Welcome to JJoseph.org
About me...
I am currently earning a PhD in the Joint CMU-Pitt Ph.D. Program in Computational Biology. I work under Dannie Durand in the Durand Lab, at Carnegie Mellon. I hold a MS and BS in Computational Biology, both also from Carnegie Mellon.
To complement a rather computer-oriented course of study, my hobbies tend to be decidedly practical. Most recently, I've found great interest in making beer and wine, baking, cooking, and a bit of carpentry. Inevitably, I also maintain a number of computer and electronics projects, including (lately) brewing automation, LED lighting control, home utility and environment monitoring, and computer water cooling.
~Jacob
Contact Information:
E-mail: jacob@jjoseph.org
IM networks: (I do not read email sent to these addresses)
- AIM: jacobmj1
- ICQ: 127679637
- Yahoo: jacobj2001
- MSN: jacobmj@hotmail.com
- Google: jacobmjoseph@gmail.com
If you're looking for Josh and Jeannine's website, see http://jj.jjoseph.org.
APC SmartUPS Battery Float Voltage Calibration
Updated: 11 Oct 2009
Too high a battery float voltage is a problem I've seen on many of my APC SmartUPS units, and one that appears to be rather common. Sealed lead acid batteries do not tolerate too high a standby voltage, and suffer from dramatically shortened lifespan when run at elevated voltages and temperatures. In the worst case, overcharging results in elevated temperatures and rupture of the battery case. Outside of warranty, APC is of no assistance, suggesting only that I purchase a new unit. (Helpfully, they offer a discount with the trade-in.) Nonetheless, I'd like to not think of $7-800 purchases as being for disposable items.
I've long sought a manner to adjust or recalibrate the battery voltage on my SmartUPS SUA1500 RM2. It would also be nice to be able to adjust the battery charging voltage to use other types of batteries; e.g., flooded lead-acid marine or car batteries. This post describes, using information from a variety of sources, an approach to recalibrate the battery voltage and other measurements on SmartUPS devices by using the PROG mode available by serial connection. It also suggests a method for modifying the UPS circuit board when PROG doesn't work, as with my SU700 units.
Meter Reading With a Webcam
Updated: 15 Nov 2008
The goal of this project is to read a standard 6-dial analog natural gas meter. Data is captured using an inexpensive USB webcam, and processed (minimally) using Python. As I would like to be able to measure the amount of gas used on a minute-to-minute basis, directly reading the dials on the meter (by eye or computer) does not provide enough precision. That is, the finest enumerated dial reads increments of 1000 cubic feet, more than is consumed over several cold winter days. To get around this, rotations of the lower test dials are counted over successive images, and calibrated to correspond to overall.
High Power RGB LED Controller
Updated: 06 Jul 2008
This is an ongoing project to control a number (currently 5) of Lamina Atlas high power (350-500mA) LEDs. Current progress includes:
- PCB artwork (in Eagle) with connections for 5 RGB LEDs.
- Firmware for a Microchip PIC16f887 microcontroller to interface between the FTDI 245R USB chip and a number of Texas Instruments TLC5940 constant current LED drivers.
- Python ctypes interface to libftdi.
- A simple Python interface to communicate color commands by USB
- Ongoing work includes an intuitive graphical user interface, music synchronization, and a reworking of the hardware to utilize switching constant current regulators.
No, I'm not on Facebook
Updated: 08 Mar 2008
No, I'm not on Facebook -- but I once was.
Some years ago, I did succumb to the Facebook peer pressure and joined the site. Unsure of any other value, this did cease the flood of invitations by email. Eventually, I added a photo, listed my contact information, and confirmed friendship with, well, my friends. In time, I became increasingly cynical: Why should I have Facebook friends when I can have real friends? Is Facebook only a popularity contest? Did I have an interest in spying on old pals' online social lives? (Simply, no.) Perhaps most importantly, how does publishing a network of my (virtual) friends erode my privacy?
1-Wire Relay / Lighting Controller
Updated: 03 Oct 2007
An 8-channel 120V relay controller, this project was originally intended only as a brewing and vinification process controller.
Since its construction was concurrent with a dance party, it was first tested as a dance floor lighting controller. The controller is comprised of a DS2408 8-channel switch, and eight 20A relays.
Adding SSL Certificates to a Motorola Slvr
Updated: 01 May 2007
Motorola provides no method of permanently accepting SSL certificates or documented method of adding certificate authorities to the phone. For many services, I cannot justify the expense of signed SSL certificates. Often, I'm one of very few users and am happy to install or manually accept such a certificate when needed. With my previous cellular telephones, particularly the Nokia 6600, adding certificates proved trivial. However, upon switching to a Cingular-branded Motorola Slvr L7, warnings of such self-signed certificates while accessing my email and web services seemed unavoidable. Alas, I have installed a new CA...
LED Water Lamp
Updated: 01 Jan 2007
Construction of a computer-controlled color LED bubbling water lamp. Three LED channels (RGB) are controlled by PWM for 24-bit color support. A 16F88 PIC is used to control a MAX6966 PWM LED chip. Computer communication is by the Dallas 1-Wire interface, via a DS2408 PIO chip.
Intelligent Design
Updated: 16 Oct 2005
Since 2001, 400 scientists (as of July 2005) have signed the Discovery Institute's "A Scientific Dissent From Darwinism" petition. This has been championed as an endorsement by the scientific community of the religion-based concept of "Intelligent Design", despite a clear lack of scientific training with most signatories. In response, shovelbums.org has posted the following petition to counter any notion of broad support within the scientific community. It has recieved over 1500 signatures in its first 4 days. If you are of similar conviction, please read and consider and signing the "A Scientific Support For Darwinism" petition.