Jo Hinchliffe writes on the Tindie blog:

EzADXL: Add Pico and ADXL Resonance Measuring to Klipper

The ExADXL breakout board makes it simple to mount an ADXL module, or multiple ADXL, to a Raspberry Pi Pico. This is a popular approach to adding extra resonance measuring instruments to a Klipper-controlled 3D printer.

If the above is unfamiliar to you, Klipper is an open-source 3D printer firmware that is rapidly being adopted in the 3D printing community. It’s a very slick firmware with far too many options to dive into here but it’s well worth checking out and experimenting with. One aspect that enables some significant increases in printing speed and quality is that Klipper can measure resonances in your machine and tune the machine based on its readings. A popular route to enabling this is by adding a second MCU and an accelerometer. The MCU has to be reasonably capable and fast and as such the RP2040 powered Pico is a solid choice.

The ExADXL makes this really simple to set up with a mounting PCB for the Pico and numerous connectors for adding one or more ADXL modules, almost all possible options for which are available on the product page. You can start with just the bare board, or there are options for additional hardware. Optionally, you can have a complete unit with the Pico and the ADXL installed, flashed and tested.

If you’ve got a 3D printer that could use a breath of fresh air, then the Klipper firmware and the ExADXL breakout are definitely worth taking a look at!

Glen Akins (@bikerglen) writes about this clever vintage indicator project on the Photons, Electrons, and Dirt blog:

Relive Your Best Mountain Bike Descents on a Vintage Aircraft Altitude Indicator

In this project, I use a Python script and an updated version of my digital-to-synchro project to replay my mountain bike climbs and descents at 60x real time speed on a vintage aircraft altitude indicator. The updated D2S converter fits on a single board and uses three Microchip MCP4802 DACs and three TI OPA548 power operational amplifiers to produce high-power 400 Hz AC waveforms to power and control the servo loop in the altitude indicator.

Another round of ICE-V Wireless boards by Michael Welling of QWERTY Embedded is now being offered on GroupGets. The design combines the ICE40UP5K FPGA with a wireless interface driven by ESP32-C3.

Featured in Make: Magazine’s 2022 Guide to Boards!

ICE-V Wireless is an ICE40UP5K+ESP32-C3 development board, allowing Wi-Fi and Bluetooth control of the the FPGA by combining an Espressif ESP32C3HN4 SoC with a Lattice iCE40 FPGA. Additionally, several ESP32C3 GPIO pins are available for additional interfaces, such as serial, ADC, or I2C.

Features:

ESP32-C3-MINI
ICE40UP5K
PMOD x3
RGB
LiPo power / charger
USB-C
PSRAM

The 2023 Open Hardware Summit has kicked off this morning in NYC, for the first time in-person since 2018! You can watch live on YouTube:

The full schedule of talks is on the OHS website:

Glen Akins converted a WW2-era engine cowl flaps indicator into a USB peripheral using a microcontroller and four digital potentiometers:

“This project is reminiscent of my USB analog panel meters project but the drive circuitry is significantly less complex. This post starts with a look at the engine cowl indicator, it’s theory of operation, and some ideas to control it using modern electronics. The post then covers the design of the board, the software for the microcontroller, and a Visual Studio C# .NET Windows Forms app for controlling the indicators from a PC.”

“The completed and assembled board. The board features a USB 2.0 Type C connector, a PIC16F1459, four MCP41HV31 digital potentiometers, and a screw terminal strip to connect to power and the indicator.”

“The video above is a quick demonstration of the indicator in use. The indicator is connected to the USB controller board and the USB controller board is connected to my Surface. The .NET Forms app is running and superimposed over the video. As I slide the sliders in the app, the corresponding dial moves on the indicator.”