CIRCUITS
A
Fig. A: Because it’s got built-in Ethernet and is fully
programmable, the MAKE Controller is great for
networked projects such as this RSS reader.
to controlling haunted house special effects, coffee
makers, and pointing statues. Music and robotics
are two areas particularly rich with interesting
applications.
Sparky 2
Maker and robot expert Marque Cornblatt has been
developing his interactive video chat robot, Sparky
2, over the last several years. He’s incorporated
the MAKE Controller board to operate the robot
remotely via the internet. In robotic parlance,
Sparky 2 is a “telefactor,” projecting Sparky’s
operator’s face, eyes, and voice anywhere there’s
an available wi-fi connection.
Inside Sparky, a wi-fi-enabled Mac mini uses the
MAKE Controller to control a number of servo
motors that, in turn, control the two 24-volt DC
motors powering its wheels. The MAKE board’s
function is to respond in real time to the operator’s
commands. It controls the motion of the robot’s
wheels, but that’s not all. The microcontroller
watches 5 infrared sensors located around Sparky’s
perimeter. If the sensors spot an obstacle, the
MAKE Controller enables the robot to avoid it.
Cornblatt is not done exploring the capability of the
device. “The robot is under constant development,”
146 Make: Volume 10
B
Fig. B: This balloon controller is based on the diVA project
( makezine.com/go/diva), which hides the complexity of
devices such as the MAKE Controller and makes it easy
for people to control things through a web interface.
he says. “I’m working on a patch that will allow
the robot to sense its remaining battery power
and automatically drive itself to a charging station
without requiring any human intervention in the
process.” The robotics designer is planning to
add even more autonomous behavior in the
near future.
The Bovalve
Last year, Nate Bliton, a music composition major
at Michigan State University, decided to try something unique for a class project. A musician familiar
with both stringed and brass instruments, Bliton
developed an instrument that combined the best
features of both types of instruments into a single,
hybrid device. He wanted to take the control modali-ties of a trumpet (its valves) and combine them with
the sonorous, dynamically agile capabilities of an
instrument played with a bow, such as a violin. The
result was a new invention, the Bovalve.
The Bovalve utilizes a multi-button joystick for
the player’s left hand. Three of the joystick’s buttons correspond to the valves on a trumpet. But
the Bovalve adds some interesting features to the
standard brass player’s repertoire of capabilities.
Bliton uses the two additional buttons on the
Photograph of RSS reader by Brian Jepson;
photograph of balloon by Shaun Mavronicolas, 2C Visual Communications
