The Idea

I want a light that turns on when my webcam turns on. I want the light to turn off when my camera turns off. The idea is that my camera is on when I am in an online meeting. The light is a good indicator to everyone, including myself, that I am in a meeting.

The System

In order to turn a light on and off, I need a script that monitors my webcam for activity. This script will then send the status of my webcam to ThingSpeak, a cloud IoT platform that allows you to save and retrieve sensor data. Then, the on-air light controller will read the data from ThingSpeak and turn the light on if my camera is on.

The Parts

I was able to find everything you need on Amazon to build this project.

• On Air sign
• ESP32 board
• ESP32 screw terminal board
• LED light strip

Here are some notes about these parts.

• You can use any sign that you want to light up. I chose this one since it was $15 US and looks great. It also includes a Micro USB cable that you can use for the ESP32 device.
• Screw terminals make this project a solder-free project. Some people who wrote me said that soldering was a barrier to getting started. I want this to be accessible to as many makers as possible. Screw terminals offer a quick way to break out the pins of the ESP32 board and easily connect wires.
• Only certain styles of the ESP32 board work with the screw terminals. The terminals are for the 38-pin version of the HiLetgo ESP-WROOM-32 ESP32 dev board. The two parts that I linked to on Amazon will fit together perfectly. Other ESP32 boards might not work with the screw terminal expansion board.

ThingSpeak Setup

ThingSpeak is an IoT service hosted by MathWorks. It is focused on being easy to collect data and then retrieve that data. We are going to leverage that core functionality for this project. ThingSpeak stores data in a channel and each channel has eight fields.

Visit ThingSpeak.com and Sign Up for an account. This will just take a minute and user accounts are free. Once you have a user account, you need to create a channel. ThingSpeak channels are where data gets stored. Create a new channel by selecting Channels, My Channels, and then New Channel. Name the channel, “On Air Light” and name Field 1, “Webcam State”. Click “Save Channel” at the bottom to finish the process.

Click API Keys and note your write API key and read API key. The write API key will be used by the code to track your webcam state. The read API key will be used to turn on or off the light based on the webcam state.

Track Webcam State

I wrote a Python script that uses OpenCV to detect if the camera is in use or not. It sends a “1” to field1 of the ThingSpeak Channel if the camera is in use. It sends a 0 if the camera is not in use. Just run this code on a periodic basis to track the state of your webcam.

The code to track my webcam state and upload the state to ThingSpeak is available on GitHub. Update the code with your ThingSpeak Channel’s write API key.

Most of the magic is here:

def returnWebcamStatus(webcamIndex):

    webcam = cv2.VideoCapture(webcamIndex, cv2.CAP_DSHOW)

    if webcam.isOpened():
        webcam.release()
        return True #Webcam not in use
    else:
        return False #Webcam in use

Assembly

Get your parts together and get ready to put everything together. Take your time and step through. There is no soldering, just some connections to be made on a set of screw terminals. You will need cutters, a small screwdriver, and some tape to complete the assembly.

Connect the ESP32 board to the SCrew Terminal Board

Make sure to get the right orientation of the boards together. The 5V pins should line up and the USB part should be pointing down.

Cut Off the Out Connector from the LED Strip

We can use the connector on the out side of the LED strip. Cut this off and strip back some of the insulation. We will use this connector for the screw terminals.

Connect the Connector to the Screw Terminal Board

Connect the red wire to the 5v terminal. Connect the green wire to P13. Connect the white wire to GND.

Connect the LED Strip to the Connector

Program the ESP32

Using the Micro USB cable that comes with the On Air Light, connect the ESP32 to your computer.

The code that the Arduino IDE uses is called a “sketch” – this is just a short program that the device runs over and over. In this project, we are going to have the code that checks the ThingSpeak channel for the webcam status and sets the LED strip to either on or off. Copy the example code to your Arduino IDE and change some of the defaults to match your Wi-Fi network and ThingSpeak settings.

Once everything is set, click Sketch and then Upload. This will take the code and program the ESP32 with it. It takes a minute, so be patient. If anything goes wrong, make sure that you have the right board settings and that your “Port” matches what your laptop thinks the port is.

Open the On Air Light

The housing of the On Air light is held together by several tabs. Take your screwdriver and gently twist in each opening. It will come apart without damage. Just take your time and open each tab.

Remove the Existing LED Board

Remove the existing board on the inside of the light. Trim the wires off close to the circuit board so you have some length to work with.

Connect the USB Wires to the Board

Connect the red wire to the 5v screw terminal. Connect the black wire to the GND screw terminal. You will have two wires in each. I used some tape to make sure that the screw terminal board doesn’t move around.

Snap It All Back Together

Carefully snap the two halves back together.

Profit.

Enjoy your On Air light. Maybe this will remind you or someone in your family that you actually work when you are home.

My goal was to show you the steps as clearly as possible and share the code. I hope that you can reproduce this as easily as possible. If you need help leave a comment or join me on my new Discord server.

I have been exploring MicroPython ever since I got a Raspberry Pi Pico W. The community is moving fast and making more and more examples and libraries for MicroPython. Having the Arduino team lean into making the Arduino Lab IDE for MicroPython is a good indicator where things are headed. I was able to build an awesome CheerLights display using MicroPython running on a Raspberry Pi Pico W connected to a Pimoroni Galactic Unicorn PED panel.

Consider Arduino Labs for MicroPython as pre-release, experimental software. Things are moving fast and the project will stabilize. Follow the project on GitHub and file any problems that you come across on GitHub Issues.

George and I have been doing a lot of projects around the house: making a mess, making waffles, and making a flying car. I love working with hot glue and upcycling all of the cardboard that gets delivered to the house. Online retailers just give you the cardboard for free!

With my silicone fingertips on hand, George and I designed and built a flying car using free cardboard. It was one of those designs that evolved over an afternoon. We kept adding little details and features as we built. We added a license plate, lights, wings, a control panel, and a wireless speaker engine.

I found an engine simulator app on the Google Play Store. This app was perfect to be used as the control panel. You could switch gears and rev the engine. The app plays the engine sounds on the wireless speaker connected over Bluetooth and adds to the overall experience.

As usual, I have some tips:

Don’t worry about mistakes. You probably have a lot of cardboard sitting around. You can just make a new part.

Involve your little one. I let George in on the design. We talked it through at the beginning and I tried my best to accommodate his ideas as we build the car. try the, “Yes, and…” technique. Enjoy the process.

Protect your fingertips. Hot glue is… hot. I like using silicone fingertip protectors. They have saved me more than once while working with glue.

Use a drywall jab saw for cutting cardboard. I find a serrated saw is better than a utility knife and way safer. With a jab saw, you are much more deliberate with the cuts and can also make shapes. A drywall jab saw is also really handy for pumpkins. Pro-tip.

I am a panelist on the Makers & Manufactures track. This panel is moderated by Manisha Rajaghatta and includes a great lineup: Emily Roundy, Collins Aerospace, Dean Schifilliti, BAE Systems, Gaby Waldman, Autodesk, and Hans Scharler, MathWorks.

The event will also be streaming on Twitch, so this will be my first official Twitch live stream. I am excited about participating on the panel and attending the rest of the great sessions. See you there!

In most cases, a game table is just a dedicated surface for playing all manner of tabletop games. They usually include a spongy surface for being able to pick up cards and tokens easily, a wide frame to place your cards or area to write, and cup holders.

I decided to make my own gaming table.

The decision to make my own versus buying was helped by the fact that I had an attic filled with two-by-four pieces of wood and a giant 6’x3′ sheet of subflooring. The previous homeowner was in the middle of some unfinished woodworking projects. Since the sub-flooring sheet was 6’x3′, I made the dimensions of the game table the same. This also means that many gaming mats will fit perfectly. Gaming mats are like giant mouse pads with a print and made of a spongy backing.

Design

My design was simple. Build a 6’x’3 frame out of the two-by-fours. Add table legs. Put 6’x3′ subflooring panel on top. And, finally frame the whole thing to give the table a small ledge. I used 6″ oak panels from Lowes to build the ledge. The ledge is a separate piece so I can swap out the gaming mat if needed or clean up spills without ruining the whole thing.

Tools and Things

I didn’t have any woodworking tools. So, I assembled a short list of tools and things needed to build this table…

1. Snacks
2. Beverages
3. Friend with tools
   1. Miter saw
   2. Power drill and screwdriver
   3. Power sander
4. Screws
5. Corner brackets
6. Sandpaper
7. Pre-stain
8. Stain
9. Polycrylic sealer

To keep the costs down, I bribed a friend to help me. They get a lifetime pass for gaming action on a cool DIY game table… and, snacks and beverages. The main tool needed was a miter saw. This was used to make nice straight cuts. Other tools needed: a power drill to drill holes for screws and a screwdriver to screw the screws into the holes.

Table Frame

I was only trying to make sure that the outside dimensions were 6’x3′. I made up the configuration on the spot.

Table Ledge

The ledge acts as a frame around the sub-flooring panel. This gives you a nice place to hold cards or write notes. I used corner brackets to square up the ledge and used the sub-flooring panel as my guide.

Table Assembly

The table is three separate parts: frame, subflooring surface, and ledge. Obligatory selfie. First Game = Arkham Horror: The Card Game.

Finishing

For a while, I tried to talk myself out of sanding and staining the wood. The wood had sharp edges and rough spots. It took some convincing, but I decided to finish this off and it made a huge difference. The finishing process took way longer than the assembly.

My Process

• Sanding – so much sanding – this creates a lot of dust – wear a mask – be prepared to clean up dust for months – use 80 grit first, 120 second, and 220 third – be patient
• Pre-staining – apply pre-stain to the wood and let dry – this really helps with staining or so YouTube says
• Staining – apply stain within 2 hours of the pre-stain and repeat
• Sealing – use a water-based polyacrylic sealer to seal the ledge – this will help with spills and cup rings and protect the wood or so YouTube says – let dry for 30 minutes – lightly sand with 220 grit and repeat two more times – it’s worth doing this as many times as you can fit into a weekend

Going Next Level

Deep-Cut Studio creates custom gaming mats for any size surface. I uploaded a custom piece of art to enhance my Arkham Horror: The Card Game campaign. Deep-Cut is based in England and it took less than two weeks to get my custom gaming mat. More on that at a later date.