Embedded Linux Conference & Open Source Summit 2019 Schedule

In the last few years, I covered the Embedded Linux Conference and IoT Summit schedules since both were happening at the same time and in the same location. But the Linux Foundation have recently announced the Embedded Linux Conference will combine with the Open Source Summit, so the IoT Summit appears to have been phased out. The full schedule for the events taking place on August 21 – 23, 2019 at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront, USA, has also been released, so I’ll create a virtual schedule with some of the sessions most relevant to this blog. Wednesday August 21, 2019 11:30 – 12:05 – What’s New with U-Boot? by Simon Glass, Google LLC U-Boot is a widely used bootloader in embedded systems. Many users are unaware of the wide feature-set of U-Boot, particularly features added in the last few years. This talk aims to bring users (and prospective users) […]

Self-powered Swallowable Thermometer Measures Internal Body Temperature

Having just written about a thermometer board for home automation,  I’ll stay on the temperature measurement topic, as I’ve found another thermometer that targets the medical field instead. Body temperature measurement at my local hospital is done under the armpit, which does the job in most cases, but more accurate temperature measurement of “deep body temperature” is normally achieved through rectal temperature measurement which is not as practical and comfortable for most people. Daily measurements of deep body temperature can apparently allow physicians to better understand “biological clocks”. In practical terms, it means doctors would be able to know ovulation cycles, measure the fatigue degrees of athletes, and even prevent heat strokes and hypothermia. Seeing the impractically in the conventional method, Nakamura Lab at Tohoku University developed a “swallowable thermometer” for this purpose. The swallowable sensor measures just 9.16mm in diameter, is allegedly perfectly safe to the human body, and […]

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FOSDEM 2019 Open Source Developers Meeting Schedule

FOSDEM – which stands for Free and Open Source Software Developers’ European Meeting – is a free-to-participate event where developers meet on the first week-end of February to discuss open source software & hardware projects. FOSDEM 2019 will take place on February 2 & 3, and the schedule has already been published with 671 speakers scheduled to speak in 711 events themselves sorted in 62 tracks. Like every year, I’ll create a virtual schedule based on some of the sessions most relevant to this blog in tracks such as  open hardware, open media, RISC-V, and hardware enablement tracks. February 2 10:30 – 10:55 – VkRunner: a Vulkan shader test tool by Neil Roberts A presentation of VkRunner which is a tool to help test the compiler in your Vulkan driver using simple high-level scripts. Perhaps the largest part of developing a modern graphics driver revolves around getting the compiler to […]

Giveaway Week Winners – November 2018

We just had a week of fun on CNX Software with our yearly “Giveaway Week” activity where 7 prizes – from development boards to Raspberry Pi add-on boards or solar chargers – were randomly given away to people who entered by leaving a comment. The winners are in, with Asia starting strong, but Europe quickly taking the lead, and the US ending up the giveaway with a great (again) finish. Here’s the full list of winners: Videostrong VS-RD-RK3399 development board – Việt trần, VIETNAM CHOETECH Solar Charger – Erki, ESTONIA ESP32-LyraTD-MSC audio mic HDK – Ron, The Netherlands ROC-RK3328-CC development board – Dainis, LATVIA (a second time winner having previously won during Giveaway Week 2016) ThaiEasyElec 3G GPS Raspberry Pi Hat – zmlopez, SPAIN ANAVI Infrared and RGB strip pHAT – Joe, USA NanoPC-T4 development board – Jeffrey, USA I’ve just send all 7 packages earlier this afternoon. Hopefully, the […]

Embedded Linux Conference Europe & OpenIoT Summit Europe 2018 Schedule

The Embedded Linux Conference & OpenIoT Summit 2018 took place in March of this year in the US, but the European version of the events are now planned to take place on October 21-24 in Edinburg, UK, and the schedule has already been released. So let’s make a virtual schedule to find out more about some of interesting subjects that are covered at the conferences. The conference and summit really only officially start on Monday 22, but there are a few talks on Sunday afternoon too. Sunday, October 21 13:30 – 15:15 – Tutorial: Introduction to Quantum Computing Using Qiskit – Ali Javadi-Abhari, IBM Qiskit is a comprehensive open-source tool for quantum computation. From simple demonstrations of quantum mechanical effects to complicated algorithms for solving problems in AI and chemistry, Qiskit allows users to build and run programs on quantum computers of today. Qiskit is built with modularity and extensibility […]

Build an ESP8266 IR Remote Control with LOLIN IR Controller Shield for D1 Mini Board

Infrared remote control are still widely with TVs, set-top boxes, air conditioners, and all other sort of appliances with the end result of having many remote control around the house. If you want to cut on the number of remote controls, there are several solutions: Get a smartphone with a Built-in IR transmitter like Xiaomi Mi A1. Add an IR transmitter to your smartphones’s headphone jack using ZazaRemote or USB type C port with ROCK USB type C IR transmitter. Get a WiFi IR blaster in order to control devices remotely, or maybe buy several try control any IR devices from anywhere DIY your own solution for more flexibility, for example using ANAVI Infrared pHAT and a Raspberry Pi board. The smartphone solutions (1 & 2) works as long as you are in the room, but the WiFI IR blaster allows you to control devices even if you are not […]

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$10 H801 WiFi RGB LED Controller Supports Sonoff-Tasmota Open Source Firmware

This week-end, I played with ANAVI Light Controller, an open source hardware solution based on ESP8266 used control 12V RGB LED strips. The board has the advantage of being open source with KiCad schematics, Arduino firmware, and HTML5 server program available, so easy to get started and modify the features as you see fit, and it also supports external I2C sensors via three headers. That’s a low volume project made in Eastern Europe and as a result the board costs $25, so I was shortly made aware there were cheaper solution, and if you are ready to mess around a little bit, H801 WiFi controller appears to be one of the most interesting solution as it sells for under $10 shipped on Aliexpress or eBay, and is officially supported by Sonoff-Tasmota open source firmware. H801 specifications: Connectivity – 802.11 b/g/n WiFi (2.4GHz) with about 10 meter range Output – 5x […]

Automation & IoT How-tos

Automation used to happen in your local network, while the Internet of Things obviously relies on an Internet connection, but in recent years both categories merged in some ways, so I’ve gathered related links in this page to offer an easy access to those resources. ESP8266 & ESP32 Getting Started Guides Espressif Systems WiFi SoCs have become really popular in the maker community thanks to their low cost, and great community and software support around the platforms. Over the years, I’ve written a few tutorials showing how to get started on ESP8266 WiSoC or the newer ESP32 WiFI + Bluetooth LE SoC: Getting Started with NodeMCU Board Powered by ESP8266 WiSoC (Lua programming Getting Started with Wemos D1 mini ESP8266 Board, DHT & Relay Shields (Arduino firmware) Getting Started with ESP32-Bit Module and ESP32-T Development Board using Arduino core for ESP32 Getting Started with Espruino & JavaScript on ESP32 with […]

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