Member Projects – Chicken Coop Door and Bicycle Generator

Chicken Coop Automatic Door:

Rather than paying several hundred dollars for an automatic door system, Larry and Carol created a smart door by using junk around Sector67. The final product is composed of an expensive looking Swiss DC motor, some plumbing fittings, an aluminum plate, an Arduino/Real Time Clock/H Bridge Motor Driver, and some string:

Demonstration:

Slides:

A Bicycle Powered Generator:

For my Independence Day party on July 2nd of 2011 I decided to do a show and tell. I provided a kids bicycle mounted to a trainer turning it into a stationary bike. I removed the residence wheel and mounted a small electric generator (3 phase 120V DC motor with 8:1 gearbox) to the bicycle. The generator contraption was setup to power the patriotic rope light. I set up a laptop with internet access and an amplifier with speakers. The music selection was entirely impromptu and was subject to my guest’s quick and creative reaction to the situation.