Panoramic Scannercam

put together a panoramic digital camera using a scanner and some miscellaneous parts. You may remember seeing something like this about six months ago and originally about five years back. The parts used here work together nicely. The sensor board from the scanner is mounted to a metal plate along with a 50mm lens. The plate is mounted to a hard drive platter that is turned via belts connected to the original scanner motor. This way, when you tell the computer to scan an image, the lens is rotated to capture the panorama. The use of an 18V tool battery is a nice portability hack for the scanner circuitry.

Judging from this 71MP image he has achieved some remarkable results.

I have just come across an intresting site for solar water heating a DIY solution

http://www.solarfriend.co.uk/

For  a few of you who read this blog and are local to Grimsby here is some info I have managed to dig up from the council website.

http://www.nelincs.gov.uk/community/maps/Highways_in_Winter.htm#SaltingMaps

On this page it shows the Gritting routes for the Gritter. I know we have had a little more snow then usual but it is winter So I would expect some snow and Ice.Those that know me  know where I live and work and I normally take the rural back roads to work. All throught this bad weather I have carried on taking the same route to work .I have added on extra time for the run to and from work slowed my speed well down and I’ve been getting to and from work with out a problem.Yes I’ve had the odd slide or skid but because of my reduced speed I have not crashed  or come off the road.I drive a 4x4   and it does not make you immune to comming of the road.

Also  some  drivers of 4X4 dont even realise that their car  might not alway be in 4 wheel drive  many models are on 2 wheel drive unless you select 4 wheel drive and if you have locking hubs  it not alway possible to go into 4 wheel drive mode

This is because  you can be on the wrong type of surface and end up with whats call transission windup explained here and you then start to break you tansmission or propshafts  . So while your flying down the road in you nice shiny 4×4 thinking i am safe you could well be in 2 wheel drive and soon heading for the nearest ditch.To my viewers in other countries .we dont get enough snow to warrent snow chains and we dont get enough snow plus the fact its not around long enough  to get use to driving on it

So a lot of people who have passed their driving test of the past few years have never driven in snow  dont know what to do.Also  if you look at a lot of driving habbits  it this country  the car is mainly used to the school run  even though the kids could get there quicker on foot and they very rarely drive out of town plus the face most modern cars have Airbags and ABS  they think it will stop them skidding.The only thing it will do if give you a false confidence  you travel faster and hit the ditch harder or another car head on.I cant fault ABS or Air bags  but dont  think they make you a better driver.They help reduce accidents and injuries   they dont stop them

Santa Claus Shot Down by SA-15 Missile over Northern Iran

Santa sled fireball

TEHRAN (Dec 24)-The Iranian News Agency is claiming that the Doshan Tapeh Air Base commander has reported one of it’s newly aquired Russian SA-15 anti-aircraft missile defense batteries engaged and shot down the Santa Claus reindeer propelled flying sled over Northern Iran today. The target was tracked on radar for 10 minutes before the order to fire was given by the regional air defense commander

Witnesses report seeing the SA-15 streak skyward erupting in a brilliant flash and then a giant fireball plummeting to the earth. The fireball was captured on film.

The smoldering wreckage was discovered in the mountainous region of Mazandaran Province, just south of the Caspian Sea.

The crash site had been looted by local village children leaving only scraps of colorful paper wraps and ribbon amid a large impact crater.

There were no signs of a survivor. Villagers reported a large pack of wolves carried off the reindeer remains.

A NORAD command spokesperson at Peterson Air Force Base answered “no comment” when asked if Santa had yet to appear on US radar. An unnamed senior radar specialist commented, “In all the years I’ve been doing this I’ve never seen Santa fail to show up on radar. I fear something dreadful has happened”.

Ive just comeacross this page

http://sites.google.com/site/tekmanoid/projects/automatic-identification-system-ais

and am thinginking of getting an arduino to see if i can get it to wourk on it with an ethernet shield