Electronic Name Badges.

[Kevin Cozens]

Colin McGregor wrote:
> - If so, is there a more cost effective LOW end 
>   controller option than the BASIC stamp?
> 
> The specs./prices on the stamp can be seen here:
> 
>   http://www.parallax.com/detail.asp?product_id=27100
> 
> There are a number of nice things going for the stamp,
> namely:
> 
> - fairly low cost
> - programmable in a high level language, BASIC
> - 8 I/O lines
> - On board 9v battery clips/voltage regulator
> - Low power consumption
> - Software development tools available for Linux 

I have used several different microcontrollers over the years and was 
considering a BASIC Stamp as a way to start getting some hands-on time with 
PIC's. That was until some people on the ##microcontrollers IRC channel turned 
me on to the Atmel AVR devices. I won't get in to why I prefer AVR's over 
PIC's as the reasons won't mean much to a lot of people on this list.

A BASIC Stamp costs about $30US and is just a controller. A display circuit 
still needs to be obtained, wired up, and a program written.

There are AVR equivalents to the PIC-based Stamps but the need to add a 
display would still exist. Fortunately, there is a better (and cheaper) 
alternative.

Namely, the AVR Butterfly 
(http://www.atmel.com/dyn/products/tools_card.asp?tool_id=3146). The Butterfly 
costs around $20US. On the Atmel site describing the Butterfly is the sentence 
"AVR Butterfly can also be used as a nametag." IIRC, it is one of the built-in 
demo programs of the device. The message can be edited using the on-board 
joystick and button.

Another site with information on the butterfly has the following information:

It is simply amazing what the Butterfly has built in:

     * 100 segment LCD display
     * 4 Mbit (that’s 512,000 bytes!) dataflash memory
     * Real Time Clock 32.768 kHz oscillator
     * 4-way joystick, with center push button
     * Temperature sensor
     * ADC voltage reading, 0-5V
     * Piezo speaker for sound generation
     * Header connector pads for access to peripherals
     * RS-232 level converter for PC communications
     * Bootloader for PC based programming without special hardware
     * Pre-programmed demos with source code
     * Built-in safety pin for hanging from you shirt (GEEK POWER!)
     * Kitchen sink.

Ok, they were kidding about the kitchen sink but it almost seems like it when 
read over the list of features you get with this device for the money. Older 
versions also included a CdS based light-sensor. For those who are interested, 
a light sensor can still be added.

The Butterfly also makes for an interesting device if you are into electronics 
and micro-controllers and want to learn about the AVR chips. If you decide to 
go with the Butterfly approach, I'll take a couple.

-- 
Cheers!

Kevin.

http://www.ve3syb.ca/           |"What are we going to do today, Borg?"
Owner of Elecraft K2 #2172      |"Same thing we always do, Pinkutus:
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