PiggyFuse HVSP AVR fuse programmer

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Nerd Ralph published a new build:

Although I’ve been working with AVR MCUs for a number of years now, I had never made a high voltage programmer.  I’ve seen some HVSP fuse resetter projects I liked, but I don’t have a tiny2313.  I think I was also hesitant to hook up 12V to an AVR, since I had fried my first ATMega328 Pro Mini by accidentally connecting a 12V source to VCC.  However, if you want to be an expert AVR hacker, you’ll have to tackle high-voltage programming.  Harking back to my Piggy-Prog project, I realized I could do something similar for a fuse resetter, which would simplify the wiring and reduce the parts count.

See the full post on his blog here. Code is available at Github.

How not to build a semiconductor lapping machine

electronupdate writes:

One area of silicon reverse engineering which has interested me is the delayering of a chip to see each layer which allows superior visibility into the circuitry. I know of two ways: chemical etch and mechanical means.
In this video I try to make a mechanical grinder which can take micron levels of material away: a partial success. Parts are ground but I was not able to keep the silicon absolutely flat. More study of the commercial units is warranted!

See the full post on electronupdate blog.

#FreePCB via Twitter to 2 random RTs

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Every Tuesday we give away two coupons for the free PCB drawer via Twitter. This post was announced on Twitter, and in 24 hours we’ll send coupon codes to two random retweeters. Don’t forget there’s free PCBs three times a every week:

  • Hate Twitter and Facebook? Free PCB Sunday is the classic PCB giveaway. Catch it every Sunday, right here on the blog
  • Tweet-a-PCB Tuesday. Follow us and get boards in 144 characters or less
  • Facebook PCB Friday. Free PCBs will be your friend for the weekend

Some stuff:

  • Yes, we’ll mail it anywhere in the world!
  • Check out how we mail PCBs worldwide video.
  • We’ll contact you via Twitter with a coupon code for the PCB drawer.
  • Limit one PCB per address per month please.
  • Like everything else on this site, PCBs are offered without warranty.

We try to stagger free PCB posts so every time zone has a chance to participate, but the best way to see it first is to subscribe to the RSS feed, follow us on Twitter, or like us on Facebook.

Attiny85 pogo backpack programmer

ATTINY85 POGO BACKPACK PROGRAMMER

Facelesstech published a new build:

So you are using a bare attiny85 in your next project but don’t have room for the programming header, What do you do? I came up with the idea of using pogo pins layed out on A PCB so that they will sit on top of the Attiny85 legs. I used standard male jumps at each end of the chip to help line it up.

More details on Facelesstech homepage. Project files are available at Github.

Check out the video after the break. Continue reading “Attiny85 pogo backpack programmer”

HP 8566B Spectrum Analyzer “YTO unlock” repair

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Kerry Wong did a repair of an HP 8566B Spectrum Analyzer “YTO unlock” and documented the repair process on his blog:

While I was making a video on how to use HP 8671A as the frequency reference for an improved version of my simple DIY tracking generator for my HP 8566B spectrum analyzer, my spectrum analyzer suddenly decided to call it quits and displayed the dreaded “YTO Unlock” message. Although it wasn’t the first time it had done so — other times the “YTO Unlock” message only appeared once in a blue moon and rarely affected any measurements — this time however the problem seemed to be permanent and the error message wouldn’t go away.

Check out the video after the break. Continue reading “HP 8566B Spectrum Analyzer “YTO unlock” repair”

Free PCB Sunday: Pick your PCB

BP-600x373

We go through a lot of prototype PCBs, and end up with lots of extras that we’ll never use. Every Sunday we give away a few PCBs from one of our past or future projects, or a related prototype. Our PCBs are made through Seeed Studio’s Fusion board service. This week two random commenters will get a coupon code for the free PCB drawer tomorrow morning. Pick your own PCB. You get unlimited free PCBs now – finish one and we’ll send you another! Don’t forget there’s free PCBs three times every week:

Continue reading “Free PCB Sunday: Pick your PCB”

App note: Avoidance of ceramic-substrate-based LED chip cracking induced by PCB bending or flexing

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Application note from CREE on the causes of ceramic-substrate-based failures due to PCB board stresses and how to minimize their occurrence. Link here (PDF)

Printed circuit board (PCB) bending and/or flexing is an unavoidable phenomenon that is known to exist and is easily encountered during electronic board assembly processes. PCB bending and/or flexing is the fundamental source of tensile stress induced on the electronic components on the board assembly. For more brittle components, like ceramic-based electronic components, micro-cracks can be induced, which can eventually lead to a fatal failure of the components. For this reason, many standards organizations throughout the world specify the methods under which electronic board assemblies must be tested to ensure their robustness, sometimes as a precondition to more rigorous environmental tests such as thermal cycling or thermal shock.

App note: Power management solution – Constant Voltage (CV) pulse charging of hybrid capacitors

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App note from Vishay about constant voltage (CV) pulse charging as the most cost-efficient solution to use on Hyrid capacitors. Link here (PDF)

Rechargeable energy storage solutions are of high interest because of their flexibility, low maintenance requirements, and reduced cost over their life-cycle.

For compact applications, classic electrolytic capacitors are environmentally friendly alternatives and available for a wide range of rated voltages. However, they soon reach their energy storage limit with output requirements exceeding a few 100 mWs.

Electric double-layer capacitors (EDLC) offer high power and energy density, as well as long working life, but are limited to low working voltages in the same range as batteries. Electronic systems require a compromise between these technologies, namely solutions that combine the advantages of classic batteries and double-layer capacitors without the limitations.

 

Free PCB coupon via Facebook to 2 random commenters

BP

Every Friday we give away some extra PCBs via Facebook. This post was announced on Facebook, and on Monday we’ll send coupon codes to two random commenters. The coupon code usually go to Facebook ‘Other’ Messages Folder . More PCBs via Twitter on Tuesday and the blog every Sunday. Don’t forget there’s free PCBs three times every week:

Continue reading “Free PCB coupon via Facebook to 2 random commenters”

Using DC motors to power computers

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Electric generator experiment from HomoFaciens:

The generators I am using are in fact geared DC motors, left over from a project with my sponsor RS Components. The modern abacuses being powered during my experiments are a Raspberry Pi Model, a SIMATIC IOT2020 and an Arduino Uno. A 2×16 characters LCD is used to display results. Two geared DC motors are on my board with the test setup

More info at HomoFaciens.de.

Check out the video after the break. Continue reading “Using DC motors to power computers”

StyloCard

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Stylophone business card project from mitxela.com

Printed Circuit Boards as a business card are a great gimmick. I’d seen ones with USB ports etched into them, which enumerate as a keyboard and then type a person’s name or load up their website. It’s just about possible to build them cheap enough to hand out as a business card, at least if you’re picky about who you give them to.
A couple of years ago I took a stab at making one for myself, but I didn’t want it to be pointless. I wanted it to do something useful! Or at least entertain someone for longer than a few seconds. I can’t remember quite how I got the idea of making a MIDI-stylophone, but the idea was perfect.

More info at mitxela.com.

Check out the video after the break. Continue reading “StyloCard”

#FreePCB via Twitter to 2 random RTs

IRToy-600x369

Every Tuesday we give away two coupons for the free PCB drawer via Twitter. This post was announced on Twitter, and in 24 hours we’ll send coupon codes to two random retweeters. Don’t forget there’s free PCBs three times a every week:

  • Hate Twitter and Facebook? Free PCB Sunday is the classic PCB giveaway. Catch it every Sunday, right here on the blog
  • Tweet-a-PCB Tuesday. Follow us and get boards in 144 characters or less
  • Facebook PCB Friday. Free PCBs will be your friend for the weekend

Some stuff:

  • Yes, we’ll mail it anywhere in the world!
  • Check out how we mail PCBs worldwide video.
  • We’ll contact you via Twitter with a coupon code for the PCB drawer.
  • Limit one PCB per address per month please.
  • Like everything else on this site, PCBs are offered without warranty.

We try to stagger free PCB posts so every time zone has a chance to participate, but the best way to see it first is to subscribe to the RSS feed, follow us on Twitter, or like us on Facebook.

Raspberry Pi virtual floppy for ISA (PC XT/AT) computers

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Dr. Scott M. Baker wrote an article detailing how he turned a Raspberry Pi into a virtual storage device for ISA bus computers:

I’m tired of carrying compact flash cards and/or floppies back and forth to my XT computer. I like to do development at my desk using my modern windows PC. While I can certainly use a KVM switch to interact with the retro computer from my Windows desktop, it would be a lot more convenient if I could also have a shared filesystem. There are several alternatives, from serial port solutions, to network adapters. However, I wanted something that would emulate a simple disk device, like a floppy drive, something I could even boot off of, so I implemented a virtual floppy served from a Raspberry pi.

See the full post on his blog here.

Check out the video after the break. Continue reading “Raspberry Pi virtual floppy for ISA (PC XT/AT) computers”

LoRa module in DIL form

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Mare writes:

Murata produces LoRa module CMWX1ZZABZ-xxx based on SX1276 transceiver and STM32L072CZ microcontroller. The soldering of the LGA module is not very hobby-friendly. I constructed small breakout PCB for this module with additional buck/boost switcher and place for SMA connector. The transceiver features the LoRa®long-range modem, providing ultra-long-range spread spectrum communication and high interference immunity, minimizing current consumption. Since CMWX1ZZABZ-091 is an “open” module, it is possible to access all STM32L072 peripherals such as ADC, 16-bit timer, LP-UART, I2C, SPI and USB 2.0 FS (supporting BCD and LPM), which are not used internally by SX1276.

More details on Mare & Gal Electronics site. Project files are available at Github.

Free PCB Sunday: Pick your PCB

BP-600x373

We go through a lot of prototype PCBs, and end up with lots of extras that we’ll never use. Every Sunday we give away a few PCBs from one of our past or future projects, or a related prototype. Our PCBs are made through Seeed Studio’s Fusion board service. This week two random commenters will get a coupon code for the free PCB drawer tomorrow morning. Pick your own PCB. You get unlimited free PCBs now – finish one and we’ll send you another! Don’t forget there’s free PCBs three times every week:

Continue reading “Free PCB Sunday: Pick your PCB”

App note: How to implement an SCR or a Triac in hybrid relay applications

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Another app note from STMicroelectronics on SCR or Triac hybrid with mechanical relay to decrease power loss and manage inrush current. Link here (PDF)

This document gives some key information about the design of the solid-state silicon AC switch stage of a hybrid relay, which can drive resistive, capacitive or inductive AC loads, such as: heater resistors, motors for industry, power tools or appliance applications.

App note: AC switches – Is a positive power supply mandatory for my application, or could a negative output work also?

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App note from STMicroelectronics about the usage of a negative supply in controlling AC switches and their benefits, Link here (PDF)

In this application note we explain the reasons why some appliance designers might choose a positive power supply. This selection is based mainly on the choice of switched mode power supply (SMPS). Some specific applications cases, may also lead to the choice of a positive power supply.

Using a power supply with a positive output is not convenient for all applications. For example, a negative supply is preferred to drive AC switches. We provide here an alternative solution which allows a negative output to be implemented whenever possible. Further, many solutions allow both a negative and a positive output (for the microcontroller) to be implemented.

ESP8266 SPI Spy

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nop head writes:

I came across a very useful post by Thomas Scherrer that describes how to read data from a Peacefair PZEM-021 energy meter by spying on the SPI bus with an Arduino. I decided to do the same thing with an ESP-12F WiFi module so that I could view the results remotely and plot graphs, etc. It took me a lot longer to get this working than I anticipated due to a few problems along the way.
The main hardware difference is the ESP8266 is a 3.3V device but the Arduino is 5V. The PZEM-021 is actually a mixture. The RN8208G metering chip is a 5V device. It is a SPI slave, the SPI master is an STM32 ARM processor that is 3.3V but with 5V tolerant inputs.

More details at HydraRaptor blog.

Free PCB coupon via Facebook to 2 random commenters

BP

Every Friday we give away some extra PCBs via Facebook. This post was announced on Facebook, and on Monday we’ll send coupon codes to two random commenters. The coupon code usually go to Facebook ‘Other’ Messages Folder . More PCBs via Twitter on Tuesday and the blog every Sunday. Don’t forget there’s free PCBs three times every week:

Continue reading “Free PCB coupon via Facebook to 2 random commenters”