A few years back I built a wind instrument and I've been using it for years now and really appreciate its functionality.
Here is a picture of it on my Catalina 22:
This first version was somewhat difficult to build and the software took me quite some time to get to where I was happy with it. I do have the original Arduino C++ code and I was about to try and compile it again to dig into fixing a problem with my setup when I found out that all the libraries had been updated and I remember there was an incompatibility I had to modify the libraries to make them work and it was just more hassle than it was worth.
So instead I'm deciding to do a new version of the wind instrument. This version will still be using Adafruit hardware but I'm going to redo things using an RP2040 based Adalogger rather than the M0 that was used in the first version. I'm also planning on replacing the Alphanumeric display with an OLED feather that also comes with buttons. Then I'm redesigning the case so that you can use Adafruit's breakout boards that I used in the first version with out soldering and adding connectors near as much.
I'm planning on simple instructions on how to build one but it should require fairly little soldering (if you can solder 0.1" headers that is all about all that is really required). Then you 3D print the case and heat set brass inserts into the plastic case. then the boards screw into the case and plug together... As I finish the first one I'll take pictures and show how it goes together. I hope to have the software done by this Summer but so far I have a working menu that drives the buttons and display on the OLED. Once I get more hardware I'll get the LEDs going and bring on real sensor data (right now its just random data).
Any interest in this or am I the only one? I'd say its going to cost about 300 dollars for a system including the anemometer. But I'm probably forgetting pieces... Its still cheaper than the big box marine guys who are usually well over a grand for a full system and they don't have the weather sensors.
Here is a picture of what the new version is looking like at the moment in the current mechanical design:
I do also have a NMEA based system on my other boat and I'm considering making an NMEA2000 flight recorder black box that basically does the GPX logging portion of this project but without the display. I'll be doing that open source as well stored here: https://bitbucket.org/Brett-Howard/bthblackbox/src/main/
Here is a picture of it on my Catalina 22:
This first version was somewhat difficult to build and the software took me quite some time to get to where I was happy with it. I do have the original Arduino C++ code and I was about to try and compile it again to dig into fixing a problem with my setup when I found out that all the libraries had been updated and I remember there was an incompatibility I had to modify the libraries to make them work and it was just more hassle than it was worth.
So instead I'm deciding to do a new version of the wind instrument. This version will still be using Adafruit hardware but I'm going to redo things using an RP2040 based Adalogger rather than the M0 that was used in the first version. I'm also planning on replacing the Alphanumeric display with an OLED feather that also comes with buttons. Then I'm redesigning the case so that you can use Adafruit's breakout boards that I used in the first version with out soldering and adding connectors near as much.
I'm planning on simple instructions on how to build one but it should require fairly little soldering (if you can solder 0.1" headers that is all about all that is really required). Then you 3D print the case and heat set brass inserts into the plastic case. then the boards screw into the case and plug together... As I finish the first one I'll take pictures and show how it goes together. I hope to have the software done by this Summer but so far I have a working menu that drives the buttons and display on the OLED. Once I get more hardware I'll get the LEDs going and bring on real sensor data (right now its just random data).
Any interest in this or am I the only one? I'd say its going to cost about 300 dollars for a system including the anemometer. But I'm probably forgetting pieces... Its still cheaper than the big box marine guys who are usually well over a grand for a full system and they don't have the weather sensors.
Here is a picture of what the new version is looking like at the moment in the current mechanical design:
I do also have a NMEA based system on my other boat and I'm considering making an NMEA2000 flight recorder black box that basically does the GPX logging portion of this project but without the display. I'll be doing that open source as well stored here: https://bitbucket.org/Brett-Howard/bthblackbox/src/main/
