SAM: your personal "Internet of things"

An electronic set with the speaker - for the Russian ear - the name SAM allows you to create almost everything you dreamed of: you need Bluetooth modules and software that works on the principle of drag-and-drop. Naturally, the phrase "everything you dreamed about" should not mislead you. All within reason ...

“Today, it’s not for you yesterday,” Vitali Klitschko would say and would be right. In the late Soviet years, beginning electronics enthusiasts had a hard time: on the one hand, Radio magazine and SYT networks across the country (the station of young technicians), on the other, long searches for the necessary radio components (recall the scene from Ivan Vasilyevich changes profession, when Shurik finds the necessary detail only from the speculator).

So here. Today, acquaintance with the fundamentals of electronics takes place mainly in a “relaxed, friendly atmosphere”: a lot of designers can be found on the market, and a lot of thematic resources can be found on the Internet.
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The more valuable are the new ideas that not only introduce the skills of creating your own electronic circuits, but also combine opportunities from different areas. SAM Labs, a London-based startup, launched Kickstarter on a project with a bit of electronics, a bit of engineering and programming.

The electronic designer of the same name is an incredibly flexible in terms of capabilities set for homemade and electronics. “SAM is for those who want to create games, real electronic products, applications and join the“ Internet of things ”, says the project page. - Beginners will learn about technology, the basics of engineering knowledge and programming. Experienced inventors will be able to accelerate the development of their innovations. ”



With SAM, you can implement a lot of goodies: through mobile applications, remotely control vehicles and other objects (something like an advanced version of Sphero), use light and proximity sensors, create smart home appliances and toys, control indoor lighting, etc.

The constructor set consists of Sensor Actor Modules (SAM) modules that exchange information using the Bluetooth Low Energy wireless protocol. Depending on the set option, buttons and light sources, regulators and servo drives, engines and data exchange modules with a “cloud”, and of course sensors - position, light and temperature can be included in the package.

Each of the modules has a built-in battery that charges through the microUSB port. The battery life of modules depends on their type. For example, the button can work up to 3 weeks (with constant use), and the micromotor needs an hour of charging after 45 minutes of work.

“SAM’s Bluetooth modules can be used for anything: from creating a refrigerator that prepares a shopping list on its own to helping skateboarders record and post their tricks on the Internet or equip a bicycle jacket with warning signals — all of this is easily programmed using the SAM application,” says the general SAM Labs director Joachim Horn. - We want to equate in the capabilities of those who are developing something innovative and not related to corporations with their millions of dollars invested in the development. And at the same time to help children, novice engineers, as well as small and medium-sized companies. ”



Each of the SAM kits includes a Bluetooth 4 module (dongle), a microUSB cable, and a free software development application. For ease of development software works on the principle of drag-and-drop. Console mode is also supported for experienced programmers.

The Kickstarter fundraiser ends in two weeks. As of today, almost 600 “backers” have invested in the project and it can already be considered complete - with a plan of £ 50,000, more than £ 90,000 has been collected. The price of lots starts from £ 55 ($ 90) - for three modules and an application. And one of the most popular was a set consisting of 12 SAM modules. Not without the “professional” options: the same 350 modules will cost £ 350 ($ 570), plus a set of all possible modules that the company plans to design at the time of sending orders in March 2015 (proximity sensor, fan, pressure sensor , potentiometer, vibration motor, buzzer).



A little more about what can be done using SAM:

• games involving remote control;
• doorbell controlled from the phone;
• elementary security systems;
• musical instruments that use pressure sensors, proximity, lighting;
• Smart fridge and smart shoes;
• toys with Internet access;
• architectural models: houses with smart lighting, sliding doors and automatically closing windows;
• auxiliary software - just by moving individual icons.

SAM Labs ensures that you can acquire the following skills:

• electrical engineering: sensor and servo networks, data processing and storage, wireless networks;
• practical programming: everything that you create on the computer screen will work offline. And vice versa;
• Internet of things: what it is and what is the use of it.

The material is prepared on the basis of the article posted on Cnet, and the project page on Kickstarter.