Early morning information system

"We are three people – Elena, Eugene, and Alex – and we run a small design workshop. It’s the hobby part of our life while we do day-to-day, normal jobs. Each one specialises in a different area – Elena in design, Eugene in mechanical stuff (making things), and Alex in programming. The things we have done in the past range from interior design to small microcontroller devices.

"The clock that we made is nothing special technologically, except that it was made from a salvaged clock and a salvaged phone battery, which most people would just dispose of. About one and a half years ago, I discovered the world of microcontrollers. It is fascinating how the Arduino team have made it so easy for people to start with MC devices. I saw others making devices on YouTube using Arduino, and some temp/pressure sensors, and so decided to have a go at it. So, this was my first Arduino project. Since it was my first device, the best I could code was the clock and display icons with meter readings. Settings, alarm, forecast, etc. were all programmed in V2 by Alex, and now the code is quite sophisticated.

"Overall, the electronics setup is simple – we used modules and connected them all together: a salvaged Nokia 5110 LCD module for display, a BME280 module for weather, a DS1307 module for real-time clock, TP4056/5 V boost modules for power, a buzzer that was salvaged from the old PC, and the basic LDR module. The faceplate is recycled, and the original bells were preserved – we connected the motor to Arduino through the transistor.

You can find more of Lenka Design's work at https://www.youtube.com/c/LenkaDesign