I'm working on a project that involves monitoring bees inside a hive. Bees can't see red light, so it's great to use red LEDs to light up the inside of the hive. It doesn't make things too hot, and it doesn't disturb the bees -- it may even help cut down on disease.

However, all the cameras seem to have a red filter that makes it almost impossible to see anything, even when there are a lot of red LEDs. Is there any way to make the cameras work better in red light? Some what to remove the filter, or some version of the camera that works better in red light than others?

Thanks.

I created a number of programs about a month ago, some of which got quite complex. At the time the files (created between 5/30 and 6/5) saved and loaded without an issue, and after developing a prototype of an app, I ordered a dozen more units so we could put some some trials in the field.

But not none of these programs will load completely. When I try to load them, I get just a small part of the original program, sometimes part of the main loop, and even that is missing many commands. These programs were created using 1.5.4, but it doesn't seem to matter which version I use in attempting to load them.

I had put this StickC aside to work with another (I have a dozen or so of them). And then I ran into the same thing about ten StickC's later.

With both of these, it seems to be a screen failure. I can download a program, get the LED to flash, and even connect via network. But the screen remains dead -- even if I just run the burner and start the device over from scratch. I've also tried shorting BAT to GND, just in case, and get the same results. Another 8 StickC's working dandy (I was making a batch of prototype devices) but these two appear to have simply lost their screens.

So it's not really dead. It's just gone dark.

Yes, it sounds like this is what will be needed.

It would be great if UIFlow would just roll up the whole sequence of switching to AP mode, collecting the info, and reconnecting. It's such a standard behavior for ESP-based devices, that it seems like it should be baked-in.

I want to be able to take it anywhere and detect the local networks. The initial setup of the StickC allows this, and I've set up a similar process on an ESP8266, but but I don't see any way to trigger that kind of sequence in UIFlow.

Since arriving a couple of weeks ago, the M5StickC has worked like a champ. Together with the ENV and weight sensors, it's proven to be perfect for a project that was in the works and (except for some issues around swapping networks) has performed like a champ. I've had the StickC connected to a small (2600mah) power bank which was in turn connected with a small (2w) solar panel. The combination had it running for days, recording data and sending it along to Thingspeak.

But last night I disconnected the StickC to make some code changes. It tested out just fine, but when I went to power it up this morning ... it wouldn't start. Not when connected to the battery, not when connected to the PC, not when connected to a USB power source. I've tried all the familiar long press and left+right options that have helped with past issues, but the screen is stubbornly dark.

Is there something I'm overlooking? Anything else I can try to revive a StickC that seems to be ... Sick-C?

I spent several years working on projects to automate construction / mining equipment that required highly accurate location values. At the start, we could use GPS fairly effectively for vehicles moving down a pre-defined path, but had to switch to GPS + RTK base stations when looking to get < 1M accuracy needed for things like loading dump trucks, etc.

Originally, RTK units were very expensive (as in $80K for a base station and another $20-40K on each vehicle) which limited the range of applications. But the price has dropped tremendously. The last set of items I built for this used a variety of GPS+RTK boards that brought the whole system below $300. Sparkfun makes one such board.

With these systems, you can get down to the sub-centimeter range. So ... really accurate. But you're still going to spend $200-400 if you want to track movement that accurately.

To get the kind of .5M accuracy you're looking for, look for a GPS chip that incorporates GLONASS and Galileo (which is, honestly, just about every new chip). Your device is moving slowly, so you could do something like sample four times a second and take a rolling average. You'll probably have to do some smoothing and filtering, because momentary blockages of satellites can result in an abrupt apparent shift in position and sometimes GPS just gives a "WTH" value. But it can definitely be done.

Oh, and there's really no limit on how often you can check GPS signals. Several libraries out there do try to slow things down, or just feed you the same results if you ask again repeatedly, because GPS can be a power hog. But if you have the power, just take more measurements.

One thing to note: GPS data is sometimes accurate only to about 3 meters. It's certainly theoretically better -- and often is -- depending on how many satellites are currently in view. But when looking at data like this on a very small area, your GPS data will often seem erratic or jittery as the reported value moves around within the range of error.

For example, if your mower were moving back and forth in .5 m swaths, it may actually seem to say in the same place for 3 meters or so, then jump forward and maybe sideways by 2-3 meters. So the results may seem less regular, and less smooth, than real life. Even if the mower is sitting in a single spot for some time, it may seem to jiggle around.

The usual solution to this is to take multiple samples over a period and smooth them out, based on some knowledge of the speed of the device being tracked.

It seems I've answered my own question. By switching over to the "beta" version of UIFlow, it appears that ENV II is available, so will be supported in upcoming versions.

Mark it closed!