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Drawing the schematic for my nRF24L01+ Radio Tower PCB
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Good morning, all the next thing i want to do with my temperature and humidity radio, receiver and display project is to do something with the radio receiver. So let's take that off. In fact, i'll do it right now, it'll probably upset the uh software a bit. That's the power! Yes, this thing here which at the moment is a bit of prototyping board with wires all crossing over this intermediate board, which really only has a 3.3 volt regulator on it and some capacitors, oh and an led and a resistor and the appropriate four connector female socket To take the nrf24l01 plus transceiver, so i want to make make a pcb, which has that two by four socket for the nrf transceiver, but it munges together.

That's not the best word. Is it mixes together this intermediate board, with the regulator on it and a connector down here which has five pins? Now these go to d13, 12, 11, 10, 9 and 8. I don't think i need eight nine and ten, i think, are chip enable and csn. I can't even remember what csn is, but those two signals um can, i think, go to any pin, but it makes sense to put them on nine and eight so that you use a run of five pins.

So i don't need six pins. I think i only need five, so it's going to be quite a narrow board, i will put a regulator and some capacitors and possibly an led and resistor on my board down here: there'll, be an option for right angle: pins. If you want your radio tower to sit vertically, which i quite like - or of course you could put some pins coming down to the bottom, if you want to sit this either into a breadboard or into the arduino breakout board horizontally, be nothing to stop you doing! That and at the other end of course, you've got this uh two by four connector, but on this point it's offset to one side. So i think i want to offset it so that my board lines up with this board and make it all not kind of neat.

Now on this setup, vcc and ground actually come in on a pair of wires from a suitable pick off point, and i've used the icsp header uh on the nano for that, and i think i'll duplicate that, because there really isn't vcc nearby, there's a ground there. Beyond pin 13 but there's no vcc along this side, so it's going to have to be a wire for vcc, so it might as well be a wire for vcc and ground. So i think i'll go with a two pin header to provide power into the regulator. Very much as this arrangement i'll copy that for my pcb now, i'm going to cover the design process using easy, eda um in some detail.

So this is really going to be mostly an easy eda design, not so much a tutorial, but just showing the process of knocking this pcb up in easy eda. So, let's head on over there on my pc now so here i am in easy: eda and i've created a new project which i've called radio tower and in it there's radio tower schematic. Let's just have a look, oh yes, this is my new t-shirt, jlc pcb and julian islet, although it's quite chilly in here, so i might well put my fleece on in a moment to keep warm so i'm not sure how much of this new t-shirt you'll see. So this board is essentially uh, two connectors.
So let's just go to the library for some basic connectors. I want a five-way single row and i'm going to go for female, even though it's a male connector because it has the slightly smaller holes. So it's uh a bit of a better fit i'll go for a one by five, then you have to click it and place it, and then the other one i need is a two by four again i'll go for female, so two by four header female! Oh, i need to right click that to get rid of it and there's my two by four and the numbering looks right, yeah, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven eight so i'll place that that can go at the other end. So the two by four.

This one here is where the nrf24l01 plus board plugs in and this one h1. The 1x5 is going to go into the nano expansion board um. Actually, what i'll do is i'll? Take that one and uh exit press x on the keyboard and that just flips it in the x direction. What's that little? Oh, that's the underscore yeah! So that's fine! Now in the middle, i need really just the regulator and on that um sort of intermediary board.

I'll go back to the camera. In a moment there are four capacitors, so i'm going to have four capacitors. Yes, on this board, we've got the 3.3 volt regulator, four capacitors here, two big ones and two small ones. So i'm probably going to go.

I think it's a big one on a small one, essentially on the input and a big one and a small one on the output there's a resistor 1k and there's a little led so i'll probably copy. All of that we need a two pin header for power. Coming in to this board now, my pcb is going to be this intermediate board to carry the nrf and also the backboard, which it's all going to be one board, which has my probably normally right, angle, connector, because i quite like the way the radio tower sits Vertically, that makes sense to me um we're going to have this offset thing, of course, because these female 2x4 headers are quite tall, there's no, avoiding that really. I just realized that my image was blocking this area here.

So if i work at the top here and keep my image down here at the bottom, that should all work out okay. So we need a two pin header. Let's change this to 1x2 click on it and let's rotate that with the r key on my keyboard. Uh yeah: i can put that at the top for power right click to get rid of the floating.

Second one. We don't want a second one. So that's h3, that's fine! Now i want a regulator, and what i want to do here is, i want to have jlc pcb um, actually fit these surface mount components for me, because i'm not very good with surface mode components. So, let's get them to do it and uh.

I think there's a special offer, so let's do that. Let's go to library. This is all a bit slow, because obs is slowing down my pc, but it's not too bad and we want easy eda symbols and jlc pcb assembled. So these are the components that they will put on my board.
For me, um i want capacitors, but i think probably the best place to start is with power management, dropout regulators ldo. Let's try, linear voltage, regulators um drop out the regulators. How many have they got? Just see how long? Oh that's a very long list, linear voltage, regulators there's not such a long list, but let's just have a look through here and see what there is i'm just going to widen this out. Actually i'll take it out to about there so that i can see the hole, so i can see the whole width of that.

Yes, that's better! Now! Is there anything in here which stands out? I i really want the um one one, one: seven device, because oh there's an ifx1117 there infineon technologies, let's go to dropout regulators and see what we've got in here, because there is a a big list of these. And what i really want is basic parts, because i know that they will keep the cost down. So, let's just scroll through and see what we've got in basic parts, uh, not many. It would seem.

Those are all extended parts: oh they're, all extended parts. Okay: let's go back to linear voltage regulators and see if i can find some basic parts: no they're all extended parts; okay, no basic parts in voltage, regulators i'll just keep looking for a bit, so i've put in the search string, ldo, fixed 3.3 v 1117 and I've got they're all extended parts, so i've got this one ld 1117 s33ctr uh the help for that says: uh 3.3 volts fixed low drop, positive voltage regulator, 17 cents. So that looks pretty good. I think we'll have that.

I need to place that on my drawing place, will that do it yeah? So let's put the voltage regulator here. I might move these connectors. I don't want a second one. I might move this because this is my input connector around to here, and this most of this is passed through actually to the eight pin connector.

So i might put that, let's rotate that and then i can link the connections up to there and i'll bring this over rotate it and stick it there, because that's my input. Okay! Next, i need capacitors. So here's the date sheet for this st micro electronics, ld1117 uh load, drop out up to 800 milliamps. That's ample, i'm using the sot223 version in 3.3 volt.

Let's look at the um typical application diagram thing here: it is schematic application now they're, saying uh for other fixed voltages for 1.2 volts. You need a load resistor here but for other fixed voltages, so the 3.3 just 100 n on the input and 10 mic on the output. So, let's do that once again, i want capacitors from the jlc pcb assembled library, so we go up here to capacitors and i'm going to do this all in mlcc, multi-layer ceramic capacitors um, because you can get 10 microfarads in those. Let's see if i can find some basic parts for this, these are all extended.

Okay, let's go to the second one, i'm not sure entirely. What the difference is. Let's see if there are some basic ones in here and yes, we have a basic part 100n. So, let's see if i can find the big one first, the 10 microfarads 4.7 uh, 10n, 470 n.
So i'm looking just for a 10 microfarad mlcc i'll come back when i find it. So i found this one. It's a basic part: it's a samsung! 10 microfarads! It's a no 805, which is a sensible size. So, even if i have to rework it, i can probably probably get to it.

So let's have that one i'll place that um don't want a second one of those. Now i want a hundred n on the input. So let's carry on on the 100s and see if i can find 100 n here they all are basic samsung! Oh wait! Oh that's! Uh where's! Oh 805, chemet! Well, let's stick to samsung, but now i'm struggling to find a no 805. i'll come back.

When i find one right found this one c080500nf, oh that's an extended part, but anyway it's a samsung, i'm going to have it uh because it matches the other one. They'll probably be anonymous anyway, and have no markings on them. But anyway, let's have one of those and now i'm going to put two more capacitors one on the end and one on the out, i'm going to go for 10 ends. So let's see if i can find 10 ends.

Oh 805! Oh your handsome dielectrics! That's interesting! What else have we got uh once again, i'll have a look through this right. I've got a cr805 10n basic part samsung, so we'll have a couple of those on my drawing c4 and c now, c3 and c4 right. I think, that's probably good enough. Let's bring these up because i think they're hidden behind my image so i'll place these in now, which one do you have closest to the regulator? I guess the small one, because that will be taking out the high frequencies.

So you want that as close to the regulator as possible and the big one perhaps further away, i don't know i'm working on the schematic. It's irrelevant pretty much at the moment. So let's have a that. The 10 mic is the big one, isn't it so that goes on the output.

I'm gon na have to rotate these let's place that there i'll put a 10n next to it. Let's do c3 rotate that i'll put um the other 10n on rotate. That and put it on the input and the hundred n rotate that and put that on the input. Okay, i'll link or i'll move those out make them a bit neater and then we'll start linking them up.

Okay, i'm going to zoom in so i'm just rolling the mouse wheel. Let's get it nice and big right click and drag to move it. Where i want it right. Let's pick a wiring tool, i will wire the input down to this capacitor and this capacitor.

The output down to the 10n and the 10 microfarad i need a ground which i can put there and then everything links to ground. So, let's link ground on the regulator to ground and then come out to the tenon. Come out oops slipped a bit: there sort that out in a minute, do the 10n on the input and the 100n on the input. Can i fix this? Yes, i can drag that to there and link that to there the tab, i suppose, should be connected to pin 2, which is the center pin v out, it's the tab and the center pin.
So that's really the power supply section, pretty straightforward. I think i'll now find an led and a resistor and add those into this schematic. Well, i can't work out i've put this in sequence of part class, so these are the basic parts there's no one having an extended part. I just want.

I know 805 red led this one is green. This r805 is white by all accounts. There's no 805. Here it's an xl805 qbc, but it doesn't say what color it is anywhere even in the datasheet and that's all of the basic 0805s.

So that's interesting, perhaps i'll just pick that one and have it green. I mean i kind of wanted it read, but this one will do we'll have that and now i need a resistor. So let's go to resistors. I want a 1k they're going to be thousands of these resistors come on computer.

You can do it. Oh carbon film, resistors chip, resistors surface mount. That's what i want and i'll go for, uh the basic parts again so part class basic part, oh 805's, and i want a 1k well. There should be one in here somewhere, let's scroll through until i find it so i've got my led.

I've gone for this one. I don't even know whether this is red, i'm hoping it will be, but there you go uh, let's rotate that so it's facing downwards and i'll put the 1k resistor in there. Can we do a y on that yeah that just moves the uh, the name just see? If you can see all this? Yes, you can that's good, okay, let's wire, that up to the output like so that to there and that to ground good. So we've got an led, a 1k resistor on the output and we need to now feed um these two connectors and also connect up the input connector.

Well, actually, the input connector is pretty straightforward. So let's do that. I don't know about my ones and twos. It doesn't really matter so that goes to be in we'll.

Have one go to ground? That should be fine. I might rename this actually to input because hdr whatever it said before, doesn't really mean a lot. Let's come to the output, so now it's a case of simply feeding power through to the 8-pin connector to the nrf transceiver, and also working out the arrangement of pins on this five pin connector and how they link through to this eight pin connector. So, looking at this on the eight pin, connector we've got ground and vcc next to each other, hence the capacitor.

That appears to be marked as pin one with that square, and that appears to be ground and that's fine, because i think i put pin one as ground on my power connector as well. So pin one on the eight way connector to ground pin 2, which is opposite. It is vcc. Let's go back to easy eda right, so i think i'll rename this as just an rf, keep it nice and simple.
That also means i can route uh, pin one to ground which can come around like this and up to there vcc. I suppose i can come off that point can't i can come up, let's take it up there and that goes to pin two. So those are done. That's good right! Now, let's deal with the signals that go from my five pin connector down here.

This is a six pin, but we can ignore the sixth pin because it's not used. So let's say that this is pin one that's d13 on the arduino that runs up to the third pin there, which is s clock so pin one d13 goes to s clock, so we need to connect. Pin one here, i'm going to run out of space. Aren't i and that goes to pin five now.

The name of this is what is d13 on the arduino and it's s clock here, so i think i'll put in a name. I think that's a naming thing a net label and i will make that d13 slash. If you can have a slash, sc k, let's see if it allows that and we'll progress in that manner. So, once again, looking at this uh, the next pin pin 2 d12.

That runs up to the last pin on here, not including irq, which we're not going to use and that's mi. So that's mizo d12 mizo from pin 2. uh. It looks to me like this - is probably going to be better dragged down here.

Let's put it there for the moment and continue so pin 2 here will be d12 on the arduino, let's find out where that goes so on here, uh d12 mizzou did i actually see where that went on the connector, not really uh, that's been seven. So that's relatively easy: that's here, two to seven and the name for that. One will be d12 put a two in there and call the last bit m-i-s-o three more to go. Okay.

D. 13-12, so d-11 is the third one in that runs up there to the third one back from this side that mozzie and mozzie is around the back here mo pin six so pin three to pin six d11 mozzie. So that's pin three two pin uh. Let's come out a couple: pin six and the name will be um d11 and mos.

I so all looking good so far. Pin 4 here will be 13. 12. 11.

10. 10, i believe, is, i think it's csn. Let's have a look back to this. 13.

12. 11, 10. so pin ten. Fourth, one from this end there, oh, where does that go? Oh that goes up to that one which is one from this end.

Yeah 10 is csn and csn on this connector. I can't see it with that. In is that pin and that's pin four, so it's actually my pin four on here and it's uh d10 csn. Okay, so on here it is pin 4 to pin 4 and the name i'm going to run out of space, but never mind d10 and csn csn and d9ce.

Well, we can't go. We can't go wrong with that. Can we um better check it, though, and it'll be this fifth one along here that runs up to this end? Pin which is ce, so d9 is ce and ce. Is there on pin one two three, so it's the fifth pin along here five to three d9 ce on here.

It is five on my connector to three on the eight pin connector and the name which i might just have space for if it'll allow it in, there is oh, why have i put d 110? That's no good! Well, let's change that one for a start! So d10 and this one is d9 d9 and it's c e good, that's it now. This is unused, pin 8 on the 8-way connector and i would assume that's irq, and here it is pin 8 on the 8-way connector, and that is indeed irq. We don't use that it is broken out on this board, it's there, but i have nothing connected to it and i don't use pin 8 on my connector. So that's it! That's done uh! Just one more thing i wanted to do on here this connector h1.
I think i'll just name it arduino uh d, 13 to d9. I just call it arduino. I think oh that's shot over there for some reason, so i think that'll do. For now.

The next thing we got to do is convert to a pcb i'll just check in the edit. How long this video has got so far might make that a second video might carry on and i've just plugged the tower back into my arduino breakout, because i wanted to see what the temperature in the shed is. 25 degrees. That's fine, it's not 25 degrees outside, but the sheds quite warm because of my miners are running because at the moment i'm running them um pretty much all the time because they're profitable, oh wow, 30 minutes of schematic design so i'll leave it there we'll come back And in the next video make a pcb and send it off for manufacture, cheerio.


By Julian

Youtuber, shed dweller, solar charge controller aficionado

8 thoughts on “Schematic capture in EasyEDA – Arduino Radio Tower”
  1. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars SidneyCritic ComedyHound says:

    All you need is a very bright light – it shrinks the pupil which sharpens the image – and a magnification visor – about 2.5x – and you should be able to do 0603 SMD without too much difficulties.

  2. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Jo Russ says:

    Food for thought – These AMS1117 regulators have a tendency to put input voltage to the output when fail. Had couple of such cases on a breadboard power supply and you can imagine what happens if you expect 3.3v on a rail but you are getting 12v there instead without any warning.

  3. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars deslomeslager says:

    No one actually captured you saying 'I did not shut of the miners, they are profitable'. I am like: wow. Is everyone sleeping? There is a bullrun ongoing, why isn't everyone stacking up some altcoins? My bags are filled, I can tell you that! (I am also mining LTC, I have L3+ miners and they are even more than profitable, compared to the ones you have). I think you should try out some peltier elements and capture some of that lost power 🙂 (it should run some LED's I guess).

  4. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars DrRoelski says:

    I like your video's, but in this project I keep wondering: why not use two esp32 with built in oled display? No need for separate touch board, no need for nrf24 and no separate oled print. Everything can be done with a standard board. Or was that too simple? Still, great project nontheless. Cant wait for the next video.

  5. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Nicholas Barnes says:

    Tried using the JLCPCB placement service and had exactly the same problem – I simply couldn't find the parts I needed without spending a huge amount of time searching and then cross-referencing with data sheets. I gave up in the end.

  6. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Steve Perry says:

    Some parts are not listed using the way that you looked for a 3.3volt reg, best to go to the jlcpcb SMT parts library and put 1117 into the search box. AMS1117-3.3 Basic part C6186 £0.0875.
    In easyEDA, Place > Symbol, search LCSC (not LCSC Electronics) for C6186 and place it 🙂
    For capacitors, again use the JLCPCB parts library 🙂 For some reason they do not have a 100nf 0805 in Basic parts, they do have an 0603 – C14663.
    I find it easyer to tap the space bar to rotate 🙂
    Red LED 0805 Basic C84256

  7. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Daedalus Young says:

    I've had some issues with EasyEDA not having all the parts I needed, so I prefer using Kicad. But I am interested in the JLCPCB surface mount service. Is it possible to have JLC fit SMT parts on projects not made with EasyEDA?

  8. Avataaar/Circle Created with python_avatars Tom George says:

    Hi Julian, thank you for the talk through of the schematic, you actually connected everything with wires, instead of being lazy and relying on net-names to do the connections.👍👍👍👍👍
    Net-name, I call them "Search A Word" diagrams as they are hopeless when it comes to troubleshooting circuits.
    The net-name does not tell you how many connections it has and you have to search the the entire "schematic" to be sure you have got all the connections.
    Actually using wires makes reading a proper schematic easier to follow when trying to understand any signal flow.
    Some may say, use the CAD to show you all the net points.
    Sorry but I don't want to load up a CAD program to view a circuit, you should be able to export to jpg and show ALL connections in it.
    That is my soapbox for the day..😃😃😃
    Great video…

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