Using 3D Printing and Copper Tape to Make PCBs

https://invidious.privacyredirect.com/watch?v=PLliKgzKKUI

In a recent video [QWZ Labs] demonstrates an interesting technique to use 3D printing to make creating custom PCBs rather straightforward even if all you have is a 3D printer and a roll of copper tape.

The PCB itself is designed as usual in KiCad or equivalent EDA program, after which it is exported as a 3D model. This model is then loaded into a CAD program – here Autodesk Fusion – which is used to extrude the traces by 0.6 mm before passing the resulting model to the 3D printer’s slicer.

By extruding the traces, you can subsequently put copper tape...

FLOSS Weekly Episode 862: Have Your CAKE and Eat It Too

https://invidious.privacyredirect.com/watch?v=EWFWhstN1Ko

This week Jonathan chats with Toke Hoiland-Jorgensen about CAKE_MQ, the newest Kernel innovation to combat Bufferbloat! What was the realization that made CAKE parallelization? When can we expect it in the wild? And what’s new in the rest of the kernel world? Watch to find out!

Did you know you can watch the live recording of the show right on our YouTube Channel? Have someone you’d like us to interview? Let us know, or have the guest contact us! Take a look at the schedule here.

Direct Download in DRM-free MP3.

If you’d rather read along, here’s the transcript for...

Ariel OS – A Rust RTOS for IoT microcontrollers

Ariel OS is a new RTOS for microcontrollers written in Rust with support for popular hardware architectures (Arm Cortex-M, ESP32, RISC-V) and boards from Espressif, Nordic Semi, Raspberry Pi, and STMicroelectronics. Ariel OS is built on top of Embassy Rust framework and embedded-hal Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL) for embedded systems, and adds several OS functionalities and a multi-core capable scheduler. It is mainly designed for secure, memory-safe, networked applications on microcontrollers. The developers further describe Ariel OS as follows on the project’s website: Ariel OS follows an approach whereby it simultaneously integrates a curated ecosystem of libraries (available via crates.io),...

Congatec conga-TCRP1 COM Express Type 6 module features AMD Ryzen AI Embedded P100 SoC with 50 TOPS NPU

Congatec conga-TCRP1 is a COM Express 3.1 Type 6 Compact module powered by the newly announced AMD Ryzen AI Embedded P100 Series processors, which feature AMD’s latest Zen 5 architecture, RDNA 3.5 graphics, and an XDNA 2 NPU for 59 TOPS of combined AI performance, including up to 50 TOPS from the NPU. The module supports up to 96 GB of DDR5-5600 memory and is available in 4-core and 6-core variants with a configurable 15 W to 54 W TDP, allowing both passive and active cooling designs. It supports up to four independent displays, offers PCIe Gen4 and PEG x4...

Sipeed MaixCAM2 combines 4K imaging and edge AI in an open camera platform

The device is designed as an open system for rapid deployment of vision, audio, and AIoT applications, aimed at researchers, and developers requiring more capable on-device inference and improved image quality than typical DIY camera setups. MaixCAM2 is built around an Axera AX630-series SoC with dual Arm Cortex-A53 cores running Linux, paired with a small […]

Semtech launches AirLink RX400 and EX400 5G RedCap routers for IoT applications

Semtech has just launched the AirLink RX400 and EX400 5G RedCap routers for industrial and commercial IoT applications. They offer a lower power consumption and lower costs compared to traditional 5G deployment. The routers are powered by an unnamed Arm Cortex-A55 processor, feature up to two Gigabit Ethernet ports, 5G RedCap cellular connectivity (3GPP Release 17 and 5G Standalone) with LTE Cat 4 fallback, dual-band GNSS, optional WiFi 6 connectivity, and optional RS-232 interfaces, among other features. AirLink RX400/RX400 specifications: SoC – Unnamed dual-core Arm Cortex-A55 processor System Memory – 600 MB RAM available to containers Storage – 500 MB...

MaixCAM2 modular 4K AI camera is based on Axera AX630 SoC with 3.2 TOPS NPU (Crowdfunding)

Designed for makers and researchers, Sipeed’s MaixCAM2 is a modular AI camera built around an Axera AX630 AI SoC with 3.2 TOPS (INT8) to 12.8 TOPS (INT4) of AI performance, yet delivering 10 to 20x higher performance on OpenMV-N6 and Raspberry Pi 5, and about the same performance (140 FPS) as a 33 TOPS Jetson Orin Nano 4GB Super in YOLO11n. The camera comes with 1GB or 4GB RAM, a 32GB eMMC flash, and a microSD card slot for storage, a 2.4-inch touchscreen display, and an 8MP / 4Kp30 camera sensor with LED flash, as well as two microphones and...

Lanner EAI-I351 – An NVIDIA Jetson Thor Edge AI computer with 100GbE QSFP28 port and 8x GMSL2 camera

Lanner EAI-I351 is a rugged edge AI computer built around the NVIDIA Jetson Thor platform, featuring a 100GbE QSFP28 port for high-bandwidth networking and 8x GMSL2 camera inputs for low-latency vision processing. The system supports up to 128 GB of 256-bit LPDDR5X memory, features up to four 25GbE lanes via a QSFP28 port, a 5GbE RJ45 port, HDMI 2.0, four USB 3.2 Gen1 ports, two RS232/422/485 serial interfaces with optional CANBus, digital I/Os, and audio interfaces. Three expansion sockets are offered with an M.2 NVMe slot, an M.2 E-Key for Wi-Fi/Bluetooth, and an M.2 B-Key for 4G LTE/5G cellular with...

Meterbit Pixlpal – An open-source ESP32-S3 smart display with 128×64 RGB LED matrix, Hi-Fi audio output (Crowdfunding)

Designed by Meterbit Cybernetics in Nigeria, the Pixlpal is an open-source, ESP32-S3-based 11.25-inch 128×64 RGB LED matrix display designed as a customizable ticker for news, crypto, and smart home notifications, while also offering Hi-Fi audio playback. The device also includes a multi-function rotary encoder for local control, a digital MEMS microphone, and a 3.5 mm headphone output driven by a TI PCM5102A DAC for Hi-Fi audio playback. Pixlpal also provides a USB Type-C OTG port for power and programming, and a USB Type-A adapter port for firmware updates and peripherals. The device targets Smart Home dashboards, desktop information displays, and...

SONOFF Dongle Max (Dongle-M) Review – A Zigbee/Thread PoE, USB, and WiFi adapter tested with Home Assistant

SONOFF sent us a sample of the SONOFF Dongle Max (also known as Dongle-M) Zigbee/Thread adapter with PoE support for review. It is based on Espressif ESP32-D0WDR2-V3 and Silicon Labs EFR32MG24 SoCs, and can serve as both a Zigbee coordinator and Thread Border Router, with connectivity options including Ethernet, Wi-Fi, and USB. The dongle is specifically designed for popular smart home platforms like Home Assistant, Zigbee2MQTT, ioBroker, and OpenHAB. Key advantages of the Dongle Max over the recently reviewed Dongle Plus MG24 include built-in Wi-Fi and Ethernet support (in addition to USB), Power over Ethernet (PoE), and a convenient Web...