Hi everyone
Today I am going to share a project which has been long due on my bucket list. I was keen to make an analog version of Pomodoro TImer which I use often using my smartphone timer.
So what is Pomodoro technique?
The Pomodoro Technique is a time management method proposed by Francesco Cirillo in the 1980s.
The idea is very simple - you break down any task you do in two kinds of intervals - long and short.
For instance, you want to study something for 2 hours -so instead of directly spending 2 hours, you spend 25 min, then you take 5 min break, again you spend 25 min followed by a 5 min break and you repeat this for two more cycles to complete two hours.
Focussing on any task for a longer duration consumes a lot of cognitive resources. So you break the task into two modes - focussed mode ( 25 min interval) and the diffused mode ( 5 min break) for better efficiency. Even when you take 5 min break, your mind keeps thinking about the problem you were working on. Each interval is known as a Pomodoro which is an Italian word inspired by a tomato-shaped kitchen timer used by Francesco.
There are more nuances to the process which can be found here Pomodoro Technique - Wikipedia
Also, there is a section in the book on explaining Pomodoro "Learning How to learn " by Barbara Oakley. Here is the ted talk by the author Learning how to learn | Barbara Oakley | TEDxOaklandUniversity - YouTube
Now about the project:
I was keen to use an analog version of a timer that is smarter than the conventional timer. It automatically records the start time and end time and keeps a log of the same. Along with this, a supportive interface, which can help enrich the log data with also capturing how did the session go and what you worked on. The analytics can help one analyze one’s own pattern and productivity.
The first part of the project, however, is to make a simple timer. Here are the components used in the initial design:
- RTC
- Arduino
- oled display
- hall effect sensor
- Buzzer, led
When the current time, reaches the target time, the buzzer will start and led with lit up. You can also interface Bluetooth and dynamically set both intervals.
The best part about this project is, you will learn to play around with many electronic components which will be very handy when you venture into making other projects using Arduino. If you know how OLED works, you can attach the same with a temp sensor and display the temperature data of your room in real-time. Likewise, many other small interesting projects can be designed.
You can also make a stand-alone anemometer, once you know how hall sensor and OLED works! @Ashish_Pardeshi has already designed the same.
In the upcoming iteration, the idea is to make it more intuitive and compact. @jtd @Ashish_Pardeshi @ravitoys31 will be working on it and will share the updates!
Let me know what do you all think about the project ! Looking forward to suggestions and feedback
Happy Tinkering !!
