I spend more time than I probably should reverse engineering circuit boards, so I figured I would write up a page on how I do it. This only applies to two sided PCBs, and requires some time of imaging device,
Mini Circuit 1: Constant Current Sink – Update #2
So I ordered my PCBs and components, and when they arrived I realized I named some of the nets incorrectly and never connected the traces. I also used the wrong digital pins for interrupts on the encoder, and the wrong
Mini Circuit 1: Constant Current Sink – Update
Not much to type here, but I completely redesigned my constant current circuit. I replaced the current sense amplifier with a programmable gain amplifier, added an ATMEGA328P microcontroller, a pinout for an LCD screen, a pinout for I2C and ICSP,
Mini Circuit 1: Constant Current Sink
I’m starting a new project series, I am going to call it Mini Circuits! Basically my idea is to make some circuits for some pretty common situations I have come across at work, and make a dozen or so. They
UV Eraseable Memory – Fun With Old Tech
If you’ve never watched Halt and Catch Fire, it is a pretty good show. There is one scene where the main character is reverse engineering the BIOS of IBM’s computer, by placing the memory in a circuit and addressing each
Soldering Workstation
So I thought I’d post a quick picture of my soldering setup. Before the picture though, I do have some things I want to acknowledge. First, I understand that having some form of anti-static mat is extremely important. I just
Organizing My Recycled ICs
In my previous post about recycling ICs from old circuit boards, I covered the desoldering gun I used to pull components from a circuit board. Now I will show how I go about organizing these components. I got a whole
Recycling Components From Circuit Boards
Disclaimer: I have not been given any money by any companies for recommendation of these products – although I would absolutely LOVE if I could somehow make money off of these posts :p I know every single experienced engineer will
Electronics Workstation DC Power Supply 1: Basic Schematics
I want to build a DC power supply for my electronics workstation desk that has 3.3V, 5V, 12V, -12V, and 0-24V adjustable outputs. I’ve been learning quite a bit about power supplies over the last few days, so hopefully I can
Electronics Workstation Part 1: Planning
I’m going to take a brief pause on my other projects, because this is hopefully going to make them easier. The basic idea is that I want to build a desk that is setup specifically for electronics – basically a