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Open source mini sub appeals to our inner Steve Zissou

Alexis Santos — Wed, 30 May 2012 02:52:00 EST

Quadrocopters haven't exactly opened the skies for DIY exploration so much as they have for acrobatic feats, but the OpenROV project is hoping to make the briny depths friendlier for aspiring explorers and educators alike. The open source rover, spearheaded by NASA engineer and researcher Eric Stackpole, sinks to depths of up to 300 feet (100 meters), runs on eight C-cell batteries for approximately 1.5 hours and can clip by at three feet (one meter) per second. Within the laser-cut acrylic frame, a sealed cylinder houses a BeagleBone, HD webcam and LED lights. This all weighs in at 5.5 pounds and is piloted using a web browser and video feed. The footage is then piped up to a laptop that tethers the vehicle to the shore. Pre-orders for OpenROV 2.3 kits will be taken through Kickstarter later this summer at $750 apiece, though there are plans to sell fully assembled units. For now, explorers can register their interest at the link below and impatient Jacques Cousteaus will be pleased to know that all files necessary to build version 2.2 are available to download now.

Open source mini sub appeals to our inner Steve Zissou originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 May 2012 02:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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DIY 'Descriptive Camera' captures images, prints out prose

Terrence O'Brien — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 17:03:00 EST

Have you ever wished that cameras could capture not only an image of the scene in front of them, but also describe it to you in plain English? Ok, what if it bypassed the whole "photo" thing and just spit out a slip of paper with words on it? Well, if you're still interested, the impressive Matt Richardson (of Make fame) has a project right up your alley. The Descriptive Camera is a relatively simple device really. A Logitech webcam is connected to a BeagleBone dev board, which is in turn plugged into a thermal printer from Adafruit. Obviously, the tech required to analyze a scene recognize the objects then convert that pile of pixels into a slice prose is outside of the budget and capability of your average DIY project. So Matt turned instead to Mechanical Turk, Amazon's marketplace for HITs or Human Intelligence Tasks. Images captured by the cam are uploaded via the BeagleBone, where an actual person describes what he or she sees and the resulting literature is printed out. For more details and images check out the source.

DIY 'Descriptive Camera' captures images, prints out prose originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Apr 2012 17:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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BeagleBone board boots up XBMC Eden, shows off its media prowess

Terrence O'Brien — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 18:01:00 EST

BeagleBoard isn't letting the Raspberry Pi steal all the glory in the battle for low-cost computing supremacy. The $35 ARM11-based Pi may win on price, but at least the BeagleBone can hold its own in terms of power. After the Model B was demoed pushing XBMC and AirPlay capabilities, some intrepid devs managed to get the second beta of Eden up and running on the ARM A8 dev board. The vid stutters a bit during playback but, overall, it's a respectable performance considering this is a CPU that would get laughed out of most modern smartphones. Head on after the break to see it in action.

Continue reading BeagleBone board boots up XBMC Eden, shows off its media prowess

BeagleBone board boots up XBMC Eden, shows off its media prowess originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Jan 2012 18:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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BeagleBone offers up ARM A8 processor, Linux and 10-second boot for 89 bones

Mat Smith — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 13:47:00 EST

BeagleBoard has kept our collective news-tails wagging with plenty of (often disparate) DIY hardware projects. Now, the BeagleBone ($89) has arrived, with Linux Angstrom preinstalled, and power provided through a USB port. Giving the hardware more of a chew reveals Open GL ES 2.0, a microSD connector and two 46-pin female expansion headers for easy augmentation. There's also a 100Mbit ~~Gigabit~~ Ethernet connection on this new development platform, which promises to play nice with older BeagleBoard, er, boards. Serial (port) DIYers can check out a full run-down video after the break.

Continue reading BeagleBone offers up ARM A8 processor, Linux and 10-second boot for 89 bones

BeagleBone offers up ARM A8 processor, Linux and 10-second boot for 89 bones originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 01 Nov 2011 13:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Students build self-balancing TIPI robot, plan new world order (video)

Sam Sheffer — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 17:32:00 EST

Remember this guy, the QB robot that was priced at a whopping 15 grand? Seemingly, the webcam wheeler inspired a team of young minds at the University of Waterloo, who've unleashed the DIY in themselves to build one of their own. TIPI, or Telepresence Interface by Pendulum Inversion, was designed to give humans the feeling that they're not actually talking to a six-foot tall cyclops cyborg with an LCD face and webcam eye, but rather, evoke the emotions drawn when speaking the old, conventional, face-to-face way. Thanks to this team of mechatronics engineers, the low-cost TIPI uses an accelerometer, gyro and pendulum to balance by itself and can be remotely controlled while communicating via its Beagle Board and Polulu Orangutan SVP brain. Head past the break to see the robot struttin' its stuff -- oh, and get ready to rave. You'll see what we mean.

Continue reading Students build self-balancing TIPI robot, plan new world order (video)

Students build self-balancing TIPI robot, plan new world order (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Mar 2011 17:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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DIYer constructs 4.3-inch Open SciCal graphing calculator, puts your TI-83+ to shame

Darren Murph — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 03:26:00 EST

What's 4.3-inches diagonally, costs $200 to build and has absolutely no reception issues when held as shown in the image above? Why, the Open SciCal! Matt Stack, the genius who pieced this gem together, relied on a 1GHz ARM Cortex A8 CPU, 8GB SD card, WiFi module and a spartan web browser in order to concoct what's likely the most desirable graphing calculator this side of Pluto. The handheld device weighs about 1.6 pounds, runs Linux as well as the statistically inclined R, and is reportedly capable of doing roughly twice as much crunching as Texas Instruments' Nspire. Skeptical? Considering that this bad boy sucked down stock data from Yahoo! Finance and ran auto-correlation on the numbers in order to near-instantly report current trends, we're guessing TI (or any other graphing calculator company, really) has no room to argue. Hit the source for more details, and don't worry -- that feeling of insignificance wanes with time.

DIYer constructs 4.3-inch Open SciCal graphing calculator, puts your TI-83+ to shame originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 07 Aug 2010 03:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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BeagleBoard finds new purpose in DIY wearable computer

Donald Melanson — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 02:02:00 EST

We've already seen the small and flexible BeagleBoard used for a couple of different DIY projects, but few quite as impressive as this wearable computer built by Martin Magnusson. In addition to complementing any outfit, this rig runs Angstrom Linux, uses a modified pair of Myvu Crystal video glasses (and some stylish shades) for a display, and simply relies on a Bluetooth keyboard for input and a tethered iPhone for internet connectivity. Of course, if the shoulder strap isn't your thing, Martin has also demonstrated that the rig can discreetly fit in a standard CD case -- check it out after the break, and hit up the source link below for a look at the complete build process.

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BeagleBoard finds new purpose in DIY wearable computer originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 29 Jul 2010 02:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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DIY tablet kit is less than $400, more complicated than an iPad

Joshua Topolsky — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 14:29:00 EST

Tired of The Man holding you down on the tablet front with his oppressive App Stores, his tyrannical carrier constraints, and other outrageous insults to your civil liberties? Well now you can break free of this stranglehold, thanks to a company called Liquidware and its open source, DIY tablet starter kit. The premise is simple: Liquidware provides a touchscreen OLED display (4.3-inch, 480 x 272, resistive touch), the BeagleBoard guts (a single-board computer driven by a 720MHz ARM Cortex-A8 OMAP3530 CPU, with 2GB of NAND and an SD card slot), and the BeagleJuice battery module, along with an SD card pre-loaded with Angstrom Linux. You put all the pieces together and then just basically go nuts, designing your own application marketplace, infrastructure for direct-to-consumer video and audio sales, and a revolutionary and magical user interface that blurs the lines between waking life and a hallucinatory dream-state where anything is possible, and the only limitation is yourself. Check the Moscone Center's booking information below to see scheduling availability for your developer conference, and hit the source link to offer up your $393.61 to Liquidware.

DIY tablet kit is less than $400, more complicated than an iPad originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 18 Jun 2010 14:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bug Labs intros BUG 2.0 platform with faster processor, Android support

Chris Ziegler — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 07:00:00 EST

Tired of your BUGBase lagging out while you're trying to set up that crazy homebrew alarm system? Hope is on the way in the form of BUG 2.0, Bug Labs' next-gen development platform that moves up to a Cortex A8-based OMAP3 core from the original BUGBase's ARM11. The processor bump isn't the only change, though: they're announcing full support for running BeagleBoard apps and -- get this -- Android. That means that you won't necessarily need to be locked into Bug's own development environment for doing your thing, and obviously, folks already familiar with Android development should have a much easier time making the transition. Even better, the base maintains backward compatibility with existing BUGmodules, so most of your current investment won't be for naught -- save the old base, of course. Price and availability are yet to be announced.

Continue reading Bug Labs intros BUG 2.0 platform with faster processor, Android support

Bug Labs intros BUG 2.0 platform with faster processor, Android support originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Feb 2010 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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XBMC ARM port teased, will manage HD playback from pocket-sized Beagleboard (video)

Tim Stevens — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 10:05:00 EST

There was a time when the X in XBMC stood for Xbox, but now just look at it. The open source project is showing up on everything from MIDs to Apple TVs and soon will be in the wild running on ARM-powered devices, with the development team posting a teaser video of the software running quite well on a tiny 600MHz Beagleboard. It's a fraction of the size of most HTPCs and, at $150, a fraction of their cost, too. Right now the software seems to be struggling a bit with what looks to be 480p wide content, but the devs promise proper HD playback in the full release -- though they're not saying when that full release will be.

[Via Hack A Day]

Continue reading XBMC ARM port teased, will manage HD playback from pocket-sized Beagleboard (video)

Filed under: Media PCs, Media streamers

XBMC ARM port teased, will manage HD playback from pocket-sized Beagleboard (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 Nov 2009 10:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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XBMC ARM port teased, will manage HD playback from pocket-sized Beagleboard (video)

Tim Stevens — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 10:05:00 EST

Continue reading XBMC ARM port teased, will manage HD playback from pocket-sized Beagleboard (video)

Filed under: Home Entertainment, Media PCs, Software

XBMC ARM port teased, will manage HD playback from pocket-sized Beagleboard (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 Nov 2009 10:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: HY Research's Beagle Board-based MID

Joseph L. Flatley — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 22:14:00 EST

This next item is a homebrew MID loosely based on the funky and fresh Nokia N800. Sure, until Mr. HY Research gets a battery installed, the "mobile" part of this internet device will rely on an extension cord... but that said, this is one fun little project. Based on the ARM Cortex A8-based Beagle board, it features a 4.3-inch (480 x 272) display, Bluetooth, support for OpenGL ES 2.0, S-Video and HDMI outputs, USB, SD / MMC, RS-232, and audio in / out connections. As controls go, this thing sports not only a touchscreen, but a five position joystick, three position slider, and plenty of buttons as well. Not bad, not bad at all. The company is on the lookout for "consulting and designs of custom expansion boards," so if you're in the mood to do some business, hit that read link. If you're really just a fan (aren't we all?) there is an action packed video of the thing in action, after the break.

[Via SlashGear]

Continue reading Video: HY Research's Beagle Board-based MID

Filed under: Handhelds, Portable Video

Video: HY Research's Beagle Board-based MID originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 08 Apr 2009 22:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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