Today August 21, 2017, we were treated to about 80% solar eclipse. In spite of the smoke, the weather cooperated so we couldn’t miss this event. Pinhole projector boxes were made out of cereal and shipping boxes: Fancy ones were mounted onto a tripod, and a phone camera recording a time lapse video was taped … Continue reading Solar Eclipse at SB

AxiDraw V3 669CAD / 525USD AxiDraw is a high performance personal writing and drawing machine. MinIMU-9 V5 – IMU Digital Combo Board – 9 Degrees of Freedom 21.55CAD / 16.91USD This is a breakout combo for the LSM6DS33 3-axis gyro/3-axis accelerometer and an LIS3MDL 3-axis magnetometer. With this board, you get a full 9 degrees … Continue reading New Product Monday

The idea of adorning oneself with glowing bits has been around forever, but instead of smearing ourselves with phosphorescent jellyfish or placing fireflies in ears like some uncivilized cavemen we went for simple LED earrings. We made a build that involves a simple slow-scroll RGB LED and a few reflective bits to bounce that pretty … Continue reading Project: LED Earrings

Join our workshop on August 9th or 29th to learn the basics of how to make Arduinos work and how to teach CTF, CTS, and cross-curricular Project Based Learning using this fantastic resource. Sessions schedule: 10:00AM-12:00PM – Arduino programming with the Grove Educational Kit 1:00PM-3:00PM – Arduino Electronics with the ARDX Electronics Kit Location: Active … Continue reading Teach the Teacher: Arduino Boot Camp

Freezer Burn is an Alberta Regional Burning Man celebration annually creating a temporary community out on the prairie. A few of us here at Solarbotics attend, and having access to all of the neat technology, we make an effort to bring special projects to the festival. Lit up projects work well since the event is … Continue reading Freezer Burn 2017 Pendant

We’ve been researching a manufacturer for a shiny new product we are working on (shhh, don’t tell anyone and stay tuned for the reveal!). What we have been looking for is a metal spinner. Metal spinning, also known as spin forming, spinning, or metal turning most commonly, is a metalworking process by which a disc … Continue reading Metal Spinning Field Trip

We are closed on Monday, July 3rd in lieu of Canada Day this Saturday (July 1st)! We will be back in business July 4th.

As of June 7, 2017, Active-Tech Calgary is now under the ownership of Solarbotics Ltd.! Solarbotics has been a part of the Calgary DIY Electronics community for over 22 years, manufacturing and reselling the kits, parts and pieces you use for your own creations. Active-Tech Calgary has been around slightly longer, supplying industrial electronics & … Continue reading Solarbotics Takes Over Active-Tech Calgary

Because… of things… Solarbotics didn’t do a booth or official presence at this year’s Bay Area MakerFaire. We opted to do something fun this time, building a custom just-for-the-fair piece of sorta-interactive LED artwork. Following on the success of the quickie LED floor mandala resting area we did at the NYC MF, we turned it … Continue reading Interactive String LED Floor Mandala at MakerFaire Bay Area

ESP8266 ESP-32 CAD 13.50/ USD 9.99 The much anticipated ESP32 is here!! Bluetooth, Wifi, Dual Core, IoT just became doable! ESP-12F AP+STA Remote Serial Port WIFI Controller / Module CAD9.38/USD6.95 You can’t turn over an internet-connected rock without finding an ESP8266 of some sort wired to it. This ESP-12F AP+STA is a solid way to … Continue reading New ESP Offerings at Solarbotics