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IoT Project: Build a Net-Connected Water Heater 
By Dan Beadle

Some people like to remotely start their cars when it's cold outside. Dan Beadle took this idea one step further by Internet-enabling his mountainside retreat's hydronics system. The innovative design enables him to warm the house well in advance of his arrival. In Circuit Cellar 162, Beadle writes:

Serving up the current temperature involves several computers, a Wi-Fi access point, and a DPAC Airborne module.
My mountain home, where I have vacationed for years, is well insulated, making it a snap for the heater system to keep warm. I have a small, efficient heater; however, it takes forever to warm the house from a 50�F standby to a livable 68�F. Typically, I arrive late and shiver in my jacket for three or four hours until the house warms up-and that does not warm the entire house, just the portion needed to get through the night.

I had been thinking for a while about Internet-enabling the system. The idea was to turn on the heater before we start up the mountain. I have DSL at the house with a fixed IP. So, it seemed like it would be a simple task to enable a thermostat. I considered using an X10 thermostat, but, after a few of our X10-enabled lights found a mind of their own, I decided that I wanted better reliability. My next thought was to use simple copper to do the hook-up. I started planning a cable from my office/DSL entry up to the logical thermostat location. Then I procrastinated. I could not bring myself to run the wires along the surface of my redwood paneling. (And it was not at all feasible to remove the paneling.) Wireless makes the problem a lot simpler: there are no wires to run, and the applications processor and digital I/O on the module make the hardware design trivial. Read More & Download
INDUSTRY NEWS

Microchip Technology recently announced a new series within its PIC32MX1/2 32-bit microcontroller family that features a 256-KB flash configureation and 16-KB of RAM. The microcontrollers provide flexibility to low-cost applications that need complex algorithms and application code. More specifically, they are intended to ... Continue reading →...�

 

Infineon Technologies recently extended its StrongIRFET Power MOSFET family. The Logic Level StrongIRFETs can be driven directly from a microcontroller, thus saving space and cutting costs. Additionally, the MOSFETs are highly rugged and thus help lengthen the service life of the ... Continue reading →...�

 

IQD's latest Oven-Controlled Crystal Oscillator (OCXO), the IQOV-71 series, is housed in four-pad plastic package with a fiber glass base. Despite it 9.7 � 7.5 mm size, it offers very low frequency stabilities down to �10 ppb over an operating temperature ... Continue reading →...�

 

Intersil Corp. recently announced the ISL94203 3-to-8 cell battery pack monitor that supports lithium-ion (Li-ion) and other batteries. The ISL94203 can monitor, protect, and cell balance rechargeable battery packs to maximize battery life and ensure safe charging and system operation. It works as a ... Continue reading →...�

FORMULA ALLCODE KICKSTARTER CAMPAIGN
Sponsored by Matrix TSL 

Hurry, there are just 10 days to go in Matrix TSL's Kickstarter campaign for its Formula AllCode robotics course, which features a high-specification, Bluetooth-enabled robot. 

Formula AllCode is a platform for both novice or advanced electronics enthusiasts to learn and test their robotics skills. You can program the robot via Python, AppBuilder, Flowcode, Matlab, LabVIEW, C, and more. It is compatible with Raspberry Pi, Android, iPhone, and Windows devices.

The funds raised from this Kickstarter project will allow Matrix to take the current prototype development shown in the project videos to the next level with a technical specification to beat any other like-for-like robot buggy and subsequent manufacture of 1000 units to be launched world-wide.
By backing the Kickstarter campaign, you are supporting a project which allows users to develop their robotics understanding on a platform of their choice. Whether your starting out with your first robotics project or you're a fully fledged robotics developer, the Formula AllCode will work for you. The project must be funded by Sunday, September 6, 2015.

CURRENT ISSUE

Circuit Cellar #301
August 2015

Simple Embedded Serial Communications | Recording .3GPP Files | Image Processing for Security | Wearable Tech Innovation | Ground Loops 101 | PSoC Programmable Logic | Embedded Wireless Systems | Vintage Electronic Calculators | Laser Sensor Exploration | Custom Peripheral Cores for Digital Sensor Interfaces | And More