When it stops being woodwork...

[Fecn]

Although I do bits of woodwork from time to time, woodworking is only one of my talents...

The woodworking for my sliding gate project ( https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/view ... iding+gate ) isn't totally finished yet - I've got to make and install some guard rails to close off the area where the gate opens and prevent the little 'un from wondering down there.

At the moment though, I'm off on a tangent with sorting out a decent remote control system for it. I use an open-source based phone system called asterisk in my office, and it's fairly easy to modify for automation purposes. I've assigned my gate it's own phone number - when I call the phone number, asterisk fires off a custom script I wrote which in turn sends commands to a little microcontroller based board (called a 'NetIOM XAP') which will in turn control the gate. In the past few days, I've modified a small switchmode power supply to give the voltage I need, built a simple float charger to keep the backup battery charged, and this weekend I'm hoping to get the battery, charger, NetIOM, relay board, and a powerline ethernet module all installed into an ABS enclosure and installed in the shed to control the gate.

I realise this is primarily a woodworking site... with forrays into other trades... Would people be interested to see my electronics and computing asides, so should I stick to just the wooden bits.

Cheers,

Fecn

 

[gidon]

Fecn
I would - I like the sound of it already! Especially like the Asterisk server bit. The other stuff is prolly beyond me but still like to here about it.
Good luck
Gidon

 

[mr]

I realise this is primarily a woodworking site... with forrays into other trades... Would people be interested to see my electronics and computing asides, so should I stick to just the wooden bits.

Cheers,

Fecn

Absolutely
Cheers Mike

 

[wizer]

very interested, i love this stuff. just wish i had time (and knowledge) to do it myself

 

[DavidE]

Hi Fecn,

I'd be interested too - electronics is another one of my spare time distractions. That sort of nonesense is where my qualifications are too though I don't really do much engineering at work.

Thanks, David

 

[A_n_g_e_l_a]

As someone who had great fun making a BBC micro control model gantry cranes and such via home built interfaces I would be very interested so ... count me in too!

 

[Mike.C]

Me two

Cheers

Mike

 

[RogerS]

And me

 

[Fecn]

Thanks for the replies... I have posted a long update to my sliding gate project thread.

Cheers,

Fecn

 

[gwaithcoed]

Count me in, I'm definitely interested, although I do use my mobile phone to open my gates, I ring SWMBO and tell her I'm coming and can you open the gates :^o :^o :^o

Alan.

 

[matt]

You any good with lasers and world domination? :wink:

 

[Fecn]

You any good with lasers and world domination? :wink:

My plan for world domination was going quite well until the guy who was installing the hidden-trapdoor-pirahna-death-trap let me down. I pressed the red button under my desk, but without an effective death trap, I found myself unable maintain my authority or dispose of people trying to get paid for their surplus military hardware and the whole plan fell apart.

 

[Taffy Turner]

You any good with lasers and world domination? :wink:

My plan for world domination was going quite well until the guy who was installing the hidden-trapdoor-pirahna-death-trap let me down. I pressed the red button under my desk, but without an effective death trap, I found myself unable maintain my authority or dispose of people trying to get paid for their surplus military hardware and the whole plan fell apart.

ROTFLMAO

Taffy