Hello researchers and friends!

Today, a gray and rainy Sunday, there was an extra, freely added, completely optional small Forskningsavdelningen maker gathering at the Norra Grängesbergsgatan 26 premises.

(Q: How do we add gatherings? A: Oh, a process question. Let’s be transparent! It works like this: Key-holders say they are coming to the space, in this case Annika mentioned she was going to craft stuff today, in an email to the mailing list. This can galvanize others to join. Alternatively, a non-key-holder can request access to the place, on the mailing list. If any key-holder can be located, an extra gathering can be added.)

I (Olle) came there just after noon and found Annika carpenting a tool compartment inside a cabinet. The compartment had sliding shelves which ran on re-used rails, scrounged from a previous Annika project; a CD cabinet.

Later, phrst showed up, and metalcrafted on a hand-made copper needle valve. The valve was finished in one session and looked very steampunky.

Myself, I wanted to make a wooden scale model of a Hexayurt H13 microhouse. Here are my pieces, 7 out of the 13 I need. The readily available materials ran out. I plan to use something lighter than building-grade plywood for the roof.

Plan of hexayurt model and materials

My Hexayurt model needs: More thin plywood for the roof. For next time: bring glue, screws, make and use small wood angled blocks for “hinges”.

On the way back, we met omni (aka “pipe-pipe-underscore-underscore-slash-slash”), who was going to build smart storage rollers for the low-ceiling storage space underneath our raised section of the workshop.

Productive Sunday. Cheers.

Do you want to tag along to build stuff of your own?

Pop us an email, or tweet @forskningsavd. Email? Oh, we have a mailing list. Or, just show up on a Tuesday (the workshop at Norra Grängebergsgatan 26) or Thursday (the basement of Stapelbäddsparken). You’re welcome.

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Last week we wrote a Call for Participation and updated hacknight.se, but we forgot to mention it here. In short we’d like you to think about and tell us (before the end of June) what you’d like to show and/or do together with others at Hacknight, our yearly creative tech event.

This, our third, Hacknight will take place the first weekend of August, that’s right before CCCamp! We decided on this weekend as it would be a great opportunity to gather fellow hackers and friends for a CCCaravan from Malmø to near Berlin, more on that later.

 

Call for participation: Hacknight <3

Workshop organizers and speakers, we call on you to join our creative tech weekend in Malmö on August 6th and 7th, 2011. Send your proposal to cfp@hacknight.se.

Hacknight is a free-to-participate creative tech weekend, the third ever.

Local hackerspace Forskningsavdelningen invites you. Hands-on workshops and a captivating speaker track will cultivate and realize ideas. We embrace beginners and experts, do you know something that everyone else knows or something no one else knows about, we want you here. Nothing is too mundane or intricate.

We have secured a large building to host the event.

Go and yell at your friends! We’ll publish more details at hacknight.se.

Free, Libre and Open.

What do you get out of it?
For a workshop you get a space in a corner somewhere with participants. You can have a short and focused workshop, or a longer drop-in time slot. We will be in a new location this year, Kontrapunkt, so there are lots of small rooms to use.

For a talk you get: a time-limited talk slot, and an MC introducing you, and a great eager audience. Perhaps even a projector.

Describe your workshop
Here’s your guide to getting your Hacknight activity evaluated and eventually incorporated into the programme. We love your activity, and we want to help you realize it with us. So, email cfp@hacknight.se.

First, describe what you want to do. Include a few words about yourself, perhaps an URL, or an image. You decide. This will be used next to your workshop or talk item, in the programme.

Deadline for submissions at the end of June.

 

Forskningsavdelningen have been working on a new vectorization algorithm specifically designed for tracing PCB layouts, keeping CNC routing restrictions in mind to produce G-code that executes with minimal dwelling-requirements. This is a preview of stage-1 (vectorization) output of a sample input containing a large variety of potentially problematic designs:

Bitmap PCB to G-code conversion, stage 1
(Click to enlarge)

The algorithm is complete, and now begins the work of writing stage-2 (tool-size correction) and stage-3 (g-code generation). The finished solution will allow autonomous conversion of any PCB bitmap image to G-code for tracing, drilling and outline milling. Output options will be one program per operation and drill-size, or a single program with tool-change operations.

 

Tillhåll
Tis, ~19-senare @ Kontrapunkt, Norra Grängesbergsgatan 26 (nytt)
Tor, ~19-senare @ Fabriken/Stpln, Stapelbädden

Sommarhöjdpunkter
Hacknight <3, 6-7 Aug @ Kontrapunkt
CCCaravan, gemensam färd mot
CCCamp, 10-14 Aug @ Finowurt. nära Berlin

 
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