Blog

Two weeks ago we introduced lots of replacement Bricklets with more and better features than there now deprecated counterparts. Additionally we will replace the IMU Brick with a hugely improved IMU Brick 2.0 in the next week.

For some of the now deprecated products we still have stock, for those we would like to reduce the price as follows:

• *: Ambient Light Bricklet and Analog In Bricklet are already out of stock.

• +: We do still have old Moisture Bricklets in stock, but because of the corrosion problems with the old Moisture Bricklet we don’t want to sell it anymore. If you are still interested in one, please write it as an order comment. We will add it to your order for free (as long as supplies last).

Please note: If the deprecated Bricks and Bricklets are out of stock they will not be produced again and thus not be available anymore.

We haven been asked how the Load Cell Bricklet and load cells work in general several times now. To demonstrate the functionality we made a small scale project with a 1kg load cell. It turned out so well, that we put it in the shop as a Scale Kit ;-).

The Scale Kit is build from MakerBeam, a 1kg Load Cell and laser cut plastic parts. It is very easy to put together and it demonstrates the functionality of a load cell.

A precision of ±1g is the complete 0-1kg range is possible with the kit.

Instead of mostly talking about new products in our blog we want to show small and big projects more often. Today we start with two example programs for the RED Brick. The projects show how you can send and receive SMS messages with the RED Brick.

The sms_humidity example sends a SMS humidty message with a 60 second interval. It uses the callback of the Humidity Bricklet. The projects needs the RED Brick, a 3g stick with sim card and a Master Brick with Humidity Bricklet. In a Python script you can enter the UID of the Humidity Bricklet, the pin number of the sim card as well as the phone number of the sms message receiver. If transferred to the RED Brick, the python script will automatically send the humindity SMS message every 60 seconds.

The sms_location example uses a GPS Bricklet and it sends the position via SMS message. Instead of using a sending interval, the position is requested. To request the position you can send a SMS with the command “tf:loc” to the RED Brick. It will then send back the current position.

Both examples are written in Python and can be easily used as a starting point for your SMS message sending and receiving applications! Have fun with your automated SMS messaging!

Go to:

• Part 1/4

• Part 2/4

• Part 3/4

• Part 4/4

Industrial Analog Out Bricklet

The Industrial Analog Out Bricklet is used to create current signals (0mA to 24mA) and voltage signals (0V to 10V) according to DIN IEC 60381-1 and DIN IEC 60381-2, to control devices with corresponding interfaces.

Industrial Dual Analog In Bricklet

The Industrial Dual Analog In Bricklet is equipped with a 2-channel 24-bit ADC for voltage measurements. It is factory calibrated. This allows for a full-scale (-35V to +35V) accuracy of 0.1% (±4mV) with up to 976 samples per second. Therefore, the Industrial Dual Analog In Bricklet represents the current high-end Bricklet for voltage measurements.

RS232 Bricklet

The RS232 Bricklet can send and receive serial data to communicate with other serial devices. The Bricklet offers three different connection options. A D-sub 9 connector and a 5-way terminal block provides a serial interface with RS-232 signal level. Alternatively, a 5-way pin header provides the same serial interface but with 3.3V TTL signal level.

ENDE, END, FIN, коне́ц

This was the last part of this series. We are eager to read about your projects! More Bricks and Bricklets to extend the system of building blocks will follow in the future. Stay tuned!

Go to:

• Part 1/4

• Part 2/4

• Part 3/4

• Part 4/4

Accelerometer Bricklet

The Accelerometer Bricklet is equipped with a 3-axis accelerometer. The measured acceleration values for the three axes can be used to calculate the inclination of the Bricklet as roll and pitch angle. The Accelerometer Bricklet fits into the category of motion and position sensors in between the Tilt Bricklet and the IMU Brick.

Possible applications for the Accelerometer Bricklet are vast. For example, it can be used as an vibration sensor, or as a level, or to measure g-forces while driving a car, or du build an electronic dice.

Dust Detector Bricklet

The Dust Detector Bricklet is equipped with a dust sensor to measure the airborne dust density. This can be used as accurate indicator for when to vacuum or air the room.

Laser Range Finder Bricklet

The Laser Range Finder Bricklet uses a laser distance sensor. It can measure distance up to 40m with a resolution of 1cm and velocity up to 127m/s with a resolution of 1m/s. The velocity measurement range can be reduced in four steps down to 12.7m/s. The smaller measurement range allows for higher resolution up to 0.1m/s.

The Laser Range Finder Bricklet is the new star among the Bricklets for distance measurements. In contrast to the Distance IR Bricklet it is not sensitive to sunlight and its distance measurement range is much bigger compared to the Distance US Bricklet. Because it uses a narrow laser beam, instead of infrared light or ultrasound, it can to pinpoint measurements.

The Laser Range Finder Bricklet can be used for many applications. Here are some robotic examples: it can be used as height-above-ground sensor for drones or as laser scanner when combined with a servo or stepper motor.

Load Cell Bricklet

The Load Cell Bricklet can be connected to a load cell to build an individual and precise scale. There alre also four different load cells for different weight ranges available in the shop: 1kg, 5kg, 20kg, 50kg.

The Load Cell Bricklet can be used in all applications that benefit from automatic scales. For example, while automating a hobby-beer-brewery to automatically check the amounts of different ingredients.

How it continues tomorrow…

In the last part, that will be published tomorrow, we will introduce three new I/O Bricklets: Industrial Analog Out, Industrial Dual Analog In and RS232 Bricklet.