Recently, a programmer launched a smart fan driven by a Raspberry Pi computer, which can automatically turn on the power based on the position of a face.
How should programmers spend the scorching summer days? Recently, a programmer named Devin LaCrosse provided the answer. LaCrosse recently announced a smart fan based on the Raspberry Pi computer that can automatically start blowing air by recognizing the position of a face in the room.
“If a software engineer has too much free time, such products will emerge,” LaCrosse joked.
LaCrosse’s DIY smart fan consists of a computer cooling fan and a camera, both connected to a Raspberry Pi mini computer. LaCrosse said, “On hot summer days, wouldn’t you want the fan in your home to follow you closely? Yes, I decided to do something about it, and that’s how this fan came to be. This personal desktop fan will keep its eyes on your face and cool everything down in the summer.”
To allow more people to enjoy the cool breeze, LaCrosse generously published the manufacturing method on the DIY website Instructables. Besides the software, this smart fan also requires the installation of the computer vision library OpenCV, pulse width modulation software, and a servo system controlled through inputs and outputs on the Raspberry Pi computer.
Although this sounds complicated, LaCrosse stated that assembling this fan is actually not that difficult. He said, “I want to say anyone can make it. When I started developing this fan, I had no experience with Raspberry Pi computers, servo systems, or OpenCV. By searching for tutorials online, I learned how to connect them together.”
LaCrosse hopes to soon shed the concept product label and launch a more refined and mature product. “Now I am open-sourcing it, and anyone can download this plan and assemble it themselves,” he said.