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I decided to build a device to permanently display accurate time received from a cheap GPS module installed in my workshop. Having obtained a PIC18F1320 microcontroller for experimentation, I wanted to learn about the new features of the PIC18F range using only minimal hardware to control the display. I am currently using it with the on-chip 8Mhz oscillator only and driving a six digit led display, multiplexed with further saving of chip pins by a technique pioneered by Charlie Allen of Maxim-Dallas for their MAX6951 LED display drivers called “Charlieplexing” (see their application note AN1880). I would have liked to have used a MAX6951 chip for better display brightness, but they appear to be only available in "Quarter Size Outline Packages" (QSOP) - the leads are very close together,not easy to experiment with. Another alternative would be to use a MAX7219 display driver, this chip has a serial interface and an option to adjust the display brightness - something I may try later.

Do you want to remote control the dim-level from the lighting, open and close the sun-blind and windows, turn the central heating on and off, and plenty more in your house with a normal TV remote control? Realize it with the projects underneath.

In this tutorial you will learn how to build a simple serial 16x2 LCD display that is controlled via Arduino board by only two wires. The magic behind is done by the PCF8574 chip, an I/O expander that communicates with the micro-controller by using I2C protocol. The PCF8574 is a quick and easy solution to extending and adding output/input ports to Arduino. The chip connects to a standard I2C bus and adds an additional 8 output ports. A total of 8 LCD displays can be connected to the same two wire I2C bus with each board having a different address.

The IR receiver: When the TSOP1736 (IR receiver) receives an infrared (IR) signal from a RC5 or RC6 remote control (like Philips) burns LED1 (green). The LCD shows when it receives a new type of code for one second which protocol is received (RC5, RC5X or RC6). After then the LCD shows the RC5 or RC6 system and command code in decimal as well in binary.

USB AVR Programmer for Atmel AVR microcontrollers. USB AVR Programmer is made of an Atmega8 and few components. The programmer uses a firmware driver that makes this programmer attractive to many amateurs. Another thin why this programmer is so popular is because it is officially included and supported in WinAVR. Once again lets see what this programmer is made off and how to set it up. The core of USB AVR Programmer adapter is Atmega8 microcontroller clocked by 12MHz crystal. Soldered board is ready to be connected via simple USB cable with B type connector (Computer side needs A type of connector). Resistors R2 and R6 are current limiting resistors, that protect computer USB port. Resistor R7 helps computer to recognize device as LS (Low Speed). Diodes D1 and D2 indicates about data transfer. Header SV1 is compatible with STK200/300 just 4 and 6 pins are used for RXD and TXD (may be used for other purposes).

If you like PC modding this is cool project for you.this is an USB interface for alphanumeric LCD display like 4x20 which can be controlled with LCDSmartie program.USB interface is implemented by using PIC18F2550 microcontroller. Using USB LCD module you can view many types of information taken from PC like temperatures, time/date, MP3 song titles, view emails, RSS feeds all that LCDSmartie or other program supports.

USBasp is a USB in-circuit programmer for Atmel AVR controllers. It simply consists of an ATMega48 or an ATMega8 and a couple of passive components. The programmer uses a firmware-only USB driver, no special USB controller is needed.

The MCP9700, MCP9700A, MCP9701 and MCP9701A Temperature Sensors from Microchip offer exceptional performance for the low price. Each have different temperature ratings and accuracy parameters. MCP9700, MCP9700A, MCP9701 and MCP9701A sensors are available in different packaging and are very simple to interface with. Vdd, GND and Vout are all that are required. You should check the datasheet to get a better idea of the parameters for the device you decide to use, though keep in mind that the user module listed below will automatically calculate the temperature depending on the device in use.

This post aims to be a complete guide for the popular RF 433MHz Transmitter/Receiver modules. I’ll explain how it works, show some features and share an Arduino project example that you can take and apply to your own projects.

The meaning from this design is to build it in -i.e. a shaded lamp- and to switch this lamp on and off the normal way, just like it was switched before the dimmer was build in, then you could by exception dimming the lamp more or less with your TV remote control. When you switch the power on there will follow a soft-start till the lamp burns at the previously adjusted dim level. With the '0' button in TV mode you can dim the lamp, turn more and less bright. The remote control should send more then one RC5-signal per button-press seeing that the first one is ignored, this does imply that when the remote button is pressed a short time, there nothing happens. With the P+ and P- button from a system at choice you can adjust the maximum and minimum dim-levels and with the '1' button the start-up brightness.