The name stands for "Extra Small Outline No-lead." It's a newish package from Texas Instruments. In my experience, Ti is one of the better companies where testing and documenting manufactureability is concerned. The datasheet for this device [www.ti.com/lit/an/scea055/scea055.pdf] is no... Read more
I recently participated in the Altium pod cast where I discussed the origins of Screaming Circuits, some DFM hints and a few other topics. I was discussing some of the challenges everyone is having these days in procuring components and... Read more
Have you purchased any electronics components lately? Have you tried and failed to do so lately? Allocation is the word of the day and substitutions are your friend. Many, many parts are in short supply, or unavailable with extraordinarily long... Read more
Just a quick question here... I'm placing the components for my TinyFPGA based stepper motor controller board (see the prior articles here first, here next, and here last). Specifically, I'm finding places for all of the capacitors. That's where the... Read more
If you've been following this series, you've likely come to the determination that I've fallen behind, or forgotten about the project. I haven't forgotten, but I have fallen behind. When I last wrote about the project (here), I had examined... Read more
It's a new weekend, and I'm back to my obsession with stepper motors. If you haven't read part one of this series yet, go back and read it here. That's not an order; more of a plea. In any case,... Read more
It's about time for another project. I normally design half a dozen or so small boards per year. It's not my profession. It's just something I do. But I haven't designed or built anything since the "incident" with the photo... Read more
Manufacturing is all about taking data from you and delivering some good working circuit boards. Well, it can be just data - as in full turn-key, or data plus some parts and or PC boards, as in a partial turn-key... Read more
We've been asked that question: "Do I Really Need Soldermask and Silkscreen?" many times. And, we've been asked with good reasons. To us, soldermask protects exposed metal, reduce the chance of shorts, and keeps solder where solder needs to be.... Read more
Design rules are rules (imagine that) set in your PCB CAD software that will do one or more of two things. A) They set the limits of the capabilities of the PCB fabrication company you'll use to make your blank... Read more
