Controlled-environment cultivation

By martinm, in Internet of Things and Measures, april 11,2014.

As illustrated in a previous post, you need only a few Yoctopuce modules and a very simple logic to regulate an environmental factor such as humidity. Starting from there, why not generalize the principle and produce an environment fully optimized for a specific aim, such as growing plants? We decided to test this principle to grow mushrooms. Mushrooms, rather than tomatoes or pumpkins, because mushrooms grow fast and in the dark. It's therefore quite easy to make a time-lapse of their growing if you control lighting well...

Yoctopuce and Wireless mouses

By martinm, in DIY, april 01,2014.

At Yoctopuce, we use many computers to test our products and validate use-cases. We use wireless mouses mice mouses a lot. And the problem is always the same: whenever you have a mouse, you look for the matching dongle. This week, we present the method that we came up with to always find back the right dongle for every wireless mouse.

How to use Yoctopuce modules in the middle of nowhere

By Sébastien Rinsoz, in Measures and Android, march 27,2014.

How to measure environmental factors (temperature, light, humidity, ...) in a field located kilometers away from any electric socket and any Wifi network? The first solution coming to mind is to use an Android phone and to connect Yoctopuce sensors by USB. This solution works (as illustrated here), but to power this type of installation, you need to use a solar panel and a battery of a relatively large size. To perform some measures for a relatively short period of time (a few weeks), there is a simpler and probably cheaper alternative: using a Wifi connection between the phone and the sensor instead of a USB one.

New device: the Yocto-PWM-Tx

By martinm, in New stuff, march 20,2014.

A new Yoctopuce module is available: the Yocto-PWM-Tx. As its name suggests it, this module can transmit a PWM signal. This type of signal is often used when driving industrial equipments, motors, air-conditioners, or even lighting. Let's have a closer look at how it works.

A network humidifier in an afternoon

By Sébastien Rinsoz, in Internet of Things, march 13,2014.

When we founded Yoctopuce, one of the aims was to provide a fast, easy, and reliable solution for any geek DIY (controlling the coffee machine from your computer, knowing when to fetch the mail, and so on). Other solutions were already available, but none was simple enough for everything to work in half a day. This week, we had to quickly install a system to control humidity in a bedroom, and we had only an afternoon to do it. Here is what we did...