Hardwired By Hackster.io

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Welcome to Episode 2 of the Hardwired by Hackster Podcast! In this series, hosts Cameron Coward and Whitney Knitter explore some of the most inventive hardware projects, engineering breakthroughs, and maker builds from across the community.

In this episode, Cameron and Whitney dive into a project that transmits composite analog video directly over a laser beam, a desktop-sized analog computer called The THAT for simulating complex dynamics, and the impressive engineering behind the new InfiMaker K1 desktop 5-axis CNC mill. They also examine Spark Blocks, which integrate electronics directly into LEGO bricks, and a custom build by Whitney that transforms a LEGO Technic kit into an autonomous, obstacle-avoiding robot using an AMD Kria KR260 and edge AI. Finally, they wrap up with a purely electro-mechanical screen saver that recreates the iconic bouncing DVD logo using a clever set of elliptical gears.

Featured Articles, Projects & Videos:

• Transmit Video Over a Laser Beam (Instructables / Daniel Yordanov): ⁠https://www.instructables.com/member/daniely101/⁠
• An Analog Computer for Non-Digital Computational Paradigm (Hackster News / Abhishek Jadhav): ⁠https://www.hackster.io/news/an-analog-computer-for-non-digital-computational-paradigm-4408ba82a32d⁠SparkBlocks: Circuit Blocks & Electronic LEGO-Compatible Bricks (SparkBlocks): ⁠https://sparkblocks.ca/⁠
• LEGO Land Rover Defender Robot with Kria KR260 (Hackster / Whitney Knitter): ⁠https://www.hackster.io/whitney-knitter/lego-land-rover-defender-robot-with-kria-kr260-f8974f⁠
• DVD Video Mechanical Bouncing Logo (MakerWorld / hugo.workshop): ⁠https://makerworld.com/en/models/3140340-dvd-video-mechanical-bouncing-logo⁠

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!

For our inaugural episode, Cameron and Whitney dive into a wild mix of maker magic, exploring living logic circuits built from bacteria and a spinning LEGO drum machine that uses computer vision to drop beats. They also tinker with an ultra-accessible $50 FPGA development board for hobbyists, transmit analog video across the yard over a single wire using electromagnetic trickery, and take a nostalgic trip back to the 90s by resurrecting a classic Voodoo graphics card inside an FPGA to run retro games.