Project

# Title Team Members TA Documents Sponsor
34 SELF ADJUSTING VOLUME PEDAL
Chris Jurczewski
Noah DuVal
Norbert Lazarz
Nithin Balaji Shanthini Praveena Purushothaman design_document2.pdf
final_paper1.pdf
photo3.jpg
photo1.jpg
presentation1.pdf
proposal2.pdf
Team Members:
- nlazarz2
- nbduval2
- cmj7

# Problem

One problem with adjusting volume manually is that it's tedious and often causes changes in the tone of the amp. Another problem this poses is during live performances, when you would like guitars to be less or more prominent when playing different songs, there is no way for the player themselves to adjust themselves without relying on someone mixing during their set. Volume is also room dependent so changing locations will result in the volume being changed which can often be unwanted.

# Solution

To solve these problems we propose a pedal that will adjust the volume of the amp’s output depending on the chosen decibel setting located on the pedal. This project will have two subsystems that will work together to collect, process, and alter the output of the amp. The first subsystem is the pedal itself which will allow the user to select the desired dB setting they would like to hear. The second is the microphone attachment to the guitar which will collect auditory data from the amp and transmit it wirelessly to the pedal. After the pedal receives the signal it will filter out the unnecessary frequencies and bring the volume of the signal up to the preset number and keep that volume wherever the player is.

# Solution Components

## Pedal Subsystem

The pedal itself will contain the main PCB which will be in charge of taking in readings from microphones on the guitar. The microcontroller will then be programmed to filter the audio so there is as little noise as possible and will not consider frequencies outside a guitar’s range. It will then use these readings to determine the level of volume it tells the amp to output. This will be determined by averaging the sound over a certain period of time and bringing it up to the preset number on the pedal depending on the distance of the player.

- Possibly looking at using the ESP32-S3 Microcontroller due to its built in wifi and bluetooth capabilities that we would like to use to communicate between the microphone and custom pcb
- A multitude of resistors, capacitors and OpAmps to create an analog noise filter before the digital filter to remove general ambient noise.
- A 4.4mm jack is needed to connect the pedal to a guitar/amp

## Guitar Subsystem

On the front and back of the guitar will be wireless microphones that will pick up the outgoing sound from the amp and will send it to the first subsystem to be used for filtering and calculations.

- Will require some form of bluetooth microphone that will connect to the pedal
- Will need some form of external power and a way to easily attach and detach from a guitar

# Criterion For Success

- Audio is noticeably changed by the varying distance between player and amp
- Audio stays consistent for player and does not jump or stutter
- Audio does not change tone or effects created by other pedals or amp presets
- Pedal is not affected by frequencies outside it’s set range (80-1500 Hz)
-Internal components are relatively inexpensive

Covert Communication Device

Ahmad Abuisneineh, Srivardhan Sajja, Braeden Smith

Covert Communication Device

Featured Project

**Partners (seeking one additional partner)**: Braeden Smith (braeden2), Srivardhan Sajja (sajja3)

**Problem**: We imagine this product would have a primary use in military/law enforcement application -- especially in dangerous, high risk missions. During a house raid or other sensitive mission, maintaining a quiet profile and also having good situational awareness is essential. That mean's that normal two way radios can't work. And alternatives, like in-ear radios act as outside->in communication only and also reduce the ability to hear your surroundings.

**Solution**: We would provide a series of small pocketable devices with long battery that would use LoRa radios to provide a range of 1-5 miles. They would be rechargeable and have a single recessed soft-touch button that would allow someone to find it inside of pockets and tap it easily. The taps would be sent in real-time to all other devices, where they would be translated into silent but noticeable vibrations. (Every device can obviously TX/RX).

Essentially a team could use a set of predetermined signals or even morse code, to quickly and without loss of situational awareness communicate movements/instructions to others who are not within line-of-sight.

The following we would not consider part of the basic requirements for success, but additional goals if we are ahead of schedule:

We could also imagine a base-station which would allow someone using a computer to type simple text that would be sent out as morse code or other predetermined patterns. Additionally this base station would be able to record and monitor the traffic over the LoRa channels (including sender).

**Solutions Components**:

- **Charging and power systems**: the device would have a single USB-C/Microusb port that would connect to charging circuitry for the small Lithium-ion battery (150-500mAh). This USB port would also connect to the MCU. The subsystem would also be responsible to dropping the lion (3.7-4.2V to a stable 3.3V logic level). and providing power to the vibration motor.

- **RF Communications**: we would rely on externally produced RF transceivers that we would integrate into our PCB -- DLP-RFS1280, https://www.sparkfun.com/products/16871, https://www.adafruit.com/product/3073, .

-**Vibration**: We would have to research and source durable quiet, vibration motors that might even be adjustable in intensity

- **MCU**: We are likely to use the STM32 series of MCU's. We need it to communicate with the transceiver (probably SPI) and also control the vibration motor (by driving some transistor). The packets that we send would need to be encrypted (probably with AES). We would also need it to communicate to a host computer for programming via the same port.

- **Structural**: For this prototype, we'd imagine that a simple 3d printed case would be appropriate. We'd have to design something small and relatively ergonomic. We would have a single recessed location for the soft-touch button, that'd be easy to find by feel.

**Basic criterion for success:** We have at least two wireless devices that can reliably and quickly transfer button-presses to vibrations on the other device. It should operate at at *least* 1km LOS. It should be programmable + chargeable via USB. It should also be relatively compact in size and quiet to use.

**Additional Success Criterion:** we would have a separate, 3rd device that can stay permanently connected to a computer. It would provide some software that would be able to send and receive from the LoRa radio, especially ASCII -> morse code.