Maker Faire Projects

MiniPOV! kit, by Limor Fried

To build most of the other projects on this page, you will need to partially assemble a MiniPOV! kit. For excellent instructions on building the MiniPOV! kit please go to Ladyada's MiniPOV! kit.

Here is a really cool software utility for creating any image you like in your MiniPOV:
Magic Soft MiniPOV Message Generator (this is not needed for the other projects on this page).

For the firmware source code, please go to MiniPOV! firmware.
And here is the makefile (these are not needed for the other projects on this page).

ATtiny2313 microcontroller

The ATtiny2313 is the microcontroller used in the MiniPOV3.
For the datasheet, please go to Atmel AVR ATTiny2313 datasheet.
For the AVR family instruction set, please go to Atmel AVR family instruction set.
For a really great online user community of user support for Atmel AVR AVR Freaks.

Ordering Parts

I ordered most of the parts from Mouser.
The rest of the parts I ordered from Jameco.
Digikey is also a good place.
You can buy a MiniPOV! kit, from The Maker Store or directly from Ladyada.

Project: Make your own Brain Machine (from MAKE Magazine #10)

For an online version of the MAKE Magazine article Mitch wrote, please go to Make A Brain Machine.
Here's the official MAKE Magazine webpage for the Brain Machine: Brain Machine
     where you can ask Mitch questions (click on the bizarre photo for a fun 5-minute video).

I made a slight update to the Brain Machine firmware: use a more pleasing base frequency for the sound. For the updated firmware, please go to the latest SLM firmware.
The sound with this updated firmware will be even better if you use 2.2K ohm resistors for R5 and R6 instead of 1K, as it says in the MAKE article.
For an updated schematic, please go to the latest SLM schematic.

If you bought a Brain Machine kit from Mitch, please see these supplementary instructions.

Here is where to download the original cool graphix for the glasses.
And check out these cool graphix by Michael Wertz (thanks Michael!).
- For a template for cutting out the graphix when using Jackson Allsafe Element Safety Glasses model 31006 (which cost $1.15 each), please go to Glasses Template 1.
- For a template for cutting out the graphix when using Gallaway Visitor Spectacle model 1750C (which cost $1.05 each), please go to Glasses Template 2.

Project: Make your own open source TV-B-Gone (hacked from a MiniPOV 3 Kit)

For the firmware source code for North America, please go to TV-B-Gone NA firmware.
For the database of North American TV POWER codes, please go to TV-B-Gone NA POWER codes.
For the firmware source code for Europe, please go to TV-B-Gone EU firmware.
For the database of European TV POWER codes, please go to TV-B-Gone EU POWER codes.
For the makefile for both NA and EU firmware, please go to makefile.
For the schematic, please go to TV-B-Gone schematic.

Project: Make your own open source TV-B-Gone Kit (developed with Ladayada)

The TV-B-Gone Kit is available at the TV-B-Gone Kit page of the TVBGone.com website.
For excellent instructions on how to build the TV-B-Gone Kit, please go to TV-B-Gone Kit page of the Ladyada.net website.
For questions about the TV-B-Gone Kit, please go to the TV-B-Gone Kit user forum.
To see the schematic, firmware, and board layout, please go to TV-B-Gone Kit downloads.

Project: Make your own Mignonette Game

At the San Francisco Maker Faire in May, 2008, Mitch and Rolf released our Mignonette Game kit. Mignonette is a small hand-held game that has an LED matrix instead of an LCD. It is very simple to build, even for people who have never built anything before, and great for learning how to make things with microcontroller chips. Based on the Mignon Game Kit,, but with two-colored LEDs, and other added features, Mignonette comes with a game we wrote called Munch (with more games to come). All hardware and firmware are open source, and are easily hack-able.
We have our own website for our Mignonette Game.

Project: Make your own Solar BugBot

For the firmware source code, please go to BugBot firmware.
For the schematic, please go to BugBot schematic.
And here is the makefile.
To see a photograph of the BugBot, please go to BugBot photo.

Project: Make your own Trippy RGB Light

For the firmware source code, please go to RGB Light firmware.
For the schematic, please go to RGB Light schematic.
And here is the makefile.
To see a photograph of the Trippy RGB Light, please go to Trippy RGB Light photo.

Project: Make your own LED Cube

This was the first project made at NYC Resistor, a hacker space that started in New York in 2008.
After coming back from the Chaos Communications Congress, we were inspired by the color 3D Borg cube by Das-Labor, a German hacker group, that me, Bre, and George decided to build our own miniature LEDcube.
For a Weekend Project video for how to make this project, please go to Make an LED Cube.
For the firmware source code, please go to LED Cube firmware.
And here is the makefile.
To see a video of this firmware in action, please go to LED Cube video.
To see some close up photos of the hardware I built, please go to LED Cube photos.

Cool Neon

Benny, of Cool Neon gave a presentation using EL-Wire at my booth at San Francisco Maker Faire 2007.
You can order EL-Wire and associated supplies at the CoolNeon.com website.