Making a tiny Raspberry Pi based Cyberdeck #RaspberryPi @Raspberry_Pi

Michael Klements posts a detailed build of a tiny Cyberdeck using a Raspberry Pi. The device combines a Raspberry Pi 4B with a Pimoroni HyperPixel display and a Solder Party Blackberry Keyboard breakout.

When Atomstack reached out and asked me if I would like to try out their new Atomstack X30 Pro laser engraving and cutting machine, I thought that this would be a great project to build with it.

I’m going to make up the Cyberdeck in a clamshell design with the display mounted directly onto the Raspberry Pi in the top half and then a small keyboard in the bottom half.

See the video below and details on The DIY Life here.

MIDI-Controllable Synth Built From a Raspberry Pi Pico @Raspberry_Pi #PiDay #RaspberryPi

Cornell University hosts a class humbly titled ECE 4760. It’s a class on microcontrollers. As you might imagine, these Cornell students make some pretty cool stuff. Recently, Pelham built a MIDI-controllable synthesizer out of a Raspberry Pi Pico. Here’s more from Hackaday:

[Pelham] coded a library to parse MIDI messages on the Pico, with the microcontroller’s UART charged with receiving the input data. MIDI is basically just serial at a baud rate of 31.25k, with a set message structure, after all. From there, the Pico takes the note data and plays the relevant frequencies by synthesizing square waves using a PWM output. A second PWM channel can also be blended with the first to generate more complex tones.  The synthesizer is designed to be used with a source of MIDI note data such as a keyboard controller; [Pelham] demonstrates the project in use with a Roland JD-XI. It’s a fairly basic synthesizer, but [Pelham] does a good job of explaining all the steps required to get this far. If you’ve never done an audio or MIDI project before, you might find his guide very helpful for the way it steps through the basics.

See more!

UPDATED GUIDE: Running TensorFlow Lite Object Recognition on the Raspberry Pi 4 or Pi 5 @Raspberry_Pi @TensorFlow #MachineLearning #BrainCraft @circuitpython #circuitpython #AdafruitLearningSystem @Adafruit @MakerMelissa

The Running TensorFlow Lite Object Recognition on the Raspberry Pi 4 or Pi 5 guide has been updated to work with Raspberry Pi Bookworm and the new Raspberry Pi 5. It has also been updated to use a newer version of TensorFlow Lite, version 2.15.0.

Want to up your robotics game and give it the ability to detect objects? Maybe implement a security camera that can see and identify certain items? Now that the Raspberry Pi is fast enough to do machine learning, adding these features is fairly straightforward.

This guide will show you the steps to get TensorFlow 2 installed on your Raspberry Pi 4 and perform some object detection using the TensorFlow Lite Python Interpreter, which is faster than the full TensorFlow interpreter.

There are two main setup paths to choose from. The first option is with a PiTFT if you want to have a larger display. The second option is with the BrainCraft HAT, which has a built-in display and audio along several other components such as DotStar LEDs, a Joystick, and ports.

See this updated guide page now!

Raspberry Pi CEO talks about an impending stock IPO #RaspberryPi @ArsTechnica

The business arm of Raspberry Pi is preparing to make a stock market initial public offering (IPO) in London. CEO Eben Upton tells Ars Technica that, should an IPO happen, it will let Raspberry Pi’s not-for-profit side expand by “at least a factor of 2 times.” And while it’s “an understandable thing” that Raspberry Pi enthusiasts could be concerned, “while I’m involved in running the thing, I don’t expect people to see any change in how we do things.”

CEO Eben Upton confirmed in an interview with Bloomberg News that Raspberry Pi had appointed bankers at London firms Peel Hunt and Jefferies to prepare for “when the IPO market reopens.”

Given the company’s gradual recovery from pandemic supply chain shortages, and the success of the Raspberry Pi 5 launch, the company’s IPO will likely jump above $500 million, even with a listing in the UK rather than the more typical US IPO. Upton told The Register that “the business is in a much better place than it was last time we looked at it [an IPO in 2022].

“What Raspberry Pi [builds] are the products we want to buy, and then we sell them to people like us,” Upton said. “Certainly, while I’m involved in it, I can’t imagine an environment in which the hobbyists are not going to be incredibly important.”

Upton said there would be “no change” to the kinds of products Pi makes, and that makers are “culturally important to us.”

Read more on Ars Technica here.

The ultimate DIY digital clock, built inside a flash unit #Photography #RaspberryPi #CircuitPython @petapixel

Finnish photographer Petri Damstén has crafted a digital clock within a photography flash unit using a Raspberry Pi Pico W with a ST7735 display coded in CircuitPython.

The digital display fits into where the diffuser panel once was. It mimics the simple aesthetics seen when on camera lenses to perfection. At the top, in large, easy-to-see numbers is the time. Below that a graphic reminiscence of depth of field markings seen on lenses. This part is just for aesthetics, but it’s a nice touch.

“The idea of a camera-themed clock originated from my interest in photography. Another concept I had in mind was a Back to the Future DeLorean time machine-themed clock, but that might be a project for another day,” Damstén says in a blog post detailing the project

See the video below and more on PetaPixel. The project files are on GitHub.

How to emulate games on your Raspberry Pi #Gaming #RaspberryPi @xdadevelopers

Though Raspberry Pi boards can fit within the palm of your hands, these tiny computers pack enough horsepower to run a plethora of games. While you shouldn’t expect an ARM-based Raspberry Pi to run graphically demanding games that can tax even the most cutting-edge PCs, they’re quite capable when it comes to emulating games.

An emulator is a tool that allows a device to mimic the functionality of another system. Typically used for retro gaming, emulation lets users run games that don’t have official ports on modern hardware. If you’re new to emulation or aren’t familiar with the Raspberry Pi ecosystem, installing emulators and adding ROMs can seem rather intimidating.

XDA Developers has a detailed guide on how to make an all-in-one emulation device out of your Raspberry Pi. The emulation packages covered:

1. Batocera
2. Lakka
3. Recalbox
4. RetroPie

Read all the details here.

Jamea Richmond-Edwards’ Ancient Future

Sugarcane Magazine shares how artist Jamea Richmond-Edwards draws from past and present to create her work.

In the article, What is Memory, science educator Kendra Cherry identifies memory as “the psychological processes of acquiring, storing, retaining, and later retrieving information.” Conceptualizing and producing the monumental anchor pieces for Ancient Futures, Dark Night of the Soul and Lullaby for Shooting Star are the culmination of memories drawn into Richmond-Edward’s consciousness spanning “billions of years.”

Read more and check it out at MOCA North Miami if you’re nearby.