Raspberry Pi discussion

[But]

70YES YES YES

[ceptimus]

I've got my Pi working now with a webcam and a GPS receiver. I'm still have to do some work on the Arduino servo monitor/driver. I've also bought a tiny accelerometer, but I've not tried that out yet.

I've also bought a RepRap 3D printer so I can print my own enclosure/mount/fairing to hold all the electronics in the Radio Control plane. The problem is that the 3D printer and its associated CAD/Drafting software have become something of a hobby in their own right, which is distracting me from working on the Raspberry Pi part of the R/C drone.

Also the damned saxophone is always calling - why do I always take on more projects than will fit into my available time?

[Ensign Steve]

Originally Posted by ceptimus

why do I always take on more projects than will fit into my available time?

Seriously, tell me when you work that one out?

[viscousmemories]

Originally Posted by lisarea

If you have a Big Lots nearby, they should have at least the charger and keyboard there, usually around $5 or so. They also have them at like office stores and stuff, but they charge lol amounts of money at those places.

Demystify AC/DC for me?

[ceptimus]

As far as I know, any supply that has a USB connector for the output ( regular size, mini or micro ) will be a regulated 5 volt supply. For the Raspberry Pi you're supposed to use one rated at 1 amp or more. You might get away with using one rated a little lower, say 0.75 A, but you'd have to try it out to see. A higher rating than 1 A is fine.

Don't use other, non USB, supplies without checking that they are regulated. Best way is to use a volt meter to measure the no load output voltage and verify that it is in the range 4.8 to 5.2 volts.

[curses]

More things to do with Pi.
'Siri, open my garage door' (using a Raspberry Pi) | Chips | Geek.com

Garage door opener is a nice touch, but I think it'd be neat to find a way to have Siri start your car on a cold morning from the comfort of your heated house.

[ceptimus]

BBC News - Google to give schools Raspberry Pi microcomputers

[ceptimus]

The model A has launched this morning. This is the same as the existing model B except that it only has half the RAM (256MB whereas the later model Bs have 512), it doesn't have an Ethernet port and it's ten dollars cheaper.

Most people won't be interested, because the Ethernet port and extra RAM on the model B are surely worth ten dollars.

But the useful thing for me is that it only uses about one third of the power of the model B (the Ethernet drivers use a lot of power so removing them results in the saving). For my model aeroplane drone the saving in battery power is useful, so I've ordered one.

[Ensign Steve]

I still haven't done anything with mine!

I'm waiting for my local Staples to put in a 3D printer so I can build the case.

[ceptimus]

The Raspberry Pi camera module has been released today. It's pretty tiny, costs about $25 and can do full HD video at 30fps from its 5MP sensor.

I've ordered one to put on my drone in place of the larger (and lower resolution) webcam; and I've ordered a second as a spare, for tests.

[ceptimus]

Kickstarter for Raspberry Pi based robot kit. The kit should be much cheaper than currently available robots.

The .stl files for the robot parts will be made available, so that if you have a 3D printer, you can print your own, possibly customized, robot parts.

RAPIRO: The Humanoid Robot Kit for your Raspberry Pi by Shota Ishiwatari — Kickstarter

[ceptimus]

Rachel Rayns has made, amongst other things, Zoë - a hydroponic herb growing robot controller - using Arduino and Raspberry Pi components.

[Janet]

PEA!!! You must own this!

[BrotherMan]

[SR71]

NASA’s Sci-Fi Vision: Robots Could Help Humanity Mine Asteroids

Sounds right up your alley, Sir ceptimus. Maybe there's a slot for you at NASA. Pi's in Space!

[BrotherMan]

Oooh. Space pie.

[ceptimus]

BBC News - Giant leap for Pi-powered teddy bear

[ceptimus]

No More Woof has reached its crowd funding target. They aim to use a Raspberry Pi to translate dog thoughts into English. Seems kinda crazy, but as the video at the above link explains, they ARE Scandinavian.

[ceptimus]

Self balancing Raspberry Pi robot follows instruction cards and can locate objects.

[Corona688]

I've been using Beagleboards, which are pretty similar to the Pi, as internet data loggers for some greenhouses...

[ceptimus]

Here's some video from a test flight with my Raspberry Pi and its Pi camera fixed on a model plane.



Warning, pretty boring - mainly just fields, sheep and sky.

Vibration from the motor/propeller is affecting the video at some motor power settings - it produces a sort of rippling effect on the video. A better balanced motor/propeller and/or some anti-vibration mounts for the camera and/or motor should help here.

The camera light level metering is too slow so when the video changes quickly from mostly sky to mostly ground the picture is too dark for a while. There are plenty of settings to experiment with in the camera control software - I'll work my way through the different options on subsequent flights to see if I can get a more consistent brightness.

[BrotherMan]

PiPhone - A Raspberry Pi based Smartphone -...

Some folk are complaining about the size and how terrible it is that it's so bulky. But not me. I like that it's something you can hold p easily. There are plenty of other (easily solvable) problems with it, but the size ain't one of them.

[Ensign Steve]

[ceptimus]

The model B+ has launched today. Main improvements are extra USB and extra I/O. They've also improved the audio and video output and reduced the power consumption.

[JoeP]

Some sucker must have just bought a model B, thereby ensuring that it promptly became obsolete.

show spoiler