Hardware Podcasts

An Interview with Bart Dring

The Amp Hour · 15 Apr 2019 · 1h 32m · Episode 438

What this episode covers

Bart Dring, founder of BuildLog.net and former Director of Product at Inventables, discusses his journey from designing pinball machines at Williams Electronics to building custom CNC robots and motion control systems. He details the evolution of his open-source laser cutter kits and the Maker Slide linear extrusion, explaining how he managed early Kickstarter success and partnered with Inventables to support products like the X-Carve and Shapeoko. Dring then explains his recent work porting the Gerbil motion planner firmware to the ESP32, enabling low-cost, wireless, standalone controllers for small-scale robots like the NickelBot and Stringbot.

Most relevant to

early-stage companies

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
Williams Electronics, Inventables
Products
Maker Slide, X-Carve, Shapeoko, Carvey, NickelBot, Stringbot, Easel
Chips
ESP32, PSoC
Also
BuildLog.net, Gerbil, Arduino, Mach 3, Linux CNC

Related episodes from other shows

Other shows on the same ground, closest first.

  • Open Hardware Manufacturing Podcast · 1h 28m

    Ep. 33 - Guest: Bar Smith of Maslow CNC

    Bar Smith, founder of Maslow CNC, explains the evolution of the Maslow 4.1 large-format CNC router, detailing the transition from a scrappy, open-source garage project to a polished product via a successful Kickstarter. He discusses key engineering decisions, such as switching from stepper to servo motors and using a ring-based linkage system to solve complex kinematic math, while highlighting the importance of community feedback and transparent communication in iterative hardware development. Smith also reflects on his decision to step away from the project, work in the industry, and return to shepherd the product, aiming to commoditize large-format CNC technology to the accessibility of a standard chop saw.

    Industrial & consumer product designMicrocontrollers & dev platforms
    9 chapters

  • Hackaday Podcast · 39m

    Ep 202: CNC Monks, Acrobot, Bootleg Merch, and the Rise and Fall of Megahex

    Editors Elliot Williams and Kristina Panos discuss the winners of the 2022 FPV Vehicle Contest, including JP Glaza's scratch-built ESP32 drone and Perky's 3D FPV rig. They review the Carmelite monks of Wyoming using Prusik CNC rock-cutting machines to build a Gothic monastery, and highlight ZS Watch, an open-source smartwatch by Jacob Krantz. The episode also covers the rise and fall of Hacksmith's Mega Hex robot, the engineering pitfalls of sign-language translation gloves, and the security implications of Punycode in domain names.

    Mechanical engineeringPCB design & layout
    7 chapters

  • Robot Talk · 24m

    Episode 109: Building robots at home - Dan Nicholson

    Dan Nicholson, founder of MakerForge.tech, discusses his journey from a software engineer to building a large-scale open-source bipedal companion robot. He explains how he transitioned from a simple cube design to a complex, 3D-printable robot using hobby servos, Raspberry Pi, and cloud-based CAD tools to make robotics accessible to non-experts. Nicholson highlights the challenges of balancing cost and functionality in hobby robotics, the importance of rapid prototyping with 3D printing, and the value of open-source collaboration in accelerating development and community engagement.

    Robotics & autonomyPrototyping & iteration
    9 chapters

  • Hackaday Podcast · 52m

    Ep071: Measuring Micrometers, the Goldilocks Fit, Little Linear Motors, and 8-bit Games on ESP32

    Hackaday editors Mike Szczys and Elliot Williams review a week of hardware hacks, starting with Lattice Semiconductor's brief attempt to restrict reverse engineering of its FPGA bitstreams, which was quickly retracted. They then examine Mike Rankin's 'ESP32 Berninator,' a microscopic laser cutter utilizing tiny linear motors and surface-mount nuts, and Andrew Khan's CNC scroll saw with complex polar-Cartesian kinematics. The episode also covers Rossum's ESP32-based 8-bit game emulator, Mark Quist's open-source audio modem, and a deep dive into the Turing-complete capabilities of the `printf` function.

    Microcontrollers & dev platformsChips, FPGAs & semiconductors
    9 chapters

  • Hackaday Podcast · 1h 06m

    Ep 357: BreezyBox, Antique Tech, and Defusing Killer Robots

    Editors Elliot Williams and Tom Nardi discuss BreezyBox, a project by Valentine Donald Chuck that provides a busybox-like shell and virtual terminal for the ESP32, enabling interactive development and self-compiling applications on the microcontroller. They also review a case study on Brighter, a Kickstarter-funded lamp company, detailing the manufacturing challenges faced by founder Simon, including heat sink design errors and assembly communication failures. The episode covers Tucker Osman's reverse engineering of iPad displays to create a PC touchscreen, the homebrew scene for the Nintendo Pokemon Mini, and the creation of a custom RGB 14-segment display by East Makes. Finally, they analyze industrial robot safety protocols and test the viability of decade-old PLA filament.

    Embedded firmwareManufacturing partners & offshoring
    10 chapters

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