The Raspberry Pi, priced at $35, is one of the best tools available for hobbyists. It’s capable of being used a handful of different ways, such as teaching children how to code or for making wearable tech. However, there are several strange projects you may come across. Let’s take a look at our top 10:
Raspberry dove repellent
Yes, you read that correctly. There is an actual device used to repel doves that is made with a Raspberry Pi and an owl decoy.
In Buenos Aires, there is a severe dove issue, and the birds are fearless. As a method to drive them away from his home, Roni Bandini made a wooden owl decoy into a smart dove repellent. The device detects doves’ movements, which then triggers the owl’s eyes to glow red and emit predator sounds.
Python thermal printer
You don’t need ink when the power of heat can make letters appear on paper. Wade Wegner hooked up a thermal printer with a Raspberry Pi to send messages to anyone who is in the kitchen. The device can be set up with daily weather scripts, a daily Sudoku puzzle, and even a Twitter mentions script.
Beer keyboard
Tech gurus at Robofun Create recycled their empty beer cans and turned them into a giant keyboard in an effort to make an eco-friendly computer accessory. The standard letters and keys of a traditional keyboard are mapped onto forty beer cans. Users simply touch a can to type that letter on the screen. An Arduino board and a Raspberry Pi work to map each can to the appropriate key.
Cycle chaser
The cycle chaser is a bicycle that projects a movie on the ground behind it as the user rides the device. The faster you travel, the faster the animation will play. The video is displayed via a battery-operated pico projector, while a Raspberry Pi acts as the brains behind the operation.
Internet-controlled car horn
Lewis Callaway combined a Raspberry Pi to a car horn and programmed it so anyone on Reddit could blare the device. It takes roughly half a day to construct and can be done for less than $75 in parts. This is a sensible deal for someone looking to prank a friend: place the device in their car or apartment and let them try to figure out where the sound is coming from.
BeetBox
The BeetBox is a musical instrument that plays drum beats when you touch a beet vegetable in a wooden box. Behind the scenes, a Raspberry Pi and capacitive touch sensor detect each touch. The custom Python script for Pi triggers a drum beat sample based on the touch, and an audio amplifier plays it out for everyone to hear. You can create your own here.
Piano stairs
The piano stairs are exactly what they sound like: a single step on one sounds just like a piano note. Each stair has a light-based “tripwire,” made of a light source on one side and a photo resistor on the other. An Arduino board reads the sensors and relays the value to a Raspberry Pi, which in turn, plays the sounds. You can replicate this on any stairs by following these instructions.
Missile launcher
Software engineers at PaperCut are under scrutiny to perform flawlessly, with each code line being inspected several times before being approved. If they even make a mistake, the Retaliation bot hunts them down. The bot is a missile launcher that is enforced in the PaperCut offices. Whenever the software build is broken, the Raspberry Pi and Python script relay the message to Retaliation (the foam missile launcher), which won’t stop until it completes its mission.
Twitter candy bot
It’s been proven that social networks affect self-esteem. When someone tweets at you, it only makes sense to reward yourself with candy. All you need is a Raspberry Pi, a servo motor, and an old cola bottle stuffed with M&Ms. You can set the trigger based on a username or hashtag. To build one, follow these instructions.
Plant’s life in the hands of Reddit users
The Raspberry Pi opens up new possibilities when connected to the Internet. Reddit user tylerjaywood decided to put his plant’s fate in the hands of fellow Redditors. He hooked his watering system to a Raspberry Pi, which creates a new Reddit post every day. Users then vote whether the plant will get watered that day or not. Additionally, users can watch it live through a webcam stream. In case you want to replicate the PleaseTakeCareOfMyPlant project, the directions can be found here.
Do you have any weird Raspberry Pi projects we didn’t mention?
Source: MakeUseOf
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