What is RabbitMax Flex?
ANAVI Flex is an open source hardware Raspberry Pi HAT (add-on board) for rapid prototyping of Internet of Things (IoT) powered by free and open source software. It features:
- IR transmitter (IR LED)
- IR receiver (IR photo sensor)
- Relay
- Piezoelectric speaker (buzzer)
- Button
- RGB LED
- Slot for modular 16x2 LCD character display
- Slots for up to 5 plug and play I2C sensors for temperature, barometric pressure, humidity and light
- UART (Universal asynchronous receiver/transmitter) pins for debugging
Getting started with ANAVI Flex is super easy. No soldering is required. You can assemble the kit with your bare hands and start using it immediately on Raspbian, the most popular GNU/Linux distribution for Raspberry Pi. Comprehensive user's manual is provided. Out of the box it supports sensors for temperature, humidity, barometric pressure and light. Free and open source examples written in Python and C are available in GitHub.
ANAVI Flex Raspberry Pi HAT was previously known as RabbitMax.
Which Raspberry Pi Versions and Models Are Supported?
ANAVI Flex is compatible with the following Raspberry Pi models and versions:
- Raspberry Pi 3 Model B
- Raspberry Pi 2 Model B
- Raspberry Pi 1 Model A+
- Raspberry Pi 1 Model B+
- Raspberry Pi 0
ANAVI Flex is NOT compatible with the earlier 26-pin models of Raspberry Pi 1 Model B & A's.
Which Sensors Are Supported?
ANAVI Flex officially supports the following I2C sensor modules:
- BMP180 for temperature and barometric pressure
- HTU21 for temperature and humidity
- BH1750 for light
You may also attach any other I2C sensors but you will have to take care of their software integration.
What LCD Display Module Is Supported?
ANAVI Flex supports 1602 LCD display module with HD44780 controller. The display is capable of showing up to 16 characters on each of the two rows.
Is ANAVI Flex Suitable for You?
Yes, ANAVI Flex Raspberry Pi HAT is suitable for you if you are an existing Raspberry Pi owner interested in home automation, software development and Internet of Things (IoT). The board is appropriate for embedded programming enthusiasts, GNU/Linux gadget fans, students as well as web and mobile app developers.
The main usage of the board is embedded software development without the urge of understanding perfectly the hardware. ANAVI Flex is a general purpose Raspberry Pi HAT. It is useful for building Do It Yourself (DIY) projects like: weather station, desk assistant or just rapid prototyping of Internet of Things (IoT). For optimal performance it is recommended to get the IoT Developer Kit.
If you are still wondering have a look at review and walk trough by Francesco Vannini with highlights of all important features for developers:
What the Experts Think About RabbitMax Flex?
ANAVI Flex Raspberry Pi HAT has received positive reviews from various well known technology experts and bloggers:
Is ANAVI Flex an Open Source Project?
Yes, ANAVI Flex is an open source hardware and free and open source software project. The board is designed with the free and open source electronics design automation suite KiCAD. The schematics, the PCB design and open source software are available in GitHub.
Open source sample applications written in Python and the C programming language are provided. Using LIRC, the popular free and open source software for Linux, you may scan IR remote controls and control home appliances such as TV, HiFi, air conditions, etc. Have a look at the comprehensive user's manual to learn more.
What Are the Perks?
ANAVI Flex IndieGoGo campaign offers the following perks:
ANAVI Flex Raspberry Pi HAT is included in all perks. Raspberry Pi is NOT included in any of the perks. "Early birds" backers will get a beta version of ANAVI Flex Raspberry Pi HAT at very discounted rates with shipping immediately after the end of the campaign.
Follow ANAVI in Facebook and Twitter to discover the limited edition of secret perks!
How Do You Ship the Perks?
Any of the ANAVI Flex perks are shipped via registered airmail service to the European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Israel and the United States. Please let us know if you need shipping to another region. The shipping cost depends on the perk and your location.
The shipping price includes packaging in an individual cardboard box and an envelope with air bubbles for extra safety during the transportation. For more details please have a look at the unboxing video from Philippe "RzR" Coval who received the first ANAVI Flex Raspberry Pi HAT:
Why ANAVI Flex Needs You?
ANAVI Flex has been already a stable product. We have working prototypes and a small-run batch. Now we need your help to gather enough funds and to go for mass production.
Together we can reduce the manufacturing costs and cut the end product price. Any contribution has an impact and can make the difference. Please help us make ANAVI Flex a successful project!
How Can I Get Involved and Help?
Buy any of the available perks, get your hands on ANAVI Flex and become part of our open source community!
What Is the Story of ANAVI Flex?
ANAVI started as a small hobby project by Leon Anavi in November 2015. Initially the project was using off the shelf components but soon after that Leon decided to create his own Raspberry Pi HAT for easy IoT prototyping.
Inspired by Olimex and Tsvetan Uzunov's presentations about open source hardware at FOSDEM and Hackaday Belgrade, Leon insisted on using the free and open source electronics design automation suite KiCAD for the PCB design. In April 2016, the software engineer Leon bought his first soldering iron from Olimex and started working on the first hardware prototypes.
Designing PCB requires a lot of hardware skills and experience so Leon needed help. It was not easy to find a suitable hardware engineer familiar with KiCAD. After making a lot of contacts and speaking to various engineers finally Leon found the right people. Thanks to the PCB manufacturing services of OSH Park the first PCB prototypes were ready at the end of June 2016.
As expected the first version was far from perfect. There were a few bugs which were quickly fixed. The next hardware revision and a small-run batch was ready in August 2016. It featured a new buzzer, a new button and a potentiometer for controlling the light and contrast of the LCD display module.
In September 2016, after a lot of hard work, the first version of the user's manual of ANAVI Flex was released with open source examples written in Python and the C programming language.
In October 2016 first prototypes of ANAVI Flex were shipped to developers and bloggers. Another hardware revision with minor improvements was made and a small quantity of ANAVI Flex Raspberry Pi HATs was released on sale and quickly went out of stock in Tindie.
Now we need your help for to reduce the price per unit and go to mass production :)
What Is the Road Map of ANAVI Flex?
After shipping all perks the road map of ANAVI Flex focuses on the software development of GNU/Linux distribution for Internet of Things (IoT) with the Yocto Project and Openembedded that features an application for reporting data from the sensors and receiving remote commands through the lightweight machine to machine communication project MQTT. A user friends HTML5 web interface with Node.js backend will be available for remote control of your Raspberry Pi and RabbitMax Flex.
Want to Know More?
Please visit our website at anavi.technology, Facebook, Twitter and Hackaday.io for more information.
Thank You!
ANAVI was started as a project by Leon Anavi and it has been moving forward thanks to him and his friends. Special thanks to the contributions and valuable guidelines provided by Vladimir Harizanov, Radoslav Kolev, Rangel Ivanov, Jean-Luc Aufranc, Francesco Vannini, Pierre Lecourt, Michael Horne, Richard Saville and Philippe "RzR" Coval.