Category: Domestic installation

A remote control can make life easier. Especially if you work alone and without any assistance. In the hobby workshop, this may be the case more often. A vehicle lift is usually operated by a control on the lifting columns – it is not possible to operate the buttons and control the alignment on the vehicle at the same time, for example, when installing or removing the engine. In the following, a conventional vehicle lift was retrofitted with a radio remote control based on Arduino. The material costs amount to approx. $30, the installation is reliable and suitable for everyday use.

In this project, an ordinary video projector was controlled using serial commands (RS232) via an Arduino Mega. Operation through an external custom-made 3D printed multimedia panel fitting into a 50 mm cable channel eliminates the need for the proprietary infrared remote control. The cost of the equipment was reduced by 80% compared to a commercial solution and is highly customizable. The secondary objective of the installation was to provide the user with a simple, unambiguous control panel that is completely reliable. The project presented covers the entire work-through process from analysis and planning to installation and the finished result.