I have recently had an excellent and informative 40-minute interview with Maxim Integrated CEO and President, Tunç Doluca via Webex regarding their 30th anniversary with questions about their history and also their future vision. In the video below, Doluca speaks about one of Maxim’s innovative and integrated achievements, the development of the MAX232, a single […]
The history of Maxim Integrated Read More »
A versatile kit that can be configured to drive either constant voltage LED arrays or constant current LEDs. Use the kit to dim under-cabinet LED lighting using flexible LED strips or build your own LED desk lamp using High Brightness LEDs. The majority of the circuit is identical for both types of LEDs. Two inexpensive
Universal CC/CV LED Dimmer Read More »
New USB chip from FTDI supports the Android open accessory mode, what enables a straightforward connectivity of USB devices and saves a battery of an Android device. To connect a device to a smartphone (tablet,…) or other Android OS device via a USB is at the time possible in 2 ways – by means of
FT311 – USB communication with Android devices without drivers Read More »
The control circuit in Figure 1a allows you to manually adjust the power delivered to a load. By changing the setting of potentiometer R3, you change the phase angle at which the thyristor (Q3) fires (Figure 1b), thereby altering the load current’s duty cycle. The adjustment range is about 0 to 180°. Q3’s off time
555 timer triggers phase-control circuit Read More »
Gamma photons interacting with cheap photodiodes produce small current pulses which are easily amplified and allow detection of individual photon events. This offers the possibility of cheap, small and rugged radiation detectors of reasonable sensitivity. While not as sensitive as larger GM-tube detectors, this solid state device is still quite useful for determining if something
Photodiode Gamma Ray Detector Read More »
Series Hammond 1553 handheld enclosures has sprawled out with smaller relations. Handheld enclosures of the 1553T series with a sufficient space for a keyboard and a display was introduced to you in our recent article HAMMOND 1553T enclosures – keyboard and display in your hand. Enclosure 1553T is ideal for many relatively bigger devices, but
HAMMOND 1553TT – keyboard and display even for women´s hands Read More »
By: Alex Danovich,President San Francisco Circuits We live in an exciting time where we see a resurgence in electronics as a hobby. Mass production has wiped out a generation or two of kids learning to build radios from scratch with their mom or dad. In the good old days, not sure when, you had companies
Circuit Board Design for Beginners Read More »
A tiny 32 bit Cortex M0+ The LPC810M021FN8 is a very interesting MCU in a 8 pin DIP package, designed to replace its 8 bit counterparts, ideal for hobbyist breadboard or through-hole printed circuit board (PCB). Being such a small and limited MCU, it has met a mixed reception since its announcement by NXP. Some
Programming the LPC810M021FN8 Read More »
In the last part of my tutorial about the A4988 driver, I’m going to explain how to build a controller to adjust speed and rotation direction of a stepper motor. Schematics I used the same setup introduced in a previous post: an Arduino Uno; a LCD Keypad shield; a Pololu A4988 driver mounted on a breadboard; a NEMA17 stepper
Allegro A4988 and Arduino (3) Read More »
The Universal Serial Bus (USB) has become the connection scheme of choice for interconnecting different devices, many of them providing human interface support. Support for many different types of peripheral, which can be self- or bus-powered, calls for stringent protection for not just the target device, but also the bus itself. For example, overcurrent protection
Protecting USB From Power Surges Read More »
