Jason Poel Smith

DIY Hacks & How To’s: Proximity Sensors

DIY Hacks & How To’s: Proximity Sensors

By Jason Poel Smith

Jason Poel Smith

My name is Jason Poel Smith. I have an undergraduate degree in Engineering that is 50% Mechanical Engineering and 50% Electrical Engineering. I have worked in a variety of industries from hydraulic aerial lifts to aircraft tooling. I currently spend most of my time chasing around my new baby. In my spare time I make the how-to series "DIY Hacks and How Tos."

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Last week I showed how to use a pressure plate switch to activate special effects. This week, I am going to show you how to make a simple proximity sensor. This is basically just an infrared LED and a phototransistor. When a person stands near the sensor, some of the light from the LED is reflected back to the detector. The output signal of the detector can be monitored by an Arduino and used to activate special effects when the person is close enough.

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DIY Hacks & How To’s: Motion Tracking Skull

DIY Hacks & How To’s: Motion Tracking Skull

By Jason Poel Smith

Jason Poel Smith

My name is Jason Poel Smith. I have an undergraduate degree in Engineering that is 50% Mechanical Engineering and 50% Electrical Engineering. I have worked in a variety of industries from hydraulic aerial lifts to aircraft tooling. I currently spend most of my time chasing around my new baby. In my spare time I make the how-to series "DIY Hacks and How Tos."

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Interactive Halloween props are always fun. So in this project I designed a simple motion tracking system that will make your Halloween props turn to look at people and follow their movements as they walk by.

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DIY Hacks & How To’s: Haunted TV Prank

DIY Hacks & How To’s: Haunted TV Prank

By Jason Poel Smith

Jason Poel Smith

My name is Jason Poel Smith. I have an undergraduate degree in Engineering that is 50% Mechanical Engineering and 50% Electrical Engineering. I have worked in a variety of industries from hydraulic aerial lifts to aircraft tooling. I currently spend most of my time chasing around my new baby. In my spare time I make the how-to series "DIY Hacks and How Tos."

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Halloween is just around the corner. So it’s time to start building projects to scare and prank your friends. I decided to start off this year by making a haunted TV. In this project I show you how to use a cheap pair of walkie talkies to make strange and eerie sounds come from your […]

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DIY Hacks & How To’s: Remote Tripwire Alarm

DIY Hacks & How To’s: Remote Tripwire Alarm

By Jason Poel Smith

Jason Poel Smith

My name is Jason Poel Smith. I have an undergraduate degree in Engineering that is 50% Mechanical Engineering and 50% Electrical Engineering. I have worked in a variety of industries from hydraulic aerial lifts to aircraft tooling. I currently spend most of my time chasing around my new baby. In my spare time I make the how-to series "DIY Hacks and How Tos."

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A tripwire is one of the most basic ways to set up a simple security system. You run a line across a pathway. Then when someone walks through the line, it activates an alarm. This kind of system is easy to set up and is fairly effective. But there is always room for improvement.

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DIY Hacks & How To’s: Transplanting an RFID Chip

DIY Hacks & How To’s: Transplanting an RFID Chip

By Jason Poel Smith

Jason Poel Smith

My name is Jason Poel Smith. I have an undergraduate degree in Engineering that is 50% Mechanical Engineering and 50% Electrical Engineering. I have worked in a variety of industries from hydraulic aerial lifts to aircraft tooling. I currently spend most of my time chasing around my new baby. In my spare time I make the how-to series "DIY Hacks and How Tos."

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RFID (radio-frequency identification) systems are all around us. They help us get through toll booths faster. They help stores keep track of inventory. They are even in a lot of toys.

But there is no reason why the RFID chips need to stay in their original housing. In this project, I am going to show you how to transplant a RFID chip into a different housing to make it more convenient or at least more fun use. You can make an RFID reactive wallet, multi-tool, or cell phone case. The only limit is your imagination.

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DIY Hacks & How To’s: Giant Dinosaur Skeleton Puzzle

DIY Hacks & How To’s: Giant Dinosaur Skeleton Puzzle

By Jason Poel Smith

Jason Poel Smith

My name is Jason Poel Smith. I have an undergraduate degree in Engineering that is 50% Mechanical Engineering and 50% Electrical Engineering. I have worked in a variety of industries from hydraulic aerial lifts to aircraft tooling. I currently spend most of my time chasing around my new baby. In my spare time I make the how-to series "DIY Hacks and How Tos."

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In this project I show you how to make giant dinosaur skeleton puzzles out of cardboard. The process is really simple.

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DIY Hacks & How To’s: Pocket-Sized Power Supply

DIY Hacks & How To’s: Pocket-Sized Power Supply

By Jason Poel Smith

Jason Poel Smith

My name is Jason Poel Smith. I have an undergraduate degree in Engineering that is 50% Mechanical Engineering and 50% Electrical Engineering. I have worked in a variety of industries from hydraulic aerial lifts to aircraft tooling. I currently spend most of my time chasing around my new baby. In my spare time I make the how-to series "DIY Hacks and How Tos."

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I am a big fan of garage sales, flea markets, and thrift stores. They are great places to find used parts and materials for your next project. But one problem that I often run into is not being able to test battery powered electronics to see if they work. Because there are so many different combinations of batteries that are used in portable electronics, it isn’t really practical to carry around batteries for testing. One device may need 6 AA’s and another may require 4 D’s. So I came up with this simple pocket-sized variable power supply.

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