Monthly Archives: January 2020

OWFS on a Raspberry Pi

I have an old Raspberry in my Stevenson screen and I’d quite like to hook it up to my 1-wire weather sensors rather than running the 1-wire connection into the observatory to my desktop system there. OWFS looks like it … Continue reading

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Swimming, 27th January 2020

Same set as last week today, but in a far busier pool. I wonder how many are on their post-Christmas fitness binge and will run out of steam over the next couple of weeks… Another improvement on my previous session, … Continue reading

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Summary of Robert Brown Arduino dew controller build

Overall I’m very happy with this project. It seems to work very well and is a huge improvement on not having dew straps. Generally it’s a pretty straightforward build with nothing really that much more taxing than making sure LED … Continue reading

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Swimming, 24th January 2020

Yes, same set again 🙂 Today I didn’t fail on the first set until rep fourteen, so again an improvement on the previous session, despite feeling tired again. Sadly the 25s were again a disaster. As long as I keep … Continue reading

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Robert Brown Arduino dew controller build, step by step #18

So, testing… I downloaded the Arduino code from Sourceforge and unzipped it to find a directory called “Tests”, which seemed quite straightforward. In the documentation there are a list of tests n the order they should be run, but I … Continue reading

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Robert Brown Arduino dew controller build, step by step #17

To complete the testing I need to make up the temperature sensor plugs. This wasn’t a major problem. The black connector part unscrews from the metal body revealing the pins for connecting the wires, so it’s just a case of … Continue reading

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Robert Brown Arduino dew controller build, step by step #16

I’ve now finished making all the other connectors, so it’s time to start testing. I have already plugged in the 12V supply and the magic smoke didn’t come out, so that’s a good start.

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Swimming, 23rd January 2020

Same set again, as ever. However, I decided that as the entire arm, and particularly the lower arm, generates forward motion in the pull, I’d mentally try to focus on what that part of my arm was doing, rather than … Continue reading

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Robert Brown Arduino dew controller build, step by step #15

There was one other component I almost forgot! The DS18B20 temperature sensor that goes on the PCB. I could have soldered that direct to the board, but put a pin header in instead and mounted the sensor in the plug:

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Robert Brown Arduino dew controller build, step by step #14

The lid, complete with all wiring. That’s almost all the soldering done. I think there are just the temperature sensor plugs and possibly a power cable to make up (I think I’ve run out) that will require more soldering work. … Continue reading

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