Documents

Enchanted Objects Challenge Competitors

doctorcdf — Fri, 08 Oct 2021 08:23:18 GMT

Current Revision posted to Documents by doctorcdf on 10/8/2021 8:23:18 AM

Andy Clark
United Kingdom

Project: Enchanted Cottage
Synopsis:

This particular enchanted object is right out of the storybooks. Deep in the forest is a small cottage owned by a timeless couple, Hans and Matilda who are doomed never to meet. When it is wet he goes outside but when it is dry she must leave the house.

Their house may look traditional but is full of state of the art electronics. Thanks to their Arduino Yun they can receive their weather reports from the internet. And rather than their motion being powered by catgut they are now servo assisted. The inside of their house is lit with a colour changing LED which shows that the power is on and if the internet connection is operational. Their thermometer also has had an upgrade and now displays the inside temperature with an LED bar-graph picking up the temperature via a thermistor, a press of a button shows the temperature as reported from the internet.

Read Andy's project blogs (tag enchanted_cottage)

Jan Cumps
Belgium

Project: Enchanted 50's Record Player
Synopsis:

I want to enchant both mechanics and electronics of analog audio gear. I have a 1950s record player at home that is beyond economical repair, but a great looker.

Read Jan's project blogs (tag enchanted_player)

Samuel Doye
United Kingdom

Project: Multimeter Inbox Checker
Synopsis:

Problem: I don't check my inbox on Element 14 for new messages at regular intervals. This leads to messages either sitting around for a few days or me checking in to find only an empty inbox.

Solution: Repurpose an old analogue rapiest multimeter to display the number of messages in my inbox via the voltage indicator.

Read Samuel's project blogs (tag multimeter_inbox)

Parker Ellwanger
United States

Project: Mini-Tasks Automator
Synopsis:

There are a lot of mini tasks that everyone performs every day in the house. These are the tasks that are often times forgotten throughout the day. Also these are often some of the more boring. I am looking to allow one not even to have to worry about turning on their lamp after dark.

Read Parker's project blogs (tag mini_automator)

Ambrogio Galbusera
Italy

Project: Magic Doctor's Hat
Synopsis:

One of the most difficult tasks for a doctor is to divert a child attention while trying to make an injection. And what's better than something magic to entertain a child?

Also, high blood pressure (hypertension) can quietly damage your body for years before symptoms develop. Left uncontrolled, you may wind up with a disability, a poor quality of life or even a fatal heart attack. And maybe something magic could make blood pressure monitor a bit more pleasant...

So for this challenge I thought of building a magic hat.

Read Ambrogio's project blogs (tag magic_doctors_hat)

Tanausú Hernández
Spain

Project: Enchanted Typewriter
Synopsis:

Some weeks ago I found a lovely 70's typewriter outside the trash bin of my street. I thought it was such a shame to throw away a machine like that just because it's all and new technologies have deprecated it, even though it holds a lot of history on it.

With this in mind, I figured out a cool project that would give a new live and purpose to the typewriter, to make it paint! The idea is to substitute some of the type heads with a small sponge or other soft material that sinks into a small compartment of paint when resting and imprint on the paper when its key is pressed. Only some of the keys will be used for colour, since most of the keys can be used to make ASCII like art directly, which is a whole achievement on itself.

Read Tanausú's project blogs (tag enchanted_typewriter)

Christian Lorenzoni
United States

Project: Smart Enchanted Shoes
Synopsis:

I will make smart shoes, smart soles - adjustable air bags placed on top of your soles to be exact. Based on pressure sensors under your feet, 8 air bags will wirelessly inflate/deflate accordingly in order to provide you with a proper walking experience. It will also contain a manual adjustable mode which can be done directly from your phone if you choose to manually adjust each air bag to your individual taste. I will first make it to fit my shoe size, and then once it works properly make it for other shoe sizes.

Read Christian's project blogs (tag smart_shoes)

Rob Nagy
Australia

Project: A Place in the Cloud
Synopsis:

The average hobbyist can easily configure a device and have it operational in their home for monitoring environment or activating devices. We now also have the cloud.

This is where I think we still have a disconnect between the home, its devices and the greater world in general. My proposal revolves around interfacing these IOT devices in the home and giving them a place in the cloud.

Through a simple html based API, the user would be able to establish their devices in the home and then give these devices a real and accessible presence on the internet.

Read Rob's project blogs (tag place_cloud)

Manolis Nikiforakis
Greece

Project: Espresso ex Machina
Synopsis:

I am an engineer and an espresso coffee enthusiast. As a result, I could not settle for an ordinary homemade (instant) coffee with hightech chemistry but without real smell and taste like proper coffee (i.e speciality coffee). So I got myself some old school professional espresso coffee machine, revived it, added some electronics: thermocouple / PID controller / remote power control and I am enjoying quality coffee at home.

Read Manolis' project blogs (tag espresso_ex_machina)

Peter Oakes
Canada

Project: Infinity Mirror
Synopsis:

Concept is an infinity mirror (About 36" diagonal) with RGB addressable LEDs all around that can change colours and effects based on current outside meteorological data, in the center will be a stripped down 23" (ISH) HDMI or VGA LCD panel display) used to provide weather forecasts, reminders and other fun things it can glean from the internet, it will also be linked to other household sensors to determine perhaps occupancy, heat and humidity settings or other readings and send them off to the remote IOT MQTT servers...

Read Peter's project blogs (tag infinity_mirror)

Ayan Pahwa
India

Project: Enchanted IoT Devices
Synopsis:

Well, I love turning objects into smart objects, to mention I build automatic plant feeder based on arduino and solar energy becuase I am lazy enough to go to my terrace daily and water them and lot more similar stuffs. The idea is to make myself as lazy as possible and give devices capabilities to do their own stuffs.

Read Ayan's project blogs (tag enchanted_iot_devices)

Parth Pandya
India

Project: Enchanted Windows
Synopsis:

Windows are essential part of ventilation in home, through windows light and air access into home. By adding intelligence I want to use windows as alarm, to avoid unwanted bugs coming in home, avoid accidents due to suffocation and gas leakage & protecting from unwanted loud noises.

Read Parth's project blogs (tag enchanted_windows)

Christoph Rieder
Germany

Project: Smart Key Hooks
Synopsis:

In the project Key Hooks will be enchanted to track presence of my family members. It is too difficult even for IT persons to host internet services themselves. Therefore existing "Cloud" services will be used. Due to this it is important to only transfer encrypted or obfuscated data to those services. As much data as possible will be kept inside the SAMA5D4 Xplained Ultra Board.

Read Christoph's project blogs (tag smart_key_hooks)

Arjuna Srimal
Sri Lanka

Project: Enchanted Bed Side Lamp
Synopsis:

The main idea of this challenge is to upgrade a object that we use everyday to make our lives more easier. So after giving a lot of thought I came up with this proposal. My idea is to enchant a normal table lamp or a bed side lamp to keep us updated and reminded of out day to day tasks, as well as the background information needed to complete the tasks.

Read Arjuna's project blogs (tag enchanted_lamp)

Dale Winhold
Canada

Project: Enchanted Clock
Synopsis:

My proposal is to build a wooden clock that will automate the room it inhabits. This clock will be hand built from wood, this includes wooden gears that I will produce and assemble. The clock will regulate room temperature, lighting, humidity and have voice control.

Read Dale's project blogs (tag enchanted_clock)

Tags: enchanted_objects

Enchanted Objects Design Challenge - Terms & Conditions

joeman — Fri, 08 Oct 2021 08:16:18 GMT

Current Revision posted to Documents by joeman on 10/8/2021 8:16:18 AM

Individuals will be selected for the "Enchanted Objects" Design Challenge (henceforth, "The Challenge") on the basis of quality of applications: we expect a full and complete description of why you want to take part in this challenge and your initial ideas for utilising the proposed kit effectively.

Individuals selected for the Challenge will be required to blog about their projects on a weekly basis. Additional content such as videos and designs will be an added bonus when it comes to judging competitors.

Individuals selected for this challenge are responsible for taking reasonable precautions for ensuring their own safety, in both the assembly and testing of their proposed solutions.

Failure by a selected individual to participate in accordance with the parameters of the Challenge, provided no reasonable cause for this inability to participate is given, may result in exclusion from future Road Tests and challenges.

The final submission date for this challenge is Friday, 26th June 2015.

This competition is not open to individuals employed by the Premier Farnell group of companies.

You may not enter the competition if, by doing so, you may cause Premier Farnell and/or you to be in breach of any agreement (including but not limited to any contract of employment) to which you are a party or in breach of any duty, law, regulation or rule having the force of law to which you or Premier Farnell may be subject. Premier Farnell reserves the right to disqualify any entry made in breach of this condition.

Premier Farnell reserves the right to verify the eligibility of any winner before a Prize is sent and may require proof of identification and age. If Premier Farnell suspects fraud or misconduct, or a winner or potential winner does not meet the eligibility requirements, his or her Prize may be withheld or withdrawn and another potential winner selected. The eligibility requirements include subsequent requirements stated below. The winner will be announced within 28 days of the end of the competition.

Premier Farnell will take reasonable steps to ensure all taxes and duties are paid on both challenge kits and Prizes; however, entrants and winners may be asked to facilitate the process of this payment.

All products provided to the participant are provided "as is" and neither Premier Farnell nor its partner companies makes no warranties or representations of any kind with respect thereto. In no event will Premier Farnell be liable to participant or any third party for any incidental, special, direct, indirect, or consequential damages resulting from participant's use of any products provided.

The participant agrees to defend, indemnify and hold harmless Premier Farnell and its employees, directors, suppliers and affiliates from any and all damages, claims, suits or expenses resulting from any usage of products in connection with the Challenge. Premier Farnell has the right to amend or change these Terms and Conditions from time to time. It is a condition of entry that participants agree to comply with such amendments.

One Night in New York! An Enchanted Adventure in the Big Apple

patkelly — Wed, 06 Oct 2021 20:39:58 GMT

Current Revision posted to Documents by patkelly on 10/6/2021 8:39:58 PM

What's Going On?

To celebrate Andy Clark's Enchanted Cottage winning the Enchanted Objects Design Challenge we have something rather special planned for tonight (31st July).

Where is it?

If you are in the New York area from 9PM (UTC) keep your eyes peeled. Spot something "Enchanted" on the streets of New York and tweet us @element14 using #enchantedobjects.

Below is a map of the areas where you will be able to find us throughout the night.

From 9PM (UTC) we will be moving to these approximate locations:

33rd & 9th Ave
Chelsea
Union Square
Lower East Side

For all of you not in NYC watch this space for a roundup of all the action next week.

What's this all about?

www.youtube.com/watch

Experience the unexpected journey to build an Enchanted Cottage with Hans & Matilda by Andy Clark, the winner of the enchanted objects design challenge.

GRAND PRIZE WINNER
Andy Clark

The idea was to take an old fashioned "cat gut" based weather house and use the electronic components to bring it up to date. The key features would be servo driven mechanics, LED showing the temperature and the Arduino Yun for getting the weather from the internet.

Project Summary

The moment Andy Clark found out he had won:

www.youtube.com/watch

Tags: design_challenge, enchanted_objects, new_york

Documents

migration.user — Fri, 01 Oct 2021 18:03:10 GMT

Current Revision posted to Documents by migration.user on 10/1/2021 6:03:10 PM

Enchanted Objects Design Challenge - Kit List

patkelly — Mon, 23 Nov 2015 11:06:28 GMT

Current Revision posted to Documents by patkelly on 11/23/2015 11:06:28 AM

SAMA5D4 Xplained Ultra

The Atmel® SMART SAMA5D4 Xplained Ultra is a member of Atmel’s Xplained fast prototyping and evaluation platforms. The board is based on the Atmel SAMA5D4 microprocessor and comes with a rich set of ready-to-use connectivity, an LCD and HDMI interface, an embedded debug interface unit, as well as storage peripherals and expansion headers for easy customization. A Linux distribution and software package gets you evaluating fast. A USB device connector can be used to power the board as well as to program and debug it. Seven headers, compatible with Arduino R3 (Uno, Due) and two Xplained headers are available for various shield connections.

The SAMA5D4 series is a high-performance, power-efficient ARM Cortex-A5 processor MPU capable of running up to 528 MHz. It integrates the ARM NEON™ SIMD engine for accelerated signal processing, multimedia and graphics as well as a 128 KB L2-Cache for high system performance. The device features the ARM TrustZone® enabling a strong security perimeter for critical software, as well as several hardware security features. The device also features advanced user interface and connectivity peripherals.

Applications: The SAMA5D4 series is optimized for control panel/HMI applications needing video playback and applications that require high levels of connectivity in the industrial and consumer market. Its security features makes the SAMA5D4 well suited for secure gateways or for the IOT.

Arduino YunArduino Yun

Arduino YÚN is the first member of a new groundbreaking line of wifi products combining the power Linux with ease of use of Arduino. The first Arduino YÚN is the combination of a classic Arduino Leonardo (based on the Atmega32U4 processor) with a Wifi system-on-a-chip running Linino (a MIPS GNU/Linux based on OpenWRT). We embedded the Linux machine directly on the PCB of the Arduino Leonardo and we connected the two so that from Arduino it’s very easy to run commands on the Linux side and use it as an Ethernet and Wifi interface. Historically, interfacing Arduino with complex web services has been quite a challenge due to the limited memory available. Web services tend to use verbose text based formats like XML that require quite a lot or ram to parse. On the Arduino YÚN we have created the Bridge library which delegates all network connections and processing of HTTP transactions to the Linux machine.

Arduino Prototyping Shield KitArduino Prototyping Shield Kit

The Arduino Prototyping Shield Kit makes it easy for you to design custom circuits for your next Arduino project.

You can solder parts to the prototyping area to create your project, or use it with a small solderless breadboard (not included) to quickly test circuit ideas without having to solder. It's got extra connections for all of the Arduino I/O pins, and it's got space to mount through-hole and surface mount integrated circuits if you need to as well. It's a convenient way to make your custom circuit and Arduino into a single module.

TinkerKit Servo ModuleTinkerKit Servo Module

The Servo Module is a high quality servo with the standard TinkerKit 3pin connector to be plugged in the Sensor Shield. The best choice to add Robotics & Mechatronics to your project. Servos are composed of an electric motor mechanically linked to a potentiometer. Arduino controls the Servo using the Servo Library. The electronics inside the servo translate the width of the pulse into a position. When the servo is

commanded to rotate, the motor is powered until the potentiometer reaches the value corresponding to the commanded position.

Infineon DC Motor Control Shield for Arduino

The DC motor control shield (DCMOTORCONTRBTN8982TOBO1) from Infineon technologies is one of the first high current motor control boards being compatible to Arduino as well as to Infineon’s XMC1100 Boot Kit. The DC motor control shield is capable to drive two uni-directional DC motors (half bridge configuration) or one bi-directional DC motor (H-Bridge configuration).

The implemented integrated BTN8982TA NovalithIC™ half bridges can be controlled by a PWM via the IN Pin. Interfacing to a microcontroller is made easy by the integrated driver IC which features logic level inputs, diagnosis with current sense, slew rate adjustment, dead time generation and protection against overtemperature, undervoltage, overcurrent and short circuit.

Infineon Lighting RGB LED Arduino Shield

The RGB LED Lighting Shield from Infineon Technologies is one of the first intelligent evaluation boards being compatible with Arduino as well as Infineon’s XMC1100 BOOT KIT. It is designed to be easy configurable and combinable for different LED light engines and lamps for fast prototyping and inexpensive evaluation of LED lighting applications.

The RGB LED Lighting Shield uses a DC-DC buck topology and is able to drive up to 3 LED channels with constant current. The shield itself is powered by a programmable XMC 32-bit ARM® powered MCU with embedded Brightness Color Control Unit (BCCU, XMC1200 MCU series), which is capable of delivering flicker-free LED dimming and color control.

The BCCU enables extreme low cost but high quality LED lighting solution, with minimal user code. The RGB LED Lighting Shield has also been designed to provide options for the evaluation of smooth, eye-friendly diming, color mixing for different topologies, and it can be extended with e.g. with DALI/DMX or Radar).

ARDUINO UNO 65PCS WORKSHOP SETARDUINO UNO 65PCS WORKSHOP SET

Arduino Workshop Kit is a selection of all the components necessary to get any projects up and running.

> Back to Enchanted Objects

Enchanted Objects Winner Announced!

element14Dave — Fri, 24 Jul 2015 20:53:14 GMT

Current Revision posted to Documents by element14Dave on 7/24/2015 8:53:14 PM

Earlier this year we challenged the members of the element14 Community to revitalize old objects, appliances or furniture and turn them into “enchanted” ones, rendered so by the addition of the latest Internet of Things technology. Since than hundreds of blogs have been submitted chronicling the ups, downs, failures and triumphs. With the help of the Atmel SAMA5D4 Xplained UltraSAMA5D4 Xplained Ultra, Arduino YunArduino Yun and other development products several of our competitors were able to take the ordinary and make it extraordinary!

On behalf of the element14 team we would like to congratulate all of the competitors who were successful in completing this challenge. There was a difficult decision to make on who would win the grand prize. With that being said... The winning project of the Enchanted Objects Design Challenge is...

The Enchanted Cottage submitted by Andy Clark AKA Workshopshed

The Enchanted Cottage is a sensor-rich model home. The Cottage features motion control, lighting control, power management, temperature and humidity reporting all tied into a wonderful display. In addition to the incredible blend of mechanics and electronics; Andy wove a whimsical and enchanted story throughout the contest.

Here is a video of Andy finding out he had won the challenge. Enjoy!

www.youtube.com/watch

Tags: design_challenge, enchanted_cottage, enchanted_objects, past_contest, element14_design_challenge

Enchanted Objects Design Challenge - Detailed Information

patkelly — Tue, 03 Feb 2015 09:15:58 GMT

Current Revision posted to Documents by patkelly on 2/3/2015 9:15:58 AM

Background

The world is becoming fully of amazing technology the downside being that devices are starting to look the same, “black-glass slabs” of all sizes. The near future involves the embedding of technology into re-imagined everyday objects, and rendering what was once ordinary into the “enchanted”.

The Challenge

We would like to extend this concept into the revitalisation of old objects, appliances or furniture and turn them into “enchanted” ones, rendered so by the addition of the latest Internet of Things technology.

Examples of this include:

A grandfather clock that responds to voice commands: e.g., one could approach it, say “Tell me the time in Sydney, Australia” and the hands would move to the appropriate setting.
A barometer that taps into WiFi and changes its setting based upon the latest, most accurate weather forecast.
An old fashioned desk lamp that will automatically switch itself on based upon information it receives via the internet such as the time when sunset is due to occur and adjusts its brightness as twilight approaches.
A bookcase you can speak to and which will reply – so you can find the position of a book, and order a book you don’t have from an online retailer. It also makes its catalogue available to the user via a mobile app.
A mirror that looks back and responds to "Mirror, Mirror" commands – also, the glass could potentially be replaced with a screen that shows the individual in various outfits.
A mixing bowl or pot which can assist you in preparing food – which uses a combination of sensors and internet connectivity which determines what steps to take and where you are in the preparation stages could make cooking an "enchanted" experience.

Role of Security

element14 believes that the Internet of Things may hit a roadblock: namely, the lack of secure communications between objects and individuals could lead to a situation in which data is being shared without explicit consent and exploited for malicious purposes. Therefore any Internet of Things challenge we will undertake in the future will have a security aspect: we will want to see that appropriate security measures have been built into the solutions. Bonus points will be given for clear demonstrations of this in the finished project.

Kit Provided

SAMA5D4 Xplained Ultra

> See the full Kit list here

Assessment

The following criteria will be used in their analysis:

Accuracy: how well does the proposed solution register the information it is intended to assess?
Convenience: how easy it will be for non-technical personnel to use ?
Cost: how much will it cost? Is it cost effective?
Durability: for example, can it withstand everyday life and yet continue to function normally?

The solution which meets these four criteria the best will be the winner; in the case that if further improvements are yet required for it to be used in real life scenarios, we will may work with the winning engineer to develop it to fruition.