Hardware with a job to do
From a 24 GHz radar sensor to a welded steel machine frame, each build begins with physical parts chosen to solve a real problem.
Tech Builds
Shop-built tools, practical systems, and the engineering behind the work.
Explore ARH Tech Lab projects where hardware, software, electronics, CNC work, troubleshooting, and workshop problem-solving come together. Featured builds range from a shop-built CNC router to a compact radar system built around an M5Stack controller.
Build Notes
What these builds have in common.
Control from end to end
The work follows the whole control chain, whether that means sensor data and a web interface or CAD, G-code, motion hardware, and machine control.
Ideas that carry forward
A useful build keeps opening doors: the CNC router supports wood and leather projects, while the radar system offers a foundation for future sensing experiments.
Featured Builds
See the projects in action.
Embedded Electronics
M5 Radar Project
A compact 24 GHz mmWave radar system built with an M5Stack CoreS3 and an Ai-Thinker radar sensor. The walkthrough follows the hardware, serial data connection, on-device display, and web-based controls. The project code is available for makers who want to explore the build, adapt it for their own space, or use it as a starting point for another sensor-driven idea.
- The project combines a compact M5Stack controller with an Ai-Thinker 24 GHz mmWave radar sensor.
- Its code includes target data handling, local display output, configurable detection settings, and a web interface.
- The downloadable sketch has personal network settings removed and ready-to-edit placeholders added.
CNC Build
DIY CNC Router
Walks through a shop-built CNC router, from the welded steel frame and linear-motion hardware to the control chain that turns CAD work and G-code into machine movement. The machine also supports custom embossing patterns that can be pressed into wet leather, connecting the technical work directly to projects in the Craft Studio.
- The build uses commercial linear-motion components, ball screws, NEMA 23 stepper motors, and a computer-based control system.
- The workflow connects Aspire CAD, G-code, Mach3, an Ethernet SmoothStepper, breakout board, stepper drivers, motors, and the mechanical drive system.
- This machine also supports hands-on projects such as custom embossing patterns for leather work.
Built for the Workshop
The useful details live between the idea and the finished part.
The Tech Builds area is where project notes can go deeper than a video alone: machine setup, parts choices, wiring decisions, lessons learned, and the way one tool supports another. A CNC router can become a way to cut wood, shape fixtures, create leather embossing patterns, or test the next idea waiting on the bench.