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Nate

Member Since: August 14, 2006

Country: United States

Profile

Bio

Nathan Seidle grew up in Tulsa, Oklahoma and transplanted himself to Colorado during college.

Role

Hand in every cookie jar. I run SparkX (and eat cookies).

Organizations

SparkFun Electronics

Spoken Languages

English and Datasheet

Programming Languages

C, VB, and evil Makefiles

Universities

Oklahoma School of Science and Mathematics - class of 2000 (Oklahoma City, OK), University of Colorado - class of 2004 (Boulder, CO).

Interests

Crew, hiking, boxing, and the occasional snowboard jump.

Websites

www.sparkfun.com

Twenty years have passed. What's up for the next 20?

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Do you miss buttons? Coins? Questionable publicly shared surfaces?

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Checkout the inner workings of ransoming and patent trolls.

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Point and click your way to a fully-populated, custom board from SparkFun.

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We've written hundreds of libraries and made lots of mistakes. Learn the basics of how to write a good library.

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The costs and time required to get the world's first open source BLE module certified with the FCC.

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Any FCC certified module needs a tin can to protect and prevent RF emissions. Check out how we did it for Artemis!

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Buried Pad PCB Fixing

Checkout how we drilled through the back of a PCB in order to solder to the hidden pads under a cellular module.

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Learn how we created our own SMD module using PCB tips and tricks for blind and buried vias.

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SparkFun is pleased to announce a new line of development tools to help implement edge computing, including voice and image recognition.

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If we've learned one thing at SparkFun it's that geeks love to talk about their projects! We can't wait to share what we've been cooking. Check out the pile of new products, sensors and breakout boards!

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It's not pretty but we've come up with a way to make I2C based libraries even more flexible. Now you can pass a software I2C port into a library!

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We've got the magnetic tile back in stock and the first boards made with Buzzard are in!

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Panelizer and CAMmer: More production tools with EAGLE to avoid silly mistakes.

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We make a lot of panels. Let's automate it!

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A Better Translation

Watch out, we’ve been translating technical English… How to install and edit the SparkFun English file for the Charm High software.

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Getting the Windows software installed

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From design to population in less than a minute!

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Leader Cheaters

How to add a leader to a cut tape using audio splicing tape.

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Unboxing the $2800 desktop pick and place machine.

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To celebrate our "crystal anniversary," here's a collection of the stories, blog posts, products and adventures from 15 years of making crazy things.

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Copyright and Monkeys

What does an image of a flexible display and a monkey have to do with each other?

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We put an escape room on a board.

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Wherein I felt the urge to respond to a recent WIRED article that hits close to home.

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A tour of our humble R&D abode and some of the projects we've been cooking.

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It's the next greatest thing to desktop spectroscopy.

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Want to talk to multiple I2C sensors but have only one address? No problem.

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Air quality has never been easier or more advanced.

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We're pleased to announce our new Qwiic system.

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What's in the box?! Opening a safe with a little intelligence and a little brute force.

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Copying Vail Resorts' UHF RFIDs based lift tickets.

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We use 0603 SMD packages but the electronics world uses much smaller sized components.

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I think you've got enough news feeds as it is

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Product 0

Getting the first product live

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Is your logo causing your silkscreen file to be huge?

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Step 1: Go

Setting up the SparkX lab.

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We use serial communication all the time. But why are we using multiples of 300?

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When writing a library, pass in I2C ports to make the library more useful on different platforms.

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Let's welcome Glenn Samala to his crazy new family.

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With an FEP, an FIR and a DP, we have a winner!

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Looking for information in the noise: a contest to crowdsource a better algorithm for accelerometer data.

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When things become sentient, it's good to be able to remotely kill power.

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It's time to get back to building crazy stuff.

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SparkFun RTK Facet L-Band Hookup Guide

June 9, 2022

Setup the RTK Facet L-Band in minutes to begin gathering millimeter level geospatial coordinates.

GNSS Timing Breakout - ZED-F9T (Qwiic) Hookup Guide

January 20, 2022

Follow this guide to add up to 5 nanosecond timing accuracy under clear skies with no external GNSS correction with the GNSS Timing Breakout - ZED-F9T (Qwiic).

SparkFun RTK Facet Hookup Guide

December 16, 2021

Setup the RTK Facet in minutes to begin gathering millimeter level geospatial coordinates.

1W LoRa MicroMod Function Board Hookup Guide

November 11, 2021

Everything you need to get started with the 1W LoRa MicroMod function board; a MicroMod function board that provides LoRa capabilities for your MicroMod project. Must be used in conjunction with a MicroMod main board and processor.

SparkFun RTK Express Hookup Guide

June 21, 2021

Learn how to use the enclosed RTK Express product to achieve millimeter level geospatial coordinates.

How to Upgrade Firmware of a u-blox GNSS Receiver

March 26, 2021

A few steps and you'll upgrade to the latest features on a u-blox GNSS receiver.

SparkFun RTK Surveyor Hookup Guide

December 3, 2020

Learn how to use the enclosed RTK Surveyor product to achieve millimeter level geospatial coordinates.

MicroMod Data Logging Carrier Board Hookup Guide

October 21, 2020

Get started with some customizable MicroMod data logging with the Data Logging Carrier Board.

MicroMod Machine Learning Carrier Board Hookup Guide

October 21, 2020

Get hacking with this tutorial on our Machine Learning Carrier Board!

Getting Started with MicroMod

October 21, 2020

Dive into the world of MicroMod - a compact interface to connect a microcontroller to various peripherals via the M.2 Connector!

MicroMod Artemis Processor Board Hookup Guide

October 21, 2020

Get started with the Artemis MicroMod Processor Board in this tutorial!

Designing with MicroMod

October 21, 2020

This tutorial will walk you through the specs of the MicroMod processor and carrier board as well as the basics of incorporating the MicroMod form factor into your own PCB designs!

How to Build a DIY GNSS Reference Station

October 15, 2020

Learn how to affix a GNSS antenna, use PPP to get its ECEF coordinates and then broadcast your own RTCM data over the internet and cellular using NTRIP to increase rover reception to 10km!

Setting up a Rover Base RTK System

October 14, 2020

Getting GNSS RTCM correction data from a base to a rover is easy with a serial telemetry radio! We'll show you how to get your high precision RTK GNSS system setup and running.

OpenLog Artemis Hookup Guide

August 20, 2020

How to use and re-program the OpenLog Artemis, an open source datalogger. The OLA comes preprogrammed to automatically log data. The OLA can also record serial data, analog voltages, or readings from external Qwiic-enabled I2C devices. Some of these Qwiic-enabled devices include GPS/GNSS modules, pressure, altitude, humidity, temperature, air quality, environment, distance, and weight sensors.

Hookup Guide for the SparkFun RedBoard Artemis

August 28, 2019

Get started with the RedBoard Artemis - all the functionality of the SparkFun Artemis module wrapped in the familiar Uno R3 footprint

Hookup Guide for the SparkFun RedBoard Artemis ATP

August 28, 2019

Get started with the RedBoard Artemis ATP - all the functionality of the SparkFun Artemis module wrapped in the Mega Arduino Footprint

Artemis Development with Arduino

June 20, 2019

Get our powerful Artemis based boards (Artemis Nano, BlackBoard Artemis, and BlackBoard Artemis ATP) blinking in less than 5 minutes using the SparkFun Artemis Arduino Core!

Designing with the SparkFun Artemis

June 20, 2019

Let's chat about layout and design considerations when using the Artemis module.

LED Gumball Machine

April 24, 2019

Hacking gumball machines to make the world a happier, blinkier place.

Qwiic Scale Hookup Guide

April 11, 2019

Create your own digital scale quickly and easily using the Qwiic Scale!

GNSS Chip Antenna Hookup Guide

April 4, 2019

You've always wanted to experiment with those tiny GPS antennas. Now you can!

Qwiic OpenLog Hookup Guide

February 7, 2019

The updated Qwiic version of the OpenLog Hookup Guide

GPS-RTK2 Hookup Guide

January 14, 2019

Get precision down to the diameter of a dime with the new ZED-F9P from u-blox.

Qwiic Twist Hookup Guide

December 13, 2018

Take your volume knob beyond 11 with the Qwiic Twist digital RGB LED encoder via I2C!

Spectral Triad (AS7265x) Hookup Guide

November 8, 2018

Learn how to wield the power of 18 channels of UV to NIR spectroscopy with AS72651 (UV), AS72652 (VIS), and AS72653 (NIR) sensors!

What is GPS RTK?

September 14, 2018

Learn about the latest generation of GPS and GNSS receivers to get 14mm positional accuracy!

GPS-RTK Hookup Guide

September 13, 2018

Find out where you are! Use this easy hook-up guide to get up and running with the SparkFun high precision GPS-RTK NEO-M8P-2 breakout board.

Getting Started with U-Center for u-blox

September 13, 2018

Learn the tips and tricks to use the u-blox software tool to configure your GPS receiver.

Vibe-O-Matic 3000

November 28, 2017

We attempt to emulate a car seat to ease a baby to sleep.

Beginner's Guide to KiCad

October 12, 2017

An in-depth tutorial covering schematic capture, PCB layout, library editing, and gerber generation using this amazing open source PCB creation tool.

Gas Pump Skimmers

September 6, 2017

Teardown of gas pump skimmers along with how to detect and block them.

Reading and Writing Serial EEPROMs

August 11, 2017

EEPROM is a great way to add extra memory to your microcontroller project. Wait 'til you see how easy it is to use!

Building a Safe Cracking Robot

March 29, 2017

How to crack an unknown safe in under an hour.

Arduino Weather Shield Hookup Guide V12

March 2, 2017

Read humidity, pressure and luminosity quickly and easily. Add wind speed, direction and rain gauge for full weather station capabilities.

Simultaneous RFID Tag Reader Hookup Guide

February 23, 2017

A basic guide to getting started with the RFID Tag Reader breakout and how to read and write multiple RFID tags over multiple feet!

RFID Basics

February 23, 2017

Dive into the basics of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology.

Serial Basic Hookup Guide

February 9, 2017

Get connected quickly with this Serial to USB adapter.

Lessons in Algorithms

December 21, 2016

Learn techniques on how to use Finite Impulse Response (FIR) filters and other data-processing tools to turn data into information.

Building an Autonomous Vehicle: The Batmobile

December 6, 2016

Documenting a six-month project to race autonomous Power Wheels at the SparkFun Autonomous Vehicle Competition (AVC) in 2016.

MAX30105 Particle and Pulse Ox Sensor Hookup Guide

December 1, 2016

The SparkFun MAX30105 Particle Sensor is a flexible and powerful sensor enabling sensing of distance, heart rate, particle detection, even the blinking of an eye. Get ready. Set. Shine!

OpenScale Applications and Hookup Guide

July 22, 2016

OpenScale allows you to have a permanent scale for industrial and biological applications. Learn how to use the OpenScale board to read and configure load cells.

How to Build a Remote Kill Switch

May 31, 2016

Learn how to build a wireless controller to kill power when things go... sentient.

OpenLog Hookup Guide

April 7, 2016

An introduction to working with the OpenLog data logger.

Alphanumeric GPS Wall Clock

January 26, 2015

This is a GPS controlled clock - a clock you truly never have to set! Using GPS and some formulas, we figure out what day of the week and if we are in or out of daylight savings time.

How to Use a Multimeter

January 9, 2015

Learn the basics of using a multimeter to measure continuity, voltage, resistance and current.

How Lithium Polymer Batteries are Made

May 28, 2014

We got the opportunity to tour the Great Power Battery factory. Checkout how LiPos are made!

How Chip-On-Boards are Made

May 28, 2014

COB or chip-on-board is a low cost way of soldering an IC to a PCB. Checkout this tutorial to see how it is done!

How LEDs are Made

May 28, 2014

We take a tour of a LED manufacturer and learn how PTH 5mm LEDs are made for SparkFun.

ML8511 UV Sensor Hookup Guide

March 13, 2014

Get up and running quickly with this simple to use UV sensor.

HID Control of a Web Page

March 12, 2014

Learn how to move a slider on a webpage and make a motor spin. We connect HTML and HID to read sensors and interface with the physical world.

Wireless Arduino Programming with Electric Imp

February 24, 2014

Reprogram your Arduino from anywhere in the world using the Tomatoless Boots wireless bootloader with the Electric Imp.

Das Blinken Top Hat

January 22, 2014

A top hat decked out with LED strips makes for a heck of a wedding gift.

Reaction Timer

January 16, 2014

Demonstrate mental chronometry with this simple reaction timer!

MPL3115A2 Pressure Sensor Hookup Guide

December 5, 2013

Getting started with the MPL3115A2 Pressure Sensor.

Using OpenSegment

April 1, 2013

How to hook up and use the OpenSegment display shield. The OpenSegment is the big brother to the Serial 7-Segment Display. They run on the same firmware, however the OpenSegment is about twice as big.

Electronics Assembly

March 1, 2013

How SparkFun assembles SMD electronics.

Analog to Digital Conversion

February 7, 2013

The world is analog. Use analog to digital conversion to help digital devices interpret the world.

Battery Technologies

February 6, 2013

The basics behind the batteries used in portable electronic devices: LiPo, NiMH, coin cells, and alkaline.

Installing an Arduino Library

January 11, 2013

How do I install a custom Arduino library? It's easy! This tutorial will go over how to install an Arduino library using the Arduino Library Manager. For libraries not linked with the Arduino IDE, we will also go over manually installing an Arduino library.

Using GitHub

December 30, 2012

How to use repositories and GitHub for version control.

Designing PCBs: Advanced SMD

December 10, 2012

Advanced Eagle layout for PCBs with SMD devices.

Nest Thermostat Teardown

November 29, 2011

See the inner-workings of the most advanced thermostat to hit the market, the Nest.

Heartbeat Straight Jacket

June 4, 2009

An EL project that displays one person's heartbeat on another person's costume.
  • Yup. Fixed. Thanks!

  • I recommend the BlueSMiRF v2 for moving RTCM from a phone to the mosaic. While there isn't a direct plug-in connection, only 4 wires are needed (3.3V/GND/TX/RX). Any UART on the mosaic will work. If it were me, I would use COM4 simply because it doesn't have, nor do you need, flow control.

  • The RTK mosaic is a very good rover. The antenna is waterproof and can be mounted to the top of whatever platform you're using.

    We have other products based on the mosaic-X5 but I can say what shape it will have since it's very early days.

  • They are very different beasts. The mosaic can receive on more bands (as member 1880499 points out), as well as greater anti-jamming detection, higher accuracy, built in web configuration, multi-NTRIP client/server for fall back, and many more features. The Reference Station is very good but the industry tends to view the mosaic as the 'gold standard' for base station and rover operation.

  • Excellent! Glad to hear it!

    Facet with mosaic - yes, it's on our roadmap but there's a pile of very large barriers to make it work. Stay tuned!

  • what is the difference between the 915 MHz, 500 mW telemetry radio and the 915 MHz, 100 mW radio.

    A higher power radio will theoretically get you longer range if there is line of sight.

    Telemetry radios have to connect to the RTK Facet via USB or just the JST-GHR-04V to JST-GHR-06V Cable

    An external radio cannot be connected over USB. It needs to be attached to the 4-pin RADIO connector using the included 4-pin JST connector or the included 4-pin to 6-pin cable (which can directly connect to the LoRaSerial or [HolyBro](https://www.sparkfun.com/products/19032 radios).

    What benefit does the SparkFun LoRaSerial Kit have to the telemetry radio?

    LoRaSerial is a 1W radio utilizing the LoRa modulation technique for long range applications.

  • Thanks! Glad you liked it.

    That page is generated by the mosaic not the ESP32. The ESP32 is just forwarding the packets (aka the HTML you see) from the mosaic to WiFi.

  • A fine idea! It was not on our roadmap but I'll add it.

  • Thank you for the kind words! Happy to hear it is working well.

    Yes, an external power bank works great. Plug the power bank into the CONFIG UBLOX connector for the most efficient charging.

  • A larger antenna mounted as high as possible is your best bet. We offer these antennas that work well but are large.