How To: BrewPi LCD Add-On

I agree that packaging would be more than just a bit awkward. But it can be done, albeit with great difficulty. Another open source project I have built is the HeaterMeter, which is an electronic temperature controller for smokers. On that project, the lcd gets soldered directly to the PCB. Then the PCB gets stacked on the Raspberry Pi. Then it all goes into a small case. The Raspberry Pi isn't shown in the pictures below, but it stacks right on the board. It is really cool.

I don't think the BrewPi wiring with the relays and other components lends itself to the mating of all the components, so I didn't pursue that in the PCB design.

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HeaterMeter That's my next project. Do you have any extra boards laying around?

 

I hope I didn't make it sound like I designed the HeaterMeter project. I only ordered the parts and built one from the open source project.

The good news on that project is that you can order a single board from OshPark. You can also order the complete kit from the HeaterMeter guys.

 

I've been using Philmore PB130 project boxes (you can find the specs here).

If you can't find that one easily enough, it looks like this box is pretty darned similar in dimension and is on Amazon.

[edit] I should note that by the time you jam a stripped-down 9V wall wart inside the case along with a Bluetooth or Wifi module plus the Uno, shield and wire jumpers, it's pretty cramped in there. The 20A toggle switches and the state indicators don't help, either. And of course there's the duplex outlet and the AC inlet/switch/fuse assembly, too.

Also, as I've mentioned a few times, I solder straight header pins in my shield so it sits as low as possible on the Uno and all of the jumpers are female.
That shaves at least an inch off the stacked-up/wired height...

Cheers!

 

Thanks @day_trippr

Do you have some pics of the inside showing how you have it all jammed in?

ETA: I found this post with some good pics: http://www.homebrewtalk.com/showpost.php?p=6583019&postcount=22

I suppose you probably have some of those fancy DIN punches to do the cutouts, eh?

 

Looks nice and compact

 

No punches, just drills, a saber saw, and a Dremel tool. I'm not sure if a punch wouldn't shatter the plastic, anyway.

I'll have to take a pic of the inside with the LCD installed - I went through my library and never got around to that. This is one of the few shots with the LCD...




Cheers!

 

You should build the boxes and sell them

 

Hey can you covert the brd file to a gerber file of brew sheild? I got a guy over at https://www.arduino.cc who wants to look at the design to see if he can see anything wrong with the board design to solve the LCD scramble issue instead of just a work around. Also can I get a copy of the software before and after the changes to try get around the LCD scrambling issue?

 

After reading the whole post, and looking to build my second unit, I have two questions:

1) If I use 2N2906 PNP, I understand I don't need BSS84 nor 1N4001? Any disadvantage in using PNP over PFET?
2) I read one could order the shields from Dirt Cheap Dirty Boards, for instance, but I can't find he files to do it. Are they freely available?

Thanks in advance everybody!!!

 

1) Be nice to find out.

2) Ive found a cheaper supplier than Dirty by about $5 per 10 units. Also found one alot cheaper and you would get more units for the same price.

3) Any advantages of getting 1% vs 5% Resistors for this project. They are only $0.20c per 100 more. Im getting all my stuff from Aliexpress

Heres a link to some nice looking Knobs at a pretty good price. Its really hard to find D shaft knobs in 6mm on aliexpress.

http://www.aliexpress.com/item/Plas...05.html?spm=2114.13010208.99999999.307.Jiao5e

 

CadiBrewer posted them:

https://drive.google.com/a/bussy.org/file/d/0BwakCoACNDsmTnV2d1hxVFM0akE/view
https://drive.google.com/a/bussy.org/file/d/0BwakCoACNDsmVW9XejY1OENXYW8/view

... so ... where?

I'd really be dubious they were 1% from that source.

 

If you use the shield that I created, you have to go with the BSS84 because the shield has the surface mount pins already built in. If you use a protoshield design based on the original project created by day_trippr, you can use either the BSS84 or the PNP. The advantage of the PNP is that it is easier to solder because it has a through-hole design.

You could also modify the design of the board before you send it off to be printed to accommodate the PNP instead of the PFET.

 

Thank you all for the replies, really helpful.

Never ordered pcbs before. Should I load the brd, order 10, 2 layers,1.2mm?, hasl?, stencil?, size? If anyone could post a screenshot I would really appreciate.

 

Even if there was any profit to be had, it's such an aggressive packaging scheme - don't forget I had to shave the LCD down to fit...



I think it'd just piss people off

Cheers!

 

The easiest way would be to use this link to the shared project on OshPark. I have no affiliation, nor do I get any money, fame, notoriety or a boost to my rugged good looks if you order from them. You'll pay $25 for three boards, including shipping.

https://oshpark.com/shared_projects/rcOadziH

You can use the files I posted to go to any board house. Most require that you compile a Gerber file, but Dirt Cheap Boards and OshPark do not. You can use just the Eagle .brd file and they'll print from that file. You'll pay $25 for 9-11 boards at Dirt Cheap Boards. Perhaps Bigdaddyale can chime in to help you with their ordering process.

 

Still need the diodes to drop the 5V down to the ~3.4V range to stay within the LCD backlight spec.
The BSS84 or 2906 both act as simple switches and don't attenuate the voltage enough on their own.
As mentioned, the BSS84 is a tiny SMT package that can be challenging to solder, while the 2906 is a through-hole package.
But, there isn't a shield design with the 2906 footprint, so that would be a hefty disadvantage...

Cheers!

[edit] If one can find 1% resistors without a premium, go for it.
But there isn't a single resistor in the shield design that couldn't be 10% or even sloppier ( I suspect even floor sweepings will work )

 

I downloaded the files from oshpark to my desktop then uploaded them to D.C.boards. The process is easy but there is no customer service. It will take a month from order to mailbox.There is an option to save the files in their store so other people can reorder if they like.I did not save the files. You have several different options Color Thickness Coating Stencil Size (quantity 10+) but i went with the defaults.The boards are of excellent quality. If anybody needs help ordering let me know

 

Is there any plans to add a header for the rotary encoder? Version 1.2. If I had the skills I would do it. I might try and play around with Eagle and see what I come up with.

 

I just uploaded and took defaults. Once I get it I'll tell you how it worked out.

 

If you're a smart guy like @day_trippr and solder up your shield using extra long stake pins instead of the arduino-type stackable headers with female sockets, there's no need for the header. The rotary encoder doesn't have any resistors or capacitors associated with it, so plugging directly into the gnd and i/o pins on the shield are the way to go.

If you're good at reading between the lines, you'll probably figure out that this being my first board design, I was having a hard time placing everything and getting the traces around the components to where they go. The header for the rotary encoder was yanked off of one of my initial designs in a moment of frustration. Someone more skilled than I am could probably throw a header on there fairly easily. Until that happens, I'll just say that you don't need a header for the encoder

 

"Well, actually"

Each of the three encoder signals (up, down, button) does have an associated resistor and capacitor - and all of those parts are on the v1.1 shield already.
They're wired over to the associated header pins for IO 7, 8 and 9.

So if you either build the shield with straight male headers, or use stackable female headers, there'll be places to connect the three signals plus the GND from the encoder...

Cheers!

 

1) That is not in a garber file as I explained thats what I want.

2) The 5% to 1% thing not a big deal as the spec is 5%

3) http://www.pcbway.com/ was running a special for $20 shipped for 10 boards. But see its gone to $25. Im sure I could talk them to them to get it done for $20. I have another supplier which im pretty sure If I put the money up front to do a bulk amount done and get them sent out in 10 board at $18 shipped for 10 boards or do a deal where I could get them to send out singles from the bulk amount and people pay $1.30 per board and $5 Freight as a example?

 

Does this one meet spec:

http://www.aliexpress.com/item/50PC..._6&btsid=e6eb8170-a48b-44a6-8d5b-6d82b94f28ee

 

You going to change the sheild design to take a 2906 instead?

 

http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/blog...circuit-board-layout-files-gerber-format.html

 

Yup, that's the one.

Btw, they aren't THAT hard to solder if you have a strategy.
Use a fine-tipped iron of modest wattage (15-20W is ideal. 30W tops).
Lightly tin the pcb pads.
Grasp the body of the BSS84 with tweezers or needle-nose pliers,
position it over the footprint and figure out which pad is the easiest to reflow with the iron,
hold the part with that pin in firm contact with the target pad and reflow it.

Let the solder cool, get the other pads lined up, then reflow those and you're done.
NBD...

Cheers!

 

http://www.tiaowiki.com/w/How_to_export_gerber_files_from_eagle_for_pcb_production_at_youpcb.com

 

Trust me my soldering skills are pretty good Ive soldered PS2 Mod chips wires to fine legs of chips. Soldering that will be a walk in the park. Id actually like a SMD version of this board for the resisters and caps because Id have no issues soldering each part to the board and it would look more modern looking Anyone want to make a SMD version of the shield? Id love to solder them up and take some pics

 

I asked on the other thread and got no nibbles. Since we are talking about soldering here ... anyone have a recommendation for a soldering station that won't break the bank? I know I had an old Weller before I moved but Lord knows where that went.

As soon as Mouser gets around to restocking the 4.7K resistors I'll be soldering up my shields.

It's been a while since I did any PCB work. When I got out of the Army I did a couple months of assembly work (gotta love a recession) so I feel pretty good about my ability to get the skills back quickly. Surface mount will be new for me, I expect to make up a few new words.

I'd prefer it, but I have not taken the time to learn the layout tool yet. I just uploaded the existing layout.

 

The guys in a cell phone repair group on Facebook I belong to recommend to buy HAKKO for value for money.

 

Soldering the BSS84 was no big deal.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/291645798791?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT
http://www.ebay.com/itm/301773836593?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT
http://www.ebay.com/itm/290684153122?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT
http://www.ebay.com/itm/28132893673...49&var=580396798198&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT
http://www.ebay.com/itm/272183413018?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT
http://www.ebay.com/itm/40102541719...49&var=670552697068&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT
http://www.ebay.com/itm/252260359803?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/121874436941?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

 

I bought a USB soldering iron for about $10, like this one.
http://hackaday.com/2016/04/25/usb-soldering-iron-is-surprisingly-capable/

Remarkably, it works!

 

Shouldn't there be pull-up resistors on the SCK, SS and MOSI lines?

 

The glasses will be vital for my old eyes.

What's the Blu-Tack for?

 

Of course you're right on that. I totally forgot about those components that are wired to the IO pins. That's what I get for answering posts while in the bar.

My post was more meant to indicate that if you use the straight male headers in the IO slots, you can then use female jumper wires, making the need for a separate header for the encoder less important.

 

No.

 

I used it to hold stuff to the board while I flipped it over to solder and to keep the pcb from sliding on the work bench.

 

Ah, gotcha.

I learned to bend the leads in on the components to keep them in place, but it might be a nice thing to have around anyway. I'm not too old to learn new tricks.