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USB System Monitor

Introduction

Some people like to fill the notification area of their GUI with all kinds of widgets that show them their CPU utilisation, memory usage, fan speed, network throughput, disk temperature and other information of dubious value in real time.

However, nothing beats an ugly plastic brick that looks like it escaped straight from an early 1980's computer hobbyist's basement to fulfil that function. For that purpose, I created the desktop USB system monitor. Plus, it was a really good excuse to get started with Microchip PICs.

Description

In essence, this project is just two small analogue panel meters stuck in a box together with a microcontroller that drives them. The micro is connected to a PC via USB and enumerates as a USB CDC (i.e. virtual COM port), and outputs data received from the PC as values on the meters. The use as a system load monitor is pretty arbitrary, and that functionality is entirely handled by a Python script running on the PC, which periodically reads the system status and sends it to the box.

Circuit and Components

Firmware

PC Software

projects/sysmon.1453044200.txt.gz · Last modified: 2016-01-17 12:23 by robert