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Brian Corteil

@cannonfodder.bsky.social
467 followers 304 following 312 posts

Maker

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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Doom running on an #EMFcamp badge on a Monitor!
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Been playing with a mad idea, a HDMI hexpanson for the #EMFcamp badge, just need to design the PCB, firmware and the badge app are coming along nicely 😁
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
I was lucky to be gifted this hexpanson over the weekend by @notenoughtech.bsky.social I have not been able to find any information about it.
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
It's only taken me two years to sew the LED noodle to the Brain Slug Hextension and it's amazing. #emfcamp26
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
#emfcamp26 was great, building my Hextension collection 40 plus, not including my own designs.
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
Clear the level!
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Looking forward to #emfcamp next week, got lots of prep to do, including about soldering up about 12 of my Space Unicorn Hextension. Also make up some Evil Henchman, guess I should also print some of the none evil Henchman as well
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 03/05/2026
New toy! Finally setup my new snapmaker U1, first print, I could watch this for hours the head changing is so cool! And almost no poop. I also have a Bambu A1, is two machines enough for a farm or is it more an allotment?
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 23/03/2026
The @pimoroni.com Tufty 2350 Makes a nice compact tool, i2c scanner, needs tidying up the layout but not a bad start :-)
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 20/03/2026
Been working on my Hacky Racers autonomous robot, been vibe coding with Claude. Experience has been very good so far, been able to improve my code and add lots of tests and enhancements including GUIs local/web for the robot, an app calibrating the camera to help with distortion at the edges.
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 01/03/2026
The kids are great, very positive that they were there sharing/showing off their projects. My Bill blames his exposure STEM/STEAM events and the maker movement to his choice of a mechanical engineering course. 😂
Billy added about 7 years holding his first laser cut project, a small castle made out of MDF Billy sitting at a whiteboard designing his castle to be laser cutBilly finished design of a castle
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 01/03/2026
Thank you to everyone who helped/attended yesterday at CamJam hosted at Makespace. It was a great day and sadly be the last time CamJam will be held in this location as CamJam will be relocating in the near future.
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 27/02/2026
The Kaiser Chiefs were amazing, full of energy! Great set, every track from the first alarm played, and all the followed! Visuals were great.
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 27/02/2026
I should be at Cambridge's Makespace getting ready for Cam Jam however I at a gig waiting to see the Kaiser Chiefs 😁, their support band the Corella were good. #CamJam
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 25/02/2026
Been playing with my @pimoroni.com Blinky 2350, this time ported a version of Conway's Game of Life. :-) #BadgeLife
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 23/02/2026
I wrote an app for the @pimoroni.com Blinky 2350, it basically uses pirate example code, the menu image is my own work. :-) #BadgeLife
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 15/02/2026
Less than two weeks to CamJam hosted at Cambridge's Makespace, been catching up on some admin today. Tickets are going fast. We have interesting talks including one by Eben Upton. Over 15 'Show & Tell' including some by younger community members :-) camjam.me
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 13/02/2026
Nice picture of a naughty cat :-)
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 31/01/2026
Left my Colour picker running in Makespace, Cambridge on display with the Giant Unicorn Hat and other projects. It feels great when people interact with your projects :-)
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 02/01/2026
I have a love/hate relationship with 3D printing. This is one of the things I love about it, was able to design and print new wall mounts for this coat stand. Saved it from being thrown away :-)
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 29/12/2025
Oh to be a spoiled cat.
Close up of a white and black cat on a yellow blanket asleep with black patch on his head and earSame black and cat laying on a yellow blanket
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 25/12/2025
Yes good one so far, anyday a good day when you are wearing dinosaur socks!
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 25/12/2025
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everyone. Jasper the Christmas Cat, lit by @pimoroni.com Plasma and old school Unicorn hat :-)
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 18/12/2025
I have just created a 64 x 64 pixel USB C display, the HIB75 driver is a @pimoroni.com Interstate75 2350 W. I added an additional display type to @gadgetoid.com Galactic Unicorn: Multiverse library. Pygame is rendering the frame buffer being passed to the Matrix
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 17/11/2025
I have converted the @pimoroni.com Python Unicorn hat library to MicroPython for the Pimoroni Plasma 2540 W using Pirate MicroPython, almost 100% compatibility. You can find my efforts here. github.com/Corteil/Plas...
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 16/11/2025
Running the cross.py example without any changes to the code :-)
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 16/11/2025
Spent most of the weekend converting the orgrial @pimoroni.com Unicorn hat Python library to work on MicroPython & the Pirates Plasma board. Their Plasma library does not have a brightness function & the LEDs are updated in real time not when required, both abilities have been restored.
Pimoroni Unicorn Hat and Plasma 2350W, the centre LEDs at Red, with yellow at each corner
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 08/11/2025
It's a trap!
Black and white cat asleep on no.1 slave's lap with exposed belly
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 30/10/2025
I have just finished making a badge for Potton Pi & Pints from an old School @pimoroni.com Unicorn hat, the brains 🧟 is a Raspberry Pi PicoW. The Pico is hosting a web site to select the current pattern display and brightness of the LEDs. Always forget how bright an Unicorn hat is when unleashed! 😎
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 26/10/2025
Yes, it's now my box. Move on!
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 25/10/2025
At Assemble :-)
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 25/10/2025
Self portrait in 64 x 64 pixels displayed on my Giant Unicorn.
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 24/10/2025
Finally tidying up the bird's nest of cables and floating PCBs before Assemble Darby tomorrow, the Colour Pixel Picker is hardware complete, just need to finish the software 😂 Part of my #GiganticUnicorn project.
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 22/10/2025
Used the colour picker to create this 8-bit Pacman image. :-) software status is good enough. Need to make a couple changes to the function keys, currently too easy to wipe your hard work with one key press. This Saturday I will be showing off this project and others at assemble. #giganticUnicorn
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 22/10/2025
I'm looking forward to showing off.... Er sharing my old school @pimoroni.com Unicorn hat projects this Saturday. It's a great making festival with all sorts of makers sharing their projects & the joy of making.
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 21/10/2025
Update for the Giant Unicorn hat colour selector. It works! 😎 #GiganticUnicorn
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 20/10/2025
I hit a bit of a brick wall this weekend programming a save buffer function for the colour picker. Then copied and then reinstated the saved data was lost! After a bit of thinking I realised that copying the buffer, that the data was not copied just the labels pointing to the original buffer 1/2
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 20/10/2025
I will be at Assemble, Darby on Saturday, showing off the @pimoroni.com Giant Unicorn hat and other projects. #GiganticUnicorn
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 18/10/2025
Software has been started, the LEDs buffer is sent to the PyGame on a Raspberry Pi. #GiganticUnicorn
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 18/10/2025
Just a DC motor, built into the fader, I'm using @pimoroni.com motor 2040 to control the motor and read the value of the fader.
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 18/10/2025
Working on the layout for the colour sector for my #GiganticUnicorn project, you are able to change the colour of individual pixels on the Unicorn hats.... Well you will be able to when I finish the programming :-)
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 12/10/2025
Fun times, cracking open a phone to replace the battery. Not scary at all 😱, letting Tom take the lead. He not worried, new battery or phone whatever the outcome 🤣
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 01/10/2025
The faders are motorised and move to the stored value after selection, currently set up for RGB colour values. It's programmed in CircuitPython. The motor driver is a @pimoroni.com Motor 2040 and is handling all the inputs and outputs. #GiganticUnicorn
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 28/09/2025
Further update on my #GiganticUnicorn colour controller build, now have the Trellis keypad/display working and the fader is able to set colour level, currently only a single channel is connected, when selecting a pixel, fader is set automatically to current level.
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 27/09/2025
Today, I have been working on a controller for the Giant Unicorn Hat. Have written a function to move the powered fadder to a set position, using a @pimoroni.com motor 2040, running CircuitPython to monitor/control the faders and the NeoTreilis. #GiganticUnicorn
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 26/09/2025
Old school @pimoroni.com Unicorn hat running on a Raspberry Pi 500+ You can never have enough LEDs!
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 26/09/2025
So pretty :-)
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 26/09/2025
Things happen when you live and work close to the Raspberry Pi shop!
Boxed Raspberry Pi 500+
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 21/09/2025
Quick and dirty test at 5v, that was quick! #GiganticUnicorn
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Brian Corteil @cannonfodder.bsky.social · 21/09/2025
I blame @usedbytes.com for this, motorised faders for selecting the colour values of the Giant Unicorn hat pixels, thinking about designing a PCB to make it pretty :-) select a pixel and the pots move to the correct values #GiganticUnicorn
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