Custom PCB

[dickson]

I am having a lot of fun with the Moteino and I have so many projects in mind to build around it.
I've been using protoboards for my projects but I think it is time to take the leap and design my own PCBs (sensors, led arrays etc) to use with the Moteino.

Felix, the quality of your boards are superb. Where did you get them made? Any pointers or advice for a novice jumping into designing PCB?

Thanks!

[Felix]

Dickson,
Glad to hear Moteino is working out for you, thanks for the feedback!
I have made the boards in Eagle, here are some docs and resources:

Some video series to get you started in Eagle:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qG0O9LKH-_E
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1AXwjZoyNno

EEV blog resources:
http://alternatezone.com/electronics/files/PCBDesignTutorialRevA.pdf
http://www.eevblog.com/2010/11/15/eevblog-127-pcb-design-for-manufacture-tutorial/

There are free routers out there, sometimes they are useful, I mostly route by hand, but here's a good one I sometimes use:
freerouting.net

I manufactured the boards at hackvana, and I assembled them myself, with very simple methods, as shown in some of my videos.

I started out a few years ago with Kicad then moved to Eagle for a few reasons. Other people swear by Kicad, I think it got much better but it's very hard to switch at this point after I know Eagle pretty well. But give Kicad a try, it might work out well for you.

[dickson]

Thank you so much for the info Felix! I have been watching your videos and they are great. Please keep making them!

[dickson]

After going through a few youtube videos, including your's, Felix, I finally designed my first PCB and had it made. It is a power booster that I can run my projects from 2x AAA batteries. I haven't received my boards yet but my PCB order went without a hitch (no news is good news?). My fingers are crossed.

I started using Fritzing but quickly found it very frustrating. I bit the bullet and learned Eagle and I am glad I did.
Felix, I really like your videos. I would love to see you talk more about using Eagle to design the Moteino and such.

I have a few questions for you Felix:

1. What microscope are you using and can you recommend one?
ebay search turned up A LOT of choices.

2. Ground pours. What are your thoughts on them?
I made ground pours on my board not really thinking about it. I noticed the Moteino doesn't have it.
I've searched on google and lurked on the EEVBlog forums and it seems it comes down to a matter of taste?

3. Solder paste. I almost made the mistake of buying the same cheap one that was in your video. Good thing I remembered. Any tips on where/how to get good solder paste on the cheap? It seems the good stuff needs to be packed with ice and shipped next day very costly for a hobbyist like myself.

Thanks!

[Felix]

1. I'm using a Bausch & Lomb stereozoom 3X + 10x WF eyepieces, giving 30x magnification. Also recommended are the American Optical 569/570. Don't get a boom stand unless you are OK with having a huge heavy thing on your desk that takes a large amount of space. I got a small stand that works very well. I watched ebay for weeks to pick the one I got. Make sure it's aligned and the optics are clean with no fungus (based on description).

2. Ground pours are a big subject. PCB design even bigger. I will start shipping Moteinos with ground pours in the future. No huge reason, but trying to get a little more counterpoise (if a little counts) for the wire antenna, maybe the RF gurus can rebuff me on that. The board looks brighter with the pour (aesthetics) but ground points will take longer to solder since large masses of copper absort a lot of heat. I recommend Dave's guide for PCB design: http://alternatezone.com/electronics/files/PCBDesignTutorialRevA.pdf

3. I started using a large jar of ChipQuik Pb-free no-clean paste. It's really excellent and there is virtually no residue after reflow. Sometimes little balls can still form if i'm not too careful with the reflow profile but nothing like the chinese paste which was utter garbage. At $54/250g jar the price is about the same as the chinese paste. I got it in 2 days from digi, no special shipping just priority USPS and they still include a thermal bag with an ice package which didn't last all the way but kept it cool for some time. http://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/SMD291SNL250T3/SMD291SNL250T3-ND/3645039