Hey All!
Following two successful scrap challenges, I wanted to start up another scrap challenge for a unique useful part that I feel has been underutilized in the hackspace. Any time I tell someone that we have a box of these, ideas start to circulate, so it feels like the right thing to do is hold another challenge.
This challenge is the Linear Potentiometer Challenge. What is a linear potentiometer? They are basically variable resistors that slide along a track. If you’ve ever seen a volume slider, thats what is probably driving it.
They look like this:
I challenge you to make something cool by the end of April using one or more of these sliders.
Here’s PDF with rules and scope of this challenge:
(If someone has a better place to share this, please let me know).
A few ideas to get you started:
Make a cool light controller
Make a DJ, VJ, Midi, or some other controller of physical things
Use one or more as a positioning sensor to determine how far something has moved
use two or more at right-angles to create a 2-dimensional input device, or position feedback
Use two ganged log sliders in opposite orientations to create a high sensitivity slider.
Why not make a physical volume slider for your computer?
Or even just use a couple of them as a cheap linear sliding rail.
Go wild, think of crazy things, and make!
Feel free to post your project here, or a link to a build log. Progress updates in a build log will help encourage others to participate.
Prizes to be determined, but I’ll update this post once prizes are determined (if you have a prize we can give away, please contact me).
Good Luck!
