Related Topics
How Soft Are Your Diodes?
Parker's pinball controller has gone gold! Revision 3 is being fabricated! Stephen then explores the softness factor of diodes and the SSPS returns?
Little Shop of Transformer Horror
Josh Rozier starts his design of a power transformer, the DOOM SAO gets more code, and the MacroAmp is 90% done!
Leeroy Jenkins Transistor
Parker gets test results from his APA-102C experiments and Stephen wraps up REV2 of the MacroAmp!
Other Resources
Circuit Break Podcast
Webinars
Videos
Tour MacroFab's ITAR-Compliant Facility
July 29, 2016, Episode #26
- Stephen has been working on making the copper buss bars for the SSPS Energon cube. See Figure 1.
- We calculated that the resistance of the copper buss bars is 0.00458 ohms or 4.58 mohm. Our measurements show 2.5 mohm. See Figure 2.
- The Macro Amp board is populated. Now the enclosure needs to be made. Stephen thinks he will use Parts Badger to make the mounting plate for the amp.
- Parker has been updating the MacroFab part libraries for Eagle and will move onto Diptrace soon. He also has been writing articles for eagle that will be coming out soon.
- Parker got USB 2.0 working on a Type C connector using the FTDI FT230X chip.
- Parker is working on a new layout to add to pre-existing designs which utilizes MacroFab’s standard PCB specifications (5 mil trace width, 12 mil drill, 6 mill annular ring).
- Analog Devices is in the process of purchasing Linear Technology for $14.8 billion. We discuss what will happen to the datasheets and LT Spice.
- Avnet outbids Daetwyler to purchase Farnell for $691 million (the owner of Element 14 and supplier of the Raspberry pi).
- Parker presents his method of hacking Pokemon Go – tap into the data lines on the hardware and send the software phony GPS data. This would be a true hardware hack.
About the Hosts
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 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!
Related Podcasts
Start Getting Crusty
I/O expanders verse cheap shift registers, leaking electronics, and better datasheets.
How Soft Are Your Diodes?
Parker's pinball controller has gone gold! Revision 3 is being fabricated! Stephen then explores the softness factor of diodes and the SSPS returns?
Little Shop of Transformer Horror
Josh Rozier starts his design of a power transformer, the DOOM SAO gets more code, and the MacroAmp is 90% done!
Triode Mode Tariffs
Parker and Stephen talk about the Chinese Tariff increase and 3D printing out of phase music recording.
Sidecreeping Gyrations
Parker explains the DOOM SAO and Stephen implements a Gyrator for the MacroAmp!
Leeroy Jenkins Transistor
Parker gets test results from his APA-102C experiments and Stephen wraps up REV2 of the MacroAmp!
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