This blog is a place for me to share with you all of my major projects. For quick updates regarding my work, view my Google+ profile, accessible via the About Me section below.
There is a light switch on the wall at the entrance of the bedroom in my apartment. You would imagine it would turn on the bedroom lights, but since there are not ceiling lights in the bedroom, it can't do that. What it actually controls is the power to a single receptacle on the wall. In the past, I've had two lamps plugged into this one receptacle. The lamps sit on nightstands on either side of the bed, but there is a problem. Imagine you're getting ready for bed. It's dark out, so as you walk into the bedroom, you flip the light switch on and the lamps come on. Just as expected. Now you're going to bed and you want the lights off - you have two choices: go to the wall and flip the switch again, or individually turn the lamp's power switches off. Of course you're not going to get out of a warm and comfortable bed to flip the light switch so you turn the lamps off. Now here's the dilemma. In the morning, you want the lights back on, right? You have to clumsily reach under both lampshades to turn the lights back on because the light switch won't do squat if the lamps are powered off. That's what this project aims to solve. The light switch will work as any other light switch does - flip it up and both lamps come on and down to turn them both off. Each lamp will have a switch that not only has the ability to turn that lamp on or off, but also to control the other lamp just as easily. And finally, have control of the lights and read their status over the internet. Because this is the future and I want to turn lights on I can't even see. Read on to see how to do it.
There is a closet in the hallway of my house that is affectionately known as "The Only Hallway Closet". It stores my family's jackets, shoes, blankets, and batteries. The problem with this closet is that it doesn't have a light. Sure, we've tried those stick-on lights that they sell in infomercials, but they don't work that well and it's very easy to forget to turn them off. My dad bought a ceiling light for the closet, but it was never installed. I decided it was about time there was a permanent light source in that closet and I wanted to do it in style. I designed some sensors that detect when the door is opened and closed and will accordingly turn the closet light on and off. This blog post details everything about creating this project, including the electronics and installation.
Every once and a while I want to make a quick blog post highlighting some of the things that I've printed using my Printrbot LC 3D printer. These posts will be used to show off the prints that wouldn't be part of a larger project and are mostly just standalone pieces. This is the first of these posts. Check after the break for a more detailed breakdown.
I recently got a PCB for this Breadboard module for 18-pin PIC16F microcontrollers from Raj and was looking through the tutorials on his website and thought it would be a great place to start learning about PICs. I have programmed PIC chips using PicBasic Pro, but I have never used C to program them. I knew having an easy to use power supply for prototyping would come in use, but I didn't have one. I know that Sparkfun and Adafruit each have their own solutions, but when I saw Raj's Regulated Power Supply for Your Breadboard, I knew I could easily make my own with parts I had in stock. Check after the break for how I did it.
A while ago, I got two of these Graymark Model 803 variable power supplies. Unfortunately, they were sold as a kit and whoever assembled them before me did not do a very good job. To make matters worse, I could find no information online about this particular kit so I couldn't figure out how the circuit was supposed to be connected. It also had a mystery voltage regulator chip that I could never find any information about online. I decided that I would just go ahead and start over, using only the layout with new electronics for a new power supply.
