hcarter333 / rockmite

Flying Rockmite 20 metere QRPp tranciever issues and projects
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Initial prototype of breakout boards #6

Closed hcarter333 closed 1 year ago

hcarter333 commented 1 year ago

Make the initial prototype via two breakout boards, (maybe use a rubberband to attach the one seen above at first, and just use the screw terminals on the back of the board for the radio-side breakout board.

Here's the proposed board placement: PXL_20221210_003848661

Demonstrate the two board system. Use the pintout diagram (replacing the mic and PTT connections with keyer connections) from https://github.com/kb4mg/Open-Headset-Interconnect-Standard

image

hcarter333 commented 1 year ago

Prototype is up and running. It brings power and keyer to the radio. The battery holder has a built-in power switch, so power control is now easier as well. image

Soldering wires actually wound up easier in several cases than working with the screw terminals, contrary to my original opinion. The clipping tag on RJ-45 cables continues to be a huge pain in the neck. Especially with the placement of the connector on the batter/keyer/headset module.

Used a hair tie as the first method to attach the breakout board to the batter holder.

hcarter333 commented 1 year ago

Prototype is complete! Brought the headset and keyer programming controls through the RJ45 connector yesterday. System with all controls and outputs routed through RJ45: image

The boards are now mounted to their respective enclosures. Here's a picture of the entire system: image

The 'headset' (let's call it the accessory) breakout board is mounted on nylon spacers superglued to the battery case. The radio side board is mounted with metal screws and nuts to the radio case.

At the moment, the keyer programming button is implemented as a 'scorpion tail' switchc. (Did I just coin a phrase?) A wire from the pin 2 screw terminal is arched over the pin 3 (common ground) screw, and depressed when needed. Since this switch is only used a few times a session, it seemed overkill to add another rather large-ish video game switch for it. image

While at Noisebridge to use super glue, I tested out the rigs waveform on the storage oscilloscope. After an embarassing and harrowing mishap with attaching the output of the signal generator to the radio, corrections were made, and the radio, thankfully was operating as expected. I think the scope may be uncallibrated since the waves at the dummy load indicate full batter swing (maybe more?) with no visible distortion. image