gEDA-user: Update: Looking for a project

[Jason Aron <jaron@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hey anyone...

Ok - here's what I've heard for project ideas (and some commentary or questions):

1) AM modulator to interface Sirius satellite radio with a Atwater Kent console radio
  I get the idea that you want something like this: (except this transmits FM instead of AM).  
  The input is either a USB-stick or an audio jack (from satellite radio) and the output is a transmitted radio signal.  
  http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=4956678
  Interesting project, and it probably wouldn't be too hard.  Let me know if this is what you're thinking about.

2) Akustica digital microphone decoder
  I believe this is a surface-mount microphone chip that outputs a PDM digital signal.  Do you simply 
  want a board with a PDM decoder and some memory, so you can read the audio signal into a CPU?   
  I think this interface would probably be included on their evaluation board...  What kind of application are you thinking of?

3) Programmable ethernet clock radio
  Interesting...  Sounds like everybody's got an idea for this one.  This really sounds like a simplified linux box with TinyOS.
  Sounds like Gumstix Linux, or a simplified and cheaper version of it...  This could turn into a really cool project if the goal 
  is to see how cheap a linux-alarm clock could be designed...  I'd need LOTS of help putting the OS into the hardware.

4) Software radio receiver 
  Very interesting.  I also used to follow the gnuradio lists and started looking at their software, but fell by the 
  wayside when they were asking for mucho-$$$ for hardware...  What kind of application would you want this for?
  That would determine frequencies, modulation, and sensitivity/linearity specifications...

5) Cheap lab test equipment...
  I'm very interested in this.  Actually my last project was to replicate the Wispy ISM-band spectrum analyzer made
  by Metageek and now selling for $200.  I estimate the hardware should cost around $20 and the software is free.  I was
  hoping to eventually build on this design and expand the frequency range and performance - but I haven't gotten there yet
  and I don't really know if anyone would be interested in it.
  A question I have for you is... Who wants this stuff and what would you use it for...  There is already audio-frequency
  digitizers/samplers from various software radio projects.  I think there are also cheap multimeters for HAM radio hobbyists.
  Are you looking for something like this, with a USB-port interface?  Or something different?  
  A USB-oscilliscope would be very interesting, but it would take some serious software support that I couldn't provide.

Good ideas so far!
Jason

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