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Use It Or Lose It? What Should You Do with Non-Functional Pads?

Use It Or Lose It? What Should You Do with Non-Functional Pads?

Circuit board stacks of four or more layers often have through vias that attach to pads on layers where there is no electrical connection. Should those non-function pads stay, or should they go? This article presents the problem and provides resources.


Rigid-Flex PCB Design: Benefits and Design Best Practices

Rigid-Flex PCB Design: Benefits and Design Best Practices

This article will discuss what rigid-flex PCBs are, the advantages of using them, and the rules for designing with them for an application.


How to Design a Super Simple Sensor System for Industrial Monitoring Applications

How to Design a Super Simple Sensor System for Industrial Monitoring Applications

This article describes an Ethernet-connected subsystem of a larger modular sensor system designed for industrial or smart home sensing and monitoring. We will discuss a custom sensor subsystem developed for this application.


Projects Sep 12, 2018 by Mark Hughes
Guide to PCB Design: How to Generate Manufacturing Files for Custom Printed Circuit Boards

Guide to PCB Design: How to Generate Manufacturing Files for Custom Printed Circuit Boards

In this article, we'll go over the basics of generating manufacturing files for PCB design and manufacturing.


Guide to PCB Design: From PCB Schematic to Board Layout

Guide to PCB Design: From PCB Schematic to Board Layout

In this article, you will learn the basics of how to plan a schematic for a custom PCB and lay out your PCB prototype design.


PCB Layout Tips and Tricks: Minimizing Decoupling Inductance

PCB Layout Tips and Tricks: Minimizing Decoupling Inductance

This article examines some subtle details associated with the high-frequency performance of decoupling capacitors.


PCB Layout Tips and Tricks: How to Optimize Your Decoupling Connection

PCB Layout Tips and Tricks: How to Optimize Your Decoupling Connection

This article explores the somewhat complicated issue of how exactly to connect a decoupling capacitor to a power pin.


PCB Layout Tips and Tricks: Use a Ground Plane Whenever Possible

PCB Layout Tips and Tricks: Use a Ground Plane Whenever Possible

This article discusses the importance of proper grounding techniques in PCB design.


What Is Mutual Inductance? A Guide for Circuit Designers

What Is Mutual Inductance? A Guide for Circuit Designers

Learn about mutual inductance and how it can influence an engineer’s approach to circuit and system design.


I2C Design Mathematics: Capacitance and Resistance

I2C Design Mathematics: Capacitance and Resistance

This article looks at the mathematical calculations used to size the pull-up resistors and determine the maximum length of circuit traces.


PCB Layout for a Photovoltaic Power Supply for Microcontroller Circuits

PCB Layout for a Photovoltaic Power Supply for Microcontroller Circuits

This article discusses the PCB layout for a power-supply circuit that generates a regulated 3.3 V rail from a small solar cell.


Schematic Design for a Solar-Powered Charge-Pump Power Supply Circuit

Schematic Design for a Solar-Powered Charge-Pump Power Supply Circuit

This article discusses a 3.3 V power-supply circuit that is built around an inductorless DC/DC converter and a solar cell.


PCB Layout for a Charge-Pump Bipolar Power Supply

PCB Layout for a Charge-Pump Bipolar Power Supply

In this article we’ll look at the PCB design for a low-noise ±5 V inductorless power supply.


Designing a Charge-Pump Bipolar Power Supply

Designing a Charge-Pump Bipolar Power Supply

This article presents and discusses a schematic design for a ±5 V inductorless power supply.


The Many Types of Fuses: Axial, Cartridge, Surface Mount, PTC…

The Many Types of Fuses: Axial, Cartridge, Surface Mount, PTC…

This article provides an overview of the various fuse options that are available to designers of low-voltage circuits.


How to Add Bluetooth 5 to a Project with a GT-tronics BLE5 Module

How to Add Bluetooth 5 to a Project with a GT-tronics BLE5 Module

This article demonstrates a solderless-breadboard compatible carrier-board for a pre-certified BLE4 or BLE5 module made by GT-Tronics. Use it to experiment with your own BLE5 compatible designs.


Projects Apr 04, 2018 by Mark Hughes
Design a Custom Microcontroller Programming and Testing Board

Design a Custom Microcontroller Programming and Testing Board

In this article we’ll discuss the design for a custom microcontroller programming/debug/extension PCB and we’ll look at an example project.


Projects Feb 25, 2018 by Robert Keim
Capacitive Control Panel PCB Design Considerations for TI’s MSP430FR2633 Microcontroller

Capacitive Control Panel PCB Design Considerations for TI’s MSP430FR2633 Microcontroller

This article provides a closer look at the PCB design considerations and programming of a custom capacitive touch interface device.


Handling Fragile and Irregular PCBs in Processing and Testing Machines

Handling Fragile and Irregular PCBs in Processing and Testing Machines

Manufacturers can use fixtures or panels to secure or frame fragile, thin, or oddly shaped PCBs. This allows them to easily fit the boards in the standard assembly or inspection machines.


How to Generate a High-Precision Waveform Using a DAC and a Custom PCB

How to Generate a High-Precision Waveform Using a DAC and a Custom PCB

In this article, we’ll develop firmware that will serve as the basis for high-precision, high-speed signal generation.


Projects Dec 01, 2017 by Robert Keim