Electric Imp - make any device "smart"

Electric Imp card (via electric imp)

The quest to create “smart devices” has stepped into a radically different direction. The Electric Imp grants Internet access to devices in a more general and accessible platform. The Electric Imp has the shape of an SD card, but its functionality is very different. Instead of holding memory, internally, it holds an ARM Cortex SoC M3 processor and embedded Wi-Fi capabilities. The Electric Imp compatible boards can be put into any device or application the developer can dream of, to make it “smart." Electric Imp is demonstrated the simplicity and functionality of their device at this year's MakerFaire convention in San Francisco.

Adding the Electric Imp to a device allows you to control almost every function of the device wirelessly through the web. Applications like, counters, water level sensors and Christmas light switches are just very few of the applications demonstrated at MakerFaire. One can manage different devices using an online interface called Planner and the programming language used to program each Electric Imp application is called SQuirreL, a graphical SQL client written in JAVA.

The Electric Imp card has no buttons or screens, simply indicator lights that tell you if you are online, in the process of connecting or offline. Without an interface, one would think it would be difficult to configure Wi-Fi, but the developers of Electric Imp have come up with an ingenious solution. They have developed an app called Blinkup. To configure Wi-Fi, you would put in your username and password on the app using your iPhone or Android and then you press the Imp up against the screen which flashes and beams the information to sensors on the Electric Imp.

The versatility of the Imp is one of its most desirable features. Different Imp boards or appliances have their own ID’s, which in turn allow the Imp to access code, or program that is assigned to that specific board’s application. For instance, if you insert the Imp into a counter, it will execute different code than if it is inserted into a water level sensor simply because it recognizes the code assigned to the different modules ID and acquires the appropriate code from the Internet.

Another layer of simplicity comes from the Imp’s easy access to web services like Twitter and texting via Twillo. Cleverly, this allows developers to avoid the complexities of HTTP requests, network sockets and Wi-Fi API’s.

Duino - The Arduino Uno compatable board, featuring an ATMEGA328 processor

The Electric Imp will be available in late June for $25, and it will be released along with 3 basic development boards. The $7 “April” board for basic prototyping, the $25 “Hannah” that offers buttons, many types of sensors, and two servo connectors and a $20 Duino which an Arduino board. This company and its idea are very likely to be taking off to electric lands yet unchartered.

Cabe

http://twitter.com/Cabe_e14