Maker Faire (DIY)

Maker Faire is an event created by Make magazine (USA) to "celebrate arts, crafts, engineering, science projects and the Do-It-Yourself (DIY) mindset" I wanted to have a backup power source for my iPhone and iPad that was independent of other power sources and sustainable and renewable. The reason being that when I'm in a remote area I have an unlimited and renewable power from something that packs away small and is easily transportable.

So off to the local Jaycar I went with my design and collected the parts I would need.

1 x 5 Watt solar panel is about 10 inches or about 25 centimetres square.

1 x solar power regulator

1 x 12v rechargeable sealed battery (as small as capacity required will allow)

1 x 12 v power socket

So with soldering iron, wire and a hot glue gun I set about this little DIY project. I lay out the parts inside the back cavity of the solar panel, hot glue them in, wire it together. The battery forms a great stand and balances the panel nicely. The guy in the store, more familiar with Ohm's Law and voltage calculations than me did the maths for me and I believe:

The solar panel will charge the battery from flat in about 8 hours (if sunny).

The battery must put out at least 10 Watts to charge the iPad (iPhone needs 5 Watts)

The battery is more than sufficient to charge a flat iPad x 3 times.

Topping up the battery each day with the solar panel will keep the battery at full capacity and keep me with ample power.

Test one insert a volt meter to see if there is power? yes.

Test two connect the iPad with 12 v car connection plug and USB cable? yes

All works fine and for less than a $100 and fits in a laptop bag or similar. Hmmm maybe I could use a fuse in there somewhere???

iPhone 4

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 iPhone 4

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iPhone 4

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 iPhone 4

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 iPhone 4

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 iPhone 4

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Start Of Spring 2012

Peach Blossom

Nikon D300, Nikkor 105mm Macro f2.8 @ ISO 200, 105mm f5.6, 1/400 sec

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Tulip

Nikon D300, Nikkor 105mm Macro f2.8 @ ISO 200, 105mm f5.6, 1/400 sec

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Tulips (RED)

Nikon D300, Nikkor 105mm Macro f2.8 @ ISO 200, 105mm f5.6, 1/100 sec

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Camelias

Nikon D300, Nikkor 105mm Macro f2.8 @ ISO 200, 105mm f5.6, 1/500 sec

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Cactus thing with flower Head

Nikon D300, Nikkor 105mm Macro f2.8 @ ISO 200, 105mm f2.8, 1/500 sec

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Nikon D300, Nikkor 105mm Macro f2.8 @ ISO 200, 105mm f3, 1/500 sec

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Focus Zoom

Queensland and Back

My dog Hermione and I went on a trip to Queensland last week in the ute. Travelling from Bendigo to Mt. Tamborine we spent the two day road trip up north visiting Parkes and Forbes, the CSIRO Parkes radio telescope and iconic outback towns like Dubbo, Gilgandra, Narrabri, Moree, Goondawindi and Warwick. We spent four days on Mt. Tamborine doing maintenance on our house there and visiting my daughter and grandson. On the way back we went via Mount Lindesay Highway and cut through the back country to Tenterfield then Glen Innes, Armidale, Tamworth where we visited the big golden guitar. We then crossed  to Gunnedah before rejoining the Newell highway and heading south at Coonabarabran. Be sure to click on some of the text hyperlinks as they have some great information.

Image courtesy of Google

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Nikon D300, Tokina 11-16 f2.8 @ ISO 200, 11mm f8, 1/100 sec

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"I am a sheep aren't I Mum? Mum?"

Nikon D300, Nikkor 70-200  2.8 @ ISO 200, 200mm f2.8, 1/1250 sec

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iPhone 4

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iPhone 4

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iPhone 4

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Sunday Meanderings

I took the boat out for a run today and dragged a Stumpjumper lure around for an hour or so with no results. Then I tried a 2.0 hook and some cheese . . . nothing. Soft plastic . . . same. Came across some patches of fish on the fish finder but no luck jagging any. The lake was flat and the sun was warm and it was fun just to go for a run anyway.

 Nikon D300, Nikkor 35mm f2D @ ISO 200, 35mm f8, 1/160 sec

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 Nikon D300, Nikkor 35mm f2D @ ISO 200, 35mm f8, 1/125 sec

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 iPhone 4

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iPhone 4

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Blast From The Past

These images captured in August 2006 with my younger brother while on a snapper fishing and camping trip on the west coast (mainland) side of Fraser Island Qld. Just off Wathumba Creek in 9 metres of water and a perfectly still 25 degrees c day. The water was so clear you could see the sandy bottom 9 metres below. We encountered many whales but this one gee us a close up and personal visit. Every year humpback whales travel from Antarctica along the east coast of Australia to give birth in the warm waters of Northern Queensland. You are not allowed to approach within 500 metres of Humpback whales and I had cut the motor and was drifting when 'blubber boy' approached. The whale circled the boat three times and breached vertically twice. You could plainly see its cow like eye looking at us. Then it just slowly swam away. Priceless.

KODAK DX6490 ZOOM

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KODAK DX6490 ZOOM

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 KODAK DX6490 ZOOM

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KODAK DX6490 ZOOM

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