Makago Consumer Products

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Samples of Consumer Products

(Click on any picture to see a larger version)

The Ball:

Makago did this project in the early eighties. It is the pre-cursor to all of today's electronically embellished exercise machines. It was a classic consumer electronic design: 4-bit microprocessor, custom LCD, single-sided phenolic PCB. The challenging part of this design was that the patented transducer was actually a part of the PCB and whole assemble had to be rugged enough to be abused like a ball.

Easy Scorer:
This device scored all the betting games associated with golf. It was a mid-eighties project. It used an 8-bit microprocessor and for the first time the code was written in C rather than assemble language.

There were many challenges in this project. Packaging the 640 x350 pixel LCD in a drop-proof, water-proof package was one. The other was getting descent battery life.

Fish Finder (Depth Sounder):
This is one unit of a series of seven of these that were done for one client. They were in volume production for years in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore. This was an 8-bit microprocessor design. Some units had custom LCDs.

The best part of this design was that the heart of the unit was an FPGA. These products couldn't be cloned!

BeeperKid:

Attach one half to your child (kid) and the other half to yourself. If your kid gets too far away, it beeps: BeeperKid!

Makago did not design this. In retrospect, the client probably wishes that he had given the whole project to Makago. If you want to hear a sad story, ask about this project.

Solar Hot Water Controller:
This is a great product that has never gotten off the ground because it has never been marketed. Figures, it's Makago's.

This solar controller has done something that no other controller has ever done: It has survived since 1993 in the salt-corroding environment of the tropics

Pool and Spa Controller:
These are terrible pictures of a terrific product. The picture at the right is the in-the-house control panel. The second picture is the controller that sits out in the yard with the pool pump, heater, and valves. The two units communicate via RS485 network. Several other devices can be attached to make very impressive home automation system.

This product is in current volume production. The on-going challenge has been one of wringing feature laden performance out of a very cost effective design.

This product should be in text books as a case study in success entitled: "Putting it all together: Design, Marketing, and Service."

Home Company Profile Past Projects Consumer Industrial Government Resumes White Papers (Opinions) Other Useful Links	Samples of Consumer Products (Click on any picture to see a larger version)
	The Ball: Makago did this project in the early eighties. It is the pre-cursor to all of today's electronically embellished exercise machines. It was a classic consumer electronic design: 4-bit microprocessor, custom LCD, single-sided phenolic PCB. The challenging part of this design was that the patented transducer was actually a part of the PCB and whole assemble had to be rugged enough to be abused like a ball.
	Easy Scorer: This device scored all the betting games associated with golf. It was a mid-eighties project. It used an 8-bit microprocessor and for the first time the code was written in C rather than assemble language. There were many challenges in this project. Packaging the 640 x350 pixel LCD in a drop-proof, water-proof package was one. The other was getting descent battery life.
	Fish Finder (Depth Sounder): This is one unit of a series of seven of these that were done for one client. They were in volume production for years in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore. This was an 8-bit microprocessor design. Some units had custom LCDs. The best part of this design was that the heart of the unit was an FPGA. These products couldn't be cloned!
	BeeperKid: Attach one half to your child (kid) and the other half to yourself. If your kid gets too far away, it beeps: BeeperKid! Makago did not design this. In retrospect, the client probably wishes that he had given the whole project to Makago. If you want to hear a sad story, ask about this project.
	Solar Hot Water Controller: This is a great product that has never gotten off the ground because it has never been marketed. Figures, it's Makago's. This solar controller has done something that no other controller has ever done: It has survived since 1993 in the salt-corroding environment of the tropics
	Pool and Spa Controller: These are terrible pictures of a terrific product. The picture at the right is the in-the-house control panel. The second picture is the controller that sits out in the yard with the pool pump, heater, and valves. The two units communicate via RS485 network. Several other devices can be attached to make very impressive home automation system. This product is in current volume production. The on-going challenge has been one of wringing feature laden performance out of a very cost effective design. This product should be in text books as a case study in success entitled: "Putting it all together: Design, Marketing, and Service."