The goal of the project is to foster collaboration in quadruped (four-legged) robotic research, education, and engineering development of agile and affordable quadruped robot pets, bring STEM concepts to the mass and inspire newcomers to join the robotic AI revolution to create more applications.
This project provides a base open-source platform to create amazing programmable gaits, locomotion, and deployment of inverse kinematics quadruped robots and bring simulations to the real world via C/C++/Python programming languages.
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#projects #robots
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📰 Companies Are Hacking Their Way Around the Chip Shortage
The supply chain issues have no end in sight, so manufacturers are being forced to improvise
As the global chip shortage stretches toward the two-year mark, manufacturers are pulling some unusual tricks to keep production lines moving. Carmakers are using semiconductors taken from washing machines, rewriting code to use less silicon, and even shipping their products without some chips while promising to add them in later. With the shortage of semiconductors now a new normal, everyone is being forced to adapt.
The crisis is also creating new opportunities for some companies. For instance, Smith & Associates, an electronic components broker, has hired 300 staff since the pandemic began, on top of a staff of 500, to keep production lines running.
More information...
#news
The supply chain issues have no end in sight, so manufacturers are being forced to improvise
As the global chip shortage stretches toward the two-year mark, manufacturers are pulling some unusual tricks to keep production lines moving. Carmakers are using semiconductors taken from washing machines, rewriting code to use less silicon, and even shipping their products without some chips while promising to add them in later. With the shortage of semiconductors now a new normal, everyone is being forced to adapt.
The crisis is also creating new opportunities for some companies. For instance, Smith & Associates, an electronic components broker, has hired 300 staff since the pandemic began, on top of a staff of 500, to keep production lines running.
More information...
#news
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📟 Ztachip open-source RISC-V AI accelerator performs up to 50 times faster
Ztachip is an open-source RISC-V accelerator for vision and AI edge applications running on low-end FPGA devices or custom ASIC that is said to perform 20 to 50 times faster than on non-accelerated RISC-V implementations, and is also better than RISC-V cores with vector extensions (no numbers were provided here).
Ztachip, pronounced zeta-chip, is not tied to a particular architecture, but the example code features a RISC-V core based on the VexRiscv implementation and can accelerate common computer vision tasks such as edge detection, optical flow, motion detection, color conversion, as well as TensorFlow AI models without retraining.
The open-source AI accelerator has been tested on Digilent ArtyA7-100T FPGA board in combination with a PMOD VGA module to connect to a display and an OV7670 VGA camera module. The instructions needed could be found on Github.
More information...
#projects #fpga
Ztachip is an open-source RISC-V accelerator for vision and AI edge applications running on low-end FPGA devices or custom ASIC that is said to perform 20 to 50 times faster than on non-accelerated RISC-V implementations, and is also better than RISC-V cores with vector extensions (no numbers were provided here).
Ztachip, pronounced zeta-chip, is not tied to a particular architecture, but the example code features a RISC-V core based on the VexRiscv implementation and can accelerate common computer vision tasks such as edge detection, optical flow, motion detection, color conversion, as well as TensorFlow AI models without retraining.
The open-source AI accelerator has been tested on Digilent ArtyA7-100T FPGA board in combination with a PMOD VGA module to connect to a display and an OV7670 VGA camera module. The instructions needed could be found on Github.
More information...
#projects #fpga
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📃 Guide to Modular Firmware
This article is for embedded software developers with a solid working knowledge of C or C++, but who struggle with large and complex projects
If you learn to develop embedded code, e.g. using the Arduino IDE, you find plenty of small example programs. It is helpful to get things started quickly, but as soon as your project begins to grow, help related to software design is rare.
In contrast, when you learn software development for desktop applications, project structures and software design is an integral part of the learning process.
In this short article, you will get a simple guide on how you can build a modular structure for your firmware. This will keep your code clean and maintainable for large and complex projects.
More information...
#articles #programming
This article is for embedded software developers with a solid working knowledge of C or C++, but who struggle with large and complex projects
If you learn to develop embedded code, e.g. using the Arduino IDE, you find plenty of small example programs. It is helpful to get things started quickly, but as soon as your project begins to grow, help related to software design is rare.
In contrast, when you learn software development for desktop applications, project structures and software design is an integral part of the learning process.
In this short article, you will get a simple guide on how you can build a modular structure for your firmware. This will keep your code clean and maintainable for large and complex projects.
More information...
#articles #programming
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📰 Arduino IDE 2.0 is now officially released!
After 18 months of debugging of the Beta version, the Arduino IDE 2.0 is now officially released and is available for downloading.
Some of the features:
▫️ There are some obvious changes in the user interface with quick access to your Sketchbook, boards, libraries, and live debugger on the left side, and auto-completion as shown above should speed up your code writing once you are used to it.
▫️ Code compilation has become significantly faster.
▫️ The serial plotter that can display data outputted to the serial terminal.
▫️ The Arduino IDE 2.0 now supports dark mode.
▫️ The IDE can now update itself when a new version is available.
More information...
#news #arduino
After 18 months of debugging of the Beta version, the Arduino IDE 2.0 is now officially released and is available for downloading.
Some of the features:
▫️ There are some obvious changes in the user interface with quick access to your Sketchbook, boards, libraries, and live debugger on the left side, and auto-completion as shown above should speed up your code writing once you are used to it.
▫️ Code compilation has become significantly faster.
▫️ The serial plotter that can display data outputted to the serial terminal.
▫️ The Arduino IDE 2.0 now supports dark mode.
▫️ The IDE can now update itself when a new version is available.
More information...
#news #arduino
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d55d1b_963ff89cb9cd40dcbea272e465fbe11a_mv2.gif
12.8 MB
Like software programs that have different version numbers, hardware designs go through various iterations before a final product is created. Those iterations can lead to extensive delays and costs, which place enormous pressure on design engineers given ever-tighter time-to-market cycles and ongoing shortages of some components.
The Allspice provides a complete view of the hardware design, or can be configured to focus on selected sections. This flexibility enables engineers to easily flag problem locations in the circuit, such as where components may be missing. The platform enables designers to generate PC board, schematic, and bill of material redlines that automatically highlights design changes.
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#news #hardware
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📃 Getting Started with LILYGO T-SIM7000G ESP32 (LTE, GPRS, and GPS)
Get started with the ESP32 and the SIM7000G LTE/GPS/GPRS module. Throughout this tutorial, we’ll use the LILYGO T-SIM7000G ESP32 board that combines the ESP32 chip, the SIM7000G module, microSD card slot, battery holder, and charger on the same board.
Besides Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, you can communicate with this ESP32 board using SMS. You can also connect it to the internet using your SIM card data plan and get GPS location.
More information...
#projects #esp32
Get started with the ESP32 and the SIM7000G LTE/GPS/GPRS module. Throughout this tutorial, we’ll use the LILYGO T-SIM7000G ESP32 board that combines the ESP32 chip, the SIM7000G module, microSD card slot, battery holder, and charger on the same board.
Besides Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, you can communicate with this ESP32 board using SMS. You can also connect it to the internet using your SIM card data plan and get GPS location.
More information...
#projects #esp32
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📃 5 things to know about IoT protocols
IoT Analytics surveyed 200 senior decision-makers on their IoT connectivity setup.
Here are five takeaways, from the report, that paint a picture of the IoT protocol landscape in 2022:
▫️ There is no one-size-fits-all IoT protocol
▫️ Protocols purpose-made for IoT are seeing increased adoption
▫️ Software is becoming more important to managing IoT connectivity
▫️ “Ease of use” and “reliability” are most important when choosing a new protocol
▫️ Decision-making for IoT protocols has become a multi-stakeholder exercise
The rise of IoT is bringing along radical changes in how devices communicate with each other, and IoT protocols will only increase in adoption and importance as the number of connected devices increases. The burden is on the adopters to plan well and decide on the most suitable IoT protocol to prevent an unwanted digital Babylon from happening.
#articles #IoT
IoT Analytics surveyed 200 senior decision-makers on their IoT connectivity setup.
Here are five takeaways, from the report, that paint a picture of the IoT protocol landscape in 2022:
▫️ There is no one-size-fits-all IoT protocol
▫️ Protocols purpose-made for IoT are seeing increased adoption
▫️ Software is becoming more important to managing IoT connectivity
▫️ “Ease of use” and “reliability” are most important when choosing a new protocol
▫️ Decision-making for IoT protocols has become a multi-stakeholder exercise
The rise of IoT is bringing along radical changes in how devices communicate with each other, and IoT protocols will only increase in adoption and importance as the number of connected devices increases. The burden is on the adopters to plan well and decide on the most suitable IoT protocol to prevent an unwanted digital Babylon from happening.
#articles #IoT
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🎚 Bee S3 ultra-low-power ESP32-S3 board can last several years on a LiPo battery
Smart Bee Designs’ Bee S3 is an ultra-low-power development board based on Espressif ESP32-S3 WiFi & Bluetooth microcontroller that consumes less than 20 uA in deep sleep mode allowing the board to theoretically last over 5 years under specific conditions.
Bee S3 specifications:
▫️ Wireless module – Espressif Systems ESP32-S3-MINI-1 module with ESP32-S3 dual-core Xtensa LX7 processor with WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity, 4MB or 8MB QSPI flash, PCB antenna
▫️ Expansion – 2x 10-pin headers with up to 15x GPIO, 8x ADC, touch support, I2C, SPI, UART, 5V In/out, 3.3V out, and GND
▫️ Misc – Reset and Boot buttons, RGB LED
▫️ Support for 1S LiPo battery through 2-pin JST connector with battery voltage monitoring
Power consumption:
▫️ Deep sleep – < 20 uA
▫️ Wake, no WiFi – 40 mAh
▫️ Wi-Fi Connected, no traffic – 55+ mAh
▫️ Sending/receiving MQTT messages – 100 mAh
#boards
Smart Bee Designs’ Bee S3 is an ultra-low-power development board based on Espressif ESP32-S3 WiFi & Bluetooth microcontroller that consumes less than 20 uA in deep sleep mode allowing the board to theoretically last over 5 years under specific conditions.
Bee S3 specifications:
▫️ Wireless module – Espressif Systems ESP32-S3-MINI-1 module with ESP32-S3 dual-core Xtensa LX7 processor with WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity, 4MB or 8MB QSPI flash, PCB antenna
▫️ Expansion – 2x 10-pin headers with up to 15x GPIO, 8x ADC, touch support, I2C, SPI, UART, 5V In/out, 3.3V out, and GND
▫️ Misc – Reset and Boot buttons, RGB LED
▫️ Support for 1S LiPo battery through 2-pin JST connector with battery voltage monitoring
Power consumption:
▫️ Deep sleep – < 20 uA
▫️ Wake, no WiFi – 40 mAh
▫️ Wi-Fi Connected, no traffic – 55+ mAh
▫️ Sending/receiving MQTT messages – 100 mAh
#boards
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🎬 Learning About FPGAs
Field programmable gate arrays are integrated circuits that provide the foundation to implement custom digital circuits. These highly customizable ICs make it possible to design complex circuits for applications such as digital signal processing, machine learning, and cryptocurrency mining. The flexibility of FPGAs makes it possible to implement entire processors.
In the first installment of this two-part YouTube video, Shawn Hymel discusses the basics and advantages of field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs).
In the second part of this tutorial, Shawn Hymel discusses how to use FGPA toolsets to start a project.
More information:
Part 1: What is an FPGA?
Part 2: Getting Started with Yosys, IceStorm, and Apio
#video #fpga
Field programmable gate arrays are integrated circuits that provide the foundation to implement custom digital circuits. These highly customizable ICs make it possible to design complex circuits for applications such as digital signal processing, machine learning, and cryptocurrency mining. The flexibility of FPGAs makes it possible to implement entire processors.
In the first installment of this two-part YouTube video, Shawn Hymel discusses the basics and advantages of field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs).
In the second part of this tutorial, Shawn Hymel discusses how to use FGPA toolsets to start a project.
More information:
Part 1: What is an FPGA?
Part 2: Getting Started with Yosys, IceStorm, and Apio
#video #fpga
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📃 Raspberry Pi Pico Variants – A Detailed Comparison
Raspberry Pi Pico is a low-cost, versatile microcontroller development board from the Raspberry pi foundation. Let’s look at all these variants and their differences.
▫️ Raspberry Pi Pico is the first low-cost Microcontroller development board from the infamous Raspberry Pi Foundation.
▫️ Pico H is the same as the original Raspberry Pi Pico. There are no functional differences between them. The main difference is that the old gold-plated castellated holes are removed, and the header pins are pre-soldered. Another major difference is the new debug connector. The original Pico has a 2.54mm standard header pi for the debug.
▫️ Even though the Raspberry Pi Pico is a very powerful board, its main disadvantage over its competitors like ESP8266 or ESP32 is the lack of wireless connectivity. The new Pico W and WH have the solution for that. The new Pico W comes with a new chip supports both 2.4 GHz WiFi 4 and Bluetooth LE 5.2.
#articles #boards
Raspberry Pi Pico is a low-cost, versatile microcontroller development board from the Raspberry pi foundation. Let’s look at all these variants and their differences.
▫️ Raspberry Pi Pico is the first low-cost Microcontroller development board from the infamous Raspberry Pi Foundation.
▫️ Pico H is the same as the original Raspberry Pi Pico. There are no functional differences between them. The main difference is that the old gold-plated castellated holes are removed, and the header pins are pre-soldered. Another major difference is the new debug connector. The original Pico has a 2.54mm standard header pi for the debug.
▫️ Even though the Raspberry Pi Pico is a very powerful board, its main disadvantage over its competitors like ESP8266 or ESP32 is the lack of wireless connectivity. The new Pico W and WH have the solution for that. The new Pico W comes with a new chip supports both 2.4 GHz WiFi 4 and Bluetooth LE 5.2.
#articles #boards
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🤖 What Robotics Experts Think of Tesla’s Optimus Robot?
Roboticists from industry and academia share their perspectives on Tesla’s new humanoid
Last Friday, 30 September, Tesla introduced several prototypes of its new humanoid robot, Optimus. Reactions across the robotics community were diverse.
Because robotics requires expertise in many different aspects of both software and hardware, getting a good sense of the present context of Tesla’s robot as well as its future potential means finding perspectives from a multitude of robotics experts, including people working in industry and academia and everywhere in between. And by scouring the Internet over the weekend, we found as many expert commenters as we could. Together, they offer the most detailed and nuanced understanding of Optimus we’re likely to get outside of Tesla itself.
More information...
#articles #robots
Roboticists from industry and academia share their perspectives on Tesla’s new humanoid
Last Friday, 30 September, Tesla introduced several prototypes of its new humanoid robot, Optimus. Reactions across the robotics community were diverse.
Because robotics requires expertise in many different aspects of both software and hardware, getting a good sense of the present context of Tesla’s robot as well as its future potential means finding perspectives from a multitude of robotics experts, including people working in industry and academia and everywhere in between. And by scouring the Internet over the weekend, we found as many expert commenters as we could. Together, they offer the most detailed and nuanced understanding of Optimus we’re likely to get outside of Tesla itself.
More information...
#articles #robots
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🎚 Unexpected Maker TinyS3, FeatherS3 and ProS3 boards feature ESP32-S3 dual-core wireless MCU
Seon Rozenblum, better known as Unexpected Maker, has launched upgrades to its ESP32-S2 boards such as the TinyS2 with ESP32-S3 variants, namely TinyS3, FeatherS3, and ProS3 boards.
The new boards share the same form factors as the TinyS2, FeatherS2, and ProS2, but they get a more powerful dual-core microcontroller with AI instructions and 512kB SRAM. The microcontroller also adds Bluetooth 5.0 Low Energy (BLE) connectivity with Bluetooth Mesh support, instead of just WiFi 4 connectivity found in the earlier boards.
The boards are compatible with CircuitPython, MicroPython, the ESP-IDF, the Arduino IDE, and other coding platforms, but the getting started guide focuses on the CircuitPython firmware which comes pre-installed in the ESP32-S3 boards. The PDF schematics, KiCad 6 footprints and symbols, and 3D models can be found on GitHub.
More information...
#boards
Seon Rozenblum, better known as Unexpected Maker, has launched upgrades to its ESP32-S2 boards such as the TinyS2 with ESP32-S3 variants, namely TinyS3, FeatherS3, and ProS3 boards.
The new boards share the same form factors as the TinyS2, FeatherS2, and ProS2, but they get a more powerful dual-core microcontroller with AI instructions and 512kB SRAM. The microcontroller also adds Bluetooth 5.0 Low Energy (BLE) connectivity with Bluetooth Mesh support, instead of just WiFi 4 connectivity found in the earlier boards.
The boards are compatible with CircuitPython, MicroPython, the ESP-IDF, the Arduino IDE, and other coding platforms, but the getting started guide focuses on the CircuitPython firmware which comes pre-installed in the ESP32-S3 boards. The PDF schematics, KiCad 6 footprints and symbols, and 3D models can be found on GitHub.
More information...
#boards
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🔐 5 Elements to a Secure Embedded System (series of articles)
Nearly every embedded system requires some level of security, whether its just the basics to lock down the programming port or something more complex to protect a connected device from hackers.
For many developers, securing their device can be intimidating especially given that many embedded developers don’t come from a security background and have to learn security concepts on the fly. When it comes to establishing the primary elements that form the foundation for a secure system, the five elements every developer should be looking to implement are:
▫️ Hardware based isolation
▫️ A Root-of-Trust (RoT)
▫️ A secure boot solution
▫️ A secure bootloader
▫️ Secure storage
The author dives into each of these topics in greater detail in order to understand how to create a solid security foundation from which a system can be built.
More information...
#articles #security
Nearly every embedded system requires some level of security, whether its just the basics to lock down the programming port or something more complex to protect a connected device from hackers.
For many developers, securing their device can be intimidating especially given that many embedded developers don’t come from a security background and have to learn security concepts on the fly. When it comes to establishing the primary elements that form the foundation for a secure system, the five elements every developer should be looking to implement are:
▫️ Hardware based isolation
▫️ A Root-of-Trust (RoT)
▫️ A secure boot solution
▫️ A secure bootloader
▫️ Secure storage
The author dives into each of these topics in greater detail in order to understand how to create a solid security foundation from which a system can be built.
More information...
#articles #security
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📟 Labfab's Open-Source CO2 Sensor
The sensor would help you to determine the periods of ventilation in closed spaces, in particular in the school context. Indeed, a high concentration of CO2 in a classroom has the possible consequence of a drop in concentration and even a state of drowsiness. The CO2 sensor is designed to interpret these different CO2 alert levels by simple color code.
More information...
#projects #sensors
The sensor would help you to determine the periods of ventilation in closed spaces, in particular in the school context. Indeed, a high concentration of CO2 in a classroom has the possible consequence of a drop in concentration and even a state of drowsiness. The CO2 sensor is designed to interpret these different CO2 alert levels by simple color code.
More information...
#projects #sensors
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🤖 3 trending robot startups from Kickstarter
Worth looking into startups to keep up with the latest trends
🐶 Loona is a four-wheeled robot standing in (172 mm) high, with a 2.4-in LCD screen for a face. The robot can perform face recognition, body detection, gesture recognition, 3D motion capture, object recognition, emotion perception, label recognition, and more.
💡 Werobot Pino Lamp is designed with an Artificial Intelligence algorithm that supports automatic object tracking, recognizing and following selected objects, including the user's face, in the most targeted and optimized illumination experience that thus far was not available to users.
🎾 Rollbot is 100% Automatic and is designed with interactive moving feature that will stimulate the pet’s nature of hunting, and help fully mobilize their enthusiasm and curiosity. This intelligent ball toy is going to give your pet the interaction and exercise they crave even when you are not around.
#robots
Worth looking into startups to keep up with the latest trends
🐶 Loona is a four-wheeled robot standing in (172 mm) high, with a 2.4-in LCD screen for a face. The robot can perform face recognition, body detection, gesture recognition, 3D motion capture, object recognition, emotion perception, label recognition, and more.
💡 Werobot Pino Lamp is designed with an Artificial Intelligence algorithm that supports automatic object tracking, recognizing and following selected objects, including the user's face, in the most targeted and optimized illumination experience that thus far was not available to users.
🎾 Rollbot is 100% Automatic and is designed with interactive moving feature that will stimulate the pet’s nature of hunting, and help fully mobilize their enthusiasm and curiosity. This intelligent ball toy is going to give your pet the interaction and exercise they crave even when you are not around.
#robots
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💻 Consistent Error Handling in C++
Error handling in firmware is a difficult task. If you decide to ignore errors, the best you can expect is a deadlock, but you could also damage the hardware.
When reviewing existing code, you can often find boolean return values or a system of error codes. The problem with these systems is the lack of readability. It is hard to say whether true is the result of a successful call or means an error.
In the article, author explains different methods to handle errors in your firmware. Although the provided examples are for the Arduino Uno, the concepts will work with any platform and with all modern C++ compilers.
More information...
#articles #programming #cpp
Error handling in firmware is a difficult task. If you decide to ignore errors, the best you can expect is a deadlock, but you could also damage the hardware.
When reviewing existing code, you can often find boolean return values or a system of error codes. The problem with these systems is the lack of readability. It is hard to say whether true is the result of a successful call or means an error.
In the article, author explains different methods to handle errors in your firmware. Although the provided examples are for the Arduino Uno, the concepts will work with any platform and with all modern C++ compilers.
More information...
#articles #programming #cpp
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