XBee Interface Board - Revision history

Hwang: /* Components */

2008-04-05T16:03:01Z

Components

2008-04-05T16:01:03Z

6 pos. 90 Degree Header

2008-04-05T16:00:50Z

6 pos. 90 Degree Header

2008-04-05T15:58:55Z

6 pos. 90 Degree Header

2008-04-05T15:55:26Z

2008-04-05T15:52:34Z

10 pos. Straight Headers

2008-04-05T15:51:32Z

Voltage Regulator and Capacitor

2008-04-05T15:51:13Z

Voltage Regulator and Capacitor

2008-04-05T15:38:54Z

2008-04-05T14:29:01Z

Voltage Regulator and Capacitor

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 ==Components==
-Not all of the components are required.  The voltage regulator and capacitor go together; if you don't need the regulator, you won't need the capacitor either.
+Not all of the components are required.  The voltage regulator and capacitor go together; if you don't need the regulator (if you already have a 3.3V supply), you won't need the capacitor either.  The same goes for the LED and resistor.
 [[Image:xbee_interface_components.png|600px|left]]

@@ Line 67: / Line 67: @@
 [[Image:xbee_interface_90deg_header.jpg|thumb|left|Interface board with 90 degree header]]
 [[Image:xbee_interface_90deg_breadboard.jpg|thumb|left|Plugged vertically into breadboard]]
-[[Image:xbee_interface_90deg_FTDI.jpg|thumb|left|Plugged into FTDI cable.  Note the polarity of the cable; black is on the left and matches up with the small 'blk' printed on the board.]]
+[[Image:xbee_interface_90deg_FTDI.jpg|thumb|left|Plugged into FTDI cable.  Note the polarity of the cable; black is on the left and matches up with the small 'BLK' printed on the board.]]
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@@ Line 67: / Line 67: @@
 [[Image:xbee_interface_90deg_header.jpg|thumb|left|Interface board with 90 degree header]]
 [[Image:xbee_interface_90deg_breadboard.jpg|thumb|left|Plugged vertically into breadboard]]
-[[Image:xbee_interface_90deg_FTDI.jpg|thumb|left|Plugged into FTDI cable.  Note the polarity of the cable - black is on the left.]]
+[[Image:xbee_interface_90deg_FTDI.jpg|thumb|left|Plugged into FTDI cable.  Note the polarity of the cable; black is on the left and matches up with the small 'blk' printed on the board.]]
 <br clear="all">

@@ Line 67: / Line 67: @@
 [[Image:xbee_interface_90deg_header.jpg|thumb|left|Interface board with 90 degree header]]
 [[Image:xbee_interface_90deg_breadboard.jpg|thumb|left|Plugged vertically into breadboard]]
-[[Image:xbee_interface_90deg_FTDI.jpg|thumb|left|Plugged into FTDI cable]]
+[[Image:xbee_interface_90deg_FTDI.jpg|thumb|left|Plugged into FTDI cable.  Note the polarity of the cable - black is on the left.]]
 <br clear="all">

@@ Line 7: / Line 7: @@
 *plugged vertically into a breadboard
 *plugged into an FTDI USB to RS232 converter cable
+Of course, you can also solder wires directly to the board instead of using header pins.
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 [[Image:xbee_interface_straight_header.jpg|thumb|left|Interface board with straight headers]]
 [[Image:xbee_interface_straight_header2.jpg|thumb|left|Solder from the top]]
-[[Image:xbee_interface_straight_header3.jpg|thumb|left|Plugged into breadboard (the pins are still unsoldered in this photograph]]
+[[Image:xbee_interface_straight_header3.jpg|thumb|left|Plugged into breadboard (the pins are still unsoldered in this photograph)]]
 <br clear="all">

@@ Line 47: / Line 47: @@
 [[Image:xbee_interface_vreg_out.jpg|thumb|left|The 'out' pad is on the left]]
+<br clear="all">
 The capacitor is required for the low-dropout voltage regulator to be stable.  Tantalum or electrolytic capacitors are best.  Ceramic capacitors happen to work with the LE-33 regulator, but may not work with other low-dropout regulators.

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 ===Voltage Regulator and Capacitor===
+The low-dropout voltage regulator will take any voltage 3.5V and higher and bring it down to 3.3V so the radio won't get fried.  If you already have a 3.3V source, you can leave out the regulator and capacitor, and hook the power to the 'Out' pad where the voltage regulator would have been placed.
+[[Image:xbee_interface_vreg_out.jpg|thumb|left|The 'out' pad is on the left]]
 The capacitor is required for the low-dropout voltage regulator to be stable.  Tantalum or electrolytic capacitors are best.  Ceramic capacitors happen to work with the LE-33 regulator, but may not work with other low-dropout regulators.

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 [[Image:xbee_board_with_radio.jpg|thumb|left]]
 The pins on the XBee radio (Digikey XB24-AWI-001-ND) have a pitch of 2 mm, which makes it impossible to plug into a standard 0.1 inch pitch breadboard.  The XBee Interface Board allows one to plug the XBee into a breadboard or directly into a FTDI USB-RS232 cable.
+The board can be:
+*plugged flat into a breadboard
+*plugged vertically into a breadboard
+*plugged into an FTDI USB to RS232 converter cable
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@@ Line 39: / Line 39: @@
 ===Voltage Regulator and Capacitor===
-The capacitor is required for the low-dropout capacitor to be stable.  Tantalum or electrolytic capacitors are best.  Ceramic capacitors happen to work with the LE-33 regulator, but may not work with other low-dropout regulators.
+The capacitor is required for the low-dropout voltage regulator to be stable.  Tantalum or electrolytic capacitors are best.  Ceramic capacitors happen to work with the LE-33 regulator, but may not work with other low-dropout regulators.
 Tantalum capacitors are polarized, so note the polarization.  The positive terminal will have a small '+' sign on the package.