Learning PICs @ PCB Heaven
Welcome to our first on-line PIC learning book!
This book will learn you how to program a PIC micro controller. The book has three sections, the beginner's section, the intermediate and the advanced section. Each theory has an on-line test as well to test the knowledge taken from this page. Also, at the end of each section, there are several circuit tutorials fully documented with all code and schematics needed for implementation!
Wall Clock Accurate Oscillator Hack
This experiment has to do with the ordinary Chinese wall clock mechanisms. At first, i try to find out how the brilliant mechanism operates. Then, i make an accurate oscillator for my projects out of this clock, and with this oscillator i make a.... LED flasher...
Hacking a Pioneer Car Cassette Player
As i am a radio fan, i wanted to embed a radio player on my PC cabinet control panel. Making a radio on my own would require quite a long time. Thus, i used an old car radio cassette player that i had graved. In this chop-job i hack the face-off connector of the player, so that i can get all the info displayed on it's built-in ugly orange LCD, and display it on my own neat displays.
Removing the built-in thermostat of an aquarium heater
Most submersible aquarium heaters -like this one- have a built-in thermostat to maintain the tank water at a temperature proper for the fish to live in. Unfortunately, this temperature is too low for etching solutions. This particular heater is brought in the chop-shop for a fine operation of removing the built-in thermostat.
High Frequency Function Generator with the Maxim MAX038
Using the MAX038 function generator IC, i will make a function generator circuit with many capabilities. I plan to install this project on my workbench and use it for my experiments. According to the chip's documentation, i will have rectangular, sine wave and triangular waveform output up to 20 MHz, with duty cycle adjustment from 15 to 85%.
PCB Etching Bath with Heater and Agitation
Every lab must have an etching tank for home-made PCBs. I make my own etching tank with heater and air-bubbles for agitation. My design is for low production - high quality PCBs. The tank that i use can make up to 10 x 22cm PCBs.
Homemade Foot Pedal For PCB Drills
A really handy project for those who prefer to make their own PCBs, or those who just love the dremel-jobs. A foot pedal that turns on and off the drill makes drilling easier.
PC System Health Monitor
This project is a complete PC System Health monitoring system and has 6 PWM regulated fans with rpm feedback and rpm stabilizer, 9 NTC temperature sensors for the 6 HDDs and 3 positions in the PC box, 5 auxiliary analog inputs for future upgrades and 2 precision temperature sensors for the air inlet and outlet.
PIC Thermometer and Thermostat
This circuit is a thermometer/thermostat especially designed for etching baths. It will display the etching solution temperature, and moreover, it will control the heating element, so that the solution will be always 1 degree Celsius around 40 degrees. It uses a NTC sensor to measure the temperature, and a relay to control the heater.
Car Dome Light Off-Delay
One day, a friend of mine came to me holding in his hand the dome light from his car. "Its does not work properly" he said. "When i close the door, the light turns off immediately". This circuit is a replacement for the car dome light off-delay circuitry. Depending on the light bulb that is used, this circuit will turn off the lamp by dimming it slowly.
Miniature 2.4 Volts LED Flasher
A LED flasher suitable for bicycles. It is powered from 2 x 1.5 or even 2 x 1.2 volts (rechargeable) batteries! It sends 2.5Hz pulses to high brightness LEDs, according to the international laws for bicycle safety flashing lights. The LEDs are very bright and can be seen from a very ling distance. What's incredible is the long life of the batteries. The circuit that i am testing has 7 3mm ultra bright (15.000 mcd each) LEDs, and is powered with 2 x 1.2 volts 2500mA rechargeable batteries. I turned it on on the 11th of January 2010 at around 20:00 o'clock. When the batteries run out of energy, i will post the results of the battery life.
The Origin Of Internet Do you really now the origin of the internet? This article is the general accepted (perhaps unofficial) story of the birth of what we today know as “Internet”.
Electronic waste and recycling Loads of electrical and electronic devices are dumped every day uncontrolled in landfills polluting fields and the underground water. We have to know that electronic waste is highly toxic and full with carcinogenic substances and in a heavily polluted environment such as ours there has to be some kind of guidelines in order to prevent or minimize further pollution.
PC Cooling Methods In this article I will try to present the most known and commonly used ways of cooling a PC. Each method will be described in terms of operation, advantages and disadvantages against the other methods.
To WiFi or not to WiFi Within this article, we will discuss the affects of the wireless networks on the human body, the risks and precautions that can be taken to reduce those risks. The article is based onto official researches for the wireless networks and the use of microwave bands for communications.
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