I have lost my way in the world of software and its now time to brush the dust off my interest in building hardware
For a long while now, I have been using GitHub to manage my project repositories for PCBs. However, my workflow lacked the discipline and control to manage the version of a printed circuit board. In this post, I am proposing the use of GitHub Actions to help with managing the design file to Gerber file … Continue reading Using GitHub Actions for Consistent Gerber File Releases in KiCad
When I have the time, I like to document my boards, and part of that is producing wiring diagrams that are clear enough for someone else — or a future me — to follow without too much head-scratching. For that, I've always been drawn to Fritzing. There's something about the style of a Fritzing diagram … Continue reading Creating a Fritzing Part From a KiCad PCB
The Timed LED Lighting Control project has been driving the LEDs in our stairwell since 2017. The system is based on two modules. A custom built LED driver, which has been running faultlessly, and a Raspberry Pi + Django based user interface. This year the user interface module died. In this post, I describe the … Continue reading Upgrading the Stairwell Foot-lighting Project
When creating a PCB layout in KiCad, I often have need to add a mechanical part to the PCB layout. The easy way is to add these parts directly from within PCB New. The problem is that when updating the board from the schematic, it is possible that these extra footprints will be removed. In … Continue reading Avoiding Mechanical Parts from Disappearing in KiCad
Developing firmware for an embedded remote sensor that needs to adhere to a specific protocol has challenges due to the limited resources and the complexity of the implementation. Experience on a previous project (a remote sensor gateway) demonstrated how Test Driven Development could assist when working on complex systems. This write-up describes the approach used … Continue reading Developing a Remote Sensor Firmware using Test Driven Development
I wanted to learn how to use a 128x64 pixel display, i.e. the DOGM-128-6 from Display Visions. I then got distracted by the requirements of the LED backlight. For several of the backlight options they suggest some series current limiting resistors for 3.3V and 5V. For the White, Blue and Full Colour backlights, they suggest … Continue reading Testing Constant Current Device BCR421UW6
At the local open workshop ZAM, there came a project idea for a text display that is publicly available. After some experimentation with a commercially available unit - that proved to be too cumbersome for public use, we explored creating our own. In this post I describe how I adapted my original NeoPixel driver project … Continue reading Converting the NeoPixel Driver into a Text Display
An experiment is two way to write and read data to IO. This features using the MaxiMite2 to help with driving the shift registers.
This post is describes an experiment to examine and understand TDR.
The local open lab sent out a call for ideas to run workshops over the lead up to Christmas. I thought of a Christmas tree with candlelight LEDs. I needed to know what was involved in making such a model before I could conduct a workshop. In this post I describe the that approach that … Continue reading Getting Started on Christmas Workshop Idea
Rebooting Electronics 