Month: July 2021

This RaspberryPi – Based Parking Lot Monitor Detects Unauthorized Vehicles

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For a university project, Codrin used a Raspberry Pi to create a system that detects unauthorized vehicles.

The United States is a car culture and most Americans have to own a car to commute to work and get around. As a result of that fact, parking lots are everywhere. You don’t just need a parking spot for your car at home, but also at work and every other place you go. In Jackson, Wyoming, for example, there are 27.1 parking spots for every household. Despite that, private parking lots are common and owners need a way to ensure that only authorized vehicles enter the lot. For a university project, Codrin used a Raspberry Pi to create a system that detects unauthorized vehicles.

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How Nintendo Failed Into Super Mario Kart | The Story Behind The Super Nintendo Classic

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Super Mario Kart went on to become a 16-bit classic and one of the best selling Super Nintendo games of all time. But Super Mario Kart’s origins didn’t even start as a Mario game. From an unsucessful two player F-Zero game to one of Nintendo’s longest running franchises, this is the story of how Nintendo failed into Super Mario Kart.

Arduboy on ATMega4809

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Porting Arduboy to the ATMega4809 and making it run on a Arduino Nano Every.

After learning about the Arduboy challenge, we (team Karooza) decided to join in the fun and port Arduboy to a new microcontroller. In the spirit of staying with true 8 bit gaming we chose the ATMega4809. This relatively new microcontroller is also used in the Arduino Nano Every, making it available to the average maker. For this very reason we also chose the Nano Every as our initial target. Then we designed a PCB which handles battery charging, boosting to 5V and breaking out the buttons, LEDs and piezo speaker. Using slightly off-center pads the Nano (with headers) can plug into the breakout board without needing to solder it (a cool idea we borrowed from the Curiosity Nano board).

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Now You Can Turn the Commodore 64 Into a Delightfully Chunky Game Boy

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For many of us, the Atari or the NES wasn’t our first gaming console. Instead, it was the Commodore 64, which was marketed as an incredibly affordable home computer, but was also a solid gaming machine. It was very much worthy of a second life as a Game Boy-sized portable, which anyone can now hack together with the right parts and skills.

For around $36, a website called UNI64 will sell you a kit containing custom designed PCBs that, with some technical know-how, can be turned into the Handheld 64: a portable version of the classic ‘80s computer, complete with a tiny QWERTY keyboard so you can even write your own BASIC programs on the go. Just keep in mind that the $36 kit is just the starting point to creating a portable C64.

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DarkfullDante’s Flight Sim Switch Box Is Powered by a Raspberry Pi Pico Running CircuitPython

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Driven by a combination of hid_gamepad and hid_keyboard, the switch is designed for use with Microsoft Flight Simulator and Elite Dangerous.
Pseudonymous developer “DarkfullDante” has put together a low-cost switch board for flight simulators, powered by a Raspberry Pi Pico running CircuitPython and housed in an attractive and sturdy case.

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DIY Tiny Handheld Computer Puts BASIC in the Palm of Your Hand

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It may not be practical, but it’s at least functional!

This project puts the power of BASIC in your hands, literally. Designed by Anders Mygind, this tiny handheld computer runs a modified version of TinyBasic and is built around the ATmega328-PU, a chip similar to the ones used in the Arduino Uno. Though it’s not exactly user-friendly, both the keyboard and screen actually work. The device utilizes 12C-communication with the display and a button-matrix for the keyboard.

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