4 June 2017
14 Build this Professional Grade
Data Acquisition System
This is a high performance general-purpose instrument
that has become the Swiss army knife of my home lab. It
is my go-to instrument to measure, record, and display
data in just about every experiment I do. The best part is it
cost under $100.
■ By Eric Bogatin
22 DIY Super Simple Security
System
Never wonder if you’ve locked a door again with this
homebrew system that tells you more than if a door is
just closed.
■ By C.A. Hamilton
28 Build an Adaptable Controller
Project SMART students put together a flight controller
that can be used in near space ballooning projects.
However, the open-ended nature of this project is one of
the things that makes it so interesting.
■ By Richard Levergood and Maria Panacopoulos
36 Receiving Data with Web
Based Shortwave Radios
Your computer and the Internet give you free access to
over 100 web based shortwave receivers that you can use
as if they were your own. Unfortunately, employing these
radios to decode data transmissions can be very difficult
or impossible — unless you know the secret.
■ By George R. Steber
40 Low Cost EMI Pre-Compliance
Testing
In today’s world of social media and online funding, the
step from electronics hobbyist to manufacturer is not that
great. Unfortunately, there’s one potential hiccup in this
scenario, assuming you want to do it right: the need to
demonstrate compliance with FCC emission rules. Here
are some ideas to help you navigate these tricky waters.
■ By Matt Maxwell
06 Q&A
Reader Questions Answered Here
Topics discussed this month:
• A Fan of Quiet Fans
• NiCd to NiMH
• Clean Automotive Power
09 Open Communication
The Latest in Networking and
Wireless Technologies
Cheap and Dirty Wireless Remote Control
Dealing with RF circuits is daunting for most
experimenters. It is tricky and a bit frustrating if you build
your own RF circuits. Now you don’t have to — thanks to
the many available wireless modules.
46 The Design Cycle
Advanced Techniques for Design Engineers
Putting the Digital Discovery to Work
Get introduced to the Digilent Digital Discovery. It’s no
bigger than a hockey puck, however, it is a logic probe, a
logic analyzer, a power supply, a pattern generator, and a
waveform generator. Plus, it’s programmable via its
JavaScript scripting interface.
54 Near Space
Approaching the Final Frontier
A Recording Weather Station
Create a weather station that records position and
environmental data at the same time during near space
missions. You’ll see that with minor modifications, it can
turn into other things like a weather station for ground
use, for UAV use, and hikers.
59 Practical 3D Printing
Real World Uses for Electronics Experimenters
Portable Electronics Workbench
There are many times I’d like to have a way to carry my
electronics workbench with me to a Makerspace or just to
an offsite location where I’ll be building an electronic
project. Here’s how I made a customized portable
organizer.
Columns
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58 TheGreatSchematicQuiz
Yep! We’ve got a new quiz for 2017 to get your electronic
brains buzzing. You’ll be challenged to identify common
symbols found on electronic schematics. Some symbols
are ageless, while others are more modern.
■ By David Goodsell
June 2017
05 DEVELOPING
PERSPECTIVES
Real Electronics
12 NEW PRODUCTS
13 SHOWCASE
52 NV WEBSTORE
62 TECH FORUM
65 CLASSIFIEDS
65 ELECTRO-NET
65 AD INDEX
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