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Contents Vol.33, No.2 February 2020 SILICON CHIP www.siliconchip.com.au Features & Reviews 12 Underground mapping, leak detection & pipe inspection How do authorities know what pipes and cables are buried down there, especially when they start excavating? And fixing leaks can be a nightmare if the maps you have are not quite accurate . . . – by Dr David Maddison 38 We review: chipKIT’s new “Lenny” Lenny is a new PIC32-based Arduino to come out of the Microchip stable . . . or is that the Atmel stable? It uses the Arduino R3 footprint and layout so you’re getting the best of both worlds – by Tim Blythman 75 El Cheapo modules: 8-channel USB Logic Analyser Finding or troubleshooting the services buried under your feet can be a real art – or is it a science? – Page 12 You may recall the $150+ “Saleae” Logic Analyser we reviewed a few years ago. Here’s a clone out of China which has even higher performance but is just $13 including postage . . . less than one tenth of the price! – by Jim Rowe Constructional Projects 26 Remote monitoring station messages or emails by 4G! AKA Brendan’s wonderful wombat warning whatchamacallit . . . you can monitor just about anything and receive a text message on your phone if it’s triggered, sprung, intruded, flat, overcharged, out of water – you decide! – by Tim Blythman 44 Indoor Air Quality Monitor based on Micromite BackPack Volatile organic air pollutants are said to create a whole raft of problems, including “sick building syndrome”. This monitor gives a direct readout in parts per billion. It’s built around the mighty Micromite V3 BackPack – by Geoff Graham 68 Low distortion, two-channel DDS audio signal generator This very low distortion, two-channel audio signal generator produces sinewaves, triangle waves, square waves, pulse trains and noise. It has adjustable output frequency, amplitude and phase, plus sweep and pulse modes – by Phil Prosser 84 Building the new “bookshelf” stereo speakers This month we complete construction of our new bookshelf speakers. They’re compact and economical to build and you don’t need specialist tools or even a lot of woodworking experience – by Phil Prosser Your Favourite Columns 61 Serviceman’s Log When in doubt, swap it out – by Dave Thompson 94 Circuit Notebook BUSHFIRE APPEAL: Original “Serviceman” (1) Two 100Mbit Ethernet connections over a single Cat6 cable Cartoon Art (2) Metered variable power supply uses inexpensive modules (3) “In situ” Ethernet cable tester (4) Signal Generator output booster using LM1877 98 Vintage Radio See P37 for details of this unique offer! Tecnico-Aristocrat 651 from 1946 – by Associate Professor Graham Parslow Everything Else 2 Editorial Viewpoint 4 Mailbag – Your Feedback 83 Product Showcase siliconchip.com.au 104 Ask SILICON CHIP 106 SILICON CHIP ONLINE SHOP 111 Market Centre 111 Advertising Index 112 Notes and Errata Monitor just about anything – wombat traps included – and get a message on your 4G phone when triggered – Page 26 chipKITs new “Lenny” is a PIC32based Arduino which uses a close relative of the IC in a Micromite – Page 38 How’s the air quality in your home or office? Does it suffer from “Sick Building Syndrome”? This nifty unit uses a Micromite BackPack to measure Volatile Organic Pollutants – Page 44 We’re re-purposing some existing project boards to create a high performance DDS Audio Signal Generator – Page 68 Just about anyone – even you! – can put these high performing bookshelf speakers together! – Page 84 www.facebook.com/siliconchipmagazine