What are you using for connector(s) to the QuickStart board ?
kochevnik
Posts: 30
Just a real basic question - what are you using to connect the QuickStart board pins ?
I found a 40 pin male to male ribbon cable that connects to the female 40 pin connector on the board, but now I'm a bit stumped as to how to * securely * connect the ribbon cable to anything else. Most of my inputs are from discrete wires, ethernet cables actually, 24 awg solid wire. I'm running these to terminal blocks on din rails, but cant figure out a good way to go from there to the female connector on the QuickStart ?
Suggestions ?
Ideas ?
Experiences ?
Appreciate any input you guys have.
Thx
I found a 40 pin male to male ribbon cable that connects to the female 40 pin connector on the board, but now I'm a bit stumped as to how to * securely * connect the ribbon cable to anything else. Most of my inputs are from discrete wires, ethernet cables actually, 24 awg solid wire. I'm running these to terminal blocks on din rails, but cant figure out a good way to go from there to the female connector on the QuickStart ?
Suggestions ?
Ideas ?
Experiences ?
Appreciate any input you guys have.
Thx
Comments
Have you seen the mezzanine boards on this thread? (Posts #6 and #9)
As I'm sure you've found, if you use a lot of pins the connection with the female header is more secure than using just a few pins.
I'm having the same problem securing only a few pins at a time. I find it takes about 8 male header pins to connect to the female header relatively securely.
I'm make several connectors with just a couple of male header pins. I'm soldering male header pins to small pieces of perf board to make these connectors. They stay put in the female header as long as the wires aren't pulled.
I think I'm resolved to use tape to secure any connections that don't feel like they are secure enough for my needs.
I just found a better example of what I'm trying to describe. I'll take a picture and post it soon.
Duane
The pictures are in the QuickStart project thread I mentioned in my last post.
Duane
See this post
I came up with something a bit different, a mezzanine
board with screw terminals. I figure to run wires from these to terminal blocks for connecting to other items.
Fotos attached. I just learned how to solder, so be kind - actually am still in the beginners stage.
Tomorrow I'm going to make a smaller version and once I can do these I will try a full 40 pin version.
OK - Yet Another attempt at doing a BOB - this one I think is a definite winner.
I found these Screwless Terminal Blocks on 0.1 inch centers :
http://www.pololu.com/catalog/product/2423
Four of the 5 position connectors snapped together gives me 20 pins for each end of the BOB. You can connect them together by peeling the end cap off with an exacto knife then there are three holes which fit the three pins on the end. The little orange 'handle' will fall off but it is not very hard to put it back in and it works fine.
Took me a couple of days to find those screwless terminals at anything approaching a decent price/delivery time, the 40 pin connectors I got off ebay for like a buck and the board was from ebay too.
Now I can push one of those little spring loaded orange pins and push my wire in or out whenever I want. These will be connected to terminal blocks on a DIN rail for a project I am working on, giving me access to all the Prop pins whenever and whereever I want.
Total cost for everything is $9 or $10 so that's a little steep, but hey what the heck, they should work forever, not that hard to fix (I have a Hakko 808 desolder tool that I got this week that is better than sliced bread
I just used a 40 pin male header and then took a Dremel attachment called an EZ-Lock and my little battery powered drill (I dont actually have a dremel) and used it to 'cut' a line between the two rows of pins down the middle so that the traces had a nice big gap between them.
Then the QS board just snaps on the 40 pin header and actually it kind of looks like the mezzanine/BOB since the sizes are different. I made it bigger so that the green screwless terminals clear the QS board components and so that it will be easy to stick wire in and out.
You can't really get to the touch pads with this BOB, but for what I am trying to do that's not going to be an issue. If I really want to get to them I'll just use the 40 pin ribbon cable I mentioned in my original post. I suppose if you could build REAL circuit boards instead of my stripboards that could be fixed, but that's way above my paygrade right now - but I am very happy with how this turned out.