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PocketBeagle
09/21/2017 at 17:54 • 0 commentsToday Beagleboard.org released the new PocketBeagle.
https://beagleboard.org/pocket
The design follows the form factor of the PocketBone and adds even more features.
The Eagle and KiCAD design files are out on Github:
https://github.com/beagleboard/pocketbeagle -
Small group buy on GroupGets
07/08/2017 at 22:51 • 2 commentsA very limited buy was posted on Groupgets.
https://groupgets.com/campaigns/327-pocketbone-dev-kit
They aren't cheap but one day they might be collector's items. :)
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BGA Achievement Unlocked
04/20/2017 at 23:58 • 0 commentsSo if you haven't read it elsewhere already, I successfully as assembled one PocketBone unit last night.
The guys at @oshpark did a write up so I don't have to ... but I will anyways. :)
https://hackaday.io/page/3102-manual-assembly-of-kicad-pocketbone
The custom vacuum SMT pickup tool arrived special order from David Anders (prpplague) @Dave's Dev Lab.
It allowed me to pickup tools with the greatest of ease.
Paste was applied using the nice steel stencil from OSH stencils. Notice the nice clean release.Next I slowly and carefully placed the components.Here is the final placement before throwing it in the oven.I used a basic toaster oven with a Reflowster controller attached.
Sorry for the poor quality of the video. I will be trying to make a better video this weekend.
Here is the finished board in all of its glory. It boots! \o/
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Survey says!
04/12/2017 at 20:11 • 1 commentSo it has been a while since I last posted but things are still under way.
All of the components are in for the first trial assembly.
The first run should be this week.
In other news, there has been some interest expressed in doing a group order of the board. I made a quick survey to get an approximate idea of the demand for the boards.
Click here to take the survey: PocketBone Interest Survey
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Fresh Stencils
03/23/2017 at 19:44 • 0 commentsThe stencil for the PocketBone came in today from OSH stencils.
I ordered one of the fancy stainless steel ones to avoid print issues with the BGA. The quality is great and the price was very reasonable.
Will be working on getting the rest of the components ordered soon.
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All systems go!
03/14/2017 at 03:57 • 2 commentsThis morning a Pocketbone assembly arrived at my doorstep.
It was sent in a slightly larger tin along with a small USB OTG to host adapter cable.
The first assemblies looked great up close.
Here is the board inside the original smalls tin.
Still need to figure out a clean way to make holes for the USB and uSD.
And last but not least blinkenlights.
So next step is at home assembly. It'll be a few weeks.
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Some Assembly Required
03/09/2017 at 03:43 • 0 commentsThe fellows are Beagleboard.org sponsored a small prototype run of the boards at Circuithub.
Here are few snapshots of the first run.
Cross your fingers everyone. If they work I am going to proceed with an attempt at home assembly.
In other news, one of the OSH park PCBs I had on display at Scale 15x grew legs. Maybe the kid who took it is brave enough to try and follow my "#exactsteps" for home assembly.
(:
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Out of bananas
02/26/2017 at 01:01 • 2 commentsI was out of bananas so here is the next best thing.
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Hot off the press
02/25/2017 at 18:33 • 7 commentsThis week I happened to be in Portland for the Embedded Linux conference so I had a chance to pick up boards directly from OSH Park.
Here is a picture of a few of the boards taken at the OSH Park home office:
Here are a few more pictures now that I am back home.
As you can see some of these boards are still partially connected. The "mouse bite" connections are required to combine them with several other PCBs in a large panel. I got to see a sample panel and the CNC routing is quite elaborate.
The silkscreen is impressively accurate. This is done using a special process that essentially adds another layer of soldermask of a different color.
As you can see the boards fit the tins as expected. Probably going to be a bit tricky to get the holes in the tins for the USB and MicroSD connectors.
Overall a very nice board. Thanks OSH park!
If you want a chance to see a few of these bare PCBs in person (and happen to be going), I will be at Scale15x in a Pasadena next week. Catch them at the Beagleboard.org exhibition booth.
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OSH Park Edition
02/10/2017 at 17:53 • 1 commentOSH Park sponsored the first prototype of the PCB. In order to give them proper recognition, I updated the PCB to have their logo for the run.
The changes have been pushed to github and below is a link to the shared projects on OSH Park's website.
https://oshpark.com/profiles/mwelling
Next up is acquiring parts and a stencil for the assembly.