Wrong, wrong, wrong

Post date: May 19, 2014 1:02:19 PM

So much for modeling. The previous model showed the display in the "upper" curve of the Uke body, but in reality it's much better in the lower curve. I kinda hand waved the model, so I really can't blame it (I didn't have it in front of me at the time). Pictures forthcoming of the implementation. I also decided that I didn't like the 5-way switch and converted the interface over to a rotary encoder.

I've also replaced the power supplies with two TI dev boards (60030 and 61030), one generating 3.3 (for later) and one generating 5V @ 2A. Both run off the LiPo battery now. Need to measure current draw and determine the best way to implement some more power management ideas.

I milled the back of the fretboard, but screwed that up. Mostly due to my impatience (I'll CNC it next time), but I'm pressing on to get the prototype together (you don't know what you don''t know!). I also milled out the headstock, but I think I need to change that plan. I didn't leave nearly enough material under the edge of the fretboard, so when I sand that down, it's going to break through. I'm thinking that an inlay along that edge would be much cleaner and far easier to mill.

I determined that the fretboard PCB is way too long by about 2 inches, so that needs to be redesigned. The wires should be attached to pads on the top side as well. I simply cut the excess off on this one (and sanded down some excess on the sides), but the next design should be smaller in all dimensions. Wires are routed through a channel between the end of the headstock and through a hole into the body. I made the channel with a dremel tool, but milling would have been prettier.

Need to figure out how to mount all the remaining electronics. Need a bracket or a dedicated board. Too many wires at the moment. OLED panel is mounted with 0-80 screws and will be covered with a bezel (machined brass?). Need a better looking, low profile knob too.

As I said, pictures forthcoming.

Changing the code over to support the rotary encoder was a pain. I used the Adaencode library, but it wouldn't work with the SoftwareSerial library. Took some digging, but I found the reference that fixed it. Need to make modifications to the SoftwareSerial library (also forthcoming) to let both work by disabling interrupt swapping on the Atmel port (port B in my case). The Adaencode library seems to be nice and stable as compared to other examples on the Arduino page. I made the menu select roll over top to bottom as well. Need to go back and start re-enabling functions (I turned them off to get the basics going) as well.

What a weekend ;)