A Differential Scanning Calorimeter

Commercial differential scanning calorimeters used to measure enthalpy are often too expensive for colleges and universities. Although this project doesn't provide the extremely high performance of the commercial devices, it is a remarkably low-cost alternative that is more than sufficient for classroom use. The goals of the project were to create an instrument that has a wide enough temperature range to demonstrate measurement, a fairly accurate temperature resolution, and decent accuracy in measuring enthalpy energy. Most importantly, it had to be rugged to withstand use in the lab. An ATmega8 microcontroller handles temperature control and measurement functions. A PC serves as the user interface and display. This project made by Brian Millier got Honorable Mention in AVR 2004 DESIGN CONTEST.

Link : Scanning Calorimeter | Abstrak | Entry

Web-based AVR Interface using AT90S8535

Project description:
In the vein of today’s trends to embed networking cababilities into simple appliances, our project implements a webpage interface for the Atmel AVR microcontroller. One of the original motivations of this project was to develop a low-level network interface for the Atmel device, specifically by controlling an ISA network card to transmit UDP packets across the Internet. We greatly modified our original plans once we found out about the SitePlayer device.

Link : Web-based AVR Interface using AT90S8535

The Autonomous Tank using AT90S8515

Project description:
Here is ,another cool project from course ee476 Cornell university, autonomous vehicle, “Homer”, which can stroll around an environment without getting stuck at obstacles. That implies that it need a robust algorithm that tells the vehicle how to steer when it gets into different obstacle situations. The goal would be to demonstrate a vehicle that will run by itself and not get stuck or bump into any obstructions.

Link : The Autonomous Tank using AT90S8515

ATir AVR IR Keyboard Interface

Steven Savage from Us has winned AVR 2006 Design Contest held by circuit cellar.The well-designed ATtiny45-based ATir interface device offers a convenient cross platform solution to interface an IR remote control to type keyboard macros to a PC. In addition to the microcontroller (from Atmel), the compact system features an infrared receiver/demodulator and a few discreet components. The interface plugs into a PS2 keyboard port on the PC and accepts commands from the infrared remote. this extraordinary application only take cost $10.
Link : ATir AVR IR Keyboard Interface

The ATmega8 microcontroller-based AVRcam

Project Description:
John Orlando and Brent Taylor from US has made a extradionary application based on AVR microcontroller that is The ATmega8 microcontroller-based AVRcam. It is a stand-alone image-processing engine that's well suited for robotics applications. The impressive AVRcam can track eight objects of eight different user-defined colors at 27 frames per second. The compact, low-power design provides a high-performance system that enables you to see your mobile robot's environment.

A user interface displays the following image information in real time: the number of currently tracked objects as well as the color, center point, and bounding box of each object. A PC-based application provides a platform to configure the system. In addition, the application allows you to take photographs with the AVRcam. No wonder if This Application won AVR 2004 Design Contest.

Link : Abstrak | Email | source

Automatic Egg Incubator based on AVR microcontroller

Project Description :

The easy-to-use ATmega32-based Automatic Egg Incubator facilitates the proper hatching of healthy birds. This idea implemented by Niyaz K. Zubair from India. Two digital thermometer chips serve as dry and wet electronic thermometers. The LCD shows the real-time status of the system, which rotates the eggs and monitors variables such as temperature, aeration, and humidity. This project got HONORABLE MENTION category in AVR 2004 Design Contest.

Editorial by Bizon
Link : Abstrak | Source

AVR Electronic Metronome

If you learn a music instrument, definetely you know about metronome. A metronome is a device musicians use to maintain tempo. It generates a clicking sound at a steady rate that is set the user. Traditional mechanical metronomes use a windup spring and a dual-pendulum arm to produce the clicks. Michael Kirkhart from U.S. has design Electronic metronomes that offer additional functionality, such as programmable beats per measure, measure counting, and distinctive sounds for the first beat of the measure. But the sound of electronic metronomes can be grating. The ATmega16 microcontroller-based AVR Electronic Metronome improves upon the commercial competition with a rich set of sophisticated features and tuneful digital sound options.

Editorial by Bizon
Link : Abstrak | source

PIC Mini GPS Logger

This small PIC based GPS logger used San Jose Navigation FV-M8 GPS module. It allow you to stores coordinates, altitude, and speed into an EEPROM. Then a Delphi based windows software converts EEPROM stored data into .kml (Google Earth format). The system equipped with MCU PIC 16F876 to control FV-M8 GPS module, EEPROM, and interfacing to PC. You can use this project for snowboarding, FPV flights, trial bike and hiking logger.

Download : hex (16F876) | Windows GPS Logger | Schematic (eagle)

Universal remote using microcontroller AVR AT90S8535

Project description:
A universal remote is a common everyday household appliance. Used to do everything from TV/Video/Cable to ceiling fan control, this project is a extremely versatile product. We planned to have a 32-button remote that could replicate the IR characteristics of a VCR & TV remote control.


Link : Universal Remote using Microcontroller AVR AT90S8535

Automatic Plant Feeder

This embedded automatic timed plant feeder system can regularly feed water to your plants for a specified amount of water and also be used as an alarm clock. The project contains the several major blocks: ATmega 323 based CPU system.
To display the time and system states, it use 24x2 LCD. A speaker is used for alarming and making sounds. While push buttons used to change the system states by user. A relay is used to control the AC of the water pump with a DC signal from the processor. For feed pattern, You can setting it up any time.

Tags: Plant feeder, Automatic, MCU project src

AVR Electronic Humidor

This Humidor project was designed with a Peltier module and Sensirion SHT1X series sensors. The project built to keep cigars in perfect condition by maintain preferred level of moisture and keep the temperature around 70 degrees. The core of system is based on a microcontroller ATMEGA-16 programmed with BASCOM-AVR. The application is broken into two sections the Menu system that allows configuration of the desired humidity and temperature and what units for temperature you would like to use and display. The Hardware consists of an ATMEGA-16 controller, 7 Tip120 Transistors, 1 DPDT Relay, MC78T12 Regulator, LM7805 Regulator, a few passive components, a 16*2 lcd, and a few connectors.

Tag : Humidity Project, Temperature controller, AVR project source

AVR Wireless Streaming Radio

The project allow you streaming your radio broadcast wirelessly over internet. The wifi radio built using an Asus WL-520gu wireless router, an old USB audio headset, AVR ATmega8 and other part. If you are interested to build Wireless Streaming Radio, here is the requirement you need to prepare : Wireless connectivity through existing Wifi network; Audio output (preferably 44kHz, 16 bit stereo); Shoutcast/MP3 streaming audio decode; A display to indicate the station and currently playing song; An integrated amplifier and speaker(s); Several built in station presets; and Simple user interface, using standard radio controls (volume, tune, etc).

Gary Dion said that the radio can be controlled over Ethernet and also IR transmitter. The firmware in the project is written in C. You can download the source code here and router shell script. The project inspiration come from Jeff Keyzer.

CAN-Servo Controller

This dsPIC30F4011-based servo (position) controller receives commands via a CAN. If a DC motor does not have a rotary encoder, you can plug a contactless magnetic rotary encoder (CMRE) module into the board (via two SIL connectors) and provide (in a self-contained unit) rotary encoder and position control.

Mariano Lizarraga Fernandez, the designer, explains that the board in this project also fully configurable via a CAN network and no power-cycle is necessary for any change to take effect. The board has programmed PID controllers with selectable parameter from user. The controller gains, maximum and minimum pwm commands, and device ID are also configurable. All configuration values are stored in the dsPIC's EEPROM so once it is configured at the full contempt of the end-user, no more changes are required.

Download:
Project Documentation and Schematic (zip)

dsPIC MiniTron Amplifier

The MiniTron is a high end vacuum tube stereo amplifier with efficiency, distortion, and power output enhancements provided by some unique circuitry featuring a dsPIC30F2023 controller IC. The dsPIC is used in this project to create a tracking buck converter whose output voltage tracks the audio signal. The unique SMPS resources in these IC’s do most of the "hard stuff" usually required in an SMPS design, leaving ample processing power available for other activities.

These IC’s and the Avago galvanic isolators are truly the "enabling technology" for this project. The controller IC is also used to perform system health checks, and set the operating points of the individual vacuum tubes. This allows total system programmability, offering several possible preset operating modes.

© George Anderson

Download
Project Documentation

tag : Tube Stereo Amplifier, Audio, dsPIC projec

PIC based Animation Tile Display

Puzzlemation is an expandable platform of light and animation based on PIC24FJ64GA002. It can be used to create things as diverse as modular animated signs that can be changed by rearranging its tiles, to a uniquely animated puzzle. This project’s display is made of a number of tiles, about 2 inch square with an 8 x 8 array of color LED pixels. Each tile is individually powered and animated, so user can freely pick them up and re-arrange them. To set up a display, the tiles are placed in a special tray. Animations are downloaded into the tray via Ethernet and stored locally on an EEPROM, or loaded via an SD card. The tray broadcasts the animation to each of the tiles, and then synchronizes them.

John Peterson, project designer, said that the display is completely reconfigurable. If the pieces are left in the tray, the animation can be updated continuously over the Ethernet connection. If the tiles are removed from the tray, they’ll display the animation for several hours with their own re-chargeable battery power. Once the animation is synchronized and running on the tiles, user can pick them up and place them anywhere.

Download:
Project Documentation, Source Code and Schematic(zip)

tag : Display, LED, project, PIC, PIC24FJ64GA002, animation, puzzle

PIC Based GPS to SD-Card Data Logger

This project combines a GPS receiver module, a Microchip PIC microcontroller and a Secure Digital memory card to make a GPS data logger. With a large capacity and reasonably long battery life it is a very useful device for logging GPS position for example for mapping with OpenStreetMap.

The data from the GPS is logged every second with the raw NMEA sentences being written to the SD card. The data written to the card is the GSA, GGA, RMC and GSV sentences which by excluding the carriage returns this should never exceed 512 bytes per second. The data contains:

• GGA - 78 bytes - time, fix, lat, long, altitude, horizontal dilution of precision.
• GSA - 69 bytes - fix (none, 2D, 3D), satellites used, dilution of precision.
• RMC - 78 bytes - time, lat, long, speed, course, date.
• GSV - 74 bytes - satellite information (4 messages).

The total active power consumption is about 40mA to 45mA when active which in theory should give 48 hours on rechargeable batteries with 2000mAh capacity. In practice I have measured a time of 40 hours.

Download : schematic and source code
related serch : Microcontroller Circuit Project, GPS, SD Card, Data Logger, PIC (src)