RGB Fiber Optics
Create an optical RS-232 link with an RGB LED and a color sensor.
Good morning! First, we wanted to let our friends on the east coast know that we'll be visiting soon and we'd love to hang out! Artisan's Asylum, the City of Somerville and the Somerville Arts Council are hosting the first Somerville Mini Maker Faire on Saturday, October 13, in Somerville, MA near Union Square. A few of us will be there hanging out at the Maker Faire, and we'll also be teaching some one-time classes at Artisan's Asylum in the days around the festival. On Wednesday, October 10, we're teaching a class on XBee; on Thursday, October 11, we'll cover Eagle Layout for PCBs; and on Monday, October 15, we're offering a SMD soldering class. Spaces are limited and it should be a lot of fun, so sign up at the links if you'll be in the area!
A while back, Shahriar, our friend at The Signal Path, created a tutorial using some SparkFun parts in a very unconventional way. Shahriar postulated that if we can send data via light over a fiber optic cable, why can't we use more colors to increase the amount of data being sent? Thus, he set out to create a multicolored data transmission link. Using a couple of PIC microcontrollers, a BlinkM RGB LED and a Color Sensor board, he was able to send data over a fiber optic cable using varying intensities of light, and read them in with the sensor. He lays out all the details in his video. Check out the link below, or visit his site to see all of his video breakdowns.
Nice job Shahriar, and thanks for your amazing documentation!
