ELECTRONICS

So there I am, right next to Robotic Rat Pups…

Seriously though it’s an honor to be featured on EEweb, among greats like Bob Pease. I’m truly not worthy. But definately checkout the interview!

http://www.eeweb.com/spotlight/interview-with-troy-rank

EEweb is a fantastic home-base for electrical engineering stuff across the board, and it’s been a great resource to keep up on all things EE.

I took some time to cleanup my bench this weekend and figured it would be a good time to take a picture and submit it to the WOTW cause. Workbench of the Week is a feature of the Amp hour podcast that I have enjoyed quite a bit. My setup isn’t anything terribly fancy. It’s what I use to build BLDC Controllers, Batteries, Protection Electronics, Digital Projects and a little Ham Radio tinkering. Here is a laundry list of equipment:

• Old School HP140T spectrum analyzer, works great
• Transistor Devices electronic load , 100v ~500W
• 13.8V linear power supply, 400w
• ~28V switching PS ~1500W
• Phillips 25mhz analog scope  (cheap hamfest find, need to pickup a Rigol soon…)
• Several Cheapie DMMs – Does the trick
• HP6034 power supply 300w (project)
• Hakko Soldering Station
• One-Hung-Lo soldering station….
• Self-Contained Cell Tab Welder
• Bunch of MSP430 prototyping toys tools sitting on the venerable CRT (12 yrs old :D)

It turn’s out the limit of  “simulated wood grain” as a heatsink, is well under 40W…

Step 1: Find a monitor in the dumpster at work

Step 2: Plug it in

Step 3: Hmm… the backlight doesn’t work

Step3: Take it apart

Step 4: Measure the input to the high voltage transformer, while being careful not to vaporize yourself on the 750V line

Step 5: Crap… ridiculously noisey

Step 6: Look at capacitors on the bus, notice that they’re bulging and leaking

Step 6.5 : replace 450uF 25V Caps with 450uF 50V caps

step 6.7: turn back on

step 6.8645988884: works like new

Step 9: Replace your crappy, 12 year old CRT

The only thing that’s badd now is frog and toad