Author Topic: [GB] GH-122.2016 R1 PCB - Completed! (Read 111542 times)

samwisekoi · « **Reply #250 on:** Mon, 23 May 2016, 15:08:35 »

Sorry, I've been away. The revised PCBs just shipped, so with any luck they will be here and gone in about a week total.

- Ron | samwisekoi

Data · « **Reply #251 on:** Mon, 23 May 2016, 18:12:46 »

Yeah!

samwisekoi · « **Reply #252 on:** Tue, 31 May 2016, 13:38:54 »

A pack of lovelyv1.1 PCBs came this morning. I will try to get one soldered up and tested today.

- Ron | samwisekoi

samwisekoi · « **Reply #253 on:** Tue, 31 May 2016, 17:46:06 »

Built and tested good. Address validation and shipping starts tomorrow!

- Ron | samwisekoi

Data · « **Reply #254 on:** Tue, 31 May 2016, 17:48:55 »

That was fast.

rm-rf · « **Reply #255 on:** Tue, 31 May 2016, 17:57:04 »

wooo! i can't wait to build this thing already!

metalliqaz · « **Reply #256 on:** Tue, 31 May 2016, 20:09:28 »

Quote from: samwisekoi on Tue, 31 May 2016, 17:46:06

Built and tested good. Address validation and shipping starts tomorrow!

- Ron | samwisekoi

I assume the mainline version of EasyAVR now has the wrong matrix for the new boards and will have to be updated, correct?

samwisekoi · « **Reply #257 on:** Wed, 01 June 2016, 09:43:07 »

Quote from: metalliqaz on Tue, 31 May 2016, 20:09:28

I assume the mainline version of EasyAVR now has the wrong matrix for the new boards and will have to be updated, correct?

Correct. D0 was replaced with B7 using your final patch files. Also ANSI \| is used as ISO Enter. (I can send you the matrix positions when I get into the office.)

Thanks!

- Ron | samwisekoi
(Auto-typed by my GH36 Matrix Keypad.)

p.s. Also, I killed the ziggurats.

samwisekoi · « **Reply #258 on:** Wed, 01 June 2016, 10:00:45 »

Important Updates

SHIPPING

I will be sending a shipping address validation e-mail to the round 1 buyers today . This may go to your PayPal address, so please watch out for it.

I will NOT ship your board without an address validation response e-mail from you! Also, if there is a typo in the e-mail, the package will go out with a typo, so please, please verify carefully!

PROTOTYPE PCBS

I have not yet decided what to do with these. I may fix them and make them available, I may cut them into sections to aid round 1 buyers to use Unicomp cases, or I may kill them. Remember, I re-did them specifically because I did not want them to be floating around with my name on them in their current condition. So messaging me saying that you don't mind doesn't make me want to ship them after all.

Once I decide what I am going to do with these PCBs, I will post my decision and we can all go from there.

And now, back to getting keycaps onto the new PCB and posting some pictures!

---

Thanks for all the support and patience,

- Ron | samwisekoi
(Auto-typed by my GH36 Matrix Keypad.)

merlin64 · « **Reply #259 on:** Wed, 01 June 2016, 10:28:11 »

I work at a company that constantly makes its own PCBs so i understand not wanting faulty PCBs out there as it causes confusion amongst customers and also you as the developer will be forced to support it, and plainly its just annoying.

I have a few suggestions

1. If you have a YouTube channel, you can use one as a demo in how to fix traces from design to actual hardware
2. Buy one of those big picture frames and frame it and auction it off as Art. Spray paint it even!
3. Cut it down and coat it in transparent vinyl and use it as a mousepad.

samwisekoi · « **Reply #260 on:** Wed, 01 June 2016, 10:35:54 »

Quote from: merlin64 on Wed, 01 June 2016, 10:28:11

I work at a company that constantly makes its own PCBs so i understand not wanting faulty PCBs out there as it causes confusion amongst customers and also you as the developer will be forced to support it, and plainly its just annoying.

I have a few suggestions

1. If you have a YouTube channel, you can use one as a demo in how to fix traces from design to actual hardware
2. Buy one of those big picture frames and frame it and auction it off as Art. Spray paint it even!
3. Cut it down and coat it in transparent vinyl and use it as a mousepad.

Yup.

But then what do I do with the other 24?

- Ron | samwisekoi
(Auto-typed by my GH36 Matrix Keypad.)

merlin64 · « **Reply #261 on:** Wed, 01 June 2016, 10:42:39 »

LOL.

You could cut off the numpad portion and sell it as a switch tester of sorts haha and do it 24 times

But seriously, if you go the mousepad approach, I would be very interested in buying one from you. In fact I have a source for transparent vinyl so I could even coat it myself.

Spaceman1200 · « **Reply #262 on:** Wed, 01 June 2016, 10:44:31 »

I kinda like that mousepad idea lol

iamtootallforthis · « **Reply #263 on:** Wed, 01 June 2016, 13:06:30 »

You could definitely sell some awesome mousepads!

samwisekoi · « **Reply #264 on:** Wed, 01 June 2016, 13:17:17 »

Pics or it didn't happen.

- Ron | samwisekoi

merlin64 · « **Reply #265 on:** Wed, 01 June 2016, 13:21:39 »

I could easily see 1 pcb yielding 3 mouspads, the portion with GH122 on it would be most desirable though. If possible, you could autograph too, then the ones with your signature could be sold for more, that way you can make your money back for the initial prototypes.

I have tons of broken PCBs from all the keyboards I've desoldered. I'll go build one and see if it's actually doable as a mousepad.

samwisekoi · « **Reply #266 on:** Wed, 01 June 2016, 15:59:41 »

Ten addresses received, ten PCBs packed and shipped out! (Details in OP #2.)

- Ron | samwisekoi

engicoder · « **Reply #267 on:** Wed, 01 June 2016, 17:47:18 »

Quote from: samwisekoi on Wed, 01 June 2016, 15:59:41

Ten addresses received, ten PCBs packed and shipped out! (Details in OP #2.)

- Ron | samwisekoi

Fast! Looking forward to getting this!

Data · « **Reply #268 on:** Wed, 01 June 2016, 18:47:01 »

Quote from: samwisekoi on Mon, 07 March 2016, 17:53:21

Confirmed Orders for GH-122.2016 Jumbo Keyboard PCB:
Data [SHIPPED]

Aw yissssssss.

So now that boards are shipping, can we review the case thread? I can't be the only one who isn't using this in a Unicomp case.

iamtootallforthis · « **Reply #269 on:** Wed, 01 June 2016, 21:00:49 »

Quote from: Data on Wed, 01 June 2016, 18:47:01

Quote from: samwisekoi on Mon, 07 March 2016, 17:53:21
Confirmed Orders for GH-122.2016 Jumbo Keyboard PCB:
Data [SHIPPED]

Aw yissssssss.

So now that boards are shipping, can we review the case thread? I can't be the only one who isn't using this in a Unicomp case.

Yeah +1

samwisekoi · « **Reply #270 on:** Thu, 02 June 2016, 13:36:21 »

Six more addresses, five more shipped. (One is going to France, so I need to figure out the best carrier for that.)

- Ron | samwisekoi

p.s. Are shipping notifications with tracking numbers being e-mailed out by Stamps.com?

iamtootallforthis · « **Reply #271 on:** Thu, 02 June 2016, 13:59:03 »

Quote from: samwisekoi on Thu, 02 June 2016, 13:36:21

Six more addresses, five more shipped. (One is going to France, so I need to figure out the best carrier for that.)

- Ron | samwisekoi

p.s. Are shipping notifications with tracking numbers being e-mailed out by Stamps.com?

Yeah I got my notification early this morning.

Data · « **Reply #272 on:** Thu, 02 June 2016, 14:08:14 »

Quote from: iamtootallforthis on Thu, 02 June 2016, 13:59:03

Quote from: samwisekoi on Thu, 02 June 2016, 13:36:21
Six more addresses, five more shipped. (One is going to France, so I need to figure out the best carrier for that.)

- Ron | samwisekoi

p.s. Are shipping notifications with tracking numbers being e-mailed out by Stamps.com?

Yeah I got my notification early this morning.

Same.

Data · « **Reply #273 on:** Sat, 04 June 2016, 22:01:01 »

Case thread going here: https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=80473.0

I have some drawings up. Would appreciate any feedback.

Spaceman1200 · « **Reply #274 on:** Mon, 06 June 2016, 09:56:56 »

Got mine in today, arrived safe and sound

samwisekoi · « **Reply #275 on:** Mon, 06 June 2016, 11:58:44 »

Quote from: Spaceman1200 on Mon, 06 June 2016, 09:56:56

Got mine in today, arrived safe and sound

Yay!

Data · « **Reply #276 on:** Mon, 06 June 2016, 17:09:26 »

Received mine.

It's... Glorious.

/single tear

AKmalamute · « **Reply #277 on:** Mon, 06 June 2016, 18:34:09 »

That ... is a board.

Next decision is how to pursue a plate.
Would we have ten users who want the .dxf cut from sixteen gauge stainless, locally...? Otherwise I guess I'll go the BBS route with polycarbonate.

Hak Foo · « **Reply #278 on:** Mon, 06 June 2016, 19:25:15 »

Mine showed today. Looks intact in spite of the post office collapsing the box. What sort of price are we looking at for the local-cutting route? I was eager to try the "bolt the PCB to a wooden backing" plate alternative, but then I realized a router costs a minimum of $75 and I don;t use it often enough to justify....

0100010 · « **Reply #279 on:** Mon, 06 June 2016, 20:08:07 »

'The Wife' (c) (tm) says mine arrived today (though she thought initially that for some reason I had ordered her flowers since the box was so huge [now I'm going to have to order some flowers so she feels better, thanks Ron!!]). She says it was packed very well, but she didn't open it up all the way to confirm the PCB was not broken (I'm sure it's fine).

With as much as I am travelling these days for work, not sure when I'll get around to ordering a plate to actually build it.

iamtootallforthis · « **Reply #280 on:** Mon, 06 June 2016, 20:13:09 »

Mine came in today! It's massive and awesome! Definitely gonna need a steel plate with bent edges as a like a minimal case though.

Hak Foo · « **Reply #281 on:** Mon, 06 June 2016, 22:52:14 »

Stupid question: The diode positions are not numbered 100% sequentially, are they? D42 seems to be missing, as are a few others.

What's the scale of images like https://geekhack.org/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=80326.0;attach=132843;image (and is it the most current?)

I'm thinking, if I do the milled-wood-undercase, it would be easiest to just print a 1:1 model of the PCB, highlighting the parts that need cutaways) and use that to mill it manually. Started looking into using a local hackerspace's CNC mill, but apparently you have to go through a long chain of certifications to get near it.

rm-rf · « **Reply #282 on:** Tue, 07 June 2016, 02:48:13 »

i got mine today!!!! excellent pcb!
i was a little bit sad that it doesn't line up perfectly in my 122 case..
but i can always make it work in something else!

samwisekoi · « **Reply #283 on:** Tue, 07 June 2016, 10:57:57 »

Congrats! I am glad they are arriving. This boxes are mostly air and packing material, so they should survive anything except being bent in half!

The diodes are numbered in columns. D1-7, D8-14, etc. Some columns don't go all the way to the bottom of the board, so they are missing diodes at the bottom. I think Column 17 only has 3 switches. Also, I made diodes cover multiple switch positions if adjacent switches could not be used at the same time. So there are fewer than 160 diodes even though they are numbered from D1 to D160.

Go solder them all on, and I don't think you will be feeling like there are too few diodes!

What 122-key case didn't it fit? And how? I have been asking for measurements of the Cherry 122-key case(s) all along, and I would still like to get those.

Anyhow, good news they are coming in. People who haven't sent their addresses, please do so ASAP so I can pack and ship another batch!

- Ron | samwisekoi
(Auto-typed by my GH36 Matrix Keypad.)

p.s. I totally want at least two SS plates. ISO Enter keys and 1.50 bottom rows for me!

AKmalamute · « **Reply #284 on:** Tue, 07 June 2016, 17:40:53 »

Quote from: samwisekoi on Tue, 07 June 2016, 10:57:57

[...]
p.s. I totally want at least two SS plates. ISO Enter keys and 1.50 bottom rows for me!

The shop I work worth has raised their MOQ since my last GB. At a to-the-shop cost of $32, ten (identical) plates, alone isn't enough. Twenty might be. Or ten bent-metal (already bent so shipping might be a tad complicated) case-plates, or about twelve (identical) swill-style SS cases. Ten would not meet MOQ.

We could lower MOQ by increasing price, of course ... better sanding by the shop, stuff like that.

Last quote I got was in March, so I'm sure prices have changed but it should be in that vicinity ... from me / the shop I dealt with before.

Hak Foo · « **Reply #285 on:** Tue, 07 June 2016, 19:18:23 »

Bent metal would probably still fit easily enough in a flat-rate box, assuming it's not a mile thick.

Data · « **Reply #286 on:** Tue, 07 June 2016, 19:32:36 »

Quote from: AKmalamute on Tue, 07 June 2016, 17:40:53

Quote from: samwisekoi on Tue, 07 June 2016, 10:57:57
[...]
p.s. I totally want at least two SS plates. ISO Enter keys and 1.50 bottom rows for me!

The shop I work worth has raised their MOQ since my last GB. At a to-the-shop cost of $32, ten (identical) plates, alone isn't enough. Twenty might be. Or ten bent-metal (already bent so shipping might be a tad complicated) case-plates, or about twelve (identical) swill-style SS cases. Ten would not meet MOQ.

We could lower MOQ by increasing price, of course ... better sanding by the shop, stuff like that.

Last quote I got was in March, so I'm sure prices have changed but it should be in that vicinity ... from me / the shop I dealt with before.

I had a pretty specific layout in mind so I doubt I would be able to be a part of this, but I'm still interested to see what you guys come up with.

Bent/bare plate cases don't look so hot when they're made for "universal" switch placements.

0100010 · « **Reply #287 on:** Tue, 07 June 2016, 20:50:55 »

This is what I was thinking about for a plate and potentially cover. Haven't decided how I want to do the bottom / edges though - metal, wood, concrete, other. I keep looking at the original Nuclear Data terminal images for inspiration though.

Layout : http://tinyurl.com/zmsqxt8

Data · « **Reply #288 on:** Wed, 08 June 2016, 06:21:24 »

This is the layout I have in mind currently.

I only just realized you can do half-step spacing in the function cluster (awesome!), but I don't think I'm going to use it.

samwisekoi · « **Reply #289 on:** Wed, 08 June 2016, 13:09:07 »

Big Blue Saw has prices down to qty=1, but those are above $100 USD. Playing with plate designs, I think we can make a single plate for every position except the ISO vs ANSI Enter key.

AKmalamute, is the minimum order in dollars? Could we get them to do a single order with 10 ANSI switch plates, 5 ISO switch plates, and 15 base plates (for example)?

All: I think it would be wise to have a standard case size to increase volume through standardization. I propose 7.0" x 20.0", which provides an extra 0.25" around all sides. Any thoughts on this?

- Ron | samwisekoi

p.s. Data, that "Select All" key is very useful. More than I expected. It definitely makes coding in a text editor prior to pasting into an IDE or terminal window much, much faster. I have that along with standard edit keys on my F-122, and when I go home at night I keep reaching for them. They are on my home GH-36, but having them on the main keyboard is absolutely the way to go. ^D, ^F, and ^H are also very handy (DUP, FIND, REPLACE).

Data · « **Reply #290 on:** Wed, 08 June 2016, 14:03:16 »

Yeah, I have FIND on there as well. I use it a lot, especially on the web. REPLACE isn't as critical for me, mainly because the places I'd use it have FIND and REPLACE combined into the same window/applet. So using a FIND command is essentially the same thing.

I ran a quote through BigBlueSaw for a 3pc sandwich case (plate, top, bottom) in 304 stainless and it came to $197.70 (for 1). That's a lot... but this board is so big I don't know that we can do much better. If you do a "universal" ANSI plate you almost have to do a case top to hide all the gaps between and around switches. That may not be a concern for others but it definitely is for me. That's the only reason I'm considering just biting the bullet and ordering a one-off so I can get exactly what I want.

Mine came out to 20.25 x 7.25 inches. I had to push it out the extra 1/4" to account for the PCB. I'm using 8-32 screws (slightly larger than M3 hardware) and 1/4" OD threaded round standoffs, and the gap between the standoffs and PCB is only like 3 thousandths of an inch.

20.00 inches was just too tight.

Data · « **Reply #291 on:** Wed, 08 June 2016, 17:36:25 »

This is the lower right corner of the plate near the numpad.

The white circle is the hole for 8-32 @ 0.1695.
The teal blue circle is the outside diameter of the spacer @ 0.2500 (±0.005).
The green circle is the diameter of the screw head (low profile, socket-head cap in this case) @ 0.2700.
The "excess" plate from the screw head to the extreme edge is only 0.0928, or about 2.35mm. I like to leave a little edge in case I decide to use a washer, so nothing hangs over.

The red line is the corner of the PCB. There's plenty of room in this corner, but along the sides the spacer gets as close as 0.0123 to the edge of the PCB. I don't show this in the image but trust me, I measured.

If I drew for a 20.00" OAL I'd have to design for much smaller hardware and tighter tolerances, and probably more of them (current design has 12 screw holes).

Not saying you should change it or do anything the way I did it, just explaining the logic behind the choices I made.

AKmalamute · « **Reply #292 on:** Thu, 09 June 2016, 01:31:15 »

Quote from: samwisekoi on Wed, 08 June 2016, 13:09:07

AKmalamute, is the minimum order in dollars? Could we get them to do a single order with 10 ANSI switch plates, 5 ISO switch plates, and 15 base plates (for example)?

Dollars, yes. Get me the ISO .dxf and I'll email the project guy, saying we're moving to the case-buy part and interest has risen again.

And my phantom has a ^A button, and ^C & ^V.
7-bit layout, lots of extra keys laying just out of the way. They've been more useful than I had predicted.

So, can I get clued in to the holes on the board? I see just above the switch outline, a diode hole with diagram, one hole is square. Then where the switch LED would poke through, there's two holes, both circular, no diagram and no matching resistor holes. I suppose I could solder a resistor from the bottom, and attach the legs to an LED at the top but I'm ... not sure it works that way ;-)

Hak Foo · « **Reply #293 on:** Thu, 09 June 2016, 02:06:45 »

There is no real plumbing for LEDs aside from num-caps-scroll.

I think the assumption is, if you're going backlit, it's going to have to be a full custom job I could see, for example, building a controller setup that strobed the lamps so only a small percentage of them were on at any one time to keep current consumption down.

samwisekoi · « **Reply #294 on:** Thu, 09 June 2016, 11:45:33 »

I'm good with 20.25 x 7.25 inches. That will just fit in the Unicomp case, which is a good thing. My point is that if we standardize on a form factor, at least some of our collective cases can share parts to reduce cost. I'm good with .375 extra margins and hole spacing as Data's drawing shows.

We should also choose standard positions for the non-corner mounting holes.

Every switch position uses the Cherry MX PCB-mount hole template, including LED holes/pads. The only ones hooked up are for the CAPS key. (And that is really just a run down from the indicator LED trio near the controller. Backlighting the board would take wiring, voltage control (e.g. resistors), and at least an IC for power control. Pin B7 is set up as the backlight pin in Easy Keymap and on the PCB. There is also a single spare resistor location in case you want to use B7 as a fourth indicator (e.g. Fn).

- Ron | samwisekoi

Maddrake · « **Reply #295 on:** Tue, 21 June 2016, 08:51:20 »

Anyone have progress on their keyboards? Kinda interested in seeing all of your guys different visions

Data · « **Reply #296 on:** Tue, 21 June 2016, 11:38:55 »

Been meaning to solder up my Teensy and flash a keymap to it for testing, but that's about as far as I could realistically go with it until I have a "final" plate.

Actually, I guess I could go ahead and do the resistors too. Hmm...

mrklaw · « **Reply #297 on:** Wed, 13 July 2016, 20:51:46 »

Ugh, I've been offline for a while and I missed this group buy. I'm super bummed.

Do I understand correctly that there will be another one of these group buys for this board?

Data · « **Reply #298 on:** Thu, 14 July 2016, 06:28:40 »

Kinda doubt it. Ron has been MIA for a month and interest has cooled significantly since the shipping concluded. But stranger things have happened...

Maddrake · « **Reply #299 on:** Thu, 14 July 2016, 07:52:31 »

Im interested in another round. But i think that i must have ticked him off asking about getting the early round one boards. He never responded to my pm. But oh well i guess :,/

News:

Author Topic: [GB] GH-122.2016 R1 PCB - Completed! (Read 111542 times)