Ep058: Motorheads, 3D Prints that Bend Metal, and Homebuilt Onewheel Death Machines

Hackaday Podcast · 13 Mar 2020 · 51m

What this episode covers

Hackaday editors Elliot Williams and Jonathan Bennett discuss a range of hardware hacks, including 3D printed tooling for bending metal, home-synthesized rubies, and self-balancing one-wheel vehicles built from hoverboard parts. They also cover the decline of the Right to Repair legislation in Nebraska, focusing on the John Deere vs. farmers dispute, and the progress of open-source FPGA tooling following a Supercon talk by Tim Ansell. Finally, they highlight Haddington Dynamics' strategy of scaling their Dexter robot arm production through distributed micro-factories.

Mentioned

Companies
Hacking Day, John Deere, Haddington Dynamics, Form Labs, Intel, Altera, Xilinx, NASA, DARPA, Casio, Microsoft
Products
Dexter Robot, Half-Life
Chips
STM32, ESP8266, Raspberry Pi
Also
Symbiflow, BattleBots, Team Sawblaze, Project Orion

Other shows on the same ground, closest first.

  • Unnamed Reverse Engineering Podcast · 1h 43m

    044 - Scots Army Knife

    Piotr Esden-Tempski of 1BitSquared discusses the company's role in manufacturing open-source hardware, specifically the Glasgow digital interface explorer, the iCEBreaker FPGA board, and the Black Magic Probe debugger. He explains the economic rationale for using an old Quad 4C pick-and-place machine for small-batch production and details how Glasgow uses an FPGA to dynamically generate hardware protocols via the nmigen HDL. The conversation also covers the geopolitical shift toward RISC-V in China, the challenges of debugging legacy industrial equipment, and the importance of documentation and community education in the open-source hardware ecosystem.

  • Making It · 1h 31m

    Episode 100: Live From Boston!

    Jimmy Diresta, Bob Clagett, and David Picciuto discuss their current projects, including Jimmy's 3D-printed Star Wars helmet and Bob's hot dog inlay table, while reflecting on the importance of community and maintaining a positive attitude in the maker world. They share personal stories about quitting their day jobs to pursue YouTube full-time, the challenges of shipping and logistics, and the difficulty of finding one's creative voice. The hosts also answer audience questions regarding buyer's remorse on tools like the ShopBot and Delta 3D printer, and the complexities of collaboration and branding.

  • Embedded.fm · 1h 08m

    100: Unintentional Radiator

    Hosts Amelia Cook and Christopher White reunite with guests Star Simpson and Jen Costillo to reflect on the evolution of the hardware hobbyist landscape over the two years since their first appearance. Star Simpson, who works at Orion, discusses her wearable device project and her open-source FPGA toolchain initiative called Balboa, while also recounting the challenges of crowdfunding the Octopart reference card. The group analyzes the shifting attitudes toward privacy and security in the Internet of Things, the rise of accessible prototyping tools like 3D printing and Crowd Supply, and the changing ecosystem of development boards including the Odroid and Arduino.

  • Making It · 1h 09m

    Episode 155: Brain tornado-ing and pretzels

    Jimmy Diresta, Bob Clagett, and David Picciuto discuss their recent projects, including Jimmy's new CNC machine and David's 3D printed screw organizers. The group brainstorms ideas for David's sponsored dog feeder, debating mechanisms like Archimedes screws and gravity dispensers, while also tackling Jimmy's challenge of creating ten wire-bending projects for a sports-themed video. They conclude with updates on their YouTube channel strategies, business budgeting, and personal interests.

  • Embedded.fm · 43m

    293: Skateboard Tricks

    Limor Fried, founder and lead engineer of Adafruit, discusses the evolution of her Manhattan-based company from dorm-room kits to a manufacturing operation with 100 employees and 4,000 products. She details the development of the PyGamer and PyBadge, the strategic importance of the open-source TinyUSB stack by engineer Hathach, and the critical role of documentation in making hardware accessible to makers and the assistive tech community. Fried also reflects on the healthy competition within the open-source hardware ecosystem, the challenges of scaling product lines, and the long-term sustainability of assistive technology through open standards.

The summary, chapters and topics are generated from the episode’s audio by this directory, not written by Hackaday Podcast. The episode itself belongs to its publisher.