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Greetings from the editorial desk of Circuit Cellar magazine, and welcome to the October Edition. This month, we have Native Hooks and Build Your Own Smart Thermostat projects in store for you, as well as so much more.
I begin with a personal anecdote to introduce you to an issue packed with insightful content. Not too long ago, when I was driving my 10-year-old daughter back from summer day camp, she said, “Look, Dad, they’re playing your song.”
A careful nod to the display on the dash called out “Phone.Keys.Wallet” by the little-known jazz-funk ensemble CBDB. My song should be titled, “Where’s my darn phone?” However, the ubiquitous checklist of things required before venturing out has been immortalized in a song title. I’m usually scrambling to find one or two of these items at any time of the day. But returning writer Andrei Florian tells us how to unlock some hidden features in most smartphones to find out where the device is. Presumably, this project is for phones lost well outside of the home. He delves into creating a secure, low-cost, open-source system that sends the owner an email with the phone’s location.
Raul Alvarez Torrico introduces us to µLisp, a version of the Lisp programming language designed to run on microcontrollers. His crash course delves into programming concepts and syntax and then discusses µLisp extensions specific to MCU-related functionalities, illustrated with line-by-line code.
Our issue opens with a project designed to combine the worlds of engineering, art, and interactivity.
Arijit Das describes a kinetic wall built with a Raspberry Pi, kinetic cameras, servo motors, and a whole lot of creativity and teamwork. After reading through his project and seeing the results, I immediately wanted one of these items for Circuit Cellar’s booth display at trade shows. I hope you will feel the same way.
Stuart Ball returns to these pages by offering a guide to handling the world beyond ones and zeros. Mesh circuits are one avenue designers use for the real world, and he guides us through mesh analysis and how mesh circuits can be calculated and applied to practical scenarios.
Bob Japenga continues exploring the React Native ecosystem and providing insight into mobile app programming. In the fourth part of his series, he examines hooks, which he describes as the closest thing to system calls.
As the weather begins to get cooler, Jeff Bachiochi is building a smart thermostat project. This will allow you to turn up the heat in any room of your house through a phone, tablet, or other mobile device. Hopefully, you will be able to get everything nice and toasty inside before you get back from work.
This month’s technology feature delves into medical device technology and provides an overview of the latest developments designed to improve patient outcomes. AI is now in play, but the march toward greater miniaturization has remained the same, as the quest to make remote patient monitoring more comfortable and less obtrusive continues unabated.
When you think of tiny, do you think of micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS)? This month’s Datasheet explores the latest MEMS offerings, including one micro-cooling system designed for mobile devices. Yes, as AI permeates all applications, you will need active cooling on whatever chip runs in your pocket. I’m still waiting on a foldable micromachine before I jump into MEMS.
We hope at least one of these features inspires the creativity you need to jump-start your own innovative project. If it does, locate your smartphone, take photos of the build, describe the process in text, and send us a proposal. It could be the subject of a future Circuit Cellar feature. Now, where’s my darn phone?
Issue Table of Contents can be found here,
as articles are made available online they will be linked.
PUBLISHED IN CIRCUIT CELLAR MAGAZINE • October #411 – Get a PDF of the issue
Tom Murphy has been plying his trade as a technology journalist for more than 25 years, first as an editor/writer/reporter and then as a communications professional. He has earned industry recognition for both journalistic endeavors and technology campaigns. Before joining Circuit Cellar magazine as editor-in-chief (2024), Tom wrote tech briefs, newsletters, blogs, press releases, white papers, and technical articles for numerous clients, primarily in the semiconductor industry. His introduction into the industry came as an editor for “Electronic News” covering microprocessor companies, the fabless semiconductor phenomena, communication chips, and many others. When he’s not tapping away at the keyboard, Tom learns Dungeons and Dragons terminology from his 10-year-old daughter and walks his bulldog (slowly) around the block.
