Radio buttons were named after the physical buttons used on older car radios to select preset stations – when one of the buttons was pressed the other buttons would pop out, leaving the pressed button pushed-in as a visual reminder of the current choice.
These days radio buttons are mainly found in graphic user interfaces. As an experiment, I wanted to create a physical user interface modeled on the concept, using LEDs and tact switches.
Anyone who uses a CNC machine eventually realizes the importance of the Zero point. This usually happens when something goes wrong during a machining cycle, the machine needs to be reset and the current zero is lost. Fruitlessly searching for a lost zero prompted me to develop a repeatable process for finding the same zero time after time. Here’s how I do it.