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Hi guys,
In case you don't know, I'm currently working on an auto ground balancing/tracking board for my old SD2100 detector.
Previously, I had incorporated an X9118 to control channel 1 ground balancing. And last weekend, I integrated an extra X9118 for channel 2. As things stand, I can manually ground balance both channels through the use of a micro controller. Everything is looking good, and ground balancing works as expected. (FYI this detector comes with analog manual ground balancing, so nothing new here. I"m just now doing it digitally.)
I'm currently waiting for additional components to get a 16bit (LTC1859) ADC encoder working.
I haven't gotten the LTC1859 working yet, but I expect very little issues here since the driver for this encoder will be very straightforward. Once I have the LTC1859 working, I'll write software to make ground balancing fully automatic. At a later time, I'll probably also make nulling emi automatic too.
However, it seems like the IC count for the little board: the LTC1859, 2x X9118s, AD5242 and required IC accessory-components (mainly capacitors and resistors) is getting a bit out of hand. The complexity of routing the traces manually is becoming very tedious.
Because soldering all the components will be an issue, I'm now leaning more on creating a small compact pcb -something that will fit inside my detector housing more uniformly. I found a pcb house that will do it more cheaply than my last board, so cost wise, this time, will not be much of an issue (also, every one who got a avr dss board from me will get one of these unpopulated boards free -my way of thanking you for your support ).
In my next board, I plan on incorporating my previous frequency-control work (although I'll use a more cost effective solution) and use a faster processor with integrated USB for boot loading purposes (in other words, no more programming hardware. all you will need to program the micro will be a usb cable!) ...
Which brings me to my next question: Because I did not expect incorporating ground balancing in my previous avr_dss board, I'm now in the awkward position of designing a second board in order to support automatic ground balancing. I don't want to make this mistake again. I would like to incorporate hardware for future features, that way, I don't have to deal with this redesign issue again (it's not very cost effective to draw a board every time you want new features). Therefore, I ask of you to advice me on what future hardware to incorporate on my next board in addition to my previous dss work, and current auto ground balancing work.
In other words, how else can we better our SD2100 or SD2000 detectors?
Please do advice on hardware we may directly control through our board's central processor.
Thanks,
P.S, I'll probably finish all my current auto ground balancing work and use my current pcb as a test bed before moving on to the next board, so my next board will not be completed for a while. I just would like Ideas.
In case you don't know, I'm currently working on an auto ground balancing/tracking board for my old SD2100 detector.
Previously, I had incorporated an X9118 to control channel 1 ground balancing. And last weekend, I integrated an extra X9118 for channel 2. As things stand, I can manually ground balance both channels through the use of a micro controller. Everything is looking good, and ground balancing works as expected. (FYI this detector comes with analog manual ground balancing, so nothing new here. I"m just now doing it digitally.)
I'm currently waiting for additional components to get a 16bit (LTC1859) ADC encoder working.
I haven't gotten the LTC1859 working yet, but I expect very little issues here since the driver for this encoder will be very straightforward. Once I have the LTC1859 working, I'll write software to make ground balancing fully automatic. At a later time, I'll probably also make nulling emi automatic too.
However, it seems like the IC count for the little board: the LTC1859, 2x X9118s, AD5242 and required IC accessory-components (mainly capacitors and resistors) is getting a bit out of hand. The complexity of routing the traces manually is becoming very tedious.
Because soldering all the components will be an issue, I'm now leaning more on creating a small compact pcb -something that will fit inside my detector housing more uniformly. I found a pcb house that will do it more cheaply than my last board, so cost wise, this time, will not be much of an issue (also, every one who got a avr dss board from me will get one of these unpopulated boards free -my way of thanking you for your support ).
In my next board, I plan on incorporating my previous frequency-control work (although I'll use a more cost effective solution) and use a faster processor with integrated USB for boot loading purposes (in other words, no more programming hardware. all you will need to program the micro will be a usb cable!) ...
Which brings me to my next question: Because I did not expect incorporating ground balancing in my previous avr_dss board, I'm now in the awkward position of designing a second board in order to support automatic ground balancing. I don't want to make this mistake again. I would like to incorporate hardware for future features, that way, I don't have to deal with this redesign issue again (it's not very cost effective to draw a board every time you want new features). Therefore, I ask of you to advice me on what future hardware to incorporate on my next board in addition to my previous dss work, and current auto ground balancing work.
In other words, how else can we better our SD2100 or SD2000 detectors?
Please do advice on hardware we may directly control through our board's central processor.
Thanks,
P.S, I'll probably finish all my current auto ground balancing work and use my current pcb as a test bed before moving on to the next board, so my next board will not be completed for a while. I just would like Ideas.