Simple Media Center

Background

We've accumulated a collection of movie DVDs over the years. Some titles get watched so much that the DVDs have become scratched and nearly unplayable. For these favorite titles I've ripped them onto the computer to allow us to continue watching these favorites without the hassle of loading them up and dealing with the skipping issues. Also, it's just nice to have all the movies, music and other digital media located in a single spot.

Once you have this digital library the next challenge is how to access the content. This is a rabbit hole that can quickly swallow and overwhelm even the savviest of techies. And as usual I always make projects more complex by trying to do them as cheaply as possible.

After going through at least ten different designs for a home theater PC I threw my hands up and just wished for something super-simple that almost anyone could use. But I could not find anything. So I just made my own solution.

The Idea

A method for hosting and presenting digital movies (e.g. movies) that is free, easy to use and easy to maintain.

Progress

Method 1: Chrome + Visual Basic Script (VBS)

This is the method I have been using successfully for years. It requires minimal setup and maintenance and is completely free. It takes about 5 minutes to add new movies.

1. Obtain your media in MP4, M4V,  MPG and/or MPEG format. (I use Handbrake)
2. Copy all your media to a single folder.
3. Create a sub-folder called "thumbnails" and add PNG images files for each movie using the same exact name as the movie file.
4. Run a vbs script, "Create_Movie_Page.vbs" that will create an HTML page in the folder.
5. Open the HTML page in Chrome to see all your movies.
6. Click on any movie to watch!

The code and instructions are hosted on my Github page: Simple-Movie-Server-1

Method 2: Raspberry Pi

Okay, this is free and AWESOME, but not easy.

On road trips we used to take DVD players and mount them on the backs of the seats. This was a decent solution, but had issues managing cords, scratched discs, and the video skipping due to the car bouncing.

I discovered the Raspberry Pi a couple years ago and built a "portable media drive". Now my kids use an old phone or tablet to pull up a list of movies to watch. They can each watch their own movies independently, and now we just have to manage battery life.

To give full credit, I discovered this project from gavsworld. But I had to make some changes since I was using a Pi 3, and I relied on other sources for info. I also recommend this post on the Raspberry Pi site.

If you want the awesomeness without the fun of a project, you could just buy one. They are not well known because the industry hasn't agreed on a standard marketing term. Or maybe it's because the terms they use are so generic that they result in lots of cross-over devices. You could look for "wireless hard drive" or "portable media player".

Kids Project: Pop Pop Boats

This weekend we decided to make our own pop-pop or putt-putt boats like the one in the movie Ponyo. We followed the directions from Science Toy Maker: http://www.sciencetoymaker.org/boat/

It took a couple hour-long sessions to make the pop-can flash engines. Luckily all four engines worked on the first try. Some were obviously more powerful than others. We also learned that the smaller, lighter boats go faster. The foam used for the hull is rigid extruded polystyrene made by Dow that we picked up form Lowe's. Thick, but stable enough to hold the boilers without additional weights.

World's Smallest Sand Castle

Background

I was looking for some fun, clean, April Fools pranks when I found a printable joke about the worlds smallest sand castle, "carefully crafted by microscopic nanobots." What you really do is glue a tiny pinch of sand to the paper.

This might fool some gullible, elementary aged children, but in my line of work we can easily view objects on the micro and nanoscale. We have powerful optical microscopes, scanning electron microscopes, confocal microscopes, laser interferometry, etc. So I got thinking about what it would take to really build the world's smallest sand castle.

The Idea

I think it would be a fun project to actually build the world's smallest sand castle (if it hasn't been done already). To accomplish this I would build it from real grains of sand by stacking them one at a time like giant building blocks. Okay, they are actually tiny building blocks, but think about buildings that are made from huge granite blocks. I would treat each small grain as if it were a huge building block. That gives you a sense of scale of what I want to build.

There are many different types of sand, but the typical size distribution goes from 0.06mm to 2.0mm. To make building easier I would try to find a high purity silica sand with grains filtered towards the smaller end of the spectrum, around 0.10mm. I think the biggest problem with building on this small scale is that the building blocks won't be square. Unlike salt crystals, silica crystals take a much more random form and will be rounded on all sides. This means I'll need to be creative to get the grains to stick together. The most obvious answer would be to glue them in place.

The last, and I think most difficult / expensive, challenge to overcome is how to actually perform the building.  How do you move the sand grains into place and glue them there?! Really steady hands and lots of patience? I think not. I've done lots of work lately playing with servos, and motor controllers, but those just don't have micro-scale accuracy. After a little research I think I'll use micromanipulators. These are mechanical devices used mostly by biologists to work with individual cells under a microscope. If I can get my hands on one or two of these things then I might have a shot at a world record.

Progress

02/03/2015 -

Has it Been Done Before?

Using my Google-fu I checked for any prior attempts at my idea. The current claim to the world's smallest sand castle comes from Vik Muniz. He has taken an individual grain of sand and used a laser to etch a picture of a castle. I think this is awesome, and a clever twist on the idea of a sand castle. However, it does not qualify as a 3D structure build from multiple grains of sand.

I also found a few photos of small castles built with more traditional techniques by J.W. Gruber. He makes a tightly packed block of sand then carves out the castle. Probably the smallest freestanding examples with extensive detail.

Here is a gentleman who does micro-sculpting by hand between his heart beats. He could probably do it without using any extra equipment. His pace is a little slow, but that's exactly the attribute that makes him successful: Willard Wigan TED Talk

Looking For a Micromanipulator

• New on Amazon: $1,500
• Used Industrial: $150 - $500
• 3D Printed Low Res: $100

The 3D printed version actually gives me an affordable way to research the feasibility of this idea. As soon as I get the nozzle on my printer repaired I may dig into this.

03/31/2019 - I still want to do this one. It just seems unique and fun. I've had the 3D-printed micromanipulator and VR goggles on my desk for at least a year.

I've been stuck on the optics. I'm trying to maximize both the free working distance and the depth of focus around the optimal magnification level for medium sand grains (about 0.1 mm). If you've ever used a microscope, you may have noticed that everything looks flat or out of focus. This is because when you zoom in to high magnifications, only a thin section of material is in focus.

With my design, I've been trying to overcome this flatness and give a sense of depth and dimension by using stereo 3D microscopy. This has been done successfully by Gary Greenberg, but he looks like an academic gone commercial. I can't afford his equipment, and he doesn't publish the design since he's selling them for over $40,000 on Amazon. From his websites it looks like he's relying on Z-stacking to get full-depth 3D images. In other words, the camera automatically takes images at different focal depths, then a computer combines all the parts that are in-focus to create a neat looking picture. So it's not REALLY real-time, live 3D viewing.

That depth of focus is going to really make this project a challenge. My problem is that I don't have the money to just play around with expensive optics, and I don't know enough optics theory to design my system on paper to know exactly what to buy and how that translates to a workable system. I've gotten a rough idea by studying scopes for soldering electronic components, and I found DIY stereo microscope that I might try.

Or maybe I should build the end-effector first and try to find a lab with a standard stereomicroscope and see if a standard mag like 65 or 90 is sufficient for what I need. Then I'd feel okay dropping the $250-$2500 for a standard lab unit.

Water Rockets

Intro

One day in the church parking lot, while waiting for an activity to begin, my step-brothers pulled out a bike pump and a soda bottle half filled with water. The lid of the soda bottle had a hole drilled inside with a bike tire stem poking out. They attached the pump to the bottle and pressurized the contents. Finally, one of them pointed the bottle up in the air and removed the cap. It rocketed out of his hands spewing water everywhere. That was my first introduction to water bottle rockets.

As kids we never took that principle any further. It wasn't until college when I learned that some people get very serious about building complex launchers and rockets. For me it has become a fun summer pastime, but not a serious hobby. I mostly enjoy launching rockets as a way to spend fun time with my children.

My Rockets

My first rocket no longer exists. I shot it so many times that the plastic got weak from landing and it exploded during pressurization. So unless you have a soft recovery system, I recommend retiring your pressure vessel after about 20 launches.

"Red Rocket", my second rocket, is a two-liter bottle with fins stolen from a firework. The nosecone is a Nerf football cut in half and hollowed to the correct weight. The fins and nosecone are attached by duct tape to allow fast repairs and relaunches. I've found duct tape to be very reliable and convenient in withstanding launch forces. These fins are too small to be really effective, so I'll probably replace them soon.

My family at the engineering competition, me holding "Red Rocket."

"One Night Wonder", my third rocket, was designed for an engineering competition at work. I procrastinated the build until the night before the competition. The nose cone was 3D printed, and I invented a circular fin that extends on launch. This system allowed the rocket to be fired from virtually any launcher design. With only a single good launch my rocket won second place for height, and first place for closest to target. The fin extension system used short sections of drinking-straw as linear bearings. The straws were cheap and thin and failed on the second launch. The design is sound and one I will duplicate with stronger materials.

"One Night Wonder" Maiden Flight

"One Night Wonder" Catastrophic Second Flight

My Launcher

I'll add a picture soon. You can find instructions on how to build a similar launcher from The King of Random. Or you can buy a kit from the Taylors. My current release mechanism uses a Clark Cable-Tie Launcher.

Useful Links

• Dean's Benchtop - Dr. Wheeler was one of my professors and bosses in college. He is the one who re-introduced me to the world of water rockets.
• Air Command Water Rockets - Lots of resources and tutorials.
• Clifford Heath's Simulator - I don't know Clifford, but he wrote a nice simulator for modeling different rocket design parameters. I've found it to be reliable for making design choices. It also allows you to change launcher and nozzle parameters.
• It's a Blast! - The Taylors were our neighbors while I was in college. They introduced me to the world of paper rockets. The pneumatic system I use for launching my water rockets is based on their launcher design.
• 3D Printable Rocket Parts - Here are some water rocket parts that you can print with a 3D printer. I used a nosecone in the engineering challenge.

Arduino Decibel Alarm for Noisy Kids

Background

My wife and I are night-owls but our children are early risers. We used to get up with them every morning, but have slowly trained them to do their morning routine by themselves. The only problem with this arrangement is when the kids decide to reenact "Lord of the Flies." They can get very noisy, interrupting my precious sleep. I get really cranky when I haven't had enough sleep. The kids are very responsive when I tell them to be quiet, but they quickly return to their activities and resume their loud volumes before I can drift back to happy land.

If my wife or me sits down with the kids and constantly reminds them to be quiet, then they do pretty well. But then only one of us gets to sleep (usually me). I just wish there was some kind of electronic babysitter that could tend the to the kids' volume during that hour between six and seven in the morning.

The Idea

Use an electret microphone on an Arduino to listen to the kids as they play. When their noise level goes too high then it will trigger a recorded message that will encourage the kids to be quiet.

This could be used in multiple ways. If noise a single, short noise spike is detected (like a shriek) then it could play a nice recording of Dad saying, "Remember to be quiet kiddies." If the volume is steadily rising it could say, "Hey, your getting out of control, time to do something more quiet like reading a book." Finally, if the volume stays steadily loud it could play something truly frightening.

Progress

11/27/2014 - I've got an Arduino, and an SD card kit that can be used to play MP3 files. I just need to find a suitable speaker and microphone. Instead of a speaker I've got an FM transmitter that can be connected to the Arduino and I could turn on the radio to a blank channel. I think a speaker would be easier, and more portable.

Automated Home Library

The Idea

Tonight Jenn and I were talking about what we should do with the spare bedroom. We just moved our two-year-old out of the crib and into a twin, sharing a room with her older sister. We could buy another bed and turn it back into a guest bedroom. We could turn it into extra storage space, or expand our office and scrap-booking space. I've always liked the idea of a library or reading room where the kids could sit and read. But it's only the idea that's nice. In practice the kids pull all the books off the shelves and onto the floor. So talked about different ways to store the books or limit access to keep things somewhat controlled so we can avoid the hassle of getting them to clean-up everyday. I mean, if there's something we DON'T need it's another room to clean.

I'm a process engineer with training in lean manufacturing. I spend a great deal of time at work cleaning up messes, self-induced or otherwise. To avoid future methods we use a method called poka-yoke, which is Japanese for mistake-proofing (literally yokeru=avoid poka="inadvertent error").

So we thought, maybe we keep the books in boxes, but label the boxes so we can easily find the books. Then we can control access and avoid the mess. But the problem becomes awareness. We forget which books we have, and if the kids can't see them, then the kids won't ask to read them. We could catalog the books and have a list. Even better if there were pictures too. Maybe in a computer so it could be easily searched or sorted. Yeah, now we're literally building a library.

So I thought, how cool would it literally build a library. I don't want to staff it...maybe I could have a robot do all the work. Let's take the room and turn it into a Redbox-style machine with a computer interface. The books would all be stored in custom shelving - horizontal slots with barcodes. The kids could pick a book from the catalog and the robot would go get the book and send it through a slot in the door. The robot would run on a track and get instructions from the computer on where to get and store each book. Then I could limit access to two books per child. They gotta return a book before they can get any more. Redbox style...just put it in the slot and the computer / robot puts it away.

Progress

I really like this idea, but I don't want to totally dedicate that room. It would be a cool "look what I can do" project, but I don't know that I'll ever pull the trigger. Sometimes it's just fun to know that I could actually do that.

Build a Scooter

The Idea

For quite some time I've been wanting a kick-scooter that I can use as an adult. I live in suburbia with friends, neighbors and family all within walking distance (I consider a mile to be within walking distance). Some trips require the car (dropping the kids off at school), and others and definitely walking trips (dropping the kids off next door). But some trips fall into that gray area where you're not sure whether to walk or drive or ride a bike. It could be that you're in a hurry, or lazy, or the bike is hung up in the garage, or whatever. For these trips it would be super-awesome to have an adult kick scooter to just grab and go.

I've been planning to buy one, but today while cruising Instructables I remembered an old pair of broken rollerblades sitting in my closet. My problem is that I don't know how to weld (yet), so I'll have to use wood. It was the pallet projects that sparked the idea. So I'll be stripping off the wheels and seeing if I can come up with a sturdy but functional scooter frame.

Progress

11/2/2014 - Just found an awesome, inspiring design. It's a scooter worn like a belt. I'm definitely going to go with something like this, I just need to find some cheap parts...like a curved scrap of metal or high-grade plywood...

5/30/2015 - I'm going to start working downtown. The drive is miserable, so I'm planning to ride the train. But I still have to get to the train station on both ends. Through some more research I found what are called "Last Mile Solutions."

Bolt: ~$600 Skateboard
Solowheel: ~$1,400 Unicycle
EcoReco: ~$1,000 Scooter

05/30/2016 - Over a year later, and I'm still working on this one. I decided to build my own electric long-board using RC parts. I have purchased the following parts:

• Bigfoot 160 5335-245KV Electric Motor
• Zippy 2650 20C Li-PO batteries (x2)
• FVT 120A ESC, 2-6S
• Wii Wireless Nunchuck
• Wiiceiver (from austindavid.com)

The batteries will be wired in parallel through a switch to the ESC. The speed controller communicates through the wiiceiver to the wireless Wii nunchuck which will act as throttle control.

With a friend I built a fiberglass longboard deck to hold the electronics. The piece that has taken me a year to finish is the bracket to mount the motor to the skateboard. Since I have read from others that torque is an issue, I chose to use Caliber trucks which has a distinct truck shape. The difficult part is cutting a mount to match that shape without CNC. Sure, I can spend $100 to get the part, but I'm a cheapskate. So instead I did the far more reasonable thing and bought my own milling machine for $250. Hope to have the bracket milled out within the next couple of weeks!

05/20/2017 - Yet another year gone by, but my board is finally finished! And BOY is it fun to ride!!! It's powerful up a hill, and goes scary fast. I finished the board last year, but I haven't gotten around to posting until now.

03/31/2019 - Well, I rode my board so much that it bit the dust. One of the magnets dislodged from the rotor of my motor. These are cheap motors, so it's difficult to find replacement magnets. I'm now trying to decide what I will do for Mark 2.

One of the most difficult and scary parts of riding an E-Board is stopping or dodging in an emergency. I have electronic brakes that are VERY effective. I can make the board stop almost instantly, but if I'm not balanced right then I go flying off the front. over the last few years it's happened at least twice at high speeds. Luckily I managed to stay on my feet and not get hurt.

The second most difficult part is managing rough and uneven terrain. Even with my 70 mm wheels, I often have to watch where I roll. It's impossible to cross train tracks, and you'd be shocked by how many sidewalks have at least one bump in them over a couple inches high.

The new thing downtown is the Lime and Bird electric scooters. They are just sitting around on the sidewalks and you can rent any one through your cell phone. My original idea was to make an electric scooter, so I think I'm going back to that for MK2. Or does that just make it another MK1?

I'll probably use an adult razor scooter as my platform. I'll see about finding one on the cheep.

TV Screen Protector

I did this project years ago. It's a cheap way to protect your big-screen TV from flying objects (toys specifically). I just recently got the motivation to start sharing past projects, so I wrote an Instructable.
TV-Screen-Protector via Instructables

Update 7/9/14: Yay! I guess they liked my project enough to feature it on the homepage! It's kind of addicting to get positive feedback. Now I'm wondering what else I can make and publish.

Build a 3D Printer

Intro

3D Printing is a manufacturing method in which a "printer" type machine is used to create objects.  Printers can get really fancy and expensive printing things like ceramics, metals and plastics. As a hobbyist I'll be focusing on Fused Deposition Modeling or FDM. This method pushes melted plastic out of a small nozzle and creates plastic objects layer by layer.

This page is just for me to store stuff about 3D printing. Honestly, most of my useful pages are stored in bookmarks on my browser, but the exceptional stuff I'll post here for others to reference.

Printers I Evaluated

• Prusa i3
• Rostock Mini Pro
• RichRap 3DR
• Kossel Mini
• DeltaPrintr
• PrintrBot Simple

What I Bought

I ended up buying a Rostock Mini Pro kit from 3DPrinterCzar. Happy Early Birthday!!! I could have sourced all the parts myself, but I want to spend time building and tinkering, not sourcing and purchasing. I also didn't document the build process, because many others have already done that (e.g. deltarap.org).

Things I Want to Print

• Cell phone grip for playing games
• Cell phone mount for game controller
• Toy gears for the kids (and me)
• Legos
• Construx
• Action Figures drawn by Lewis
• Hobby Boxes
• RPG Figures
• Modular Storage (jewelry, tackle, hardware, electronics, etc.)
• Headphone Stand
• Custom Sun Glasses
• Disposable Tweezers
• Car Rack Mounts (to carry wood for example)
• Parts for rubber-band guns.

Heated Bed

 The Rostock that I ordered does not come with a heated bed that would be required to print using ABS or nylon and other various materials. I perused various options for buying or building a heated bed. I'm going to either buy or make a round kapton tape heater. In the theme of DIY, reprap, etc I liked this post on using resistive wire. I think it might be cheaper to use an aluminum clad heater, but this one is easier for me to do. If I do it this way then I'll use thinner gauge resistance wire, but print a template for laying the wire. I'll put kapton tape over the template and lay the wire into the template grooves so it sticks to the tape. Then peel the template off and press the tape onto the bottom of the print table. It's all theoretical, of course, but I think I'll give it a try.

 Useful Links

• Jérémie FRANCOIS's 3D Printing Blog - He's got some good articles on printer settings, materials, improvements, etc.
•  RepRap.org
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