ByteWorks
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iPhone takes flight on a model rocket to capture data using techBASIC
Back in the 1970s before the advent of personal computers, I was a model rocket geek. Using thin tubing, balsa wood, plastic, glue and toxic paints to build lightweight rockets that could soar thousands of feet into the air, I never thought that some day people would be able to actually launch small data-collection computers into the air. Now the folks at Byte Works -- the developers of techBASIC for iOS (US$14.99) -- have done just that, using an iPhone 4s and a custom-designed model rocket. This was more than just flying an iPhone on a rocket, though -- Mike and Patty Westerfield, the proprietors of Byte Works, used a TI Bluetooth Low Energy Sensor Tag (officially announced today) to capture acceleration and gyro information and send it to a techBASIC program running on the iPhone 4s. Immediately after flight, the information was available for viewing in the techBASIC app. Should you decide that launching your brand new iPhone 5 is in your future, Byte Works has a full writeup of the project here. The iPhone launcher (AKA ST-2) is now on its way to Norway to be exhibited by TI at a conference, but it sounds like the Westerfields have plenty of plans for ST-2 flights with higher powered engines in the future. Enjoy the launch video below!
TechBASIC 2.3 links iOS to world of sensors through Bluetooth, no pesky computers in the way (video)
If a Bluetooth sensor doesn't already have iOS support, pairing it up will often involve a patient wait for an official app or some not-quite-official tweaking, at best -- Apple won't allow just any old unauthenticated device through the gates. Byte Works' TechBASIC 2.3 update takes those barriers down. The mobile app lets those of us with a new iPad or iPhone 4S create programs that talk to, and read from, a wide range of Bluetooth LE devices without having to write any Objective C code on a Mac. Only a TI key fob has a fully ready example program, but large swaths of devices will communicate with help from intrepid programmers -- whether they're heart rate monitors, home theater gear or seemingly anything in between. Existing TechBASIC owners can add the Bluetooth LE support through a free update; it's a relatively pricey $15 to buy the app if you're new to Byte Works' world, although it may be worthwhile to give any unused sensors a new reason for being.
