Hardware Podcasts

3 Cent Micros And 1000s of LEDs

The Amp Hour · 21 Oct 2018 · 1h 28m · Episode 412

What this episode covers

Mike Harrison of Mike's Electric Stuff discusses the engineering challenges of large-scale LED art installations, including the need for gamma correction, RGBW configurations, and managing failure rates through conservative driving. He highlights the discovery of ultra-low-cost components from LCSC, such as 3-cent microcontrollers and embedded DC-DC converters, and details a specific failure caused by a non-keyed connector allowing reverse insertion. The conversation also covers his workshop setup, the use of pick-and-place machines, and new tools like an Ethernet decoding board for oscilloscopes.

Most relevant to

early-stage companies

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
Mike's Electric Stuff, LCSC, DigiKey, Keysight, Tektronix, Yokogawa, Rohde & Schwarz, JLCPCB, HobbyKing, Boston Dynamics, JITX, Super Micro, Apple
Chips
MUN12A, STM32, APA102, WS2812
Also
Rigol, HackerBoxes, James Bruton, PCBXPRT

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