element14 Presents

As makers and engineers, we frequently incorporate microcontrollers, single board computers, and external sensors into our projects. This often requires that we interface our digital circuitry to the analog world. But do you really know what’s going on under the hood of that ADC you’re using? In this video, I cover the basics of using an ADC and focus on the successive approximation register ADC. With that knowledge, we put together a DIY temperature probe using an analog temperature sensor, custom enclosure and a novel method of turning the unit on and off.

As makers and engineers, we frequently incorporate microcontrollers, single board computers, and external sensors into our projects. This often requires that we interface our digital circuitry to the analog world. But do you really know what’s going on under the hood of that ADC you’re using? In this video, I cover the basics of using an ADC and focus on the successive approximation register ADC. With that knowledge, we put together a DIY temperature probe using an analog temperature sensor, custom enclosure and a novel method of turning the unit on and off.

To celebrate the launch of Borderlands 3, DJ has embarked on an epic, case-modding journey. Not only is he building a nearly full-scale Claptrap, but he’ll be shoving, er uh, gently placing afull-size gaming PC inside. Is bringing an animatronic Claptrap into a world a terrible idea sure to bring about chaos and despair? Maybe, but there’s no time to think about the consequences...let’s get building!

To celebrate the launch of Borderlands 3, DJ has embarked on an epic, case-modding journey. Not only is he building a nearly full-scale Claptrap, but he’ll be shoving, er uh, gently placing afull-size gaming PC inside. Is bringing an animatronic Claptrap into a world a terrible idea sure to bring about chaos and despair? Maybe, but there’s no time to think about the consequences...let’s get building!

The new 2019 Mac pro looks like a cheese grater, no doubt. Earlier this year, a Maker exposed the fact that its design did not allow it to be effective for grating cheese, much to the disappointment of Clem! So he took it upon himself to build the world's first Mac Pro that actually grates cheese, and does it with power! The build started out with a Power Mac G5, the first iconic Mac to get dubbed a cheese grater! Clem develops his own motor control development Kit throughout the project and puts it to use in the iGrater /Cheese pro /mac'n'cheese.

Matt enjoys working with retro computer and gaming platforms, so when a friend asked if he wanted to come to take an "old Commodore laptop" off his hands, he jumped at the chance! The machine had obviously seen its better days, but Matt would not be deterred from such an extreme restoration challenge! Will the SX-64 come back to life? Watch as Matt repairs and rebuilds a relative retro computing rarity, restoring it to its former glory so he can finally play Planet X2!

The new 2019 Mac pro looks like a cheese grater, no doubt. Earlier this year, a Maker exposed the fact that its design did not allow it to be effective for grating cheese, much to the disappointment of Clem! So he took it upon himself to build the world's first Mac Pro that actually grates cheese, and does it with power! The build started out with a Power Mac G5, the first iconic Mac to get dubbed a cheese grater! Clem develops his own motor control development Kit throughout the project and puts it to use in the iGrater /Cheese pro /mac'n'cheese.

Matt enjoys working with retro computer and gaming platforms, so when a friend asked if he wanted to come to take an "old Commodore laptop" off his hands, he jumped at the chance! The machine had obviously seen its better days, but Matt would not be deterred from such an extreme restoration challenge! Will the SX-64 come back to life? Watch as Matt repairs and rebuilds a relative retro computing rarity, restoring it to its former glory so he can finally play Planet X2!

LED oscilloscopes can be cheap and fascinating tools to look at some curvy signals, but the resolution is so poor! When Dave decided to build an XY LED oscilloscope, he wanted to go bigger as well and solder up 400 10mm LEDs. With an XY oscilloscope, you can take a look at Lissajous figures and even watch oscilloscope music on it!

LED oscilloscopes can be cheap and fascinating tools to look at some curvy signals, but the resolution is so poor! When Dave decided to build an XY LED oscilloscope, he wanted to go bigger as well and solder up 400 10mm LEDs. With an XY oscilloscope, you can take a look at Lissajous figures and even watch oscilloscope music on it!

The hottest new model of Raspberry Pi has hit the shelves and in order to make the most of it, DJ has decided to make a laptop. With the power of 3D printing, CNC routing, and Linux, will this be a daily driver to outshine your current portable computer? Of course not, but will it be fun? Absolutely:

The hottest new model of Raspberry Pi has hit the shelves and in order to make the most of it, DJ has decided to make a laptop. With the power of 3D printing, CNC routing, and Linux, will this be a daily driver to outshine your current portable computer? Of course not, but will it be fun? Absolutely:

Andy wants to program his robotic arm to write and draw, but it's missing some features like motor feedback and computer control. Will he be able to add the necessary modifications and make his own artistic automaton?

Andy wants to program his robotic arm to write and draw, but it's missing some features like motor feedback and computer control. Will he be able to add the necessary modifications and make his own artistic automaton?

Matt is a fan of both aviation and historical engineering, so he has decided to bring those two worlds together in an attempt to recreate one of the most elusive designs in aeronautics: the ornithopter. The ornithopter is a flapping-wing flying machine that is fairly easy to build small models of, but--like most novel aircraft designs--becomes exponentially more unwieldy at larger scales. Granted, RC ornithopters DO exist, but they're very small and do not mimic the form of a human-carrying fuselage. Will Matt succeed at creating a larger-scaled ornithopter and revolutionize powered flight? Or will he return to his bench and the idiomatic drawing board? Either way, it's going to be an interesting ride!