The reason for my long drive over the past two weeks is the Hack-a-Day Supercon in Pasadena. I have been following the web site from which this springs for a couple of years. This year when I was planning my escape from what I used to consider normal, I ran across their convention in a convenient time block for me.
When I started the van build I had grand plans for its computerization. I had just discovered SBC’s, single board computers. These are, just as they are named, an entire computer all built on a single circuit board. They are small! But as many users attest, frustratingly millimeters too large to fit into an Altoids tin. They are called cute names like Raspberry Pi, and I wanted to collect all sorts of data from my van life. I wrongly assumed because they were small they wouldn’t consume much power. First, I had video surveillance. Like your Ring doorbell I had built essentially the same thing for less than $20 each. I had two up in the cab, one out the side window, one in the back. All these were running cameras and I had a view of what was going on outside.
It didn’t stop there. I have solar panels on the roof. I bought a solar charge controller capable of putting out a continuous data stream of how much electricity was being collected. I had another collecting GPS data including heading, pitch and yaw of the van. Merging all of this data would allow me to build a heat map of my popular parking spots. I would know where exactly to park to capture the most solar energy on my panels.
It was a short lived experiment. I couldn’t believe the amount of battery power those things consumed. In the span of a cloudy day or two I had used all my battery power. An amount I had calculated (without the computers) to last me ten days.
I was bummed. Technology always falls just shy of dreams. I suppose that is inherent to the process.
I gave up for a long time. Then comes 2020. Not much to do. I started learning about micro controllers. These tiny little computers are programmed to repeat single tasks. But if you program them cleverly, those tasks can be quite complex.
One of my first projects was sparked by font size. My house had one of those fancy thermostats with a dozen and a half buttons. It was programmable and all this fancy stuff can be done with it. …I mean, maybe you could do those things. I never could figure the damned thing out. The instructions were printed inside the lid but in about 4pt font. I could only read it with cheaters and a bright light. So I used micro controllers to check the temperature and if it was colder than what I had set to turn on the heat. If it was warmer than I had set, turn the heat off. You remember how long and boring 2020 was? By the end of the year I had a controller in each room, I could set the temperature in the four zones of the house via my phone. I had graphing! It was just like buying four Nest thermostats and I only invested $30-40. Plus, it didn’t go through batteries like I own stock in Eveready.
Unlike the single board computers, these micro controllers use very, very little power. Here’s how a little computer like this makes my life easier. I don’t have a refrigerator. A super efficient fridge like I need is a $700 expense. Plus, I would have to get tricky with how I vent it to stay stealthy. It would be an expensive add. Money I don’t have.
I use a cooler. I have it sitting in a custom sized, insulated, slide out drawer. (I can never lose this cooler!!!) I keep the cooler filled with ice. …I say that right? I just keep the cooler filled with ice. That’s all I have to do. In practice it’s tougher to monitor. I like mayo. I could happily eat a ham sandwich anytime it is over 60 degrees, which I have committed to be the majority of my life now. This depends on mayo. Non-poisonous mayo requires a good ice regimen. Enter small computers. I have built a micro controller and a display, with a waterproof probe, to monitor my cooler temperature. It tells me the warmest the cooler has been in the last 24 hours and what temperature it is right now. This cost me in the ballpark of fourteen dollars in parts. It cost me this much because I am lazy and bought the parts from Amazon. I bet with a little work on Ebay and Ali Express I could have done it for half as much.
I am in a whole room of people who do these same types of things to solve the problems in their lives. Even if the mere fact that the problem exists is the problem to solve.
I am looking forward to this con. I think it will be an interesting weekend. The badge to get into the event is a circuit board and a second blank board. The main hall is setup with rows upon rows of soldering stations. Day one? Build something interesting using your badge. I had no idea what to expect. This certainly was not it. I was a little bit prepared for something like this but not much.
It was fascinating watching these people come up with ideas. One person built a proximity radar system that would display as amplitude graphs. Another built something using some things that looked like vacuum tubes. You know, geek stuff. I was overwhelmed. Tomorrow are the speakers and more badge hacking. Pasadena is beautiful. I am sitting at a cafe, outdoors, nine o’clock at night. A beer in front of me. The weather is perfect. Life is good.
No comments:
Post a Comment