electronics News - Page 9 of 19 - CNX Software

May 29, 2020May 29, 2020 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 28 Comments

Ultra-narrow DipDuino Arduino Compatible Board is a Perfect Breadboard Companion

Ultra-narrow Arduino Board for Breadboard

We previously wrote about a uChip DIP-sized Arduino Zero compatible board with 0.3″ spacing between the two rows of pins making it perfect for breadboards as it left four rows on each side of the breadboard. There’s now another similar option with the appropriately named DipDuino board equipped with a Microchip Atmega328P MCU compatible with Arduino Pro or Pro Mini boards. DipDuino specifications: MCU – Microchip Atmega328P 8-bit AVR MCU with 32KB flash, 1024 Bytes EEPROM, 2KB SRAM USB – 1x Micro USB port for power and programming via CP2104 USB to serial chip Expansion Two rows of headers spaced by 0.3-inch (7.62mm) with up to 21x GPIOs, 5x analog inputs, I2C, SPI, UART, Reset, VCC and GND I/O voltage – 3.3V or 5V (different versions of the board) Misc – RGB LED for power and UART Tx/Rx; reset button Power Supply – 5V via Micro USB port; LDO for […]

May 26, 2020 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

SMD Books Keep Up to 8500 SMD Resistors or Capacitors

I have some SMD chips at home that I keep in an organizer box, but if I had to store lots of them, it would take a lot of space. Luckily, there’s a better way: SMD Books. I’ve just found out about those on Aliexpress and Banggood, and they store up to 8500 SMD resistors or capacitors in lots of 50 pieces, meaning you’d have up to 170 different resistors or capacitors value in the book. It can really be convenient for small projects or repairs, and you won’t break the bank as SMD Books only cost $15 to $40 with components and around $8 without any components in order to store your own. If you want to cover your bases, you’ll probably end up spending over $100 since you’d want both resistor and capacitor books, plus different SMD sizes such as 0402, 0201, 0805, etc… But in the end, […]

May 8, 2020 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

ANAVI Fume Extractor Comes with ESP8266 WiSoC, MQ-135 Gas Sensor (Crowdfunding)

Last year, I played with ESP8266 based ANAVI Gas Detector Starter Kit reporting air quality via an MQ135 sensor on an OLED display, and integrated it with Home Assitant to monitor air quality from a neat web dashboard. The developer, Leon ANAVI, has now adapted the design to create ANAVI Fume Extractor by basically adding a relay to control a control. The fan can be turned on/off manually, or automatically upon detecting bad air quality. ANAVI Fume Extractor key features and specifications: Fan – 80 mm, 5 V DC, 0.25 A with replaceable filter SoC – ESP8266 Tensilica L106 32-bit wireless processor Connectivity – 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi 4 Display – Mini OLED display Sensors – Optional MQ-135 for air quality or any other 5V MQ analog gas sensor Expansion – 3x headers for I²C sensors Debugging / Programming – UART pins for flashing custom firmware, Misc – Button, WiFi on/off […]

April 24, 2020 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

Smart Tweezers Colibri ST-5S Integrates LCR Meter, Identifies SMD Components

Soldering SMD components normally require a pair of tweezers, and since those components are so small it may be hard to read the value on them if any. That means if you’d like to double-check the value of an SMD component you may have to use a multimeter first, before placing it on the board and solder it. There’s a better way: Ideal-Tek Smart Tweezers Colibri ST-5S with a built-in LCR meter that can help you automatically identify SMD components and read their values in a convenient tweezers form factor. Smart Tweezers Colibri ST-5S key features & specifications: Built-in high-precision LCR probe Display – OLED Display Ranges Resistance (R) – 0.05 Ohm to 9.9 MOhm Capacitance (C) – 0.5 pF to 4999 uF Inductance (L) – 0.5 uH to 999 mH Quality Factor (Q) – 0.001 to 1,000 Dissipation Factor (D) – 0.001 to 1,000 AC test mode Test frequency […]

April 13, 2020 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

Grove Beginner Kit for Arduino Features Arduino UNO Compatible Board & Ten Pre-wired Modules

Arduino boards are great to get started with electronics has they offer an ecosystem of expansion modules and libraries, as well as tutorials, that may it easy to get started with almost any projects. Seeed Studio Grove is a family of standardized modules with 4-pin headers using digital I/O, analog I/O, UART or I2C interfaces and allowing you to easily connect to compatible board such as Seeeduino Lotus board. You still need to connect the Grove module via cables, so Seeed Studio decided to create a big board called Grove Beginner Kit for Arduino that features Seeduino Lotus at the center and ten pre-wired and detachable Grove modules so no cabling is required to get started apart from a USB cable. List of Grove Beginner Kit for Arduino board and modules: Seeeduino Lotus ATmega320p board compatible with Arduino UNO compatible board and featuring 12 Grove connectors 10 pre-wired modules without […]

April 12, 2020April 12, 2020 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 24 Comments

Bored during Quarantine? Get some Soldering Kits to keep you Busy (Crowdfunding & Alternatives)

I’ve heard some of you are forced to stay at home for some reason… HHTronik has decided to design what they call “Quarantine Occupation Kits” which are actually open-source hardware soldering kits of varying complexity. Five soldering kits are available: I learn soldering TH (Super Easy) – Ten solder joints with one LED, one resistor, one switch and a CR2032 coin cell holder using through-hole components. The end results is a flashlight board I learn soldering SMD (Easy) – Same as above but with SMD (surface mount) components, and a more compact PCB. I learn soldering Boost Edition (Moderate) – More complex board with a bigger variety of parts and footprints including some slightly smaller and unusual parts (side view white LEDs, SOT23-6, SOT23-3, and 0805 passives). The assembled board is a step up” or “boost” converter taking 3V from the battery and bring it up to 6V to light […]

January 10, 2020February 16, 2020 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

SimplePnP is a Low-Cost, Open Source Hardware Pick-and-Place Machine (Crowdfunding)

If you have a small production run for your board, it may not be cost-effective to ask a factory to manufacture it for you, and assembling the boards entirely by hand will be a time-consuming process. Getting a pick-and-place machine to automate the process would save time, but even the cheaper models on Aliexpress cost several thousand dollars. Citrus CNC tries to address the cost issue with the SimplePnP open source hardware pick-and-place machine that brings the price down to several hundred dollars. SimplePnP key features and specifications: MCU – Microchip Atmega328p running GRBL firmware Motor Drivers – TMC2209 stepper for two-phase stepper motors Word Area – 300 mm (X) x 300 mm (Y) Z Travel – 23 mm Components per Hour – 750 with vision assist Component Size – As small as 0402 (1005 metric) Vacuum Heads – Single vacuum head (base model), or optional dual-head Nozzle System – […]

December 27, 2019 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

SwitchTrick Switching Power Supply Board Helps you Test your Breadboard Circuit

We’ve covered several power supplies for breadboards over the years including toaster breadboard power supply with variable voltage output, or the portable, battery-powered MEGO power supply that allows you to power your project on the go. The SwitchTrick is another one of those breadboard power supplies but with testing in mind, as it takes input from various sources, and with jumper selection for voltage from 1.8V to 6V allows you to easily simulate different battery voltage levels, or the test the overvoltage protection of your circuit for example. SwitchTrick key features and specifications: Step-down converter – TI TPS62160 3-17V step down-convertor adjustable from 0.9-6V out at 1A. Power Input – 3V to 17V via 5.5×2.1mm power jack for 9V battery or wall supply Micro USB connector for 5V 2-pin JSY PH connector for battery 2x large plates holes for alligator clips Power Output (selectable by a jumper) 1.8V 2.5V 3.0V […]