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Electronics: 1st July 2025

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Published 1st July 2025

📚 Academic Research

Development of an Open-Source Spacecraft Bus for the PULSE-A CubeSat (arxiv:astro). PULSE-A CubeSat's open-source bus facilitates circular polarization shift keyed laser communication, featuring dual BeagleBone Black units and cFS software architecture for modularity

SIMulator: SIM Tracing on a (Pico-)Budget (arxiv:cs). SIM tracing for cellular network research using low-cost microcontrollers like Raspberry Pi Pico; reducing complexity and costs for broader accessibility

🕹️ Vintage Computer & Arcade Restoration

PJ5 TTL CPU (pj5cpu​.wordpress​.com). Updates on PJ5 TTL CPU design include display issues, new programmer development, and plans for peripherals like joystick interface and sound card

Restoring a ZX Spectrum+ Toastrack (celso​.io). Restoration of a ZX Spectrum+ Toastrack involving upgrades like a DD2712SA DC-DC Buck converter, video signal improvements, and keyboard replacement

Refurb weekend: Gremlin Blasto arcade board (oldvcr​.blogspot​.com). Refurbishing Gremlin Blasto arcade board; exploring history, hardware, and gameplay mechanics of classic arcade games from the 70s

Restoring a vintage Intel Prompt 80 8080 microcomputer trainer / development system (smbaker​.com). Restoration of Intel Prompt 80 8080 microcomputer involves CPU installation, power supply repair, assembly programming, Forth language integration, and speech synthesis

Exidy 440 FPGA (bavatuesdays​.com). Reviving an Exidy Cheyenne cabinet with an Exidy 440 FPGA board, enhancing gameplay with modern light-gun game emulation

Pinball Update (coyoteblog​.com). Refurbishing a vintage Eight Ball Deluxe pinball machine with impact drivers, soldering, LED upgrades, and detailed disassembly for reassembly challenges

🎨 Creative Hardware Projects

Oasis – an open-source, 3D-printed smart terrarium (github​.com). Oasis is an open-source, 3D-printed smart terrarium supporting humidity-loving plants, featuring CAD models, electronics with KiCad, and software in Rust

SWU Health Counter (blog​.c0nrad​.io). Electronics project creating a SWU health counter using Arduino, Pi Pico, PCBs, 3D printing, and programming in MicroPython

Today’s Functional Print: Baluster Retrofit Hardware (chrisfinke​.com). Remodeling a stairway with metal balusters using custom 3D-printed retrofit hardware for a clean, tool-free installation

South Pole Kite Photos (mpetroff​.net). Matthew Petroff documents aerial photography at the South Pole using a kite, including challenges with camera equipment and custom-built solutions for extreme cold

Polyphonic pickup, modules (wreckage​.link). Exploration of polyphonic pickup modules utilizing TLV320ADC3140 ADC for high-fidelity audio, addressing technical challenges in data acquisition, noise reduction, and differential amplifier designs

And Then There Were Pants (robotskirts​.com). Eliot Phillips updates the LED Adidas track jacket project, introducing pants with COB LED strips and advanced control via the Sparkle Motion controller

🏠 Home Automation & IoT

Getting weather data from my Acurite sensors was shockingly easy (jeffgeerling​.com). Easily collect weather data from Acurite sensors using a Raspberry Pi and rtl-433 to integrate with Home Assistant

Orchestrating AI workloads on a Jetson Orin Nano with Nomad (atodorov​.me). Enhancing Home Assistant with local LLM on Jetson Orin Nano using Nomad for AI workloads orchestration

How I Transformed My Flat into a Smart Home with Home Assistant (jonathas​.com). Jonathas Ribeiro shares his smart home transformation using Home Assistant, Zigbee network, Apple integration, and various automation techniques for enhanced living

Water tank level sensor: 4–20mA current loop, ESPHome, and Home Assistant (blog​.narf​.ssji​.net). ESPHome integration with a 4–20mA pressure sensor for water tank level monitoring using ESP32-PoE2 and Home Assistant

Temperature and humitidy sensor on OpenWrt (blog​.kleine-koenig​.org). Integrating SHT3x humidity and temperature sensor on Turris Omnia using OpenWrt with collectd-mod-sensors and luci-app-statistics for data visualization

My Lights Run on Bash (kramkow​.ski). Tomasz Kramkowski integrates Bash scripts with Zigbee2MQTT for smart home lighting automation, enabling remote control and dimming through various devices

RSS Converter for MastoFeed (speedofcreativity​.org). Wes Fryer automates podcast sharing on Mastodon using a Python RSS converter, leveraging AI tools like ChatGPT for coding assistance

đź’» Development & Programming

My earliest ErgoDox keymap (me​.micahrl​.com). Exploration of the ErgoDox keyboard keymap, its benefits for RSI, and personal insights on layout customization and evolution

MicroZed Chronicles: Embedded Software, working with Peripherals. (adiuvoengineering​.com). Explore peripherals in Zynq MPSoC using Vitis, including AXI GPIO configuration and interaction with hardware components on the ZU Board

Building the M17 Nokia 3310 (rz01​.org). Guide to building an M17 Nokia 3310, featuring PCB assembly, firmware flashing, and required components like the SA868S RF module

Protect your MicroPython sourcecode (lucstechblog​.blogspot​.com). Learn to protect MicroPython source code using bytecode compilation with mpy-cross, preventing unauthorized access and analysis of your microcontroller programs

How to Present Your Upskilling Journey to Land a Senior Embedded Role (shawnhymel​.com). Present your upskilling journey in embedded systems using projects, certifications, learning stories, and visual portfolios to secure senior roles

🥧 Raspberry Pi Projects

eInk Spectra build guide (frameos​.net). Build guide for eInk Spectra frames using Waveshare and Pimoroni panels, featuring Raspberry Pi Zero W2, FrameOS, and custom OpenSCAD cases

Trying out the ice4pi from Lightside Instruments (mikecoats​.com). Hands-on with Lightside Instruments' ice4pi, programming Raspberry Pi with FPGA, setup guidance, GPIO control, and R-2R DAC applications

Raspberry Pi as NTP server (bruceediger​.com). Setting up a Raspberry Pi NTP server using GPS modules and configuring Raspberry Pi OS with tools like chrony and gpsd

Tinkerbell Part IV: Provisioning a Raspberry Pi 4 (blog​.mei-home​.net). Provisioning Raspberry Pi 4 using Tinkerbell, Dnsmasq, PXE boot, and UEFI for Ubuntu 24.04 installation on a USB SSD

🔌 ESP32 Projects & Development

Festival Finder Hat with WLED (learn​.adafruit​.com). Create a Festival Finder Hat with WLED using an ESP32 board, featuring customizable LED animations to help friends locate you in a crowd

ESP-IDF Tutorials: Basic HTTP server (developer​.espressif​.com). Create a basic HTTP server on Espressif devices using esp_http_server and manage routes, connect via soft-AP, and handle requests with URI handlers

Genesis IoT Discovery Lab – A Plug-and-Play Classroom Built on ESP32-S3 (developer​.espressif​.com). Genesis transforms ESP32-S3 into an educational modular kit with AX22 modules for prototyping, coding, and creative hardware projects in educational settings

XIAO USB Device to Serial MIDI Converter (diyelectromusic​.com). DIY guide for XIAO ESP32-C3 MIDI Synth using Arduino USB to Serial MIDI conversion, emphasizing safety and simplicity in electronic music projects

XIAO ESP32-C3 MIDI Synthesizer (diyelectromusic​.com). Explore the XIAO ESP32-C3 MIDI Synthesizer featuring the Dream SAM2695 chip, GPIO interfaces, and the ability to create custom MIDI applications

Building a Power Monitoring System with ESP32 and PZEM-004T: A Pull-Based Approach (michaelstinkerings​.org). Build a power monitoring system using ESP32 and PZEM-004T v3, measuring electric parameters, with InfluxDB storage and Grafana visualization

VHS was better...Hear me out. (thestockpot​.net). Create a modern VCR-like experience using ESP32, NFC for movie playback, and customized cartridges for a nostalgic touch without VHS drawbacks

Embedded rust development on esp32 with flakes (ezrizhu​.com). Embedded Rust development on ESP32 using Nix flakes, detailing environment setup and resources for RISC-V architecture programming

🔍 Hardware Analysis & Teardowns

Name that Ware, June 2025 (bunniestudios​.com). Analyzing an 80's vintage audio board from Aphex, featuring components like binary counters, DACs, and an enhancement generator

Brain dump, June 2025 (dmitrybrant​.com). Restoring old laptops and floppy drives; custom PCBs and soldering; power supply adapters for AT connectors discussed

The Legend Continues: Amiga 1000 Keyboard Revival (linuxjedi​.co​.uk). Restoration process of the Amiga 1000 keyboard, focusing on key switch repair, parts replacement, and the use of 3D printing for custom components

Hardwear.io 2025 Thought Dump: 10 Takeaways (coopergyoung​.com). Insights from Hardwear.io 2025 on hardware hacking, crystal oscillators, security threats like RowHammer, and techniques such as fault injection and JTAG access

Paragon mechanical timer 4004-71M vs 4004-71 (codingrelic​.geekhold​.com). Comparison of Paragon mechanical timers 4004-71M and 4004-71, including compatibility issues and modification techniques for installation

đź‘‹ Before you go

I've got a big favor to ask - keeping Blaze running isn't expensive, but it does all add up, so I'm asking readers like you to help, if you can.
That's why I'm launching a Patreon page!. Nothing flashy, just a way for folks who find value in these newsletters to chip in a little each month. In return, you'll get:

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Thanks for reading and being part of this nerdy corner of the internet. All the best - Alastair.

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