Signed in as:
filler@godaddy.com
parts & vendors
Parts
This project is an exercise in seeing what can be built using already available, Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) parts. There is no development of any fundamentally new technology since those would require massive time, money, and effort from several experienced professionals. This is usually why break-through technologies are only developed at corporations and research labs.
For now, my project is a hobbyist-level exercise in building the most advanced possible tool to quench my curiosity and aid in some fun exploration. It will probably not unravel any fundamental mysteries of time and space, but will definitely help me learn a lot more about the physical world (and electronics) than I do now. It also acts as a convenient test-bed for the various sensors whichI may use in other projects.
A good article about COTS technology from Cadence Systems can be found here.
Context
Utilizing COTS technology is not necessarily bad, since there are many similarities with purpose built devices including Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs). The chief difference from mission-critical technologies is usually ruggedness and reliability.
Vendors
The picture shows some of the vendors I acquired the various parts from. The bulk of the sensors are from Adafruit due to their high quality and awesome software resources.
Warning: Not a an actual scientific method
This is a version of the three-problem problem or maybe a radar chart (or triangle inequality?). Whatever it is called, it helped me conceptualize what kind of device to aim for. This is an arbitrary scale where the closer to the vertex, the better that constraint was satisfied. I'm denoting where I think my design is using the red circle.
Portability: This ultimately decides the practicality of the device.
Feature Rich: I want to sense as many things as possible
Low cost: Can't be too exorbitant
Something in the lower right corner would be like a weather station.