Let's start 2011 by promoting a worthwhile event sponsored by one of our suppliers, SparkFun. Tomorrow is their 2nd "Free Day". Last year's event pretty much crashed their servers (we sent flowers of condolence). This year, they're going about it a bit wiser, offering several ways to taking advantage of their $150,000 give-away. We're big […]
Bulbdial on Steroids - the Chinook Shado...
Dave Hrynkiw
March 23, 2012
We've been working with the Chinook Mall since they did a retrofit a decade ago, where they really amped up the mall, making it the keynote shopping centre of Calgary. One of their features is the "Time Capsule Clock", which sits in the floor of the center court, where a 1000 year time capsule waits under a clock.
Time passes fine for the capsule, but time did not treat the clock too well at all. Since clocks are generally supposed to be wall-mounted affairs, the constant beating it took from floor cleaners and pedestrians finally make it die an early death. We were called in periodically to repair the clock hands and reset the time until they finally gave us the go-ahead to design them a replacement. A much better engineered replacement - a ShadowClock!
Inspired by the sheer sleekness and appeal of the Evil Mad Scientist's Bulbdial, we adapted the idea to a larger scale, with 2.5X the LEDs. We finally installed the project last Monday, and just finished putting up a Flickr roll detailing the project.
Want one of your own? Sorry - we only have the backup unit left for our own nefarious purposes, but we're working on a kit!
MORE POSTS
Microsoft ... BEAM Robots?!?
Solarbotics held a few workshops and lectures at the MAKEr faire April 22/23rd. After giving a workshop, a nice man from Microsoft invited me over to see their BEAM robots. Obviously intregued, I found their display at the Microsoft pavilion where Microsoft encouraged all their engineers with "MAKE"-style hobbies to exhibit, including this squad of […]
New Product: Motors & Driver
28BYJ-48-16 16:1 Stepper Gearmotor $5.85 Originally designed for control of HVAC vanes and similar low-demand equipment, these stepper-motor gearboxes have lots of hacking potential. This is the lower torque / higher speed 16:1. 28BYJ-48-64 64:1 Stepper Gearmotor $5.85 Originally designed for control of HVAC vanes and similar low-demand equipment, these stepper-motor gearboxes have lots of […]
ESun Filament - Back in stock!
We've just received our eSun filament restock - thanks for your patience. It's being sorted in the warehouse presently, and fresh stock will be up at the store shortly!
Solarbotics has been operating for more than 25 years, bringing electronics know-how and supplies to both the electronics professional and hobbyist. We'll be happy to help you too!
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Warning: This product contains chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm.
Please visit www.P65Warnings.ca.gov for more information. This item was manufactured prior to August 31, 2018.