Good News, Nikon Capture Free is now on SourceForge! Here's the link...
https://sourceforge.net/projects/nikoncapture/
You should check it out even if you don't have a nikon d40, because it should work with most cameras that have a WIA driver.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Nikon Capture Free
Sorry I haven't posted new pictures yet. Life is good a being crazy at the worst times!
So I recently got a Nikon D40 DSLR Camera. To do time lapse photography, Nikon has a program called Camera Control Pro. This software is awesome, but pricey. I decided to make my own version of it, called Nikon Capture Free. As the title suggests, it is freeware. It currently has many options for time lapse photos and can give limited info about the camera. As of yet I can't set parameters on the camera from the computer, but hopefully in the near future it will be a possibility. So for now, you just set up your camera the way you want it and then run the program and it automatically takes pictures and transfers them to your computer. I'm waiting on Sourceforge to approve the project so that it will be available there, but until then you can get it here... http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/5/27/1932782/Nikon%20Capture%20Free.zip
The Visual Basic source code is included.
I know that it probably has bugs, so if you find any please let me know and I'll try to fix it asap! Also, if you make any modifications, please send me a copy so I can integrate it!
NOTE: I designed the software for the Nikon D40, but it should work with any camera that has a WIA driver. (shows up as a camera in My Computer, not as a mass storage device).
So I recently got a Nikon D40 DSLR Camera. To do time lapse photography, Nikon has a program called Camera Control Pro. This software is awesome, but pricey. I decided to make my own version of it, called Nikon Capture Free. As the title suggests, it is freeware. It currently has many options for time lapse photos and can give limited info about the camera. As of yet I can't set parameters on the camera from the computer, but hopefully in the near future it will be a possibility. So for now, you just set up your camera the way you want it and then run the program and it automatically takes pictures and transfers them to your computer. I'm waiting on Sourceforge to approve the project so that it will be available there, but until then you can get it here... http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/5/27/1932782/Nikon%20Capture%20Free.zip
The Visual Basic source code is included.
I know that it probably has bugs, so if you find any please let me know and I'll try to fix it asap! Also, if you make any modifications, please send me a copy so I can integrate it!
NOTE: I designed the software for the Nikon D40, but it should work with any camera that has a WIA driver. (shows up as a camera in My Computer, not as a mass storage device).
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Finally some pictures of the printer!!!
Here's a few pics of the 3D printer...
Here you can see the other axis and the hot air nozzle.
This is the car jack that supports the adjustable platform.
This is the Freeduino board and breadbord with driver chip.
The X and Y axis are made out of scanners. I cut it apart leaving only the drive motor/belt and the shaft the carriage rides on. I picked this type of scanner because the motors are unipolar, making them much easier to drive! If this is going to be your first project with stepper motors I strongly suggest you stay away from bipolar motors, as the circuitry is complicated to say the least.
The hot air nozzle is the guts from a cheap $5 wal-mart soldering iron. I put a 1/2" copper pipe cap over the end after drilling a small hole in it. You will want to experiment with different hole sizes to see which one works best for you based on airflow (I tried a few before finding one that worked right but that's ok beacuse they're only about $0.50). For the air I used a standard aquarium pump, also from wal-mart. I connected one end of the tube to the pump and just stuck the other end in the tube of the soldering iron (so that the air blows past the heating element). I covered the soldering iron tube in aluminum foil and then sealed it up with electrical tape. It works pretty well.
The car jack is used to raise the bottom up and down easily. I got it from Checker for $20, which I think is a pretty good deal. I drilled holes in the top and bottom plates and screwed it down to the base board and bolted it to the movable platform.
The controller I'm using is a Freeduino, which is the same thing as an Arduino Diecimila. The driver chip to provide power to the motors is a ULN2803A. I'm still working out software for the microcontroller and the computer.
It's almost finished, the only thing left is a liner for the inside of the box to hold the sugar and a place for the sugar to go when I scrape it off the top. I'll post more pics when I finish it and get the software working.
This is an overall picture of the printer.
This is a close up of one of the drive motors and shows the wiring.
Here you can see the other axis and the hot air nozzle.
This is the car jack that supports the adjustable platform.
This is the Freeduino board and breadbord with driver chip.
The X and Y axis are made out of scanners. I cut it apart leaving only the drive motor/belt and the shaft the carriage rides on. I picked this type of scanner because the motors are unipolar, making them much easier to drive! If this is going to be your first project with stepper motors I strongly suggest you stay away from bipolar motors, as the circuitry is complicated to say the least.
The hot air nozzle is the guts from a cheap $5 wal-mart soldering iron. I put a 1/2" copper pipe cap over the end after drilling a small hole in it. You will want to experiment with different hole sizes to see which one works best for you based on airflow (I tried a few before finding one that worked right but that's ok beacuse they're only about $0.50). For the air I used a standard aquarium pump, also from wal-mart. I connected one end of the tube to the pump and just stuck the other end in the tube of the soldering iron (so that the air blows past the heating element). I covered the soldering iron tube in aluminum foil and then sealed it up with electrical tape. It works pretty well.
The car jack is used to raise the bottom up and down easily. I got it from Checker for $20, which I think is a pretty good deal. I drilled holes in the top and bottom plates and screwed it down to the base board and bolted it to the movable platform.
The controller I'm using is a Freeduino, which is the same thing as an Arduino Diecimila. The driver chip to provide power to the motors is a ULN2803A. I'm still working out software for the microcontroller and the computer.
It's almost finished, the only thing left is a liner for the inside of the box to hold the sugar and a place for the sugar to go when I scrape it off the top. I'll post more pics when I finish it and get the software working.
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Wow, it's been a while!
So I know I haven't posted in many months, but I hope to fix that problem asap! I'm done with school for the summer so I should have lots of time to work on my projects. The one I am currently working on is a 3D printer. It is loosely based on a design by the wonderful folks over at candyfab.org It works by melting sugar with hot air and building up an object layer by layer (more on that in a later post). I am using an Arduino Diecimila as the controller (actually it's a Freeduino, but it's the same thing, except that the Freeduino is an Orange Board!). I am making good headway with it and hope to complete it in the next week or so. I will try to post pictures soon. In the meantime, if any of you have an interesting electronics project I'd love to hear about it!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)