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CRT Flyback / Line Output Transformer Destructive Teardown

Small Flyback Transformer
Small Flyback Transformer

Here’s a small flyback / Line Output Transformer from a portable colour TV set. Usually these transformers are vacuum potted in hard epoxy resin & are impossible to disassemble without anything short of explosives. (There are chemical means of digesting cured epoxies, but none of them are pleasant). This one however, was potted in silicone, so with some digging, the structure of the transformer can be revealed.

Cap Removed
Cap Removed

The cap was glued on to the casing, but this popped off easily. The top of the core is visible in the silicone potting material.

The Digging Starts
The Digging Starts

A small screwdriver was used to remove the potting material, while trying not to damage the winding bobbin & core too badly. The bulge in the casing that I originally thought might house a voltage multiplier turns out to be totally empty. The white plastic bobbin is becoming visible around the core.

Bobbin
Bobbin

After some more digging & a lot of mess later, the entire transformer is revealed. The primary & auxiliary secondaries are visible at the bottom of the transformer, next to the pins. These transformers have multiple windings, as they’re used not only for supplying the final anode voltage of several Kilovolts to the CRT, but many of the other associated voltages, for the heater, grids, focus electrodes, etc. These lower voltage windings are on the same part of the core as the primary.
Above those is the main high voltage secondary winding, which looks to be wound with #38-#40AWG wire (about the thinnest available, at 0.07mm diameter. This is wound in many sections of of a few hundred turns each to increase the insulation resistance to the high voltage. The main anode wire emerges from the top of the bobbin.

Output Rectifier
Output Rectifier

Hidden in a recess at the top is the main HV rectifier, which on this small transformer is a single device (it’s probably not internally, most likely a series stack of diodes to get the PIV rating required).

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Cheap Lithium Polymer Battery Packs

In the past, I’ve used RC type LiPo packs for my mobile power requirements, but these tend to be a bit bulky, since they’re designed for very high discharge current capability – powering large motors in models is a heavy job.

I recently came across some Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 battery packs on eBay very cheaply, at £2.95 a piece. For this price I get 6800mAh of capacity at 4.2v, for my 12v requirements, 3 packs must be connected in series, for a total output of 12.6v fully charged.

For an initial pack, I got 9 of these units, to be connected in 3 sets of 3 to make 20Ah total capacity.There are no control electronics built into these batteries – it’s simply a pair of 3400mAh cells connected in parallel through internal polyfuses, and an ID EEPROM for the Tab to identify the battery.
This means I can just bring the cell connections together with the original PCB, without having to mess with the welded cell tabs.

Battery Pack
Battery Pack

Here’s the pack with it’s cell connections finished & a lithium BCM connected. This chemistry requires close control of voltages to remain stable, and with a pack this large, a thermal runaway would be catastrophic.

Cell Links
Cell Links

The OEM battery connector has been removed, and my series-parallel cell connections are soldered on, with extra lead-outs for balancing the pack. This was the most time-consuming part of the build.

If all goes well with the life of this pack for utility use, I’ll be building another 5 of these, for a total capacity of 120Ah. This will be extremely useful for portable use, as the weight is about half that of an equivalent lead-acid.

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13.8v SMPS PSU Build

A while ago I blogged about modifying the output voltage of some surplus Cisco switch power supplies to operate at 13.8v.

Since I was able to score a nice Hammond 1598DSGYPBK ABS project box on eBay, I’ve built one of the supplies into a nice bench unit.

Hammond ABS Case
Hammond ABS Case
Supply Unit
Supply Unit

Above is the supply mounted into the box, I had to slightly trim one edge of the PCB to make everything fit, as it was just a couple of mm too wide. Luckily on the mains side of the board is some space without any copper tracks.

PSU Fan
PSU Fan

These supplies are very high quality & very efficient, however they came from equipment that was force-air cooled. Running the PSU in this box with no cooling resulted in overheating. Because of this I have added a small 12v fan to move some air through the case. The unit runs much cooler now. To allow the air to flow straight through the case, I drilled a row of holes under the front edge as vents.

Output Side
Output Side

Here is the output side of the supply, it uses standard banana jacks for the terminals. I have used crimp terminals here, but they are soldered on instead of crimped to allow for higher current draw. The negative return side of the output is mains earth referenced.

I have tried to measure output ripple on this supply, but with my 10X scope probe, and the scope set to 5mV/Div, the trace barely moves. The output is a very nice & stable DC.

This supply is now running my main radio in the shack, and is small enough to be easily portable when I move my station.

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Roving Networks RN-52 Bluetooth Audio

I’ve been doing some tinkering with the RN-52 Bluetooth Audio module from Roving Networks, in prep for building a portable wireless speaker system, & thought I’d share my designs.

Initially I was having some issues with RF noise on the audio output from the RN-52, as I was only using the outputs single-ended. The module didn’t like this treatment, with all the RF whine coming straight out of the speakers.

To fix this issue I have used a pair of jellybean LM386 audio power amplifiers, running in differential input mode. This solves the high-pitched whine when the audio is enabled, & also allows the module to directly drive a set of 32Ω headphones at a reasonable level.

In Eagle I have designed a simple board, routing only the audio output, serial TTL & command mode pins out, along with the supporting power supply circuitry to operate from 12v DC.

RN-52 Breadboard
RN-52 Breadboard

Above is the current incarnation of the circuit on the breadboard. The RN-52 is on the left, audio power stage in the centre & headphone output on the right.

RN-52 Breakout
RN-52 Breakout

The bluetooth module on a breakout board. I was cheap in this case & etched my own board. I’m not paying Sparkfun, (as much as I like them), an extra ~£10 for a small PCB with the pins broken out. Much cheaper to spend 15 minutes with the laser printer & the iron, & do a toner transfer PCB.
As this board is single sided, I added a ground plane on the underside with copper foil, to help with the RF issues. Breadboards really aren’t all that good at rejecting noise induced when there’s a 2.4GHz transceiver mounted on them.

LM386 Amplifier
LM386 Amplifier

The LM386 audio power stage. The differential inputs from the module are capacitively coupled with 1µF electrolytics. This setup remarkably reduced the noise on the output. I left these at their default gain of 20, as I’ll be connecting another high power amplifier stage to drive large speakers.

RN-52 Eagle Layout
RN-52 Eagle Layout

Here’s the circuit laid out in Eagle, ready for PCB.

RN-52 Eagle PCB
RN-52 Eagle PCB

And here’s the PCB layout. Only one link required for the +5v line from the TTL serial port.

As always, the Eagle PCB & Schematic layout files are available at the bottom of the article.

*Update 29-01-15*
Rerouted a few things:

  • Moved the audio power stage to the +12v rail to improve sound response. – As the LM386 has a max input voltage of 12v (absolute maximum 15v), a regulated supply is recommended. The LM386-N4 variant has a higher voltage range, up to 18v. This should be suitable for an unregulated supply.
  • Removed 1µF coupling capacitors to reduce distortion & amplifier hiss. The capacitors appeared to cause some instability on the amplifier, causing random distortion. Removing them has cured this. No signal hiss has also been reduced to a very low level.
  • Reversed input polarity on input of one of the amplifiers – this appears to produce better audio.
  • Added PWR.EN header to allow connection of power button. Saves hassle of cycling power to the board when the RN-52 goes into sleep mode.

Improved PCB & Schematic layouts.

RN-52-SCH-v3.6
RN-52-SCH-v3.6
RN-52-PCB-v3.6
RN-52-PCB-v3.6

[download id=”5579″]

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Portable Power Pack Battery Replacement

Portable Power Pack
Portable Power Pack

After 13 months of very heavy use at various events, festivals & boat trips, the Li-Po battery pack at the heart of my portable power supply has died.
What initially started as one cell inflating spread to the other cells in the pack over a period of about 3 months, so I have completely replaced the pack with a larger unit.

New Pack
New Pack

The old pack was an 8.8Ah unit at 12.6v. By using smaller burst capacity cells, I have managed to squeeze in a total of 13.2Ah, still leaving space to spare for an extra 3 cell string along the top.

Cell Interconnects
Cell Interconnects

Here is the end of the battery pack, with all the cell interconnects. There are 3 2.2Ah cells in series to give the 12.6v terminal voltage, with 6 of those strings in parallel to give the total Ah rating.

A new charging circuit will be implemented to better handle the volatile chemistry of Li-Po cells, hopefully this will result in the pack lasting longer than a year!

The new higher capacity will hopefully help with power requirements at future events, still being charged during the day by a 24W solar panel, but at night will have to cope with charging two smartphones, two eCigs & running a few watts of LED lighting.
The trial-by-fire will be this year’s Download Festival in June, when I will be operating off-grid for 6 days.

More updates to come on improvements & failures!

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Wearable Raspberry Pi – Solar Charging

 

24W Solar Panel
24W Solar Panel

I have acquired a 24W monocrystalline solar panel to charge my portable battery pack while on the move. This panel will be able to charge all devices I carry on a regular basis with nothing but some sunlight!

Info Panel
Info Panel

Info on the panel itself. Rated at 24W with nominal 17.6v DC, 1.36A output.

Regulator
Regulator

I have installed a switching regulator in the back of the panel, where the connections would normally be wired straight to the array of cells. This regulates the voltage down to a constant 13.8v to provide more compatibility with 12v charging equipment. I have tested the output of the panel in late day sun, at 1.27A.

 

 

 

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445nm Laser TTL Interface

TTL Interface
TTL Interface

In preparation for my laser scanner project, I have modified my existing 445nm laser to accept a TTL blanking input. The laser driver is already enabled for this & just required an extra connection to interface with my laser scanner showboard. I have used an 8-pin connection to allow the same cable & interface to be used with an RGB laser system, when it arrives. The signals are as follows, from top centre, anti-clockwise:

Pin 1: +12v Power
Pin 2: Blue TTL
Pin3: GND
Pin 4: Green TTL
Pin 5: GND
Pin 6: Red TTL
Pin 7: GND
Centre: Power GND

 

Custom TTL Cable
Custom TTL Cable

Here is the custom 8 core cable, which connects to the laser scanner show board. This cable allows the laser to be used for projection while still retaining the portable function & the keylock arming switch. When plugged in the cable bypasses the keyswitch & provides 12v DC direct to the laser driver.

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The Perfect Companion To The Raspberry Pi

As I’m building a portable “media center” with my first Pi, I was looking for a suitable screen. I remembered the existence of these:

ShowWX+ HDMI Pico Projector
ShowWX+ HDMI Pico Projector

A laser pico projector combined with a Pi, in a small enough package would make a fantastic
little portable media player. So £220 was shelled out 🙂

Along with the case for my Pi coming from Mod My Pi, I am aiming for a device as small as possible. At some point I will fit the Pi into the same package as the projector, if it can be cannibalised in such a way 🙂

Check back for an update with running images of the projector, powered from the Pi’s HDMI output.

I will also be doing the standard teardown of the projector when time allows 🙂

Bootnote:
Micro HDMI Connections: These are CRAP. They don’t stand up to any form of day-to-day use, and the projector began displaying a blue screen with “INVALID VIDEO MODE” as soon as anything was plugged into the Micro HDMI port. A quick attack with a jeweller’s screwdriver fixed the port, as it had become loose.

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Portable Power Pack Charger

A quick update to my portable power pack, a mains charging port. Uses a universal DC barrel jack.

Connection to the battery. 1N4001 reverse protection diode under the blue heatshrink tubing. I used a surplus PC CD-ROM audio cable (grey lead). Seen here snaking behind the battery to the DC In Jack.

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Portable Power Supply

Battery
Battery

This is detailing my portable multi-purpose power pack of my own design. Here is an overview, mainly showing the 4Ah 12v Ni-Cd battery pack.

Front Panel Right
Front Panel Right

Panel Features – Bottom: Car cigar lighter socket, main power keyswitch. Top: LED toggle switch, provision for upcoming laser project, Red main Power LED, 7A circuit breaker.

Front Panel Left
Front Panel Left

Top: Toggle switch serving post terminals, USB Port.
Post terminals supply unregulated 12v for external gadgets. USB port is standard 5v regulated for charging phones, PDAs etc.
Bottom: Pair of XLR connectors for external LED lights. Switches on their right control power & the knob controls brightness.

Additions are being made to this all the time, the latest being a 2W laser diode driver. Update to come soon!

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HP Photosmart 375

Top
Top

This is a HP PhotoSmart 375 portable photo printer. With built in card reader, screen & PictBridge.
Top of the printer showing the UI Buttons & Screen.

Front
Front

Front of the unit, card reader slots at the top, Pictbridge USB connector at top left. Paper out slot at bottom. Cartridge door is on the right.

Cartridge Door
Cartridge Door

Here the cartridge door is open. Takes HP 95 Tri-Colour Inkjet Cartridge.

Battery Compartment
Battery Compartment

Battery compartment on the bottom of the unit. A Li-Ion battery pack can be installed here for mobile photo printing.

Bottom Label
Bottom Label

Specifications label.

USB + Power
USB + Power

Power adaptor & USB connection for PC use.

Paper Tray
Paper Tray

Rear door opened. Showing the paper feed tray.

Paper Feeder
Paper Feeder

Rear door has been removed in this shot. Paper feed roller & platen roller can be seen here.

Rear Cover Paper Feeder
Rear Cover Paper Feeder

Paper holder attached to rear door.

Top Cover
Top Cover

Bottom of the top cover, with connections for the buttons & LCD panel.

Main PCB
Main PCB

This is the main PCB of the unit. Controls all aspects of the printer. CPU in center, card reader sockets are along bottom edge. various support circuitry surrounds the CPU.

Rear
Rear

Rear shell has been removed here. Showing the main frame & the carriage drive motor on the left.

Carriage Drive
Carriage Drive

Closeup of the carriage drive motor & timing belt system. All the motors in this printer are DC servo motors, not steppers.

Main Drive Motor
Main Drive Motor

Main drive motor, feeds paper, drives rollers, operates cleaning mechanism for the inkjets.

Shaft Encoder
Shaft Encoder

Mainshaft encoder. Main drive motor is bottom right hand side with timing belt drive.

CPU
CPU

Closeup of the CPU. This is a Phillips ARM chip, unknown spec.

Card Reader Sockets
Card Reader Sockets

Detail of the card reader sockets, this unit takes all current types of Flash memory card.

HP 95 Tri-color Inkjet Print Cartridge