Success with SparkFun: User Stories

Every day our community creates something awesome with SparkFun products. Here are just a few of their stories. We hope this page provides inspiration for your next project and encourages you to start something.

SparkFun RTK Surveyor being held in front of mountain landscape.SparkFun RTK Surveyor being held in front of mountain landscape.

Caving with RTK

Whether it’s exploring uncharted caves in France or contributing to an Open Source street-mapping project, Eric Siebert relies on the SparkFun RTK Express for the positional accuracy he needs.

Cryologger on sea ice in the Antarctic. Cryologger on sea ice in the Antarctic.

Cryologging the Cryosphere

When Adam Garbo of the Water and Ice Research Laboratory at Carleton University saw a lack of data coming from the cryosphere, he turned to an affordable, open-sourced solution he dubbed the Cryologger.

SparkFun Artemis Global Tracker on ice being used to research sea ice movement. SparkFun Artemis Global Tracker on ice being used to research sea ice movement.

Tracking Sea Ice with the Artemis Global Tracker

When Jean Rabault Førland was looking for a cheaper and more compact way to collect data on sea ice for the Norwegian Meteorological Institute, he looked to the Artemis Global Tracker (AGT) as an alternative.

DIY SparkFun orienteering project in tupperware. DIY SparkFun orienteering project in tupperware.

GPS RTK Brings Orienteering Dreams to Life

When avid orienteer Don Bayly needed a way to make his orienteering maps more accurate, he started researching GPS options. His need for a small footprint and extreme accuracy led him to the SparkFun GPS-RTK2 Board - ZED-F9P (Qwiic).

Picture of a GNSS map for a DIY project. Picture of a GNSS map for a DIY project.

Using u-blox GPS for Greater Precision

While pursuing his passion of autocross, Anker Berg-Sonne found himself in need of an inexpensive, high precision and upgradable data logger. To fit his needs, he turned to the SparkFun GPS Breakout - Chip Antenna, SAM-M8Q (Qwiic).

Picture of a hallway. Picture of a hallway.

Using RFID to Prevent Property Theft

Theft is a problem Kevin Fahsholtz, VP of Business Development for Kirio, has faced before. At a prior company, he managed a large number of vacation rental properties. Fahsholtz shared an example of a scenario Kirio hopes to prevent.

Goat looking at camera with RFID tracker installed.Goat looking at camera with RFID tracker installed.

Using RFID to Track a Goat Herd's Health

Cory Spencer runs a 150-head goat dairy farm. One problem he encounters is that most technology for dairy farmers is designed for cows, not goats. Due to the specific needs of goats he needed to craft his own solution to manage the health of his herd.

Distance sensor on a track being used to get more accurate times. Distance sensor on a track being used to get more accurate times.

Improving Timing with Distance Sensing

While working as a fitness director, Ryan Turner realized there were plenty of opportunities for innovation in the industry. He used his interests in fitness and hobby robotics to create an innovative timing system that fit the needs of many.

Distance sensing glasses on a PCB with a SparkFun distance sensor installed. Distance sensing glasses on a PCB with a SparkFun distance sensor installed.

Distance Sensing Glasses Offer Alternative Vision

While on vacation a few years ago, Tommy Sullivan met a woman who had become blind after the birth of her first child. This encounter led him to start thinking about how technology could be used to help those with vision impairments.

Mouse and IPhone with air quality map displayed on the screen. Mouse and IPhone with air quality map displayed on the screen.

SparkFun OpenLog Brings Data Logging to Air Quality Sensors

When a gravel pit blew dust into the surrounding area, Adrian Dybwad was curious to find out how much dust was actually in the air. This quest ultimately led to the founding of PurpleAir and the creation of “a global network of nearly 11,000 [air quality] sensors.”

Machine learning robot used in agriculture. Machine learning robot used in agriculture.

Sustainable Farming Practices with Machine Learning

The 2050 Robotics Lab is working on a number of agriculture and environmental projects that include using robots to plant crops on high sloped hills, finding and spot treating pests in crops, and locating blue-green algae on open surface water.

Picture of a monitor that displays sprinter times using Arduino. Picture of a monitor that displays sprinter times using Arduino.

More Efficient Sprinting with Arduino

Running and sprinting are simple in theory - put one foot in front of the other as fast as possible. It’s not rocket science, but it is a science. See how the Bounce Box, using Arduino, provides instant feedback on athlete’s ground contact time.

Man standing next to keg that uses Raspberry Pi to automatically wash itself. Man standing next to keg that uses Raspberry Pi to automatically wash itself.

Automatic Keg Washer with Raspberry Pi

Over the years, the combination of owning a homebrew store and nano brewery has led Greg Kallfa to experiment with incorporating electronics into a number of projects to improve the brewing experience.

Custom farm robot in the field.Custom farm robot in the field.

Custom Farming Solution

Developing a system for long-range communication to support autonomous micro-tractors.

Possum with collar that uses RFID to track it's location.Possum with collar that uses RFID to track it's location.

Tracking Possums with RFID

Nonprofit Landcare Research is working to better understand how possums interact with traps in order to improve capture rates. They have chosen to use RFID components due to their low cost and ability to identify individual possums.