Update: Read the full project description here. The days are getting shorter. You do not have to fear the dark, this is the right time to create a fancy color changing Xmas decoration. This is a very simple project and is quickly done. Required Parts “Silver” laminated paper and/or half transparent paper. NeoPixels from Adafruit…
All Meggy Jr RGB Colors
I created a complete color table with the impression of all possible 4096 Meggy Jr RGB colors. The green LED is much brighter than the other two LEDs, the first tables used blue as base which does not make much sense. So I created a second set of tables which use the bright green as…
How to Debug Time Critical Code using an Oscilloscope
From time to time you have to debug time critical code. If you are using interrupts, you are interested in the actual performance on the code. This is especially true, if you are using timed interrupts. In this cases, using the serial interface is impossible. If you write to the serial interface, the whole timing…
A New Library for Meggy Jr RGB
I planed to create a game as a gift and use the really great Meggy Jr RGB platform for it. See the picture above, it’s a great game machine powered by the ATmega328P (buy it here). You can use the Arduino IDE to program it. After assembling the device, I played a little bit around…
From Prototype to the Final Device
After successful testing of the prototype, I created the final device. I added a final page to the Cat Protector project describing step by step how the final device is built from the prototype. You can read all details here: From the Prototype to the Final Device, or start here with the project overview.
Using the TDA 7052 as Amplifier
The LM386N-1 I used before worked well, but has some disadvantages. There was a hearable distortion in the sound and I needed more amplification to create the required loudness. I found the TDA 7052 chip, which was formerly produced by Philips, but now by NXP semiconductors. It contains everything required for an amplifier. You just…
The Cat Protector Project
If you own a cat, you know even if your cat is well brought-up, laws are only valid as long you are at home or even in the same room. The goal of this project was to create a small device, which detects movement in protected areas (e.g. tables) and speak your usual phrases in your voice…
How and Why to use Namespaces
Namespaces are a feature of C++ which address the problem of name conflicts. There is a “global” namespace, where everything lives which was declared without namespace. Especially the Arduino environment declares a huge amount of variables and constants there, so it is a good practice to put everything you write in a own namespace. Namespaces…