All of our projects have some sort of output, why else would we make them? This output can be in the form of LEDs or LCD displays. But what about interacting with a computer? Well, the traditional method of doing so is via the serial port. This is the most widely used because of its simplicity. Rewind a few decades, and you will find many more computers with serial ports.
In the previous video in this series, we looked at how microcontrollers interfaced with the outside world, using their I/O ports. And while that is arguably the most important feature of a microcontroller, along with the CPU itself, there are still a lot of features that make working with these microcontrollers a lot easier. Take, for instance, the standard blinking LED example that everyone is familiar with. You simply delay the CPU in order to flash the LED.
As most of you know, cryptocurrency mining has been quite popular over the past several years. And following that trend, my brother put together a mining computer. After ethereum’s switch to proof-of-stake, the older mining methods no longer work, which is what my brother was doing. So he had to switch to other coins like ergo and flux. The problem now is that these coins earn less than Ethereum used to.
This video is the second part to a series about building a function generator. If you haven’t seen the first part, I recommend that you do that first so that you know why the design we have currently is the way that it is. It is linked in the description. The first part covers using a microcontroller and a DAC to generate an output waveform. In this video, we will make the waveform centered around zero volts and allow the user to alter the amplitude.
When I was browsing a local antique store, I found this pretty old, but interseting radio. Apparently, it is very useful for emergency situations, since you don’t need to plug it in or even bring your own batteries. That is because you can charge it up in three different ways. First, you can leave it outside to charge using the solar panel when it is sunny outside. You can also crank this shaft, which is a dyanmo generator.
Random numbers are a very useful thing to have. Why else would we have created dice to roll and coins to flip? We use random numbers to make decisions where there would be indecision, or when we need digital security. However, if you have studied random numbers, you may come to the conclusion that truely random numbers are very difficult to produce. In theory, you could calculate which way a group of dice will land based on a certain throw.
Every electronics workbench has several very important tools. A multimeter, a power supply, maybe even an oscilloscope. These tools are all extremely important for electronics work because they allow us to inspect our circuits and determine whether everything is working properly. However, there is still one amazing useful tool that is still missing. And that is the function generator. A function generator may not be one of the most commonly used tools, but it is incredible for testing circuits where we need quickly repeating patterns.
Halloween is quickly approaching, and what better way to prepare than making a decoration of our own? And what better decoration to make than a spider climbing from the its web? So, in this video we will be finding the best way to make this spider, and setting it up to spook up my house for halloween. It will be so scary that no one will dare trick or treat here again.
In a previous video, I made a pre-regulating power supply. And while it works fine, and can handle loads up to one amp, testing it can be a bit tedious. You would need several different power resistors to test a supply like this, not to mention the calculations you need to run to ensure you pick the correct resistor and get the correct results. Isn’t there an easier way to simulate a load so that we can more easily test power supplies?
Microcontrollers are extrememly popular in circuits nowadays, and that is for good reason. They can be programmed to do just about anything and replace otherwise very complicated hardware. Take, for instance, the Arduino and, by extension, the atmega series of microcontrollers. These devices allow us to manipute hardware by writing software. The only problem is that writing code for and understanding these microcontrollers isn’t exactly as straightforward as making a circuit out of transistors.