Simple 8-LED battery checker using Arduino clone board

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Martin
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Joined: 16 Feb 2018, 14:11
Location: Warwickshire

Re: Simple 8-LED battery checker using Arduino clone board

Post by Martin »

I ordered five of the LQFP32 MiniEVBs to test out, and they arrived today. Powering one up, it came with a 'blink' sketch installed (on board blue LED blinking). The pin-out of the serial port 'connector' is the same as my SSOP20 boards; likewise the SWD programming 'connector' at the other end.

It has an additional row of holes beyond the SWD 'connector' for pins 9, A4, A5, A6, A7, 10. If you don't need those, you can grind that end of the board away using a grinding wheel and then the board is then the same size as the SSOP20 one, and would fit in the same 3D-printed case.

No tracks run across that end of the board - other than the ones going to the holes - so grinding the board away doesn't affect the operation of any remaining pins. If you go that way, then you'd probably use A0 for the analogue input and 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 to drive the LEDs. If you want to keep 0 and 1 free, for serial debugging, then pins A3, and A2 would be the best choice to replace them. The legs of the LEDs reach all those pins, but need to be angled more than for the SSOP20 board.

Mine didn't come with a serial bootloader - or at least not one that worked with the settings I tried. I was able to burn a bootloader to the board using another Arduino, as described in one of my previous posts.

If anyone's using one of those boards for this project, and doesn't fancy the grinding process :shock: let me know here, and I'll upload some STL files for a case to fit the 0.1-inch longer board, details on how to modify the sketch (only one line changes), and a diagram of how to connect the LEDs and resistors.
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tiptipflyer
Posts: 393
Joined: 16 Feb 2018, 22:49
Location: Germany

Re: Simple 8-LED battery checker using Arduino clone board

Post by tiptipflyer »

My checker is ready and working fine.
I ordered tha small board, but they did send me the longer ones instead. But no problem.
I rearranged the pins for the LEDs and made a larger case for it.
My boards came with the bootloader installed, so programming them was easy.
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Frank
Martin
Posts: 744
Joined: 16 Feb 2018, 14:11
Location: Warwickshire

Re: Simple 8-LED battery checker using Arduino clone board

Post by Martin »

As usual, Frank, you've made a very neat build. :D
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