A few years ago, I cobbled together a sensor to monitor the water level of my Christmas tree. Like a bad holiday movie, it’s since sucked me in for a few more hours of tinkering each year. Although its main function is largely unchanged, I’ve added a few more bells and whistles along the way. I upgraded the scrap metal + FoodSaver bag sensing probe to a custom PCB and changed the software platform from Arduino + Adafruit IO to ESP Home, unlocking the full smart home automation power of Home Assistant. The result is a reliable and relatively power-efficient Continue Reading
3dprinted
From Hydration to Vibration: DJ Big Gulp’s Evolution from humble Gatorade jug to seaworthy Bluetooth speaker
To put this into context, I took my first Loopy’s tubing trip long before waterproof Bluetooth speakers were something you could just go pick up at your local Circuit City. For the average rivergoer, a tranquil float down the serene Chippewa River on a beautiful sunny day is already pretty hard to beat. But what kind of engineer would I be if I didn’t seize the opportunity to enhance such a natural experience with a piece of cobbled together tech designed for the sole purpose of blasting out the fattest bangers of 2005? What started out as a dumpster dived Continue Reading
The Voice™: Maker Edition (DIY Bluetooth Game Show Buzzers)
tl;dr: I made 3D printed, bluetooth game show buzzers for playing The Voice at home, powered by Adafruit Circuit Playground Bluefruit boards and a laptop. Bringing Reality TV to Reality If you ask me, combining a makeshift karaoke setup, cheap beer, and good friends all but guarantees a fun night. Ok who am I kidding, my college days are well behind me – decent beer. Anyway, toss in some random swivel chairs and before you know it, you’re playing your own version of The Voice™ wishing you had some big red buttons to smash. That’s the origin story of this Continue Reading