Column: Electronics design


Since you might


have more than one port allocated, you’ll need to remember the port number assigned to your RedBoard /Uno


be sent to the RedBoard /Uno. You will know it’s being sent, since the TX and RX on the PCB will rapidly flash during the transfer.


Step 3: Wiring the hardware Figure 6 shows the wiring diagram for my project; to make it easier to follow, I’ve used the conventional resistor colour codes for the RedBoard connections; i.e., black = 0 (not connected), brown = 1, red = 2, orange = 3, yellow = 4, green = 5, blue = 6, violet = 7, grey = 8 (not connected), white = 9 (not connected). Te values of the six resistors are not


critical, but it helps if they are as close to the suggested values as possible. As shown in Figure 6, the brown wire


goes to A1 and the red to A2 and D2, where A is for “analogue” and D for “digital”. Aſter completing all connections, turn


to the component tester app: run the Open ComponentTester v1.3.bat from your folder downloaded in Step 1; see Figure 7. You will see a Properties window. For


the Refresh Ports option, select Yes from the drop-down menu, it should revert to No. Select your board’s COM port. Te width of the properties can be adjusted if too narrow; see Figure 8. Hover the cursor over the leſt border


of the properties. When it changes to two parallel lines; hold the leſt mouse button down and drag to increase/decrease width. If you have a multimeter, with the power off measure each resistor and


enter its value within Properties. When finished, slide the save switch, which will save a file called config.cfg in the root of the app folder.


Step 4: Running the app With no test component added, select Go. Te wiring can be automatically checked by selecting “test hardware”. Follow the on-screen instructions, as shown in Figure 9. If all resistors and connections are


correct, at the end of the testing you will see a ‘pass’ message as shown in Figure 10. If there is a problem, the messages


will let you know. It may not be 100% accurate, so just check all the connections if a message shows something’s wrong; see Figure 11. If the wiring is correct, make sure


the correct COM port is shown within Properties and the RX/TX LED flashes during testing.


Step 5: Component testing Place the component to be tested across any of the connections A1, A2 and A3; see Figure 12 for an example. Ten slide the switch to the leſt; see


Figure 13 for a transistor example, and for a diode see Figure 14. If you select View, then Consoles, you will see a log of each; see Figure 15. Note the graph only displays


capacitor discharge/charge curves. With polarised capacitors, the positive goes to the lower numbers:


+ve A1


A2


-ve A2 A3


For a resistor under test, see


Figure 17. And finally, for a twin-diode


package, the test results are shown in Figure 18.


Troubleshooting Tere are a few basic troubleshooting tips for when the app shows unexpected results, which could be from mis-


14 September 2021 www.electronicsworld.co.uk


After completing all connections, turn to the


component tester app: run the Open ComponentTester v1.3.bat from your


folder downloaded in Step 1


communication, mis-connection, a faulty component, a faulty board, or a soſtware bug. First, check that the firmware has been properly loaded and the correct com port selected (if more than one). Tere are two ways to determine a


communications issue: one, when neither TX nor RX LEDs are flashing whilst the app examines the connected component. Te second is to open the console (View menu, select Consoles), undock the console so the app developer panel can be made larger, then in the View tab select the Consoles tick box and then the Arduino API tab. If communication is OK, you will see something like Figure 19. Issues with communications or


firmware will report errors as shown in Figure 20. For a communications issue, check the


following: • Is the correct com port selected within Properties?


• Has some other soſtware taken over the port?


• Is only one instance of the app developer running at a time?


• Be sure to run the hardware test. When the hardware switch is first activated, there should be no additional connections to A1 to A3 on the breadboard. Ten Link A1 to A2 to A3 and leſt-click the switch again. Any issues should be displayed. Further advice is available on the www.flowcode.co.uk forums.


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