Circuit Break - A MacroFab Podcast

Triode Mode TariffsParker ATSAMD21G18A Breakout works! Next steps is power design and testing for PinoTaur Wagoneer Tach Installed. Will get this documented on the Longhorn Engineer blog Stephen Wilkinson Audio Fredman Clip Cool technique for removing hiss and fizz from your recordings Manufacturing? STL that Parker will print Fired up one channel of the Macroamp in Triode Mode Working great Considering a new PCB to clean up the design DML speakers Don't sound that great Working on a "prize" for a future event R.F.O. Tariff Increase on May 10th, 2019 Section 301 Tariff: List 3 8417 Heading: Automatic data processing machines and units Google Discontinues ‘Works With Nest’ Program, Tightens Smart Home Privacy Rules To increase privacy for users it has removed the Works With Nest program Breaks IFTTT: a service that allows people to “glue” different IoT echo systems and function Sony MSX-2+ crazy PCB construction More pictures Why USB3 Type-C Isn’t on More Cases | How Cables Are Made Factory Tour Lots of hand made steps Visit our Public Slack Channel and join the conversation in between episodes!

15 Maj 20191h 11min

Mayonnaise Drone (And Other War Crimes)Danny Rankin An instructor in the Technology, Arts and Media (TAM) program at the University of Colorado Boulder The courses Danny teaches and his individual research reflect a diverse array of expertise, including graphic design, material fabrication, game design, hardware hacking, sustainable agriculture and large-scale installation art Co-directs the ATLAS Whaaat!? Lab, a space for experimental game and interaction design Cooperative card game Ravine, which began in a TAM game design class, later became one of the most popular card game Kickstarters of 2017 Mentors in the ATLAS BTU Lab (blow things up) Holds a Master of Science from the ATLAS CTD program, and a Bachelor of Arts in environmental studies from CU Boulder Atlas Institute What is it? ATLAS is an interdisciplinary institute for radical creativity, design and invention. What is Danny's role? How is the engineering department involved? Whaaat!? And BTU lab What are they? Projects? Vacuum drink delivery fridge? Who can get involved? Visit our Public Slack Channel and join the conversation in between episodes!

8 Maj 201951min

MEP EP #170: Start Getting CrustyParker PinoTaur MCP23S08 I/O Expanders Verse Shift Registers? Wagon Tach Project 3D printed the housing Need to run the wire from the distributor to inside the cab To knock down the distributor signal In series diode to prevent negative flyback? voltage from affecting circuit Resistor divider Zener diode to clamp to 4.7V H11L1M - Schmitt Trigger Opto Stephen MacroAmp Testing Used a variac to bring the amp up to voltage Found some of the resistances were too high It can be difficult to determine what a transformer tap will produce - I chose to guesstimate and fix it later...it works Higher gain when powered from the transformer. About 100x gain Tested into a Power amp - Works HUGE ISSUE: MICROPHONIC TUBES Next steps - Get everything in the enclosure. Wire the output transformers R.F.O. Chip component gets heat out of tight spots without leaking electrons TT Electronics has introduced a surface-mount component designed exclusively to get heat out of tight spots. SMD thermal junctions that can be placed with a pick and place Can use creative thermal paths instead of more traditional “heat planes” Server maker Super Micro to ditch 'made-in-China' parts on spy fears Check out Episode 142 of the MEP with Misha and Church This a security move or just money due to tariffs? Was there something TO the Bloomberg article that caused this to happen behind the scenes? On better datasheets Suggested alternate reading: https://www.embeddedrelated.com/showarticle/809.php Manufacturers could provide a “legend” or “guide” for their family of datasheets Don't just photocopy your old datasheet and slap your name on top. Do just a little bit of effort and make a new datasheet. Also if you do photocopy anything AT LEAST DO IT STRAIGHT. Visit our Public Slack Channel and join the conversation in between episodes!

1 Maj 201955min

Is "I'm an Engineer" a valid defense?Parker PinoTaur Update 12V master voltage input Switching psus for the voltage rails ATSAMD21G18A Breakout Board 32.768KHZ is the external crystal? Lead free Smart LEDS?! Direct from APA Electronic APA-102C-5050 256 APA-104-260-5050 Stephen Macroamp Update Tested preamp board ~42x gain which is much too high Power supply resistance is way too high at 2k Did not account for extra current draw from buffer Jfets J111 Jfet was bad out of the box - Have replaced with a BJT So far very low noise Riaa input filter still to be tested however it all works Tested Shielded cable footprint from MEP EP 155: Void Copper Donuts Was a Success! R.F.O. Hack my House: UL Certification and Turning the lights on with an ESP8266 What is the legality of IOT and connecting them to Mains? Component Shelf Life: How To Use All That Old Junk How to know when your parts are bad? How old is too old? Surplus Stores EU bans lead solder for real this time Lead has been newly classified by the EU as toxic to reproduction as of March 201 This means it can no longer be sold to the general public, only to commercial users The transitional period ended Feb 28, 2019 Visit our Public Slack Channel and join the conversation in between episodes!

24 Apr 20191h 28min

Kevin Beller of Seymour DuncanKevin BellerHeads up the Engineering and New Product Development Departments at Seymour DuncanDoes the electronic and mechanical design, pickup design, tooling and fixture designHe has worn a lot of hats in his 40 years at Seymour Duncan by starting out as production supervisor and manufacturing engineer in 1979How does an engineer sell a creative idea?Idea generationTurning sound into a design. What drives the product?SpecificationsValidationAudience? Use Case?Rigid design vs Playful experimentationDesign iterationWho says go/no go to new designs?When or how do you say that you are complete?What happens if you just don’t like it?How much input is too much on a creative design?Trust – engineers/marketing/sales?Announcements!KiCon 2019 is a user conference for the popular open source CAD program KiCad. Happening April 26th and 27th 2019 in Chicago IL, this is the first and largest gathering of hardware developers using KiCad. Talks at the conference will span hardware design, revision control, scripting, manufacturing considerations, proper library management and getting  started developing the underlying tools. All announced talks have been listed on the conference site.Visit our Public Slack Channel and join the conversation in between episodes!

17 Apr 20191h 3min

BenHeck and the PinoTaurBenjamin Heckendorn A console modder and famous computer engineerBetter known as Ben Heck on the InternetIndependent filmmaker and he was the star of element14’s The Ben Heck Show, a popular online series, until leaving the show in late 2018Previous guest on episodesEP#23: Interview with Ben Heck of The Ben Heck ShowEP#75: Does the Simulation Match the Reality?EP#153: Discrete Atomic Luffa ControlPinoTaur Pinball Platform Plans for PinoTaurEP#85: Space Engineers VS Caffeinated ChipmunksReducing the cost of the PinHeckEnabling easier programmingHigh Def GraphicsATSAMD21G18AReducing wiring complexitySerial SwitchesSerial LightsConnectorsUSB Text Adventure GameScope of the projectStory Ideas?Zork messes with youEpic Game StoreIs this bad for gamers and the industry?Announcements!KiCon 2019 is a user conference for the popular open source CAD program KiCad. Happening April 26th and 27th 2019 in Chicago IL, this is the first and largest gathering of hardware developers using KiCad. Talks at the conference will span hardware design, revision control, scripting, manufacturing considerations, proper library management and getting  started developing the underlying tools. All announced talks have been listed on the conference site.Visit our Public Slack Channel and join the conversation in between episodes!

10 Apr 201959min

Ken and Chip Gracey of Parallax IncKen GraceyLeader and CEO of ParallaxUC Davis alumni who lives and breathes Parallax products and has done so around the worldAll about family, working smart, having fun, mountaineering, and riding his unicycleChip Gracey Parallax founder. He had his first major introduction to programming and electronics when he was 13 years old with the Timex Sinclair computerAfter graduating high school, he and his techy friend from the 7th grade started Parallax at their homes in 1987Chip designed the first low-cost tools for the PIC microcontrollersLed to the development of the first BASIC Stamp module released in 1993The Parallax StoryStarting ProductsApple IIgs memory cardsEEPROM emulators for microcontroller developmentPIC ToolsBasic StampSX chipPropellerParallax Prop 2What makes it special compared to other microcontrollers?P2 VS P1?Feature SetProgramming Languages?What does it take to design semiconductors?Software packagesSimulationWhat document package do you send to the fabricator?Process Size?What is automated and what is done by hand?Testing and validationESD?FCC/CEWhen can people get there hands on one?Community around the companyParallax ForumBeta Testing?Best story of the Parallax Adventure so far?Announcements!KiCon 2019 is a user conference for the popular open source CAD program KiCad. Happening April 26th and 27th 2019 in Chicago IL, this is the first and largest gathering of hardware developers using KiCad. Talks at the conference will span hardware design, revision control, scripting, manufacturing considerations, proper library management and getting  started developing the underlying tools. All announced talks have been listed on the conference site.Visit our Public Slack Channel and join the conversation in between episodes!

3 Apr 20191h 18min

Simplified Home AutomationDillon NicholsElectrical engineer specializing in embedded systemsSpends his free time designing circuits, writing code, and building physical objects by 3D printing, woodworking, and metal workingEnjoys trying out new processors and services to build up his engineering knowledge baseDillon was one of the Winners of the MacroFab Design Contest: Blink an LED Pragmatic Blinky CategoryDisintegrated LM3909 - 1.5V LED FlasherHome AutomationWhat do you enjoy about home automation?How did you get started automating your life?First project?Security?Favorite platform to design aroundConsolidating everything.One system to rule it all?Future ideas/projects?Hardware that didn’t work out?Announcements!KiCon 2019 is a user conference for the popular open source CAD program KiCad. Happening April 26th and 27th 2019 in Chicago IL, this is the first and largest gathering of hardware developers using KiCad. Talks at the conference will span hardware design, revision control, scripting, manufacturing considerations, proper library management and getting  started developing the underlying tools. All announced talks have been listed on the conference site.Visit our Public Slack Channel and join the conversation in between episodes!

28 Mars 201939min