Events on Bald Engineer

STOP! Using the Wrong Capacitors | Teardown 2024

Thu, 20 Jun 2024 02:04:11 +0000

Learn more about Teardown 2024 Google Slides Download Slides (PDF) Links Circuit Break Podcast #434: The Other VCC Circuit Break Podcast #141: It Depends MLCCs with James Lewis YouTube: Bald Engineer’s Capacitor Videos Hioki USA: Unlocking the Secrets of Capacitor Impedance Plots Murata: SimSurfing Yageo Group / KEMET: K-SIM

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Retro Repairs RoundUp Appearance

Mon, 03 Jun 2024 23:35:11 +0000

The Retro Repairs RoundUp crew invited me to be a guest on episode 56 of their livestream. As their name implies, they discuss retro computers and, in many streams, how to repair them. We mostly discussed the Mega IIe project. Sean was another guest who talked about KansasFest 2024. KansasFest is an Apple II conference. This year, it moved its venue to Springfield, Illinois. The name and the location might seem confusing; however, it was long held in Missouri. So, it is a case of the name sticking for historical reasons.

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From MLCC to Polymer: Unlocking Capacitor Impedance Plot Secrets

Tue, 02 Apr 2024 16:41:10 +0000

April 17, 2024, at 1:00 pm CDT Register Now Capacitors are deceptively complex devices. It is why I love talking about them so much! Hioki USA loaned me an LCR Meter that works as an Impedance Analyzer to try out some measurements. As a result, I noted a few things that might catch someone off guard if they have never attempted to characterize capacitors. For example, many of us know about the MLCC DC Voltage Coefficient. However, do you know how to evaluate whether your parts lose 20 or 80% of their capacitance? Or, what considerations do you need to make when measuring a polymer electrolytic versus a film capacitor?

Use Your Scope! | Unnamed Reverse Engineering Podcast

Tue, 19 Dec 2023 19:34:28 +0000

Alvaro and Jen invited me to discuss the reverse engineering aspect of the Mega IIe project on the Unnamed Reverse Engineering Podcast. We focused on some of the finer details about the Mega-II chip’s operation. The discussion followed many rabbit holes. (Totally my fault and not theirs!) We also talked a little bit about how to (not) identify unlabeled capacitors when reverse engineering hardware. The to-long-did-not-read (tldr;) is that for multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs), there isn’t much you can do. You can use an LCR to determine the capacitance, but there isn’t a non-destructive way to determine the rated voltage. I did offer one suggestion related to waterfall tables.

KiCon 2019 - Preserving history with KiCad

Thu, 04 Apr 2019 01:35:42 +0000

On April 26th and 27th, the first year of KiCad KiCon kicks off in the Windy City. Join me and 26 others for talks about the open source electronics CAD tool. The list of speakers is impressive. There are many names which I follow on social media and some I recognize from the KiCad team. For example, Wayne Stambaugh is the KiCad project leader and has one of the keynote talks.

High-end Oscilloscope report on Evaluation Engineering

Thu, 28 Mar 2019 13:21:26 +0000

The concept of high end varies depending on what you are talking about and who you talk too. In this Evaluation Engineering Evaluation Engineering article the author discusses high-end oscilloscopes. I am mentioned several times in this article as part of my day job at Rhode and Schwarz. There I am a product manager for oscilloscopes in North America. We have scopes that range from 50 MHz to 8 GHz. For a little bit of context let me explain how this type of article works. The author, or editor, reaches out to some field experts. Each person is asked to fill out a written interview form. From there the author compiles the responses into a story like this one. This process is always nerve racking to me. I always worry I’ll misquote a specification or make a major typo. I don’t get see the article until it is published.

Polymer Capacitor Introduction on e14s The Learning Circuit

Tue, 26 Feb 2019 06:08:06 +0000

If I were a professional actor, I would feel typecast at this point in my career. Whenever someone wants to talk about Arduino, Oscilloscopes or Capacitors, they call me! In this case, element14 asked me to do two videos on how to replace multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs) with Polymers.

How to pick from all the Arduino boards

Fri, 26 Oct 2018 04:47:43 +0000

Looking through my parts boxes, I have counted at least 15 distinct “Arduino boards” in my collection. Either they are variants of the Uno form factor or they have different processors from the 8-bit boards. That number easily goes to 30 if I include boards with just the “Arduino header” on them. This pile of microcontrollers got me thinking, how does anyone ever choose the right board?

Bank to the Future on element14 presents

Thu, 30 Aug 2018 01:37:07 +0000

&t=12s Making tutorial videos and project videos is a very different process. It is very easy to script a tutorial. In fact, I think it is a necessary step. Project videos, on the other hand, are more organic. In this project, I build a capacitive activated coin bank, based on this Coin Acceptor from Adafruit. It uses an MSP430 to do capacitive sensing and then a Pryamiduino to control the rest of the electronics. In the end, I do some classic AddOhms special effects to demonstrate how the project works. For detailed notes and design files, hit the button below for the element14 project page.

Weller Zero Smog EL Review on element14

Wed, 14 Mar 2018 13:00:18 +0000

I have been soldering circuits for twenty-six years. Well, except for the last 6 weeks. I have had a Weller Zero Smog EL fume extraction unit in my lab. It has changed the way I solder. When I first used it, I thought “yes, this is nice. But not a necessity.” Then the other day I didn’t feel like moving the extractor to my secondary workbench. I was immediately irritated with myself for being lazy. The smoke was so annoying. I don’t know what else changed me so quickly.

Live millis() tutorial: AddOhms Live #5

Sun, 28 Jan 2018 19:47:46 +0000

&t=158s When it is time to move away from delay(), it’s time to learn how to properly use millis(). If you’ve had trouble following my millis() examples, maybe a live tutorial will help. In this AddOhms Livestream, I go through 4 code examples: 1. Blink, the one with delay(), as a starting point.

Unboxing Hackerboxes and more Q&A on AddOhms Live

Fri, 29 Dec 2017 18:51:01 +0000

Watch Archived Video: Unboxing Hackerboxes Over the past year, I have been a Hackerboxes subscriber. When the first couple arrived, I opened them up immediately. In fact, I got my first ESP32 through Hackerboxes. Sadly, I got caught up in so many things I stopped opening them causing them pile up. So to close out 2017, I’m Unboxing Hackerboxes live while answering your electronics questions.

PicoScope 2204A Review on element14

Tue, 31 Oct 2017 13:19:21 +0000

Previously, I wrote up a hands-on with the PicoScope 2204A. At the time I only spent a few minutes with the device. I used it to “debug” an I2C bus between an Arduino and OLED screen. Since that initial hands-on, I’ve used the PicoScope in my lab. Most notably, I hosted another “hands-on” via an AddOhms Live Stream. I used it for another live stream where I talked about op-amps. Unfortunately, the video isn’t watchable due to some technical difficulties.

Op Amps featuring the XL741 (and Q&A) on AddOhms Live!

Wed, 20 Sep 2017 03:40:45 +0000

Download AddOhms Live iCal Reminder Sunday September 24, 2017, I will host the 2nd live stream of AddOhms. My first live stream was a test for the technology pieces. I’ve made some refinements and am giving it a second try. For that reason, I’m keeping the topic really simple. The Agenda for the Live Stream is: Introduction News (3 stories or projects that I found interesting) Op Amps with the XL741 Q&A Whatever surprises pop-up. In the livestream, I’ll be talking about inverting and non-inverting circuits using an op-amp. But I am not going to use just ANY op-amp. I’ll be using the MASSIVE XL741! (I did a review of Evil Mad Scientist Lab’s XL741 in the past.)

Enterprise SSD Capacitor Chalk Talk

Mon, 04 Sep 2017 17:01:20 +0000

&t=69s In this video, I discuss considerations for SSD Capacitors, with a focus on enterprise applications. (No, not the ship kind, the business kind.) As more consumer devices use solid state technology, it gets easier for us to forget the importance of keeping data safe during storage. While solid state drives are more robust than their spinning counterpart, they are not perfect. Just like with spinning drives, there is a small delay from when a write occurs until the data is stored permanently. The highest performance solid state drives parallelize data in a way to minimize this propagation time. However, these drives also keep an active copy of the allocation table in RAM.

Signals Abound - #22 Hardware Developers Didactic Galactic

Tue, 27 Jun 2017 14:00:08 +0000

Oscilloscopes belong on the desk of every electrical engineer or hobbyist. They are invaluable in both debugging and characterizing a circuit. While most users can twist the knobs to make things show up on screen, most never fully understand what is happening behind the scenes. Having spent over a decade working at a couple of scope companies, I have unique insight into how these incredible machines actually work. I’m super excited to be invited back to the Hardware Developers Didactic Galactic held at the SupplyFrame office (usually) in San Francisco. This time I’ll be talking about oscilloscopes (last time I spoke about Capacitors). The focus of my story is the mysterious “trigger” circuit found in all digital scopes. Which, ironically, is the last part of my presentation. ;)

IEEE EMC 2016 in Ottawa, ON

Mon, 25 Jul 2016 14:00:42 +0000

The 2016 IEEE International Symposium on Electromagnetic Compatibility is sponsored by, no surprise, the IEEE Electromagnetic Compatibility Society (EMC-S). The EMC Society is the largest organization dedicated to reducing EMI. The society looks at standards, measurements, interference techniques, equipment, and a broad range of other activities. Previously, I attended the show when it was in North Carolina. A wide variety of information complimented into the deep technical sessions. The vendors on the show floor were varied. I find this to be one of the most technical shows I attend.

Baldengineer at PCIM 2016

Mon, 09 May 2016 18:56:40 +0000

Do you happen to be around Nuremberg this week? If so, check out the Power Electronics Show, PCIM 2016. I’ll be floating around the show all week. Most of my time I’ll be at KEMET’s booth in building 7. The booth number is 7-302. Just ask for James. You can ask me about capacitors, electronics stuff, or just come to see that I really am bald!

KEMET Adds AEC-Q200 Capability

Fri, 11 Mar 2016 14:00:47 +0000

Back in December, John Day’s Automotive Electronics Blog featured a post I wrote. The subject was KEMET’s (then) recent Automotive product introductions. Here’s a summary of the article. KEMET has been working hard to meet the needs of automotive engineers in recent months. These efforts have resulted in several technology developments that will be of particular interest to design engineers involved with automotive electronic systems. Firstly, the company made several key developments in polymer electrolytic capacitor technology. Recent additions to their high-voltage MLCC’s ArcShield line include new automotive grade parts rated for >500V and an X2-Rated Film capacitor that passes AEC-Q200’s qualification guidelines as well.

HDDG #11 - Capacitors and Footprints

Mon, 15 Feb 2016 22:48:06 +0000

Super excited that I’ll be speaking at this month’s Hardware Developers Didactic Galactic (HDDG) #11. The meetup is on Thursday, February 18, 2016. It should come as no surprise that I’ll be talking about capacitors–something I have a bit of experience on. Also presenting will be SnapEDA CEO’s Natasha Baker. I’ve written about SnapEDA in the past post, How to find Parts for your Electronics. One reason to come is just to see what the Hackaday / Supplyframe office looks like!

Capacitor Interview on The Engineering Commons Podcast

Tue, 20 Oct 2015 02:08:10 +0000

The awesome hosts on The Engineering Commons (TEC) podcast asked me to join them on Episode 93-Capacitors! They told me I was the first passive component expert they had on their shown. It was a blast talking to Jeff, Carmen, Brian, and Adam. The unique thing, in my opinion, about The Engineering Commons is that it covers multiple engineering disciplines. A couple of episodes ago, they talked traffic. Since I am about to move, the episode on Garage Setups was great.

Capacitor reliability can be improved with the right materials

Tue, 29 Sep 2015 22:52:52 +0000

Capacitor lifetime depends on the materials Although not all applications are safety critical or mission critical, reliability is still a vital consideration for many electronic products. Making informed choices at the part selection stage can help ensure the product will perform correctly over its intended lifetime. When choosing capacitors, properties such as volumetric efficiency, frequency stability, temperature rating or equivalent series resistance are often the primary factors that govern technology choice. In these cases, understanding factors affecting lifetime can help engineers make sure the product will deliver the required reliability.

Capacitor Questions Answered on The Spark Gap Podcast

Thu, 29 Jan 2015 15:01:24 +0000

Karl and Corey run The Spark Gap Podcast which is focused on embedded electronics. On Episode 25 they interview me about Capacitors. We covered all the major types of caps, plus some application bits. Check out their show notes for an impressive array of links on the subject. Also, my favorite episode of theirs so far is episode 18. The guys talk about different serial protocols like SPI, I2C, CAN, etc. Really good stuff.

Role of EMI X1, X2, Y1, Y2 Capacitors Ratings

Tue, 20 Jan 2015 15:52:17 +0000

Understanding what X2 or Y1 capacitors actually are and are not is important when designing them into an AC-mains connected power supply. Recently Electronic Products Magazine ran an article I wrote on the proper role of X and Y safety rated EMI Capacitors. The X2 capacitor rating means different things to different people–except for UL. When I wrote this article to discuss some common misconceptions around what X2 Rated Capacitors are, and how they can be properly used.

Capacitor innovations address emerging opportunities on PSD

Mon, 12 Jan 2015 14:57:28 +0000

Article I wrote on some innovations KEMET has implemented in their capacitors: " There is no Moore’s Law for passive components like capacitors, but relentless development is delivering the kinds of devices engineers need to deliver cutting-edge new products for modern living. Capacitors have for many years enabled electronic designers to manage energy within circuits and fulfill basic functions like filtering noise or harmonics, correcting power factor, stabilizing feedback circuitry, coupling/decoupling, interfacing between voltage levels, and storing energy. But the demands placed on these components continue to increase, as electronic devices are expected to be smaller, longer lasting, more feature rich and more robust."

Introduction to Polymer Capacitors

Tue, 12 Nov 2013 13:15:37 +0000

November 2013’s issue of Electronic Products features an article on the cover titled “Introduction to Polymer Capacitors.” The author is, well, me. This article explains the differences between traditional MnO2-Tantalum and Polymer-Tantalum capacitors. Previously I explained these differences in the post on the fire hazard the Arduino GSM shield poses (due to improper derating). You can find the Electronic Products article wherever magazines are sold or here: Introduction to Polymer Capacitors. Check below for links to high-resolution pictures.