 11 V power supply, and four forthe pair of motor control channels, SD ENOCEAN SENSOR KIT AND ENOCEAN PI $70 (kit), $26 (add-on board) : element14.com ‘When you work with wireless sensors, one ofthe challenges is fig- tring out how you power each sensor unit. But with the EnOcean Sensor Kit and the EnOcean Pi add-on board, the only thing you'll need to power directly is the Raspberry Pi, Each wireless sensor module harvests its own electricity either from ambient light kinetic energy. The sensor kit from elementté includes a reed switch, a temperature sensor, and @ pushbutton switch, The EnOcean Pi receives the wireless signals from the sensors and passes them to a Raspberry Pivia serial. EnOcean provides. guide to reading the data in FHEM, an open-source server for home automation, Far exper: enced coders, you can have these sensors warking with your projects no matter ei ‘what language they're written in, —MR makezine.comTOOLBOX PI MODEL A+ $20 :raspberrypi.org Not tong after upgrading the Raspberry Pi Model B tothe Model Bs, the foundation behind the popular single board computer has row brought alot of the same improvernents to thei low-end line with the new Model As, The A+ sports the newly expanded 460 pin breakout, it works with microSD cards, and the new board now has rounded corners with mounting holes. The smaller PCB, {footprint and slim profile make the A+ a great option for projects where space i tight, ‘As far as performance goes, the A+ has similar specs as the Model A. It has the same Broadcom BCM2835 system on @ chip (SoC) with 254 megabytes of RAM. Priced at ust $20, the refreshed Model A+ keeps Raspberry Piin the lead in terms of affordability inthe landscape of Linux-based boards, =MR GIZMO 2 SINGLE BOARD COMPUTER $199: gizmosphere.org Packing alt of power injust 4inches squared, the Gizmo 2from Gizmosphere is an open-source single board computer aimed at professional embedded programmers and advanced makers. It hasa 1 GH AMD GX-210HA x86 dual-core processor with a 300 MHz GPU and 1 GB of RAM, which puts the Gizmo 2on the high end of maker-friendly single board computers, [Not enlyis it powerful, but the Gizmo 2also supports many con- nectivty interfaces. With an HD audio input and output, mSATA, ‘mini PCle, microSO, gigabit Ethernet, and USB port, there's not ‘much this small board car't do. And since the board is open source, the schematics, PCB layout ils, and billof-materials are available if you'd lke to use the design to build your ow version, —MR ca a eae See ony Se ov wma rade Cee ued oe 105, makershed.comNEW BOOKS FROM MAKERMEDIA Fe ines Hort century Manat » oe q aoe 1 = = i THE MAKER'S MAKE: A RASPBERRY | 215t CENTURY MANUAL PI-CONTROLLED ROBOT $34.99 : By Paolo Aliverti ROBOT $24.99 : By Brian ‘and Andrea Maietta $19.99 :By Wollram Donat __| David Johnson The Maker's Morulisa practical | ake aRasprn-PConiroeaRebt | When companies develp 2 ne and comprehensive guide to be: coming aero ofthe new industrial revolution features hundreds ‘of color images, techniques to transform your ideas int physical projects, and must-have sills like electronics prototyping, 3D printing. and programming, This book's clear, precise explanations ‘will nelp you unleash your creativ- iy, make successful projects, and ‘work toward a sustainable maker business. technology. da they ak howe rmightafetthe people who will ‘actually useit? That, more or ess same up Brian Davia Johnson's d- tis snes fturis-in-residence Inti fascinating book, Johnson provides collection of scienco- fiction protoying stores that attempt to answer the question, teaches you how tobuld a capable and upgradeable personal robot foraround $100. Youll earn howto contol seros, respond to sensor input, and know where your Batis. Using GPS. YouLaiso learn many, ways to connec to your robot and send itnstraetons, om an SSH connection to sending text mes sages from your phone ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ELECTRONIC COMPONENTS VOL.2 $29.99 : By Charles Platt ‘ant to know how to use an elec won component Tis sacond book ofa three-volume eet includes ay information on elactonies pars for your projects — complete ath photographs, schematics, and dia- ‘rams, You'l earn what each ane oes, how it works, why’ set, ‘and what variants eis. Volume 2 covers signal processing, including LEDs, Los, audio, thyristors, cigital lagi and ampliication. mateznecorves | GETTING STARTED WITH ARDUINO — 3RD EDITION $19.99 : By Massimo Banzi ‘and Michael Shitoh [Aréuino isthe hot open-source pro= totypingplatorm fr artist, hob bys, students, and anyone who wants to crete interactive physical nvirononts. Getting Sarto with Arduino is co-authored by Arduino co-founder Massimo Bani and in corporates his experience in teach- ing, using, and creating Arduino, New in this edition isa chapter on Leonarde and an irrigation project for plants and gardens, GETTING STARTED WITH CNC $16.99 : By Edward Ford Getig Start with CNCis the do- finite introduction to wecking with aifordable desktop and benchtop ENC, uritan bythe creator ofthe popular open-hardwareCNC, the ‘Shapeoko,Athoughinexpensve 30 printers can rake great things with plastic, a CNC can caro highly durable pieces out ofa block of alu- ‘minum, wood, and other materials This book covers the fundamentals of designing for — and working with —aflordable ONCE, makerine.com 0?TOOLBOX 3D PRINT REVIEWS CUBE 3 Has the 3D printer as an appliance finally arrived? ss i" NI ‘THE CUBE 3'S FEATURE CHECKLIST MAKES IT STAND OUT IN ASEA OF NEW MACHINES. Color touchscreen, printing ver wi-fi or USB stick, printing from 10S or Android devices, autoleveli calibration, and dual-color printing are all, standard features. NEW NOZZLE WITH EVERY CARTRIDGE The Cube only works with chipped, prop etary filament cartridges, which cost more and hold tess plastic than spooled fila ‘ments, but each includes a completely new nozzle, minimizing the chance for jams, RELIABLE DUAL EXTRUSION There is no other printer inthis price range that offers dual-color capability with the ease and reliability experienced withthe Cube 3.1 was able to take normal STL files, individually color parts of them, and have them print in dual colors without complicat ed alignment or tedious STL fle merging Printing in two colors is slow, but i’ hard te argue with the results, which were mostly good. NICE DESIGN, BUT NOISY AND SLOW Id estimate that it's one of the noisiest ma- chines we've tested — not something you ‘want running while you watch TV. The case 1, auto-z-height Cube 3 | cubify.com Price as Tested 5999, Bulld Volume 7345523401 9 Style Aluinum plate with bonded Dlasti top layer ‘Temperature Contr? No Materials Proprietary ABS or PLA Pint Untethered? via wi-fi or USB ‘thumb dive Onboard controls? Color touch sereen Software Cubity Slicer Cubity (0S Windows / Mac / 0S / Anroid ‘Open Software? No ‘Open Hardware? No resonates, andit's common forthe various ‘motors to attempt to move past their imits during initial (nonprinting) movernents. Prints take along time, but have a high sue- cess rate — a balance that makes sense for entry-level users. The industrial design forthe price is rmiles ahead of the competition. Integrated spool holders, optical bed leveling, integra cd lighting, and the use of inear rails in a package this affordable has raised the bar Special care was taken to ensure that i's almost impossible for curious youngsters to get pinched or burned by the machine. NO TWEAKING The printer, software, and filament are all, Lightly controled to simplify the experience. On the flipside, the quality you get won't ever get better due to your own tweaking The end user never sees actual G-cade, and Variables Uke temperature and speed are kept under wraps. CONCLUSION This isnot a machine for people who want totweak settings and chase the perfect print. The Cube 3 is For someone whe wants taprint, has no time to waste, andis willing to pay more for plastic for a toolchain that just works.@ @ makershed.com PRINT SCORE: 29 Cs Ore ny Sd weey Dn es © Surface Curved 123 Oe ee Sr Oe eat eee) @ZResonance “FAIL? ate) ‘© The intended surface preparation Se ne eg eee ec Ce ners Ree ed err) Pee ee Peay See Ue De eet eg era ce Fae erence CECE eee esc sted it warnif you tr to print something too Se How'd it print? PrCUBEPRO...... This large-build, high-end machine is not your average home printer FROM THE MOMENT YOUR 90-POUND CUBEPRO ARRIVES ON A WOOD PALLET VIAAFREIGHT TRUCK, YOU'LL KNOW ‘THIS IS NOT YOUR AVERAGE HOME PRINTER. 30 Systems has created a ma- chine for both the serious printing aficio nado and companies who are ooking for a more robust and professionally built printer. (MULTIPLE EXTRUDERS, MULTIPLE CHIPPED MATERIALS Single, double (Ovo), or tripe [rol extruder ‘models are available, bt each additional extruder diminishes the build area (single ‘extruder build width of 285mm, triple 200mm]. These multiple extruders deliver ‘multiple materials. 30 Systems ships ‘cartridges of ABS, PLA, and nyton for the CubePro, The embedded microchips tell the machine what color and material is loaded ‘and how muchis tft, but also prevent the use of nonoffcial filaments, HEATED BUILD CHAMBER Desktop 3D printers use heated build plat- forms to prevent ABS prints from curling ‘and warping off the build surfaces. How- ‘ever, exposed print areas are susce drafts causing uneven cooling and crack- ing, The CubePro uses the same heat ‘enclosed design employed by high-end CubePro | cubify.com Price as Tested $4,309 Bull Volume 200.4«230%270.4mm Style Uheated proprietary material ed, heated build chamber ‘Temperature Contr? No Via wit or USB stick Onboard controls? L¢O toucisereen Software CuePro software Slicer CubePro software (0 Mac, Windows ‘pen Software? No ‘Open Hardware? No professional machines o prevent this, SOFTWARE SHORTCOMINGS Although the CubePro software is easy to use, it has some severe limitations. Print options are constrained to three levels of print quality and infil, Provided estimates are often far off from the actual print times. The greatest discrepancy | encountered was anestimate of 45 minutes that resulted ina 2 hour and 30 minute print With PLA prints, high print temperatures [uncontrollable by the user! cause anything close to an overhang to droop. Our bridging test failed on all tevels. Rounded- or stoped- top prints looked very ne, but prints with large flat surface tops showed signs of over extruding or bed-height issues. However, I've been a CubePro beta tester and seen the print quality continually improve over time through software updates. CONCLUSION ‘The CubePro would sit nicely in an office beside the company’s large copy/scan/print appliance, where changing the flamen cartridges would be akin to changing the toner cartridge, However, most home users will have a hard time finding space forit or needing quite as much machine a CubePro pravides, © makezine.com/43 baited) Coy reed ‘© Backlash aes) Cd m234 a rr CN ead NTL ed wmeTolorancommmmm 2 3 4 aL eee) Or ne See nes Coe ee SS Ute Se Enea Se See eal Dee ee Ly Ug a TO Sag Peon cry See ee Seg eed ssile Bees aes makezine.com ic?Wearable Electronics Lear the materials, tools, and techniques that bring woarable electronics to life Create unique, ¢ ‘traditional craft skills and modern electronic circuitry. MAKERSHED COM/WEARABLESBOOK ag - sign prototyPe. 2m pee rot Making Simple Robots Making Simple Robots is based on bat anybody can earn to isbook takes makes them accessible to everyone, ‘MAKERSHED.coM/SNPLEROBOTS v oi >wakershen.com [Maker Shed ’ ___ The official store of Make:lve i roan Opensource rate Sa MUVE 1 DLP PRINTER MUVE 1 LASER PO esa mUVe 30's 2012 Designed Dual Motor Peel System (Open Source Hardware, Firmware, and Software Compatibility With A Large Array of Materials ‘Adjustable Resolution And Much More! mM Tek Cl Seo oa Available Today! Pe orchard Near Ceeectir ee tert tcs TE ere Cre aan LG Sa oc) aid ied aces SIU LI Tost rel foto) Pen eee TT) Marketplace COMPOSE INVENT CODE CREATE Ignite creative thinking. mA C\ PVE EXPERIMEN TORN WORLD'S MOST VERSATILE RCUIT BOARD HOLDERS Pena) Seer MONTHLY CONTEST Visit us on Facebook* o post 2 photo of your creative PanaVise Droject for a chance to win 3 Fanaviee prize paclage Innovative Helding Solutions 7540 Colbert Orve «Reno + Nevads 875 | (200) 759-755 ww FinaVise comOVER_THE_TOP. “ACME Catalog, Page 115: Battle Cat” STL PO ome ay Cee ee ‘our ACME Spring Catalog. Are there eee ta Cte eC ceny eee Err oe er oe ete coe een es Re aor ee eee ey Cree ee Pet oD tinsmithing family Yes, he did graduate {rom the Alberta Collage of rt and Design with a majorin jewelry but eee Sea ey reenter ee Pee eed ere to feudal samurai. you desirea Ce Ee ee ett ens guard. Though be aware, de Boor {does produce protective gear for mice] We have a few n stock and can eee ee teas CU cee our trademark instantaneous courier pene ete Rem mea nd lee ee ere ener Reet eee cea ae etc een Pees PreeQ@TINKERINE” FUN IN EDUCATION? Wwe sure think so. fa Ga uM Want to learn about 3D printing? Tinkerine U offers a full STEAM education experience for all ages. Sign up now to start exploring Tinkerine U. To PRO Play. Leam. Create. A printer designed for the tinkerer inside each of us. Take your imagination to Pa next level with the DittoPro 3D printer. Learn more at WWW. TINKER Seta 0A i