BlimpDuino production board release candidate

After some wasted time with expensive PCB design errors, we've finally got a release candidate of the production version of the BlimpDuino board. It's version V431. Changes from previous versions include: --Square, rather than rectangular, so the IR detectors are all on the outside of the board (and thus free of interference) and evenly spaced for optimal sensing. --Improved power supply, with lower profile and LiPo low-voltage cut-off (to protect the batteries) --Vectoring servo now output on a digital pin (10) to use timer-based Arduino servo library --Various layout tweaks to give more room for various connectors and the on/off switch --Bug fixes You can buy the boards here. Here are the Eagle 5 files: schematic, board. Here are the components you'll need (Digikey part numbers unless otherwise stated):

Capacitors:
(C1)1x 100uF 16v 399-5214-1-ND
(C4)1x 100uF 6.3v 478-1677-1-ND
(C2,6,12,13)4x 0.1uF PCC1828CT-ND
Diodes:
4x Navi LED (green) 67-1357-1-ND
1x Power LED (red) 67-1359-1-ND
or optional (blue) LED 160-1643-1-ND
IC's:
(IC1)1 x Atmega168, ATMEGA168V-10AU-ND
(IC3) 1x7805 voltage regulator: 296-22950-1-ND
1x L293D(motor controller)296-9518-5-ND.
4x IR sensors (Pololu)
1xMaxbotic ultrasonic sensor EZ2 or EZ3
Resistors:
(R1, R8, R9) 3x 10kOhms P10.0KCCT-ND
(R2-R6) 5x 1Kohms P1.00KCCT-ND
Switches,etc (Sparkfun):
(S1) Switch
Reset button
1 strip of male pin headers
1 strip of female pin headers (to plug the removable ultrasonic sensor into)
Code coming in a few days

You need to be a member of diydrones to add comments!

Join diydrones

Comments

3D Robotics

Chris Anderson September 13, 2008 at 8:04am

Howard,

Right now we're just using the standard thickness. The board itself is really small (just under 2" square) so there's not a lot of volume there. We saved weight with a SMD power supply and switching from the Parallax to the Maxbotics ultrasonic sensor, and we're well under the weight budget for the blimp, so I think we're okay for now.
Howard Gordon September 13, 2008 at 7:56am

Chris -

Have you looked at the different PCB material / thickness / finish ?

With my supplier (pcborder.com), there are a ton of different options - FR4, CEM1, CEM3 circuit board material, thickness from 0.031" to 0.125" (default is 0.62"), and SMOBC, HASL, ENTEK and other finishes. I haven't experimented with any of the options, though CEM3 with a lead-free HASL finish and a thinner board looks like it might be a good combination. My base motor/radio board weighs 10gm and my stereo board weighs 25gm, so it seems like there is an opportunity to save some weight via some board fab options.

Howard
3D Robotics

Chris Anderson September 12, 2008 at 9:07pm

...also, one of the unique problems of blimp controller boards, is that blimps have very limited lifting power, and a breadboard version is typically to heavy to fly. So to test the controllers in flight, we typically have to design and fab a custom PCB. Then, when we discover problems, we've got to design another PCB. At $33 each and five board minimums, that can add up really fast.
3D Robotics

Chris Anderson September 12, 2008 at 8:40pm

A couple hundred bucks, I'm afraid. All my own fault for not doing enough DRC checks and breadboard prototypes. Also blew a couple rounds confused about CAM formats and obscure errors that I should have paid more attention to. Still, cheaper than a year of engineering school...
Jack Crossfire September 12, 2008 at 8:00pm

Wonder how much it cost to do all the revisions to get to this point.

This reply was deleted.