2016

Huge Welder, High Current Tester

  John Ward shows us his new test device. Not exactly a bench mounted piece of gear! This Oil Filled Oxford Welder can be used in cases where you need to pump out some serious current, this is ideal to test to destruction items such as wires, extension cables, plug in connections etc. JW has performed many of these tests in the past. Photonicinduction has taken a look at the inside of one of these

Carbon M1 Printer Demo

  Tested got a look at the new Carbon M1 3D printer. They are still a bit secretive on some of the special sauce that differentiates it from the competition but their technology allows the system to print very quickly. It looks almost magical since the part grows out of the media dish. This is because the projection system is at work in the base and works by interacting with the

Name the Thing Contest – 296

    The prize this week is a HMC5883L Triple Axis Compass Magnetometer Sensor so you can add some directionality to your next project. This contest will run for one week (May 23 – May 27, 2016). Ending time is based on central standard time. To enter, identify the item above and what it can be used for. Please do not give the answer in the comments. Send an email to

Spring 2016 Cornell University ECE 5760 Advanced Microcontrollers Final Projects

  It is that time again! There is a new batch of Cornell University ECE 5760 Advanced Microcontrollers Final Projects. If you have done any PID work in the past the FPGA controlled Magnetic Levitation by Gautham Ponnu, Ryan Land, Nathan Spallone should be of interest. They are using a Altera DE2-115 FPGA board to monitor and control a steel ball about 1mm above the position sensor with great accuracy. “The LDC1000

SOLAR Powered Plane

  Prometreus has a great concept here. This plane has autopilot and a camera to capture the trip. With a 6 hour 200km range you can certainly cover a huge area. “A SOLAR powered RC plane flies over 6 hours, only powered by the sun. The plane travels a distance of over 200km. It is self sufficient like the solar impulse system. ”    

DIY Spotwelder

    If you do any metal work projects there will come a time when you would like to bond some metal together without using mechanical fasteners. Easiest way to do this is by welding, a spot welder is a type of welder that is simple since there are no welding rods needed. Make it Extreme built this great looking DIY unit. A high current is simply passed through the two metals

Drawing To Laser Engraving System

  When it comes to converting something drawn to a laser etched image there are often quite a few steps needed. Martin Raynsford has built this Drawing To Laser Engraving System to allow him to easily go from drawing to laser etched images by using a bit of hardware and some custom software. Of course you can do this type of thing manually like was done in the Halloween Hanging