Circuit Break Podcast #179

Mach 3 Cheeseburgers

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July 8, 2019, Episode #179

Mach 3 Cheeseburgers, Simulations for the PinoTaur mosfet drivers, and more on this episode of the MacroFab Podcast.

The MacroFab Engineering Podcast Useless Machine Contest Sponsored by Mouser Electronics is in full swing! We have cash prizes up for grabs. Contest Ends August 10, 2019. Check out the MacroFab Blog and Podcast Episode 175 for more contest details.

Parker

  • PinoTaur Updates

    • Simulated Mosfet Driving
      • Limiting the 74hc595 driver to 10mA
    • Solenoid Mosfet Current Sensing
  • DOOM SAO

    • Hardware Repo is assembled
    • Software Next
      • Detailed instructions on building the environment
      • How the main code functions

Stephen

  • Fredman clip
    • Parker brought up the SM57 microphone holder he 3D printed to compare to the clip that was bought online
  • Text Based Adventure Update
    • Majority of the story, characters, and environment are designed

R.F.O.

Visit our Public Slack Channel and join the conversation in between episodes!

Stephen’s MacroAmp PCB render. This project is sponsored by Mouser Electronics!

Stephen’s MacroAmp PCB render. This project is sponsored by Mouser Electronics!

Simulation schematic for the PinoTaur. IRL540 mosfet with a 100 ohm resistor to keep the drive strength of the 74HC595 in check.

Simulation schematic for the PinoTaur. IRL540 mosfet with a 100 ohm resistor to keep the drive strength of the 74HC595 in check.

Current of charging up the gate on the IRL540 in the simulation.

Current of charging up the gate on the IRL540 in the simulation.

The compairson between the two SM57 clips. Parker’s 3D printed one is on the right.

The compairson between the two SM57 clips. Parker’s 3D printed one is on the right.

About the Hosts

Parker Dillmann
  Parker Dillmann

Parker is an Electrical Engineer with backgrounds in Embedded System Design and Digital Signal Processing. He got his start in 2005 by hacking Nintendo consoles into portable gaming units. The following year he designed and produced an Atari 2600 video mod to allow the Atari to display a crisp, RF fuzz free picture on newer TVs. Over a thousand Atari video mods where produced by Parker from 2006 to 2011 and the mod is still made by other enthusiasts in the Atari community.

In 2006, Parker enrolled at The University of Texas at Austin as a Petroleum Engineer. After realizing electronics was his passion he switched majors in 2007 to Electrical and Computer Engineering. Following his previous background in making the Atari 2600 video mod, Parker decided to take more board layout classes and circuit design classes. Other areas of study include robotics, microcontroller theory and design, FPGA development with VHDL and Verilog, and image and signal processing with DSPs. In 2010, Parker won a Ti sponsored Launchpad programming and design contest that was held by the IEEE CS chapter at the University. Parker graduated with a BS in Electrical and Computer Engineering in the Spring of 2012.

In the Summer of 2012, Parker was hired on as an Electrical Engineer at Dynamic Perception to design and prototype new electronic products. Here, Parker learned about full product development cycles and honed his board layout skills. Seeing the difficulties in managing operations and FCC/CE compliance testing, Parker thought there had to be a better way for small electronic companies to get their product out in customer's hands.

Parker also runs the blog, longhornengineer.com, where he posts his personal projects, technical guides, and appnotes about board layout design and components.

Stephen Kraig
  Stephen Kraig

Stephen Kraig is a component engineer working in the aerospace industry. He has applied his electrical engineering knowledge in a variety of contexts previously, including oil and gas, contract manufacturing, audio electronic repair, and synthesizer design. A graduate of Texas A&M, Stephen has lived his adult life in the Houston, TX, and Denver, CO, areas.

Stephen has never said no to a project. From building guitar amps (starting when he was 17) to designing and building his own CNC table to fine-tuning the mineral composition of the water he uses to brew beer, he thrives on testing, experimentation, and problem-solving. Tune into the podcast to learn more about the wacky stuff Stephen gets up to.

Special thanks to whixr over at Tymkrs for the intro and outro!

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