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Hi Comunity!
without getting into details I am atempting to build a product that transfers energy between two devices and i need things like a very small motherboard,reciver and a transmitter
but these products are usually not easy to find unless you work at a tech company so my question is does someone know where i could purchase things like that
also does someone know where i could hire a hardware engineer
thx in advance
build a product
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Re: build a product
Hi kebba99-
Are you designing this product as part of a school project? Science Buddies is here to help K-12 kids with science fair and engineering fair projects. We can't help with homework or other stuff that's not related to a project of some kind. Since you said you're a student in your profile, I'll guess for the moment that you're working on something for an engineering fair.
That said, you can't expect a lot of help with no information. A product that transfers energy between two devices is pretty vague and leaves a lot of questions. For example, lots of people want to make a cable that lets you charge one cell phone from another. You can't. Another student a while back asked for help making an app that lets you use the radios in your phone to transfer some of your battery charge. You can't do that either. So your statement " transfers energy between two devices" triggers all sorts of memories of conversations I've had with inventors (students and adults) who had cool ideas that needed a lot of work if they could be made at all.
A big question is your background - how much help will you need? You mentioned you'd want to work with an EE. If the device needs a cabinet can you build or 3D print one? If this motherboard needs to be programmed, can you program it?
Since you can't say what this motherboard needs to do, or what you want to transmit and what you need to receive, I'll suggest that the two most popular $35 computers out there are the Arduino and the Raspberry Pi. A third, the Beaglebone is rapidly replacing the Raspberry Pi as a platform since it's more powerful for less money. Of the three, Arduinos have a lot more devices made for it that can do things like transmitting and receiving radio, make cell calls, control other devices, etc. These are referred to in the Arduino world as "shields". The Raspberry Pi is more powerful than the Arduino but much more finicky and harder to program. There are also fewer pre made add-ons available. Look for 'hats' if you want to find some. Most people connecting things to Raspberry Pis use a ribbon cable over to a circuit or breadboard instead of installing a hat. Beaglebones are faster and cheaper than Raspberry Pis and similarly are connected to boards via cables. They are said to be less finicky than the Raspberry Pi and programming them is about the same but they cost more.
You can buy a lot of this stuff on Amazon if you know what you're looking for. Adafruit.com and Sparkfun.com probably have the best selection and most knowledgable pre-sales staff available. Jameco.com is a great place to buy these things but they'll have a smaller selection. If you know what you need, you can always try Amazon and eBay as well.
Of course, what you'll actually need depends on what you're making. Since we don't know that, I can't direct you specifically. If you can say what you're working on and confirm that this in fact a school fair project, then write back and I or someone here will give you another push.
As for hiring a EE, that's certainly possible. This is completely the wrong forum for that. This is not a maker community, but K-12 students and volunteer experts who advise the students on projects. I would ask at a local makerspace if you have one in your area. You can also try some of the internet sources for freelance engineers. If this is a school project, can you team up with another student who might have the EE chops you need but would benefit from working with you? There may be another Jobs/Wozniak pairing in the future and maybe you're half of the next Apple.
It's not the answer you wanted but I hope it helps a little.
Howard
Are you designing this product as part of a school project? Science Buddies is here to help K-12 kids with science fair and engineering fair projects. We can't help with homework or other stuff that's not related to a project of some kind. Since you said you're a student in your profile, I'll guess for the moment that you're working on something for an engineering fair.
That said, you can't expect a lot of help with no information. A product that transfers energy between two devices is pretty vague and leaves a lot of questions. For example, lots of people want to make a cable that lets you charge one cell phone from another. You can't. Another student a while back asked for help making an app that lets you use the radios in your phone to transfer some of your battery charge. You can't do that either. So your statement " transfers energy between two devices" triggers all sorts of memories of conversations I've had with inventors (students and adults) who had cool ideas that needed a lot of work if they could be made at all.
A big question is your background - how much help will you need? You mentioned you'd want to work with an EE. If the device needs a cabinet can you build or 3D print one? If this motherboard needs to be programmed, can you program it?
Since you can't say what this motherboard needs to do, or what you want to transmit and what you need to receive, I'll suggest that the two most popular $35 computers out there are the Arduino and the Raspberry Pi. A third, the Beaglebone is rapidly replacing the Raspberry Pi as a platform since it's more powerful for less money. Of the three, Arduinos have a lot more devices made for it that can do things like transmitting and receiving radio, make cell calls, control other devices, etc. These are referred to in the Arduino world as "shields". The Raspberry Pi is more powerful than the Arduino but much more finicky and harder to program. There are also fewer pre made add-ons available. Look for 'hats' if you want to find some. Most people connecting things to Raspberry Pis use a ribbon cable over to a circuit or breadboard instead of installing a hat. Beaglebones are faster and cheaper than Raspberry Pis and similarly are connected to boards via cables. They are said to be less finicky than the Raspberry Pi and programming them is about the same but they cost more.
You can buy a lot of this stuff on Amazon if you know what you're looking for. Adafruit.com and Sparkfun.com probably have the best selection and most knowledgable pre-sales staff available. Jameco.com is a great place to buy these things but they'll have a smaller selection. If you know what you need, you can always try Amazon and eBay as well.
Of course, what you'll actually need depends on what you're making. Since we don't know that, I can't direct you specifically. If you can say what you're working on and confirm that this in fact a school fair project, then write back and I or someone here will give you another push.
As for hiring a EE, that's certainly possible. This is completely the wrong forum for that. This is not a maker community, but K-12 students and volunteer experts who advise the students on projects. I would ask at a local makerspace if you have one in your area. You can also try some of the internet sources for freelance engineers. If this is a school project, can you team up with another student who might have the EE chops you need but would benefit from working with you? There may be another Jobs/Wozniak pairing in the future and maybe you're half of the next Apple.
It's not the answer you wanted but I hope it helps a little.
Howard