Selectable duty cycle oscillator (ART749E)
There are applications where rectangular signals with 50% duty cycles (square waves) are unsuitable, and therefore it is necessary to have some kind of resource to modify these characteristics. The circuit we present allows you to select 1 of 8 possible duty cycles and adjust the frequency with a potentiometer. An additional switch also allows you to select the frequency range of the circuit. The applications are left to the readers and the suggestions we will give.
Digital Capacitor (ART644E)
In Issue No. 2, 182, we published the design for a Digital Counter Module that, as mentioned in the article, would serve a multitude of practical applications. Among the applications suggested in that issue, we already published a 32MHz Digital Frequency Counter, a Digital Stopwatch, an Optical Counter, and an Electronic Sorter. Now it is the turn of the Digital Capacitor, a very useful bench top instrument for reading capacitances between 100pF and 10,000pF. Simple to assemble and using common components, the accuracy of the readings depends solely on the adjustments made by the assembler.
Designing and Assembling Transformerless Power Supplies (ART604E)
Transformerless power supplies, or FAST for short, or simply transformer less power supplies, are very useful in low-consumption projects that must be connected to the power supply network, as they eliminate the need for an expensive and bulky component, the power supply transformer. How to design and assemble this type of source is what we will see in this article, which is very useful for those who need sources of up to 12 V with maximum output currents of around 50 mA.
Insect Robot (MEC217E)
Insects have always aroused some kind of reaction in humans: curiosity, fear, disgust, etc. The fact is that these "little" beings are objects of study by many biologists and also by "mechatronic scientists". The latter research mainly their locomotion, and their way of recognizing the environment (sensors), among others. The robot which we propose in this article is relatively simple to build and can help the reader to better understand the possible means of locomotion without "wheels" in Robotics.
Climber Robot (MEC218E)
How about assembling a robot that has a special shape to move around? Instead of wheels, belts or even "legs" to get around, this robot uses claws and its own body to perform its movements. It was not designed to move on the floor, but in "heights". An excellent project for demonstrations at fairs, events and meetings.
FOX Wireless Control System (TME006E)
FOX is a new building automation system from F&F. Thanks to the products in this series, you can create an intuitive, remotely controlled system in your home or office. The system works on the basis of a local Wi-Fi network or an F&F cloud, but devices can also be controlled in a more traditional way, by using buttons on the wall, without a wireless network connection (e.g. in case of router failure).
