How To Use SMD Components?

SMD components

SMD Components on a PCBSMD components are small and kind of scary if you have never used them before. And the first time you want to solder one – you will probably start to doubt if you’re actually able to do it.

Even though I have soldered many SMD components, I still get that “Oh man, that component looks tiny!”-feeling. But usually, it works out fine. As long as it’s not too small.

SMD is short for surface-mount device. I always get a bit confused about the terminology, but I think SMD describes a printed circuit board, with components that are mounted on the surface of the board. So an SMD component is actually a surface-mount device component.

Ho, ho ho! 5 Christmas Circuit Ideas

Christmas tree

Every Christmas I turn into a child again.

I have a hard time falling asleep. I wake up early in the morning to watch cartoons. And I am probably even more curious about the gifts under the tree than my two-year-old nephew.

I often get emails asking for project ideas.

So I thought I’d share a few Christmas circuit ideas today.

Christmas tree

Printed Circuit Board Guide For Beginners

Microcontroller tutorial soldering
Microcontroller tutorial soldering

Oh man! When I made my first printed circuit board, I was so thrilled!

It was extremely satisfying to be able to touch my own circuit board design. And today it’s time you learn it too.

And the truth is that the process isn’t that hard. There are just a few steps you need to go through. And anyone can do it – even if you have no experience from before.

The Simple Way To Use a Datasheet

Build Circuits Using a Stripboard

Frontpage of a datasheetI was sitting in front of my computer. It was the first time ever, that I was looking at a datasheet. I didn’t understand anything. This was too hard. So I closed it.

But I tried again and again. And little by little, I started to get familiar with the information in the datasheet. And it was actually really exciting!

If you are a beginner, you might have experienced the same. The datasheet looks really complicated – and you just want to close it right away.

However, when you learn what to look for, the datasheet soon becomes your best friend.

Microcontroller Tutorial 5/5: Soldering and Programming the Circuit

Finished circuit for the microcontroller tutorial
Finished circuit for the microcontroller tutorial

To complete today’s part of the microcontroller tutorial – I have doubted myself, I’ve burned my finger and I’ve received a surprise bill from the customs.

But all in all, I’m very happy with the result. I made it work. And I love the feeling I get when I make something work!

We are now at part 5, the final part, of the microcontroller tutorial. Up until now we have learned:

Microcontroller Tutorial 4/5: Creating a Microcontroller Circuit Board

ATmega32U2 circuit board layout

Photo of a PCB Design screenLet’s get ready to circuit board desiiiiiiiiign!

We are now in the fourth part of the microcontroller tutorial. We have a microcontroller circuit diagram ready. It’s time to make a circuit board. I love this part. This is the “magical” step that takes the idea we started with and turns it into something real.

Microcontroller Tutorial 3/5: How To Design a Microcontroller Circuit

In this tutorial I will teach you how to build your own microcontroller circuit. This way, you can easily add microcontrollers to your own projects. We are now at part three of this tutorial.

In part one of the microcontroller tutorial, we looked at what a microcontroller is. We saw that a microcontroller is like a small computer, and that you can use it to build amazing things like cell phones or even your own handheld game-console.

Then in part two, we looked at different types of microcontrollers, and we chose one for our purpose. We chose the ATmega32U2 because we can program it through USB and it is reasonably easy to solder at home.

In this third part of the microcontroller tutorial, we are going to design our circuit from scratch. So we need to design a schematic diagram with all the components and connections necessary to make our circuit work.

Let’s build this thing!

Microcontroller Tutorial (1/5): What is a Microcontroller?

Atmega164 microcontroller (IC)This is my first of five posts in this microcontroller tutorial series. Throughout this tutorial, I will be building a microcontroller circuit while documenting the process. By following what I do, you can make your own at home.

My goal is to make a circuit that is as simple as possible, and which requires no external programmers or debuggers. You should be able to just plug it into a USB port on your computer and program it.

I have not planned this out in any way. I am just going to build it, and write about the process. Hopefully we’ll end up with a usable circuit.

Interview #1 – Elias Bakken: 3D Printer, Coffee, and Mini LCD

Elias Bakken

Elias BakkenLast week I had the pleasure of interviewing Elias Bakken. He is not only a true master of electronics, he also masters the skill of mechanics. And I have to say I am jealous of his mechanical skills.

He is a good friend of mine and my old partner, so I’ve seen many of the amazing things he has built during his lifetime. We’ve also built quite a few things together.

Some of the things he has built lately are

What You Need to Know About Current, Voltage and Resistance

Ohms law cartoon

Current, voltage and resistance are three important concepts in electronics. I didn’t have a clue about these things when I started out. But I could still build fun things, by following the circuit diagrams I found. I just didn’t know what was going on.

When I started learning about basic electricity in school, many pieces started to fall into place. I started understanding some of the explanations from the circuit diagrams I built.

I like to focus on the practical parts of electronics. But learning some theory as you progress is also really useful. So in today’s article you will learn the basics of current, voltage and resistance.

The Simple Guide To Learning Electronics For Beginners

Ohms law cartoon
Oyvind Nydal Dahl testing an LCD display

Electronics for beginners is a topic I love. There are too many people out there trying to preach that electronics is hard. Of course it takes time to become an expert. But you can start having fun, and build useful things pretty much right away. And it’s easy!

Wouldn’t it be cool to make something like a remote control or an amplifier? Or maybe something more advanced like a quadcopter or a mobile phone?

Do these steps, and you will be well on your way to building whatever gadget you are dreaming about.

3 Need-To-Know Soldering Techniques + Guerrilla Soldering

Placing smd components for reflow soldering

Throughout my electronics career I have used several different soldering techniques. In the beginning I only used my soldering iron. I was able to do almost everything with my iron. But there are situations where using a different technique is much simpler.

So let’s have a look at different soldering techniques. And at the end of the article, I’ll include a fun video with some techniques I call guerrilla soldering. I bet you’ll never see these in a class at the university, haha :)

How To Design Your Own Schematics From Scratch

Circuit design from scratch

Circuit design from scratchHow can you make a circuit design of any idea you have, from scratch?

How can you take that idea you have in your head – and turn it into a schematic diagram?

How do you choose the right components, and put them together in the right way?

A lot of people have asked me these questions. Yesterday I had a glimpse of inspiration, so today I am going to tell you exactly how you can do this.

How To Use Goals To Help You Build Amazing Projects

When I started learning about electronics, I never cared about goal setting…
goal
I had no clue about what it was. As soon as I had an idea, I brought out my soldering iron and started to put things together. Even though that was fun, it wasn’t very efficient. And a lot of the times I never finished what I started…

It wasn’t until several years later that I stumbled upon a technique called SMART goal setting. And it was really a game changer.

SMART goal setting is super useful when you want to build electronic projects. It helps you clarify what you are trying to do. And it makes it much easier to estimate project costs, tasks that need to be completed and time needed to finish the project.