schazamp posted pictures of an assembled PIC USB LCD backpack PCB in the project log forum. Nice work! Thanks for posting a picture of the completed board! With our new unlimited free PCB program schazamp gets a coupon code for another free PCB.
Author Archives: Ian
Free USB Infrared Toy v2 PCB via Facebook comments
Every Friday we give away some extra PCBs via Facebook. The first few people who comment on this at Facebook get a free PCB. More PCBs via Twitter on Tuesday and the blog every Sunday. This week we’re giving away two USB IR Toy v2 PCBs. Use a remote control with your computer, view infrared […]
Week in (p)review: April 29, 2011
Don’t forget to share your current project in the comments or the forum. Here’s a summary of major developments over the last week: USB IR Toy v2 was released We reviewed our photo studio in this week’s tools post Free PCB recipients can now pick their own board from the new free PCB drawer Check […]
8 and 16 bit computer system fonts
How many 8-bit and 16-bit computer system fonts do you remember? These two articles look at who was behind them, and what gives early home computing such a distinct feel: My love of typography originated in the 80′s with the golden years of 8-bit home computing and their 8×8 pixel monospaced fonts on low-resolution displays. […]
Epson PCB printer hack
rucalgary modified an Epson printer to print PCBs. The results look good, but the printing process isn’t simple. It requires multiple passes and a heat gun, check out the video after the break. Thanks McZ!
XC9572XL CPLD development board build
Haley posted build pictures of the XC9572XL CPLD development board from a free PCB Sunday. Thanks for posting a picture of the completed board! Under our new unlimited free PCB program Haley received a coupon code for a new free PCB. Get an assembled XC9572XL development board for $15. A CoolRunner-II dev-board is also available for […]
TOOLS: Photo studio
Our favorite tools have a new home on the wiki. Each week we’ll muse about one of them. Have your own tool review? We’ll post that too! Our photo studio is setup for quick and easy photographs. It’s on a table right next to a computer in the development area so we can do demos […]
Free USB Infrared Toy v2 PCB via blog, Facebook, Twitter RT
To celebrate the launch of USB IR Toy v2 we’re giving away 3 PCBs. Get a PCB on Twitter, one on Facebook, and one on the blog. Just be the first to comment or retweet this post. Use a remote control with your computer, view infrared signals on a logic analyzer, or capture and replay […]
NEW PROTOTYPE: USB Infrared Toy v2
Use a remote control with your computer, view infrared signals on a logic analyzer, or capture and replay remote control buttons. USB Infrared Toy v2 has higher-power infrared transmitter and several new features. Read the full design documentation. NEW: 100mA constant current IR transmitter with improved range NEW: Infrared frequency measurement NEW: Pin breakout area […]
uPOV persistence of vision with an accelerometer
uPOV is a persistence of vision device with an accelerometer. This is the same concept we’re trying for with the USB POV Toy. The problem I had with most of the current POV units is that they required skill to use effectively, timing your swings so that the message only goes in the one direction, […]
What PCB house do you use?
octal started a writes: I wanted to know what PCB house do you use to make your PCB, your opinion about them and (very important) the time it takes to get your PCBs? I’m going to send first batch to Seeedstudio (for their proto service) but want to know if you got better and quicker […]
Altera MAX 3000A/7000A CPLD quick start
There’s a new quick start guide for the MAX 3000A and 7000A CPLDs on the wiki. It’s a work in progress, we could use help and tips from anyone who has worked with these devices.
Bus Pirate breadboard probe cable
Zbig shared his approach to the breadboarding cable for the Bus Pirate. I use single pins soldered to the cables and secured with some shrink tube. I make the labels with Brother P-Touch label maker on a special flexible tape (TZ-FX series). Get your own handy Bus Pirate for $30, including world-wide shipping. Also available […]
Surface mount Conway Game of Life
victzh shared his SMT version of Ladyada’s (Conway) Game of Life in the project log forum: I designed small 2-layer PCB for a version of Ladyada Game of Life. The board is two-side, front has 16 0603 LEDs on it, back has ATTiny861, 4 resistors, 4 FETs, 2 capacitors and one button.
Free Logic Shrimp PCB via Twitter: RT @dangerousproto
Every Tuesday we give away some extra PCBs via Twitter. This post was announced on twitter, the first few people who retweet it get free PCBs. This week we’re giving away two Logic Shrimp logic analyzer PCBs. It is a medium speed, low-cost logic analyzer with a USB interface. It can capture up to 256K […]
Free PCB drawer and unlimited free PCBs
Free PCB recipients can now pick their own board from the new free PCB drawer! The drawer is full of scrap PCBs: extras from our projects, abandoned prototypes, and new experimental designs still in development. Until recently we had no idea what was in the PCB drawer, now everyone can check availability online. You can […]
Bus Blaster v2 back in stock
A couple more Bus Blaster v2 JTAG debugger boards are in stock at Seeed Studio. This is probably the tail end of the first batch. More are on the way, probably in a few weeks. Something that would help significantly is a self-test program for the Bus Blaster v2. We’ll integrate a test mode into […]
Another PIC18F USB device on a breadboard
Here’s another simple PIC USB breadboard example from the comments on our earlier post: Here’s another intro guide to 18F usb on a breadboard In this article I will show how to breadboard a simple USB generic HID device, creating the PIC18F firmware and finally creating the Windows interface for the device which will allow […]
JTAG XSVF player for the Bus Pirate
A new alternative firmware for the Bus Pirate programs JTAG devices like the CPLD development boards using standard (X)SVF programming files. We also whipped up a PC utility that sends the files to the Bus Pirate from the command prompt. Download the package here. SVF is a common programming format used in manufacturing. It’s a […]
Voltage threshold chart
Many 5volt chips will working with the output from a 3.3volt part. An example is the Arduino, it sees 3volts or more as a ‘1’. A 3.3volt device with 5volt tolerant pins, such as the Bus Pirate, can interact with an Arduino despite the voltage difference. This table shows common logic threshold voltage levels and […]