Author Archives: admin

Mobile Terminal Version 3 Up and (nearly) working

Posted on 20 November 2013 by admin

Getting a solder stencil really paid off as the new board came out of the oven cooked to perfection (well almost!) Prototype powered on with Wi-fi connection made. So whats working? Well the inspection showed a few pins of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Mobile Terminal | Comments Off on Mobile Terminal Version 3 Up and (nearly) working

Boards and stencils from smart prototyping

Posted on 9 November 2013 by admin

Just for info, here are the latest PCB’s that I made at Smart Prototyping. First is the 3rd Version of the Mobile Terminal board, the gold finishing is nice but doesnt really come out on the photo. Below is the … Continue reading →

Posted in Fill-Level Sensor, Mobile Terminal | Tagged | Comments Off on Boards and stencils from smart prototyping

Almost there!

Posted on 7 November 2013 by admin

Stuart installed the latest revision onto the production line yesterday as they had a run of Sauvignon Blanc in standard green bottles going through. When I got there I was greeted with a “it dont work” as the manager had … Continue reading →

Posted in Fill-Level Sensor | Comments Off on Almost there!

Things not quite right

Posted on 29 October 2013 by admin

As predicted the fill sensor performed miserably on clear bottles using the default settings and one of the operators noticed a mysterious lock up, where the sensor seemed to hang every now and then but became responsive again after a … Continue reading →

Posted in Fill-Level Sensor | Comments Off on Things not quite right

Barcode Scanner Selection

Posted on 11 October 2013 by admin

There are two types of barcode scanner engine, the laser one which oscillates a mirror to produce a line which with good timing and a photo-sensor can be converted into 1’s and 0’s. The second type is a CMOS barcode engine which … Continue reading →

Posted in Mobile Terminal | Tagged | Comments Off on Barcode Scanner Selection

Fill level sensor update

Posted on 2 October 2013 by admin

Did a final tweek of the firmware and installed it in the production line. The system will now 1. On Power-up or Reset wait for user input from the (soon to be depreciated) keypad for 20 seconds then default to … Continue reading →

Posted in Fill-Level Sensor | Comments Off on Fill level sensor update

PCB’s and Prototypes

Posted on 2 October 2013 by admin

Version 1.0a schematic and board were completed in September and the PCB Gerber files  sent to Seeed Studios to be made up. These guys did a great job and a swift turnaround on my last project so I was keen … Continue reading →

Posted in Mobile Terminal | Comments Off on PCB’s and Prototypes

Equipment Spending Spree

Posted on 24 September 2013 by admin

With the prospect of soldering 0.5mm pitch SMD’s I’m going to bite the bullet and order some proper equipment. Found a great site called smart-prototyping who supply a lot of decent prototyping gear for at or below your normal eBay … Continue reading →

Posted in Fill-Level Sensor, Mobile Terminal | Comments Off on Equipment Spending Spree