Prototype boards

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MORA99

Senior Member
I am looking for some decent prototype boards for mostly 14-m and 20-m, but where to look besides the picaxe show, which has a very limited selection ?

I would like (not everything has to be present on a surgestion)
Battery plug
DC adapter plug (with 7805)
Room for terminals on some/all in/outputs (does not need to be mounted, so components can be placed there instead)
Output buffer, and jumper to select if the buffer or direct pin goes to terminal
Room for resistor between pins and +/0V

Maybe some leds, buttons, dip switch, etc.

I have been thinking about making my own, but if someone already made the effort, I would rather just use those :)


It takes far too long for me to put finished breadboard ideas onto a finished vero board with wire and stuff.
Alternativly I can use a marker and hand draw some for etching, but it also takes a lot of time, and removes the fun from the project, since its already working...
 
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manuka

Senior Member
Both 14M & 20M PICAXEs fit beautifully onto small breadboards. If it's the Vero transfer that bothers you then simply use a "Kiwi Board" paint by number approach-we've had these mass produced in China, & enthusiastic students & hobbyists here in NZ lap them up. Even Australians can understand their silk screened layout! These boards not only allow super rapid soldered prototyping, but are professional enough for proof of concept delivery to clients-pre PCB making & mass production.

In contrast Vero is slower & often makes for cringing apologies at presentations, while those who rush into PCB fabrication may still have numerous "blunders", jumpers & hacks on their PCB caused by deadline panic attacks. I've sat thru' any number of tertiary final project sessions, & can verify which gets the highest credibility...

Dick Smith makes something similar,but of Paxolin & more costly. I personally only now use Vero board offcuts for dead simple mounting &/or adapters & haven't "Vero'd" anything substantial for decades. Gasp ~1978 -when breadboards took over from T-Decs!

NB Paiget educational point (often neglected by old hands)- many younger (~pre teen) WYSIWYG students lack abstract thinking, & in electrical work they may not have yet developed the cognitive ability to visualize top & bottom interconnections.
Stan
 

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westaust55

Moderator
I am using a “bigger” PICAXE and have that mounted on an AXE022 protoboard with connectors on that into which I can plug add-in IO modules and breadboard test circuits.
I have a small breadboard which I use to test out circuits but for permanent boards I do then build then on veroboard like protoboards. I use a fibreglass type protoboard (available here from Dick Smith) with positive and negative buses around the board including between the rows of IC pins. These boards then have groups of three connected pads for mounting of other hardware. There is no need to drill any tracks as the groups of three pads seems to work out well.
Once you have done a few breadboard to vero-board type conversions you should find that it comes relatively easy for those permanent circuit modules you wish to keep.

So if an AXE090 is too big or costly, the answer may be for you to build up some vero board modules. For example, one with some switches and another with say 8 LEDs or some 7-segment displays with short ribbon cables to allow you to connect them into your core PICAXE proto board.


EDIT:
To date I have built up on veroboard like proto boards the following permanent modules:
1. 48 key keypad encode with serial output
2. 74HC595 to drive a set of 8 LED’s plus another LED via separate PICAXE output and transistor as keypad “SHIFT” key indicator
3. PFC8574 based module to drive a set of 8 LED’s plus another LED as keypad “SHIFT key indicator (as drop in alternative to item 2
4. A module with analogue devices: LDR, mag field strength sensor and potentiometer (for voltage) plus a DS18B20 temp sensor and IR LED (for IR type future projects)
5. Real Time Clock module based on DS1307 with battery backup (looking to upgrade to drop in replacement DS1338 RTC which is fast i2c bus compatible)
 
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Mycroft2152

Senior Member
I'm a firm believer in "outobards", prebuilt modules. When the creative urge hits me, the last thing I want to do is re-build something that I have built many times before, jujst to get started.

Ron Hackett has put together some PICAXE prototyping boards that can be used on a breadboard.

http://www.jrhackett.net/pcboards.htm

I've purchase a few of them. The quality is excellent and the price is right.

Ron does use a non-standad connector (a 2x5 header to an 9 pin D-sub) but that can easiely be modified to use a 3 pin molex header or a stereo jack.

Myc

I'll post some photos in the Breadboards thread.
 
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westaust55

Moderator
Hi Hooter,

Yes, they are great looking boards and if buying several together to spread out the postage costs good value.

Some people do not want the problems of building and fault finding IO, but for others that is half (and maybe all) of the fun.

But even I draw the line and have bought an assembled LDC module plus some Devantech modules such as ultrasonic module, and compass module.

It is really a case of each to his own but having the modules ready for ongoing use rather than assembling on a breadbaord each time you wish to use is the key.
 
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MORA99

Senior Member
Thanks for all the surgestions, I have ordered some breadboard layout boards (H5605 and H5608 from dse.com.au), so at least the setup will be the same.

However, a board with terminals would allow many small projects to be completed with no soldering at all (except for the standard board).
 
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westaust55

Moderator
The dse prototype board I use mostly is the H5613 for reasons mentioned in earlier post.
I end up cutting them in half and plenty of room for the required circuit with some space on one side of each half for mounting bolts.
 
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