MILLING PROCESS

I had just 30 minutes for mill my board, the girl that close our fablab at 18:30h the Fridays gently wait to me for have something with work the next 5 days because the University where we are close from Friday to Wednesday, so i thought about my uncertain lucky time hahahaha...

1. Mods was opened because my classmate Alavaro was milling his board so i exported my .png files from my USB to the computer copied them, i opened the interior file first selecting 1/64 mill traces with 4 at Offset.

2. Made the Origin for put the mill at the position interested

3. Calculated for check how the mill work

4. Finally i send the file to the machine

As you can see at the pic below, the board have the first traces without mill, i think that can be that the board is not fixed well to the base, after this, the machine lost the server communication so i made the connection again at terminal for continue, but not began well...

The resolution is less than adecuate for the machine and didn´t mill well some traces.

My mistake making the pad files for cut at photoshop made a big hole but i can solve this applying more weld.

i was trying to solve the problems but the traces was designing with 12.00 mm and they up breaking the board and the most important thing the chip.

I milled again my board correcting some things at the design such the hole with the same resolution for clear things with the other milled process and learn more, as you can see, for this time, the modella work without problems.

First, this the BOM i made for the "CrystalBoard v.1 :

I was studing the Atmel 168 micro-processor data sheet, here is the general for all micro-processors :

Things i learned from there :

1. Where my sensor is attaeched looking Pin configurations.

ABOUT ELECTRONICS DESIGN :

The sensor should to work TX connected to the Crystal Sensor while RX connected to VCC Divider and GND connected to the pin. So RX is connected inside with the Crochet Chain made previously and the TX is around.

If the difference between voltage in both sensors connected is bigger, the serial monitor will show a large number. As more close the values down to 0.

ABOUT PROGRAMMING:

The input program should to prescale the pin´s clock that goes to the Crystal Sensors for measure the tension data and to make teh same with the Receiver data.

The references for coding the board need to be explain with how works a capacitive sensor, here are usefull and quick references about it:

The Arduino reference explain in details how this sensors works, which libraries should to be installed for write prgrams for them at arduino IDE and basic examples for begin.

Of course Neil´s examples :

So i decided to focuss in to use the Arduino Library and made the first program there so i modified the example sketch made by Paul Badger. He made the Step Response example for 3 sensors and for the moment i use 2 . But obviously, not work, as my instructor tell me that the example never work with my board i confused with load again.

So i decided begin with neil example and modify somethings at Arduino IDE :

Later i went to the DataSheet again for recognize the pin ports that Neil mention in his program and extracted some usefull things from there was the moment make some questions more to my instructor so he suggested to me, take a look the page from my classmate Alvaro. He designed a board for his final project following the same steps, so together, we was taking a look to his program, understanding the final things for have something. Here are the codes i made with my instructor at arduino IDE.

/* Pilu Caballero
FabAcademy 2017. Crystal Sensor Board. 
Input Devices Assignment.
This code is based in Neil´ hello txrx.board and looked by my instructor suggestion at the page of my classmate Alvaro Fernández La Roja.
*/

#include < avr/io.h>// Libraries previously installed
#include <util/delay.h>

static uint16_t up,down;          // extracted from Neil Program
static uint16_t arriba, abajo;

void setup() {
  pinMode(A2, OUTPUT); // Declaring the first sensor pin out from my board
  Serial.begin(9600); // Initialize Serial Communication 
}
void loop() { 
      up = 0; // initial value for the states of sensor to up to 0
      down = 0; // initial value to 0 for down
      for (int count = 0; count < 100; ++count) { 
        _delay_us(100);
        digitalWrite(A2,1); //the pin out and his state
        arriba = analogRead(A3);
        up += arriba;
        _delay_us(100);
        digitalWrite(A2,0);
        abajo = analogRead(A3);
        down += abajo;

         }

Serial.println(up-down); // messages for print at serial

     _delay_ms(5000);
}
     

As you see at the video looking at the values that appear on the video it seems that they are not increasing as they should when i touch the sensor. After this, i decided to try the second :

As i mentioned above, i had a problem designing my board, preparing my first hole file for mill are was solved.

The other problem i had was understand all the DataSheet for example, with the registers or some things that i want to know for my final project but i solved asking to others.

The sensors didn´t work properly, are so experimental so their conductive properties are really variables.

The sensors are an experiment for my personal studies so i don´t expect a lot but i learned that are analog so program them are really difficult.

I must to advance trying new programmes with other architectures.

Probably if i had to finnished the assignment in time i would to have more time for extend my conclusions about it.

Now i have a new way for an idea about an artistic installation which can turn real in future but should to be more researched until this.

Now i demostrate some ideas where meet some techniques and disciplines so fabacademy was a good point for begin.