Mario Question Block from @adafruit - Final(?)

It's finished. See video

The final steps were:

1. desolder the floating wire on the LED+
2. desolder the GND wire, cut it to the same length as the + wire, resolder
3. cut wires to go from LED1 to LED2
4. solder LED1+ to LED2+ and LED1- to LED1-
5. uncscrew the Piezo, drill the holes to expand, and refasten
6. use tack to fix the backpack on the Trinket
7. place the switch in it's holder
8. mount the Trinket (this was not great--the screw head strips, but I got enough in to hold it)
9. close it up (this was hard, because there's a lot of stuff in there and the cover still does not fit perfectly, but I got it)

This was not +Adafruit Industries' greatest tutorial.

1. It says that the LEDs should be connected in series when only a parallel connection works
2. There is no mention of the battery--where to position it, etc--the answer apparently is "stuff it in any way you can."
3. The wiring diagram shows all wires coming out of the top of  the Trinket. Some must come out of the bottom. There is no mention of that in the text.
4. The stuff about tolerances for 3D printing was not obvious (to me which is OK because I don't know anything, but it was also not clear to the 3D printing service I used)

But, it's done. On to the next project.

Mario Question Block from @adafruit - Part V

I got the LEDs to work.

• I verified all the other connections
• I tried a 5mm LED in the circuit instead of the LED sequin I desoldered--no change
• I put the LED sequins in series on a breadboard, powered by a 5V 1500mA wall wart--they both lit
• I checked the datasheet for the LED sequins, Max forward current is 25mA. Average forward voltage is 3.4V at 20mA.

Trinket Pin #4 puts out 20mA.  I'm not sure there's enough juice juice to power the LED sequins in series.  Everything I've read says to put them in parallel, but I'm going by the instructions in the tutorial. I never got a response to my query on the Adafruit Support Forum.

However, I wired the LEDs in parallel as opposed to series, and they both light. I have given feedback on the tutorial.

Next: put it all back together and wear!

Mario Question Block from @adafruit - Part IV

I drilled the hole in the case for connecting the Trinket.  From the webs, I ascertained that I needed about a 1/16" bit (.0625 for a .067 screw).  That worked. I was able to attach the Trinket, but I'm holding off on the final solution until I get through some of the following issues. I got some 2-56 3/8" screws, Philips head, and they work much better (I replaced the screws for the Piezo, also).

I put my meter on the circuit (DUH--learning the obvious lesson: do this DURING assembly to assure the connections will work).

First, I verified what the switch was telling me--I did not completely remove the trace between the pads on the backpack, so the circuit is always open and the switch had no effect. It looked OK to me, but I did some more scraping and now it works.

Second, I checked the LED connections.  My meter showed continuity throughout.  Using alligator clips to jump various connections, I could get one or the other LEDs to light, but not both.  I desoldered one, and tried various combinations of connections with no luck. It occurred to me that maybe the battery did not have enough juice, but according to my meter it's putting out 3.96V, and it's rated at 3,7V. I also tried it connected via USB--no change.

Meanwhile, the Piezo wires came loose from the Trinket and I had to resolder.

I have posted a query on the Adafruit Support Forum about the LEDs. If I get an answer, I'll move on. If not, I may try it with 1 LED (which was the original design).

Mario Question Block from @adafruit - Part III

OK. Problem 1 is that, despite +Phillip Burgess ' warning, I soldered the Piezo to the Trinket before I wired it correctly (in my defense, I did heed the warning, I just wired it wrong). I thought I knew which hole to pass the wires through, but after I did it I realized something was wrong.  Here's what that was:

1. the tutorial is not crystal clear
2. the hole I was supposed to used was partially obstructed by printing debris so I did not recognize it as a hole
3. I did not pay attention closely enough

So, today's work:

1. search local stores for shorter 2-56 screws
   I got 3/16" flat, slotted heads--the Phillips were beveled and did not provide enough thread (I would have liked more detail in the tutorial for this because I'm ignorant, but I got there)
2. detach the Piezo and re-attach it with shorter screws (as noted in the last post, the ones I used were too long)
3. deburr the hole for the Piezo wires
4. cut the wires from the Piezo, string them through the newly deburred hole, and splice them to the other part of the wires connected to the Trinket
5. tack the backpack to the Trinket
6. cover the on-board LEDs with black tape (I know I have several rolls someplace, but in the interest of sanity I went back to the hardware store)
7. screw the Trinket to the enclosure
8. modify the diffuser so it will fit in the new cover  (also had to clean up the location for the diffuser--I guess I should have anticipated this, but I expected a cleaner print from the service--now I know why Charles Platt in +Make: Electronics wanted me to by a bunch of files and deburring tools)
9. hook up the LiPo and charge it
10. test and rework as required

However, I have some serious problems.

First, the screw hole for the Trinket is filled in and I cannot get it to screw in.  

Second, the switch does not turn the circuit off--I have to disconnect the battery. I followed the instructions on clearing the connection between the holes on the backpack--maybe I did not get it right.

Third, the Piezo chimes, but the LEDs do not flash. The connections look right to me.

So, I have more work to do.

Mario Question Block from @adafruit - Part II

When last we saw this, I was waiting to get replacement 3D printed parts back from the service I used. The first print was missing the handle and the cover did not fit. New parts arrived yesterday.  It has the handle, and the cover fits. I'm a little disappointed because I started this about 6 weeks ago, but I'm ready to go. I'll put on my white lab coat and get to it.

The first thing I tried to do was upload the code to the Trinket (so I will have when I get the product assembled).  After I located a mini-USB cable I found that I forgot to update my Arduino IDE (I knew that because I got "PLLCSR not defined in scope" etc. on compiling).   DUH--I needed to set the board to Trinket 8MHz, but first I needed to update my hardware folder. Then, I went to upload and got my favorite avrdude messages.  DUH--I forgot to add some other changes. Of course, the Adafruit Learning System has all this spelled out here.  I'm sure I saved some frustration later on when I'll be anxious to try this out.

Later that day...
The good news is that my new soldering iron and heated solder sucker work really well. I made it mostly through the project, to get here:

I got the soldering done, following the tutorial I had one issue: the first diagram shows all the wires from the backpack coming out of the top. That's wrong: the wires to the slide switch come out the top, but the 5V, BAT, and GND wires go out the bottom. So, I got out the new solder sucker and re did them.  I am supposed to attach the backpack to the trinket with tack...I need to redo that.  I also need to fix screw the trinket to a standoff.  T

Also he only 2-56 screws my local hardware store had were too long too attach the piezo. I can make do until I get a shipment from sparkfun next week. 

The only other problem I have is that since my frindly 3D printing service did not re-print the diffuser, it doesn't fit. I'll had to do some modifications..  

I should get back to this tomorrow.

Mario Question Block from Adafruit Part I

This is my next project, from a tutorial on the Adafruit Learning System.  I enjoyed working with the Pro Trinket in the Donkey project, so I thought this could be interesting.  Also, the enclosure is 3D printed, and I am intrigued by 3D printers, so that was a draw.

I found a local 3D printing service through http://www.makexyz.com/ and this is what he produced:

It's pretty good. The top does not fit right on the body, so I'll have to do some modification, and it's not as clean as I'd like, but I'll work with it.  It cost $20 for the print, including mailing it to me, plus $3 for the service.  When I get the time, I will do the modification to the enclosure and the construction. I have the parts, so it should go OK.

Here's what I've learned so far:

• At first I thought the print was backwards, because I was comparing what I got with the photos in the tutorial. However, when I took a photo of the print to send to the guy who printed it, I realized that the photos reverse the image...so I'm believing that it's OK.
• In all the photos in the tutorial, it looks like the handle is part of the print. The printer said no, then I read the fine print in the tutorial and it said "attach a handle--you figure out how."  But, the handle DOES seem to be part of the print.

I have posted questions on the Adafruit Support Forum.  When I get some clarification I'll pursue this further. Meanwhile, I'm kind of stuck.

More when I get to construction.