SparkFun Electronics Commentsurn:uuid:214d0e4e-f1b1-d287-ce26-ac5b4c9f82492024-03-29T05:29:17-06:00SparkFun ElectronicsCustomer #434700 on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsCustomer #434700urn:uuid:6e868063-11da-7e13-0729-a2c616bc7dd22014-03-02T22:41:02-07:00<p>The last 6 pics above are not showing up and when you click where the pic is, it sends you to the home page?</p>
jonricmd on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New Productsjonricmdurn:uuid:d5319e84-f251-a4b2-41eb-cc573f83501a2009-11-29T12:03:46-07:00<p>Just curious, which 24 bit ADC's have y'all been playing with and are there plans for a breakout board or interface?</p>
Bohica on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsBohicaurn:uuid:a93037e0-e030-1cfc-e18f-ce8daa2e4aeb2009-11-29T10:46:38-07:00<p>Hey Pete,<br>
The push for the show is complete. Videos are posted in the gallery @innogation.com<br>
Have a look and drop me a line with your thoughts!<br>
:) Rob</p>
brennen on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New Productsbrennenurn:uuid:7164a1ce-8467-be57-f492-6b50ec379e272009-09-19T14:15:44-06:00<p>Sorry about that. I do what I can on IRC, but I tend to spend my days locked in combat with PHP and Linux system utilities, so as a rule I don't have the faintest idea what's going on with products. We try to get engineers on there once in a while, but they keep making lame excuses about having work to do...</p>
crwper on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New Productscrwperurn:uuid:e493b3e4-84d1-5f09-9106-d8082ce17ac62009-09-18T18:38:22-06:00<p>I think when they say "do not split the ground plane" at the end, they are telling you not to do something like Figure 2-1. The rest of the figures use a solid ground plane, but with one or more "pinches" that restrict the return paths.</p>
BurnerJeremy on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsBurnerJeremyurn:uuid:e48e686b-36df-734e-811f-1715b9e1c7852009-09-18T16:12:44-06:00<p>Brad Templeton has some really cool panos from the years he's been to BRC. Check them out here: <a href="http://pic.templetons.com/brad/pano/bman09.html" rel="nofollow">http://pic.templetons.com/brad/pano/bman09.html</a></p>
Frencil on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsFrencilurn:uuid:2c8fb276-545a-c918-5fe3-461c36cafa642009-09-18T15:49:39-06:00<p>Hey Pete! Idea for that all-in-one device:<br>
If the device also had the ability... somehow... to quantitatively measure the soil's water content then it could not only water until a certain saturation threshold is achieved but <em>not</em> water if the lawn is already over that threshold, say after a rain storm. The water savings there could be significant and you could fine-tune how much water your lawn gets if you're a real stickler for conservation. It seems like several physical measurement locations would be necessary and they would probably need to be separate from the sprinkler heads themselves.<br>
I'm under contract buying my first home right now so in under a month I may have a lawn to call my own. I may want one of these!</p>
Calif on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsCalifurn:uuid:cf4b2e5f-0eac-1b6d-0b68-86da5f7636882009-09-18T14:09:44-06:00<p>Nice hair.</p>
Nate on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsNateurn:uuid:a4d7f633-e80f-7c3b-9a0e-35c0b4d349c42009-09-18T14:07:27-06:00<p>Ah! So cool. Direct link: <a href="http://tinyurl.com/pago2a" rel="nofollow">http://tinyurl.com/pago2a</a> (9MB) You can make out windshields on cars! Frightening. I only wish the image was a bit wider/larger so I could point out my camp.</p>
Nate on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsNateurn:uuid:61bf4282-ec05-4e09-be5a-24a886a4535a2009-09-18T14:03:41-06:00<p>Sorry!! Feel free to return the bits if you need the breakouts instead.</p>
lcox on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New Productslcoxurn:uuid:93f3a79a-6aa5-0781-95d9-d5b6c058a7f12009-09-18T07:48:09-06:00<p>There's a really cool looking 1/2 meter resolution satellite image of Black Rock Desert Burning Man on Sept 1, 2009 <a href="http://www.geoeye.com/CorpSite/gallery/" rel="nofollow">http://www.geoeye.com/CorpSite/gallery/</a><br>
It's about the 3rd image into the gallery - can't give you a url to the exact image since it's a Flash player gallery.</p>
Bohica on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsBohicaurn:uuid:a89010c4-88e4-0b2b-f670-b850b661a7542009-09-17T20:05:47-06:00<p>Well it pretty much like looks a regular rotor style sprinkler. Boring on the outside but all the magic is inside.<br>
I'll see if I can't post a video on the site. We're up to our eyballs preppin for the show so it may be a bit.</p>
Quazar on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsQuazarurn:uuid:a26c0280-332e-d731-4d71-4797d77404172009-09-17T17:07:57-06:00<p>I read the e2v paper and found it very informative. The bit at the very end, though, where it says <em>not</em> to split the analog and digital ground planes lost me. I was following everything up to that point, but that particular leap lost me. Seems like a sentence or two of reasoning was skipped over.<br>
It sounds like they were suggesting that you would just keep one big ground plane for A & D if you had multiple analog circuits that had to interact with each other as well as interact with the digital side.<br>
Anybody able to elaborate?<br>
- Dean</p>
zGhost on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductszGhosturn:uuid:c539d866-ac18-f81f-2602-ac70c851138d2009-09-17T12:46:35-06:00<p>Damn it@! I just orderd 10 MEMS microphones, and just to be sure I asked on the IRC channel if there were any breakout boards comming soon... nope, well i guess yeah, 4days later.<br>
Oh well, keep the MEMS products comming, I love nano stuff.</p>
QCPete on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsQCPeteurn:uuid:6704bbaf-d2ca-8d79-8849-ccb7b60ca5802009-09-17T10:38:55-06:00<p>Hey Thanks! Your site looks cool. Yeah for saving water!! Any chance we could see a video or pictures of the Smart Rotor?</p>
QCPete on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsQCPeteurn:uuid:483fd280-84e0-cd82-c136-260ac212bd602009-09-17T10:35:36-06:00<p>Hi Chance! Sorry to hear your fiddling was not 100% successful. I'm working on some code and a board that might be more like the "all in one unit" that you're talking about. It will auto-sync with the sprinkler (via compass), set up 5 windows of sprinkler position, and then allow the user to input the desired water pressure level for each window. You would set each window pressure by turning 5 trim pots linked to ADCs on the micro. Does this sound like a fun product Sparkfun should sell?? Hey Nate, hint, hint! :)</p>
Bohica on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsBohicaurn:uuid:cc70c39b-bed7-175b-2a70-84252911dfc82009-09-17T08:35:34-06:00<p>Yes, props to Pete are in order. Well done!! This has been a fun project for our team as well. Check us out at Innogation.com and if you find yourself in San Antonio, TX during the first week of December, stop by our booth at the Irrigation Show.<br>
And yes, Sparkfun has been an invaluable resource in the development of the SmartRotor.</p>
Nate on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsNateurn:uuid:0bf037e9-a90e-c11f-dd25-d1ce18252a062009-09-17T08:21:14-06:00<p>Hubble = nice! Next time tinyurl it: <a href="http://tinyurl.com/pc7l86" rel="nofollow">http://tinyurl.com/pc7l86</a></p>
xsk8rat on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New Productsxsk8raturn:uuid:964afc11-a0fe-c865-a1d2-55dddbeba18a2009-09-16T21:48:52-06:00<p>Nate,<br>
E2V did the detector array on the main imager of the Hubble:<br>
<a href="http://www.e2v.com/news/e2v-ccd-imaging-sensors-to-enable-nasas-hubble-space-telescope-to-explore-the-nature-and-history-of-our-universe-with-greater-capability-than-ever-before/" rel="nofollow">http://www.e2v.com/news/e2v-ccd-imaging-sensors-to-enable-nasas-hubble-space-telescope-to-explore-the-nature-and-history-of-our-universe-with-greater-capability-than-ever-before/</a><br>
Wow, that was very long (and self-serving) link!<br>
Sincerely,<br>
Mark</p>
BurnerJeremy on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsBurnerJeremyurn:uuid:b2385a94-c2ca-6fba-017f-5b47fd3ff2962009-09-16T21:35:17-06:00<p>haha. I'm currently bald (or close to). I had an offsite meeting on Tuesday and I didn't think 'The white Mr. T' would be taken seriously. If you look closely, you can see a Mr. T tanline on my head. Did you see this car out there by chance: www dot jellyfish12000 dot com?</p>
Nate on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsNateurn:uuid:b2a71900-af35-7496-9d57-4ec488d8300b2009-09-16T20:57:15-06:00<p>Bleached it for Burning Man. Need to buzz it off soon. (Why'd you have to notice? ;)</p>
Jassper on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsJassperurn:uuid:ff5c26de-fe03-2d28-ef1d-839262a308cc2009-09-16T18:55:44-06:00<p>Question on the Mixed Sig article.<br>
I know it is a factor, but when does it become critical?<br>
I am getting into Mixed signals a lot lately and so far (knock on wood) haven't seen an issue.<br>
The signals I am working with however are low freq, basic Analog DC type signals. So I assume it's not critical to the signals I have been working with.<br>
I can see however how the higher the freq the more important it becomes.</p>
Landon on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsLandonurn:uuid:8c88a5c9-0253-6f74-2a56-53c3ff8df92b2009-09-16T18:34:28-06:00<p>Nate, dude, you gotta tell us the story about your hair. Working on some high-voltage projects lately?</p>
Fredjikrang on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsFredjikrangurn:uuid:bf8907c3-3928-b380-eefa-0d3b90d4a5722009-09-16T17:50:55-06:00<p>It is working again. :D</p>
Nate on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsNateurn:uuid:e87b6945-da4e-3483-1cb5-c3171d42a0942009-09-16T17:11:38-06:00<p>Hi Fred (with the Jedi power of a +23 rating). I will ping IT. We like Safari compatibility!</p>
Fredjikrang on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsFredjikrangurn:uuid:8c790263-0689-10f0-d927-a39efe5e2f8b2009-09-16T16:48:31-06:00<p>For some reason the front page isn't loading correctly in Safari for me anymore. The menus in the right hand column aren't loading at all, and the latest blog post only loads up until "This is a breakout board for the VS1000D" and there is nothing after that.<br>
I had to open up Firefox in order to post this comment. :/</p>
Chance on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsChanceurn:uuid:4366c3a0-7e90-f3a3-2ac2-9a15b5bee87d2009-09-16T15:35:30-06:00<p>On the water sprinkler, this is unreal, I had the exact same idea for a project last week. The catalyst, I have an existing in ground irrigation system that was with my home when I purchased it. In the past month I've had to dig into the ground twice, once to fix a cap on the line that blew off and another to fix a head that was jammed and wasn't popping up. Both times I ended up fiddling with sprinkler heads and nozzles trying to figure out the optimal patterns to cover the most area without wasting water. And after the second problem where 2 hours worth of tweaking got me to about a 70% solution and I need to control the pressure to get that other 30%.<br>
It would be nice to have an all in one unit that you could program with a 2d profile of your yard (or a given area) at a fixed point and have the sprinkler head rotate and modulate so that the entire area is covered and little more.</p>
Nate on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsNateurn:uuid:7e1bcedf-82ad-84f3-d4e1-ddc7852bd1182009-09-16T15:32:42-06:00<p>Thanks for the heads up! I think I got them all. Grr. It is a bug in our WYSIWYG. Basically, it's some \r\n characters with the '\'s getting removed.</p>
Imroy on Lawn Sprinkler, Mixed Signal Layouts, and New ProductsImroyurn:uuid:13ccbf47-55ff-38b7-56b9-4201e81b66cf2009-09-16T15:27:11-06:00<p>The text of this post has a bunch of rn's bridging words e.g "playerrnwith". I can only imagine some mangling of DOS-style newlines (backslash-r backslash-n) by some bad PHP code (I know, redundant).</p>