Cluso's Dev/Retro/Game/DosBlade on a tiny 1.8"x1.8" pcb (Boxed 2"x2")

Cluso99

I have not actually named this product yet. All the connectors are placed and the main chips placed on the pcb. Some of the other passive components are placed and some tracks done.

Here are the specs. Pcbs probably 3-4 weeks away as I have something else to complete first.





Cluso's DevBlade (unnamed - a Propeller Dev Platform)

• Prop, 64KB EEPROM, socketed xtal 6MHz (96MHz)
• Should be overclockable to 6.5MHz(104MHz) & 13.5MHz(108MHz)
• PCB 45x45mm (1.8"x1.8")
• Fits into a Hammond 1551 50x50mm translucent box
• Requires external 5V DC (via miniUSB connector or pin header)
• Onboard 3V3 regulator
• microSD socket
• Stereo Audio via 3.5mm AV4 connector combined with Stereo
  • Cable 3.5mm to 2 or 3 RCA plugs are cheapon eBay
• TV or VGA (user configurable once???)
  • VGA is via 6pin header (1x6 pin female housing & pins supplied, user to make to VGA plug)
  • TV (composite video) via 3.5mm AV4 connector (combined with the Stereo Audio)
• Connections for
  • EXP #1 - Expansion 1x6 pin header
    • With 5V, GND, /RST, P31, P30, xxx. Capable of...
      • 5V DC Input (or output)
      • Connection to external PropPlug
      • Transistor reset circuit on pcb for use with non-PropPlug program adapters (cheap on eBay)
      • Able to be daisy-chained from another DevBlade (or another prop board). The other prop can reset this prop and download to it.
      • Integral resistors for possible USB operation as a VCOMM Port at LS or FS (low or full speed, non-compliant USB serial slave, using BradC's or Micah's prop software)
    • A miniUSB-B connector is also expected to fit on the pcb to provide alternative connections to the 1x6 pin header (5V, P30, P31, Gnd)
  • EXP #2 - Expansion header 1x6 pin socket
    • With 5V, Gnd, P8-10, P24? Connects to one of...
    • RamBlade II with ability to reset and download RamBlade II
      • Externally (& hopefully internally option too)
    • Connection to older RamBlade via cable
    • Connection to another daisy-chained DevBlade (or prop board). This prop can reset and download the daisy-chained prop board.
  • 3 Connectors (miniUSB-B), all capable of...
    • PS2 (keyboard or mouse)
    • Game port (I2C) such as Wii Nunchuck, Wii Classic Controller, Wii Motion Plus (3 axis gyro), Wii Nunchuck (3 axis accelerometer & keypads). Wii Nunchuck can be daisy chained from Wii Motion Plus. Note not the Wii Controller. A user cable will be required to be made by splicing a miniUSB-B cable and a Wii extension cable, both cheap on eBay.
    • I2C pcbs such as RTC, Gyro, Accelerometer, Compass, Pressure, etc.
    • Serial connection (TXD & RXD). Could utilise an external RS232 board such as Digilent's PMod.
    • Other general purpose connections (2 prop I/O with integral 150 ohm series resistors and 10K pullups, plus 5V & Gnd)
  • 1 Connector (miniUSB-B), capable of...
    • As for the above 3 connectors, or
    • USB master or slave, LS or FS (low or full speed, non-compliant prop software implementation - Micah's code as the base). e.g. Bluetooth, COM, etc
  • 1 Connector 3.5mm AV4 socket for...
    • 2 ADC channels using prop sigma-delta
    • Options for scaling input to read digital voltages
    • Options for capacitive coupling e.g. microphones
    • Together with one of the 3 or 4 ports above (or another 2 prop pins)..
      • can read 4-wire resistive touch panels
        • Not too sure of the accuracy, but I have tested it

As you can see, this board packs quite a punch into such a small footprint. Coupled with the RamBlade II (internally or externally) quite a development system can be had.

Particularly note the daisy-chaining concept, all in boxes. There are further development prop boards and expansion boards coming too.

Here is a sneak-peak at the pcb partial layout. Note the 4 miniUSB-B across the top, and the 2 AV4s at the bottom followed by the VGA 1x6 header (the second adjacent header may or maynot be on the final pcb). The Daisy-chained connector downlink is on the left and the daisy-chain or PropPlug/miniUSB-B is on the right upper. The microSD is on the right lower. The pink is the outline of the pcb and the green is the outline of the box outer. The grid is 0.1".

I will be making assembled and tested pcbs and bare pcbs available.

RamBlade II




A new rev RamBlade II is also being built. The existing RamBlade will continue to be available because the new RamBlade II is slightly slower.

• Same as RamBlade except...
• PCB dimensions 30x45mm (slightly different to RamBlade)
• Fits a Hammond 1551 35x50mm translucent box
• Hopefully will plug into the DevBlade inside the existing box, but will definately plug in externally
• Onboard 3v3 regulator from user supplied 5V DC (from DevBlade if plugged into it)
• Different connector pinout
• Optional RTC
• Uses P30/31 for I/O
  • Overall marginally slower (1 instruction per SRAM read access) but conforms to P30-31 loading standards
  • Can also operate standalone with 1pin TV & 1pin Keyboard
  • I am hoping to be able to also do USB via these 2 pins (may have to slow to 96MHz)
  • PropPlug not required because EEPROM initialised by me so prop can boot directly from microSD card
  • User can update code via microSD on the PC via an adapter
  • I anticipate, once USB is running, code can be downloaded directly from the pc to the microSD
  • Can be downloaded and reset by another daisy-chained prop (or other micro) using P30-31 & Reset
  • Anticipate putting transistor reset cct on the pcb

I will be making assembled and tested pcbs and bare pcbs available.

Cluso99

reserved for hardware

Cluso99

reserved for photos

Bill Henning

Looks good; excellent use of mini-usb connectors!

Cluso99

Thanks Bill.
I thought long and hard about what connectors to use. I started the layout using the AV4 as I could buy cables that went from AV4 to USB-A plugs and USB-A to USB-A sockets cheaply. However, I have two issues. Firstly I was concerned someone might plug the Stereo/Video into the wrong connectors which were also on the pcb. But the cruch came when they did not fit on my pcb size. Then I realised that I was already using miniUSB and they had the 5V and Gnd defined and the series resistors and pullup or pulldown resistors too. Made the decision easy, so I checked the microUSB out too. While they are slightly smaller, I settled on the miniUSB-B. Cables to USB-A plugs are readily available (if you don't have some already) and the USB-A F to USB-A F adapters are also readily available (for keyboard in PS2 mode, or mouse via USB to minidin6 - unsure if the USB mouse can run in PS2 mode like most keyboards).

Hopefully, others will follow suit with these connectors too, where space is precious. Now, I just need to do a small adapter to your I2C boards. I have the female pin housing and pins to make cables.

Toby Seckshund

Connectors are always so big, or so flimsy. That was the difference of my "CP/M in a cigarette box" and your "CP/M in a match box" :-)

hinv

It sound's pretty neat, but....will you supply PropForth configured and ready to run right out of the box?