A smartphone-controlled pool cover

By Sébastien Rinsoz, in Android, DIY and Internet of Things, june 19,2014.

If you own a swimming pool, you have probably implemented a method to save kids from falling into the pool. One popular method is the use of an automatic pool cover, but often these systems can only be driven using a mechanical switch. This week we will show how to control a system like this using your smartphone.

SRF06: a cheap range finder

By martinm, in Reviews, Measures and DIY, may 30,2014.

We are often asked if we have any plan for a range finder. Well, the answer is "no, not a this time". However, we do have some reasonable alternatives.

Automatic Garden Watering using a BeagleBone Black

By mvuilleu, in DIY, Internet of Things and Tiny PC, april 17,2014.

The sun is back. It is time to start thinking about a good automated watering system for the garden if you need to have it up and running when it's going to get real warm. Do you already have a central garden watering system ? Then let's see how you could make it smarter using a BeagleBone Black and a Yoctopuce device.

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.

The return of the Yoctopuce mailbox

By martinm, in Internet of Things and DIY, february 21,2014.

Do you remember the laser mailbox? It works quite well, but we noticed a very annoying defect. Because the mailbox is made of metal sheets, it tends to slightly deform itself depending on temperature changes. This deformation changes the laser beam trajectory inside the box, sometimes to the point of bringing it off the light sensor target. Therefore, we had to regularly adjust the mailbox to solve this issue. After a while, we had enough and we came up with another idea to fix this. But this time, we are seeing big: we are going to render our mailbox autonomous thanks to a solar panel and a Wifi connection.