The plans for the Tricorder Mk II have been released by The Tricorder Project and just who in their right mind would not want to build one for themselves … or their kids. The device uses an Atmel AT91RM9200 processor, 32MB SDRAM and a pair of touchscreen OLEDs powered by an Epson S6E63D6 and runs Debian Linux.
The sensor suite onboard can monitor a variety of atmospheric, electromagnetic, temperature and spatial values. Toss your old IR thermometer away, the Tricorder will give you that measurement and distance as well. You might as well dump the GPS as well since the Tricorder has you covered. You will need a bit of skill in assembling electronics and soldering to finish the project, along with roughly $500 but the instructions are very detailed and in the end … you get a working Tricorder!
"The Science Tricorder Mark 2 prototype sensor board contains ten different sensing modalities, organized into three main categories: atmospheric sensors, electromagnetic sensors, and spatial sensors. Many of the sensors are similar to those used in the Science Tricorder Mark 1, where the differences are centrally in upgrading sensors to higher-resolution versions where possible. The prototype sensor board also includes an imaging sensor, in the form of a cell phone camera, that is untested. Sensor boards for the Mark 2 are designed to be self-contained, include separate microcontrollers for low-level sensor communication, and as such are more easily upgraded."
Here is some more Tech News from around the web:
- Behold! Or rather, don’t: Bendy see-through DRAM @ The Register
- What’s the right way to launch a graphics card? @ SemiAccurate
- What Red Hat Has Done is Worth So Much More Than a Billion @ Linux.com
- Google fixes Pwnium vulnerabilities in Chrome 18 @ The Inquirer
- Adobe auto-update eases Flash update chore – on Windows only @ The Register
- Introducing Our 2012 Case Testbeds and Revised Methodology @ AnandTech
- TEXT GOES HERE
- Guru3D Rig of the Month – March 2012
That is nice, but I’d rather
That is nice, but I’d rather spend all that money on a tablet. I wonder how much closer we’d be if we just by the sensor array screens and body, and recompile for Raspberry Pi =)