THINGAn unexpected journey

Sculpture: “Electrolux Death Ray” by: Greg Brotherton at: brotron.com

A walk on the hardware side from a networking guy. As networking and things collide the

search for right-shifting experiences with things from functional (but sucks) to a unified

experience with well-factored services, devices and human interactions will be required.

This talk logs the journey of a software engineer in the shoes of an electronic engineer and product designer to better understand the

"internet of things".

THINGs?What is the internet of

Internet of Things (noun) - a proposed development of the Internet in which everyday objects have network connectivity, allowing

them to send and receive data …

– “Internet of Things” - added to Oxford English Dictionary - August 2013

– “Internet of Things” - a better definition - Darach Ennis, October 2013

Internet of Things (noun) - a proposed development of the Internet in which everyday

people can easily network everyday objects, allowing them to send and receive

data …

THINGsA pre-history of the internet of

Starting with electricity (skipping smoke signals etc..)

Edison did not invent the electric light. He invented the first commercially practical incandescent bulb (and first practical

use of electrically interconnected networks) …

May 24th 1844. Morse sends first telegraph from Washington D.C. to Baltimore. The message was “What hath God

wrought”, Numbers 23:23.

"Mr. Watson,!Come here!”

Alexander Graham Bell’s first telephone call to his assistant Thomas A. Watson.

The Victorian internet of things era begins…

– March 10th, 1876Alexandar Graham Bell.

“Mr. Watson - !come here. I want

to see you”

Bell’s Lab Notebook: http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/treasures/trr002.html

Heathrow RADAR

Ra(dio) d(etection) a(nd) r(anging).

A system for detecting the presence, direction,

distance, and speed of aircraft, ships, and other objects, by sending out pulses of high-

frequency electromagnetic waves that are reflected off the object back to the source.

!

!Origins:

Dr Christian Doppler discovers effect of pitch changes over distance in 1842.!

Dr Heinrich Hertz discovers reflectivity of radio waves in 1886. !

Initial Application:!!

Research into electromagnetic DEATH RAYS by British Air Ministry in 1934. No, i’m not kidding: http://www.doramusic.com/Radar.htm

!!

Henry Tizard

Robert Watson-Watt

Arnold Wilkins

Harry Wimperis

Could such a death ray be constructed and used against

aircraft?

Could such a death ray be constructed and used against

aircraft?

£1,000 standing reward to anyone who can build a death ray that can kill a

sheep at 100 yards

RADAR - So analog. Much age. Very antique…RADAR - In theory, it can BBQ sheep at 100 yards…

ADS-B - Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast

1090MHz

From Death Ray to Plane to Plane collision avoidance? Oh the irony…

Cheap SDR 15 quid, ebay

github: antirez/dump1090

THINGDesign a

Design a thing• Design radio mesh network capable using uC

embedded device for home area networking

• Use CAD/CAM and surface mount technology

• Require modular packaging interface for ease of prototyping wireless sensor, and other internet of things domains.

• Use free, open source technology where possible

THINGSurvey existing

RF

Design a thing• Design cheap radio mesh network using uC

embedded device for home area networking

• Use CAD/CAM and surface mount technology

• Require modular packaging interface for ease of prototyping wireless sensor, and other internet of things domains.

• Use free, open source technology where possible

9.48USD is ~ 5.65GBP for 10. That’s 60p each. #winning

THINGPrototype a

PrototypeUsing Arduino Pro Mini

THINGImplement a

Circuit DesignEagle CAD

Board LayoutEagle CAD

Create CAM (gerber) filesCAD -> CAM scripts are manufacturing specific

Order PCBs, … wait (weeks)CAD -> CAM scripts are manufacturing specific

Solder, test and reworkMay (probably will) require another revision or three to

manufacturing before everything is 'good'

THINGEvolve a

Evolve a thing• Design cheap radio mesh network using uC

embedded device for home area networking

• Use CAD/CAM and surface mount technology

• Require modular packaging interface for ease of prototyping wireless sensor, and other internet of things domains.

• Use free, open source technology where possible

Modular?

No better platform…

…to integrate with!but how to make the PCBs lego shaped with lego size

holes?

Packaging. How?Dude, you’re a programmer, so …

Write!Code!

3D shape modelUsing OpenSCAD

Project 3D to 2D outline Using OpenSCAD

Convert to CAD instructionsUsing a simple ruby script

https://github.com/bryanduxbury/falconer/blob/master/dxf_to_eagle.rb

Run script in CADUsing a simple ruby script

https://github.com/bryanduxbury/falconer/blob/master/dxf_to_eagle.rb

Design and layout circuitRouting is hard to master. Don’t trust the auto router!

Order PCBs, … wait (weeks)CAD -> CAM scripts are manufacturing specific

Design some more… More fun to play with IoT the more things you have to

play with!

Design some more… More fun to play with IoT the more things you have to

play with!

Design some more… More fun to play with IoT the more things you have to

play with!

Lego mesh networks!Testing is fun, especially when you add kids…

Design a thing• Design radio mesh network using uC embedded

device for home area networking

• Use CAD/CAM and surface mount technology

• Require modular packaging interface for ease of prototyping wireless sensor, and other internet of things domains.

• Use free, open source technology where possible

OSS and services used

OSS Software• RF24 - https://github.com/maniacbug/RF24

• RF24 Network -http://maniacbug.wordpress.com/2012/03/30/rf24network/

• Adafruit NeoPixel library - https://github.com/adafruit/Adafruit_NeoPixel

• Adafruit MCP23008 library - https://github.com/adafruit/Adafruit-MCP23008-library

Networks all the way down• Serial communications. Both sides must agree baud rate

Images from: https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/serial-peripheral-interface-spi/all

Networks all the way down• Serial Peripheral Interface. (Used by NRF module)

Images from: https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/serial-peripheral-interface-spi/all

Networks all the way down• Serial Peripheral Interface. Bidirectional

Images from: https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/serial-peripheral-interface-spi/all

Networks all the way down• Serial Peripheral Interface. Daisy Chaining

Images from: https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/serial-peripheral-interface-spi/all

Networks all the way down• Even the LEDs used here embed networking circuitry and

can be daisy chained

4mm

4mm

SDLC

Dependencies on external

manufacturing processes (eg: new PCBs) mean some evolutions require

waits of up to 3 weeks. So bug fixing can take a long time

Bugs, there’ll be a fewAnd they cost you cash money each time!

aagh fook! (ugh, wrong way round!)

monkey patching!

Surface mount takes practice But, the results are far more stable than breadboarded

or perf-boarded prototypes.

Surface mount takes practice But, the results are far more stable than breadboarded

or perf-boarded prototypes.

LOOK inside the LED. See? Yes, circuit inside!!!

O'LegsArduino based prototyping modules integrated with Lego.

Will be fully open sourced (soon!) Designed for (geek) parents and kids to play together!

A question on the future• Can the internet of things be componentized or modularised

in much the same way as lego so that ordinary people can more easily design and build their own bespoke connected things?

• Or will proprietary protocols, proprietary connectors and impenetrable standards conspire to keep these things apart?

• Is this a cause for concern?

• Is this a death ray or gateway for at home innovation?

• It’s up to us (the creatives)

IoT

Is this a death ray or gateway for at home innovation?

Thanks

• Omer Kilik. My friend, colleague and hardware mentor. Has guided my learning in circuit design and taught me surface mount soldering.

Questions?

@darachennis