This is where the exciting technology of contact lens displays saves the day. Imagine a pair of lenses wirelessly connected to a wearable computer — lenses capable of overlaying your perceived surroundings with information, warnings or even illusions. A glowing arrow would appear to float in front of your eyes, telling you which Peachtree street […]
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(Phys.org) —A team of researchers at Michigan State University has built a tiny robot (called the TailBot) that is capable of moving itself around on wheels, jumping and also manipulating its body while in mid-air (using its using actuated tail) to assist in a safe and controlled landing. The researchers note that others have built robots with similar abilities but to date, it is their belief that this is the first instance where all three abilities have been implemented in one robot.
Tiny robot able to reorient itself during jumps using actuated tail (w/ Video) Read More »
A versatile kit that can be configured to drive either constant voltage LED arrays or constant current LEDs. Use the kit to dim under-cabinet LED lighting using flexible LED strips or build your own LED desk lamp using High Brightness LEDs. The majority of the circuit is identical for both types of LEDs. Two inexpensive
Universal CC/CV LED Dimmer Read More »
A diode is the simplest possible semiconductor device, and is therefore an excellent beginning point if you want to understand how semiconductors work. In this article, you’ll learn what a semiconductor is, how doping works and how a diode can be created using semiconductors. But first, let’s take a close look at silicon. Silicon is
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New USB chip from FTDI supports the Android open accessory mode, what enables a straightforward connectivity of USB devices and saves a battery of an Android device. To connect a device to a smartphone (tablet,…) or other Android OS device via a USB is at the time possible in 2 ways – by means of
FT311 – USB communication with Android devices without drivers Read More »
The first rudimentary methods of telling time involved simple observations of the natural world, perhaps by wedging sticks in the ground and monitoring the movements of the shadows. This particular experiment would have evoked the most fundamental part of a sundial, the gnomon (pronounced nom-on), which is the component that casts the shadow. It’s easy
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The control circuit in Figure 1a allows you to manually adjust the power delivered to a load. By changing the setting of potentiometer R3, you change the phase angle at which the thyristor (Q3) fires (Figure 1b), thereby altering the load current’s duty cycle. The adjustment range is about 0 to 180°. Q3’s off time
555 timer triggers phase-control circuit Read More »
Source of Radiation When talking on a cell phone, a transmitter takes the sound of your voice and encodes it onto a continuous sine wave (see How Radio Works to learn more about how sound is transmitted). A sine wave is just a type of continuously varying wave that radiates out from the antenna and
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Gamma photons interacting with cheap photodiodes produce small current pulses which are easily amplified and allow detection of individual photon events. This offers the possibility of cheap, small and rugged radiation detectors of reasonable sensitivity. While not as sensitive as larger GM-tube detectors, this solid state device is still quite useful for determining if something
Photodiode Gamma Ray Detector Read More »
In the next few years, we might be filling our closets with smart shirts that can read our heart rate and breathing, and musical jackets with built in all-fabric keypads. Thin light-emitting diode (LED) monitors could even be integrated into this apparel to display text and images. Computerized clothes will be the next step in
How Computer Clothing Works Read More »
