Finally got a batch of 25 PCBs on order with GoldPhoenixPcb. Going to try black soldermask to sorta go with the manta theme.
Had a big problem with the camera interface though... When I finally got to testing the new camera modules from techtoys, I found that he had rotated the camera 90 degrees.
Had to rotate the camera connector to match. But then, the image was upside down. That's OK though because there's a setting in camera to flip the image and that made everything OK. One positive thing about this is that the camera is now centered on the board instead of off to the side. The big down side is that I had to order boards with changes that are not tested. Hopefully Eagle made sure I got it right.
Yes, even in 16-bit per pixel mode there is plenty of free memory on the SSD1921 for other purposes...
Some things you can do with it are:
Use it as a buffer for converting camera image to jpg file.
Use it as a buffer for DMA writing or reading from SD card.
Use it as buffer for converting jpg to screen image.
Use it as buffer for sprites to be bitblitted to the screen.
But, you could use it for anything you want really...
Finally got a board populated and fully tested.
There was one minor issue with the uSD wiring, but I'm able to fix it for this first batch of boards with a solder bridge.
This and any other issues that may pop up will be fixed in next batch of boards.
So, I'm marking this project complete (at least for the hardware side).
There is still a lot of work to do to get the software to a useful state.
Here are photos of front and back of the fully populated board:
There may be cases where someone doesn't want the through hole items like joystick and jog dial that stick up from the board a lot.
So, I'm thinking about offering two versions, one with most everything installed and one without most of the through hole extras.
Price is a big issue on a big board like this...
I suppose I'd like to sell some, so I can't set it too high.
But, I can't lose money either...
Somebody once said here that 2X the component cost is a good estimate.
Well, the parts for the near fully populated board come in at ~$100, not counting LCD and assuming bought at Qty.25.
But, if I paid for assembly, it would be ~$68 per board at Qty.25.
But, I do have an advantage that I can make some myself and I got a great deal on the LCD's.
So, I have to think about what to do with price, which is the least enjoyable part of doing this...
Anyway, to start, I'll probably offer a version without the through hole parts for ~$149 to start with and offer the remaining parts for $25 or so.
Later on, if there's any demand, I'll have to increase the price.
Also, the software needs a lot of work at the moment, so I don't really think I can charge a big price at the moment.
At 2x you will sink .... 5x or more is where you need to be to cover BOM, R&D, Shipping, and your personal fee in putting the units together. 2x just isn't enough to move forward.
5X would be possible if we were more like Parallax with a support phone number, forum, etc.
Also, part cost would probably be 2 or 3X lower with Qty.1000, like Parallax can do...
Fortunately, I don't have any salaries to pay, so I can get away with low quantities and 2X actual cost.
Comments
Had a big problem with the camera interface though... When I finally got to testing the new camera modules from techtoys, I found that he had rotated the camera 90 degrees.
Had to rotate the camera connector to match. But then, the image was upside down. That's OK though because there's a setting in camera to flip the image and that made everything OK. One positive thing about this is that the camera is now centered on the board instead of off to the side. The big down side is that I had to order boards with changes that are not tested. Hopefully Eagle made sure I got it right.
Moment of truth time...
The boards look pretty good in black, I think:
Are we going to be able to access the screen buffer?
Rich
Some things you can do with it are:
Use it as a buffer for converting camera image to jpg file.
Use it as a buffer for DMA writing or reading from SD card.
Use it as buffer for converting jpg to screen image.
Use it as buffer for sprites to be bitblitted to the screen.
But, you could use it for anything you want really...
There was one minor issue with the uSD wiring, but I'm able to fix it for this first batch of boards with a solder bridge.
This and any other issues that may pop up will be fixed in next batch of boards.
So, I'm marking this project complete (at least for the hardware side).
There is still a lot of work to do to get the software to a useful state.
Here are photos of front and back of the fully populated board:
There may be cases where someone doesn't want the through hole items like joystick and jog dial that stick up from the board a lot.
So, I'm thinking about offering two versions, one with most everything installed and one without most of the through hole extras.
I suppose I'd like to sell some, so I can't set it too high.
But, I can't lose money either...
Somebody once said here that 2X the component cost is a good estimate.
Well, the parts for the near fully populated board come in at ~$100, not counting LCD and assuming bought at Qty.25.
But, if I paid for assembly, it would be ~$68 per board at Qty.25.
But, I do have an advantage that I can make some myself and I got a great deal on the LCD's.
So, I have to think about what to do with price, which is the least enjoyable part of doing this...
Anyway, to start, I'll probably offer a version without the through hole parts for ~$149 to start with and offer the remaining parts for $25 or so.
Later on, if there's any demand, I'll have to increase the price.
Also, the software needs a lot of work at the moment, so I don't really think I can charge a big price at the moment.
Also, part cost would probably be 2 or 3X lower with Qty.1000, like Parallax can do...
Fortunately, I don't have any salaries to pay, so I can get away with low quantities and 2X actual cost.
BTW: Just posted a Product Brief for Manta here: http://www.rayslogic.com/Propeller/Products/Manta/Manta_ProductBrief.pdf