Tag: radI2Cino

Jim Sheldon, W0EB has announced that the W0EB/W2CTX/N5IB “RadI2Cino” (pronounced rad ee too CEE no) I2C replacement for the Micro BITX (uBITX) Raduino card is again available for purchase.

NOTE: these are only for the uBITX, not the BITX40 and other earlier models.

This board is designed to utilize either a 2 x 16 or 4 x 20 I2C LCD Display (not included) instead of the parallel display originally included with the uBITX so that the digital I/O lines formerly used by the display can be used to run the CW keyer and a few other functions in a much more efficient manner.

Prices have lowered a little since the first offering.

Partial kits with the IC’s soldered in place are no longer being offered.

Current options are:

1. Bare Board (you supply the parts & you build it). $10 US shipping included. . International $15 US shipped.
2. Complete Kit of Parts (less the Arduino NANO, LCD display and display I2C controller) – you build it. (All parts except the NANO, display and display controller are included in the kit.) $30 US shipping included.   International, $45 US shipped. All customs duties and VAT will be the responsibility of the purchaser.
3. Completely assembled and tested RadI2Cino Including the Arduino NANO but less the display and I2C display controller.Assembled and tested RadI2Cino boards will be available by Special Order Only. They will require up-front payment by PayPal and up to a 1 week lead time to build and properly test) $75, shipping included in the U.S.

   No international orders will be accepted for assembled and tested boards at this time.

All orders will receive the complete assembly manual which includes a full bill of materials, full board layout diagrams and full schematics in PDF form via email.  This manual has also been attached here for your download:  RadI2CinoBoardConstruction. You can read through it and decide if it’s something you’d like to build.  The same manual will be included with the order by Email.

The bill of materials, included in the manual, has ordering information for the parts. Parts suppliers are Tayda, Digi-Key and Mouser.

Please, don’t post orders or info requests on the BITX20 list as Jim doesn’t always get the posts from the reflector.

Email w0eb (at) cox dot net for ordering or further information.

Jim Sheldon W0EX  has announced the availability of the joint effort from himself and N5IB – the RadI2Cino (prounounced “Rad ee too CEE no”).  This is an almost “Drop In” replacement for the original uBITX Raduino card.

The attached PDF (N5IB_W0EB_RadI2Cino) contains the complete information on this new Raduino replacement.

In summary, the changes/enhancements that have been incorporated in the RadI2Cino include:

• I2C is used so the 16 pin LCD display header has been eliminated
• The LCD display contrast pot has been eliminated
• The 16 pin and 8 pin uBITX headers are retained and connect in the original fashion
• Arduino NANO I/O pin assignments have been rearranged to free up digital and analog I/O pins
  a) D8, D11, D12 now used for key, paddles, and PTT.
  b) D10 used for an A/B split selection button.
  c) D9, D13, A3, A6, A7 now available for other needs.
• The LCD display is operated via an I2C bus connection.
  a) Contrast control is now part of I2C interface “backpack”.
  b) Larger, 4-line displays are supported.
• The TO-220 5 volt regulator has been replaced by a surface mount 7805 1 amp regulator.
• A surface mount 3.3 volt regulator has been added.
• A 4-pin header has been added to give access to the I2C bus.
• A logic level translator has been added to the I2C bus to protect the Si5351 clock chip.
• Manufacturer-recommended RC de-bouncing for the rotary encoder phases has been added.
• Provision is made for an optional dropping resistor to reduce regulator dissipation.
• Several powering options are provided, selected by shorting jumpers.
  a) power everything through the NANO via the uBITX +12V rail**
  b) power the NANO from the uBITX +12V rail, and the rest via the 5V regulator**
  c) power everything from the board mounted 5 volt regulator.
  d) power the Si5351a from the NANO’s 3.3 V output.
  e) power the Si5351a from the on-board 3.3 V regulator.
• Though the PC board is slightly longer, mounting holes compatible with the LCD display are retained.
• An additional 8 pin header is added for access to the newly free I/O pins.
• Uncommitted PCB pads are provided to connect serial I/O and NANO Reset. NANO mounting pads are intentionally oversized to allow for a low profile, machined pin, socket for the Nano.
• Heavy use is made of silk-screened labels to identify signals and functions.

** If the optional dropping resistor is not used DO NOT EXCEED 12V when using these power options.

THIS PRODUCT SOLD OUT WITHIN HOURS.

More boards are on order but due to the Chinese New Year they won’t be shipping until around the end of the month.

Jim asks that  all inquiries and orders be held off until after he announces the availability of the next batch.

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