Cool Components - New Products Feed

Wireless Sensor Station Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 17 May 2013 14:29:37 GMT

This is the Seeeduino Stalker kit. Combined, it allows you to create remote projects, such as sensor platforms, that can power themselves through solar and battery power, time stamp data with the RTC and transmit data through a Xbee module.

Also included is a USB to Serial TTL Cable and jumper wires for programming the Stalker.

You can also choose to have included in the kit the excellent Building Wireless Sensor Networks book, which will help to explain how to create wireless sensor networks using Xbee modules.

There is also the further option of including two different sensors in the kit, the Humidity and Temperature Sensor - RHT03 and the Infra Red PIR Motion Sensor. The RHT03 provides a single wire interface for measuring temperature and humidity and the PIR sensor can detect motion and report over a single wire.

Features:

Resources:

Wireless Sensor Station Kit tutorial

LilyPad MP3

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 15 May 2013 12:56:35 GMT

The LilyPad MP3 Player is your all-in-one audio solution, containing an Arduino-compatible microcontroller, MP3 (and many other formats) audio decoder chip, micro-SD card socket, and a stereo audio amplifier. Part of the Lilypad E-textiles line, this board can be used to give your fabric creations the gift of music, or any other sounds you can put on a micro-SD card.

It can be powered by a 3.7V Lipo battery (charger built-in!), or an external 3.5-6V source. Off the shelf, it will play specific audio files when any of its five trigger inputs are grounded, or you can solder in an RGB rotary encoder (not included) and load new firmware (included in the link below) to add a user interface for track selection and volume control!

The board is compatible with sketches written for the MP3 Player Shield. Our example code uses Bill Porter's MP3 Player library, which makes writing new code very easy. All you need to do is add a microSD card and some speakers, and you're ready to rock.

Note: A portion of this sale is given back to Dr. Leah Buechley for continued development and education of e-textiles and also to Arduino LLC to help fund continued development of new tools and new IDE features.

Features:

ATmega 328p microprocessor with Arduino bootloader (Pro 3.3V/8MHz)
VS1053B MP3 (and many other formats) decoder chip
TPA2016D2 stereo amplifier
MCP73831 3.7V Lipo charger (preset to 500mA, rate can be changed if desired)
Headphone jack
Five trigger inputs, also usable as analog, serial and I2C ("Wire") connections
Load new firmware (or write your own) using the free Arduino IDE
5V FTDI basic breakout for battery recharging and reprogramming
Header for optional RGB rotary encoder (not included, requires soldering)

Resources:

GPS Breakout

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 15 May 2013 12:35:19 GMT

This is a more universal GPS breakout board that uses a vertical SMD connector for any of the EM401 or EM406 GPS module cables that we sell. It features 2 mounting holes and through-hole connections for wires or headers. This is a lower profile breakout and should prove much easier to use while saving space in any project you need it for!

Features:

Resources:

Raspberry Pi Camera Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 14 May 2013 15:43:51 GMT

The Raspberry Pi Camera Module is a custom designed add-on for Raspberry Pi. It attaches to Raspberry Pi by way of one of the two small sockets on the board upper surface. This interface uses the dedicated CSI interface, which was designed especially for interfacing to cameras. The CSI bus is capable of extremely high data rates, and it exclusively carries pixel data.

The board itself is tiny, at around 25mm x 20mm x 9mm. It also weighs just over 3g, making it perfect for mobile or other applications where size and weight are important. It connects to Raspberry Pi by way of a short ribbon cable. The camera is connected to the BCM2835 processor on the Pi via the CSI bus, a higher bandwidth link which carries pixel data from the camera back to the processor. This bus travels along the ribbon cable that attaches the camera board to the Pi.

The camera is supported in the latest version of Raspbian, Raspberry Pi's preferred operating system.

Features:

Small board size: 25mm x 20mm x 9mm
A 5MP (2592×1944 pixels) Omnivision 5647 sensor in a fixed focus module
Supports 1080p30, 720p60 and 640x480p60/90 video record
Comes with one ribbon cable to connect to the Raspberry Pi

Resources:

Getting Started Guide for Raspberry Pi Camera Module [Preliminary]

Nabduino Tunnelling Web Server

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 14 May 2013 13:39:28 GMT

This is an embedded web server. A typical use example would be if you needed to check your house's temperature whilst at work. Simply type in a special URL and a webpage will open showing you the live readings. Other logic inputs and analogue to digital inputs can be used, and you can even change the state of outputs on the board.

Okay, okay, so this is actually nothing special right? We've been selling embedded web servers like this for years, with all of these features and more!

Actually - this web server is pretty special. If it's set up (say) inside a home network, it tunnels out of the LAN so that it can be contacted. With normal web servers, you need to mess around often complex port forwarding settings on your router. The Nabduino uses similar 'STUN' technology to IP phones, but the end result is that the nabduino is a highly flexible, easy to deploy, remote data 'internet of things' solution.

The 'heavy lifting' of this device is done by a Firefox or IE explorer plug-in (more coming soon). The actual (patented) code used to create the connection is tiny, and so can be deployed pretty much any other device. Please contact us for pricing of large volume device licenses!

The screenshot below shows the Nabduino web interface.

If you want to test it out take control of our one at https://738.nabduino.net/, the login username is guest@nabto.com and leave the password blank. You can turn the LED on and off for us and see the temperature on the board.

Nabduino is designed to be hardware compatible with Arduino shields, having the same form factor, but it is not compatible with the Arduino IDE. If you need to reprogram the device's web interface, this is done by changing your local HTML driver file.

***PLEASE NOTE*** The Nabduino board is supplied with a unique URL, and a UK power supply***

Features:

Encrypted web server connection
Open source protocol
PIC 18 microprocessor
Each Nabduino has an individual address and passkey
Onboard temperature sensor
User button
13 Digital I/O pins
6 Analog In pins
5 PWM pins
Reset button
Ethernet port
On board regulator takes 6-12V

Resources:

Nabto starter kit software

Nabto Client for Android

Nabto Client for iPhone

SparkFun Inventor's Kit for Arduino with Retail Case

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 10 May 2013 14:07:56 GMT

This is the 'retail' version of the SparkFun Inventor's Kit (SIK). This version comes with the new and improved carrying case seen in the pictures, where the standard version does not come with a case.

It includes the Arduino Uno R3, the new and improved baseplate, and all the sensors you can shake a stick at. The SparkFun Inventor's Kit for Arduino is a box of goodies to get the very beginner started with programmable electronics. It includes all the bits you need to build a series of basic circuits, no soldering required!

It also has a brand new and improved edition of the full-colour SIK manual! Updated graphics, code revisions and in-depth instruction have been added to make learning basic electronics even easier! Make your way through the example circuits and you'll learn all about:

Once you've mastered the above concepts, you'll be ready to design and build your own circuits, so why not get started now?

Note: No soldering required. We recommend this kit for beginners ages 10 and up.

Features:

Arduino Uno R3
Arduino and Breadboard Holder
New and Improved SIK Manual
New and Improved SIK Carrying Case
Translucent Red Bread Board
74HC595 Shift Register
2N2222 Transistors
1N4148 Diodes
DC Motor with wires
Small Servo
5V Relay
TMP36 Temp Sensor
Flex sensor
Softpot
6" USB Cable
Jumper Wires
Photocell
Tri-color LED
Red and Yellow LEDs
10K Trimpot
Piezo Buzzer
Big 12mm Buttons
330 and 10K Resistors

Resources:

SPY-C Tank

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 09 May 2013 10:53:29 GMT

The App controlled SPY-C Tank is designed to work with Apple or Android smart phones or tablets.

The SPY-C Tank creates its very own Wi-Fi space for control and live view and the built-in digital camera transmits a live image back to your device which allows you to control and view whilst in another room - the moving head allows you to look around the room.

You can also record the motion footage or take a snapshot image which will be recorded directly onto your smart phone or tablet.

Features:

Dimensions: 260mm x 200mm x 187mm (with antena)
Weight: 1.1kg
Power: 6 AA (1.5v) batteries, not included
Battery Life: Up to 1hr 15mins (when in use) or up to 9 hrs (standby)
Compatibility: Apple iOS 5.0 and later and Android Android 2.2 and later
Wi-Fi range: 20m indoors when unobstructed and 60m in an open area
Wi-Fi standards: 802.11b/g/n
Pan and tilt camera with maximum tilt of 45 degrees
Video Format: on Apple .MOV, on Android .AVI
Video Resolution: 320x240
Still Image format: JPEG 320x240

Resources:

RoadHawk DC-1

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 01 Jan 2013 10:49:20 GMT

The DC-1 is a car black box video recorder. It records video and audio on a constant loop and stores it on a standard SD memory card. This camera is fitted with a 3D sensor which measures G-force and will detect an impact. In the event of a collision, harsh braking or acceleration the DC-1 will save a 20 second clip (10 seconds before and 10 seconds after the incident) as an "event". The supplied 4gb card can hold over 200 "events"

The RoadHawk DC-1 vehicle drive recorder captures video, audio (can be disabled) G-Force and GPS data whilst you are driving. Using the supplied software you can play back the video files and see the exact vehicle speed, direction and position overlayed on to Google Maps.

Everything you need is supplied in the box and fitting this camera to your car is as easy as most portable Sat Nav devices. Simply mount the camera on your windscreen facing forwards and plug it in to your cigar lighter socket. A 5m power cable and cable clips are supplied so you can make a nice, tidy install with the cable routed around the screen - out of view.

The 4gb SD Card supplied with the DC-1 will hold around 6 hours of video on a loop. You can expand this up to 32gb for a total of 48 hours record time.

The DC-1 is supplied with an adhesive window mount that is small and unobtrusive.

Video clip of a crash recorded on the DC-1 Camera.

Features:

1.3 Mega Pixel CMOS 125 deg lens Wide Dynamic Range (WDR)
Video Resolution of 640x480 @ 30fps
Audio Recording Internal Mic (can be disabled)
GPS Internal GPS module and antenna
Internal 3-axis G-Sensor (Collision, Quick Break, Quick acceleration detection)
Data Storage on SD Card (min 512mb, max 32GB SDHC)
Runs on DC 12V - 24V
Makes .MP4 video files that can be played on just about any computer
Really easy to use PC software supplied for viewing speed and mapping data
Uses a new WDR camera for better quality video and better low light stability
Has a parking mode for surveillance when the vehicle is parked (requires permanent live connection)
Emergency button for manually creating "event" video clips
Has a basic photo mode
Much smaller than previous RH-1 model
RoadHawks are already being used by insurance companies and large fleet operators to cut litigation costs

Resources:

The manual for the RoadHawk DC-1
DC-1 Troubleshooting Guide
DC-1 software demo pack < contains the DC-1 viewing software and a demo video file to try with the software.
RoadHawk DC-1 playing software
RoadHawk DC-1 info Flyer

Xively Jumpstart Kit: ARM mbed Edition

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 08 May 2013 15:42:49 GMT

This kit is designed to help you create your own Internet of Things devices with ease.

The kit is in two parts, the mbed LPC1768 Header Board and the mbed Application Board.

The powerful mbed LPC1768 Header Board uses an ARM Cortex M3 100Mhz LPC1768 microprocessor and can be programmed in C/C++. The mbed Application Board is designed to hold the mbed LPC1768 Header Board and provide a wide assortment of inputs and outputs to allow for rapid development.

For further details and the full specification of the mbed LPC1768 Header Board click here.

For further details and the full specification of the mbed Application Board click here.

Features:

Resources:

Xively mbed tutorial

Solenoid - 5v (small)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 08 May 2013 14:45:14 GMT

Solenoids are a great way to induce linear motion for pushing, pulling or controlling switches and levers. This smaller solenoid is designed to work directly with 5V which makes it a great match for embedded projects. It has a throw of about 4.5mm and 2 M2 mounting holes on the body.

The wire lead is about 2" long and is terminated with a 2-pin JST PH connector.

Note: The mounting holes on this solenoid are actually 1.6mm in diameter. This will allow you to tap for an M2 screw. Also, although the datasheet lists a throw of 6mm, the actual throw appears to be closer to 4.5mm.

Features:

Resources:

Datasheet (ZHO-0420S-05A4.5)
Product Video

USB-to-Serial Bridge - �USB-PA5

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 08 May 2013 14:33:31 GMT

The microUSB Programming Adapter (μUSB-PA5) is a USB to RS-232 bridge converter which is very small and easy to use. It uses a mini-B type USB connector to connect to your PC and is based on the FTDI FT232RQ USB to Serial Bridge IC from FTDI. The μUSB-PA5 allows you to communicate with 4D Systems' screens and controllers.

It'll give you multi baud rate serial data up to 3M baud rate and access to additional signals such as flow control. The main 5 pin interface is a standard 2.54mm (0.1") pitch female header, designed to connect directly to a majority of the 4D Systems modules.

RX and TX signals are both 3.3V and 5V tolerant. This module replaces the variety of existing 4D serial bridges for the LCD kits that we carry. While a large range of 4D Systems modules are compatible with this programming adapter, some are not, for mechanical reasons.

Features:

Dimensions: 33.7mm x 17.3mm
USB 2.0 compliant Full Speed 12Mbps maximum speed, Suspend supported
Hardware or Xon/Xoff handshaking supported, 300bps to 3Mbps
UART supports 7 or 8 data bits, 1-2 Stop bits, odd/even/mark/space and no parity
Power on reset circuit
Virtual COM port drivers allow operation with existing COM port PC applications
Supports Windows 98 and above, MAC (OSX-8 and above) and Linux (2.4 kernel and above)
USB powered
Traffic/Operation LED indicates board status
Additional flow control and features available for the user to solder, using standard 2.54mm (0.1") pitch through holes along each side of the PCB.

Resources:

Si4703 FM Tuner Basic Breakout

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 08 May 2013 14:23:55 GMT

This breakout for the Silicon Laboratories Si4703 FM tuner chip is a little more stripped down than the FM Tuner Evaluation Board. If your project already has an amp and just needs a full-featured FM tuner, this is the board for you. Beyond being a simple FM radio, the Si4703 is also capable of detecting and processing both Radio Data Service (RDS) and Radio Broadcast Data Service (RBDS) information. The Si4703 even does a very good job of filtering and carrier detection. It also enables data such as the station ID and song name to be displayed to the user.

Using this board we are able to pick up multiple stations just as well as with a standard FM radio. The board breaks out all major pins and makes it easy to incorporate this great chip into your next radio project.

Features:

Resources:

Schematic
Eagle Files
Datasheet (Si4703)
Arduino Example Code
Arduino Library (Arduino 1.0.1 Compatible)
Programming Guide
Product Video

Super Capacitor - Low ESR - 1F/2.5V

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 08 May 2013 14:13:26 GMT

Yes you read that correctly - 1 Farad capacitor. This small cap can be charged up and then slowly dissipated running an entire system for hours. Combine two in series for 0.5F/5V. Do not over voltage or reverse polarize these capacitors.

Features:

Resources:

Datasheet

Super Capacitor - 10F/2.5V

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 08 May 2013 14:04:07 GMT

Yes you read that correctly - 10 Farad capacitor. This small cap can be charged up and then slowly dissipated running an entire system for hours. Combine two in series for 5F/5V. Do not over voltage or reverse polarize these capacitors.

Features:

Dimensions: 13x33.5mm

Resources:

10F Super Cap Datasheet

USB + Serial Backpack Kit with 16x2 RGB backlight negative LCD

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 07 May 2013 14:08:07 GMT

Adding a character display to your project or computer has never been easier with the new Adafruit USB or TTL serial backpack! This custom-designed PCB sits on the back of a 'standard' character LCD (16x2 or 20x4 sized) and does everything you could want: printing text, automatic scrolling, setting the backlight, adjusting contrast, making custom characters, turning on and off the cursor, etc. It can even handle our RGB backlight LCDs with full 8-bit PWM control of the backlight. That means you can change the background colour to anything you want - red, green, blue, pink, white, purple yellow, teal, salmon or just leave it off for a neutral background.

Inside the backpack is an USB-capable AT90USB162 chip that listens for commands both a mini-B USB port and a TTL serial input wire. The USB interface shows up as a COM/serial port on Windows/Mac/Linux. The backpack will automatically select data from whichever input is being used. For the USB connection, it will work at any baud rate. For the TTL connection, the default baud rate is 9600 but you can send it a command to set the baud rate to 2400, 4800, 9600, 19200, 28800, or 57600 baud. (The baud rate is flashed on the LCD during powerup). Any customizations such as baud rate, backlight color, brightness, splash screen, etc. are stored permanently EEPROM.

The command interface is compatible with the popular "Matrix Orbital" specifications so this backpack will work perfectly with computer applications or libraries that are expecting a "Matrix" LCD such as "LCD Smartie". We added a few extra commands for the RGB backlight and setting the LCD size. If you don't want to use the commands, you can just start sending ASCII to the LCD and it will magically appear as typed.

This mini-kit comes with three parts: the Adafruit USB+Serial LCD backpack and a single 16x2 RGB negative backlight LCD, and a strip of header. The LCD must be soldered onto the backpack using the header. This isn't a difficult task but a soldering iron and solder is required. It's easy, even for a beginner, to attach the LCD.

Features:

Compatible with any 'standard' 16x2 or 20x4 character LCD as well as any Adafruit RGB LCD.
Full PWM backlight control
Supports the following Matrix Orbital commands:

Autoscrolling
Baud rate adjust
Clear screen
Change splash
Auto-wrap
Set cursor
Home
Move cursor
Underline/Block cursor
Create custom characters
Save custom character bank
Load custom character bank
Display On/Off
Set brightness
Set contrast
General Purpose Outputs (4)

Supports extended Adafruit commands:

Set RGB backlight
Set LCD size (up to 20x4)

LCD details:

16 characters wide, 2 rows
Black text on multi-colour background
Built in character set supports English/Japanese text, see the HD44780 datasheet for the full character set
Up to 8 extra characters can be created for custom glyphs or 'foreign' language support

Resources:

USB + Serial RGB Backlight Character LCD Backpack
USB or TTL Serial tutorial

Low-profile microSD card adapter for Raspberry Pi

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 07 May 2013 13:25:40 GMT

Make your Pi a little slimmer with this microSD card adapter board. It slides in where the SD card goes but is half the length. Pop in a microSD card for a sleeker machine. The microSD card holder is a push-push type so you can push on the edge that sticks out to remove the card when necessary.

MicroSD card and Raspberry Pi NOT INCLUDED. Depending on the case from various manufacturers, the microSD card adapter may not easily slide in and out or may need modifications to the PCB or actual case.

Features:

Protrudes from edge of Raspberry Pi 3mm with microSD card installed
Thickness (clearance required from bottom of Raspberry Pi): 5.5mm

Resources:

Quadcopter Power Distribution Board Assembled

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 07 May 2013 11:45:52 GMT

The quadcopter PDB can be used with any frame. It distributes the power from the flight battery to four ESC's to power the quad's motors. Now comes pre-assembled! No need to solder connectors or wires!

Features:

PDB
APM cable
APM power cable
All necessary headers.
6" 14AWG red/black cable for the flight battery.
4 female Deans connectors/ 1 male Deans connector.
Shrink tubing for flight battery cables

Resources:

ArduPilot Mega 2.5+ Assembled (Cables enter from side)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 07 May 2013 11:30:25 GMT

The ArduPilot Mega 2.5 is a complete open source autopilot system and has the bestselling technology that won the prestigious 2012 Outback Challenge UAV competition. It allows the user to turn any fixed, rotary wing or multirotor vehicle (even cars and boats) into a fully autonomous vehicle; capable of performing programmed GPS missions with waypoints. Available with top or side connectors.

Features:

Arduino Compatible
Comes with side entry pins for attaching connectors horizontally
Includes 3-axis gyro, accelerometer and magnetometer, along with a high-performance barometer
Onboard 4 MP Dataflash chip for automatic datalogging
Digital compass powered by Honeywell's HMC5883L-TR chip, now included on the main board.
Off-board Mediatek MT3329 GPS module.
One of the first open source autopilot systems to use Invensense's 6 DoF Accelerometer/Gyro MPU-6000.
Barometric pressure sensor upgraded to MS5611-01BA03, from Measurement Specialities.
Atmel's ATMEGA2560 and ATMEGA32U-2 chips for processing and USB functions respectively.

Resources:

Datasheets:

Documentation:

ArduPilot Mega 2.5+ Assembled (Cables enter from top)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 07 May 2013 11:22:04 GMT

Features:

Arduino Compatible
Comes with top entry pins for attaching connectors vertically
Includes 3-axis gyro, accelerometer and magnetometer, along with a high-performance barometer
Onboard 4 MP Dataflash chip for automatic datalogging
Digital compass powered by Honeywell's HMC5883L-TR chip, now included on the main board.
Off-board Mediatek MT3329 GPS module.
One of the first open source autopilot systems to use Invensense's 6 DoF Accelerometer/Gyro MPU-6000.
Barometric pressure sensor upgraded to MS5611-01BA03, from Measurement Specialities.
Atmel's ATMEGA2560 and ATMEGA32U-2 chips for processing and USB functions respectively.

Resources:

Datasheets:

Documentation:

LM335AZ - Temperature Sensor

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 02 May 2013 14:34:03 GMT

The LM335 is a precision temperature sensor which can be easily calibrated. They operate as a 2-terminal Zener and the breakdown voltage is directly proportional to the absolute temperature at 10mV/�K.

Calibrated at +25�C, the LM335 has a typical error of less than 1�C over a 100�C temperature range. The LM335 also has a linear output.

Features:

Resources:

Datasheet

Makey Makey - Deluxe Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 02 May 2013 13:58:01 GMT

You may be the greatest living banana-pianist, but how will you ever know if you don't make yourself a banana piano? Good news, that project and countless others are easier than you think they are with MaKey MaKey.

Using the MaKey MaKey you can make anything into a key (get it?) just by connecting a few alligator clips. The MaKey MaKey is an invention kit that tricks your computer into thinking that almost anything is a keyboard. This allows you to hook up all kinds of fun things as an input. For example, play Mario with a Play-Doh keyboard, or piano with fruit!

The MaKey MaKey uses high resistance switching to detect when you've made a connection even through materials that aren't very conductive (like leaves, pasta or people). This technique attracts noise on the input, so a moving window averager is used to lowpass the noise. The on-board ATMega32u4 communicates with your computer using the Human Interface Device (HID) protocol which means that it can act like a keyboard or mouse.

There are six inputs on the front of the board, which can be attached to via alligator clipping, soldering to the pads, or any other method you can think of. There are another 12 inputs on the back, 6 for keyboard keys, and 6 for mouse motion, which you can access with jumpers via the female headers. If you wish to use a different set of keys, or otherwise change the behavior of your MaKey MaKey, you can simply reprogram it using the Arduino environment. Oh yeah, we didn't mention that the MaKey MaKey is an Arduino-compatible controller? That's right, it runs the Leonardo bootloader so reprogramming is fast and easy.

The Deluxe Kit includes everything that the basic kit does plus another pack of alligator clips, a pack of jumper wires and a roll of copper tape so you can really go crazy!

Note: We've updated the firmware on the MaKey MaKey along with our other ATMega32U4-based boards. Check out the Firmware Note document below.

Features:

1 x MaKey MaKey HID Board
2 x Alligator Clip Pack
1 x Jumper Wires Pack
1 x Mini-USB Cable
1 x Roll of Copper Tape

Resources:

Schematic
Eagle Files
Github Home (Find the latest MaKey MaKey sketch here)
Getting Started Guide
MaKey MaKey Driver (For Windows users)
MaKey MaKey Arduino Addon (Unzip to your Arduino sketchbook directory)
MaKey MaKey Site
Firmware Note

Coin Cell Holder - 12mm

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 02 May 2013 13:15:42 GMT

Through hole 12mm coin cell holder. It's the unit we like to use as RTC backup and SRAM backup for GPS units. Holds battery in place with friction. Metal housing is +, PCB pad underneath is -.

Sold singly. The picture shows two sides of the same piece.

Features:

Resources:

Datasheet

Pi T-Cobbler Breakout Kit for Raspberry Pi

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 15:22:14 GMT

This is an add on prototyping Pi T-Cobbler from Adafruit, which can break out power, GPIO, I2C and SPI pins from the Raspberry Pi 26 pin header onto a solderless breadboard. This mini kit will make "cobbling together" prototypes with the Pi easier. Designed for Raspberry Pi Model B Revision 1 or Revision 2.

The Pi T-Cobbler mini kit comes with a 26 pin ribbon cable, a custom PCB, ribbon cable socket and header pins. A little soldering is required to put it together but it's really easy, even a beginner can do it in 15 minutes. Once soldered together, the cable plugs between the Pi computer and the T-Cobbler breakout. The T-Cobbler can plug into any solderless breadboard (or even a prototyping board). The T-Cobbler PCB has all the pins labelled nicely so you can go forth and build circuits without keeping a pin-out printout at your desk.

The Pi T-Cobbler is compatible with both versions 1 and 2 of the Raspberry Pi Computer - for version 2 computers, note that the GPIO #21 has been replaced with GPIO #27 and that the I2C pins are now I2C port #1 instead of #0. All other pins are the same.

Note: this kit only contains a 26 pin ribbon cable, a custom PCB, ribbon cable socket and header pins. A Raspberry Pi, breadboard, jumper wires, cables, components, case, power supply, etc are not included.

Features:

Resources:

1.8" 18-bit color TFT LCD display with microSD card breakout

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 15:01:11 GMT

This little display breakout is the best way to add a small, colourful and bright display to any project. Since the display uses 4-wire SPI to communicate and has its own pixel-addressable frame buffer, it can be used with every kind of microcontroller. Even a very small one with low memory and few pins available!

The 1.8" display has 128x160 colour pixels. Unlike the low cost "Nokia 6110" and similar LCD displays, which are CSTN type and thus have poor colour and slow refresh, this display is a true TFT! The TFT driver (ST7735R) can display full 18-bit colour (262,144 shades!). And the LCD will always come with the same driver chip so there's no worries that your code will not work from one to the other.

The breakout has the TFT display soldered on (it uses a delicate flex-circuit connector) as well as a ultra-low-dropout 3.3V regulator and a 3/5V level shifter so you can use it with 3.3V or 5V power and logic. We also had a little space so we placed a microSD card holder so you can easily load full colour bitmaps from a FAT16/FAT32 formatted microSD card. The microSD card is not included.

Features:

1.8" diagonal LCD TFT display
128x160 resolution, 18-bit (262,144) colour
ST7735R (datasheet) controller with built in pixel-addressable video RAM buffer
4 or 5 wire SPI digital interface
Built-in microSD slot - uses 2 more digital lines
5V compatible! Use with 3.3V or 5V logic
Onboard 3.3V @ 150mA LDO regulator
2 white LED backlight, transistor connected so you can PWM dim the backlight
1x10 header for easy breadboarding
4 x 0.9"/2mm mounting holes in corners
Overall dimensions: 1.35" x 2.2" x 0.25" (34mm x 56mm x 6.5mm)

Resources:

ST7735R datasheet
JD-T1800 display datasheet
Tutorials for this product:1.8" TFT Display 128x160 pixels in 18 bit colour with a microSD breakout
Netduino driver, Netduino sample and documentation
You can download the Arduino library with examples from github. To install it, rename the downloaded and uncompressed library to ST7735 and place in the sketchfolder/libraries folder. See this detailed tutorial for more info.

pcDuino - Dev Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 13:30:14 GMT

As the field of embedded electronics gets more advanced, hobbyists and professionals are both in need of smaller and more powerful computers. We've been looking for awhile and now we've found one that we really like, not only because it's small and fast but because it's also Arduino shield compatible! The pcDuino is a high performance, cost effective mini PC platform that runs full-featured operating systems such as Ubuntu and Android ICS.

It's easy to hook up, just connect 5V power and a keyboard and mouse. The pcDuino outputs video to any HDMI enabled TV or monitor via the built in HDMI interface. It was specifically designed to make it easy for the open source community to develop computationally demanding projects using the vast, existing catalog of Arduino Shields.

An API has been developed for the pcDuino that allows the user to access all of the functions that you would expect using simple Arduino-style language.

Note: The pcDuino has trouble connecting to certain DVI monitors. There is a fix available on the pcDuino wiki page. Check the documents below!

Features:

Dimensions 125mm X 52mm
1GHz ARM Cortex A8 CPU
GPU: OpenGL ES2.0, OpenVG 1.1 Mali 400 core
1GB DRAM
Onboard Storage: 2GB Flash, microSD card (TF) slot for up to 32GB
Arduino-Style Peripheral Headers (Adapter Needed for Shield Form-Factor)
HDMI Video Output
Linux3.0 + Ubuntu12.10 Supported
0.1" Spaced GPIO Headers
RJ45 Ethernet Connection
Power Requirements: 2A @ 5VDC
API to access the following interfaces:
- UART
- ADC
- PWM
- GPIO
- I2C
Program in C, C++ with GNU tool chain
Program in Java with standard Android SDK

Resources:

OBD-II to DB9 Cable

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 13:08:02 GMT

Once you've hacked everything, why not go out in the garage and hack your car? This cable allows you to access the pins on your car's OBDII connector. It has an OBDII connector on one end and a DB9 female serial connector on the other. The overall length of the cable is 5'.

Note: This cable is not meant to be plugged directly into a computer's serial port. It is meant to plug into some sort of hardware interface.

Features:

Here is the basic pinout (OBDII > DB9 Female)

Pin Description	OBDII	DB9
J1850 BUS+	2	7
Chassis Ground	4	2
Signal Ground	5	1
CAN High J-2284	6	3
ISO 9141-2 K Line	7	4
J1850 BUS-	10	6
CAN Low J-2284	14	5
ISO 9141-2 L Line	15	8
Battery Power	16	9

Resources:

Pinout Diagram

LilyPad LED Micro - White

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 12:36:42 GMT

Need a smaller way to add some 'twinkle' to your LilyPad project? Then you need some LilyPad Micros! A LilyPad Micro is like a smaller version of the LilyPad LED board. By eliminating the resistor and changing the orientation of the surface mount LED we've shrunk the board down which looks great in elegant designs or on sheer fabrics where you don't need the extra weight or exposed board space. It's really the closest you can come to sewing a point of light directly to your project.

Because the board don't include a current-limiting resistor, it is possible to over-power them and possibly burn them up. The high resistance of conductive thread can help protect the Micros from high current, so long stitches can be used with most power sources to keep the power levels 'Micro-friendly'. If you aren't sure where to start with resistance and current, using these in conjunction with a LilyPad Simple or Main Board is a great place to start, because they both have built-in current limiting and can't burn up your Micros.

Note: A portion of this sale is given back to Dr. Leah Buechley for continued development and education of e-textiles.

Features:

Dimensions:8.82 mm x 3.08 mm

Resources:

RFID Reader Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 11:05:47 GMT

With this module, you can read any 125Khz RFID tags. We included 2 ISO cards to demo the module's functionality.

Features:

Socket: U
Size: 37.5mm x 37.5mm
Weight: 13g
3.3V Consumption : 0mA
5V Consumption: <1mA
Includes one Gadgeteer cable

Resources:

Developers' Guide
Schematic
3D Models STEP, 3DS and STL file formats
Dimensions footprint measurements

ColorSense Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 10:50:10 GMT

This sensor measures Red, Green and Blue color intensity. It includes four white LEDs that can be controlled through the provided drivers.

Features:

Socket: X
Size: 17mm x 22mm
Weight: 2g
3.3V Consumption : <1mA
5V Consumption: 0mA
Includes one Gadgeteer cable

Resources:

Developers' Guide
Schematic
3D Models STEP, 3DS and STL file formats
Dimensions footprint measurements

Internet of Things Printer Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 12:23:14 GMT

The Internet of Things Printer Kit is a simple kit to get you connecting your first device to the internet.

Using the Thermal Printer in this kit you can print out tweets, data from remote sensors, a message on a website, almost anything you can think of.

Note: A separate power supply of 5-9V capable of delivering at least 1.5A is required for the thermal printer

Features:

Resources:

This tutorial will show you how to connect your thermal printer to the internet and contains the Arduino libraries that you will need to do so.

MOSFET Power Controller

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 13:28:19 GMT

MOSFETs are awesome. They're like a switch that you flip electronically! This MOSFET Power Controller makes it easy to switch a battery supply on and off using your favorite microcontroller. The board also has sewable pads so you can use it in e-textile projects that need more juice.

The MOSFET Power Controller came about because microcontrollers, like the Arduino or LilyPad Arduino, can only supply a limited amount of current. Sometimes, though, you want to control something that takes a lot of current like a fan or a heater (or a really bright LED). Simply connect a battery to the JST connector on the MOSFET Power Controller, connect the thing that needs power to the output, then connect one of the digital outputs of your microcontroller to the input pads. Now whenever you drive that pin on your controller HIGH, the battery will be connected!

The N-Channel MOSFET used in this design is rated for up to 30V and 6.5A although the board is really intended to be used at lower power. If you hook up anything beyond a 3.7V Li-Po battery, proceed at your own risk!

Features:

Control High-Current Loads
JST Connector makes Changing Batteries a Snap
It's Sewable! (Also has standard 0.1" spaced headers)

Resources:

Barrel Jack Power Switch - M-F (3")

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 13:09:26 GMT

We use barrel jacks a lot around here and sometimes we need to pop a switch into the mix. That usually means hacking up a perfectly good barrel jack extension cable, but the whole point of using the barrel jacks was so that we wouldn't have to hack things apart... Well, we found a solution: The Barrel Jack Power Switch.

Okay, it's nothing fancy but it is really useful. Plug your power supply into one end and the other into your project and, just like that, you've got a power switch! The on-off rocker switch has a good stiff 'click' to it, so it isn't easy to accidentally switch. It's also fairly small so it won't add too much unnecessary bulk to your project.

Features:

Switch Body: ≈ 61 x 27 x 23mm
Cable: 85mm long (each side)
Barrel Connector: 5.5x2.1mm

Resources:

Rover 5 Motor Driver Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 12:43:47 GMT

This motor driver board, originally designed by Dagu for their Rover 5 platform, is ideal for any small 4-wheel drive robotic vehicle. With four motor outputs, four encoder inputs and current sensing for each motor, it's a must-have when implementing omni or mechanum wheels.

The motor drivers can be controlled by simply applying a logic 0 or 1 to the direction pin for that motor and a PWM signal to the speed pin. In this way, the speed and direction of four separate motors can be controlled independently from only 8 GPIO pins. The encoder inputs on the driver board mix each pair of encoder inputs using an XOR gate making it possible to read both inputs from a quadrature encoder using only one interrupt pin.

Reading the current sensor output is easy, each current sensor pin will output about 1V for each Amp of current drawn by the associated motor up to 5V. Connect the current sensor pin to the analog input of your controller and you'll be able to detect stalls and other motor problems.

There are two power connectors on board. One is for 5V logic and the other is the motor supply. Be sure to turn on your logic supply before applying the power source for your motors. The board is rated for a maximum motor supply voltage of 12V.

Features:

4 x Low Resistance FET “H” Bridges
Each Channel Rated for 4A Stall Current
Easy-to-Use Control Logic
Current Monitoring for Each Channel.
Quadrature Encoder Mixing Circuitry

Includes:

4 Channel Motor Driver Board
Mounting Hardware

Resources:

User Manual

Triple Axis Accelerometer Breakout - ADXL362

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 11:33:30 GMT

We've been using and selling Analog Devices' ADXL accelerometers for a good while now, and now we've found another great part in the series! The ADXL362 is a complete 3-axis acceleration measurement system that operates at extremely low power consumption levels. It measures both dynamic acceleration, resulting from motion or shock, and static acceleration, such as tilt. It's easy to communicate with the ADXL362 over SPI and built-in digital logic even enables autonomous operation for "wake-on-shake" operation.

We think this is a really cool device, so we spun up a breakout board! Now you can add low-power-consumption motion sensing to your next project!

Features:

3-Axis: ±2, ±4, ±8
Ultralow Power
SPI Digital Interface
High Resolution: 1 mg/LSB
Low Noise Down to 175 μg/√Hz
Wide Voltage Range: 1.6 V to 3.5 V
Adjustable Threshold for Motion Activation
Measurement Ranges Selectable via SPI Command

Resources:

Polymer Lithium Ion Battery - 850mAh

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 11:23:32 GMT

These are very slim, extremely light weight batteries based on the new Polymer Lithium Ion chemistry. This is the highest energy density currently in production. Each cells outputs a nominal 3.7V at 850mAh! Comes terminated with a standard 2-pin JST-PH connector - 2mm spacing between pins. These batteries require special charging. Do not attempt to charge these with anything but a specialized LiPo charger.

Battery includes built-in protection against over voltage, over current, and minimum voltage.

Note: Although these cells are rated for 2C continuous discharge, the wiring and connectors are only rated up to 1A, so be sure to take that into account when determining your power requirements.

Note: Be careful with the JST connectors. They can stick in pretty good and tugging on them can damage the connector. Check this tutorial for an easy way to remove them safely.

Features:

Dimensions: 0.23x1.16x1.9" (5.7x29.5x48.27mm)
Weight: 18.5g (0.65oz)
2C continuous discharge
Excellent long-term self-discharge rates (<8% per month)
Robust power source under extreme conditions (-25 to 60C)

Resources:

Datasheet (LiPo Cell)
Datasheet (Protection Circuit)
JST connector

Female Header - 40 Pin

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 14:38:35 GMT

Single row of 40-holes, female header. Can be cut to size with a pair of wire-cutters. Standard .1" spacing. We use them extensively in the Olimex development boards. They mate very well with break away male headers.

Please note: You will probably lose one pin with each cut.

Features:

Receptacle Style: Square
Number of Pins: 40
Pin Spacing: 0.1" (2.54 mm)
Receptacle Depth: 6 mm

Resources:

Spark Gap Igniter

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 12:48:52 GMT

These transformers are capable of creating spark gaps up to about half-an-inch. They work really well as an ignition source for things like potato cannons, they also make the official sound of the mad scientist. The sparks that are generated sound a lot like a taser and you should take that sound as a warning to take extreme care when the unit is powered.

To throw sparks, simply secure the blue and grey wires to electrodes spaced no more than half-an-inch apart and connect the red and white leads to a 5V source. Be warned, these transformers draw about 3A so your power supply will need to be somewhat robust.

Note: Please do not use these to shock people or animals. Seriously, that isn't cool. Actually, be extremely careful with these as they can seriously hurt you. If you don't fully understand high voltage, just live vicariously through the video.

Features:

Input Voltage: 4.8V (works fine at 5V)
Current Draw: 3A
Spark Gap: <0.5"
Loud and scary

Resources:

Teensy 3.0

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 12:28:24 GMT

The Teensy is a breadboard-friendly development board with loads of features in a, well, teensy package. The Teensy 3.0 brings a 32 bit ARM Cortex microprocessor into the mix so you can do some serious number crunching.

The Teensy 3.0 comes pre-flashed with a bootloader so you can program it using the on-board USB connection: No external programmer needed! You can program for the Teensy in your favorite program editor using C or you can install the Teensyduino add-on for the Arduino IDE and write Arduino sketches for Teensy!

The processor on the Teensy also has access to the USB and can emulate any kind of USB device you need it to be, making it great for USB-MIDI and other HID projects. The 32 bit processor brings a few other features to the table as well, such as multiple channels of Direct Memory Access, several high-resolution ADCs and even an I2S digital audio interface! There are also 4 separate interval timers plus a delay timer! Oh yeah, and all pins have interrupt capability. Also, it can provide system voltage of 3.3V to other devices at up to 100mA.

All of this functionality is jammed into a 1.4 x 0.7 inch board with all headers on a 0.1" grid so you can slap in on a breadboard and get to work! Do keep in mind that the Teensy 3.0 is a 3.3V system, which makes it compatible with a lot of sensors that utilize 3.3V signalling but can run you into trouble if you're used to 5V dev boards.

Features:

Dimensions:35 x 18 mm
32 bit ARM Cortex-M4 48 MHz CPU (M4 = DSP extensions)
128K Flash Memory, 16K RAM, 2K EEPROM
14 High Resolution Analog Inputs (13 bits usable, 16 bit hardware)
34 Digital I/O Pins (10 shared with analog)
10 PWM outputs
7 Timers for intervals/delays, separate from PWM
USB with dedicated DMA memory transfers
3 UARTs (serial ports)
SPI, I2C, I2S, IR modulator
I2S (for high quality audio interface)
Real Time Clock (with user-added 32.768 crystal and battery)
4 general purpose DMA channels (separate from USB)
Touch Sensor Inputs

Resources:

FlyCamOne V2

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 14:52:13 GMT

The New V2 Flycam ECO

This camera has been specially designed for model makers. It has a moveable head that can be easily mounted outside the model and can be controlled by a servo using a free channel on your transmitter.

Features:

Weight - 15g
Resolution - 720 x 480 pix
FPS - 30. Focus - 0.3m - infinity
Powers from your Receiver. No other battery required
Modes - Video, Single Image, Continous Shoot Mode
Control - Powered and controlled through a spare RC channel
Micro SD Card size - 8GB (max)

Resources:

SMT Test Socket - TQFP-44 Breakout

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 12:45:06 GMT

You know those ZIF sockets we have for DIP chips? Well these are just like that but for SMT parts. Now you can program and test out your favourite new parts in TQFP-44 packages. This test sockets is good for any QFP-44 in a 10mm square body. Simply open the latch, place the chip in carefully and then close the top over it. The chip is held securely against gold 'fingers' in the socket.

The socket is soldered onto a pair of PCBs that turn it into, essentially, a 44 pin DIP with 0.6" spacing that can be breadboarded fairly easily.

The test socket is a high quality, Japanese construction from Yamaichi

Features:

PCB dimension: 2.3" x 1.8"
Fits TQFP-44 with 10mm body
Broken out into 0.6" wide 44 pin breadboard spacing

Resources:

Ultimate GPS Logger Shield - Includes GPS Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 11:55:49 GMT

Brand new and better than ever, the Adafruit GPS shield kit has been replaced with this assembled shield that comes with an Ultimate GPS module. This GPS shield works great with either UNO or Leonardo Arduinos and is designed to log data to an SD card. Or you can leave the SD card out and use the GPS for a geocaching project, or maybe a music player that changes tunes depending on where you are in the city.

Features:

-165 dBm sensitivity, 10 Hz updates, 66 channels
Low power module - only 20mA current draw, half of most GPS's
Assembled & tested shield for Arduino Uno/Duemilanove/Diecimila/Leonardo (not for use with Mega/ADK/Due)
MicroSD card slot for datalogging onto a removable card
RTC battery included, for up to 7 years backup
Built-in datalogging to flash
PPS output on fix
>25Km altitude
Internal patch antenna + u.FL connector for external active antenna
Power, Pin #13 and Fix status LED
Big prototyping area
Dimensions(PCB only): 69mm x 53mm x 6.7mm (2.7in x 2.1in x 0.26in)
Weight (w/o GPS module): 24g

Each order comes with one assembled and tested shield, a stick of 0.1" male header and a 12mm coin cell. Some light soldering is required to attach the header to the shield in order to plug it into your Arduino.

If your project is going to be inside an enclosure, you'll love this shield as it has external antenna support. Simply connect an external active GPS antenna via a uFL/SMA cable to the shield and the module will automatically switch over to use the antenna. You can then place the antenna wherever you wish.

Resources:

For more details, tutorials and example code check out this comprehensive tutorial

Raspberry Pi Display Module - 3.2" Touchscreen LCD

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 13:37:35 GMT

Most widgets could benefit from a shiny touchscreen interface. Unfortunately, it's usually not easy to hook up a touchscreen and driving a display is often too taxing on your controller. 4D Systems has solved this problem by creating a series of touchscreens with on-board controllers then combining them with adapters for popular platforms like Raspberry Pi and Arduino!

The Raspberry Pi Display Module Pack includes a uLCD-32-PTU 3.2" LCD Display with Resistive Touch, a 4D Pi Adapter and 5 way interface cable. It customizes the uLCD-32-PTU Display specifically for interfacing with the Raspberry Pi, to provide a quick and easy interface without any wiring hassles.

The RPi Display Kit lets you quickly connect the 4D Pi Adapter Shield to your Raspberry Pi, connect the 5 way cable between the Adapter and the Display Module, and be connected in seconds to start programming. There's even a comprehensive library written to communicate with the Raspberry Pi, allowing Visi-Genie (A serial-based interface design tool) events to be easily understood by the Raspberry Pi and user code.

Like the other displays from 4D Systems you will need a USB Serial adapter to program this module.

Features:

uLCD-32-PTU Display Module with Resistive Touch
4D Pi Adapter Shield
5 way ribbon cable (Not A Programming Cable)
Display Module powered directly off the Raspberry Pi's 5V bus
Serial commands from the Raspberry Pi
Comprehensive Raspberry Pi Library (For Serial or ViSi-Genie)

Resources:

Pulse Sensor

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 13:27:04 GMT

Heart rate data can be really useful whether you're designing an exercise routine, studying your activity or anxiety levels or just want your shirt to blink with your heart beat. The problem is that heart rate can be difficult to measure. Luckily, the Pulse Sensor Amped can solve that problem!

The Pulse Sensor Amped is a plug-and-play heart-rate sensor for Arduino. It can be used by students, artists, athletes, makers, and game & mobile developers who want to easily incorporate live heart-rate data into their projects.It essentially combines a simple optical heart rate sensor with amplification and noise cancellation circuitry making it fast and easy to get reliable pulse readings. Also, it sips power with just 4mA current draw at 5V so it's great for mobile applications.

Simply clip the Pulse Sensor to your earlobe or finger tip and plug it into your 3 or 5 Volt Arduino and you're ready to read heart rate! The 24" cable on the Pulse Sensor is terminated with standard male headers so there's no soldering required. Of course Arduino example code is available as well as a Processing sketch for visualizing heart rate data.

Features:

Dimensions: 0.625" Diameter and 0.125" Thick

Kit Includes:

Pulse Sensor Board
24-inch Color-Coded Cable with Standard Male Headers
Ear Clip for Earlobe Heart Rate Measurement
Velcro Finger Strap
Transparent Stickers to Protect Sensor

Resources:

Pebble (Black) - The e-paper watch for Android and iPhone

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 16:28:57 GMT

***Note: Only one unit per customer.***

***Note: These units are the black version with the standard strap only.***

We are among the original Kickstarter backers of Pebble, which is why we have these before everyone else. It does, however, mean that we have a limited supply and we don't know when Pebble will go into full commercial production.

The Pebble is the first watch built for the 21st century. It's infinitely customizable, with beautiful downloadable watchfaces and useful internet-connected apps. Pebble connects to Android and iPhone smartphones using Bluetooth, alerting you with a silent vibration to incoming calls, emails and messages. It has been designed as a minimalist yet fashionable product that seamlessly blends into everyday life.

The SDK for pebble is now out, with this you will be able to create custom watch faces and interface with Android and iPhone.

Features:

Load apps using Bluetooth
144 x 168 pixel display black and white e-paper
Bluetooth 2.1+ EDR and 4.0 (Low Energy)
4 buttons
Vibrating motor
3 axis accelerometer with gesture detection
Backlight
Waterproof to 5 ATM fresh and saltwater
Takes standard 22mm watch straps
Distribute apps via Pebble watchapp store

Resources:

Android Apps:

iPhone Apps:

Pebble App

Pebble Developer page

Pebble Developers

DRV8834 Low-Voltage Stepper Motor Driver Carrier

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 14:16:28 GMT

The DRV8834 stepper motor driver carrier is a breakout board for TI�s DRV8834 microstepping bipolar stepper motor driver. The module has a pinout and interface that are nearly identical to those the A4988 carriers, so it can be used as a drop-in replacement for those boards in many applications. The DRV8834 operates from 2.5�10.8 V, allowing stepper motors to be powered with voltages that are too low for other drivers, and can deliver up to approximately 1.5 A per phase continuously without a heat sink or forced air flow (up to 2 A peak). It features adjustable current limiting, overcurrent and overtemperature protection, and six microstep resolutions (down to 1/32-step).

Features:

Simple step and direction control interface
Six different step resolutions: full-step, half-step, 1/4-step, 1/8-step, 1/16-step, and 1/32-step
Adjustable current control lets you set the maximum current output with a potentiometer, which lets you use voltages above your stepper motor’s rated voltage to achieve higher step rates
Intelligent chopping control that automatically selects the correct current decay mode (fast decay or slow decay)
2.5-10.8 V supply voltage range
Built-in regulator (no external logic voltage supply needed)
Can interface directly with 3.3 V and 5 V systems
Over-temperature thermal shutdown, over-current shutdown, and under-voltage lockout
Short-to-ground, short-to-supply, and shorted-load protection
4-layer, 2 oz copper PCB for improved heat dissipation
Exposed solderable ground pad below the driver IC on the bottom of the PCB

Resources:

Basic SPDT Relay Carrier with 5VDC Relay (Assembled)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 14:02:54 GMT

The Pololu basic relay carrier modules allow simple control of a single-pole, double-throw (SPDT) switch from low-voltage, low-current control signals. This item includes the basic carrier PCB with a soldered-in 5 V relay, 5.0 mm terminal blocks for the switch connections, and straight 0.1" male header for the control connections. The included relay is an Omron G5LE-14-DC5.

Features:

Dimensions: 1″ � 1.2″ � 0.9″
Weight: 16 g
Voltage: 5 V

Resources:

XBee 1mW Trace Antenna - Series 1 (802.15.4)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 16:56:46 GMT

This is the very popular 2.4GHz XBee module from Digi. These modules take the 802.15.4 stack (the basis for Zigbee) and wrap it into a simple to use serial command set. These modules allow very reliable and simple communication between microcontrollers, computers, systems, really anything with a serial port! Point to point and multi-point networks are supported.

Features:

3.3V @ 50mA
250kbps Max data rate
1mW output (+0dBm)
300ft (100m) range
Fully FCC certified
6 10-bit ADC input pins
8 digital IO pins
128-bit encryption
Local or over-air configuration
AT or API command set
Trace Antenna

Resources:

Calculator Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 13:06:10 GMT

The SpikenzieLabs Calculator Kit, is an electronics kit that makes a working pocket calculator that can add, subtract, multiply and divide. The electronics are easy to solder through-hole parts. Assembling the case is also part of the fun it's a stylish set of laser cut acrylic pieces.

The SpikenzieLabs Calculator Kit is another one of a kind, 100% original SpikenzieLabs kit.

Once assembled, this kit not only has the modern laser cut acrylic "wow", but a little bit of a throwback to the days before pocket calculators had LCD displays. Six "Old school" seven segment LED modules set in true SpikenzieLabs fashion.

Once the PCB is soldered, and the laser cut acrylic case is assembled, you will notice the buttons have an awesome click when pressed. A fully functional six digit calculator that is as useful as it is attention grabbing. Every maker should have one on their desks!

Put away that smartphone, it's time to use a real calculator again!

Features:

Add, subtract, multiply & divide
Easy through-hole soldering
No computer is required, the Calculator Kit comes pre-programmed
Easily modified using the Arduino IDE
Six bright red 7 segment LED modules
Powered by a single CR2032 battery
Instant-on
Automatic sleep
Extra long battery life
Layered laser cut acrylic case

Resources:

Note:

Tools and supplies required:

soldering iron
solder
masking tape
Hex driver

Mini Wifi Dongle - MN-WD552B

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 16:52:16 GMT

This is a small WiFi dongle that can add wireless capabilities to your projects through a USB port. It use a rtl8188cus WiFi chip from Realtek.

Note: For use on Raspberry Pi this will need to be connected to a powered USB hub as the Raspberry Pi cannot supply enough power to it.

Features:

150Mbps wireless transmission rate
20MHz/40MHz Bandwidth
Provides two methods of operation: Infrastructure and AD-Hoc
Quick secure setup, complies with WPS for worryfree wireless security.
Support 64/128-bit WEP, complies with 128 bit WPA, complies with 128 bit WPA standard(TKIP/AES), Supports MIC, IV
Expansion, Shared Key.
Authentication, IEEE 302.1X
Supports Windows 200/XP/Vista/Win 7OS
Seamlessly compatible with 802.11b/g/n devices

Resources:

This is the guide that we used to get this working on our Raspberry Pi with Raspbian Wheezy.

DSO Nano V3 - Pocket-Sized Digital Storage Oscilloscope

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 13:35:59 GMT

The DSO Nano v3 is a 32bit digital storage oscilloscope, based on ARM - M3. It�s compact, simple to operate and is suitable for school labs and electrical engineering. Version 3 of DSO Nano differs from version 2 in that it does not use a white plastic shell, rather a black metal shell that provides greater durability and protection.

Features:

Portable and lightweight
Display: Full Color 2.8" TFT LCD 65K 320�240
Analog bandwidth: 0 - 200KHz
Max sample rate: 1Msps 12Bits
Sample memory depth: 4096 Point
Waveform storage and playback
6 triggering modes
200Khz Analog Bandwidth
Complete measurement markers and signal characteristics
Built-in Signal Generator
Open Source
Horizontal sensitivity: adjustable with indicator
Vertical sensitivity: 10mV/Div~10V/Div (with �1 probe)/ 0.5V/Div~100V/Div (with �10 probe)
Vertical position: adjustable with indicator
Input impedance: >500KΩ
Max input voltage: 80Vpp (by �1 probe)
Coupling: DCs
Trig modes: Auto, Normal, Single, None, Scan and Fit; Rising/Falling edge/level trigger; Trig level adjustable with indicator; Trig sensitivity adjustable with indicator.
Waveform Functions: Auto measurement: frequency, cycle time, duty cycle, peak voltage, RMS voltage, Average voltage and DC voltage; Precise vertical/horizontal measurement with markers; Hold/Run.
Signal Generator: 10Hz~1MHz square wave
Waveform storage: Micro SD card
PC connection via USB: as SD card reader
Upgradeable by USB
Power supply: 500mAh 3.7V Lithium battery/ USB
Dimension (w/o probe) 91 x 62x 13mm

Resources:

Please visit the wiki page for more info about this product.

For technical support, please post your questions on the seeedstudio forum.

Electronic Speed Controller (30A)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 11:13:27 GMT

This is a bog standard electronic speed controller (ESC) for brushless motors - now with a T-Plug on the power lead, which can be cut off if required. These are ideal for our outrunner motors.

If you've never used one of these before - ESCs do something pretty simply (drive a motor), but the manner in which they do this is pretty complicated. Because the motors being driven can demand large amounts of current, and have high torque, the ESC has a number of safety features to provide 'soft starts' which reduce the risk of damage to your project or model. There are also other protection features, like over-heat and throttle signal loss. The ESC can also provide braking to the motor and also offers different types of throttle responses to fix fixed wing or rotary platforms.

Features:

Input voltage:DC 6-16V
BEC : 5V @ 2amp (max)
Running current:30A(Output: Continuous 30A, Burst 40A up to 10 Secs.)
Size: 46mm (L) * 26mm (W) * 7mm (H).
Weight: 25g.
Extreme low output resistance
Multiple protection features: Low-voltage, cut-off protection / over-heat protection
3 start modes: Normal, Soft, Super-soft
Throttle range can be programmed
Smooth, linear and precise throttle response.
Separate voltage regulator IC for onboad microprocessor
Supported motor speed (Max): 210000 RPM (2 poles), 70000 RPM (6 poles), 35000 RPM (12 poles)
T-Plug on power lead, which can be cut off if required

Resources:

Datasheet

Monochron Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 17:27:47 GMT

MONOCHRON� is a new clock kit from Adafruit. This easy kit is easily hackable to do whatever you wish.

Comes with: clock kit (includes all parts, programmed chips and LCD), coin battery, enclosure, 9VDC power supply for 220V or 110V

The firmware shipped with the kit is for the Retro Arcade Table Tennis for Two as shown in the video below. You'll need some basic soldering & hand tools that are necessary to assemble it. The good news is that this is a pretty basic kit and even if its your first soldering project, it shouldn't take more than 2 or 3 hours to put together

Features:

128x64 LCD (KS0108)
ATmega328 processor (with an 'arduino' stk500 bootloader)
Laser cut enclosure in black acrylic
Beeping/blinking alarm with 10 minute snooze
Battery backed-up real time clock (DS1307) keeps time even when power is lost for years
European/US and 12/24 hour time display as well as date
Completely open source hardware, all firmware, layout and CAD files
Plenty of space for mods, a prototyping area for soldering stuff in

Dimensions (including enclosure):

113mm x 83mm x 73mm

Resources:

For much more information including parts list, instructions, videos, etc. check out the MONOCHRON website

X650-V4 Quadcopter Frame-Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 13:54:38 GMT

***Note: This is a frame kit only, motors, propellers and supporting electronics are required to achieve flight.***

The X650-V4 Frame Kit is an unassembled lightweight carbon fibre quadcopter frame capable of carrying almost its own weight as payload. The kit includes all the required parts so that you can mount your motors, propellers and flight control electronics.

Features:

Frame Weight: 880g
Payload Capacity: 720g
Maximum Safe Takeoff Weight: 1600g
Motor mounting arms can be folded in for ease of travel.
A removable rain cover is included to protect electronics in flight.
Diameter (Pylons extended) - 650mm
Height - 300mm
Ground clearance - 160mm

Resources:

Please check your local laws or regulations regarding where you are allowed fly UAVs.

In the UK guidance is available from the Civilian Aviation Authority.

8-channel Bi-directional Logic Level Converter - TXB0108

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 10:06:03 GMT

Because the Arduino (and Basic Stamp) are 5V devices, and most modern sensors, displays, flash cards and modes are 3.3V-only, many makers find that they need to perform level shifting/conversion to protect the 3.3V device from 5V.

This chip performs bidirectional level shifting from pretty much any voltage to any voltage and will auto-detect the direction. Only thing that doesn't work well with this chip is i2c (because it uses strong pullups which confuse auto-direction sensor). If you need to use pullups, you can but they should be at least 50K ohm - the ones internal to AVRs/Arduino are about 100K ohm. 0.1uF caps have also been added onto both sides and a 10K pull-up resistor on the output enable pin so you can use it right out of the box.

Features:

Resources:

MicroSD Breakout

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 09:49:48 GMT

Not just a simple breakout board, this microSD adapter goes the extra mile - designed for ease of use.

To use with an Arduino, connect GND to ground, 5V to 5V, CLK to pin 13, DO to pin 12, DI to pin 11, and CS to pin 10.

Features:

Onboard 5v->3v regulator provides 150mA for power-hungry cards
3v level shifting means you can use this with ease on either 3v or 5v systems
Uses a proper level shifting chip, not resistors: less problems, and faster read/write access
Use 3 or 4 digital pins to read and write 2Gb+ of storage!
Activity LED lights up when the SD card is being read or written
Four #2 mounting holes
Push-push socket with card slightly over the edge of the PCB so its easy to insert and remove
Comes with 0.1" header (unattached) so you can get it on a breadboard or use wires - your choice
Tested and assembled at the Adafruit factory
Works great with Arduino, with tons of example code and wiring diagrams

Dimensions: 31.85mm x 25.4 x 3.75mm, Weight: 3.43g

Resources:

Weather Meters

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 14:35:36 GMT

Whether you're an agriculturalist, a professional meteorologist or a weather hobbyist, building your own weather station can be a really rewarding project. When you're measuring weather, however, you need some pretty specialized sensors. This kit represents the three core components of weather measurement: wind speed, wind direction and rainfall.

None of the sensors in this kit contain active electronics, instead they use sealed magnetic reed switches and magnets so you'll need to source a voltage to take any measurements. The positive side of this is that the sensors are easy to interpret:

The rain gauge is a self-emptying bucket-type rain gauge which activates a momentary button closure for each 0.28mm; of rain that are collected. The anemometer (wind speed meter) encodes the wind speed by simply closing a switch which each rotation. A wind speed of 1.492 MPH produces a switch closure once per second. Finally, the wind vane reports wind direction as a voltage which is produced by the combination of resistors inside the sensor. When a voltage is supplied, the voltage returned can be translated to any of 16 possible positions. For more information on how this works, as well as a table of voltage and resistance values for each position, refer to the manual below.

All of the included sensors are supplied with RJ11 terminated cables, for information on the pin-out of the cable, check out the datasheet.

Features:

Dimensions: 72cm x 20cm

Kit Includes:

Wind Vane
Cup Anemometer
Tipping Bucket Rain Gauge
Two-Part Mounting Mast
Rain Gauge Mounting Arm
Wind Meter Mounting Bar
2 x Mounting Clamps
4 x Zip Ties

Resources:

Note: Some basic assembly is required.

Datasheet

RaspiRobot Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 12:36:56 GMT

The Raspberry Pi packs plenty of processing power in a small and inexpensive package and that makes it perfect for robot brains! The only problem? The Raspberry Pi may have plenty of low-level hardware peripherals but motor controllers aren't one of them. That's why the RaspiRobot project got started. The RaspiRobot board is an expansion board for the Pi that turns it into a robot controller.

The board comes as a kit of through-hole parts which is easy to assemble with even a basic soldering iron and limited soldering experience. A step-by-step assembly guide is available to help you through the process.

After you've assembled it, simply plug the RaspiRobot Board into the GPIO port on the Raspberry Pi and it provides dual bi-directional motor controllers, two open collector outputs, two switch inputs, a pair of status LEDs and even a voltage regulator capable of powering the Pi using a battery source from 7-12VDC.

A Python library module makes it easy to interface with the robot hardware from your software on the Pi. The combination of Raspberry PI and the RaspiRobot Board makes it easier and more affordable than you might think to build a robot with computer vision, web access or even machine learning using the Linux operating system and Python code.

Features:

Dual Bi-directional Motor Control
Voltage Regulator powers Raspberry Pi from Batteries (7-12V)
2 x Open collector outputs (25mA)
2 x LEDs
2 x Switch inputs
5V Serial connector
3.3V I2C connector
Simple to use Python library module

Kit Includes:

RaspiRobot Board PCB
1 x L293DNE 4-Channel Motor Driver
1 x SN7406N Hex Inverter Buffer/Driver
1 x LM2940 Voltage Regulator
3 x 270 Ohm Resistors
1 x 470 Ohm Resistor
4 x 1K Resistors
1 x 220uF Capacitor
1 x 100uF Capacitor
1 x 0.1uF Capacitor
2 x Green 3mm LEDs
2 x 2-Pin Female Headers
2 x Male Pin Headers
2 x 4-Pin Female Headers
1 x Female Header 2x13
2 x 2-Pin 3.5mm Screw Terminals
1 x DC Barrel Jack Connector

Resources:

JST SH Jumper 4 Wire Assembly - 8"

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 12:20:15 GMT

This is a simple four wire cable. Great for jumping from board to board or just about anything else. These cables mate with the connectors listed below. They have bare wires on one end and a 4-pin JST SH connector on the other end with a mating socket. This cable is required for the Fingerprint Scanner - 5V TTL.

Features:

Length: 8"

Resources:

Datasheet (cable)
Connector

Wonder Beeps

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 12:06:27 GMT

The WonderBeeps board is a really simple way of adding wireless capabilities to your next project. Simply connect a standard electric mic, supply 3-5VDC and play the Beeps! The Beeps are transmitted at around 8Khz so they can be heard but they can be embedded within other sounds to make them almost unnoticed. Each transmission only takes about half a second. You can download the Beeps as files or install the WonderBeeps Android or iPhone App.

Each Beep corresponds to one of 16 pins on the WonderBeeps, which will toggle its state high or low when Beeped at. It's really that easy. The board also has a status LED, a logical level RS232 output that can be used to tell you which WonderBeeps number was received and some general prototyping space.

Features:

Dimensions: 2.5" x 2"
On-board Voltage Regulator can Accept Voltages from 3 to 5.5VDC
Will Consume No More than 30mA
Microphone Input to Connect Local or Remote Electric Mic
16 Logic Level Outputs Corresponding to the 16 Different Beeps
Status LED On-board
RS232 Logical Level Output Available to Report Beep Number
General Purpose Prototyping Area

Resources:

iMX233-OLinuXino-MINI-WiFi

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 11:24:53 GMT

iMX233-OLinuXino is an industrial grade single-board Linux computer in a very compact form.

Features:

iMX233 ARM926J processor at 454Mhz
64 MB RAM
SD-card connector for booting the Linux image
TV PAL/NTSC video output
3 USB Hi-apeed host
WIFI RTL8188CU module
Stereo Audio Input
Stereo Headphones Audio Output
Two Buttons
UEXT connector for connection of different peripherial modules
40 pin GPIO for connection of other hardware
Power supply input 6-16VDC
PCB dimensions: 3.70'' x 2.15'' (94.0mm x 54.6mm)
Nominal dimensions: 3.70'' x 2.65'' (94.0mm x 67.3mm)

Resources:

User's manual
GitHub OLINUXINO Project
Open Embedded Linux Kernel with TV-console and peripherial support, instructions how to make bootable SD-card here
How to Build Debian distribution instructions here and how to make bootable SD-card with Debian rootfs here
How to Build ARCH Linux distribution instructions here
How to build Linux Kernel with LTIB (obsolete) here
Open Embedded layer completed with support for iMX233-OLinuXino
Linux Kernel 3.X support work in progress
Android build on iMX233 instructions (in Spanish)
OpenOCD working script for iMX233 - tested with OpenOCD 0.6.0, ARM-USB-TINY-H and iMX233-SJTAG
BitBurner software - software used for burning the iMX233 fuses
Emulation of OLinuXino
OLinuXino forum for discussion and community support
Freenode #olimex irc channel for OLinuXino development discussions

iMX233-OLinuXino-MAXI

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 10:37:44 GMT

iMX233-OLinuXino is an industrial grade single-board Linux computer in a very compact form.

Features:

iMX233 ARM926J processor at 454Mhz
64 MB RAM
SD-card connector for booting the Linux image
TV PAL/NTSC video output
2 USB High Speed Hosts
Ethernet 100 Mbit
Stereo Audio Input
Stereo Headphones Audio Output
Two Buttons
UEXT connector for connection of different peripherial modules
40 pin GPIO for connection of other hardware
Board is in shape for fit inside Pactec JM42 plastic box
Power supply input 6-16VDC
PCB dimensions: 3.70'' x 2.15'' (94.0mm x 54.6mm)
Nominal dimensions: 3.70'' x 2.65'' (94.0mm x 67.3mm)

Resources:

User's manual
GitHub OLINUXINO Project
MOD-TC-MK2 working with OLinuXino iMX233 with explanation also includes the new firmware of MOD-IO2
MOD-IO2 working with OLinuXino iMX233 with explanation also includes the new firmware of MOD-IO2
GitHub OLINUXINO Project
Open Embedded Linux Kernel with TV-console and peripherial support, instructions how to make bootable SD-card here
How to Build Debian distribution instructions here and how to make bootable SD-card with Debian rootfs here
How to Build ARCH Linux distribution instructions here
How to build Linux Kernel with LTIB (obsolete) here
Open Embedded layer completed with support for iMX233-OLinuXino
Linux Kernel 3.X support work in progress
How to use a Wi-Fi dongle based on RealTek RTL8188CUS and RTL8192CU under ARCH Linux (thanks to Josh) v2 here
Android build on iMX233 instructions (in Spanish)
OpenOCD working script for iMX233 - tested with OpenOCD 0.6.0, ARM-USB-TINY-H and iMX233-SJTAG
BitBurner software - software used for burning the iMX233 fuses
Emulation of OLinuXino
OLinuXino forum for discussion and community support
Freenode #olimex irc channel for OLinuXino development discussions

Temperature Humidity Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 12:19:09 GMT

This is a Temp&Humidity sensor module for Gadgeteer. This Module was equipped with a SHT11 sensor, which measures relative humidity and temperature, and communicates with the processor via a 2-wire serial interface. Besides, the small size and special PCB layout makes this module have ultra low power consumption and excellent long-term stability.

Features

Socket Type X or Y.
Humidity accuracy: �3.5%RH;
Temperature accuracy: �0.5℃ @25℃
Communication : 2-wire serial interface
.NET Gadgeteer compatible cable is included.

LightSense Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 12:00:28 GMT

This sensor measures light intensity.

Features

Socket: A
Size: 17mm x 22mm
Weight: 2g
3.3V Consumption: <1mA
5V Consumption: 0mA
Includes one Gadgeteer cable

Resources

GasSense Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 11:52:44 GMT

GasSense is used to detect gasses, from alcohol and Carbon Monoxide to propane and other gasses. The module comes bundled with MQ3, sensitive to alcohol, ethanol and smoke. It is possible to replace MQ3 with any other sensor on the market, as long as the sensor heating element is 5V and it has the same standard pinout.

This module is designed with an on-board transistor to optionally control the sensor�s internal heat element. Through a 100K resistor divider the module returns an analog signal in accordance with the saturation of the air.

Features

Socket: A
Size: 32mm x 32mm
Weight: 9g
3.3V Consumption : TBD
5V Consumption: TBD
Includes one Gadgeteer cable

Compatible Sensor Replacements

MQ2: Methane, Butane, LPG, smoke.
MQ3: Alcohol, Ethanol, smoke. (Included)
MQ4: Methane, CNG Gas.
MQ5: Natural gas, LPG.
MQ6: LPG, butane gas.
MQ135: Air quality (Benzene, Alcohol, smoke.)
MQ136: Hydrogen Sulfide gas.
MQ137: Ammonia.
MQ138: Benzene, Toluene, Alcohol, Acetone, Propane, Formaldehyde gas, Hydrogen gas.

Resources

PIR Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 11:43:50 GMT

A Passive Infrared (PIR) sensor that is used to detect motion in the module's field of view.

Features

The sensitivity and holding time can be adjusted
Range: Approx. 7m / 23 feet
Angle: Less than 100 degrees
Socket: X or Y
Size: 46mm x 24mm
Weight: 12g
3.3V Consumption : 10mA
5V Consumption: 0mA
Includes one Gadgeteer cable

Resources

Serial Camera L2 Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 11:34:59 GMT

This Serial Camera (SerCam) Module can stream JPEG images to any gadgeteer mainboard with socket type U. Mainboards with >1MB RAM and JPEG support can view these images on LCD screens, send images on network or save to SD cards or USB drives. Mainboards with less memory and no JPEG support can still use the camera to send images over network or save on SD cards or USB drives.

Note: There is no difference in image quality between this camera and the L1 camera. Both lenses allow the camera to be manually focused by turning the lens. The L2 lens makes focusing easier, and makes placing the camera inside an enclosure much easier.

Features

Socket: U
Size: 47mm x 27mm
Lens Diameter: 14mm
Max Resolution: 640x480
Speed: 0.5FPS @ 320x240
Weight: 12g
3.3V Consumption : 55mA
5V Consumption: 0mA
Includes one Gadgeteer cable

Resources

Tutorial

EKG Electrodes

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 16:58:29 GMT

These are stretch band electrodes to be used with EKG measuring equipment. Each band has a good length of coiled lead. All three leads pass to a common 3 channel 3.5mm audio jack

The bands are adjustable and are marked L, R and DRL (direct right leg)

EKG Cardiography Shield

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 16:39:04 GMT

This is an EKG/EMG shield which allows Arduino like boards to capture Electrocardiography Electromyography signals. Any board with the Arduino footprint can use this shield, including the DUINOMITE, PINGUINO, and MAPLE. The shield opens new possibilities to experiment with bio feedback. You can monitor your heartbeat and log your pulse, recognize gestures by monitoring and analizyng the muscule activity as done in this project.

Features:

Stackable headers up to 6 channel may be stack and wired to A0-A6 analogue inputs
Calibration signal generation by D4/D9 digital output
Precise Trimmer potentiometer for calibration (all boards are shipped completely assembled, tested and calibrated so you should not do this unless you want to see how things works)
Input connector for normal or Active electrodes
Works with both 3.3V and 5V Arduino boards

Resources:

SHIELD-EKG-EMG Users manual Revision-C

Hardware

SHIELD-EKG-EMG schematic in PDF format released under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 United States License
SHIELD-EKG-EMG schematic and board in Eagle format released under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 United States License

Software

Electric guru monitoring software, created by Rob Sacks
Arduino example for EKG capture and interface to Electric Guru for OLIMEXINO-328/Arduino boards
Maple example for EKG capture and interface to Electric Guru for OLIMEXINO-STM32
Pinguino example for EKG capture and interface to Electric Guru for PIC32-PINGUINO/OTG/MX220 (refer to the readme and the comments in the code for more info)

Ultimate GPS Breakout - 66 channel w/10 Hz updates

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 16:30:38 GMT

***New! Version 3 comes with the latest module which has external antenna support and Pulse-Per-Second output***

The breakout is built around the MTK3339 chipset, a no-nonsense, high-quality GPS module that can track up to 22 satellites on 66 channels, has an excellent high-sensitivity receiver (-165 dB tracking!), and a built in antenna. It can do up to 10 location updates a second for high speed, high sensitivity logging or tracking. Power usage is incredibly low, only 20 mA during navigation.

Extra onboard features include : an ultra-low dropout 3.3V regulator so you can power it with 3.3-5VDC in, 5V level safe inputs, ENABLE pin so you can turn off the module using any microcontroller pin or switch, a footprint for optional CR1220 coin cell to keep the RTC running and allow warm starts and a tiny bright red LED. The LED blinks at about 1Hz while it's searching for satellites and blinks once every 15 seconds when a fix is found to conserve power. If you want to have an LED on all the time, we also provide the FIX signal out on a pin so you can put an external LED on.

Features:

-165 dBm sensitivity, 10 Hz updates, 66 channels
5V friendly design and only 20mA current draw
Breadboard friendly + two mounting holes
RTC battery-compatible
Built-in datalogging
PPS output on fix
>25Km altitude
Internal patch antenna + u.FL connector for external active antenna
Fix status LED

Two features that really stand out about version 3 MTK3339-based module is the external antenna functionality and the the built in data-logging capability. The module has a standard ceramic patch antenna that gives it -165 dB sensitivity, but when you want to have a bigger antenna, you can snap on any 3V active GPS antenna via the uFL connector. The module will automatically detect the active antenna and switch over! Most GPS antennas use SMA connectors so you may want to pick up one of our uFL to SMA adapters.

The other cool feature of the new MTK3339-based module (which we have tested with great success) is the built in datalogging ability. Since there is a microcontroller inside the module, with some empty FLASH memory, the newest firmware now allows sending commands to do internal logging to that FLASH. The only thing is that you do need to have a microcontroller send the "Start Logging" command. However, after that message is sent, the microcontroller can go to sleep and does not need to wake up to talk to the GPS anymore to reduce power consumption. The time, date, longitude, latitude, and height is logged every 15 seconds and only when there is a fix. The internal FLASH can store about 16 hours of data, it will automatically append data so you don't have to worry about accidentally losing data if power is lost. It is not possible to change what is logged and how often, as its hardcoded into the module but we found that this arrangement covers many of the most common GPS datalogging requirements.

This version of the Ultimate GPS has been tested in a high-altitude balloon, and it kept fix up to 27km!

Comes with one fully assembled and tested module, a piece of header you can solder to it for breadboarding, and a CR1220 coin cell holder. A CR1220 coin cell is not included.

A nice fancy library for GPS usage, with background parsing and can set and query the built in GPS logging capability (called LOCUS). A full tutorial is also available, which has tons of information about the module, how to use the data logger and more

Satellites: 22 tracking, 66 searching
Patch Antenna Size: 15mm x 15mm x 4mm
Update rate: 1 to 10 Hz
Position Accuracy: 1.8 meters
Velocity Accuracy: 0.1 meters/s
Warm/cold start: 34 seconds
Acquisition sensitivity: -145 dBm
Tracking sensitivity: -165 dBm
Maximum Altitude for PA6H: tested at 27,000 Meters
Maximum Velocity: 515m/s
Vin range: 3.0-5.5VDC
MTK3339 Operating current: 25mA tracking, 20 mA current draw during navigation
Output: NMEA 0183, 9600 baud default
DGPS/WAAS/EGNOS supported
FCC E911 compliance and AGPS support (Offline mode : EPO valid up to 14 days )
Up to 210 PRN channels
Jammer detection and reduction
Multi-path detection and compensation
Firmware version 5153

Breakout board details:

Weight (not including coin cell or holder): 8.5g
Dimensions (not including coin cell or holder): 25.5mm x 35mm x 6.5mm / 1.0" x 1.35" x 0.25"

Resources:

MTK3329/MTK3339 command set sheet for changing the fix data rate, baud rate, sentence outputs, etc!
Datasheet for the PA6B (MTK3329) GPS module itself - used in version 1 of this module
Datasheet for the PA6C (MTK3339) GPS module itself - used in version 2 of this module
Datasheet for the PA6H (MTK3339) GPS module itself - used in version 3 of this module
MT3339 GPS PC Tool (windows only) and the PC Tool manual
Mini GPS tool (windows only)

FEZ Cerberus Basic Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 15:34:11 GMT

The FEZ Cerberus Basic Kit includes the essential modules needed to run FEZ Cerberus mainboard.

The kit includes:

Fez Cerberus Mainboard
USB Client SP Module
LED7R Module
Joystick Module
USB Cable
Reusable Plastic Storage Box

The FEZ Cerberus Mainboard is a 100% open source hardware .NET Gadgeteer-compatible mainboard with 168Mhz 32bit Cortex M4 processor with floating point, 1MB FLASH and 192KB RAM. This tiny mainboard has plenty of peripherals exposed on 8 sockets. A perfect match for robotics, quadcopters and cloud-sensor-monitoring. The 112KBytes of heap memory offers plenty of memory needed for about any network or internet connected application.

For more information about .NET Gadgeteer visit:
http://www.netmf.com/gadgeteer/

Design sources and porting info are found on this page. This page also lists the current firmware state, not all features are implemented yet.

Features:

Resources:

FEZ Cobra II (WiFi)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 15:34:45 GMT

The FEZ Cobra II (WiFi) is an OEM board running .NET Micro Framework, which allows users to program the board from Microsoft's Visual Studio using C# or Visual Basic. With a G120 Module at its core, users can use GHI's premium library features on the FEZ Cobra II.

Unlike most offers on the market, the WiFi support on G120 is a real socket connection, not a WiFi to serial bridge. Developers can take advantage of all .NET Micro Framework's built-in features such as SSL, FTP and HTTP.

The WiFi version of FEZ Cobra II uses RS9110-N-11-22-04 with on-board antenna.

FEZ Cobra II brings the display signals to standard Gadgeteer sockets. This allows for an easy way to add a VGA output or one of the Gadgeteer displays. Four other Gadgeteer sockets have been added to simplify the addition of most Gadgeteer modules. You can even add wired Ethernet using the optional ENC28 Module.

The side of FEZ Cobra II has over 40 digital I/Os multiplexed with UARTs, SPI, I2C, CAN, Analog inputs and Analog outputs.

Features:

800mA-capable power supply that run 7V to 30V
Power consumption: TBA
-40 to 85 Celsius operational
Free USB cable included

Resources:

Design Files

Dimensions

Schematic

FEZ Cobra II (ECO)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 15:20:04 GMT

The FEZ Cobra II (Eco) is an OEM board running .NET Micro Framework, which allows users to program the board from Microsoft's Visual Studio using C# or Visual Basic. With a G120 Module at its core, users can use GHI's premium library features on the FEZ Cobra II.

The side of FEZ Cobra II has over 40 digital I/Os multiplexed with UARTs, SPI, I2C, CAN, Analog inputs and Analog outputs.

Features:

800mA-capable power supply that run 7V to 30V
Power consumption: TBA
-40 to 85 Celsius operational
Free USB cable included

Resources:

Design Files

Dimensions

Schematic

Raspberry Pi - Model A

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 16:05:14 GMT

The Raspberry Pi is a credit-card sized computer that plugs into your TV and a keyboard. It can be used for many of the things that your desktop PC does, like spreadsheets, word-processing and games. It also plays high-definition video.

Several versions of Linux can run on the Raspberry Pi from an SD card (not supplied). You may also need a video lead, usb mouse and usb keyboard to use this board at its full potential. Power is supplied through a micro-USB cable, which could, in theory, come direct from a PC powered USB port!

The Model A is a stripped-down version of the Model B Raspberry Pi, with no Ethernet, one USB port and 256MB RAM.

Stripping down the Model A means it has two important differences from the Model B: it's cheaper, and it consumes roughly a third of the power of the Model B, which is of key importance to those of you wanting to run projects from a battery or solar power: robots, sensor platforms in remote locations, Wi-Fi repeaters attached to the local bus stop and so forth.

Raspberry Pi are working on software to get the power consumption even lower.

Features:

SoC Broadcom BCM2835 (CPU, GPU, DSP, and SDRAM)
CPU: 700 MHz ARM1176JZF-S core (ARM11 family)
GPU: Broadcom VideoCore IV, OpenGL ES 2.0, 1080p30 h.264/MPEG-4 AVC high-profile decoder
Memory (SDRAM): 256 Megabytes (MiB)
Video outputs: Composite RCA, HDMI
Audio outputs: 3.5 mm jack, HDMI
Onboard storage: SD, MMC, SDIO card slot
Storage via SD/ MMC/ SDIO card slot

Resources:

Raspberry Pi Proto Plate

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 15:47:20 GMT

This is an add on prototyping board for the Raspberry Pi which can snap onto the Pi PCB (and is removable later if you wish) and gives you all sorts of prototyping goodness to make building on top of the Pi super easy.

Features:

Large prototyping area, half 'breadboard' style and half of which is 'perfboard' style so you can wire up DIP chips and sensors
All the GPIO/I2C/SPI and power pins are broken out to 0.1" strips
All of the breakout pins are also connected to labelled 3.5mm screw-terminal blocks.
4-block terminal block broken out to 0.1" pads for general non-GPIO wiring.
SOIC surface mount chip breakout area

This kit comes as a set of parts, a little soldering is required to put it together but its really easy, even a beginner can do it in 15-20 minutes or so.

Resources:

MPR121 Capacitive Touch Sensor Breakout Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 15:09:22 GMT

This is a breakout board for Freescale's MPR121QR2. The MPR121 is a capacitive touch sensor controller driven by an I2C interface. The chip can control up to twelve individual electrodes, as well as a simulated thirteenth electrode. The MPR121 also features eight LED driving pins. When these pins are not configured as electrodes, they may be used to drive LEDs.

There a four jumpers on the bottom of the board, all of which are set (closed) by default. An address jumper ties the ADD pin to ground, meaning the default I2C address of the chip will be 0x5A. If you need to change the address of the chip (by shorting ADD to a different pin), make sure you open the jumper first. Jumpers also connect SDA, SCL and the interrupt pin to 10k pull-up resistors. If you don't require the pull-up resistors you can open the jumpers by cutting the trace connecting them.

There is no regulation on the board, so the voltage supplied should be between 2.5 and 3.6VDC. The VREG pin is connected through a 0.1uF capacitor to ground, which means, unless you modify the board, you can't operate the MPR121 in low-supply voltage mode (1.71-2.75VDC).

Features:

Resources:

Schematic
Eagle Files
Datasheet (MPR121QR)
Example Code (ATmega328)
Freescale's Product Page (for Application Notes, etc.)
Bildr Tutorial

Fingerprint Scanner - 5V TTL

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 11:07:13 GMT

Fingerprint scanners are awesome. Why use a key when you have one right at the tip of your finger? Unfortunately, they're usually unreliable or difficult to implement. Well not anymore! This great fingerprint module communicates over TTL Serial so you can easily embed it into your next project.

The module itself does all of the heavy lifting behind reading and identifying the fingerprints with an on-board optical sensor and 32-bit CPU. All you need to do is send it simple commands. To get started, just register each fingerprint that you want to store by sending the corresponding command and pressing your finger against the reader three times. The fingerprint scanner can store up to 20 different fingerprints and the database of prints can even be downloaded from the unit and distributed to other modules. As well as the fingerprint 'template' the analysed version of the print, you can also retrieve the image of a fingerprint and even pull raw images from the optical sensor!

The module is small and easy to mount using two mounting tabs on the side of the sensor. The on-board JST-SH connector has four signals: Vcc, GND, Tx, Rx. Demo software for PC is available in the documents below, simply connect the module to your computer using an FTDI Breakout and start the software to read fingerprints!

Dimensions: 37 x 17 x 9.5 mm

Features:

High-Speed, High-Accuracy Fingerprint Identification using the SmackFinger 3.0 Algorithm
Download Fingerprint Images from the Device
Read and Write Fingerprint Templates and Databases
Simple UART protocol (Default 115200 baud)
Capable of 1:1 Verification and 1:N Identification

Documents:

Resources:

mbed Application Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 15:30:22 GMT

This is a peripherals / dev board for the mbed 1768 - it's made by ARM, the people behind mbed.

Features:

4 direction+click mini joystick
Speaker
LAN port
USB mini B socket
USB A socket
2 x trip pots
2 x 3.5mm audio jacks for analog in / out
LM7580 temp sensor
RGB LED
2 x PWM outputs
MMA7660 Accelerometer
128x32 LCD display
Zigbee / Xbee socket
mbed socket (of course!)

Pin Mapping

p5	LCD MOSI	p18	Analog OUT
p6	LCD RESET	p19	Pot1
p7	LCD SCK	p20	Pot2
p8	LCD A0	p21	PWM1
p11	LCD nCS	p22	PWM2
p9	Zigbee TX	p23	LED RED
p10	Zigbee RX	p24	LED GREEN
p29	Zigbee STATUS	p25	LED BLUE
p30	Zigbee nRESET	p26	Speaker
p12	Joystick DOWN	p27	Accel I2C SCL
p13	Joystick LEFT	p28	Accel I2C SDA
p14	Joystick CENTER	Address 0x98
p15	Joystick UP	p27	Temp I2C SCL
p16	Joystick RIGHT	p28	Temp I2C SCA
p17	Analog IN	Address 0x90

Resources:

LinkSprite JPEG Color Camera TTL Interface - Infrared

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 15:34:48 GMT

This infra-red serial port camera module can capture high resolution pictures and transport them over TTL serial, making it ideal for embedded applications. And it can do it in the dark, thanks to infrared LEDs. The infrared feature even has a built-in light sensor, so as soon as the ambient light gets low enough, it will automatically turn on the infrared LEDs for night vision!

Features:

Dimensions: 45.6x30x28mm
VGA/QVGA/160*120 resolution
Support capture JPEG from serial port
Default baud rate of serial port is 38400
DC 3.3V or 5V power supply
Current consumption: 80-100mA
The pin near C03 is AV output pin, which is an analog output pin

Resources:

Getting Started with RFID

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 08 Feb 2013 13:00:10 GMT

If you want to experiment with radio frequency identification (RFID), this book is the perfect place to start. All you need is some experience with Arduino and Processing, the ability to connect basic circuits on a breadboard with jumper wire�and you�re good to go. You�ll be guided through three hands-on projects that let you experience RFID in action.

RFID is used in various applications, such as identifying store items or accessing a toll road with an EZPass system. After you build each of the book�s projects in succession, you�ll have the knowledge to pursue RFID applications of your own.

Use Processing to get a sense of how RFID readers behave
Connect Arduino to an RFID reader and discover how to use RFID tags as keys
Automate your office or home, using RFID to turn on systems when you�re present, and turn them off when you leave
Get a complete list of materials you need, along with code samples and helpful illustrations
Tackle each project with easy-to-follow explanations of how the code works

Environmental Monitoring with Arduino

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 16:54:51 GMT

After the devastating tsunami in 2011, DYIers in Japan built their own devices to detect radiation levels, then posted their finding on the Internet. Right now, thousands of people worldwide are tracking environmental conditions with monitoring devices they�ve built themselves. You can do it too!

This inspiring guide shows you how to use Arduino to create gadgets for measuring noise, weather, electromagnetic interference (EMI), water purity, and more. You�ll also learn how to collect and share your own data, and you can experiment by creating your own variations of the gadgets covered in the book. If you�re new to DIY electronics, the first chapter offers a primer on electronic circuits and Arduino programming.

Features:

Use a special microphone and amplifier to build a reliable noise monitor
Create a gadget to detect energy vampires: devices that use electricity when they�re �off�
Examine water purity with a water conductivity device
Measure weather basics such as temperature, humidity, and dew point
Build your own Geiger counter to gauge background radiation
Extend Arduino with an Ethernet shield�and put your data on the Internet
Share your weather and radiation data online through Pachube

Resources:

1010-OTG

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 16:27:23 GMT

***NOTE : Due to EU copyright restrictions - we're not able to call this device by its proper name.***

Are you a Java developer looking to add advanced hardware I/O capabilities to your Android or PC application? Well then the 1010-OTG is for you! The 1010-OTG (pronounced 'yo-yo-O-T-G') is a development board specially designed to do just that. It features a PIC microcontroller which acts like a bridge that connects an app on your PC or Android device to low-level peripherals like GPIO, PWM, ADC, I2C, SPI, and UART. An app-level library helps you write control code for these low level peripherals in the same way you'd write any other Java app!

What separates the 1010-OTG from previous 1010 boards is the ability to leverage the USB On-The-Go specification to connect as a host or an accessory. There are several ways to connect the 1010 to your Java app. If the app is running on your Android device, the 1010-OTG will act as a USB host and supply charging current to your device (meaning the 1010-OTG will need its own power source). If your app is running on a Windows, Linux or OSX machine, the 1010-OTG will assume device mode and present itself as a virtual serial port. When in device mode, the 1010-OTG can be powered by the host! Connecting a USB Bluetooth dongle will cause the 1010-OTG to show up as a Bluetooth serial connection so you can go wireless!

A switch on the board can be used to force the 1010-OTG into host mode, but most of the time the board can be left in 'auto' mode and it will detect its role in the connection. We're now shipping the 1010-OTG board loaded with the V4.00 bootloader and the V3.30 application firmware. New application firmware is frequently released, and can be upgraded without needing a programmer using the 1010Dude application.

The board includes a JST connector for attaching a LiPo battery and there are several pin headers broken out for voltage and ground access. A trimpot on the board allows you to adjust the charge current used when the 1010-OTG is acting as a host. A USB-A to micro-A OTG cable is included which will let you connect your android device to the micro-USB port on the board using the cable that came with your android device.

Note: This product is a collaboration with Ytai Ben-Tsvi, who has elected to forfeit his product royalties to reduce the retail price. Thanks Ytai!

Includes:

1010-OTG Development Board
USB Female-A to Micro-A Cable

Features:

Resources:

EggBot Deluxe Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 14:39:14 GMT

The EggBot is back and it's been improved! The classic open-source art robot that captured our hearts (by drawing on spherical or egg-shaped objects up to 4.25 inches in diameter) has been upgraded with some of the most popular kits from the EggBot line-up. As always, the EggBot is still super adjustable and designed to draw on all kinds of things that are normally "impossible" to print on. You can draw on anything like golf balls, light bulbs, mini pumpkins, and even things like wine glasses (with a bit of work).

The new Deluxe Kit comes tricked out with the precision egg coupler, a 5/64" balldriver, a bracket to hang your hex driver on and all brass thumbscrews! The precision egg coupler provides improved grip over the original polyurethane cup design so you can print with more accuracy and all brass thumbscrews keep everything tight and sturdy.

Use EggBot to personalize Christmas ornaments or impress your friends with masterpiece Easter eggs. The EggBot is not just a cool gadget; it's also a great introduction to do-it-yourself robotics. If you're interested in building a 3D printer or CNC mill, this might be a good way to learn the basics! All of the electronics and software are designed to be hackable and re-purposed, so you could easily computer control an Etch-a-Sketch or create something totally new.

The EggBot software allows you to control the bot from within Inkscape (a superb free/open source illustration program) on Mac, Windows, or Linux computers. You can draw an image directly, trace a photograph, or import designs from other programs. You can also control the EggBot directly from many other programs that have the ability to send serial commands over a USB port.

Notes: Most of the photos are actually of the standard model, not the deluxe kit. We'll have photos of the Deluxe Kit posted ASAP.

Includes:

EggBot Chassis
2 x Stepper Motors
Servo Motor
EggBot Controller Board
Power Supply (***US Plug Version***)
USB Cable
Sharpie Pen
Upgraded Hardware with Brass Thumbscrews
Precision Egg Coupler
5/64" Balldriver
Hex Driver Bracket

Features:

Resources:

Fast and Effective Embedded Systems Design

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 13:45:13 GMT

This book is the closest we've seen to a 'bible' for the mbed board. Using coded examples, the book goes through, in great detail, how to use the mbed's on-board hardware resources, and how to interface the board with common devices like accelerometers and temperature sensors. Many of the devices discussed, including the mbed 1768 are available from this store (see related product section below).

It's good to point out that this *is not* a C/C++ programming manual, and some knowledge of the language is needed to get the most out of the book.

Helpfully, the book does go into some of the theory underpinning the methods that it describes - and many explanations are given clear diagrams or helpful illustrations.

The core subject of the book is 'rapid prototyping' - the purpose that the mbed was created for.

With this book you can expect to learn about subjects including :

The mbed 1768 and the online compiler
Digital inputs / outputs
Using an opto sensor and 7 segment display
Switching larger DC loads
Generating a sine wave
Using servos with the mbed
Using multiple files in C/C++
Serial communication and i2c
Digital Filtering / DSP
Local and internet communications
Using a digital compass

MPL3115A2 Altitude/Pressure Sensor Breakout

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 13:47:29 GMT

The MPL3115A2 is a MEMS pressure sensor that provides Altitude data to within 30cm (with oversampling enabled). The sensor outputs are digitized by a high resolution 24-bit ADC and transmitted over I2C, meaning it's easy to interface with most controllers. Pressure output can be resolved with output in fractions of a Pascal, and Altitude can be resolved in fractions of a meter. The device also provides 12-bit temperature measurements in degrees Celsius.

This breakout board makes it easy to prototype using this tiny device by breaking out the necessary pins to a standard 0.1" spaced header. The board also has all of the passive components needed to get the device functioning, so you can simply connect it to something that talks I2C and get to work!

Features:

1.95V to 3.6V Supply Voltage, internally regulated by LDO
1.6V to 3.6V Digital Interface Supply Voltage
Fully Compensated internally
Direct Reading, Compensated
- Pressure: 20-bit measurement (Pascals)
- Altitude: 20-bit measurement (meters)
- Temperature: 12-bit measurement (degrees Celsius)
Programmable Events
Autonomous Data Acquisition
Resolution down to 1 ft. / 30 cm
32 Sample FIFO
Ability to log data up to 12 days using the FIFO
1 second to 9 hour data acquisition rate
I2C digital output interface (operates up to 400 kHz)

Resources:

Seeeduino Stalker v2

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 21 Jan 2013 17:11:24 GMT

The Stalker is a cost effective, flexible sensor / data logging platform. It can be used as a stand-alone device, or as a shield with an Arduino Uno. Key features include an Xbee radio module socket, and a battery supported real time clock, for time-stamping data samples. If you need to store data on-device, rather than transmitting it, there is a uSD socket.

In addition, the board has built in connectors for a LiPo battery, and for a solar panel. There is also a dedicated charge management chip to handle the battery.

Please note that the xbee module, uSD card and CR2023 coin battery are not included with this board.

***Please note that The IO Ports work in 0~3.3v level only.***

Features

Version 2.3 Hardware
Compatible with Seeeduino (I/O ports use 3.3V Logic). Can be programmed with Arduino Processing language.
Onboard microcontroller: ATMega328P
Onboard Real Time Clock chip (Socket for a CR2032 Cell which acts as a backup power source for RTC)
Onboard temperature sensor
Serial interface with DTR for auto reset during programming when operating in standalone mode.
microSD card socket
I2C Pin header
User LED on Digital pin 13(PB5)
Reset buttons for XBee Modules and ATMega328P
(X)Bee series socket - 2*10 pin 2.0mm pitch
61mm x 93mm board size

Makey Makey - Standard Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 12:49:04 GMT

Note: Now included with the MaKey MaKey is a USB cable, pack of jumper wires as well as a pack of alligator clips!

Features:

1 x MaKey MaKey HID Board
1 x Alligator Clip Pack
1 x Mini-USB Cable
1x Jumper Wire Pack

Resources:

Schematic
Eagle Files
Github Home (Find the latest MaKey MaKey sketch here)
Getting Started Guide
Driver (For Windows users)
Arduino Addon (Unzip to your Arduino sketchbook directory)
MaKey MaKey Site

Netduino 2 .NET / C# development board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 15:15:39 GMT

The Netduino 2 is a huge upgrade on the old Netduino. It�s perfect for 10,000�s of existing Netduino users and, courtesy of MiniJTAG, an amazing value for C/C++ hackers as well!

Netduino 2 has three times the speed (120MHz) and 50% more code space (192KB) than the old Netduino.

This new hardware has a ton of new features and is compatible with even more Arduino shields than before�including �Rev C� Arduino shields and higher-current shields.

New features

120MHz Cortex-M3 microcontroller
192KB of code space and 60KB+ of RAM enables even richer apps
6+ PWMs to support servo/motor shields (2 more than before, and 1-2 can be used as 32-bit PWM)
Onboard blue LED is now also PWM-enabled
12-bit ADC (upgrade from 10-bit)
Bulk smoothing caps on 3.3V rail also provide enhanced stability for ADC readings
4 UARTs/SerialPorts (2 more than before)
3.3V DC-DC switch (upgrade from LDO regulator)
Power headers can be turned on/off via software�to reset or shut down shields on the fly.
Native C/C++ hackers: MiniJTAG and integrated bootloader deployment, can use full 768KB of flash and 128KB RAM

The Netduino 2 has been designed to be backwards compatible with Netduino 1 for most applications. Most existing Netduino apps should work as-is. It maintains 5V tolerance for digital I/O, so it does not require new shields (unlike Arduino Due for example, which requires 3.3V/R3 shields).

Netduino 2 is also perfect for C/C++ hackers who are stepping up from Arduino or other electronics boards. It has 50% more flash, 42% more speed, and 33% more RAM than Arduino Due.

PX4IO AR.Parrot Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 14:53:38 GMT

PX4IOAR is an electrical and mechanical adapter board. Includes everything needed to put PX4FMU on an AR.Drone. This means that you can take out the electronics included with AR.Drone, install the PX4 boards and you're ready to fly using their frame and the PX4 sensors! PX4 is an expandable, modular system comprising the PX4FMU Flight Management Unit (autopilot) and a number of optional interface modules (including PX4IOAR and PX4IO).

Features:

Complete mechanical kit, requires only an AR.Drone 1.0 or 2.0 frame, motors and propellers
Replaces the original AR.Drone main electronics and allows RC flight and autopilot development
Mechanical adapter board decouples the whole electronics and battery from vibrations
Battery mount / velcro straps included
5V/2.25A BEC power, relay, buzzer
Reverse polarity protected, main switch
XBee / Lairdtech radio slot
Includes necessary hardware to complete installation (spacers, bolts, etc)
Board weight, 17.70g

Resources:

AR.Drone is a trademark of Parrot SA, Paris. The PX4IOAR board is compatible to the AR.Drone 1.0 and 2.0 frame and motor controllers. PX4 is not affiliated to Parrot. PX4IOAR is not using any Parrot technology or software.

PX4 Autopilot IO Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 14:39:04 GMT

PX4IO is the Input/Output module for fixed-wing aircraft and rovers with four relays, servo failsafe and manual override. PX4 is an expandable, modular system comprising the PX4FMU Flight Management Unit (autopilot) and a number of optional interface modules (including PX4IO and PX4IOAR).

Features:

24 Mhz Cortex-M3 failsafe microcontroller
6-18V input, 5V / 2 A output
Reverse polarity protection on all power inputs
8 high-speed servo outputs (up to 400 Hz)
Futaba S.Bus compatible servo output
PPM, Spektrum and Futaba S.Bus compatible receiver inputs (sum signal format, all channels on one connector)
2x 0-40 V, 1 A solid-state relays (MOSFET)
2x 5 V, 500mA current-limited, switched 5V power outputs
Analog port with voltage divider (differential pressure sensors)
PX4 Expansion bus (stacked on PX4FMU)- The kit includes four nylon spacers, a power connector (not soldered), 3x9 pin headers, 3x4 pin headers and a power cable that can be soldered directly to the board or to said connector.
Board weight, 9.62 gr

Resources:

Getting Started with the Raspberry Pi

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 11:57:27 GMT

What can you do with the Raspberry Pi, a �25 computer the size of a credit card? All sorts of things! If you�re learning how to program, or looking to build new electronic projects, this hands-on guide will show you just how valuable this flexible little platform can be.

This book takes you step-by-step through many fun and educational possibilities. Take advantage of several preloaded programming languages. Use the Raspberry Pi with Arduino. Create Internet-connected projects. Play with multimedia. With Raspberry Pi, you can do all of this and more.

Features:

Get acquainted with hardware features on the Pi�s board
Learn enough Linux to move around the operating system
Pick up the basics of Python and Scratch�and start programming
Draw graphics, play sounds, and handle mouse events with the Pygame framework
Use the Pi�s input and output pins to do some hardware hacking
Discover how Arduino and the Raspberry Pi complement each other
Integrate USB webcams and other peripherals into your projects
Create your own Pi-based web server with Python

Resources:

XBee 2mW Module with PCB Antenna (Series ZB)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 10:50:11 GMT

This is the new 2.4GHz XBee XB24-Z7PIT-004 module from Digi. It is a replacement for the chip antenna module which is now obsolete.

Series ZB improves on the power output and data protocol. These modules take the 802.15.4 stack (the basis for Zigbee) and wrap it into a simple to use serial command set. These modules allow a very reliable and simple communication between microcontrollers, computers, systems, really anything with a serial port! Point to point and multi-point networks are supported.

Please Note: Series 1, Series 2.5 and Series ZB Xbee modules have the same pin-out. However none of the series can communicate with each other. Despite this, XBee and XBee-PRO ZB Modules are compatible with other devices that use XBee "ZB" technology. These include ConnectPort X gateways, XBee and XBee-PRO Adapters, XBee Wall Routers, XBee Sensors, and other products when designated with the "ZB" product name. Devices that do not have the "ZB" product name, including Digi's line of DigiMesh and 802.15.4 XBee products, are not compatible with XBee and XBee-PRO ZB Modules.

Features:

3.3V @ 40mA
250kbps Max data rate
2mW output (+3dBm)
400ft (120m) range
Built-in antenna
Fully FCC certified
6 10-bit ADC input pins
8 digital IO pins
128-bit encryption
Local or over-air configuration
AT or API command set

Resources:

We recommend the book Building Wireless Sensor Networks for explanation and practice of using XBee modules to build networks.

Prototino Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 03 Jan 2013 14:10:54 GMT

The Prototino is an Arduino clone with a built in prototyping area.

Designed to make a permanent version of your project once you have perfected it on a breadboard, less the expense of embedding and dedicating your original Arduino. Because the prototyping area is integrated with the microprocessor on one board, your project will have fewer boards and wires and be more reliable and robust.

***Please remember that this kit requires assembly using a soldering iron and basic tools. You can see links to these in the related products section below.***

Features:

Comes with the ATmega328 pre-loaded with bootloader
Works with the ATmega168 or ATmega328
Large breadboard like prototyping area to make the transition from breadboard to Prototino easy
On-board 5 volt voltage regulator rated up to 1 amp
On-board ICSP connector
Works with the Arduino software without any modification to load your sketches
Power LED
All digital and analog pins are brought out to the prototyping area in a straight line
Four corner 3mm mounting holes, to secure your project

Resources:

Prototino web page

Stepper Motor Bracket

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 28 Dec 2012 14:53:28 GMT

This is a metal bracket for use with our aluminium T-slot beams and NEMA-17 stepper motors

The bracket can be used to firmly mount a stepper motor onto a T-slot beam for use as a drive motor - This allows all sorts of numerically controlled, motor driven projects to be created easily and without 'hacking' bits of metal around!

Features:

2.5mm thick
Edges chamfered to 45 degrees
Fits NEMA-17 motors
Fixing holes for 2 beams

Resources:

Hub-ee Micromatch Lead (100mm)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 14:57:38 GMT

This is an 8 way ribbon cable lead, terminated with micro-match IDC connectors at each end. It is designed to be used with the Hub-ee series of robotic wheels.

Features:

Resources:

Hub-ee Powered Robotic Wheel (120:1)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 14:54:47 GMT

Concealed inside this clever robotics wheel is a motor, a quadrature encoder, and a motor driver. A small 'micromatch' port on the wheel hub gives access to power and logic lines. The Hub-EE comes supplied with a plastic bracket that you can use to fix it to things.

The wheel is 60mm overall diameter including tyre x 20mm wide. The gear ratio is 120:1 with metric M3 sized screw mounting holes.

Please note - no connecting lead is supplied with this product - Please see the 'related products' section for a link to the available leads.

Features:

Motor @7V: 170RPM no load. 950mA stall 100mA No load.
Quadrature Encoder: 32 stripe sensor with 3.3V logic outputs for Channel A and B - Max 128 counts per revolution.
Tyre can be removed and wheel used with tank track (not supplied)

Resources:

HUB-ee BMD-S wheel - Schematics and electronics - how to make it go!
Multiwheel - Connecting several wheels to one cable
General mechanical information - How do you attach it to things, take it apart and put it together again?
CAD Data - If you want to design a robot with HUB-ee wheels in a CAD package you might find these 3D files helpful.
HUB-ee BMD-S Arduino Library (Alpha) - This provides a few simple functions for controlling the wheel with an Arduino (but not reading sensors)

Text to Speech chip for SpeakJet - TTS256

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 14 Dec 2012 11:14:22 GMT

The TTS256 is an 8-bit microprocessor programmed with letter-to-sound rules. This built-in algorithm allows for the automatic real-time translation of English ASCII characters into allophone addresses compatible with the Magnevation SpeakJet Speech Synthesizer IC.

The TTS256 is offered in a through-hole, 28-pin package. Supplied power should be +5V. Very few connections are required for operation:

	Pin#
5	TX (sends serial data to host)
14	Vss (ground)
18	RX (received serial data from host)	15	Buffer Half Full
20	Ready	10	RX
24	SJ_TX
28	Vdd (+5V)

The TTS256 contains over 600 rules for pronouncing English text. While it does a pretty good job of the task, with a less than 5% error rate in most sentences, it will mispronounce some words. Often times, some creative spelling will help.

Features:

Narrow 28-pin DIP
Companion chip to Magnevation SpeakJet and Savage Innovations SpeakGin
Built in 600 Rule database
9600bps (8-N-1) serial interface (non-inverted TTL level)
Generates speech codes from ASCII text
Compatible with Arduino, Basic Stamp, OOPic, Pic, and any processor with serial output

Resources:

Datasheet (note: The correct character to append to the end of text is 0x0D and not 0x0A as listed)
Tutorial (Adding the TTS256 to the SparkFun VoiceBox Shield)

Bar Graph Breakout Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 12 Dec 2012 12:04:20 GMT

Got too much data for 10 measly segments? This kit contains a PCB and all the parts needed to build a 30-LED bargraph that can be driven by an Arduino or other microcontroller.

This kit uses 74HC595 shift registers and 10-Segment bargraph modules to create the display. We supply one green, one yellow, and one red module for 'safe / caution / DANGER!' displays. The display is easily driven by a microcontroller using an SSI interface, and you have individual control over every LED.

Note: This kit comes unassembled and requires basic soldering skills.

Dimensions: 3" x 2"

Features:

Requires 5V at 250mA max (all LEDs on)
Synchronous Serial Interface (SSI)
End-stackable to create larger displays

Resources:

Dice Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 16:22:35 GMT

The Dice Kit is a deluxe electronic die. To use it, tap it on a table and with each tap the you are "rolling" the dice. Each tap displays a number from 1 through 6 by lighting up the appropriate number of LEDs in a traditional 'Dice' Layout

The Dice Kit is great electronics kit for anyone that wants to learn how to solder. You will find a video and step by step instructions at the Dice Kit web page.

Even if you have been soldering for years, the Dice Kit is a great addition and conversation starter for your work table or desk!

A great gift for the electronics enthusiast in your family.

Features:

Auto power saving sleep mode after ~15 seconds of inactivity.
Laser cut 1/4" acrylic base
Includes CR2032 battery
Stand alone kit
No computer needed
No Arduino needed
Easy to build
Turns on by tapping
Looks great
Since this is a kit, assembly is required. The kit contains all of the electronics, screws, battery and acrylic base & pieces. You supply the simple tools and supplies listed below.

Tools & Supplies required:

Soldering iron
Solder
Wire snips
Match head size drop of glue - Epoxy works well (Thin double sided tape may be used in place of glue)

Resources:

DAB DAB+ FM Digital Radio Development Board Pro with SlideShow

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 11:33:49 GMT

The DAB+ FM Digital Radio Development Board provides a platform for developing and evaluating DAB+ and FM receiver. The board contains a Keystone T1_L4A_8290C DAB/FM module and a Microchip PIC18F14K50 microcontroller. The T1_L4A_8290C module is an ultra low power DAB/FM receiver module with the following features:

ETSI EN 300 401 compliant receiver
DAB/DAB+ sensitivity to -99dBm (typical)
Decodes multiple audio services up to 256kbps without external RAM
FM with RDS (*** RDS reception only available for station name, station text and genre and is subjected to certain condition of power level and frequency deviation)
Combined antenna input for FM / Band3
Support DAB L-Band reception (*** Although the Keystone module supports L-Band, the SMA connector has no connection to the L-Band pin, customer will need to solder a separate antenna and other passive components to make it work.)
Serial control interface
RoHS compliant

The Microchip PIC18F14K50 provides a USB to Serial interface for the T1_L4A_8290C module to communicate with the host PC. Despite the sample code provided in this Development Board for communicating with the board is based on serial communication, user can analyse the serial communication and implements a driverless HID protocol by rewriting the firmware on the PIC18F14K50.

New SlideShow Feature

With an upgrade module using the KeyStone T2_L4A_8650C, this board now support SlideShow. Slideshow adds visual content (slides) to radio broadcasts on DAB or DAB+. It enhanced the digital radio with visuals using images in JPEG or PNG format.

Resources

What can you do with it?

Build a PC controlled DAB+ FM Digital Radio
Build a CAR PC DAB+ FM Digital Radio
Build a standalone DAB+ FM Digital Radio (requires external microcontroller)

Feature Summary

KeyStone T1_L4A_8290C DAB/DAB+/FM radio module
Microchip PIC18F14K50 USB Flash Microcontroller
12 Mhz crystal
standard ICSP programming port for programming the PIC18F14K50
EXT port logic signal for controlling external audio chip power and mute
status LED, RX (orange) and TX (green)
power LED (red)
Bootloader push button
1.2VDC, 1.8VDC, 3.3VDC LDO
3.5mm stereo jack
SMA antenna connector
Dimensions : 78mm x 45mm

Demo Software

Product developed by Customers

Mickz's customised Frontend

Mickz from Australia brought new life to this product with his customised frontend. Desired features that were not in the original demo had been added and developed by Mickz. Other than great features, the app and its source code in Visual Studio 2010 are provided free to MP3CAR forum members. Below are some screenshots of Mickz's frontend, for details features, discussion and development status, please follow this MP3CAR forum thread

.

CdRsKuLL's FreeICE DAB Plugin

CdRsKuLL from FreeICE UK is currently working on a plugin for this radio and has done a great job developing a simple test app for user to easily start playing with this radio without needing to understand complexity of the current demo program. Below are the screenshots FreeICE DAB plugin and for the release of this plugin, please follow his development logs on this FreeICE forum's thread

.

John Jore's Centrafuse Plugin

John from Australia has been working really hard coding his DAB plugin for Centrafuse and it is now officially on Centrafuse's store for FREE!! John also came out with a very innovative idea to auto detect the board and this concept is now also used by other developers for auto port detection. Below are the screenshots of John's Centrafuse plugin and for release of this plugin, please head to Centrafuse development forum and Centrafuse DAB plugin store

.

Driveline by ClockWork

Driveline an opensource CarPC software that does almost everything a commercial software does has released a latest build with support of this DAB development kit. Driveline has a clean and easy to navigate user interface and radio port configuration is fully GUI driven. The coder behind Driveline literally code the DAB support in a country without DAB reception! Well done! Below are the screenshots of Driveline and to download the full version please head to Driveline's forum at MP3Car

.

PX4 Flight Management Unit (Autopilot)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 14:57:29 GMT

The PX4FMU is a high-performance autopilot suitable for fixed wing, multi rotors, helicopters, cars, boats and any other robotic platform that can move. It is targeted towards high-end research, amateur and industry needs. PX4 is an expandable, modular system comprising the PX4FMU Flight Management Unit (autopilot) and a number of optional interface modules.

If you're a first time UAV flyer - we don't recommend the PX4 - please try the Ardupilot 2.5 instead!

In addition to the versatile hardware platform, PX4 introduces a sophisticated, modular software environment built on top of a POSIX-like realtime operating system. The modular architecture and operating system support greatly simplify the process of experimenting with specific components of the system, as well as reducing the barriers to entry for new developers.

Adding support for new sensors, peripherals and expansion modules is straightforward due to standardized interface protocols between software components. Onboard microSD storage permits high-rate logging and data storage for custom applications. MAVLink protocol support provides direct integration with existing ground control systems including QGroundControl and the APM Mission Planner.

Features:

ARM Cortex-M4F microcontroller running at 168MHz with DSP and floating-point hardware acceleration.
1024KiB of flash memory, 192KiB of RAM.
MEMS accelerometer and gyro, magnetometer and barometric pressure sensor.
Flexible expansion bus and onboard power options.
- The kit includes a micro usb cables, four nylon spacers and a cable connector for GPS
Board weight, 8.10g

Revision notes from 1.6 to 1.7:

- Fix for SD Card function
- BMA 180 sensor removed and left unpopulated, current board will work with MPU6000 sensor.

Resources:

Raspberry Pi - GPIO Shrouded Header (2x13)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 23 Nov 2012 13:21:39 GMT

This 2x13 shrouded header has the same number and spacing of pins as the Raspberry Pi so you can easily connect via ribbon cable to the low-level peripherals and get hacking! This through-hole header has 26 0.1"-spaced pins and is keyed for polarity. We also have a mating cable to fit this socket.

Features:

Resources:

Datasheet

Solder Time II Watch Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 16:27:49 GMT

The Solder : Time II is the latest version of the Solder Time watch kit. This new version is even more hackable than ever. The on board microcontroller in this model is the very popular ATmega328P used in many of the current versions of Arduino. In fact, you can reprogram your watch using the same Arduino IDE software that you use for a regular Arduino.

The Solder : Time II has a much more impressive display. Four 5x7 LED matrix modules gives you control of a 7x20 matrix for a total of 140 LEDs! The new LED matrix allows for an amazing amount of information to be displayed; time, date, month, words, scrolling messages, graphics, special characters ... the possibilities are endless. The ST2 also has a piezo buzzer for the alarm. You can also use it to add sounds to you custom programming or even games!

Features:

Comes pre-programmed with the new v1.1 firmware.
It's an "Arduino" easy to hack / reprogram
Unique conversation starter
Display is made of four 5x7 LED matrix modules (Total 140 pixels)
Two button interface
Display Text, time, numbers, graphics etc ...
Create graphic animations and scrolling text
On board full size (.1" spacing) FTDI style header for reprogramming
ATmega serial port (TX & RX) not used by the watch circuit, available to interface accessories
Low power sleep mode
Self-contained; battery, circuits and displays all contained in watch body
Stylized laser cut clear acrylic watch body
One size fits all velcro wrist band
Dallas 1337S+ Real time clock (RTC)
Hours, Minutes, Seconds
Year, Month, Day, Day of week
Two separate Alarms possible
Piezo alarm buzzer
SMT parts come pre-assembled, tested and programmed

Includes:

Solder : Time II PCB with SMD (surface mount parts) assembled and tested.
4x 5x7 LED Matrix
Buttons
Piezo
Clock crystal
Screws
Laser cut acrylic watch housing
Velcro wrist strap
Battery
Battery holder

Tools & Supplies required:

Soldering Iron
Solder
Flush Cutters

Resources:

Netduino Plus 2 .NET / C# Development Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 15:59:22 GMT

The Netduino Plus 2 is a huge upgrade on the old Netduino Plus. It�s perfect for 10,000�s of existing Netduino users and, courtesy of MiniJTAG, an amazing value for C/C++ hackers as well!

Netduino Plus 2 has four times the speed (168MHz), six times the code space (384KB) and more than twice the available RAM (100KB+) of the old Netduino Plus.

This new hardware has a ton of new features and is compatible with even more Arduino shields than before�including �Rev C� Arduino shields and higher-current shields.

New features

168MHz Cortex-M4 microcontroller + floating-point unit
384KB of code space and 100KB+ of RAM enables even richer apps (this was the #1 request from our users)
6+ PWMs to support servo/motor shields (2 more than before, and 1-2 can be used as 32-bit PWM)
Onboard blue LED is now also PWM-enabled
12-bit ADC (upgrade from 10-bit)
Bulk smoothing caps on 3.3V rail also provide enhanced stability for ADC readings
4 UARTs/SerialPorts (2 more than before)
3.3V DC-DC switch (upgrade from LDO regulator)
Power headers can be turned on/off via software�to reset or shut down shields on the fly.
Native C/C++ hackers: MiniJTAG and integrated bootloader deployment, can use full 1MB of flash and 192KB RAM

The Netduino Plus 2 has been designed to be backwards compatible with Netduino Plus 1 for most applications. Most existing Netduino apps should work as-is. It maintains 5V tolerance for digital I/O, so it does not require new shields (unlike Arduino Due for example, which requires 3.3V/Rev C shields).

Netduino Plus 2 is also perfect for C/C++ hackers who are stepping up from Arduino or other electronics boards. It has twice the flash, twice the RAM, and twice the speed of Arduino Due � plus Ethernet and MicroSD for only a few pounds more.

Drum Kit Kit (AI)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 15:18:42 GMT

The Drum Kit Kit (AI) is a through hole kit of parts that when assembled, produces a fully functional electronic drum kit sound generator. The kit contains all of the electronics, including the piezo sensors for the drum pads. You build the drum pads yourself, and then connect the Drum Kit - Kit AI to either your computer to play sounds using your favourite audio software or use the MIDI-out port to a connected drum synthesizer.

Please note that whilst all the parts for this kit are included, you will also need a USB to serial TTL cable in order to program the chip from the Arduino IDE with the Drum Kit program. Alternatively you can just 'chip swop' from an existing Arduino board so long as it has a removable IC.

Features:

Onboard ATmega
Screw terminals for the drum pad connections (makes changing pads easier).
Includes piezos for six drum pads.
On board Din-5 MIDI-out jack (Use the DKKAI, with your other MIDI equipment).
FTDI compatible 90� pin header (makes it easy to program or use our Serial to MIDI software and your computer).
DC 2.1mm power jack (power the Drum kit while �on the road�).
All the ATmega digital pins are broken out into a two row connector with standard 0.1� spacing. Plus, +5 volts and Ground
Four corner mounting holes
On board voltage regulator
Power selector jumper for USB (via optional FTDI cable) or DC power jack.

Resources:

Tools & Supplies required:

Material to make drum pads requires (foam, rubber, metal, wood, glue), and other tools as needed.

Solder Time - Watch Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 12:09:33 GMT

This is an easy to solder real time watch kit with a unique laser cut acrylic casing. Four individual acrylic parts cut to fit the internal PCB, battery and switch perfectly. Included is a velcro wrist band. After soldering the Solder:Time, the watch is built by stacking the acrylic parts with the PCB and holding it together with the included screws.

The Solder:Time was designed to be a wrist watch. It doesn't have to be limited to living on your wrist, you could also use it as a badge or desk clock.

Features:

Great looking laser cut acrylic case
Unique watch
Easy to solder
Stand alone project - no computer or other programmer required. Just solder it and it's ready!
On board Dallas DS1337+ Real Time Clock (RTC) for super accurate time keeping
Jumper (on bottom) for always on use.
Hackable: Programming and I2C pads labelled on bottom
Clear front and back casing to show the internal electronics
Adjustable wrist band
Can be also be worn as a badge with optional badge clip.
Long lasting battery, with special LED lighting method and very low power processor sleeping.

Kit Includes:

Solder:Time PCB with all of the electronics
Laser cut acrylic casing with four screws
Easy to use Velcro type wrist band (long enough for huge wrists, trim-able for smaller ones.
CR2032 Battery

Documentation:

Instructions Page

Tools & Supplies required:

PIC-KIT3 Programmer

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 15:38:35 GMT

PIC-KIT3 is a low cost programmer/debugger. With its 55 x 55 mm (2.16 x 2.16") dimensions and weighing only 30g (excluding the ICSP cable and packing) this little device fits your pocket and is very convenient to carry around when working in field. PIC-KIT3 is a complete replacement of Microchip's original PIC-KIT3 and with it you can do everything you can do with the original PIC-KIT3.

Features:

USB (Full Speed 2 M bits/s) interface to host PC
Real time background debugging
MPLAB and MPLAB X compatible (latest release available for free download from Microchip's web site)
Built in over-voltage/short circuit monitor
Firmware upgradeable from PC
Light plastic enclosure
Supports low voltage to 2.0 volts. (2.0 to 6.0 range)
Diagnostic bi-color LED (Busy, Error)
External power jack (6-12VDC) for standalone programming
Programmer-to-go function
Reading/Writing memory space and EEDATA areas of target microcontroller
Programs configuration bits
Erase of program memory space with verification
Peripheral freeze-on-halt stops timers at breakpoints

Resources:

PIC-KIT3 user's manual

Hadware

PIC ICSP connector (top view)

Software

MPLAB-IDE - you can download the latest version from Microchip's web site.

FAQ

What USB cable do I need?
You should have a USB type A-B cable to connect to PC, all PC USB hosts have USB-A connector while the PIC-KIT3 has a USB-B connector so the cable should be USB A-to-B type. Note that such a cable is not included in the package.

What should I know when connect PIC-KIT3 to target board?
It's very important that your target PIC MCLR is not connected directly to VCC!
During the programming/debugging MCLR goes as high as 13VDC and if your target MCLR is connected directly to target VCC you will blow either PIC-KIT3 either your target board. Use always 10K pullup resistor from MCLR to VCC.

What is the function of the two leds?
There are two leds � one yellow led named ACTIVE and one double color led named STAT (red/green colors). The yellow led shows USB activity � e.g. when the device is connected to the USB properly. The STAT led shows RED color when you are connected to MPLAB. When there is programming data transferred the green led should blink.

Hello, I pressed the "programmer-to-go" button and my PIC32 died. What burned my chip?
Do not use "programmer-to-go" button when there is no image on the OLIMEX PIC-KIT3 or MICROCHIP PIC-KIT3 or that might put your microcontroller in an irrecoverable state. We have tested the mentioned scenario and we can confirm it destroys PIC32 chips (using both our and the original Microchip PICKIT3). We don't take responsibility if you brick your chip that way. For more info check the following: www.microchip.com/forums/m635420.aspx.

JST PH Plug Housing 5 pin

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 12:58:14 GMT

This is a pack of 20x5 pin JST plug housings. They're type PH (the smaller type) and do require additional parts to turn them into a complete plug / connector.

In addition to this housing, you'll need JST terminal pins and a JST crimper tool.

NOTE : It is possible to crimp the terminals without using the proper crimping tool - You can just use a small pair of wire cutters to bend the terminal arms onto you wire, or you can solder the wire onto the terminal. Neither solution is recommended, but they do work fine for non-critical applications where you only need to make up a few assemblies.

Make an Arduino-Controlled Robot Book

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 12:48:34 GMT

Building robots that sense and interact with their environment used to be tricky. Now, Arduino makes it easy. With this book and an Arduino microcontroller and software creation environment, you�ll learn how to build and program a robot that can roam around, sense its environment, and perform a wide variety of tasks. All you to get started with the fun projects is a little programming experience and a keen interest in electronics.

Maybe you�re a teacher who wants to show students how to build devices that can move, sense, respond, and interact with the physical world. Or perhaps you�re a hobbyist looking for a robot companion to make your world a little more futuristic. With Make an Arduino Controlled Robot, you�ll learn how to build and customize smart robots on wheels.

You will:

Explore robotics concepts like movement, obstacle detection, sensors, and remote control
Use Arduino to build two- and four-wheeled robots
Put your robot in motion with motor shields, servos, and DC motors
Work with distance sensors, infrared reflectance sensors, and remote control receivers
Understand how to program your robot to take on all kinds of real-world physical challenges

Ultrasonic Rangefinder HRLV-EZ0

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 08 Nov 2012 16:09:31 GMT

The HRLV-MaxSonar-EZ0 has the widest and most sensitive beam pattern of any unit from the HRLV EZ sensor line. This makes this unit an excellent choice for use where high sensitivity, wide beam, or people detection is desired.

Features

Resolution of 1‑mm
10Hz reading rate
Internal temperature compensation
Cost-effective solution where precision range-findings are needed
Sensor component allows users to lower the cost of their systems without sacrificing performance
42kHz Ultrasonic sensor measures distance to objects
RoHS compliant
Read from all sensor outputs: Analog Voltage, RS232 or TTL Serial, and Pulse Width
Virtually no sensor dead zone, objects closer than 30 cm will typically range as 30 cm
Maximum range of 5000 mm (195 inches)
Tolerates outside noise sources
Operates from 2.5V-5.5V
Low 3.1mA average current requirement
Small, light weight module
Designed for easy integration into your project or product
Operational Temperature from -15�C to +65�C (+5�F to +149�F)
Real-time automatic calibration (voltage, humidity, ambient noise)
Option external temperature compensation HR‑MaxTemp
Firmware filtering for better noise tolerance and clutter rejection
Widest beam of the HRLV-MaxSonar-EZ sensors
Great for people detection applications

Resources

Arduino WiFi Shield

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 08 Nov 2012 15:42:04 GMT

The official Arduino WiFi Shield connects your Arduino to the internet wirelessly. Connect it to your wireless network by following a few simple instructions to start controlling your world through the internet. As always with Arduino, every element of the platform � hardware, software and documentation � is freely available and open-source. This means you can learn exactly how it's made and use its design as the starting point for your own circuits.

Requires and Arduino board (not included)
Operating voltage 5V (supplied from the Arduino Board)
Connection via: 802.11b/g networks
Encryption types: WEP and WPA2 Persoanl
Connection with Arduino on SPI port
on-board micro SD slot
ICSP headers
FTDI connection for serial debugging of WiFi shield
Mini-USB for updating WiFi shield firmware

Description

The Arduino WiFi Shield allows an Arduino board to connect to the internet using the 802.11 wireless specification (WiFi). It is based on the HDG104 Wireless LAN 802.11b/g System in-Package. An Atmega 32UC3 provides a network (IP) stack capable of both TCP and UDP. Use the WiFI library to write sketches which connect to the internet using the shield. The WiFI shield connects to an Arduino board using long wire-wrap headers which extend through the shield. This keeps the pin layout intact and allows another shield to be stacked on top.

The WiFi Shield can connect to wireless networks which operate according to the 802.11b and 802.11g specifications.

There is an onboard micro-SD card slot, which can be used to store files for serving over the network. It is compatible with the Arduino Uno and Mega. The onboard microSD card reader is accessible through the SD Library. When working with this library, SS is on Pin 4.

Arduino communicates with both the Wifi shield's processor and SD card using the SPI bus (through the ICSP header). This is on digital pins 11, 12, and 13 on the Uno and pins 50, 51, and 52 on the Mega. On both boards, pin 10 is used to select the HDG104 and pin 4 for the SD card. These pins cannot be used for general I/O. On the Mega, the hardware SS pin, 53, is not used to select either the HDG104 or the SD card, but it must be kept as an output or the SPI interface won't work.

Digital pin 7 is used as a handshake pin between the WiFi shield and the Arduino, and should not be used.

Note that because the HDG104 and SD card share the SPI bus, only one can be active at a time. If you are using both peripherals in your program, this should be taken care of by the corresponding libraries. If you're not using one of the peripherals in your program, however, you'll need to explicitly deselect it. To do this with the SD card, set pin 4 as an output and write a high to it. For the HDG104, set digital pin 10 as a high output.

The shield can connect to encrypted networks that use either WPA2 Personal or WEP encryption. It can also connect to open networks.

A network must broadcast its SSID for the shield to be able to connect.

The reset button on the shield resets both the HDG104 and the Arduino board.

There is an onboard Mini-USB connector. This is not for programming an attached Arduino, it is for updating the Atmega 32U using the Atmel DFU protocol. The programming jumper adjacent to the power bus and analog inputs should be left unconnected for typical use. It is only used for DFU programming mode.

An onboard FTDI connection enables serial communication with the 32U for debugging purposes. A list of available commands can be found here.

The shield contains a number of informational LEDs:

L9 (yellow) : this is tied to digital pin 9
LINK (green) : indicates a connection to a network
ERROR (red) : indicates when there is a communication error
DATA (blue) : indicates data being transmitted/received

Raspberry Pi - GPIO Ribbon Cable (6")

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 08 Nov 2012 15:02:48 GMT

This 2x13 flat ribbon-cable fits the GPIO headers on the Raspberry Pi so you can easily connect to the low-level peripherals and get hacking! This cable has 0.1"-spaced connectors and is keyed for polarity.

Dimensions: 6" long

Documents:

Datasheet

Sphero Robotic Ball

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 06 Nov 2012 15:55:51 GMT

Sphero is a small robotic ball that moves of its own volition! It can be controlled via Bluetooth from an IoS or Android tablet, or programmed to move autonomously. A light inside Sphero changes it's colour. All of this means that you can drive Sphero around, play games, have races with other Sphero friends or lots more! It's suitable for kids, pets and adults (with supervision!) - We haven't seen many things cooler!

Sphero has an accelerometer inside, so it can also be used as a 3d controller - by picking the ball up and tilting or twisting it, you can control pretty much anything. More than that - Sphero floats (!), can jump ramps, and when seen through an augmented reality app, can become, well, anything! There are 20+ existing, free apps for Sphero.

If that's not enough, people out there are writing apps for this 'spherical superstar'. More are appearing everyday. If you're bored with the Apps other people have written, if you're techy enough, you may like to write your own! There are free SDKs for both IoS and Android.

If you're not a super-techy, you can use an existing App - macrolab, to program movements and other actions. It's a doddle, and a great introduction for kids to procedural programming.

Sphero is CE and FCC certified and is *not* a kit that requires assembly of any type

Includes:

Sphero Robotic Ball
Inductive Charging Base
Wall Plug Power Adapter(power plugs for UK, EU, US + Australasia)

Features:

Resources:

JST PH Plug Housing 4 pin

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 15:48:44 GMT

This is a pack of 20x4 pin JST plug housings. They're type PH (the smaller type) and do require additional parts to turn them into a complete plug / connector.

In addition to this housing, you'll need JST terminal pins and a JST crimper tool.

JST PH Plug Housing 3 pin

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 15:35:04 GMT

This is a pack of 20x3 pin JST plug housings. They're type PH (the smaller type) and do require additional parts to turn them into a complete plug / connector.

In addition to this housing, you'll need JST terminal pins and a JST crimper tool.

Pre-Loaded Raspberry Pi OS SD Card

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 01 Nov 2012 13:06:28 GMT

This is an 8Gb Class 6 SD card with a Raspberry Pi operating system pre-loaded onto it. All you need to do is to plug the card into your board, power it up and you're ready to go. The OS version we're using is Raspbian �wheezy� 2013-02-09

If you�re just starting out, this is the image that's recommended. It�s a reference root filesystem from Alex and Dom, based on the Raspbian optimised version of Debian, and containing LXDE, Midori, development tools and example source code for multimedia functions.

Default login

Username: pi
Password: raspberry

Official UP! Plus ABS Plastic Filament - Blue 700g

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 01 Nov 2012 12:24:21 GMT

700g spool of blue 1.72mm ABS filament for the UP! Plus printer.This is enough material to make 20 to 30 medium sized models, possibly more.

Official UP! Plus ABS Plastic Filament - Green 700g

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 01 Nov 2012 12:22:46 GMT

700g spool of green 1.72mm ABS filament for the UP! Plus printer.This is enough material to make 20 to 30 medium sized models, possibly more.

Official UP! Plus ABS Plastic Filament - Red 700g

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 01 Nov 2012 12:21:15 GMT

700g spool of red 1.72mm ABS filament for the UP! Plus printer.This is enough material to make 20 to 30 medium sized models, possibly more.

Colour Detector Sensor

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 29 Oct 2012 14:58:47 GMT

Color light sensors are awesome devices for everything from environmental sensors to general robotics. They can be used to monitor slowly changing events like algae blooms or leaf death, or to determine light absorption through a medium. But for all their utility, they have some flaws. First off, they can be complicated to interface to since RGB data often has to be derived using complex signal processing. Secondly, they're less than rugged, and when you want to deploy one in the field you need a device that can stand up to the weather. Even moisture in the air can make an unprotected sensor unreliable.

These problems have been seolved by embedding the light sensor in a rugged housing below a layer of transparent epoxy which protects the sensor from moisture while still allowing light to get in. The resulting light probe is water- and dust-proof, sleet and ice tolerant, non reactive in salt water and will readily sink when submerged. On top of all that, it provides both RGB level (in 8-bit RGB format) and light intensity (in lux) as simple comma separated strings over RS-232!

Features:

R,G,B data is in true 8-bit RGB format from 0-255
light intensity is output in lux (lx)
lx given for R ,G and B as well as full spectrum lx
RGB color data and lx can be output simultaneously
lx range from 0- 3,235 lux
Light saturation indicator if lx is over 3,235
Three different output modes:
- RGB only
- Lx only
- RGB and lx
Data output is a single comma separated string
Simple RS-232 connectivity (voltage swing 0-VCC)
Harsh environment ready: NEMA 6P and IP 68 rated
Wide operating temperature range: -40 Celsius to +85 Celsius
Simple instruction set consisting of only 5 commands
Reading time: 620ms
Wide operating voltage range: 3.1V to 5.5V
Shock resistant to 16 mega Pascals

Resources:

JST PH housing pins

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 26 Oct 2012 13:52:22 GMT

These are tiny metal pins for the JST PH housings that we sell. You will need one pin for every 'hole' that your housing has.

We sell these in packs of 20

Ideally these pins are crimped with a special tool. Crimping effectively means trapping the wire by folding a couple of the tiny metal 'wings' on this pin over it. Despite crimping being the best way, you could fold the pins over using a small pair of wire cutters or pliers. Failing this, you could just solder your wire to this pin.

Note : These pins have tiny locking tabs on them, so that once they're inserting into the JST housing, they will not come out easily. It is possible to use something like the tip of a pair of fine tweezers to push the tab down, and withdraw the pin, but it's fiddly!

You can find the JST PH plug housings here

JST PH Plug Housing 2 pin

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 26 Oct 2012 09:31:27 GMT

This is a pack of 20x2 pin JST plug housings. They're type PH (the smaller type) and do require additional parts to turn them into a complete plug / connector.

In addition to this housing, you'll need JST terminal pins and a JST crimper tool.

Aluminium Mini T-Slot Beam/Fastener Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 14:48:50 GMT

This is a kit of assorted aluminium beams, brackets and fasteners perfect for building frames, robots, and lots more.Also included is a nut wrench (whilst stocks last).

The precision engineered beams have a square profile (1cm). Each side has a slot running along its length into which can be slid the provided bolts. This method of fastening allows for accurate, rock steady joints.

All of the contents can be easily re-used, and combined with other parts from the same manufacturer.

The kit contains :

50 Mini T-slot profile beams:
- 4x300mm
- 8x200mm
- 6x150mm
- 16x100mm
- 8x60mm
- 8x40mm
60 brackets:
- 24x90 degree
- 12x60 degree
- 12x45 degree
- 12xoutside corner
2 bags nuts and bolts (M3)

Arduino Due

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 22 Oct 2012 16:11:29 GMT

The Arduino Due is a microcontroller board based on the Atmel SAM3X8E ARM Cortex-M3 CPU (datasheet). It is the first Arduino board based on a 32-bit ARM core microcontroller. It has 54 digital input/output pins (of which 12 can be used as PWM outputs), 12 analog inputs, 4 UARTs (hardware serial ports), a 84MHz clock, an USB OTG capable connection, 2 DAC (digital to analog), 2 TWI, a power jack, an SPI header, a JTAG header, a reset button and an erase button.

Warning: Unlike other Arduino boards, the Arduino Due board runs at 3.3V. The maximum voltage that the I/O pins can tolerate is 3.3V. Providing higher voltages, like 5V to an I/O pin could damage the board.

The board contains everything needed to support the microcontroller; simply connect it to a computer with a USB cable or power it with a AC-to-DC adapter or battery to get started. The Due is compatible with all Arduino shields that work at 3.3V and are compliant with the 1.0 Arduino pinout.

The Due follows the 1.0 pinout:

TWI: SDA and SCL pins that are near to the AREF pin.
The IOREF pin which allows an attached shield with the proper configuration to adapt to the voltage provided by the board. This enables shield compatibility with a 3.3V board like the Due and AVR-based boards which operate at 5V.
An unconnected pin, reserved for future use.

The Due has a dedicated forum for discussing the board.

ARM Core benefits

The Due has a 32-bit ARM core that can outperform typical 8-bit microcontroller boards. The most significant differences are:

A 32-bit core, that allows operations on 4 bytes wide data within a single CPU clock. (for more information see the int type page).
CPU Clock at 84Mhz.
96 KBytes of SRAM.
512 KBytes of Flash memory for code.
a DMA controller, that can relieve the CPU from doing memory intensive tasks.

Schematic, Reference Design & Pin Mapping

EAGLE files: arduino-Due-reference-design.zip

Schematic: arduino-Due-schematic.pdf

Pin Mapping: SAM3X Pin Mapping page

Summary

Microcontroller		AT91SAM3X8E
Operating Voltage		3.3V
Input Voltage (recommended)		7-12V
Input Voltage (limits)		6-20V
Digital I/O Pins		54 (of which 12 provide PWM output)
Analog Input Pins		12
Analog Outputs Pins		2 (DAC)
Total DC Output Current on all I/O lines		130 mA
DC Current for 3.3V Pin		800 mA
DC Current for 5V Pin		800 mA
Flash Memory		512 KB all available for the user applications
SRAM		96 KB (two banks: 64KB and 32KB)
Clock Speed		84 MHz

Power

The Arduino Due can be powered via the USB connector or with an external power supply. The power source is selected automatically.

External (non-USB) power can come either from an AC-to-DC adapter (wall-wart) or battery. The adapter can be connected by plugging a 2.1mm center-positive plug into the board's power jack. Leads from a battery can be inserted in the Gnd and Vin pin headers of the POWER connector.

The board can operate on an external supply of 6 to 20 volts. If supplied with less than 7V, however, the 5V pin may supply less than five volts and the board may be unstable. If using more than 12V, the voltage regulator may overheat and damage the board. The recommended range is 7 to 12 volts.

The power pins are as follows:

VIN. The input voltage to the Arduino board when it's using an external power source (as opposed to 5 volts from the USB connection or other regulated power source). You can supply voltage through this pin, or if supplying voltage via the power jack, access it through this pin.
5V. This pin outputs a regulated 5V from the regulator on the board. The board can be supplied with power either from the DC power jack (7 - 12V), the USB connector (5V), or the VIN pin of the board (7-12V). Supplying voltage via the 5V or 3.3V pins bypasses the regulator, and can damage your board. We don't advise it.
3.3V. A 3.3 volt supply generated by the on-board regulator. Maximum current draw is 800 mA. This regulator also provides the power supply to the SAM3X microcontroller.
GND. Ground pins.
IOREF. This pin on the Arduino board provides the voltage reference with which the microcontroller operates. A properly configured shield can read the IOREF pin voltage and select the appropriate power source or enable voltage translators on the outputs for working with the 5V or 3.3V.

Memory

The has 512 KB (2 blocks of 256 KB) of flash memory for storing code. The bootloader is preburned in factory from Atmel and is stored in a dedicated ROM memory. The available SRAM is 96 KB in two contiguous bank of 64 KB and 32 KB. All the available memory (Flash, RAM and ROM) can be accessed directly as a flat addressing space.

It is possible to erase the Flash memory of the SAM3X with the onboard erase button. This will remove the currently loaded sketch from the MCU. To erase, press and hold the Erase button for a few seconds while the board is powered.

Input and Output

Digital I/O: pins from 0 to 53
Each of the 54 digital pins on the Due can be used as an input or output, using pinMode(), digitalWrite(), and digitalRead() functions. They operate at 3.3 volts. Each pin can provide (source) a current of 3 mA or 15 mA, depending on the pin, or receive (sink) a current of 6 mA or 9 mA, depending on the pin. They also have an internal pull-up resistor (disconnected by default) of 100 KOhm. In addition, some pins have specialized functions:
Serial: 0 (RX) and 1 (TX)
Serial 1: 19 (RX) and 18 (TX)
Serial 2: 17 (RX) and 16 (TX)
Serial 3: 15 (RX) and 14 (TX)
Used to receive (RX) and transmit (TX) TTL serial data (with 3.3 V level). Pins 0 and 1 are connected to the corresponding pins of the ATmega16U2 USB-to-TTL Serial chip.
PWM: Pins 2 to 13
Provide 8-bit PWM output with the analogWrite() function. the resolution of the PWM can be changed with the analogWriteResolution() function.
SPI: SPI header (ICSP header on other Arduino boards)
These pins support SPI communication using the SPI library. The SPI pins are broken out on the central 6-pin header, which is physically compatible with the Uno, Leonardo and Mega2560. The SPI header can be used only to communicate with other SPI devices, not for programming the SAM3X with the In-Circuit-Serial-Programming technique. The SPI of the Due has also advanced features that can be used with the Extended SPI methods for Due.
CAN: CANRX and CANTX
These pins support the CAN communication protocol but are not not yet supported by Arduino APIs.
"L" LED: 13
There is a built-in LED connected to digital pin 13. When the pin is HIGH, the LED is on, when the pin is LOW, it's off. It is also possible to dim the LED because the digital pin 13 is also a PWM outuput.
TWI 1: 20 (SDA) and 21 (SCL)
TWI 2: SDA1 and SCL1.
Support TWI communication using the Wire library.
Analog Inputs: pins from A0 to A11
The Due has 12 analog inputs, each of which can provide 12 bits of resolution (i.e. 4096 different values). By default, the resolution of the readings is set at 10 bits, for compatibility with other Arduino boards. It is possible to change the resolution of the ADC with analogReadResolution(). The Due�s analog inputs pins measure from ground to a maximum value of 3.3V. Applying more then 3.3V on the Due�s pins will damage the SAM3X chip. The analogReference() function is ignored on the Due.

The AREF pin is connected to the SAM3X analog reference pin through a resistor bridge. To use the AREF pin, resistor BR1 must be desoldered from the PCB.

DAC1 and DAC2
These pins provides true analog outputs with 12-bits resolution (4096 levels) with the analogWrite() function. These pins can be used to create an audio output using the Audio library.

Other pins on the board:

AREF
Reference voltage for the analog inputs. Used with analogReference().
Reset
Bring this line LOW to reset the microcontroller. Typically used to add a reset button to shields which block the one on the board.

Communication

The Arduino Due has a number of facilities for communicating with a computer, another Arduino or other microcontrollers, and different devices like phones, tablets, cameras and so on. The SAM3X provides one hardware UART and three hardware USARTs for TTL (3.3V) serial communication.

The Programming port is connected to an ATmega16U2, which provides a virtual COM port to software on a connected computer (To recognize the device, Windows machines will need a .inf file, but OSX and Linux machines will recognize the board as a COM port automatically.). The 16U2 is also connected to the SAM3X hardware UART. Serial on pins RX0 and TX0 provides Serial-to-USB communication for programming the board through the ATmega16U2 microcontroller. The Arduino software includes a serial monitor which allows simple textual data to be sent to and from the board. The RX and TX LEDs on the board will flash when data is being transmitted via the ATmega16U2 chip and USB connection to the computer (but not for serial communication on pins 0 and 1).

The Native USB port is connected to the SAM3X. It allows for serial (CDC) communication over USB. This provides a serial connection to the Serial Monitor or other applications on your computer. It also enables the Due to emulate a USB mouse or keyboard to an attached computer. To use these features, see the Mouse and Keyboard library reference pages.

The Native USB port can also act as a USB host for connected peripherals such as mice, keyboards, and smartphones. To use these features, see the USBHost reference pages.

The SAM3X also supports TWI and SPI communication. The Arduino software includes a Wire library to simplify use of the TWI bus; see the documentation for details. For SPI communication, use the SPI library.

Programming

The Arduino Due can be programmed with the Arduino software (download). For details, see the reference and tutorials.

Uploading sketches to the SAM3X is different than the AVR microcontrollers found in other Arduino boards because the flash memory needs to be erased before being re-programmed. Upload to the chip is managed by ROM on the SAM3X, which is run only when the chip's flash memory is empty.

Either of the USB ports can be used for programming the board, though it is recommended to use the Programming port due to the way the erasing of the chip is handled :

Programming port: To use this port, select "Arduino Due (Programming Port)" as your board in the Arduino IDE. Connect the Due's programming port (the one closest to the DC power jack) to your computer. The programming port uses the 16U2 as a USB-to-serial chip connected to the first UART of the SAM3X (RX0 and TX0). The 16U2 has two pins connected to the Reset and Erase pins of the SAM3X. Opening and closing the Programming port connected at 1200bps triggers a �hard erase� procedure of the SAM3X chip, activating the Erase and Reset pins on the SAM3X before communicating with the UART. This is the recommended port for programming the Due. It is more reliable than the "soft erase" that occurs on the Native port, and it should work even if the main MCU has crashed.
Native port: To use this port, select "Arduino Due (Native USB Port)" as your board in the Arduino IDE. The Native USB port is connected directly to the SAM3X. Connect the Due's Native USB port (the one closest to the reset button) to your computer. Opening and closing the Native port at 1200bps triggers a 'soft erase' procedure: the flash memory is erased and the board is restarted with the bootloader. If the MCU crashed for some reason it is likely that the soft erase procedure won't work as this procedure happens entirely in software on the SAM3X. Opening and closing the native port at a different baudrate will not reset the SAM3X.

Unlike other Arduino boards which use avrdude for uploading, the Due relies on bossac.

The ATmega16U2 firmware source code is available in the Arduino repository. You can use the ISP header with an external programmer (overwriting the DFU bootloader). See this user-contributed tutorial for more information.

USB Overcurrent Protection

The Arduino Due has a resettable polyfuse that protects your computer's USB ports from shorts and overcurrent. Although most computers provide their own internal protection, the fuse provides an extra layer of protection. If more than 500 mA is applied to the USB port, the fuse will automatically break the connection until the short or overload is removed.

Physical Characteristics and Shield Compatibility

The maximum length and width of the Arduino Due PCB are 4 and 2.1 inches respectively, with the USB connectors and power jack extending beyond the former dimension. Three screw holes allow the board to be attached to a surface or case. Note that the distance between digital pins 7 and 8 is 160 mil (0.16"), not an even multiple of the 100 mil spacing of the other pins.

The Arduino Due is designed to be compatible with most shields designed for the Uno, Diecimila or Duemilanove. Digital pins 0 to 13 (and the adjacent AREF and GND pins), analog inputs 0 to 5, the power header, and "ICSP" (SPI) header are all in equivalent locations. Further the main UART (serial port) is located on the same pins (0 and 1), as are external interrupts 0 and 1 (pins 2 and 3 respectively). Please note that I²C is not located on the same pins on the Due (20 and 21) as the Duemilanove / Diecimila (analog inputs 4 and 5).

Electric Imp Breakout Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 13:33:36 GMT

If you aren't familiar with the Electric Imp, it essentially provides an easy, integrated way to connect almost any hardware device both to other devices and to internet services. It's more than just a WiFi card, or even a WiFi module with processing built in - it's an integrated platform that deals with the drudgery of connectivity, allowing you to concentrate on the application instead of the mechanics.

It does this by integrating an 802.11b/g/n WiFi transceiver, a great antenna, a Cortex-M3 core and lots of flexible I/O in a tiny package. Of course, if you're developing for it you'll need a way to get in there and poke around. The Electric Imp Breakout Board allows you to explore the capabilities of the Imp by providing standard 0.1" headers to solder to as well as the necessary CryptAuthEE IC to identify your prototype to the Imp Cloud service!

Note: If you want to use the USB or battery inputs for power, you will need to populate the 3-pin jumper and set it to either 'BAT' or 'USB'. Otherwise, you can just simply power the board using VIN and GND without the use of a jumper.

Documents:

Receiver Shield for Arduino: 433MHz

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 14:09:35 GMT

315MHz and 433MHz wireless connections are very commonly used by consumer electronics including weather stations, home automation remote controls, power consumption meters, car alarms, and also many DIY projects.

This pre-assembled Arduino shield implements a simple receiver circuit, allowing you to get started quickly and start receiving data straight away.

Features

Fully pre-assembled except for headers.
Includes stackable headers that you can solder in place.
�RXB6� receiver module (either 315MHz or 433MHz, depending on model) with the data connection wired to Arduino pin 8 to allow signal timing analysis.
Header pin for connecting antenna wire.
Red and green debugging LEDs to display signal reception status.
Red and green general-purpose surface-mount LEDs with current limiting resistors.
Reset button wired through to Arduino reset pin.
Blue �power� LED to show when the Arduino is supplying power to the shield.
Huge prototyping area where you can add your own parts.
Clearly marked GND and 5V rails beside prototyping area.
Clear overlay markings on both the top and the bottom! Makes it easy to solder connections on the bottom without having to keep turning it over to check the position of parts.
Gold-plated surface: solders easily and very resistant to finger oil, etc.
Power supply smoothing capacitors pre-fitted.

Resources

4-Channel Power-over-Ethernet Midspan Injector

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 14:01:32 GMT

Power-over-Ethernet uses your LAN to send power via the network cable to whatever device you have connected at the other end, saving you the hassle of plugging the device in to both the network and to power. PoE lets you centralise your power supplies.

Home-brew PoE typically involves trimming back part of a LAN cable, separating out the relevant pairs of cable, cutting them, and soldering on a power socket so you can connect a plug-pack. That works fine, but it's ugly, fiddly, and takes time. Our 4-Channel Power-over-Ethernet Midspan Injector is the solution! Just unplug your LAN cables from your switch, plug them into the "device" ports on the injector, run short LAN cables from your switch to the "switch" ports on the injector, and plug in whatever wall-wart power supply you have handy. Done! No soldering required.

Note: this module does not provide proper, standards-compliant 802.3af PoE support. But it's a whole lot cheaper, and works with just about any home-brew PoE system.

Features

2.1mm power jack suits many common wall-wart (plug-pack) supplies. Same connector as used on Arduino.
Input voltage 7V to 24V, either AC or DC, any polarity. Bridge rectifier converts any input to a known-polarity DC output.
Output voltage is the DC version of whatever you feed into it.
"Power on" indicator LED.
Four channels: suitable for powering up to four devices.

Note: There is no power supply included because your requirements will depend on your local mains voltage depending on where you are in the world. This injector works with any wall-wart / plug-pack that provides an appropriate output voltage and has a 2.1mm DC power connection. Downloads

Getting Started guide (PDF)
Design files on GitHub

Electric Imp

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 11:07:23 GMT

We know what you're thinking, "What's the big deal? Looks like an SD card..." Well this is no SD card! The Electric Imp is a WiFi enabled development platform powered by a Cortex-M3 processor core. "Really?" Yup.

In essence, the Imp provides an easy, integrated way to connect almost any hardware device both to other devices and to internet services. It's more than just a WiFi card, or even a WiFi module with processing built in - it's an integrated platform that deals with the drudgery of connectivity, allowing you to concentrate on the application instead of the mechanics.

It does this by integrating an 802.11b/g/n WiFi transceiver, a great antenna, a Cortex-M3 core and lots of flexible I/O in a tiny package. But the hardware is only part of what makes the Electric Imp an innovative platform. The development environment and workflow is totally cloud-based and in-browser! Simply program the Imp with your WiFi Network information using your iOS or Android smartphone (Optically! No special hardware required!) then log on to the Electric Imp developer website and program your module over-the-air!

Development is done in-browser and in a language called "Squirrel," which is a C-like language with extensions to communicate with the hardware interfaces and the service. Thanks to cloud-power, you get many big system benefits like buffered I/O and crash recovery - plus you can push updates to devices in the field with a few clicks. There's even a Planner tool that makes it easy to design interactivity between your Imps.

Note: Although, the Electric Imp comes in an SD form factor, it isn't compatible with standard SD devices and we're afraid you can't hack it from a basic SD breakout. Development boards are available and we're working on our very own right now, so stay tuned!

Features:

Dimensions: 32 x 24 x 2.1mm
Super Small Form Factor
WEP, WPA and WPA2 encryption
Cortex-M3 core gives great performance combined with low power consumption
6 I/O - UARTs, I2C, SPI, analog in and out, PWMs, GPIOs... all selectable under software control
No SDK to install, no JTAG pods, no long download times... you develop your code in a browser-based IDE
Software that runs on the Imp is written in Squirrel, a C-like language
Data passes to and from the service over a TLS encrypted interface

Resources:

Humidity and Temperature Sensor - RHT03

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 11:03:52 GMT

The RHT03 is a low cost humidity and temperature sensor with a single wire digital interface. The sensor is calibrated and doesn't require extra components so you can get right to measuring relative humidity and temperature.

Features:

3.3-6V Input
1-1.5mA measuring current
40-50 uA standby current
Humidity from 0-100% RH
-40 - 80 degrees C temperature range
+-2% RH accuracy
+-0.5 degrees C

Documents:

UP! Mini 3D Printer

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 05 Oct 2012 10:22:46 GMT

This is a small, high performance desktop 3D printer. It melts affordable ABS plastic to build 3D models layer by layer. The printer is compact and quiet enough to be used in an office situation, and needs little, if any, maintenance.

Unlike the Mini's big brother the UP! Plus, printing takes place in a closed compartment - this can help to keep the temperatures constant and prevent model warping.

The UP! Mini is based on the simplicity of a traditional inkjet printer, with a snap in printer head, slide in build table and clip in consumable roll. You are ready to start making your big ideas into 3-Dimensional usable models out of tough ABS+ plastic.

There is no sacrifice on build quality with the UP! Mini, with its enclosed steel construction, double linear bearings on each axis and a temperature stabilizing build chamber; it is ready to produce quality parts on your desk within 15 minutes from switching it on.

Features

Print material : ABS (1.73mm)
Max build size : 120x120x120 (mm)
Layer thickness : 0.25/0.30/0.35 (mm)
Software compatibiliy : Windows XP, Vista & 7, Mac
Machine size : 240(W) x 355(H) x 340(D)
Machine Weight : 6Kg
Power requirements : 100-240V, 50-60Hz, 220W

The printer comes ready to go. Included is everything you need, including ABS, 3 perfboard build platforms and a tool kit.

***The machine comes with a 1yr warranty. For UK customers , this is offered on a "Return to Base" basis***

Resources

OBD-II UART

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 05 Oct 2012 09:02:28 GMT

This board allows you to interface with your car's OBD-II bus. It provides you a serial interface using the ELM327 command set and supports all major OBD-II standards such as CAN and JBUS. The board also provides a footprint which mates directly to our FTDI Basic or a Bluetooth Mate. The DB9 connector mates with standard DB9 to OBD-II cables widely available.

On-Board Diagnostics, Second Generation (OBD-II) is a set of standards for implementing a computer based system to control emissions from vehicles. It was first introduced in the United States in 1994, and became a requirement on all 1996 and newer US vehicles. Other countries, including Canada, parts of the European Union, Japan, Australia, and Brazil adopted similar legislation. A large portion of the modern vehicle fleet supports OBD-II or one of its regional flavors.

Among other things, OBD-II requires that each compliant vehicle be equipped with a standard diagnostic connector (DLC) and describes a standard way of communicating with the vehicle�s computer, also known as the ECU (Electronic Control Unit). A wealth of information can be obtained by tapping into the OBD bus, including the status of the malfunction indicator light (MIL), diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs), inspection and maintenance (I/M) information, freeze frames, VIN, hundreds of real-time parameters, and more.

STN1110 is an OBD to UART interpreter that can be used to convert messages between any of the OBD-II protocols currently in use, and UART. It is fully compatible with the de facto industry standard ELM327 command set. Based on a 16-bit processor core, the STN1110 offers more features and better performance than any other ELM327 compatible IC.

Features:

Fully compatible with the ELM327 AT command set
Extended ST command set
UART interface (baud rates from 38 bps to 10 Mbps)
Secure bootloader for easy firmware updates
Support for all legislated OBD II protocols:
- ISO 15765-4 (CAN)
- ISO 14230-4 (Keyword Protocol 2000)
- ISO 9141-2 (Asian, European, Chrysler vehicles)
- SAE J1850 VPW (GM vehicles)
- SAE J1850 PWM (Ford vehicles)
Support for non-legislated OBD protocols:
- ISO 15765
- ISO 11898 (raw CAN)
Support for SAE J1939 OBD protocol
Superior automatic protocol detection algorithm
Large memory buffer
Voltage input for battery monitoring

Documents:

IR Receiver 38Khz

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 14:12:16 GMT

If you'd like to be able to receive and decode IR remote control transmissions, this receiver is simple and easy to use. It comes in a convenient 3 legged package and runs off 5V. IR remote control transmissions are always encoded onto a set frequency 'carrier wave', so this device will also remove the carrier wave and output just the raw data, ready for your MCU to decode

Features

Carrier Frequency: 38kHz
Transmission Range: 45m
Directivity: 45�
Supply Voltage Range: 4.5V to 5.5V
Supply Current: 950�A
Opto Case Style: Through Hole
Operating Temperature Range: -25�C to +85�C
Diode Type: Amplified Photodiode
External Depth: 5.6mm
External Length / Height: 6.95mm
External Width: 6mm
Lead Length: 23.55mm
Operating Frequency: 38kHz
Package / Case: Rectangular

Resources

Datasheet

HackHD - 1080p Camera Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 21 Sep 2012 15:32:21 GMT

Capturing high-definition video is a challenge for any project, but a great way to see where you're project has been, especially if it's something like an autonomous robot or a high-altitude balloon. The downside is that traditional video cameras can be heavy, difficult to mount, and triggering them to record can require some hacking. So why not use a video camera that was designed for hacking? The HackHD is a bare-bones camera that records 1080P video at 30 frames-per-second. Just attach a 3.7V Li-Po battery or other 3.7V source and a pushbutton and you have a fully functional camcorder. Because recording is triggered with a simple button-press, it can easily be controlled using a microcontroller or simple sensor.

Video is recorded onto a microSD card (not included) and the HackHD supports cards up to 32GB. The HackHD also has a composite video output which can be viewed while it's recording as well as an external audio input which overrides the on-board microphone when used. An LED can be attached to the LED output as an indicator of the camera's status.

Note: To save you a few bucks, we're selling just the camera by itself. The included instruction manual mentions a battery holder, pushbutton, LED, SD card, etc. but they are not included. You probably have those things laying around, why pay twice?

Dimensions: 65 x 40 x 25mm

Features:

Resolution: 1080P HD
Frame Rate: 30 FPS (frames per second)
Coding: H.264
Aspect Ratio: 16:9
File Format: AVI
Storage: External microSD Card (2GB - 32GB)
Lens: 2.5mm (EFL), F2.8, 160 degree (diagonal) wide angle lens
Control Input: Single contact monetarily switch
Video Output: Composite video NTSC
Status Indicator Output: Single colour LED driver
Power Supply: External 3.7V, 1100mAH minimum
Power Output: 3.7V DC, 500mAH
Image delay: <0.5sec
Working Temperature: -10degC to +45degC
Storage Temperature: -20degC to +70degC

Documents:

RF Explorer - 3G Combo

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 11:40:30 GMT

This is the most advanced RF Explorer yet, covering 15Mhz to 2700Mhz covering all of the ISM bands, the wifi bands and many more. Similar spectrum analysers covering these frequencies can cost tens of thousands of pounds!

The 3G Combo model is a handheld digital spectrum analyzer, a very affordable tool for work in all popular frequency bands. It is based on a highly integrated frequency synthesizer and double balanced mixer which offers high performance, compact size, low consumption and low cost.

It has been designed to be used equally well outdoor and indoor, and can be connected to a PC for extra functionality using standard mini-USB 2.0 connector.

This model includes a WSUB1G baseline unit plus an RFEMWSUB3G Expansion Module conveniently assembled and tested. It comes with two SMA connectors and two antennas,a nice Nagoya NA-773 wideband telescopic antenna for all Sub-GHz frequencies and a whip helical for 2.4GHz band. Additional, specific band antennas may be needed to cover efficiently some of the frequencies supported.

The combination of these two models offer the wide band coverage of the WSUB3G module, together with the highest sensitivity and quick response of the WSUB1G model for the popular sub-1GHz frequencies.

Feature

Pocket size and light weight
Solid aluminium metal case
Spectrum Analyzer mode with Peak Max and Hold, Normal, Overwrite and Averaging modes
Lifetime free firmware upgrades available, open to community requested features
High capacity Lipo for 16hs+ of continuous run, rechargeable by USB
Windows PC client Open Source
Can be extended with internal Expansion Modules for additional band and functionality
Wide band coverage to all popular RF frequencies, starting at 15MHz and going up to 2.7GHz. This include very interesting frequency areas such as 2m HAM radio, all VHF and UHF, FM radio, GPS, WiFi and WiMax, Bluetooth, etc.
Firmware: RF Explorer 3G Combo is delivered with upgraded firmware v1.09. Note some of the features and operation accuracy will be improved in upcoming lifetime free firmware revisions.

Important

Note this unit does not include RF Generator functionality, only Spectrum Analyzer functionality is available.

Specification

Frequency band: 15-2700 MHz
Frequency span: 112KHz - 100MHz
Graphics LCD 128x64 pixels, great visibility outdoors
PC Windows client supports Windows XP/Vista/Win7 both 32 and 64bits
Backlight for great indoor visibility
2 standard SMA 50 ohms connector, one for Sub-GHz wideband Nagoya NA-773 telescopic antenna included and another 2.4Ghzone for 15-2700 MHz band with helical antenna included.
Amplitude resolution: 0.5dBm
Dynamic range:

Left SMA port (WSUB1G): -115dBm to 0dBm
Right SMA port (WSUB3G): -110dBm to -10dBm

Absolute Max input power:

Left SMA port (WSUB1G): +5dBm
Right SMA port (WSUB3G): +30dBm

Average noise level (typical): -110dBm
Frequency stability and accuracy (typical): +-10ppm
Amplitude stability and accuracy (typical): +-6dBm
Frequency resolution: 1Khz
Resolution bandwidth (RBW): automatic 3Khz to 600Khz
Weight: 185g
Size: 113x70x25 mm

For more info and to get started with your RF Explorer, visit the start page.

PCB Milling Bit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 06 Sep 2012 13:10:37 GMT

This is a milling bit especially designed for making 'isolation' based PCBs using the Roland iModela desktop milling machine.

'Isolation milling' is where the bit cuts a thin strip though the copper surrounding the actual signal path on the PCB. It's not necessary to mill out the whole non-signal area, just a thin strip to isolate/insulate one area of copper from another. You can read more about it in the Arduino tutorial in the resources section at the bottom.

Specs

Material : Solid Brown Grade Carbide
Shank : 2.35
Machine : Roland 'iModela'
Angle : 45 degrees
Truncation / Tip width : 0.2mm
Length : 50mm

Resources

Raspberry Pi Case (Black)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 04 Sep 2012 15:50:59 GMT

Got your Raspberry Pi but worried that someone's going to stand on it, or zap it with 100kV of electro-static discharge? These Raspberry Pi Cases are designed and manufactured in the United Kingdom using state of the art Injection Moulding and made from tough, strong and durable ABS Plastic. They have pre cut holes for the main connectors and little rubber feet to prevent slipping.

The GPIO port is *not* exposed, but the case is weakened at this point so that it can be easily punched out. No screws are used - instead the case's two halves snap together and open again with pressure in the correct areas.

Features:

Fully Tested on the Raspberry Pi Model B.
VESA MIS-D 75 Compatible Mounting Option
GPIO �Cut-Out� Access Hatch
Two Part Split Raspberry Pi Case with Pinch Locking
Air Vents to Keep Your Raspberry Pi Cool.
Fully Enclosed and Optimised Input Component Seats.
Made of Highly Robust, Drop and Splash Resistant ABS Plastic.
Includes four rubber non-slip feet

Triple Axis Accelerometer + Gyro Breakout - MPU-6050

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 03 Sep 2012 22:15:12 GMT

The MPU-6050 is a serious little piece of motion processing tech! By combining a 3-axis gyroscope and a 3-axis accelerometer on the same silicon die together with an onboard Digital Motion Processor (DMP) capable of processing complex 9-axis MotionFusion algorithms, the MPU-6050 does away with the cross-axis alignment problems that can creep up on discrete parts.

This breakout board for the MPU-6050 makes this tiny QFN package easy to work into your project. Every pin you need to get up and running is broken out to 0.1" headers, including the auxiliary master I2C bus which allows the MPU-6050 to access external magnetometers and other sensors.

Features:

I2C Digital-output of 6 or 9-axis MotionFusion data in rotation matrix, quaternion, Euler Angle, or raw data format
Input Voltage: 2.3 - 3.4V
Selectable Solder Jumpers on CLK, FSYNC and AD0
Tri-Axis angular rate sensor (gyro) with a sensitivity up to 131 LSBs/dps and a full-scale range of ±250, ±500, ±1000, and ±2000dps
Tri-Axis accelerometer with a programmable full scale range of ±2g, ±4g, ±8g and ±16g
Digital Motion Processing™ (DMP™) engine offloads complex MotionFusion, sensor timing synchronization and gesture detection
Embedded algorithms for run-time bias and compass calibration. No user intervention required
Digital-output temperature sensor

Resources:

Raspberry Pi Case (Red)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 03 Sep 2012 16:43:36 GMT

Features:

Fully Tested on the Raspberry Pi Model B.
VESA MIS-D 75 Compatible Mounting Option
GPIO �Cut-Out� Access Hatch
Two Part Split Raspberry Pi Case with Pinch Locking
Air Vents to Keep Your Raspberry Pi Cool.
Fully Enclosed and Optimised Input Component Seats.
Made of Highly Robust, Drop and Splash Resistant ABS Plastic.
Includes four rubber non-slip feet

LinkSprite JPEG Color Camera TTL Interface

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 03 Sep 2012 16:15:33 GMT

The LinkSprite JPEG color camera allows you to capture and output JPEG images through UART, making it easy to integrate into an existing design.

Note: Cameras purchased before November 01, 2010 output RS232 serial data, so you will need a level converter if you plan on connecting it to an Arduino or other microcontroller. See the related items for an appropriate converter. Cameras purchased after this time use a TTL interface.

Note: These only work reliably with a 5V power supply, even though the manual states they can work at 3.3V. If you want to use it at 3.3v, you will need a lower baud rate. Check the comments for more information.

Features:

VGA/QVGA/160x120 resolution
Support capture JPEG from serial port
Default baud rate of serial port is 38400
5V power supply
Size 32X32mm
Current consumption: 80-100mA

Documents:

JPEG Trigger

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 03 Sep 2012 16:04:12 GMT

The JPEG Trigger interfaces with the LinkSprite JPEG Color Camera to simplify picture taking. To take a picture, all you have to do is pull one of three digital pins to ground (D2, 3 or 4), or pull one of three analog pins to 5V (A0, 1 or 2). The on-board Arduino compatible ATmega328 is programmed to handle all the communication with the JPEG camera and the SD card.

The default firmware requires that a FAT16 formatted microSD card be inserted into the microSD socket. After you turn the board on, the status LED will turn on signifying the board is ready to be triggered. If the LED starts blinking, the SD card failed to initialize and you should make sure it's been formatted correctly.

Once the camera is triggered the board will capture a JPEG image and save it to the SD card. The file will be saved with a simple 3 digit number which is increment each time a picture is captured. While this happens, the status LED will start blinking. The camera can not be triggered again until the board finishes saving the current picture. After the JPEG Trigger has finished recording the image, the board will go back into the ready state and the status LED will go back to being solid. Each picture taken is saved as an individual 320x240 JPEG file. The files will actually carry the '.txt' extension, but they are actually JPEG encoded, simply change the file extension to '.jpg' in order to view them.

Power on the JPEG Trigger is regulated to 3.3VDC, and the on-board JST connector allows you to power the board via one of our LiPo batteries. There is also a 6-pin header on board which mates with the FTDI Basic Breakout board for debugging or other purposes.

Note: This product does not come with the JPEG Color Camera or an SD card, you'll need to purchase those items separately.

Note: Boards with the new firmware (below) will save pictures as '.jpg' files with the following format: "[name of trigger]###.jpg". If your board saves files as '.txt' they are still jpeg encoded, you simply need to change the extension, but if you like you can download the new source sketch and upload it to your board using the 'Arduino 5V/16Mhz w/ AtMega328' board profile.

Documents:

TLC5940 Breakout

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 28 Aug 2012 17:15:35 GMT

The TLC5940 is a 16 channel PWM unit with 12 bit duty cycle control (0-4095), 6 bit current limit control (0-63), and a daisy chainable serial interface. This breakout board is a good way to take full advantage of this useful IC. All 16 PWM channels are broken out to standard 0.1" headers, which run alongside convenient voltage and ground rails. Also, because the TLC5940 can be daisy-chained, the breakout is designed to support that feature. On the left-hand side of the board all serial inputs are broken out to 0.1" headers and likewise with output on the right-hand side.

Use this board to increase the number of PWM pins available to your microcontroller for applications such as Monocolor, Multicolor or Full-Color LED Displays, LED Signboards, Display Backlighting, Servo control, or any other project where a large number of PWM drivers are necessary.

Note: While each 3-pin PWM header is 0.1" spaced, the space between each header is slightly larger in order to accommodate servo connections. In order to make this board suitable for use with servos, 2.2k pull-up resistors have been included on each output as well. Finally, the 2.2k resistor on the Iref pin sets the output current to 17.8mA but a parallel through-hole connection is provided for an additional resistor to increase the current if necessary. To determine the resistor value you need for a given output check the equations provided on the schematic.

Documents:

FEZ Cerbuino Bee

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 28 Aug 2012 11:03:22 GMT

FEZ Cerbuino is for developers wanting a low-cost Arduino-comaptible Gadgeteer-compatible mainboard. This 100% open-source (OSHW) offer includes an on-board power connector, voltage regulators, MicroSD connector, USB host and USB Client connectors. Ready to plug-and-play using the included USB cable. The power of .NET Gadgeteer platform sockets is found on FEZ Cerbuino. These 3 gadgeteer-compatible sockets allow developers to seamlessly connect almost any of the Gadgeteer modules.

The Xbee socket automatically brings all sorts of wireless options to the table, including WiFi and Zigbee. Note that there is size a restriction on the physical size of xbee modules that can be used. Whip antenna, chip antenna, UFL antenna fit well, but the ones with RPSMA connector don't. Also plan your xbee selection well if you are planning on using full-size shields.

3 .NET Gadgeteer compatible sockets that include these types: Y, A, I, K, O, P, S, U.
Arduino Compatible headers (some signals are shared with Gadgeteer sockets)
Xbee Adapter for ZigBee or WiFi XBee modules.
Configurable on-board LED.
Software/Hardware features includes but not limited to:

.NET Micro Framework 4.2 (supporting C# and Visual Basic) with FEZ Cerberus firmware
168Mhz 32bit processor with floating point
1MB FLASH, over 300K for user's code
192KB RAM, 112KB for user's heap
Full TCP/IP Stack with HTTP, TCP, UDP, DHCP
Ethernet support with Ethernet ENC28 module.
USB host
USB Device
SPI
I2C
2 UART
CAN
9 Analog Inputs.
2 Analog Output
4-bit microSD interface
6 PWM
OneWire interface
Built-in Real Time Clock (Needs 32Khz crystal)
RLPLite allowing users to load native code (C/Assembly) for real-time requirements.
FAT File System

Dimensions: W 8cm x L 5.5cm

Power

Through USB port or an external DC 6-9V power supply (connecting both is safe).

3.3V regulated DC output is available.

5.0V regulated DC output is available

Digital I/O are 3.3V but 5V tolerant (Reset pin is not 5V tolerant)

Active power consumption TBA

Idle power consumption TBA

Environmental:

Operating temperature: -20 to 65�C
RoHS compliant /Lead-free compliant

Resources

Note: Mini USB cable is included at no additional cost.

For more information about .NET Gadgeteer visit:
http://www.netmf.com/gadgeteer/

Design sources and porting info are found on this page.

Raspberry Pi - Model B rev 2 512Mb

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 17 Aug 2012 14:03:51 GMT

Features:

SoC Broadcom BCM2835 (CPU, GPU, DSP, and SDRAM)
CPU: 700 MHz ARM1176JZF-S core (ARM11 family)
GPU: Broadcom VideoCore IV, OpenGL ES 2.0, 1080p30 h.264/MPEG-4 AVC high-profile decoder
Memory (SDRAM): 512 Megabytes (MiB)
Video outputs: Composite RCA, HDMI
Audio outputs: 3.5 mm jack, HDMI
Onboard storage: SD, MMC, SDIO card slot
10/100 Ethernet RJ45 onboard network
Storage via SD/ MMC/ SDIO card slot

Resources:

Xbee Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 16 Aug 2012 14:58:04 GMT

Digi international offers a verity of wireless modules in a standard form-factor. Modules range from low power Zigbee modules, capable of mesh or point-to-point connections, to high-powered modules reaching up to 15 miles! We stock a full range here.

Another important XBee offer is the WiFi option. Some gadgeteer mainboards may not have support for the WiFi RS21 Module. These mainboards can use the Xbee module plus XBee-WiFi as an alternative. The difference is that GHI's WiFi Module enables FEZ Spider with a real WiFi connection that uses the standard .NET socket class. On the other hand, XBee WiFi is simply a WiFi to serial bridge with many limitations but still good enough for many applications.

Socket: U
Size: 42mm x 37mm
Weight: 4g
3.3V Consumption : Dependent on wireless module used.
5V Consumption: 0mA
Includes one Gadgeteer cable

OBD II Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 15 Aug 2012 15:09:43 GMT

This is a .NET Gadgeteer module with an OBDII cable attached. Put simply, this will allow you to use your Gadgeteer board to pull diagnostic data directly from your car's type-U data port (usually somewhere under the dashboard)

Together with other components, imagination and some research, this module opens up loads of exciting possibilities including creating custom speedometers, head-up displays and pollutant data-logging solutions

With this module, you can read statistics from your car such as RPM, Vehicle Speed, Fuel Type/Level and much more.

Socket: U
Size: 47mm x 39mm
Weight: 200g
3.3V Consumption : 7mA
5V Consumption: 0mA
Includes one Gadgeteer cable

FlexPCB Double Sided

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 09 Aug 2012 14:14:39 GMT

This is a 2-panel pack of flexible double sided copper / fibreglass flexible PCB substrate. Each panel measures 8 x 10 inches and is designed to be used with the Pulsar ProFX 'Fab-in-a-box' system, although it can be used normally as well.

Because the substrate is flexible, you can create all manner of bendy PCBs.

This substrate can only be bent by a certain amount, and will snap if you try to do a sharp crease. There are ways around this, details in the full description of the product on the manufacturer's website (link below)

The laminate uses 1/2oz copper and is suitable for SMD components.

Features

G10/FR4 spec
Fibreglass material
2 panels in each pack
Thickness : 0.005 inches
Size : 8x10 inches
Copper Weight : 1/2oz
'Carrier Board' included
Cuts with scissors
Lamination Properties (per NEMA based on .500 sheet)
- Minimum Breakdown Voltage : Condition A : 45.000
- Maximum Permitivity @ 1Mhz : Condition A : 5.200
- Maximum Dissipation Factor @ 1Mhz : Condition A : 0.025
- Minimum Bonding Strengh : Condition A : 2000.000
- Maximum Water Absorbtion : 0.10%
- Minimum Izod Impact Strength : Lengthwise = 7.000, Crosswise = 5.500
- Minimum Flextual Strength : Lengthwise = 45.000, Crosswise = 35.000

Resources

Manufacturer's Information Page

FlexPCB Single Sided

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 09 Aug 2012 14:07:35 GMT

This is a 2-panel pack of flexible single sided copper / fibreglass flexible PCB substrate. Each panel measures 8 x 10 inches and is designed to be used with the Pulsar ProFX 'Fab-in-a-box' system, although it can be used normally as well.

Because the substrate is flexible, you can create all manner of bendy PCBs.

The laminate uses 1/2oz copper and is suitable for SMD components.

Features

G10/FR4 spec
Fibreglass material
2 panels in each pack
Thickness : 0.005 inches
Size : 8x10 inches
Copper Weight : 1/2oz
'Carrier Board' included
Cuts with scissors
Lamination Properties (per NEMA based on .500 sheet)
- Minimum Breakdown Voltage : Condition A : 45.000
- Maximum Permitivity @ 1Mhz : Condition A : 5.200
- Maximum Dissipation Factor @ 1Mhz : Condition A : 0.025
- Minimum Bonding Strengh : Condition A : 2000.000
- Maximum Water Absorbtion : 0.10%
- Minimum Izod Impact Strength : Lengthwise = 7.000, Crosswise = 5.500
- Minimum Flextual Strength : Lengthwise = 45.000, Crosswise = 35.000

Resources

Manufacturer's Information Page

LilyPad SimpleSnap

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 08 Aug 2012 10:00:24 GMT

The LilyPad SimpleSnap is a new, easy way to create e-textiles projects with LilyPad that are modular and can be disassembled or broken down, it's also a great way to prototype! The SimpleSnap board is similar to the LilyPad Simple board, and has the same functionality except for two major differences: A built-in rechargeable Lithium Polymer battery and female snap connectors. By adding fabric snaps to the board, LilyPad's made it possible to connect this board to the SimpleSnap Protoboard or simply an arrangement of sew-on fabric snaps so that the board is removable from your project for washing or so that multiple projects can share a board! It is important, though, that you do not wash the SimpleSnap because the battery can be damaged.

The on-board Lithium Polymer battery can be charged simply by attaching an FTDI breakout (the same board used for programming) and just like the Simple, the SimpleSnap can be programmed in Arduino!

LilyPad is a wearable e-textile technology developed by Leah Buechley and cooperatively designed by Leah and SparkFun. Each LilyPad was creatively designed to have large connecting pads to allow them to be sewn into clothing. Various input, output, power, and sensor boards are available. They're even washable!

Features:

50mm outer diameter
Thin 0.8mm PCB

Resources:

Audio-Sound Breakout - WTV020SD

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 08 Aug 2012 09:39:03 GMT

The WTV020SD is a small, simple IC for embedding audio-playback into your next project. These devices are commonly used in children's toys and "talking" retail displays. This breakout board allows you to access the functionality of the WTV020SD to give a voice to your next project.

The breakout board includes a battery connector and a micro-SD card slot. Simply load your audio files onto a micro-SD card and plug it in, power up the module and trigger the playback. Playback can be triggered in either key or serial mode:

The key-mode provides a stand alone operation where a host micro is not required. With only 3 push buttons, a 3V battery and a speaker, an extremely compact and low component count MP3-Player like system can be implemented.

The serial-mode provides a simple, 2-wire interface to any micro-controller via its DATA and CLK lines. Audio operations such as PLAY, PAUSE, STOP and VOLUME control functions are all available to the host micro via simple serial commands.

The audio compression used in this module is a little strange (4-bit ADPCM @ 6-32kHz) so you'll need to download the utility in the documents below in order to convert your .WAV files into the 4-bit ADPCM format required.

Features:

Low-cost module for all embedded Audio-Sound applications.
Supports 4-bit ADPCM (.ad4) file formats with sampling rates from 6Khz to 36Khz.
Two operation modes:
- Serial Mode: Supports a 2-Wire (Data, Clock) interface to any micro-controller.
- Key Mode: Supports a simple stand alone operation without a host micro.
Differential 2 line PWM output for direct speaker connection (8 Ohm/0.5W).
Dedicated 16-bit DAC/PWM audio output to use with an external amplifier.
On-board micro-SD memory card adaptor for storing of audio, voice and music files (up to 512 files).
Supports 64Mb to 2Gig micro-SD memory cards (FAT format).
Low Power Idle current of 8.0uA
RoHS Compliant

Documents:

Heating Pad - 5x10cm

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 07 Aug 2012 16:49:45 GMT

These DC powered heating pads are perfect for near-body heating applications. They get warm to the touch but not too hot. Simply apply 5VDC to the wire leads and within minutes, the pad will begin to warm up.

These heating pads are constructed using a mesh of Polyester filament and Micro Metal Conductive Fiber folded into a protective Polyimide Film. The fact that these are low power, flexible and draw little power makes them ideal for things like hand-warmers and other heated garments. Maybe hook up a microcontroller and some sensors and make your own climate-controlled hoodie?

Dimensions: 5 x 10 cm

Documents:

16x2 Display and Keypad Shield

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 02 Aug 2012 17:43:58 GMT

The LCD and Keypad Shield gives you a handy 16-character by 2-line display, 5 buttons and a controllable backlight, plug it straight in on top of your Arduino board or other project shields. The display is set behind the shield for a low profile fitment and nice look and we've included panel mounting screw holes in the corners.

It's great when you want to build a stand-alone project with its own user interface that doesn't require a computer attached to send commands to your Arduino. Works perfectly in 4-bit mode with the "LiquidCrystal" library included with the Arduino IDE, allowing you to control the LCD with a total of just 6 digital I/O lines. We've deliberately picked D4-D9 so that it doesn't interfere with pins required by other popular products such as the Ethernet Shield and EtherTen, so you can stack this on top of other shields to give you a local display.

The buttons provide "left", "right", "up", "down", and "select" while using just one analog input. That leaves the other analog inputs free for you to use in your projects.

The LCD backlight is connected to D3 and can be controlled for on/off, brightness and flashing effects.

Features:

16x2 LCD using HD44780-compatible display module (white characters on blue background).
5 buttons on one analog input (A0).
LCD backlight with current limiting, brightness and on/off controllable by D3, can be moved to D2, D10, A1, A2, A3, A4 or A5 for easy project pin compatibility.
Recessed LCD, panel mount screw holes and button layout suitable for panel or cabinet mounting if desired.
Reset button.
Power supply smoothing capacitor.
Gold-plated PCB for maximum durability.
Overlay printed on both the top and the bottom.
Pins used by shield clearly marked, LiquidCrystal library setup reference is on the bottom of the pcb for convenience.

Resources

EtherTen

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 02 Aug 2012 17:13:10 GMT

The EtherTen is a 100% Arduino compatible board that can talk to the world.

Do Twitter updates automatically, serve web pages, connect to web services, display sensor data online, and control devices using a web browser.

The Freetronics EtherTen uses the same ATmega328P as the Uno and the same Wiznet W5100 chip used by the official Arduino Ethernet Shield, so it's 100% compatible with the Ethernet library and sketches. Any project you would previously have built with an Arduino and an Ethernet shield stacked together, you can now do all in a single, integrated board.

There's even a micro SD card slot so you can store web content on the card, or log data to it.

Features:

Gold-plated PCB.
Top and bottom parts overlays.
Top-spec ATmega328P MCU.
Mini-USB connector: no more shorts against shields from the USB jack!
D13 pin isolated with a MOSFET so you can use it as an input.
Power-over-Ethernet support, both cheapie DIY or full 802.3af standards-compliant.
Ethernet activity indicators on the PCB and the jack.
10/100base-T auto-selection.
Fully compatible with standard Ethernet library.
Reset management chip.
Fixed SPI behavior on Ethernet chipset.
Robust power filtering.
Sexy rounded corners.

Note that just like our Ethernet Shield with PoE support, the EtherTen provides a number of options for different Power over Ethernet. You can use the supplied jumpers and feed 7-12Vdc down the wire for cheap DIY version, or you can fit a PoE Regulator 24V and feed a bit more voltage down the wire, or you can use a PoE Regulator 802.3AF along with a proper commercial PoE injector or switch. It's up to you.

Resources:

EtherMega

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 02 Aug 2012 16:42:53 GMT

The EtherMega is a 100% Arduino Mega 2560 compatible board that can talk to the world.

Do Twitter updates automatically, serve web pages, connect to web services, display sensor data online, and control devices using a web browser. The Freetronics EtherMega uses the same ATmega2560 as the Arduino Mega 2560 so it has masses of RAM, flash memory, and I/O pins.

It also includes the same Wiznet W5100 chip used by the official Arduino Ethernet Shield, so it's 100% compatible with the Ethernet library and sketches. Any project you would previously have built with an Arduino Mega 2560 and an Ethernet shield stacked together, you can now do all in a single, integrated board.

There's even added a micro SD card slot so you can store web content on the card, or log data to it.

But it gets even better: the manufacturers found space to squeeze in a small prototyping area, so now it's possible to build a complete, Internet-enabled Arduino device including your own custom parts all on a single board! You don't even need to use a prototyping shield for many projects.

There's even an onboard switchmode voltage regulator so it can run on up to 28V without overheating!

Features:

Gold-plated PCB.
Top and bottom parts overlays.
Top-spec ATmega2560 MCU.
Mini-USB connector: no more shorts against shields from the USB jack!
Switchmode voltage regulator for wide input voltage range.
D13 pin isolated with a MOSFET so you can use it as an input.
Power-over-Ethernet support, both cheapie DIY or full 802.3af standards-compliant.
Ethernet activity indicators on both the PCB and the jack.
10/100base-T auto-selection.
Fully compatible with standard Ethernet library.
Reset management chip.
Fixed SPI behavior on Ethernet chipset.
Robust power filtering.
Sexy rounded corners.

Note that the EtherMega provides a number of options for different Power over Ethernet methods. You can use the supplied jumpers and feed 7-28Vdc down the wire for cheap DIY version, or you can use a PoE Regulator 802.3AF along with a proper commercial PoE injector or switch that supplies 48Vdc. It's up to you.

Resources:

Big Dome Push Button - Red

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 30 Jul 2012 11:04:45 GMT

It's the end of the world, and you need a button to press. This is it. A 100mm diameter (outside diameter) dome illuminated push button comes with an LED, securing nut and a pre-installed long life horizontal microswitch. Button can also be adjusted to a low profile button by removing the middle ring.

Features:

LED indicator light runs at 12VDC
Bulb holder is easy to install or remove
3 Terminals Button Actuator microswitch included
Microswitch reliability tested to 10,000,000 cycles
Microswitch can be replaced
Polycarbonate lens cap for optical clarity

Dimensions:

60 mm Diameter x 72 mm Height
Net weight: 152grams
Mounting hole diameter: 24 mm

Documents:

Defusable Clock Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 27 Jul 2012 15:03:01 GMT

The Defusable Clock kit is an electronics kit that lets you build a scary looking clock that you can actually "defuse". Only the electronics are included -- you use your imagination to build the device you want! You can get ideas from the gallery of defusable clocks.

The Defusable Clock is a fully-functional alarm clock just like you�d expect (a normal beeping alarm, snooze alarm, etc.). But at any time you can press the big red button to start a scary countdown sequence exactly like bombs in Hollywood movies.

***PLEASE READ***

Do not take this device assembled into stupid places, ie airports or other security conscious areas. Yes, *we* know it's a kit, others may not.
You need to solder to assemble this kit. We sell a soldering kit if you need one.
The kit contains everything you need apart from a power supply (9V DC with 2.1mm center-positive plug)

There are 4 wires across the top of the clock. You have 10 seconds to choose the correct wire to cut: one wire stops the countdown and saves the day, two have no effect, and one will �detonate� the device immediately. These role of each wire is randomly assigned when the detonate button is pressed, so it�s a new challenge every time.

Also, the wires are attached with screw terminals, so you can replace them easily. If you don�t want to actually cut the wires, you can just pull them out of the screw terminals if you keep the screws a little loose.

See full product details and detailed assembly instructions.

If you have questions about this product, see the FAQ.

Non-Invasive Current Sensor - 60A

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 26 Jul 2012 11:20:37 GMT

This current clamp can be used to detect a current of up to 60A. Simply clip it around the current source that you wish to measure and it will produce a (very) small AC voltage proportional to the current. The cable is terminated on one end with a standard 3.5mm jack (like a headphone jack).

Use this to build your own energy monitor and keep your power usage down, or use it to to build an >over-current protection device for an AC load. See the link below for an example project. Check out the datasheet for the pinout of the 3.5mm jack

**Please note that the picture shows the 30A version - the 60A version looks exactly similar**

Documents:

DC Barrel Jack Adapter - Breadboard Compatible

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 24 Jul 2012 09:45:33 GMT

This is DC power jack/connector with breadboard-friendly pins instead of wide solder terminals. They have a 5mm jack, with a 2.1mm center pole diameter.

Dimensional Drawing

Duinomite eMEGA

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 17 Jul 2012 13:22:41 GMT

DuinoMite is a Maximite compatible Basic computer, originally designed by Geoff Graham, with additional features and Arduino like layout. DuinoMite allows you to program in BASIC language and have VGA and Keyboard interface, so you can develop and write your code without the need for a desktop / laptop computer. You can store your code on the SD-CARD and to execute it on power up through autoexec.bas main code.

Features:

FEATURES:

PIC32MX795L microcontroller
100 Mbit Ethernet
PMP fast GPIO up to 80Mhz input/output
2MB on board FLASH DRIVE
64KB EEPROM memory
Micro SD card slot
USB OTG which allow it to act both as Host and Device, so it can accept Android ADK, Printers, Cameras, Keyboards, Mouses, etc USB devices.
VGA connector
Composite Video connector
CAN driver and connector - note: CAN driver works on 5V and will not working when board is powered by Li-ion battery
RS232 driver and connector
Two UEXT connectors allowing Olimex modules to be connected one inside the box one outside the box
PS-2 keyboard
Audio output connector
Arduino like format i.e. can work with Arduino shields

Resources:

DuinoMite Users Manual Revision 1.03 with UEXT examples, edited by Mick Gulovsen
DuinoMite programming example
The evolution of DuinoMite and the differences between DuinoMite and MaxiMite
MM BASIC Quick refference manual by crackerjack
MOD-BT and DUINOMITE-eMEGA errata and fix for the first batches of MOD-BT
still have questions? check ->DUINOMITE Forum

HARDWARE:

DuinoMite eMEGA schematic Revision A in PDF format

SOFTWARE:

DuinoMite Latest sources on GitHub - (latest firmware can be downloaded here, download the whole zip and navigate to SOFTWARE/FIRMWARE)
DunoMite E-MEGA Ethernet example with no BASIC support (hex can also be uploaded via the bootloader, but will overwrite the BASIC, however basic can be reupladed when you have tested the Ethernet!)
Bootloader HEX and Firmware HEX on GitHub
Duinomite drivers for virutal com port console, please read important note for the use of these.
Duinomite firmware updater, please read important note for the use of this file.

DUINOMITE PROJECTS:

TRS-80 emulator by Ken Segler
Retro BSD by Sergey Vakulenko
Space Invaders Game by Ken Segler
Z80 Emulator runs CP-M now and the complete project is on Github by Ken Segler
Snake retro game written in BASIC by Olimex
Duinomite with Gameduino shield example by Ken Segler
Measuring temperature with LM335Z by Olimex
How Fast is Duinomite Basic? by Olimex
Measuring temperature with KTY81.110 by Olimex

WARNING:

Do not use "programmer-to-go" button when there is no image on the OLIMEX PIC-KIT3 or MICROCHIP PIC-KIT3 or that might put your microcontroller in an inrecoverable state. We have tested the mentioned scenario and we can confirm it destroys PIC32 chips (using both our and the original Microchip PICKIT3). We don't take responsibility if you brick your chip that way. For more info check the following: www.microchip.com/forums/m635420.aspx.

Rainbow Cube Kit RGB 4x4x4

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 16 Jul 2012 14:15:07 GMT

This is a kit of 4x4x4 RGB LEDs cube, containing 648mm RGB LEDs, custom PCBs and all supporting components (6 free alternate LEDs are included in the kit). All parts are well packed in a nice package.

The built kit allows all sorts of crazy 3d light patterns to be created, in pretty much any colour.

It's important to understand that this kit contains only the LED cube parts, *not* the microcontroller board and LED current drivers. The kit is designed to work directly with the Rainbowduino. The Rainbowduino includes already all necessary drivers and connections and can be directly attached at the bottom of the Rainbowcube. Also - no PSU is supplied, but any 9V supply with the correct barrel connector should work.

Once assembled, you can control all LEDs of the Rainbowcube either by changing the Arduino program itself or by using the easy to use control software.

You do need some basic soldering skill to make this kit.

Kit Includes:

8mm RGB LED x70
Cube Panel X1
Slim Panel PCB X4
Side A slim PCB X4
Side B slim PCB X4
2.54mm 40pin male header X5
2.54mm 40pin female header X2
2.54mm 16pin female header X3
2.0mm 10pin female header X2
8pin female header X5
2X3 female header X1
JST power cable X1
3.5mm 4pin green terminal X1
3.5mm DC jack X1
3mm LED red X1
3mm LED green X1
1K 1/8w resistor X4
10k 1/8w resistor X1
15k 1/8w resistor X1
linear voltage regulator X1
10uF_16v_E-CAP X2

Documents

For more information please visit here

EL Escudo Dos

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 09:38:32 GMT

The new version of the Escudo adds zero-crossing optoisolated triacs for noise-free operation and full isolation between the AC and DC sides, and includes a 1.5A adjustable linear regulator to supply regulated DC to an external inverter (not included).

EL Escudo Dos is an Arduino shield for controlling up to eight strands of electroluminescent wire. EL wire is flexible plastic cord that glows brightly when high-voltage AC is applied to it. It's available in numerous colors (see the related products below), runs cool, and requires very little current, but can be difficult to work with because of the high-voltage requirements. The El Escudo Dos contains circuitry to safely switch high-voltage AC on and off, allowing you to create animated displays or whatever else your imagination can come up with.

In addition to this shield, you will need Arduino headers (see the related products below), an inverter (a component that generates the high-voltage AC needed by EL wire), and the EL wire itself. We carry two inverters, a 3V-input version that can drive a few feet of EL wire, and a 12V-input version capable of driving dozens of feet of EL wire. Choose the one appropriate to your power source and driving requirements. The shield's built-in regulator comes preset to 3.3V, but can be set to any voltage by changing two resistors, or bypassed with a solder jumper to send the Arduino's RAW voltage directly to the inverter (perfect for 12V setups!). See the tutorial below.

People have used EL wire to make amazing interactive costumes; check out the Heartbeat Straitjacket and demo video.

Features:

Eight opto-isolated, zero-crossing control channels
No library needed - control is as easy as turning a LED on and off
Shield is compatible with 5V or 3.3V Arduinos
Integrated 1.5A linear regulator (LM317) to supply regulated DC power to external inverter
Linear regulator preset to 3.3V, but can be changed via PTH resistors, or bypassed entirely
External inverter required, not included
Comes without headers, soldering required

Documents:

iModela iM-01 milling machine

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 25 Jun 2012 16:46:27 GMT

This isn't a 3D printer, in fact, quite the reverse - It's a milling machine, and creates objects, by cutting material away rather than adding material. We're stocking it, because you can use the iModela to create printed circuit boards without etching, but it can be used for a whole lot more!

The iM-01 is a cute thing the size and shape of an old fashioned toaster. It's truly desktop, and connects via the free software to your PC. It has a small movable platform onto which you place your copper clad PCB, or block of wood, plastic, plaster, or whatever. At the top of the machine there's a rapidly spinning cutting bit which can move up and down.

Features

Desktop sized
Can be used to cut 'isolation track' PCBs with additional bit
Easy to move - comes with rugged travel case
Free, easy to use PC software
Made by Japanese company Roland
12 month return to base warranty

Specs

Maximum Milling Area X, Y, and Z: 3.39 x 2.17 x 1.02 inches (80 x 55 x 26 mm)
Distance from Collet tip to table Maximum 2.17 inches (55 mm)
Table size Width x depth: 3.39 x 2.17 inches (86 x 55 mm)
Mountable cutting material weight 0.4 lb (200 g)
X-, Y-, and Z-axis drive system Stepping motor
Operating speed X and Y axes: 0.24 to 9.45 inches/min (6 to 240 mm/min)
Software resolution 0.00039 inches/step (0.01 mm/step; RML-1),0.000039 inches/step (0.001 mm/step: NC code)
Mechanical resolution 0.00000732 inches/step (0.000186 mm/step: micro steps)
Control command set RML-1, NC code
Dedicated AC adpater AC 100 to 240 V +/-10%, 50/60 Hz, Machine DC 24 V, 0.7 A
Operating noise During operation: 57dB (A) or less (when not cutting), during standby: 39 dB (A) or less
External dimensions Width x depth x height: 8.43 x 7.87 x 8.07 inches ( 214 x 200 x 205 mm)
Weight 3.7 lb (1.7 kg)

Included items Power cord, AC adapter, USB cable, cutting tool (axis diameter: 2.35 mm, Tip of the blade diameter: 1.6 mm), mounting screws (for fixing the cutting tool in place), hexagonal wrench (for fixing the cutting tool in place), spare hooks, replacement spindle motor, blower fan, maintenace grease, cleaning brush, double-sided tape, trial cutting materials, trial scrap plate, flathead screwdriver, Roland Software Package, setting board, and user's manuals

Not included : PCB cutting bit

Note about milling bits : The machine is designed for the US market and so is supplied with a 2.35mm collet (the thing that grabs the bits). This size means you can use pretty much any Dremel bit in it. Many UK bits are 3mm. We've negotiated with the manufacturers that for the near future, all machines sold will also come with a 3mm collet. Replacing the original collet is pretty simple - you can see how to do it

Resources

Conductive Paint Pen (10ml)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 15:21:01 GMT

This is an easy to use pen filled with conductive paint. The pen can be used to created conductive tracks on paper, wood, or many other non-flexible surfaces. It dries quickly and is water based and non-toxic. Please use within 6 months of purchase

Conductive Paint Greeting Card Kit (Robot)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 14:54:47 GMT

This is a fantastic fun kit for anyone (adults included!). The contents allow 3 electronic greeting cards to be made. The cards use conductive ink to form tracks to power up the supplied LEDs. Everything you need is supplied in this kit - the cost is actually very good considering how pricey posh greetings cards are!

Once you've finished making the 3 cards, there's enough ink in the pen to make other cards, or to use on other projects!

Supplied in kit :

1xBare Paint Pen
3xCard Templates (2 robot + 1 blank)
3xRed Flashing LEDs
1xRainbow LED
3x3V Coin Cell Batteries

How to make tutorial

Fio v3 - ATmega32U4

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 13:21:19 GMT

The Fio v3 is a new spin on the Arduino Fio hardware powered by the ATmega32U4. While the Fio v3 is not yet compatible with the Arduino v1.0 IDE, it's still a very capable XBee-ready development board.

The JST-connector and 3.3v system voltage make this a great development tool for portable devices, simply plug in a Li-Poly battery and you're ready to go. Wireless sensor networks and communication are made easy by the on-board XBee socket.

The ATmega32U4, running at 8MHz, makes it possible for you to use the on-board USB jack not only to charge a connected Li-Poly battery but to actually program the device! Because this board uses a similar bootloader to the one on the Pro Micro, you will need to download and install the special software driver below. There's also a board definition add-on for the Arduino IDE which will add support for this board.

Features:

ATmega32U4 running at 8MHz
Arduino-Compatible Bootloader
XBee Socket
Lithium Polymer Battery Compatible
MCP73831T LiPo Charger
Reset button
On/Off Switch
Status/Charge/RSSI LEDs

Documents:

LPC11C24 LPCXpresso Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 08 Jun 2012 14:12:16 GMT

The LPC11C24 LPCXpresso board with NXP's ARM Cortex-M0 microcontroller has been designed to make it as easy as possible to get started with Cortex-M0. The LPCXpresso comprises a target board combined with a JTAG debugger. A free Eclipse-based IDE from Code Red is also included.

The LPC11C24 has 8 kB SRAM, 32 kB Flash, integrated CAN-transceiver, 2xSPI, I2C, UART, ADC, etc. Embedded Artists also provides a Prototype board and a Base board that makes it possible to make experiments and prototyping with many peripherals.

Documents:

LPCXpresso Getting Started Manual (pdf from NXP)
Board Schematics (in pdf)
LPCXpresso Forum
LPCXpresso Support (lots of code example)
Cortex-M0 Technical Reference Manual from ARM
Cortex-M0 Generic User Guide from ARM

FTDI Basic Breakout - 5V

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 11:30:40 GMT

This is a basic breakout board for the FTDI FT232RL USB to serial IC. The pinout of this board matches the FTDI cable to work with official Arduino and cloned 5V Arduino boards. It can also be used for general serial applications. The major difference with this board is that it brings out the DTR pin as opposed to the RTS pin of the FTDI cable. The DTR pin allows an Arduino target to auto-reset when a new Sketch is downloaded. This is a really nice feature to have and allows a sketch to be downloaded without having to hit the reset button. This board will auto reset any Arduino board that has the reset pin brought out to a 6-pin connector.

The pins labeled BLK and GRN correspond to the colored wires on the FTDI cable. The black wire on the FTDI cable is GND, green is CTS. Use these BLK and GRN pins to align the FTDI basic board with your Arduino target.

This board has TX and RX LEDs that make it a bit better to use over the FTDI cable. You can actually see serial traffic on the LEDs to verify if the board is working.

This board was designed to decrease the cost of Arduino development and increase ease of use (the auto-reset feature rocks!). Our Arduino Pro boards and LilyPads use this type of connector.

One of the nice features of this board is a jumper on the back of the board that allows the board to be configured to either 3.3V or 5V (both power output and IO level). This board ship default to 5V, but you can cut the default trace and add a solder jumper if you need to switch to 3.3V.

Documents:

LeoStick (Arduino Compatible)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 28 May 2012 16:33:15 GMT

The LeoStick is designed to be functionally similar to the upcoming Arduino Leonardo, but given the "honey, I shrunk the kids" treatment! Just pop it into your USB port (no cable required!) and upload straight from the Arduino IDE. Also included are on-board RGB LED lights and a speaker in this handy sized board. All the usual Arduino pins are present and each LeoStick comes with low profile header sockets for plugging in modules, shields and wires.

Features of the LeoStick include:

Native USB port built-in, no need for any USB or FTDI cables
Two Full Color RGB LEDs on-board! Drive different colored outputs and fun feedback from your sketch right away. One RGB LED is completely programmable, the other does Power, USB RX and TX indication, the RX and TX LEDs can also be controlled.
On-board Piezo speaker element, play sounds, tunes and beeps. Can also be used as a knock/vibration sensor
Same I/O pins. The LeoStick provides all the same header connections as larger boards, you can connect all the same sensors, actuators, and other inputs and outputs as typical Arduino models.
Breadboard compatible, has 0.1" pitch pads and header pins can be fitted underneath
500mA polyfuse and protection on the USB port
ATmega32U4 microcontroller, Arduino compatible with on-board USB, 32K Flash, 2.5K RAM, 1K EEPROM at 16MHz
ISP 6-pin connector for advanced programming of the ATmega32U4 MCU

Please note: The LeoStick currently uses a modified beta version of the upcoming Arduino Leonardo bootloader. There are some known issues with Windows 7 64-bit drivers and some library functions don't work perfectly yet. Any firmware or Arduino Leonardo compatible support should not be considered to be final release firmware or in any way an official Arduino.

The LeoStick is also a very complete ATmega32U4 breakout and USB board by itself and the LeoStick can be programmed directly from the supplied standard ISP header by AVR Studio, Mac OSX-AVR, avrdude, WinAVR etc.

Resources:

Arduino Leonardo (with headers)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 22 May 2012 17:17:00 GMT

The Arduino Leonardo is a microcontroller board based on the ATmega32u4 (datasheet). It has 20 digital input/output pins (of which 7 can be used as PWM outputs and 12 as analog inputs), a 16MHz crystal oscillator, a micro USB connection, a power jack, an ICSP header, and a reset button. It contains everything needed to support the microcontroller; simply connect it to a computer with a USB cable or power it with a AC-to-DC adapter or battery to get started.

The Leonardo differs from all preceding boards in that the ATmega32u4 has built-in USB communication, eliminating the need for a secondary processor. This allows the Leonardo to appear to a connected computer as a mouse and keyboard, in addition to a virtual (CDC) serial / COM port. It also has other implications for the behavior of the board; these are detailed on Arduino's getting started page.

Summary:

Microcontroller	ATmega32u4
Operating Voltage	5V
Input Voltage (recommended)	7-12V
Input Voltage (limits)	6-20V
Digital I/O Pins	20
PWM Channels	7
Analog Input Channels	12
DC Current per I/O Pin	40 mA
DC Current for 3.3V Pin	50 mA
Flash Memory	32 KB (ATmega32u4) of which 4 KB used by bootloader
SRAM	2.5 KB (ATmega32u4)
EEPROM	1 KB (ATmega32u4)
Clock Speed	16 MHz

Schematic & Reference Design:

EAGLE files: arduino-leonardo-reference-design.zip

Schematic: arduino-leonardo-schematic-rev3b.pdf

Power:

The Arduino Leonardo can be powered via the micro USB connection or with an external power supply. The power source is selected automatically.

The power pins are as follows:

VIN. The input voltage to the Arduino board when it's using an external power source (as opposed to 5 volts from the USB connection or other regulated power source). You can supply voltage through this pin, or, if supplying voltage via the power jack, access it through this pin.
5V. The regulated power supply used to power the microcontroller and other components on the board. This can come either from VIN via an on-board regulator, or be supplied by USB or another regulated 5V supply.
3V3. A 3.3 volt supply generated by the on-board regulator. Maximum current draw is 50 mA.
GND. Ground pins.
IOREF. The voltage at which the i/o pins of the board are operating (i.e. VCC for the board). This is 5V on the Leonardo.

Memory:

The ATmega32u4 has 32 KB (with 4 KB used for the bootloader). It also has 2.5 KB of SRAM and 1 KB of EEPROM (which can be read and written with the EEPROM library).

Input and Output:

Each of the 20 digital i/o pins on the Uno can be used as an input or output, using pinMode(), digitalWrite(), and digitalRead() functions. They operate at 5 volts. Each pin can provide or receive a maximum of 40 mA and has an internal pull-up resistor (disconnected by default) of 20-50 kOhms. In addition, some pins have specialized functions:

Serial: 0 (RX) and 1 (TX). Used to receive (RX) and transmit (TX) TTL serial data using the ATmega32U4 hardware serial capability. Note that on the Leonardo, the Serial class refers to USB (CDC) communication; for TTL serial on pins 0 and 1, use the Serial1 class.
TWI: 2 (SDA) and 3 (SCL). Support TWI communication using the Wire library.
External Interrupts: 2 and 3. These pins can be configured to trigger an interrupt on a low value, a rising or falling edge, or a change in value. See the attachInterrupt() function for details.
PWM: 3, 5, 6, 9, 10, 11, and 13. Provide 8-bit PWM output with the analogWrite() function.
SPI: on the ICSP header. These pins support SPI communication using the SPI library. Note that the SPI pins are not connected to any of the digital I/O pins as they are on the Uno, They are only available on the ICSP connector.
LED: 13. There is a built-in LED connected to digital pin 13. When the pin is HIGH value, the LED is on, when the pin is LOW, it's off.
Analog Inputs: A0-A5, A6 - A11 (on digital pins 4, 6, 8, 9, 10, and 12). The Leonardo has 12 analog inputs, labeled A0 through A11, all of which can also be used as digital i/o. Pins A0-A5 appear in the same locations as on the Uno; inputs A6-A11 are on digital i/o pins 4, 6, 8, 9, 10, and 12 respectively. Each analog input provide 10 bits of resolution (i.e. 1024 different values). By default the analog inputs measure from ground to 5 volts, though is it possible to change the upper end of their range using the AREF pin and theanalogReference() function.

There are a couple of other pins on the board:

AREF. Reference voltage for the analog inputs. Used with analogReference().
Reset. Bring this line LOW to reset the microcontroller. Typically used to add a reset button to shields which block the one on the board.

Communication:

The Leonardo has a number of facilities for communicating with a computer, another Arduino, or other microcontrollers. The ATmega32U4 provides UART TTL (5V) serial communication, which is available on digital pins 0 (RX) and 1 (TX). The 32U4 also allows for serial (CDC) communication over USB and appears as a virtual com port to software on the computer. The chip also acts as a full speed USB 2.0 device, using standard USB COM drivers. On Windows, a .inf file is required. The Arduino software includes a serial monitor which allows simple textual data to be sent to and from the Arduino board. The RX and TX LEDs on the board will flash when data is being transmitted via the USB connection to the computer (but not for serial communication on pins 0 and 1).

A SoftwareSerial library allows for serial communication on any of the Leonardo's digital pins.

The ATmega32U4 also supports I2C (TWI) and SPI communication. The Arduino software includes a Wire library to simplify use of the I2C bus; see the documentation for details. For SPI communication, use the SPI library.

The Leonardo appears as a generic keyboard and mouse, and can be programmed to control these input devices using the Keyboard and Mouse classes.

Programming:

The Leonardo can be programmed with the Arduino software (download). Select "Arduino Leonardo from the Tools > Board menu (according to the microcontroller on your board). For details, see the reference and tutorials.

The ATmega32U4 on the Arduino Leonardo comes preburned with a bootloader that allows you to upload new code to it without the use of an external hardware programmer. It communicates using the AVR109 protocol.

You can also bypass the bootloader and program the microcontroller through the ICSP (In-Circuit Serial Programming) header; see these instructions for details.

Automatic (Software) Reset and Bootloader Initiation:

Rather than requiring a physical press of the reset button before an upload, the Leonardo is designed in a way that allows it to be reset by software running on a connected computer. The reset is triggered when the Leonardo's virtual (CDC) serial / COM port is opened at 1200 baud and then closed. When this happens, the processor will reset, breaking the USB connection to the computer (meaning that the virtual serial / COM port will disappear). After the processor resets, the bootloader starts, remaining active for about 8 seconds. The bootloader can also be initiated by pressing the reset button on the Leonardo. Note that when the board first powers up, it will jump straight to the user sketch, if present, rather than initiating the bootloader.

Because of the way the Leonardo handles reset it's best to let the Arduino software try to initiate the reset before uploading, especially if you are in the habit of pressing the reset button before uploading on other boards. If the software can't reset the board you can always start the bootloader by pressing the reset button on the board.

USB Overcurrent Protection:

The Leonardo has a resettable polyfuse that protects your computer's USB ports from shorts and overcurrent. Although most computers provide their own internal protection, the fuse provides an extra layer of protection. If more than 500 mA is applied to the USB port, the fuse will automatically break the connection until the short or overload is removed.

Physical Characteristics:

The maximum length and width of the Leonardo PCB are 2.7 and 2.1 inches respectively, with the USB connector and power jack extending beyond the former dimension. Four screw holes allow the board to be attached to a surface or case. Note that the distance between digital pins 7 and 8 is 160 mil (0.16"), not an even multiple of the 100 mil spacing of the other pins.

PIC32-T795H Development Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 16 May 2012 16:59:17 GMT

The PIC32-T795H is a low Cost 32 bit Pinguino Duinomite development board.

The special T-form of this board allows it to snap-on and directly supply the VCC and GND to Breadboard bus. Perfect for fast breadboarding with jumper wires.

Features:

PIC32MX795F512H 80 Mhz microcontroller 512KB Flash 128KB RAM , 3x SPI, 4x I2C, USB OTG, 1MSPS ADC, PMP 80Mhz digital capture, 5 TIMERS/CCP, 53 GPIOs
USB-OTG supporting both Host and Device function allow implementation of Google Android ADK
UEXT connector which allow many existing modules like RF, ZIGBEE, GSM, GPS to be connected
two LEDs
one BUTTONs
RESET button
mini USB connector is used which is common and used in most cell phones, so you do not have to buy other cables
all PIC ports available on 0.1" connectors
Dimensions 87x54 mm (3.4x2.12")

Documents:

PIC32-T795 - User manual
Duinomite User manual 1.03

Hardware:

PIC32-T795 Rev_A schematic in PDF format
PIC32-T795 Rev_B schematic in PDF format
PIC32-T795 schematic Rev_B in Eagle format released under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 United States License
PIC32-T795 board Rev_B in Eagle format released under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 United States License

Warning:

Software:

PINGUINO IDE supports PIC32MX795F512
DUINOMITE firmware supports PIC32-T795 we ship PIC32-T795 by default with DUINOMITE firmware and bootloader

Apple Tool Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 04 May 2012 12:41:27 GMT

This is a high quality tool kit with everything you need to repair your Apple products. Includes a 12 piece screwdriver with Cr-Mo-V steel bits, 3 devices for leveraging open cases etc. and a miniature suction cup for removing Apple touch screens without leaving marks.

Works with the iPhone, iPad, iPod, iMac and any other small electronic devices that need repairing.

Contents:

12 Piece Interchangeable Screwdriver
Bits:
- * TS1
- + PH000
- - 1.5mm
- * T4
- * T6
- * T8
- * T10
- * T15
- * T20
- � H2.0mm
- � H1.5mm
- . Needle head �0.8mm for iPhone /iPad SIM card ejection
2x Opening Levers
Suction Cup �36mm
Prying paddle

Resources:

Manufacturer product video

Large Precision Screwdriver Set

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 03 May 2012 13:00:35 GMT

These are the ultimate precision screwdrivers! The blades are made from a super durable chrome-molybdenum vanadium steel with hardened black-oxide tips. You get a decent 65mm distance from the non-slip handle, perfect for hard-to-reach places. The icing on the cake are the swivel tops, which allow you to apply pressure with one hand while using the other to screw for better control.

Includes 3 flathead, 4 phillips and 2 torx screwdrivers.

Features:

- 1.6X65
- 2.0x65
- 2.4x65
+ PH0x65
+ PH00x65
+ PHx65
+ PH1x65
* T5x65
* T6x65

Resources:

Small Precision Screwdriver Set

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 03 May 2012 10:24:20 GMT

This is a great 6 piece precision screwdriver set. It's got nice chunky handles which are easy to grip unlike the standard cheap metal screwdrivers. Colour coded for easy recognition and quality hardened tips which last.

Contents:

- 1.4x20mm
- 1.8x20mm
- 2.4x20mm
+ #00x20mm
+ #0x20mm
+ #1x20mm

Features:

Rotating cap to facilitate support and rotation control
The handle is made by durable ABS material with anti-slip strip for easy operation
Tempered and chrome plated blades precision ground tip with sand-blast treatment, perfect fit in screw slots and lasting durability.
Supplied with plastic carry case

i-Racer

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 10:46:52 GMT

This is one cool little car. This simple, two-wheel drive chassis has a rack-and-pinion style steering mechanism so it turns like a car, not like a tank. Also, the drive motor is geared-down to the live axle in the back and provides plenty of speed and torque for driving on relatively flat terrain.

Did we mention that it comes with a battery and a controller board? That's right, this is ready to drive pretty much out of the box! The on-board Bluetooth radio allows you to pair the car to your Bluetooth enabled Android device and use it to control the car. If you're not into the Android controller, you can build your own. The firmware on the car works by interpreting command bytes that are received over Bluetooth SPP at 9600 baud. You can find the list of control bytes in the documents below. We've paired ours to a PC using a Bluetooth USB Mini Module and passed command bytes to it using a serial terminal, it works great.

The board itself is a pair of simple motor drivers, a CSr Bluetooth module and an ATMega48V microcontroller. It has a built-in battery charging circuit which charges from the included USB charging cable. The fine folks at Dagu have also been kind enough to break-out two of the ADCs from the ATMega as well as the 6-pin ISP header so you can upload your own custom firmware. A copy of the original firmware which ships on the unit can be downloaded below.

The transparent vacuum-formed plastic cover provides the car with some sporty shape and stickers are even included so you can pimp your ride.

Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 3.5"

Features:

Wireless Control from your Android Phone or Tablet
Designed around ATMega48V Microcontroller
Simple Bluetooth SPP Interface (8-N-1 @ 9600)
Rechargeable Li-Poly Battery
Slick, Hard-Rubber Tires
Rack and Pinion Steering
Plastic Body Shell
Access to ADC and ISP pins
Power, Speed and Bluetooth Indicator LEDs

Includes:

i-Racer Platform
USB charging cable
Android Software CD
Sticker Sheet

Documents:

IO60P16 Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 17:18:16 GMT

The base of this module is CY8C9560A IO extender chip. A single socket from mainboard will add 60 inputs/outputs with interrupt capability. Also, 16 of these pins can be PWM signals. The signals with PWM are exposed on header-placement so it is easy to add standard RC servo motors. Adding 16 servo motors was never easier.

It is possible to add up to Eight of this module on one socket with minor hardware changes. See schematics under downloads and CY8C956A datsheet for further details.

Requires socket type X

.NET Gadgeteer compatible cable is included.

Features:

Resources:

Bluetooth Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 17:11:10 GMT

The Bluetooth module enables Gadgeteer mainboards with a wireless connection to connect to any other Bluetooth device with SPP (Serial Port Profile), such as mobile phones and laptops. This module can host a connection or search and hook onto other connections.

Requires socket type U.

.NET Gadgeteer compatible cable is included.

Features:

Resources:

VideoOut Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 16:46:26 GMT

A display module that supports both VGA and Analog Video RCA output. Capable of outputting at 320x240, 640x480, and 800x600 resolutions. A small switch on the module is used to turn on VGA or RCA output. Running both simultaneously is not supported.

Required socket types: R,G,B and X/Y

.NET Gadgeteer compatible cables are included.

Features:

Resources:

Solder Paste - 50g (Lead Free)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 15:54:43 GMT

Solder Paste Stenciling is the easiest and quickest way to solder some of the trickier SMD components.

These small 50g tubs are the same size as our leaded solder paste, the perfect amount to keep around for prototyping and hobby projects.

The composition of this paste is Sn:90%, Cu:7%, Ag:3%

Features:

Resources:

Arduino Cookbook 2nd Edition

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 16:34:16 GMT

Want to create devices that interact with the physical world? This cookbook is perfect for anyone who wants to experiment with the popular Arduino microcontroller and programming environment. You�ll find more than 200 tips and techniques for building a variety of objects and prototypes such as toys, detectors, robots, and interactive clothing that can sense and respond to touch, sound, position, heat, and light.

You don�t need experience with Arduino or programming to get started. Updated for the Arduino 1.0 release, the recipes in this second edition include practical examples and guidance to help you begin, expand, and enhance your projects right away�whether you�re an artist, designer, hobbyist, student, or engineer.

Get up to speed on the Arduino board and essential software concepts quickly
Learn basic techniques for reading digital and analog signals
Use Arduino with a variety of popular input devices and sensors
Drive visual displays, generate sound, and control several types of motors
Interact with devices that use remote controls, including TVs and appliances
Learn techniques for handling time delays and time measurement
Apply advanced coding and memory handling techniques

Ball Caster Omni-Directional Metal

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 11:37:57 GMT

A metal caster used for omni-directional robots.

Omni-what? Imagine a robot with the dual-motor gear box. The robot can pivot in one spot, but it must also allow the other wheels on the drive train to move or slide during a turn. This caster allows the robot to rotate and pivot in all directions - omni-directional - without the need for complex steering mechanisms.

Features:

Can be configured for 6 different overall heights including 11, 16, 25, 27, 35, and 37mm
Includes mounting holes and hardware
Package contains parts for two complete casters

Rainbowduino v3.0 LED driver platform - Atmega 328

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 15:40:17 GMT

The Rainbowduino board (V3.0) is an Arduino compatible controller board with professional multiplexed LED driver. It can drive a 8x8 RGB Led Matrix or a 4x4x4 RGB LED Cube in common Anode mode. Rainbowduino v3.0 uses two MY9221 chips which is a 12-channels (R/G/B x 4) constant current Adaptive Pulse Density Modulation(APDM). Rainbowduino v3.0 has provisions for cascading more such boards with I2C interface. The Rainbowduino v3.0 is flashed with Arduino boot-loader and this makes it easy to program sketches using Arduino IDE. Unlike other LED drivers, this comes with a USB to UART (FT232RL) inbuilt for programming the sketches.

We recommend using the 60mm square 8*8 LED Matrix with this product.

Features:

Provides 2 x 16 pin header for connecting multiplexed LEDs
Constant current(20.8mA) LEDs driver.
Can drive 4x4x4 RGB LED Cube or 8x8 RGB LED Matrix (i.e 192 LED)
Built in USB to UART chip (FT232RL)
Built in 5V / 1 Ampere voltage regulator
Can be driven directly via USB cable (No external power adapter needed)

Resources:

Music Module - .NET Gadgeteer Compatible

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 15:05:21 GMT

Turn your gadgeteer mainboard into an internet radio with few lines of code. This module includes an audio decoder capable of playing MP3, WMA, OGG, MIDI and WAV files. All you need is to read the files from a storage device, or from network, and send it to decoder, it does the rest. Audio quality is very high with built in headphone audio-amplifier.

.NET Gadgeteer compatible cable is included.

Features:

Resources:

Source Code

External Links - you need to download the following software to start your Gadgeteer:

Development tool: Microsoft Visual C# Express 2010
Micro framework: Microsoft .NET Micro Framework 4.1 SDK
The Gadgeteer core, mainboard SDk and module driver(GHI)

You can download these tools at: http://tinyclr.com/support

2WD Arduino compatible Mobile platform

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 14:30:42 GMT

This a well designed, Arduino compatible mobile robot development platform, you can build it and program it easily with tons of published free codes. Compared with the last mobile platform, this one has a tough aluminium body with mounting holes, you can add a variety of sensors to make it more interesting.

Features:

2WD Arduino compatible mobile robot development platform
2 high-quality micro-speed motor
Tough aluminium body with mounting holes
Variety of sensors can be added

Specification:

2WD Mobile platform Motors: 3-6V DC
Speed: 70cm/S
Dimensions: 170mm（diameter）
Weight: 400g

Package list:

Aluminium chassis X1
wheels X2
Motors X2
Omni-directional Wheel x1

Resources:

Instruction Manual

UartSBee V4 - XBee Adapter

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 13:42:45 GMT

The UartSBee V4 is a compact USB to serial adapter equipped with XBee (20pin 2.0mm) sockets. With integrated FT232 IC, It can be used for programming or communicating with MCU applications. On the other hand, you may connect your PC to various wireless applications via the XBee compatible modules.

Features:

Reset button for XBee modules
3.3V and 5V dual power output
3.3V and 5V IO compatible
USB 2.0 protocol
BitBang mode ready

Resources:

USB Serial adapter to communicate with TTL/CMOS level Serial devices
Programmer for Arduino and compatible boards
USB Adapter of XBee modules for PC wireless function

Quadcopter Power Distribution Board Un-Assembled

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 15:21:07 GMT

The quadcopter PDB can be used with any frame. It distributes the power from the flight battery to four ESC's to power the quad's motors.

Features:

PDB
APM cable
APM power cable
All necessary headers.
6" 14AWG red/black cable for the flight battery.
4 female Deans connectors/ 1 male Deans connector.
Shrink tubing for flight battery cables

Resources:

Pitot Tube - Combined Static+Dynamic Probes

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 14:52:37 GMT

This combined tube fits to the dual port pressure sensors we sell. It allows pressure readings to be taken from specific, well defined areas to provide accurate dynamic and static measurements for the calculation of altitude and airspeed.

This is crucial for proper use of the ArduPilot pressure sensor shield.

Features:

Resources:

Magician Robot Chassis

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 11:49:44 GMT

The Magician Chassis is our latest robot platform from Dagu. It features two gearmotors with 65mm wheels and a rear caster. The chassis plates are cut from acrylic with a wide variety of mounting holes for sensors, controllers, power, etc. Simply bolt the two pre-cut platforms together, attach the motors and caster and add your favorite robotics controller. This kit includes all of the parts needed to assemble the chassis as well as a 4xAA battery holder with barrel jack termination.

The items below are featured with in the main product picture, but are not included with this kit:

Note: The chassis requires assembly but has detailed instructions.

Features:

Dimensions: 110 x 174mm

Max Motor Voltage: 6VDC
No Load Speed: 90±10rpm
No Load Current:190mA(max.250mA)
Torque: 800gf.cm
Stall Current: ~1A
65mm Diameter Wheels (30mm Wide)
Plastic Rims with Solid Rubber Tires

Resources:

Datasheet (Motors)

DuinoMite IO

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 11:31:28 GMT

The DuinoMite-IO is an IO board for the DuinoMite basic computer. It adds PS-2 Keyboard, VGA monitor, Composite Video, Audio outputs to the DuinoMite.

Features:

PS-2 connector
Audio jack 3.5 mm connector
Composite Video and Audio for RCA jacks
VGA monitor connector
10 pin IO connector for Duinomite with cable
Small ribbon cable with IDC10 connectors on both ends

Resources:

DuinoMite-IO schematic Revision B

iPod Socket Breakout

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 10:37:57 GMT

The PodSocket v1.0 pulls all 30 pins from the female dock connector and makes it easy to attach wires. This includes the PodSocket Board and a soldered female connector. This is the connector found inside iPods and iPhones, so you can interface a project with docks and accessories that would normally connect directly to an iProduct.

Features:

Resources:

Pinout

TMS570-CAN Development Prototype Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 13:50:01 GMT

TMS570-CAN development prototype board with TMS570LS20216

The TMS570LS series is a high performance automotive grade microcontroller family which has been certified for use in IEC 61508 SIL3 safety systems. The safety architecture includes Dual CPUs in lockstep, CPU and Memory Built-In Self Test (BIST) logic, ECC on both the Flash and the data SRAM, parity on peripheral memories, and loop back capability on peripheral IOs. The TMS570LS family integrates the ARM� Cortex�-R4F Floating Point CPU which offers an efficient 1.6 DMIPS/MHz, and has configurations which can run up to 160 MHz providing more than 250 DMIPS.

The TMS570LS series also provides different Flash 2MB and data SRAM 160KB with single bit error correction and double bit error detection.

Features:

TMS570LS20216 ARM Cortex-R4F Flash Microcontroller 2048KB Flash, 160KB SRAM, 2xCAN, 2x SCI, 25 HET channels, 2x12bit ADC, 68 GPIOs
build in XDS100V2 with CCS support
2x CAN connector and driver
Two buttons
Two LEDs
Extension connectors for all MCU ports
Single power supply: 5V DC required / can be powered by USB
Power supply LED
PCB: FR-4, 1.5 mm (0,062"), soldermask, silkscreen component print
Dimensions: 124 x 62 mm (4.9 x 2.45")

Documents:

TMS570-CAN user manual

Hardware:

TMS570-CAN schematic

Software:

CCS demo code

MOD-POE-V2 Power Over Ethernet Adaptor

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 11:07:10 GMT

The MOD-POE-V2 board extracts power from UTP LAN cable network, so you can power with 5 or 12VDC your embedded device, power and Ethernet are carried at the same cable. Note that the LAN should be with PoE switch/router or you should use MOD-POE to inject power in LAN UTP Cable.

Features:

Si3402 PoE controller with DC-DC step down converter and PoE protocol negotiation
Power Output is selectable 5 / 12 VDC
Dimensions 54x39 mm (2.12 x 1.54")

Hardware:

MOD-POE-V2 schematic

DM9000E-H Ethernet Controller Header Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 10:55:15 GMT

A low cost 10/100 Mbit Ethernet controller development board based on the DM9000EP with flexible options to address your microcontroller with 8-16-32 bit data buses and support for MDI-X. The compact size of 50x40 mm and the 0.1� step connectors make this board perfect for prototyping.

Features:

DM9000E 10/100 Mbit Etherner controller
LAN connector with build in transformer
two status LEDs on the LAN connector
supports 8-16-32 bit data bus, interrupts and polling
two 2x26 0.1" step connectors
PCB: FR-4, 1.5 mm (0,062"), red soldermask, white silkscreen component print
Dimensions: 50x40 mm (1.95 x 1.57")
space between the pin rows: 33 mm (1.3")

Resources:

DM9000E-H.pdf
DM9000E latest datasheet

Hardware:

DM9000E-H schematic Revision B.

Software:

DM9000E-H uIP test code for LPC2294 made with EW-ARM and schematic for simple LPC2294 board which to run this code on DM9000E-H

Getting Started with Netduino

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 17:33:20 GMT

Start building electronics projects with Netduino, the popular open source hardware platform that�s captured the imagination of makers and hobbyists worldwide. This easy-to-follow book provides the step-by-step guidance you need to experiment with Netduino and the .NET Micro Framework.

Have a look at our great Netduino Starter Kit! Everything you need for your first Netduino project!

Through a set of simple projects, you�ll learn how to create electronic gadgets�including networked devices that communicate over TCP/IP. Along the way, hobbyists will pick up the basics of .NET programming, and programmers will discover how to work with electronics and microcontrollers. Follow the projects in sequence and learn techniques for building your own Netduino-based devices.

Get an overview of the Netduino microcontroller family
Install the free Visual Studio Express, .NET Micro Framework, and Netduino SDK
Write code that lets you turn Netduino�s LED on and off
Learn how to increase Netduino�s capabilities with various expansion shields
Measure digital and analog inputs with MakerShield
Make a light appear dimmer or brighter with Pulse Width Modulation
Use electrical pulses to play a song and control the position of a servo motor
Create an app to control your Netduino over the Web

DuinoMite Mega

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 16:00:04 GMT

The DuinoMite Mega is a Maximite Compatible Basic computer, originally designed by Geoff Graham, with additional features and an Arduino like layout. The DuinoMite Mega allows you to program in BASIC language and have VGA and Keyboard interface, so you can develop and write your code in Basic without need of any computer. You can store your code on the SD-CARD and to execute it on power up thorugh autoexec.bas main code.

Features:

PIC32MX795 microcontroller
micro SD card
USB OTG which allow it to act both as Host and Device, so it can accept Android ADK, Printers, Cameras, Keyboards, Mouses, etc USB devices.
VGA connector
Composite Video connector
CAN driver and connector - note: CAN driver works on 5V and will not working when board is powered by Li-ion battery
RS232 driver and connector
two UEXT connectors allowing Olimex modules to be connected one inside the box one outside the box
PS-2 keyboard
Audio output connector
Arduino like format i.e. can work with Arduino shields

Documents:

DuinoMite Users Manual - Revision 1.03 15-12-2011 with UEXT examples, edited by Mick Gulovsen
DuinoMite programming example
The evolution of DuinoMite and the differences between DuinoMite and MaxiMite
MM BASIC Quick refference manual by crackerjack
still have questions? check ->DUINOMITE FORUM WHERE YOU CAN ASK

Hardware:

DuinoMite-Mega schematic Revision C in PDF format released under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 United States License
DuinoMite schematic file Revision C in Eagle format released under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 United States License
DuinoMite board file Revision C in Eagle format released under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 United States License

Software:

DuinoMite sources built from Maximite Release 2.7 (still no PIN() support for the SD-card and VGA shared GPIOs) and Bootloader HEX and Firmware HEX
Latest DuinoMite Firmware Update HEX SETUP, HELP, PIN(21) December 11
Duinomite drivers for virutal com port console, please read important note for the use of these.
Duinomite firmware updater, please read important note for the use of this file.
Alternative firmware: MaxiMite 3.1

DuinoMite Projects:

TRS-80 emulator by Ken Segler
Retro BSD by Sergey Vakulenko
Space Invaders Game by Ken Segler
Z80 Emulator runs CP-M now and the complete project is on Github by Ken Segler
Snake retro game written in BASIC by Olimex
Duinomite with Gameduino shield example by Ken Segler
Measuring temperature with LM335Z by Olimex
How Fast is Duinomite Basic? by Olimex
Measuring temperature with KTY81.110 by Olimex

DuinoMite Mini

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 15:59:55 GMT

The DuinoMite-Mini is a Maximite Compatible Basic computer, originally designed by Geoff Graham, with additional features. The DuinoMite allows you to program in BASIC language and have VGA and Keyboard interface, so you can develop and write your code in Basic without need of any computer. You can store your code on the SD-CARD and to execute it on power up thorugh autoexec.bas main code.

Features:

PIC32MX795 microcontroller
micro SD card
USB connector
VGA connector
PS-2 keyboard connector
Arduino like format i.e. can work with Arduino shields
UEXT connector i.e. can work with all Olimex modules

Resources:

DuinoMite Users Manual - Revision 1.03 15-12-2011 with UEXT examples, edited by Mick Gulovsen
DuinoMite programming example
The evolution of DuinoMite and the differences between DuinoMite and MaxiMite
MM BASIC Quick refference manual

WARNING

DuinoMite

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 15:59:19 GMT

The DuinoMite is a Maximite Compatible Basic computer, originally designed by Geoff Graham, with additional features and Arduino like layout. The DuinoMite allows you to program in BASIC language and have VGA and Keyboard interface, so you can develop and write your code in Basic without need of any computer. You can store your code on the SD-CARD and to execute it on power up through autoexec.bas main code.

Features:

PIC32MX795 microcontroller
USB OTG allowing PIC to work as USB device and USB host and allowing Android ADK applications, interface to USB keyboards, Cameras, Printers, etc peripherials
10 pin IO connector for connecting VGA, Audio, Composite Video, PS-2 Keyboard
UEXT connector for connecting different Olimex modules
26 pin Maximite like connector
micro SD card connector
8Mhz crystal
32768Hz crystal for RTC implementation
Low power design allows PIC to work in deep sleep, and peripherials to be shut down
Automatic power source change, i.e. you can power this board by External power supply 9-30VDC, USB, or battery, the power switching is automatic.
Arduino like format i.e. can work with Arduino shields
Li-po charger for Lithium Polimer Battery
Industrial temperature range design -25C+85C
UEXT connector i.e. can work with all our modules

If you want to add PS-2 Keyboard, VGA monitor, Composite Video and Audio outputs to the DuinoMite check out the DuinoMite-IO.

Resources:

DuinoMite Users Manual - Revision 1.03 15-12-2011 with UEXT examples, edited by Mick Gulovsen
DuinoMite programming example
The evolution of DuinoMite and the differences between DuinoMite and MaxiMite
MM BASIC Quick refference manual by crackerjack
HOW TO run PACMAN with Duinomite boards - Step-by-step Guide

Hardware:

DuinoMite schematic Revision C in PDF format released under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 United States License
Latest CAD files on GitHub released under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 United States License

Software:

DuinoMite Projects:

TRS-80 emulator by Ken Segler
Retro BSD by Sergey Vakulenko
Space Invaders Game by Ken Segler
Z80 Emulator runs CP-M now and the complete project is on Github by Ken Segler
Snake retro game written in BASIC by Olimex
Duinomite with Gameduino shield example by Ken Segler
Measuring temperature with LM335Z by Olimex
How Fast is Duinomite Basic? by Olimex
Measuring temperature with KTY81.110 by Olimex

STM32-P407 Development Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 14:36:20 GMT

This is the STM32-P407 development board for the STM32F407ZGT6 CORTEX-M4 microcontroller.

The STM-P407 is a low cost entry board for developing with STM32F407ZGT6 Cortex M4 microcontrollers from ST. This board has plenty of RAM, an LCD display and an on board Camera which allows for image processing. The Ethernet 100MB interface gives you access to web application possibilities.

Features:

STM32F407ZGT6 Cortex-M4 210DMIPS, 1MB Flash, 196KB RAM, 3×12-bit 2.4 MSPS A/D, 2×12-bit D/A converters, USB OTG HS and USB OTG HS, Ethernet, 14 timers, 3 SPI, 3 I2C, Ethernet, 2 CANs, 3 12 bit ADCs, 2 12 bit DACs, 114 GPIOs, Camera interface
JTAG connector with ARM 2x10 pin layout for programming/debugging
512 KB fast external SRAM on board
4 Status LEDs
Stereo Audio Codec CS4344
CAN driver
Temperature sensor
trimmer potentiometer
Joystick for navigation
6610 LCD color 128x128 pixel TFT display
SAMSUNG E700 VGA camera 640x480 color
Tamper and Wakeup buttons
2 RS232 drivers and connectors
25 Mhz quartz crystal
USB_OTG
USB_HOST
100Mbit Ethernet
Mini SD/MMC card connector
UEXT connector
Power Jack
RESET button and circuit
Power-on led
3V battery connector
Extension port connectors for many of microcontrollers pins
PCB: FR-4, 1.5 mm (0,062"), soldermask, silkscreen component print
Dimensions: 160x116 mm (6.3x4.6")

Hardware:

Software:

STM32-P407 demo package

Rotary Encoder - 1024 P/R (Quadrature)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 12:45:10 GMT

This 1024 pulse per rotation rotary encoder outputs gray code which you can interpret using a microcontroller and find out which direction the shaft is turning and by how much. This allows you to add feedback to motor control systems. Encoders of this kind are often used in balancing robots and dead reckoning navigation but it could also be used as a very precise input knob.

Features:

Resolution: 1024 Pulse/Rotation
Input Voltage: 5 - 12VDC
Maximum Rotating Speed: 6000rpm
Allowable Radial Load: 5N
Allowable Axial Load: 3N
Cable Length: 50cm
Shaft Diameter: 6mm

Resources:

Datasheet (A6B2-CWZ3E-1024)
Example Code

mbed Starter Kit With Header Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 15:53:27 GMT

The mbed Starter Kit is a replacement for the much loved ETN / mbed Workshop Kit. Developed in conjunction with mbed, it's got everything you need to get tinkering!

*** Please note that this kit does contain an mbed 1768 header board. We also supply a kit of just the additional parts without the mbed. ***

Based around the highly capable mbed rapid prototyping board (included), the kit features parts designed to help users develop skills around a number of key mbed interfaces including I2C, SPI, serial, USB, PWM, LAN and ADC.

At the heart of the kit is the mbed workshop breakout board which allows users to plug in devices quickly and easily. It also offers easy network and USB connections. A large, mbed friendly breadboard means that you have lots of additional room to connect peripheral devices.

Although this is a kit, soldering may be required depending on what you want to achieve - why not have a look at our super useful Soldering Starter Kit!?

*** To have the header pins soldered onto the LCD display, the temperature sensor and the reflectance sensor, please make the appropriate selection on the drop-down box at the bottom of the page***

Android Open Accessory Application (AOAA) Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 10:25:49 GMT

Embedded Artists� AOAA Kit is a standalone platform for evaluation and prototyping electronic accessories for Google�s Android operating system. It lets you get up-and-running with AOA experiments immediately. The AOAA board is also suitable for experimenting with CAN, Ethernet and RF networks.

The board has been developed by Embedded Artists in close cooperation with NXP. It contains two microcontrollers from NXP, the LPC1769 (Cortex-M3 core) and LPC11C24 (Cortex-M0 core). The two microcontrollers are connected via an on-board CAN network.

Easy usage:

Download code to the board by using:

ISP over UART program download. Use the free tool Flash Magic to download a compiled application to the LPC1769 side of the AOAA board. Please note that this tool cannot be used to download code to the LPC11C24 side of the board.
Use the free LPCXpresso IDE together with, for example, an LPC-Link. It is possible to create an LPC-Link given an LPCXpresso Board or you can use the LPC-Link enhanced LPC1227 board where no modification is needed and a 10-pos IDC ribbon cable is included.
Use a debugger and JTAG adapter of your choice which supports the Cortex-M3 and Cortex-M0 ARM cores and more specifically the NXP LPC1769 and LPC11C24 microcontrollers. You might need an adapter between your JTAG solution and the target board.

Documents:

Stepper Motor Driver A4988 Carrier with Voltage Regulators

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 12:05:44 GMT

The A4988 stepper motor driver carrier with voltage regulators is a breakout board for Allegro�s easy-to-use A4988 microstepping bipolar stepper motor driver and is a drop-in replacement for the A4983 stepper motor driver carrier with voltage regulators. The board has two voltage regulators (5 V and 3.3 V), eliminating the need for separate logic and motor supplies. The driver features adjustable current limiting, overcurrent protection, and five different microstep resolutions. It operates from 8 � 35 V and can deliver up to 2 A per coil.

This stepper motor driver lets you control one bipolar stepper motor at up to 2 A output current per coil (see the Power Dissipation Considerations section below for more information). Here are some of the driver’s key features:

Simple step and direction control interface
Five different step resolutions: full-step, half-step, quarter-step, eighth-step, and sixteenth-step
Adjustable current control lets you set the maximum current output with a potentiometer, which lets you use voltages above your stepper motor’s rated voltage to achieve higher step rates
Intelligent chopping control that automatically selects the correct current decay mode (fast decay or slow decay)
Over-temperature thermal shutdown, under-voltage lockout, and crossover-current protection
Short-to-ground and shorted-load protection

This carrier has reverse power protection on the main power input and built-in 5 V and 3.3 V voltage regulators that eliminate the need for separate logic and motor supplies and let you control the driver with microcontrollers powered at 5 V or 3.3 V.

Included Hardware:

The A4988 stepper motor driver carrier with voltage regulators comes with one 1×14-pin breakaway 0.1" male header and one 1×8-pin breakaway 0.1" male header. The headers can be soldered in for use with solderless breadboards or 0.1" female connectors. You can also solder your motor leads and other connections directly to the board.

Using the driver:

Minimal wiring diagram for wiring a 5V microcontroller to an A4983/A4988 stepper motor driver carrier with voltage regulators (full-step mode).

Power connections:

The driver requires a logic supply voltage (3 – 5.5 V) to be connected across the VDD and GND pins and a motor supply voltage of (8 – 35 V) to be connected across VMOT and GND. The logic voltage can be supplied by jumpering the output of the 5 V or 3 V voltage regulator outputs to VDD. There are also surface-mount pads that allow VDD selection to be made by making a solder bridge across the appropriate pads. The power supply should be capable of delivering the expected currents (peaks up to 4 A for the motor supply).

Motor connections:

Four, six, and eight-wire stepper motors can be driven by the A4988 if they are properly connected; a FAQ answer explains the proper wirings in detail.

Warning: Connecting or disconnecting a stepper motor while the driver is powered can destroy the driver. (More generally, rewiring anything while it is powered is asking for trouble.)

Step (and microstep) size:

Stepper motors typically have a step size specification (e.g. 1.8° or 200 steps per revolution), which applies to full steps. A microstepping driver such as the A4988 allows higher resolutions by allowing intermediate step locations, which are achieved by energizing the coils with intermediate current levels. For instance, driving a motor in quarter-step mode will give the 200-step-per-revolution motor 800 microsteps per revolution by using four different current levels.

The resolution (step size) selector inputs (MS1, MS2, MS3) enable selection from the five step resolutions according to the table below. MS1 and MS3 have internal 100kΩ pull-down resistors and MS2 has an internal 50kΩ pull-down resistor, so leaving these three microstep selection pins disconnected results in full-step mode. For the microstep modes to function correctly, the current limit must be set low enough (see below) so that current limiting gets engaged. Otherwise, the intermediate current levels will not be correctly maintained, and the motor will effectively operate in a full-step mode.

MS1	MS2	MS3	Microstep Resolution
Low	Low	Low	Full step
High	Low	Low	Half step
Low	High	Low	Quarter step
High	High	Low	Eighth step
High	High	High	Sixteenth step

Control inputs:

Each pulse to the STEP input corresponds to one microstep of the stepper motor in the direction selected by the DIR pin. Note that the STEP and DIR pins are not pulled to any particular voltage internally, so you should not leave either of these pins floating in your application. If you just want rotation in a single direction, you can tie DIR directly to VCC or GND. The chip has three different inputs for controlling its many power states: RST, SLP, and EN. For details about these power states, see the datasheet.

Current limiting:

To achieve high step rates, the motor supply is typically much higher than would be permissible without active current limiting. For instance, a typical stepper motor might have a maximum current rating of 1 A with a 5Ω coil resistance, which would indicate a maximum motor supply of 5 V. Using such a motor with 12 V would allow higher step rates, but the current must actively be limited to under 1 A to prevent damage to the motor.

The A4988 supports such active current limiting, and the trimmer potentiometer on the board can be used to set the current limit. One way to set the current limit is to put the driver into full-step mode and to measure the current running through a single motor coil without clocking the STEP input. The measured current will be 0.7 times the current limit (since both coils are always on and limited to 70% in full-step mode). Please note that the current limit is dependent on the Vdd voltage.

Another way to set the current limit is to measure the voltage on the REF pin and to calculate the resulting current limit (the current sense resistors are 0.05Ω). See the A4988 datasheet for more information.

Power dissipation considerations:

The A4988 driver IC has a maximum current rating of 2 A per coil, but the actual current you can deliver depends on how well you can keep the IC cool. The carrier’s printed circuit board is designed to draw heat out of the IC, but to supply more than approximately 1 A per coil, a heat sink or other cooling method is required.

This product can get hot enough to burn you long before the chip overheats. Take care when handling this product and other components connected to it.

Please note that measuring the current draw at the power supply does not necessarily provide an accurate measure of the coil current. Since the input voltage to the driver can be significantly higher than the coil voltage, the measured current on the power supply can be quite a bit lower than the coil current (the driver and coil basically act like a switching step-down power supply). Also, if the supply voltage is very high compared to what the motor needs to achieve the set current, the duty cycle will be very low, which also leads to significant differences between average and RMS currents.

Documents:

Making Things See

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 16:00:47 GMT

This detailed, hands-on guide provides the technical and conceptual information you need to build cool applications with Microsoft�s Kinect, the amazing motion-sensing device that enables computers to see. Through half a dozen meaty projects, you�ll learn how to create gestural interfaces for software, use motion capture for easy 3D character animation, 3D scanning for custom fabrication, and many other applications.

Perfect for hobbyists, makers, artists, and gamers, Making Things See shows you how to build every project with inexpensive off-the-shelf components, including the open source Processing programming language and the Arduino microcontroller. You�ll learn basic skills that will enable you to pursue your own creative applications with Kinect.

Create Kinect applications on Mac OS X, Windows, or Linux
Track people with pose detection and skeletonization, and use blob tracking to detect objects
Analyze and manipulate point clouds
Make models for design and fabrication, using 3D scanning technology
Use MakerBot, RepRap, or Shapeways to print 3D objects
Delve into motion tracking for animation and games
Build a simple robot arm that can imitate your arm movements
Discover how skilled artists have used Kinect to build fascinating projects

Green XL 20x4 LCD Display

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 12:19:01 GMT

20x4 XL Positive Transflective LED Edge Backlit LCD Module

The display itself is driven by the industry standard chip, and is easy to interface. Can be simply diven from a PC parallel port with almost no additional components.

Features:

5X8 dots with cursor
+5V power supply
Interface with 8-bit 1/32 duty cycle
Module Size (W x H x T mm): 146x62.5x10.5/14.5
Viewing Area: 123.0x42.5
Character Size: 4.84x9.22
Dot Size: 0.92x1.10
Built-in Control: ST7066U

Documents:

Datasheet

Green 20x4 LCD Display

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 12:08:19 GMT

20x4 Positive Transflective LED Edge Backlit LCD Module

The display itself is driven by the industry standard chip, and is easy to interface. Can be simply diven from a PC parallel port with almost no additional components.

Features:

5X8 dots with cursor
+5V power supply
Interface with 8-bit 1/32 duty cycle
Module Size (W x H x T mm): 98.0x60.0x9.5/14.0
Viewing Area: 76.0x25.2
Character Size: 2.95x4.75
Dot Size: 0.55x0.55
Built-in Control: ST7066U

Documents:

Datasheet

Red 16x2 LCD Display

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 11:44:29 GMT

16x2 Positive Transflective LED Edge Backlit LCD Module

The display itself is driven by the industry standard chip, and is easy to interface. Can be simply diven from a PC parallel port with almost no additional components.

Features:

5X8 dots with cursor
+5V power supply
Interface with 8-bit 1/16 duty cycle
Module Size (W x H x T mm): 80.0x36.0x9.5/13.5
Viewing Area: 64.5x16.4
Character Size: 3.00x5.23
Dot Size: 0.56x0.61
Built-in Control: ST7066U

Resources:

Datasheet

QTR-1A Reflectance Sensor

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 16:31:49 GMT

The QTR-1A reflectance sensor carries a single infrared LED and phototransistor pair in an inexpensive, tiny 0.5" x 0.3" module that can be mounted almost anywhere and is great for edge detection and line following applications. The reflectance measurement is output as an analog voltage.

The phototransistor is connected to a pull-up resistor to form a voltage divider that produces an analog voltage output between 0 V and VIN (which is typically 5 V) as a function of the reflected IR. Lower output voltage is an indication of greater reflection.

The LED current-limiting resistor is set to deliver approximately 20-25 mA to the LED when VIN is 5 V. The current requirement can be met by some microcontroller I/O lines, allowing the sensor to be powered up and down through an I/O line to conserve power.

Because of its small size, multiple units can easily be arranged to fit various applications such as line sensing and proximity/edge detection.

Features:

Specifications:

Dimensions: 0.3" x 0.5" x 0.1" (without header pins installed)
Operating voltage: 5.0 V
Supply current: 25 mA
Output format: analog voltage
Output voltage range: 0 to supplied voltage
Optimal sensing distance: 0.125" (3 mm)
Maximum recommended sensing distance: 0.25" (6 mm)
Weight without header pins: 0.008 oz (0.23 g)

Interfacing with the QTR-1A Output

There are several ways you can interface with the QTR-1A output:

Use a microcontroller’s analog-to-digital converter (ADC) to measure the voltage.
Use a comparator with an adjustable threshold to convert the analog voltage into a digital (i.e. black/white) signal that can be read by the digital I/O line of a microcontroller.
Connect the output directly to the digital I/O line of a microcontroller and rely upon its internal comparator.

This last method will work if you are able to get high reflectance from your white surface as depicted in the left image, but will probably fail if you have a lower-reflectance signal profile.

Resources:

For more information visit the manufacturer's website.

Breakout Board for XBee Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 16:09:55 GMT

This is a simple breakout board for the popular XBee product from Digi. This board breaks out all 20 pins of the XBee to a 0.1" standard spacing dual row header. The spacing between 0.1" headers is 0.5" making it breadboard DIP friendly. We highly recommend using the female sockets to avoid having to solder the XBee permanently to the breakout board. This is the PCB only. Please order the accompanying 2mm sockets (you'll need 2!).

Documents: 5V Interface to 3V XBee module

Venus GPS with SMA Connector

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 15:18:24 GMT

This is the latest version of the Venus GPS board; the smallest, most powerful, and most versatile GPS receiver we carry. It's based on the Venus638FLPx, the successor to the Venus634LPx. The Venus638FLPx outputs standard NMEA-0183 or SkyTraq Binary sentences at a default rate of 9600bps (adjustable to 115200bps), with update rates up to 20Hz! The Venus638FLPx also allows for limited on-chip logging (check out the firmware below), as well as external logging using a SPI flash memory chip (not included).

This board includes a SMA connector to attach an external antenna (we recommend this one), and headers for 3.3V serial data, NAV (lock) indication, Pulse-Per-Second output, and external Flash support. Also provided are solder jumpers to easily configure the power consumption, boot memory, and backup supply. This board requires a regulated 3.3V supply to operate; at full power the board uses up to 90mA, at reduced power it requires up to 60mA.

It's easy to connect an external battery or super capacitor to the board, to support very fast restarts after power is removed. There are even pads on the bottom of the board for the 0.2F supercap, which will keep the board hot-startable for up to 7 hours without power!

Note: The pins for the Venus638FLPx's second serial port (RX1,TX1) and I2C interface (SDA,SCL) have been broken out. However, these ports are not used by the stock firmware. SkyTraq offers an SDK allowing the creation of customized firmware; contact them for details.

Features:

Up to 20Hz update rate
-148dBm cold start sensitivity
-165dBm tracking sensitivity
29 second cold start TTFF
3.5 second TTFF with AGPS
1 second hot start
2.5m accuracy
Multipath detection and suppression
Jamming detection and mitigation
SBAS (WAAS / EGNOS) support
67mW full power navigation
Works directly with active or passive antenna
Internal flash for optional 75K point data logging
Supports external SPI flash memory data logging
Complete receiver in 10mm x 10mm x 1.3mm size
Contains LNA, SAW Filter, TCXO, RTC Xtal, LDO
Single 2.7-3.3V supply

Dimensions: 1.15 x 0.7 inches

Documents:

Schematic
Eagle Files
Venus638FLPx Datasheet
Binary Command Set
Logging application note
GPS Viewer / Configuration Software
Stock firmware - standard version
Stock firmware - "high dynamic range" version for sharply-turning vehicles
Stock firmware- Internal Logging version
Product Video

Lithium Polymer Battery - 2200mAh 11.1V

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 17:25:01 GMT

These are heavy-duty 2200mAh 11.1V batteries made especially for UAV/flight projects. Consisting of 3 cells, they can pump out huge amounts of power through their heavy-duty cables which are terminated with standard T type battery connectors.

If you need something to charge this monster you should check out our quality LiPro Balance Charger!

Features:

Voltage/Capacity: 11.1V 2200mah 3S1P
Mat Cont.Discharge rate & Current: 20C 44A
Max Burst Discharge Rate & Current: 40C/88A
Max Charge Rate & Current: 2C/4.4A
Dimension: 108x35x23mm (LxWxH)

Resources:

RJ45 LAN Ethernet Network Cable - 1.8m (6ft)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 16:38:39 GMT

This is a standard RJ45/LAN/Ethernet/Network cable for all your internet network needs.

The cable is 1.8m (6ft) long and is terminated at both ends with RJ45 male connectors.

2mm 10pin XBee Socket

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 11:41:48 GMT

This is a 10-pin socket with 2mm pitch that mates with the popular XBee radio from Digi. Use this small part to avoid having to solder your precious radio to a PCB. You'll need two of these sockets to connect to all 20 pins on the XBee.

Please Note: This item is sold singly, not in pairs.

Documents:

Datasheet

5-way Tactile Switch

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 10:43:14 GMT

Sometimes you want a small input and a single button just won't cut it. A 5-way tactile switch allows for a joystick-like interface in a very small package. These are surface mount, but easily soldered.

Documents:

Datasheet

0.12mm conical replacement bit - 1107

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 13:15:24 GMT

This is an Antex 0.12mm conical replacement bit - 1107. These bits are manufactured from high-grade copper and are perfect for super-fine surface-mount work.

Suitable for use with ANTEX CS, TCS, TC50, SD50, XSTC, A245, A545, A718 soldering irons.

Features:

Resources:

H-Bridge Motor Driver 1A

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 16:45:08 GMT

Faster, cheaper, smaller, better, right? The SN754410 Quad Half H-Bridge is just that. Capable of driving high voltage motors using TTL 5V logic levels, the SN754410 can drive 4.5V up to 36V at 1A continuous output current! Please see datasheet for more information. This is a pin to pin compatible replacement for the L293D.

Features:

Resources:

Crystal 20MHz

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 16:38:27 GMT

Standard frequency crystals - use these crystals to provide a clock input to your microprocessor. Rated at 20pF capacitance and +/- 50ppm stability. Low profile HC49/US Package.

Features:

Resources:

FEZ Hydra Basic Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 17:30:31 GMT

FEZ Hydra Basic Kit includes the essential modules needed to get started with FEZ Hydra.

The kit includes:

FEZ Hydra Mainboard
USB Client SP Module
LED7R Module
Joystick Module
LightSense Module
USB Cable

Features:

Resources:

Relay Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 17:10:47 GMT

Four relays are included in this module, with �NC� ports, meaning �Normally connected to COM� and �NO� ports, meaning �Normally open to COM�. This module is also equipped with 4 LED'S to show the status of the relays.

Relay Rating: 250V 10A AC / 30V 10A DC / 15A 120VAC / 7A 250VAC

Requires socket Type Y.

.NET Gadgeteer compatible cable is included.

Features:

Resources:

Pulse Oximeter Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 16:35:14 GMT

Pulse Oximeter module for Gadgeteer. This module is a particularly convenient noninvasive measurement instrument. It indirectly monitors the oxygen saturation in human�s blood and the changes in blood volume in the skin. It also provides the heart rate and monitors the state of heart working. Acceptable normal ranges for humans without COPD with a hypoxic drive problem are from 95 to 99 percent.

Requires socket Type U.

.NET Gadgeteer compatible cable is included.

Note: This module was not intended to be used as a medical instrument, Do not use this product as safety or emergency device. Do not use this product in any application where failure of this product could lead to loss or personal injury.

Features:

Resources:

Barometer Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 16:19:19 GMT

This module is used for atmospheric pressure, altitude and temperature sensing . A sensor HP03M, which measures the pressure based on a piezoresistive pressure sensor, was equipped on this module, and provides accurate pressure and temperature data. -40℃~+85℃ operating range.

Requires socket Type I.

.NET Gadgeteer compatible cable is included.

Features:

Resources:

LED7R Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 16:07:54 GMT

The 6 Green LED's can be programmed to rotate,blink,alternate, or do whatever you like them to do. They can be used as indicators of level or speed. The center Red LED is also programmable and can be used to indicate some events.

Requires socket type Y.

.NET Gadgeteer compatible cable is included.

Features:

Resources:

Accelerometer Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 15:58:38 GMT

An accelerometer is an electromechanical device that measures acceleration forces. These forces may be static, like the constant force of gravity pulling at your feet, or they could be dynamic - caused by moving or vibrating the accelerometer.

Requires socket Type I.

.NET Gadgeteer compatible cable is included.

Features:

Resources:

Potentiometer Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 15:41:45 GMT

A potentiometer is good for measuring position or controlling levels.

Requires socket type A.

.NET Gadgeteer compatible cable is included.

Features:

Resources:

Rotary Potentiometer - 10k Ohm, Linear

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 14:20:10 GMT

An adjustable potentiometer can open up many interesting user interfaces. Turn the pot and the resistance changes. Connect VCC to an outer pin, GND to the other, and the center pin will have a voltage that varies from 0 to VCC depending on the rotation of the pot. Hook the center pin to an ADC on a microcontroller and get a variable input from the user!

This pot has a bush mount with carbon track. Suitable for PCB mounting. Supplied with a serrated 6mm shaft.

Height: 9.1 mm
Mounting Style: Bush
Power Rating: 0.125 W
Resistance: 10 K
Resistor Element Type: Carbon
Shaft Diameter: 6 mm
Shaft Length: 20 mm
Travel: 300 �
Type: Linear
Width: 16.5 mm
Length: 20 mm
Terminal Type: PCB mounting blades

Dimensions: 17 x 16.5mm
Pitch: 5mm
Tolerance: 20%
Power rating: 0.2W linear, 0.1W log.
Maximum voltage: 200V linear, 150V log.
Electrical rotation: 300�C �5�C
Rotation torque: 30-350gm/cm

10:1 Micro Metal Gearmotor

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 12:47:30 GMT

This gearmotor is a miniature (0.94" x 0.39" x 0.47"), high-quality, low-current motor with 10:1 metal gearbox, similar to Sanyo�s popular 12 mm gearmotors. These units have a 0.365"-long, 3 mm-diameter D-shaped output shaft.

Key specs at 6 V: 1300 RPM and 40 mA free-run, 2 oz-in (0.2 kg-cm) and 0.36 A stall.

Features:

Dimensions

Size: 24 x 10 x 12 mm
Weight: 0.34 oz (10g)
Shaft diameter: 3 mm

General specifications

Gear ratio: 10:1
Free-run speed @ 6V: 1300 rpm
Free-run current @ 6V: 40 mA
Stall current @ 6V: 360 mA
Stall torque @ 6V: 2 oz�in
Extended motor shaft?: N

Resources:

mbed Starter Kit Without Header Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 17:33:31 GMT

The mbed Starter Kit is a replacement for the much loved ETN / mbed Workshop Kit. Developed in conjunction with mbed, it's got everything you need to get tinkering!

*** Please note that this kit does not contain an mbed 1768 header board. We also supply a kit which includes the board. ***

Although this is a kit, soldering may be required depending on what you want to achieve - why not have a look at our super useful Soldering Starter Kit!?

*** To have the header pins soldered onto the LCD display, the temperature sensor and the reflectance sensor, please make the appropriate selection on the drop-down box at the bottom of the page***

Twisted Servo Extension Cable 6" Female - Female

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 12:53:14 GMT

This 6-inch (150-mm), twisted cable has 22-AWG wires and female �JR�-style connectors on both ends, the same kind of connector commonly found on RC hobby servos.

It can be used to make connections between devices with 0.1" 3-pin male headers, such as between RC servo controllers or RC receivers and motor controllers with an RC interface. It can also be a convenient way to connect various 3-pin sensors to a robot controller.

The cable�s conductors each consist of 60 strands, making it much more flexible than standard servo cables, and the wires are twisted to reduce electromagnetic interference (EMI).

Features:

Resources:

Coin Cell Battery - 12mm

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 16:27:23 GMT

CR1225 12mm 47mAh coin cell batteries. Perfect small battery for miniature sensor node applications.

Dimensions : 12.5mm x 2.5mm

EL Inverter - 3v

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 14:53:33 GMT

EL inverters allow you to drive EL wire. This particular EL inverter accepts 3V input and outputs 110VAC. These are designed to plug directly into the EL Escudo. You can drive EL wires with them directly, but you may need to re-terminate them.

The current model ships with red and black wires on one side which are the 3V DC input to the inverter (red is positive, black is ground). The black wires are the 100V AC output - both terminated with JST PH connectors.

These work well because they accept anywhere from 2.7-4.2V, so you can use them with batteries quite easily.

Note: Some real world testing revealed that this inverter can easily drive a 3m length of EL wire. When adding a second 3m length, the two get a bit dimmer, but still close to full brightness. At 3 3m lengths, you can only tell all three wires are on if the room is dark. The inverter can light up 4 strands, but they are barely visible in normal light and very dim in the dark as well.

Soldering Starter Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 15:17:57 GMT

This is the perfect kit to start soldering, it has everything you need for your first project!

The following is included in the kit:

A basic 18W 230V soldering iron from Antex. Perfect for small electronics soldering - it's light, compact and well balanced. It comes fitted with a 2.3mm chisel tip, a basic metal stand and a 1.5m PVC mains cable (UK plug).

An Antex 0.5mm conical replacement bit - 1105. These bits are manufactured from high-grade copper, plated first with iron and then chrome to give a long working life.

A 4m dispenser of Antex 0.8mm lead-free solder wire - composed of 99.25% tin and 0.75% copper.

Desoldering Braid - this hugely useful stuff can help save all manner of catastrophic soldering mishaps.

Solder Tip Tinner and Cleaner 20g - Composed of a mild acid, it helps remove baked on residue (for when you melt your desk top) and helps prevent oxidation (the nasty black stuff) that accumulates on your soldering tip when not in use.

If you're new to soldering check out this great Soldering Tutorial!
(created by Mitch Altman, Andie Nordgren & Jeff Keyzer)

Lead-free Solder Wire - 4m

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 12:35:05 GMT

This is 4m dispenser of Antex 0.8mm lead-free solder wire - composed of 99.25% tin and 0.75% copper. Ideal for use on micro electronics, fine wires and most other electrical and electronic soldering applications.

Convenient dispenser
Rosin flux cored
Melting point at 207�C to 217�C
Antex item #YC00220

Planet T5 2.4GHz - Radio Control Transmitter/Receiver (Mode II)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 11:22:18 GMT

The Planet T5 2.4GHz is a radio control transmitter and receiver pair for any kind of radio controlled project you might be planning. It has been designed for crystal-free operation with Park Flyer, indoor aircraft and small electric-type models.

Simple one-button transmitter/receiver binding
Side & rear ergonomic grips for maximum transmitter security
Precision, adjustable height dual-axis stick units
Unique slow-rate retract/flap switch (channel 5)
Low power consumption 4-cell transmitter
Lightweight (6 gram) micro 6-channel receiver
Simple programmable fail-safe function
Convenient crystal-free operation

It�s uncomplicated yet sophisticated design makes it an ideal first system or a general purpose sport system for R/C modelling. It uses state-of-the-art computer technology to bind it�s transmitter and receiver in such a fashion that, under most model flying conditions, interference that would normally cause loss of control in 35mHz or 27mHz equipment is nearly always rejected�and in most cases radio functionality is entirely unaffected. This makes for a safer, more reassuring flying experience. It also enables a pilot to turn up, switch on and fly under most conditions�subject to local flying guidelines and rules.

Planet T5 features Advanced 2.4GHz control with a highly sensitive 6 gram micro receiver that make it ideal for even the smaller R/C indoor models. The new design single aerial micro receiver is ultra-compact and allows for rapid and convenient installation especially when compared with some 2.4GHz twin-unit multi-aerial receiver designs available.

2.4Ghz technology creates a �bound� relationship between the Transmitter and Receiver. The 'setup' of this relationship is known as �binding� and can be achieved simply with one click of the R6M's Binding Microswitch. In a �bound� transmitter/receiver state the receiver is exclusively bound to the transmitter and can only respond to signals received from that transmitter. Binding is done at the factory. Once a transmitter is bound to it�s receiver, re-binding of transmitter and receiver is not normally required.

The Planet transmitter has been expertly designed and manufactured and incorporates full 4-function control via two silky-smooth dual axis control sticks and a 5th function for lights/retracts, etc., as well as adjustable stick spring tensions (convertible between Mode II (throttle left) and Mode I (throttle right)). The transmitter also features a socket for an optional Flight Simulator cable set, servo reversing switches, LCD battery status display, moulded ergonomic rear and side grips and is powered by 4 AA pencells. NB. The Planet T5 is not a complete system; other parts must be purchased in order to obtain full functionality from this equipment.

Important note - equipment range:

Be aware that Planet T5 is not a �full range� system and should only be used at ranges of up to around 100 metres. Always perform a range check before use! Planet 5 has been tested with many types of models and operated at ranges significantly greater than that recommended. However, 2.4GHz equipment can be affected by terrain, weather and obstacles to a greater degree than conventional 35mHz R/C equipment. Therefore, do not be tempted to exceed the specifications described in detail in the instruction manual!

Documents:

Instruction Manual

Please note:

This comes as a transmitter and receiver pair
This is a Mode II controller:

"The Mode II configuration is very similar to the layout in a full-size airplane. The �stick� controls the Aileron and Elevator functions. Rudder is controlled by the �rudder pedals� and the Throttle is controlled with the pilot�s left hand on the side of the cockpit. A Mode II RC transmitter controls the aileron (roll) and elevator (pitch) with the right hand, while the rudder (yaw) and throttle are controlled by the pilot�s left hand."

LiPro Balance Charger Imax B6

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 11:08:49 GMT

This is a computer controlled battery charger, capable of charging and discharging different cell sizes and battery types. It will also handle multiple cell batteries and balance the charge sent to each cell. Ideal for recharging anything from whopping big RC LiPo to the smaller single cell LiPos that we sell.

Features:

LiIon, LiPo, and LiFe battery types : 1-6 cells
NiCd/NiMH : 1-15 cells
Lead Acid (Pb) : 2-20V
Microprocessor controller with 2 line LCD readout
Discharge, Fast charge, Balance charge, Storage charge, Cyclic charge (for Pb)
Automatic temperature cutt-off
LCD error warnings and error tone
Save and recall custom battery settings
Max charge power : 50W, max discharge power 5W
Built in heat dissipation fins
JST-XH balance charge sockets : 2,3,4,5,6 cells.
CE approved

Supplied with:

UK power supply
Additional connectors including : crocodile clip, futuba female, JST male, barrel male
Printed manual included (please read - it's important!)

Note: Although the enclosure is labeled as an Imax B6, this is not the same charger as the more expensive charger by the same name.

Safety notice: please note that batteries that are incorrectly treated can heat up, ignite, or even explode if they are charged wrongly. Please read the instruction manual before charging your battery and do not leave unattended. This charger should only be used with the types outlined above.

Resources:

Solder Tip Tinner and Cleaner

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 12:02:23 GMT

Tip tinner is a good thing to have in your arsenal of soldering supplies. Composed of a mild acid, it helps remove baked on residue (for when you melt your desk top) and helps prevent oxidation (the nasty black stuff) that accumulates on your soldering tip when not in use. Comes in a sealed 20 gram disk. This tinner is Lead Free.

Features:

Resources:

Scanalogic 2 Pro - Logic Analyser

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 17:41:10 GMT

The Scanalogic 2 Pro is a Logic Analyser and Digital signal generator, specially designed to decode and analyse serial protocols like SPI, I2C, UART and CAN. Just plug it to a USB port to record visualise and analyse signals via a free user friendly software. Not only can you view and store incoming data with this device, you can also playback sequences, or even generate PWM signals. The unit itself is tiny - smaller than a pack of cards by about half, and comes supplied with a USB mini B cable and a set of four logic probes. Power is supplied through the USB cable from your PC.

You can download the newly updated ScanStudio software here for free! Check out the video below for more information...

Features:

Maximum input voltage - 5.5V
Minimum input voltage -0.7V
Support 2V, 2.8V, 3.3V, 3.6V and 5V logic levels
Works on USB (1 & 2) without any drivers needed
20 Million Samples Per Seconds
Ultra precise quartz based timings
Maximum sampling buffer per channel - 256K
4 channels Capture mode
4 channels generator / playback
2 channels record + 2 channels playback in mixed mode
Trigger position from 0% to 100% of the sampling depth
Trigger on Falling edge, Rising edge or Logic state change
Firmware upgrade feature for future evolutions
Live scrolling mode with 50, 100 and 250ms refresh rate

Software Features:

Mouse-wheel zooming and panning
Unlimited markers and time measurements
Decoding:
- UART
- SPI
- I2C
- 1-wire
- CAN bus
- LIN 1.x & LIN 2.x
- Maple bus
- Manchester code
- (More protocols are deployed regularly with the FREE software updates)
Data generator allowing to generate different types of sequences
Flexible 4 channels PWM and FM sequences generator (Variable Phase, Envelope and carrier)
Save/load captured data for later visualisation
Save/load captured data for later playback
Image export feature to facilitate technical report writing
FFT (Fast Fourier Transformation) allowing in depth frequency analysis
Software update feature for future evolutions
Parameters and configuration auto-saving
Possibility to configure colors for better visual appearance
Dual data view mode (to compare between two data captures)

Resources:

User Manual
Download the latest firmware
Download the latest software

How does it compare?:

It's one of the simplest devices to use, easily mastered by beginners and professionals. The PC software features all the scrolling and navigation options you would expect from any professional software.
It introduces a new useful feature, that we called the mixed mode, allowing you to generate/playback digital signals, while recording the response on other channels, all at the same time
It Provides computer-independent performances and timings. SCANALOGIC 2 provides a firm 20MSPS based on an on-device quartz oscillator. Sampling rate will never be compromised by the performance of your computer

What can it do? - The user interface is as intuitive as you would expect. Right-clicks here and there gives you the options you'd expect, like to add a marker, move it or delete it. Navigating through the chart area makes use of the mouse wheel to zoom in and out. You can even hold the CTRL key to zoom in and out faster! Left mouse button lets you pan the waveform right and left.

You can Capture and analyse signals:

Serial protocols sampling, decoding, debugging and analysis (like UART, SPI, CAN, LIN, I2C, 1-Wire, Manchester, maple bus...).
Analysis of PWM signals, their frequencies and envelopes (Using the Fourier analysis feature).
Monitor logic changes on digital signal lines.
Store the captured data on files, to send them over the internet to other users or for later playback!
Captures images of the signals with all the timings, decoded data and markers.
The Dual View features allows you can easily visually compare different data captures.

You can Play it back: Record serial data and play it back, as simply as you would record & playback a speech!

You can Generate your own data:

Generate all kind of PWM (pulse width modulation) signals to control motors drivers, RGB LEDs or other devices.
Generate all kinds of FM (frequency modulation) signals. Can be used to test speakers or for ultrasound detection systems testing.
Generate Serial data and pulses sequences to test your equipment/project using a very user friendly syntax.

Example of CAN bus and I2C bus decoding:

Example showing the usage of the printer friendly colors profile. (Displaying FFT analysis for CH1 and CH2)

Example showing the usage of the "byte watch" feature, highlighting the bytes corresponding to the characters 'A', 'V' and 'R'. You can also notice that yet another colors profile is used:

GS406/GS407 Helical GPS Receiver - SMD Connector

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 11:06:14 GMT

Vertical 10 pin SMD connector for the GS406 and GS407 GPS modules.

RFM22 Shield

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 11:38:57 GMT

The RFM22 is a low-cost ISM FSK transceiver module which offers communication at 433MHz ISM and adjustable output power of up to +20 dBm. What does that mean for you? It means your Arduino now has an inexpensive way to talk to other Arduinos so building point-to-point and even basic mesh networks just got a lot more attractive.

The RFM22 Shield connects the RFM22 module to the appropriate lines on the Arduino. By using the RF22 Library, you can send and receive messages via standard 4-wire SPI. The library includes command structures for setting up anything from simple non-addressed point-to-point communication to fully addressed networks of clients and routers. The shield also provides a through-hole antenna connection for hooking up a basic wire antenna. In our testing, a 17cm wire attached to the 'ANT' pin worked just fine. A hole is drilled next to the 'ANT' pin for strain relief.

The shield has on-board power regulation and level shifting. There are one pin headers and jumpers on the interrupt (nIRQ), interface select (nSEL), shutdown input (SDN) and GPIO2 lines so that you can cut the trace and reroute those lines if you need to for your project. The board also provides a little bit of prototyping space.

Features:

Frequency Range = 434 MHz
Sensitivity = -118 dBm
+17 dBm Max Output Power (Configurable)
Data Rate = 1 to 128 kbps
Digital RSSI
Wake-on-radio
Configurable packet structure
Preamble detector
TX and RX 64 byte FIFOs
Low battery detector
Temperature sensor and 8-bit ADC
-40 to +85 °C temperature range

Documents:

DeadOn RTC - DS3234 Breakout

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 11:29:51 GMT

Here is a real time clock based on the DS3234 Real Time Clock IC. The DS3234 is a low-cost, extremely accurate SPI bus real-time clock with an integrated temperature-compensated crystal oscillator and crystal.

The RTC maintains seconds, minutes, hours, day, date, month, and year information. The date at the end of the month is automatically adjusted for months with fewer than 31 days, including corrections of leap year. The clock operates in either the 24-hour or 12-hour format with AM/PM indicator. Two programmable time-of-day alarms and a programmable square-wave output are provided.

The underside of the board holds a 12mm coin-cell battery holder for battery backup.

Note: These do not include a battery - you can get them here

Features:

+-2ppm accuracy
Two alarms
SPI output
Low power consumption
Accurate calendar up to year 2100
Battery backup included

Documents:

IR Range Sensor - Sharp 20cm-150cm

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 17:30:32 GMT

Read the distance of the object in front of your robot. The Sharp GP2Y0A02 IR Range Sensor takes a continuous distance reading and reports the distance as an analog voltage with a distance range of 20cm (~8") to 150cm (~60"). The interface is 3-wire with power, ground and output.

Features:

Datasheet

Resources:

Interface Cable for EM408

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 16:13:10 GMT

Communication cable, 11.75" in length, that connects the EM408 GPS unit. The EM408 comes with a cable, this is sold as a spare. Cable has two a 5-pin JST connectors with 1mm pitch. Wired pin 1 to pin 1.

RF Link Receiver - 4800bps (315MHz)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:43:16 GMT

These wireless receivers work with our 315MHz transmitters. They can easily fit into a breadboard and work well with microcontrollers to create a very simple wireless data link. Since these are only receivers, they will only work communicating data one-way, you would need two pairs (of different frequencies) to act as a transmitter/receiver pair.

Note: These modules are indiscriminate and will receive a fair amount of noise. Both the transmitter and receiver work at common frequencies and don't have IDs. Therefore, a method of filtering this noise and pairing transmitter and receiver will be necessary. The example code below shows such an example for basic operation. Please refer to the example code and links below for ways to accomplish a robust wireless data link.

Features:

315 MHz
500ft range (given perfect conditions)
4800bps data rate
5V supply voltage

Resources:

RF Link Transmitter - 315MHz

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:43:04 GMT

These wireless transmitters work with our 315MHz receivers. They can easily fit into a breadboard and work well with microcontrollers to create a very simple wireless data link. Since these are only transmitters, they will only work communicating data one-way, you would need two pairs (of different frequencies) to act as a transmitter/receiver pair.

Features:

315MHz
500ft range (given perfect conditions)
4800bps data rate
5V supply voltage

Resources:

Voltage Regulator - 5V

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 11:37:36 GMT

These are the L7805CV - a basic voltage regulator in the TO-220 package. Pefect for reducing up to 35v down to a stable 5v supply.

Primary Input Voltage: 10V
Output Voltage Fixed: 5V
Dropout Voltage Vdo: 2V
No. of Outputs: 1
No. of Pins: 3
Output Current: 1.5A
Voltage Regulator Case Style: TO-220
Operating Temperature Range: 0�C to +150�C
SVHC: No SVHC (20-Jun-2011)
Base Number: 7805
IC Generic Number: 7805
Input Voltage Max: 35V
Input Voltage Min: 7V
Operating Temperature Max: 150�C
Operating Temperature Min: 0�C
Operating Voltage Tolerance +: 4%
Output Current Max: 1.5A
Output Voltage: 5V
Output Voltage Max: 5V
Package / Case: TO-220
Packaging Type: Tube
Supply Voltage Max: 20V
Supply Voltage Min: 8V
Termination Type: Through Hole
Voltage: 5V
Voltage Regulator Type: Positive Fixed

Documents:

Datasheet

Concave Arcade Button - Green

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 12:27:16 GMT

This is a 35mm concave momentary push button similar to the ones you find on arcade games. Simple screw in design. Perfect for mashing. This button has a great tactile, 'clicky' feel.

Features:

Concave plunger design
Durable nylon material
Microswitch: max 3A @ 120 VAC
Microswitch reliability tested to 10,000,000 cycles
Includes 3 terminal microswitch
Net weight: 25g

Resources:

Bezel diameter: 32mm
Overall height: 65mm
Mounting hole: 1 1/8th inch paddle bit (1.125" / 28mm)

Concave Arcade Button - White

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 12:27:09 GMT

This is a 35mm concave momentary push button similar to the ones you find on arcade games. Simple screw in design. Perfect for mashing. This button has a great tactile, 'clicky' feel.

Features:

Concave plunger design
Durable nylon material
Microswitch: max 3A @ 120 VAC
Microswitch reliability tested to 10,000,000 cycles
Includes 3 terminal microswitch
Net weight: 25g

Resources:

Bezel diameter: 32mm
Overall height: 65mm
Mounting hole: 1 1/8th inch paddle bit (1.125" / 28mm)

Concave Arcade Button - Black

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 12:27:02 GMT

This is a 35mm concave momentary push button similar to the ones you find on arcade games. Simple screw in design. Perfect for mashing. This button has a great tactile, 'clicky' feel.

Features:

Concave plunger design
Durable nylon material
Microswitch: max 3A @ 120 VAC
Microswitch reliability tested to 10,000,000 cycles
Includes 3 terminal microswitch
Net weight: 25g

Resources:

Bezel diameter: 32mm
Overall height: 65mm
Mounting hole: 1 1/8th inch paddle bit (1.125" / 28mm)

Concave Arcade Button - Yellow

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 12:26:55 GMT

This is a 35mm concave momentary push button similar to the ones you find on arcade games. Simple screw in design. Perfect for mashing. This button has a great tactile, 'clicky' feel.

Features:

Concave plunger design
Durable nylon material
Microswitch: max 3A @ 120 VAC
Microswitch reliability tested to 10,000,000 cycles
Includes 3 terminal microswitch
Net weight: 25g

Resources:

Bezel diameter: 32mm
Overall height: 65mm
Mounting hole: 1 1/8th inch paddle bit (1.125" / 28mm)

Concave Arcade Button - Blue

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 12:26:48 GMT

This is a 35mm concave momentary push button similar to the ones you find on arcade games. Simple screw in design. Perfect for mashing. This button has a great tactile, 'clicky' feel.

Features:

Concave plunger design
Durable nylon material
Microswitch: max 3A @ 120 VAC
Microswitch reliability tested to 10,000,000 cycles
Includes 3 terminal microswitch
Net weight: 25g

Dimensions:

Bezel diameter: 32mm
Overall height: 65mm
Mounting hole: 1 1/8th inch paddle bit (1.125" / 28mm)

Concave Arcade Button - Red

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 12:26:40 GMT

This is a 35mm concave momentary push button similar to the ones you find on arcade games. Simple screw in design. Perfect for mashing. This button has a great tactile, 'clicky' feel.

Features:

Concave plunger design
Durable nylon material
Microswitch: max 3A @ 120 VAC
Microswitch reliability tested to 10,000,000 cycles
Includes 3 terminal microswitch
Net weight: 25g

Resources:

Bezel diameter: 32mm
Overall height: 65mm
Mounting hole: 1 1/8th inch paddle bit (1.125" / 28mm)

Pro Micro - 5V/16MHz

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 10:14:02 GMT

This is a new Arduino-compatible microcontroller from SFE. The Pro Micro is similar to the Pro Mini except with an ATmega32U4 on board. The USB transceiver inside the 32U4 allows us to add USB connectivity on-board and do away with bulky external USB interface.

This tiny little board does all of the neat-o Arduino tricks that you're familiar with: 4 channels of 10-bit ADC, 5 PWM pins, 12 DIOs as well as hardware serial connections Rx and Tx. Running at 16MHz and 5V, this board will remind you a lot of your other favourite Arduino-compatible boards but this little guy can go just about anywhere. There is a voltage regulator on board so it can accept voltage up to 12VDC. If you're supplying unregulated power to the board, be sure to connect to the "RAW" pin on not VCC.

This board measures in at an amazing 33mm x 18mm! And has a maximum height of 3.75mm (at the micro USB socket).

Note: This latest revision corrects the silk error from the last version of the board so that pin 14 is correctly labeled. We've also added a PTC fuse and diode protection to the power circuit and corrected the RX and TX LED circuit..

Note: This board uses what's known as the "diskloader" bootloader, this is presumably the same bootloader used by the Arduino Leonardo. This bootloader is still in its infancy so expect some glitchiness here and there. Also, because it works over HID you will need to install some drivers so that your computer will recognize it. A "readme" file in the driver pack below explains how to do this.

Features:

ATMega 32U4 running at 5V/16MHz
Supported under Arduino IDE v1.0 (un-comment "leonardo" lines in boards.txt)
On-Board micro-USB connector for programming
4 x 10-bit ADC pins
12 x Digital I/Os (5 are PWM capable)
Rx and Tx Hardware Serial Connections
Smallest Arduino-Compatible Board Yet!

Resources:

0.5mm conical replacement bit - 1105

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 15:53:42 GMT

This is an Antex 0.5mm conical replacement bit - 1105. These bits are manufactured from high-grade copper, plated first with iron and then chrome to give a long working life.

Suitable for use with ANTEX CS, TCS, TC50, SD50, XSTC, A245, A545, A718 soldering irons.

Features:

Resources:

Datasheet

2.3mm chisel replacement bit - 1100

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 15:53:36 GMT

Antex 2.3mm chisel replacement bit - 1100. These bits are manufactured from high-grade copper, plated first with iron and then chrome to give a long working life.

Suitable for use with ANTEX CS, TCS, TC50, SD50, XSTC, A245, A545, A718 soldering irons.

Features:

Resources:

Datasheet

Antex CS18 Soldering Iron - 230V 18W

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 13:21:34 GMT

This is a basic 18W 230V soldering iron from Antex. Perfect for small electronics soldering - it's light, compact and well balanced. It comes fitted with a 2.3mm chisel tip, a basic metal stand and a 1.5m PVC mains cable (UK plug).

We now have a Soldering Kit and replacement bits!

Features:

18 Watt, 230 Volt
Fitted bit - no.1100 (2.3mm chisel tip)
390�C Temperature Range
Cable Length - 1.5m
Cable Type - PVC
Plug type: UK 3 pin
Leak Current (uA) - 1.5
Length Tip/Handle (mm) - 182

Resources:

Datasheet

MP3 Player Shield

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 15:43:38 GMT

This new revision of the MP3 player shield retains the awesome MP3 decoding abilities of the last version but adds the storage functionality of the SD card shield. Now you can pull MP3 files from an SD card and play them using only one shield, effectively turning any Arduino into a fully functional stand-alone MP3 player! The MP3 Shield still utilizes the VS1053B MP3 audio decoder IC to decode audio files. The VS1053 is also capable of decoding Ogg Vorbis/MP3/AAC/WMA/MIDI audio and encoding IMA ADPCM and user-loadable Ogg Vorbis.

The VS1053 receives its input bitstream through a serial input bus (SPI). After the stream has been decoded by the IC, the audio is sent out to both a 3.5mm stereo headphone jack, as well as a 2-pin 0.1" pitch header.

This shield comes populated with all components as shown in the images and schematic; but it does not come with headers installed.

Note: Please refer to the Line Out document below for important information regarding connecting this shield directly to an amplifier.

Features:

Resources:

Hook-up Wire - Red

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 14:57:17 GMT

Standard 22 AWG solid Red hook up wire. Use this with your bread board or any project in which you need sturdy wire. Comes in small spools of 25'.

Features:

Resources:

LiPo Charger Basic - Mini-USB

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 13:49:27 GMT

If you need to charge LiPo batteries, this simple charger will do just that. It is designed to charge single-cell Li-Ion or Li-Polymer batteries. Check the datasheet below to see if it will work with your battery.

The board incorporates a charging circuit, status LED, connector for your battery (JST-type used in the batteries we carry), and a mini-USB connector.

Note: This version uses a mini-USB cable. We also have this charger with a micro-USB connection as well.

Features:

Dimensions: 29.4x10.8mm

Resources:

Xbee Pro 50mW Module with Whip Antenna (Series ZB)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 13:05:12 GMT

This is the XBee XBP24-BZ7WIT-004 module from Digi. The new Series 2B improves upon the power output and data protocol of the Pro Series2. Series 2B modules allow you to create complex mesh networks based on the XBee ZB ZigBee mesh firmware. These modules allow a very reliable and simple communication between microcontrollers, computers, systems, really anything with a serial port! Point to point and multi-point networks are supported.

Series 2B modules use a different hardware configuration from the earlier models and while they will communicate with Series 2 XBee modules, they are not compatible with the outdated Series 2.5 Modules.

Note: If you are looking for a simple point-to-point configuration, you might want to try the Series 1 instead. The Series 2 requires considerable setup and configuration. We highly recommend Building Wireless Sensor Networks as a guide for setting up mesh networks.

Note: Series 1 and Series 2B XBee modules have the same pin-out. However, Series 1 modules cannot communicate with Series 2B modules.

Features:

3.3V @ 295mA
250kbps Max data rate
50mW output (+17dBm)
1 mile (1600m) range
Wire Antenna
Fully FCC certified
6 10-bit ADC input pins
8 digital IO pins
128-bit encryption
Local or over-air configuration
AT or API command set

Documents:

XBee Pro 50mW Module with RPSMA (Series ZB)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 13:05:10 GMT

This is the XBee XBP24BZ7SIT-004 module from Digi. The new Series ZB improves upon the power output and data protocol of the Pro Series2. Series ZB modules allow you to create complex mesh networks based on the XBee ZB ZigBee mesh firmware. These modules allow a very reliable and simple communication between microcontrollers, computers, systems, really anything with a serial port! Point to point and multi-point networks are supported.

Note: If you are looking for a simple point-to-point configuration, you might want to try the Series 1 instead. The Series ZB requires considerable setup and configuration. We highly recommend Building Wireless Sensor Networks as a guide for setting up mesh networks.

Note: Series 1 and Series ZB XBee modules have the same pin-out. However, Series 1 modules cannot communicate with Series ZB modules.

Features:

3.3V @ 295mA
250kbps Max data rate
50mW output (+17dBm)
1 mile (1600m) range
RPSMA connector
Fully FCC certified
6 10-bit ADC input pins
8 digital IO pins
128-bit encryption
Local or over-air configuration
AT or API command set

Documents:

EasyVR Shield - Voice Recognition Shield

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 14:48:30 GMT

Do you make time to talk to your Arduino? Maybe you should! The EasyVR Shield is a voice recognition shield for Arduino boards integrating an EasyVR module. It includes all of the features of the EasyVR module in a shield form factor that simplifies connection to the Arduino main board and PC.

EasyVR is a multi-purpose speech recognition module designed to add versatile, robust and cost effective speech and voice recognition capabilities to virtually any application. EasyVR is the second generation version of the successful VRbot module and builds on the features and functionality of its predecessor. In addition to the EasyVR features like 32 user-defined Speaker Dependent (SD) triggers and a host of built-in speaker independent (SI) commands, the shield has additional connectors for the microphone input, an 8 ohm speaker output, audio line-out/headphone jack, and access to the I/O pins of the EasyVR module. A programmable LED is also included to show feedback during recognition tasks.

A simple and robust serial protocol (9600 8-N-1 default) can be used to access these functions from the Arduino board. Check out the video below of the EasyVR Shield being used to control a servo.

Features:

A host of built-in speaker independent (SI) commands (available in US English, Italian, Japanese, German, Spanish and French) for ready to run basic controls.
Supports up to 32 user-defined Speaker Dependent (SD) triggers or commands (any language) as well as Voice Passwords.
Easy-to-use and simple Graphical User Interface to program Voice Commands to your robot.
Module can be used with any host with an UART interface (powered at 3.3V - 5V) .
Simple and robust serial protocol to access and program the module through the host board.
Make your own sound tables using Sensory QuickSynthesis4 tool
The new EasyVR GUI includes a command to process and download custom sound tables to the module (overwriting existing sound table)
Connector for microphone input
8 ohm speaker output
Headphone jack
Access to EasyVR I/O pins
Programmable LED to show feedback during recognition tasks
Arduino Libraries provided

Resources:

User Manual
EasyVR GUI
EasyVR Shield Homepage (most up-to-date downloads)
EasyVR Protocol Header
Arduino Library
Arduino Example

EL Panel - Red (10x10cm)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 17:36:40 GMT

Description: Who doesn't love the soft glow of electroluminescence? This EL panel is a flexible plastic sheet which contains a phosphor layer and lights up with a neon-like glow when the proper voltage is applied. It's a lot like the ever-popular EL wire except, well, it's a panel. Panels are particularly well suited for backlighting LCDs as well as illuminated signage.

These can be driven with the EL inverter and sequencer that we carry and come in a variety of bright colours. This particular panel is 10cm square and illuminates red. It is attached to a 20cm cable which is terminated with a JST PH connector.

Note: These panels can be cut to any shape! Regular scissors work fine to cut this EL panel but after you've cut the panel you should seal the exposed edges with some tape or epoxy to avoid shorting the panel or shocking yourself.

Features:

Dimensions:10 x 10 cm

Resources:

EL Panel - White (10x10cm)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 17:36:33 GMT

These can be driven with the EL inverter and sequencer that we carry and come in a variety of bright colours. This particular panel is 10cm square and illuminates white. It is attached to a 20cm cable which is terminated with a JST PH connector.

Features:

Dimensions:10 x 10 cm

Resources:

EL Panel - Blue (10x10cm)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 17:36:24 GMT

Who doesn't love the soft glow of electroluminescence? This EL panel is a flexible plastic sheet which contains a phosphor layer and lights up with a neon-like glow when the proper voltage is applied. It's a lot like the ever-popular EL wire except, well, it's a panel. Panels are particularly well suited for backlighting LCDs as well as illuminated signage.

These can be driven with the EL inverter and sequencer that we carry and come in a variety of bright colours. This particular panel is 10cm square and illuminates blue. It is attached to a 20cm cable which is terminated with a JST PH connector.

Features:

Dimensions:10 x 10 cm

Resources:

EL Wire - White 3m

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 16:39:24 GMT

EL wire, or electroluminescent wire, is a flexible wire coated in phosphor. Apply the appropriate voltage and it lights up! It looks a lot like a thin flexible neon tube. They come in many bright colors and can be driven pretty easily with an inverter.

This particular wire glows white and is 3m (almost 10 feet) in length, 2.3mm in diameter and is terminated with a JST PH connector. This connector works directly with the El Escudo driver board. Or, you can wire them directly into the output of an inverter.

EL Wire - Blue 3m

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 16:39:15 GMT

This particular wire glows blue and is 3m (almost 10 feet) in length, 2.3mm in diameter and is terminated with a JST PH connector. This connector works directly with the El Escudo driver board. Or, you can wire them directly into the output of an inverter.

EL Wire - Green 3m

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 16:39:07 GMT

This particular wire glows green and is 3m (almost 10 feet) in length, 2.3mm in diameter and is terminated with a JST PH connector. This connector works directly with the El Escudo driver board. Or, you can wire them directly into the output of an inverter.

Features:

Resources:

EL Wire - Red 3m

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 16:38:57 GMT

This particular wire glows red and is 3m (almost 10 feet) in length, 2.3mm in diameter and is terminated with a JST PH connector. This connector works directly with the El Escudo driver board. Or, you can wire them directly into the output of an inverter.

Features:

Resources:

EL Inverter - 12v

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 16:21:50 GMT

EL inverters allow you to drive EL (electroluminescent) wires. This particular EL inverter accepts a 12 VDC wall adapter. The output is terminated with a JST PH connector, so it plugs directly into the input on the EL Escudo or EL Sequencer board. You can drive EL wires with them directly, but you may need to re-terminate them. There is also a small switch on the side which allows you to switch between 'on', 'off', and 'blink' settings.

Note: These should be good to drive 10-15m worth of EL wire.

Features:

Resources:

Datasheet

LPC11U14 LPCXpresso board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 15:52:28 GMT

The LPC11U14 LPCXpresso board with NXP's ARM Cortex-M0 microcontroller has been designed to make it as easy as possible to get started with Cortex-M0. The LPCXpresso comprises a target board combined with a JTAG debugger. A free Eclipse-based IDE from Code Red is also included. The LPC11U14 has 6 kB SRAM, 32 kB Flash, USB 2.0 Full-Speed Device, SSP, I2C, UART, ADC, etc. Embedded Artists also provides a Prototype board and a Base board that makes it possible to make experiments and prototyping with many peripherals.

Processor - NXP's Cortex-M0 LPC11U14 microcontroller in LQFP48 package
Flash - 32 kB
Data Memory - 6 kB
Clock Crystals - 12.000 MHz crystal for CPU
Dimensions - 35 x 140 mm
Power - 3.15V-3.3V external powering, or from USB via JTAG probe (LPC-LINK)
Connectors
- mini-B USB connector for LPC11U14 USB interface
- All LPC11U14 pins available on expansion connector (2x27 pin rows, 100 mil pitch, 900 mil between rows)
Other
- Embedded JTAG (LPC-LINK) functionality via LPCXpresso toolchain
- LPC-LINK can be connected to external target processor after modifications to the LPCXpresso board
- LED on PIO0_7

Documents:

Forum and Support:

Visit NXP's LPCXpresso Website
LPCXpresso Forum
LPCXpresso Support (lots of code example)

Cortex-M0 Information:

Seeeduino v3.0 (Atmega 328P) - Arduino Compatible Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 15:22:56 GMT

The Seeeduino is an Arduino compatible board. Based on the Uno Schematic this board is 100% compatible to its existing program, shields and IDEs. On the hardware side, changes have been made to improve the flexibility and user experience.

Features:

Inherits all of Arduino Duemilanuve's features.
Compatible to Duemilanuve's pin layout, screw hole and dimensions.
Evolved with SMD components
Improved on extensibility and convenience

Resources:

Cable for ShiftBrites - 6x1 F-F 12 inch

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 13:46:08 GMT

These 12 inch (30 cm), six-conductor cables can be used to chain together the ShiftBrite modules. The cable wires are coloured to match the ShiftBrite pin-out, with black for ground and red for power. The cable is composed of stranded 26 AWG wires and has female 0.1" 6�1 connectors on both ends.

Humidity and Temperature Sensor - SHT15 Breakout

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 10:02:09 GMT

This is a simple breakout board for the SHT15 humidity sensor from Sensirion. The SHT15 digital humidity and temperature sensor is fully calibrated and offers high precision and excellent long-term stability at low cost. The digital CMOSens Technology integrates two sensors and readout circuitry on one single chip.

These sensors are really impressive! Very sensitive and straight forward to use. Board comes assembled and tested with the SHT15.

Features:

2 factory calibrated sensors for relative humidity & temperature
Digital 2-wire interface
Precise dewpoint calculation possible
Measurement range: 0-100% RH
Absolute RH accuracy: +/- 2% RH (10...90% RH)
Repeatability RH: +/- 0.1% RH
Temp. accuracy: +/- 0.3°C @ 25°C
Fast response time < 4 sec.
Low power consumption (typ. 30 µW)
Low cost
High precision sensor at low cost
Leading CMOSens Technology for superior long-term stability

Applications:

Precise data logging
Transmitters
Automation & process control
Building control and HVAC
Test & Measurement
Medical

Resources:

Seeeduino ADK Main Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 16:42:49 GMT

The Seeeduino ADK Main Board is based on Android Open Accessory Development Kit(ADK). Compared to the Google's ADK Reference design, Seeeduino ADK has many added features like support of both 5V and 3.3V I/O (logic with a switch), smaller form-factor, better placement of reset button, pads for more pin-headers and sparkling RED PCB with Golden finish. Using ADK Main Board build your own Mobile accessories. Open Source Android development platform and Seeeduino ADK Main Board is an ideal solution for mobile based Home Automation.

Seeeduino ADK Main Board supports Android devices v1.5 using MicroBridge and v2.3.4 and above with Google Open Accessories API (ADK).

Seeeduino ADK Main Board works like Arduino Mega 2560 with inbuilt USB Host Shield. Hence, this Main Board can be connected to any USB devices. Users have to write their own drivers for using this feature.

What is Android Open Accessory Development Kit?

The Android 3.1 platform (also backported to Android 2.3.4) introduces Android Open Accessory support, which allows external USB hardware (an Android USB accessory) to interact with an Android-powered device in a special "accessory" mode. When an Android-powered powered device is in accessory mode, the connected accessory acts as the USB host (powers the bus and enumerates devices) and the Android-powered device acts as the device.

Android USB accessories are specifically designed to attach to Android-powered devices and adhere to a simple protocol (Android accessory protocol) that allows them to detect Android-powered devices that support accessory mode. Accessories must also provide 500mA at 5V for charging power. Many previously released Android-powered devices are only capable of acting as a USB device and cannot initiate connections with external USB devices. Android Open Accessory support overcomes this limitation and allows you to build accessories that can interact with an assortment of Android-powered devices by allowing the accessory to initiate the connection.

Features:

Android Open Accessories development Kit (ADK) compatible:

Supports Android v2.3.4 and above devices.

Works with Android Debug Bridge (ADB) using MicroBridge :

Supports Android v1.5 and above devices.

Arduino Mega 2560 compatible (256K Flash MCU)

Simply works like an Arduino Mega with an integrated USB Shield

56 Digital IOs
16 Analog inputs
14 PWM outputs
4 Hardware serial ports (UART)
1 Hardware TWI (I2C)
1 Hardware SPI (up to 8Mbps)
On board USB host(MAX3421), and breakout for all I/Os pins.
On board USB slave(FT232RL), and IOs breakout
Build-in 5V-1A switched power regulator (input range 6V - 18V)
Build-in 3.3V-500mA LDO power regulator.
Red PCB, ROHS compatible and Golden finish.
5v/3v3 IO Level selectable (Atmega2560 running on 16MHz@3.3v is a bit over-clock, but according to the test result, works fine).

Resources:

Develop accessories for Android (v2.3.4 and above) devices using ADK.
For Android devices not supporting ADK, use MicroBridge to develop accessories.
Make Android devices interact with the physical world.
As an Arduino compatible platform with 256K Flash.
On board USB host makes it easy to interact with USB devices like pen drivers, keyboard, mouse, Bluetooth dongles.

Visit the Seeed Studios wiki page for more info about this product.

RF Link Receiver - 4800bps (434MHz)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 16:05:13 GMT

These wireless receivers work with our 434MHz transmitters. They can easily fit into a breadboard and work well with microcontrollers to create a very simple wireless data link. Since these are only receivers, they will only work communicating data one-way, you would need two pairs (of different frequencies) to act as a transmitter/receiver pair.

Features:

434 MHz
500ft range (given perfect conditions)
4800bps data rate
5V supply voltage

Resources:

Color LCD - SMD Connector

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 15:49:33 GMT

This is the itty-bitty connector for the Nokia color LCD. 10-Pins. Surface mount. Hard to find. 0.5mm pitch so be careful.

Can it be soldered by hand? Yes! Others have managed to solder wire wrap wire to the individual legs for testing - but its not easy. It can soldered well with a good PCB layout and easily with a stencil and hotplate.

This connector is a copy of the Hirose DF23 Series. You can use the Hirose spec sheet to lay out your PCB footprint.

Documents:

3D Printer Perfboard

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 14:46:30 GMT

This specially made perfboard is designed to be attached to the 3D Printer build platform. This can be used as an alternative to Platform Adhesive to prevent 3D prints from 'curling' off the plaform as the plastic cools.

Features:

Resources:

4.3 inch 4DGL LCD-TFT Module - uLCD-43PT

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 18:26:34 GMT

The μLCD43(GFX) is an intelligent graphics display that harnesses the power to deliver a diverse range of features in a single, compact cost effective unit. Embedded at the heart of the design is the PICASO-GFX2 processor, which is driven by a highly optimised virtual core engine; EVE (Extensible Virtual Engine).

An extensive range of hardware and software peripherals have been integrated into the design, to give the user freedom to adapt the module to suit almost any application. Features include; a 4.3'' TFT 480x272 touch screen display, audio, micro-SD card connector, an expansion port along with a series of GPIO, I2C pins and serial comms. The μLCD43(GFX) serves as the perfect solution to be deployed at the forefront of any product design, requiring a brilliance of colour, animation or images on a 4.3�� widescreen display.

Features:

Low-cost 4.3" LCD-TFT display graphics user interface solution.
480 x 272 QVGA resolution, RGB 65K true to life colours, TFT screen.
Integrated 4-Wire Resistive Touch Panel
Easy 5 pin interface to any host device:
- VCC, TX, RX, GND, RESET.
Powered by the 4D-Labs PICASO-GFX2 processor (also available as separate OEM IC for volume users).
14KB of Flash memory for user code storage and 14KB of SRAM for user variables.
2 x Asynchronous hardware serial ports (COM0, COM1), TTL interface, with 300 baud to 256K baud.
1 x I2C interface (Master).
8 x 16 bit timers with 1 millisecond resolution.
16 x General Purpose I/O pins. Upper 8 bits can be used as an I/O Bus for fast 8-bit parallel data transfers.
On-board micro-SD memory card adaptor for multimedia storage and data logging purposes. HC memory card support is also available for cards larger than 4GB.
DOS compatible file access (FAT16 format) as well as low level access to card memory.
Dedicated PWM Audio pin supports FAT16 audio WAV files and complex sound generation.
On-board audio amplifier with a tiny 8Ω speaker for sound generation and WAV file playback.
Built in extensive 4DGL graphics and system library functions. For all available features and functions under the 4DGL programming language.
Display full colour images, animations, icons and video clips.
Supports all available Windows fonts and characters.
2 x 15 pin 0.1" Pitch SMT header for I/O expansion and future plug-in daughter boards.
4.0V to 5.5V range operation (single supply).
Module dimensions: 105.5 x 67.0 x 14.7mm (excluding mounting tabs).
Display Viewing Area: 95.0 x 53.9mm
4 x mounting tabs with 3mm holes for mechanical support.
RoHS Compliant.

Resources:

Product Brief: A concise yet informative Brief of the μLCD43(GFX) can be found here:
- uLCD43(GFX)-Product-Brief-rev2.pdf

Quick Start Guide: The Quick Start Guide should be the first point of contact upon receiving a μLCD43(GFX). It is aimed at teaching the essentials in an informative, yet succinct manner:
- PICASO-GFX2-Modules-QSG-rev1.pdf

Data Sheets: The latest data sheets for the module are available here:
     - uLCD43-GFX-DS-rev3.pdf
     - PICASO-GFX2-DS-rev3.pdf
     - PICASO-GFX2-4DGL-Internal-Functions-rev3.pdf
     - 4DGL-Programmers-Reference-Manual-rev3.pdf

PmmC File: The PmmC file contains the low level micro-code information (analogy of that of a soft silicon) which define the characteristics and functionality of the PICASO-GFX2 processor. The chip-resident 4DGL functions are part of the PmmC configuration file and future proofing and enhancements are available via PmmC updates. The PmmC file is programmed into the μLCD43(GFX) module via the COM0 serial port.
     - uLCD-43PTGFX-R27.pmmc (Non-Touch & Resistive Touch)
     - uLCD-43PCTGFX-R27.pmmc (Capacitive Touch)
     - PICASO-GFX2-ReleaseNotes-R27

PmmC-Loader Software Tool: Windows based software tool to program the PmmC file into the PICASO-GFX2 processor.
- PmmC-Loader Tool link

4D-Workshop3 IDE Tool: This is a free software tool for Windows. The 4D-Workshop3 IDE provides an integrated software development environment for PICASO-GFX2 processor and associated display modules. The IDE combines the Editor, Compiler, Linker and DownLoader to develop complete 4DGL application code. All user application code is developed within the Workshop3 IDE.
- 4D-Workshop3-IDE-Tool

FONT Software Tool: This is a free software tool that can assist in the conversion of any Windows fonts into the bitmap format that can be used by the PICASO-GFX2. The converted font set can then be imported into the user 4DGL application code.
- FONT Tool link

RMPET Software Tool: Removable Media Partition Edit Tool (RMPET) can split a large card into two partitions, the first partition for use as a FAT16 partition and the second partition for use as a RAW partition.
- RMPET Tool link

Graphics-Composer Software Tool: This is a free software tool for Windows. This software tool is an aid to composing a slide show of images/animations/movie-clips (multi-media objects) which can then be downloaded into the memory card that is supported by the PICASO-GFX2. The multimedia objects can then be called within the user application 4DGL program.
- Graphics Composer Software

Touch Calibration: Calibration is necessary when the coordinates of the area touched on the screen are not sufficiently close to the coordinates on the display. Without proper calibration, software may not respond correctly when pressed.This 4DGL prgram allows the user to recalibrate and overwrite the existing Touch preset values. The new calibration values apply until the PmmC file is reloaded. Just download the program and follow the instructions.
- TOUCHCAL.4dg

FEZ Hydra Mainboard

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 11:25:25 GMT

FEZ Hydra is a 100% open-source (hardware and software) .NET Gadgeteer compatible mainboard running .NET Micro Framework. It incorporates a 240Mhz AT91SAMRL ARM9 processor. With 16MB of SDRAM an 4MB of FLASH, FEZ Hydra is capable or running the most complex applications.

Key Features:

14 .NET Gadgeteer compatible sockets that include these types: X, Y, A, D, F, I, K, P, S, T, U, R, G, B and Z.
240Mhz ARM9 Processor (currently running at 200Mhz)
16MB SDRAM
4MB FLASH
Rich .NETMF open-source Software & Hardware

Complete Graphics support
TFT display interface (R/G/B sockets) with Touch screen
FAT16/FAT32
Full TCP/IP stack with SSL, HTTP, TCP, UDP, DHCP
USB Device
4-bit SD card with no limit on SD card size
Analog
PWM
I2C
SPI
UART

Dimensions: 3.42" x 2.44"

Power

Requires .NET Gadgeteer standard red power modules.

Active power consumption 130 mA

Idle power consumption TBD

Environmental:

Operating temperature: 0 to 70�C
RoHS compliant /Lead-free compliant

Documents:

Schematic

For more information about .NET Gadgeteer visit: http://www.netmf.com/gadgeteer/

Design sources and porting info are found at this page.

Wireless SD Shield

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 14:26:12 GMT

The Wireless SD shield allows an Arduino board to communicate wirelessly using a wireless module. It is based on the Xbee modules from Digi, but can use any module with the same footprint. The module can communicate up to 100 feet indoors or 300 feet outdoors (with line-of-sight). It can be used as a serial/usb replacement or you can put it into a command mode and configure it for a variety of broadcast and mesh networking options. The shields breaks out each of the Xbee's pins to a through-hole solder pad.

Included on board is a SD card slot. When using the SD Library to access the card, Pin 4 is CS and cannot be used otherwise. SPI also relies on pins 11, 12, and 13 for communication.

Also on board is a switch allowing for control via USB or the microcontroller.

Schematic

EAGLE files: arduino_WirelessShield_SD_v3-reference-design.zip

Schematic: arduino_WirelessShield_SD_v3-schematic.pdf

Arduino Motor Shield Rev3

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 12:48:25 GMT

The Arduino Motor Shield is based on the L298 (datasheet), which is a dual full-bridge driver designed to drive inductive loads such as relays, solenoids, DC and stepping motors. It lets you drive two DC motors with your Arduino board, controlling the speed and direction of each one independently. You can also measure the current absorption of each motor, among other features.

Summary

Operating Voltage	5V to 12V
Motor controller	L298P, Drives 2 DC motors or 1 stepper motor
Max current	2A per channel or 4A max (with external power supply)
Current sensing	1.65V/A
Free running stop and brake function

Schematic & Reference Design

EAGLE files: arduino_MotorShield_Rev3-reference-design.zip

Schematic: arduino_MotorShield_Rev3-schematic.pdf

Power

The Arduino Motor Shield must be powered only by an external power supply. Because the L298 IC mounted on the shield has two separate power units, one for the logic and one for the motor supply driver.The current draw for the motor supply is often than the USB can give.

External (non-USB) power can come either from an AC-to-DC adapter (wall-wart) or battery. The adapter can be connected by plugging a 2.1mm center-positive plug into the Arduino's board power jack on which the motor shield is mounted or by connecting the wires that lead the power supply to the Vin and GND screw terminals, taking care to respect the polarities.

To avoid possible damage to the Arduino board on which the shield is mounted, we reccomend using an external power supply that provides a voltage between 7 and 12V. If your motor require more than 9V we recommend that you separate the power lines of the shield and the Arduino board on which the shield is mounted. This is possible by cutting the "Vin Connect" jumper placed on the back side of the shield. The absolute limit for the Vin at the screw terminals is 18V.

The power pins are as follows:

Vin on the screw terminal block, is the input voltage to the motor connected to the shield. An external power supply connected to this pin also provide power to the Arduino board on which is mounted. By cutting the "Vin Connect" jumper you make this a dedicated power line for the motor.
GND Ground on the screw terminal block.

The shield can supply 2 amperes per channel, for a total of 4 amperes maximum.

Input and Output

This shield have two separate channels, called A and B, that each use 4 of the Arduino pins to drive or sense the motor. In total there are 8 pins in use on this shield. You can use each channel separately to drive two DC motors or combine them to drive one unipolar stepper motor.

The shield's pins, divided by channel are shown in the table below:

Function	pins per Ch. A	pins per Ch. B
Direction	D12	D13
PWM	D3	D11
Brake	D9	D8
Current Sensing	A0	A1

If you don't need the Brake and in the Current Sensing and you also need more pins for your application you can disable this features by cutting the respective jumpers on the back side of the shield.

The additional sockets on the shield are described as follow:

Screw terminal to connect the motors and their power supply.
2 TinkerKit connectors for two Analog Inputs (in white), connected to A2 and A3.
2 TinkerKit connectors for two Aanlog Outputs (in orange in the middle), connected to PWM outputs on pins D5 and D6.
2 TinkerKit connectors for the TWI interface (in white with 4 pins), one for input and the other one for output.

Motors connections

Brushed DC motor. You can drive two Brushed DC motors by connecting the two wires of each one in the (+) and (-) screw terminals for each channel A and B. In this way you can control its direction by setting HIGH or LOW the DIR A and DIR B pins, you can control the speed by varying the PWM A and PWM B duty cycle values. There are also the Brake A and Brake B pins that if setted in HIGH state they brakes the DC motor faster than when you power off the motor. You can know the current going through the DC motor by reading the SNS0 and SNS1 pins. On each channel will be a voltage proportional to the measured current, which can be read as a normal analog input, through the functions analogRead() on the analog input A0 and A1. For your convenience it is calibrated to be 3.3V when the channel is delivering its maximum possible current, that is 2A.

Physical Characteristics

The maximum length and width of the Motor Shield PCB are 2.7 and 2.1 inches respectively. Four screw holes allow the board to be attached to a surface or case. Note that the distance between digital pins 7 and 8 is 160 mil (0.16"), not an even multiple of the 100 mil spacing of the other pins.

mbed LPC11U24 Header Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 17:47:39 GMT

This is the new mbed featuring the Cortex-M0 LPC11U24 chip. The chip and board are perfect for fast prototyping USB and battery powered applications.

Like the original mbed, programming is done via a web based IDE, with binary files saved to the mbed's built in memory. This will appear as another drive on your computer, so it's easy to drag and drop different binaries around.

Features

NXP LPC11U24 chip @ 48Mhz
32 KB of Flash memory,
8 KB of SRAM data memory
Full Speed USB 2.0 device controller,
Fast-mode Plus I2C-bus,
UART, SPI and ADC interfaces.
40-pin DIP, 0.1-inch pitch form-factor
Supported with all the mbed tools,
All existing programs and libraries already written compatible

Resources

Quickly and easily interfacing USB devices is the star attraction of this board :

Another example is the USB keyboard :

Or what about a simple USB Midi interface?

LPC-P1343

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 17:34:39 GMT

LPC-P1343 Development Prototype Board For LPC1343 Cortex M3 ARM Microcontroller

Microcontroller Features:

LPC1343 Cortex-M3, up to 72 Mhz
32 kB Flash, 8kB SRAM,
UART RS-485, two SSP, I2C/Fast+
USB
42 GPIO pins,
4 TIMERS/COUNETRS, CAPTURE,
WDT
Serial Wire Debug.
High-current output driver (20 mA) on one pin.
High-current sink drivers (20 mA) on two I2C-bus pins in Fast-mode Plus.
Integrated Power Management Unit, Three reduced power modes: Sleep, Deep-sleep, and Deep power-down.
Single 3.3 V power supply (2.0 V to 3.6 V).
10-bit ADC with input multiplexing among 8 pins.
GPIO pins can be used as edge and level sensitive interrupt sources.

Board Features:

MCU: LPC1343 Cortex-M3, up to 72 Mhz, 32 kB Flash, 8kB SRAM, UART RS-485, two SSP, I2C/Fast+, ADC
Power supply circuit
Power-on led
USB connector
Debug interface � SWD (Serial Wire Debug)
UEXT connector
Eight user leds
Two user buttons
Reset button
Prototype area
FR-4, 1.5 mm, soldermask, component print
Dimensions:80x50mm (3.15 x 1.97")

Documents:

LPC-P1343.pdf users manual
Getting started with the LPC-P1343 using GNU tools by Alessandro Rubini with source code: git://gnudd.com/cortex-m3.git http://gnudd.com/pub/cortex-m3/cortex-m3-v2011-03-20.tar.gz
LPC-P1343 demo examples: blink LEDs, interrupts, buttons, USB virtual com port

Hardware:

LPC-P1343 schematic
ARM JTAG connector (TOP view)

Software:

LPC1343 demo examples project for EW-ARM

Projects/Review:

http://gadgetengineering.wordpress.com/category/olimex-lpc-p1343/

Breakout Board for USB Mini-B

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 14:33:03 GMT

This new version now has all 5 pins broken out on the connector. We have no idea what USB device you are hooking up to, but if you need to add a miniUSB/USB Mini-B connector to your breadboard - here it is. Also good for an un-regulated, non-limited 5V supply up to 100mA.

Surface Transducer - Small

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 12:14:02 GMT

Surface transducers give you the awesome power to turn almost any surface into a speaker. Much like our larger surface transducer, this is essentially just a speaker except instead of a cone, the coil is attached to a pad that conducts the vibration into whatever you press it against. You can hook it up to an audio source and press it against the nearest table, wall or cardboard box. You can even put it against your head and play music directly into your skull (the ultimate surround sound).

Note: The connectors on these units are somewhat fragile so take care to prevent stressing your connection to the unit.

Features:

Dimensions:21.5 x 14.5 x 7.9mm

Impedance: 8±5% Ohm
Resonant Frequency: 16 +/- 0.5 kHz
Max Operating Voltage: 12 Vpp
Frequency Response: 300-19000 Hz
Rated input: 1.0 W
Maximum input: 2.0 W
Operating Temperature: -20 to +60 °C

Resources:

USB Client DP Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 16:46:21 GMT

This module provides access to USB client connector and also includes an advanced power supply, allowing the mainboard to be powered from USB or from the power jack. Connecting power on both sides is safe. The power supply is fully functional from 7V to 30V supporting over 800mA of current.

DP stands for Dual Power. USB cable is included.

Note: The on-board LED blinks when the power supply is over-loaded.

Requires socket type D

.NET Gadgeteer compatible cable is included.

Features:

Resources:

USB Host Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 16:18:15 GMT

With USB Host support, developers are able to read a USB Joystick, Mouse and keyboard and also able to saving/reading files off USB memory stick.

GHI's USB Host support includes HUB support. By connecting HUBs, users can connect as many USB devices as they wish, up to 127 devices, which is the standard limit of USB connections.

Requires socket type H and software support for USB Host. The Spider Mainboard fully supports USB Host.

.NET Gadgeteer compatible cable is included.

Features:

Resources:

Joystick Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 13:38:10 GMT

This Joystick Module can measure position on X and Y axes by moving the "hat". It also contains a switch that is press-able by pushing the "hat" down. Similar to to what is used in the XBOX controller.

Requires socket type A.

.NET Gadgeteer compatible cable is included.

Features:

Resources:

WiFi RS21 Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 13:13:41 GMT

Thanks to GHI's months of research and engineering, WiFi is available on FEZ Spider with minimal efforts to the end user. This is not a WiFi-Serial bridge but a real WiFi connection that uses .NET Sockets.

Currently, this module works only with FEZ Spider Main board.

Requires socket type S.

This module is based on Redpine Signals' RS9110-N-11-21-01 WiFi module.

.NET Gadgeteer compatible cable is included.

Features:

Resources:

Button Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 13:00:25 GMT

Button Module for Gadgeteer compatible devices. This module is equipped with an on-board configurable LED.

Requires socket type X or Y.

.NET Gadgeteer compatible cable is included.

Features:

Resources:

Gadgeteer Cable Pack

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 14:30:48 GMT

This pack includes 10 of the 10cm .NET Gadgeteer compatible cables.

Features:

Connector:10 pins (2x5); 1.27mm x 1.27mm
Cable Pitch: 0.635mm
Average life: 500 insertions

Resources:

m3pi Robot Bundle

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 17:15:42 GMT

The m3pi Robot Bundle has everything you need to have your m3pi Robot running around and talking to your WiFi network.

The kit features the m3pi Robot with mbed Socket which is is a complete, high-performance mobile platform featuring two micro metal gearmotors, five reflectance sensors, an 8�2 character LCD, a buzzer, and three user pushbuttons, all connected to a C-programmable ATmega328 microcontroller. Capable of speeds exceeding 3 feet per second, 3pi is a great first robot for ambitious beginners and a perfect second robot for those looking to move up from non-programmable or slower beginner robots.

Also included is an mbed LPC1768 Header Board to plug on top. This ARM based fast prototyping board uses an 100Mhz LPC1768 microprocessor from the Cortex M3 family. A small, breadboard friendly DIP package houses a wide range of peripherals, with programming, power and additional comms through a mini USB conector.

Finally you get the WiFi Module - RN-XV (XBee footprint), which neatly plugs into the m3pi Robot, providing you with WiFi connectivity.

Please note you will need to program the m3pi Robot in order to get it moving.

EMX Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 16:31:40 GMT

The EMX is a combination of hardware (ARM Processor, Flash, RAM, Ethernet PHY...etc) on a very small (1.55" x 1.8") SMT OEM 8-Layer board that hosts Microsoft .NET Micro Framework with various PAL/HAL drivers. EMX includes GHI's exclusive software and hardware features such as support for USB host, PPP networking, and more.

The EMX Module is a vastly sophisticated piece of hardware. This complexity provides the end-user with a remarkably simple platform to implement in any hardware design.

Looking at the EMX Development System schematic shows just how simple it really is. All you need is 3.3 volts and some connections to bring the latest technologies to your products. With manageable features like USB host and WiFi, the possibilities are boundless.

The EMX also supports RLP allowing users to load native code. Ideal for real-time and/or processing intensive applications.

Key Features

.NET Micro Framework
72Mhz 32-bit Processor
16MB RAM
4.5MB FLASH
Embedded LCD controller
Embedded Ethernet PHY with DMA communication.
Runtime Loadable Procedure
Full TCP/IP Stack
SSL
ZG2100 WiFi Driver
PPP ( GPRS/ 3G )
DPWS
Embedded USB host/device
76 GPIO Pins
39 Interrupt Inputs
2 SPI (8/16bit)
I2C
4 UART
2 CAN Channels
7 10-bit Analog Inputs.
10-bit Analog Output
4-bit SD/MMC Memory card interface
6 PWM
160 mA current consumption with everything enabled
40mA Hibernate Mode
-40�C to +85�C Operational
RoHS Lead Free

Resources:

SAM3-H256

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 13:50:42 GMT

SAM3-H256 Header development board for ATSAM3S4BA microcontroller

SAM3-H256 has connectors for JTAG and USB, extension headers for all microcontroller's ports, reset button, power and status leds.

MCU: ATSAM3S4BA Cortex M3� with 256K Bytes Program Flash,48K Bytes RAM, USB 2.0, RTT, 10 bit ADC 384 ksps, 2x UARTs, TWI (I2C), SPI, 3x 32bit TIMERS, 4x PWM,
SSC, WDT, PDC (DMA) for all peripherals, up to 64MHz operation
Perfect solution for building custom USB peripherials
Standard JTAG connector with ARM 2x10 pin layout for programming/debugging with ARM-JTAG
USB connector
RESET circuit
RESET button
Status LED
TST jumper, for SAM-BA downloading
On board voltage regulator 3.3V with up to 800mA current
Single power supply: through USB or from extension header pin
Power supply LED
Power supply filtering capacitor
12 Mhz crystal on socket
Extension headers for all uC ports + RST and power supply
PCB: FR-4, 1.5 mm (0,062"), soldermask, silkscreen component print
Dimensions: 50 x 34 mm (2 x 1.3")
Distance between the headers: 25.4 mm (1")

Documents:

SAM3-H256.pdf user manual

Hardware:

SAM3-H256 schematic

Software:

Demo code for SAM3-H256

SAM3-P256

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 13:50:06 GMT

SAM3-P256 Development board for ATSAM3S4BA microcontroller

Atmel�s ATSAM3S4BA-AU is a member of a series of Flash microcontrollers based on the high performance 32-bit ARM Cortex-M3 RISC processor. It operates at a maximum speed of 64 MHz and features a 256 Kbyte Flash and a 48 Kbyte SRAM, Full Speed USB Device port with embedded transceiver, a High Speed MCI for SDIO/SD/MMC, an External Bus Interface featuring a Static Memory Controller providing connection to SRAM, PSRAM, NOR Flash and NAND Flash, 2x USARTs, 2x UARTs, 2x TWIs, 3x SPI, an I2S, as well as 1 PWM timer, 6x generalpurpose 16-bit timers, an RTC, an ADC, a 12-bit DAC and an analog comparator. SAM3-P256 has JTAG, UEXT, USB and two RS232 connectors, power jack, potentiometer, two user buttons, two status leds, power-on led, reset button and prototype area for all microcontroller's ports. All this gives the customer chance to build a wide range of applications.

MCU: ATSAM3S4BA Cortex M3� with 256K Bytes Program Flash,48K Bytes RAM, USB 2.0, RTT, 10 bit ADC 384 ksps, 2x UARTs, TWI (I2C), SPI, 3x 32bit TIMERS, 4x PWM, SSC, WDT, PDC (DMA) for all peripherals, up to 64MHz operation
2 RS232 connectors and drivers
SD/MMC card connector
Standard JTAG connector with ARM 2x10 pin layout for programming/debugging with ARM-JTAG
USB connector
RESET circuit
RESET button
2 status LED
2 buttons
UEXT connector
TST jumper, for SAM-BA downloading
On board voltage regulator 3.3V with up to 800mA current
Single power supply: through USB or from extension header pin
Power supply LED
Power supply filtering capacitor
12 Mhz crystal
Trimmer potentiometer
Extension headers for all uC ports + RST and power supply
PCB: FR-4, 1.5 mm (0,062"), soldermask, silkscreen component print
Dimensions: 50 x 34 mm (2 x 1.3")
Distance between the headers: 25.4 mm (1")

Documents:

SAM3-P256.pdf user manual

Hardware:

SAM3-P256 schematic

Software:

Demo code for SAM3-P256

XMega XMinilab Oscilloscope

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 17:25:15 GMT

The Xminilab is a mixed signal oscilloscope with an arbitrary waveform generator in a DIP module. It measures only 3.3 x 1.75 inches, and can be mounted directly on a breadboard. The Xminilab can also be used as a development board for the AVR XMEGA microcontroller.

Features:

Mixed Signal Oscilloscope: Simultaneous sampling of analog and digital signals.
Advanced Trigger: Normal / Single / Auto, with rising or falling edge and adjustable trigger level.
Meter Mode: Average, Peak to peak and Frequency readout.
XY Mode (Plot Lissajous patterns or see the phase difference between two waveforms).
Spectrum Analyzer with different windowing options and selectable vertical log.
Horizontal and Vertical Cursors with automatic waveform measurements.
Arbitrary Waveform Generator with Sweep on all parameters.
Display options: Persistence, Different grid options, and more.

General Specifications:

ATXMEGA32A4U 36KB Flash, 4KB SRAM, 1KB EEPROM
Graphic OLED display 2.42", 128x64 pixels
Module size: 3.3" x 1.75"
PDI interface.
4 tactile switches
USB connectivity: Windows, Android

Logic Analyzer specifications:

8 Digital Inputs, 3.3V level.
Maximum sampling rate: 2MSPS
Frequency counter: 12Mhz
Protocol Sniffer: UART, I2C, SPI
Internal pull up or pull down.
Buffer size: 256

Oscilloscope specifications:

2 Analog Inputs
Maximum Sampling rate: 2MSPS
Analog Bandwidth: 200kHz
Resolution: 8bits
Input Impedance: 1MΩ
Buffer size per channel: 256
Input Voltage Range: -14V to +20V

AWG specifications:

1 Analog Output
Maximum conversion rate: 1MSPS
Analog Bandwidth: 44.1kHz
Resolution: 8bits
Output current > +/- 7mA
Buffer size: 256
Output Voltage: +/- 2V

Optional Accessories (soldering required):
- PDI Programming Header: Only needed to do firmware development on the device.
- External Port Header: Only needed to hook up external devices, such as the Bluetooth RF Module.
- Jumper Wires: Useful for breadboard prototyping, 6" male to male.

Resources:

Rotary Encoder - 200 P/R (Quadrature)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 13:34:31 GMT

This 200 pulse per rotation rotary encoder outputs gray code which you can interpret using a microcontroller and find out which direction the shaft is turning and by how much. This allows you to add feedback to motor control systems. Encoders of this kind are often used in balancing robots and dead reckoning navigation but it could also be used as a very precise input knob. The encoder comes with a set screw coupler which will attach to any 4mm shaft.

Features:

Resolution: 200 Pulse/Rotation
Input Voltage: 5 - 12VDC
Maximum Rotating Speed: 5000rpm
Allowable Radial Load: 5N
Allowable Axial Load: 3N
Cable Length: 50cm
Shaft Diameter: 4mm

Resources:

Datasheet (E6A2-CW3C)
Example Code

STM32-H152

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 17:33:46 GMT

HEADER BOARD FOR STM32L152VBT6 LOW POWER CORTEX-M3 MICROCONTROLLER

This is a low cost development board for the new STM32L series of ultra low power microcontrollers of ST Microelectronics. STM32-H152 covers STM32L152VBT6. This board was carefully designed for low power handheld operation, with Li-ion battery charges on board and USB - it's perfect for data loggers. The 32khz crystal allows RTC implementation.

Features:

MCU: STM32L152VBT6 ARM 32 bit CORTEX M3� with 128K Bytes Program Flash, 16K Bytes RAM, USB, LCD, I2C, SPI, USART, 32 Mhz clock, 80 GPIO, 1.8-3.6V power supply
standard JTAG connector with ARM 2x10 pin layout for programming/debugging with ARM-JTAG
Li-ion battery charger
USB connector
UEXT connector
wakeup user button
RESET button and circuit
two status LED
power supply LED
on board voltage regulator 3.3V with up to 800mA current
single power supply: takes power from USB port or extension connector pin
8 Mhz crystal oscillator
32768 Hz crystal and RTC backup battery connector
extension headers for all uC ports
PCB: FR-4, 1.5 mm (0,062"), soldermask, silkscreen component print
Dimensions: 70x 50mm (2.75 x 2.0")
Distance between the exntension connectors: 38.1 mm (1.5")

Hardware:

STM32-H152 schematic
JTAG connector (top view)

Software:

STM32-P152

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 17:33:32 GMT

PROTOTYPE BOARD FOR STM32L152VBT6 LOW POWER CORTEX-M3 MICROCONTROLLER

This is a low cost development board for the new STM32L series of ultra low power microcontrollers of ST Microelectronics. STM32-H152 covers STM32L152VBT6. This board was carefully designed for low power handheld operation, with Li-ion battery charges onboard and USB - it's perfect for data loggers. The 32khz crystal allows RTC implementation.

Features:

MCU: STM32L152VBT6 ARM 32 bit CORTEX M3� with 128K Bytes Program Flash, 16K Bytes RAM, USB, LCD, I2C, SPI, USART, 32 Mhz clock, 80 GPIO, 1.8-3.6V power supply
Standard JTAG connector with ARM 2x10 pin layout for programming/debugging with ARM-JTAG
Li-ion battery charger
USB connector
RS232 connector and driver
Olimex LCD
UEXT connector
Two user buttons
Analog potentiometer
RESET button and circuit
Two status LED
Power supply LED
On board voltage regulator 3.3V with up to 800mA current
Single power supply: takes power from USB port or extension connector pin
8 Mhz crystal oscillator
32768 Hz crystal and RTC backup battery connector
Extension headers for all uC ports
PCB: FR-4, 1.5 mm (0,062"), soldermask, silkscreen component print
Dimensions: 70x 50mm (2.75 x 2.0")
Distance between the exntension connectors: 38.1 mm (1.5")

Hardware:

Software:

Demo software - USB mouse and Blinking LED for EW-ARM
Setup GCC+Eclispse for STM32 on MAC

Serial-USB Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 14:11:33 GMT

This is the FEZ Spider compatible serial-USB module. Using this module, any of the serial UART sockets on mainboard can be converted into a virtual serial connection over USB. Use this connection to transfer data to a PC or for debugging over serial (virtual serial over USB). This is useful when needing to free up the USB client port for other purposes, like simulating a mouse or keyboard on USB Client port.

Works with any socket type U. Can also work with K sockets (serial + handshaking) with minor hardware changes. Note that K is purposely not marked on the module.

We sell the FEZ Spider Starter Kit here.

Features:

Resources:

Camera Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 14:11:20 GMT

This is the FEZ Spider compatible camera. The USB Camera Module can stream images as large as 320x240 with up to 20fps on smaller images.

Requires socket type H and support for USB Cameras (ISO stream).

This is one of the modules included in the FEZ Spider Starter Kit.

Features:

Resources:

FEZ Spider Mainboard

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 11:11:38 GMT

The FEZ Spider Mainboard is a .NET Gadgeteer-compatible mainboard based on the GHI Electronics EMX module. This makes the FEZ Spider Mainboard the most feature-full .NET Gadgeteer compatible device in the market. It contains all of .NET Micro Framework core features and adds many exclusive features, such as USB host, WiFi and RLP (loading native code). All these features combine to provide a rapid prototyping platform.

This board is included in the FEZ Spider Starter Kit.

Features:

14 .NET Gadgeteer compatible sockets
Configurable on-board LED
Configuration switches
Based on GHI Electronics EMX module

72MHz. 32-bit ARM7 processor
4.5 MB Flash
16 MB RAM
LCD controller
Full TCP/IP Stack with SSL, HTTP, TCP, UDP, DHCP
Ethernet, WiFi driver and PPP ( GPRS/ 3G modems) and DPWS
USB host
USB Device with specialized libraries to emulate devices like thumb-drive, virtual COM (CDC), mouse, keyboard
76 GPIO Pin
2 SPI (8/16bit)
I2C
4 UART
2 CAN Channels
7 10-bit Analog Inputs.
10-bit Analog Output (capable of WAV audio playback)
4-bit SD/MMC Memory card interface
6 PWM
OneWire interface (available on any IO).
Built-in Real Time Clock (RTC) with the suitable crystal
Processor register access
OutputCompare for generating waveforms with high accuracy
RLP allowing users to load native code (C/Assembly) for real-time requirements.
Extended double-precision math class
FAT File System
Cryptography (AES and XTEA)
Low power and hibernate support
In-field update (from SD, network or other)

Dimensions: W 2.25" x L 2.05" x H 0.5"

Power:

Supply voltages are regulated 3.3Volt and 5.0Volt DC.
Low power and hibernate modes
Active power consumption 160 mA
Idle power consumption 120 mA
Hibernate power consumption 40 mA

Enviromental:

Operating temperature: -20 to 70�C
RoHS compliant /Lead-free compliant

Resources:

Schematics

For more information about .NET Gadgeteer visit:

http://www.netmf.com/gadgeteer/

Propeller Set 12x4.5

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 16:18:24 GMT

This is a propeller set which includes one pusher and one puller. Also included are adapter rings for different size shafts. Used on Quad/Hexa and Octo copters.

These are the 12x4.5 versions. The first number describes the blade length in inches and the second theoretically how far the propeller will travel each rotation.

We also sell Electronic Speed Controllers and Brushless Motors!

Propeller Set 10x4.5

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 16:18:15 GMT

This is a propeller set which includes one pusher and one puller. Also included are adapter rings for different size shafts. Used on Quad/Hexa and Octo copters.

These are the 10x4.5 versions. The first number describes the blade length in inches and the second theoretically how far the propeller will travel each rotation.

We also sell Electronic Speed Controllers and Brushless Motors!

PhoneDrone Board for Android

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 12:05:36 GMT

This is the PhoneDrone board for Android, and it's a way to connect any Android device (2.3.4 or higher) to the world of RC and UAVs. The board has 8 channels of RC in and out, with PWM-to-PPM conversion and multiplexing between RC and Android control. You just plug the Android's phone USB connector into the board and you have two-way communications with RC gear and any other board, such as APM.

That means that you can switch between RC control and Android control or mix the two. An example would be "fly/drive by wire". You steer your vehicle via RC, but an Android phone does the actual control using its onboard IMU. On a car, that would allow every turn to be a high-speed controlled drift, for instance.

Or, with a UAV, you might have the Android phone doing high-level image processing and object tracking, sending mission commands to an autopilot board such as APM. You might also want to use the phone's long-distance wireless instead of an Xbee for two-way telemetry.

This can either replace APM if you've got equivalent code running on Android, or compliment it with the Android device doing image processing or long-distance wireless comms.

Features:

8 Input & output PWMs
Native USB host master (MAX3421)
Native USB slave (Atmega32-au)
Arduino Compatible
Atmega2560 as main controller
Atmega32-u2 as FTDI substitute and PPM encoder
Three spare serial ports to communicate with other boards (including APM)
Build-in 5V-2A switched power regulator (input range 6V - 36V)
Build-in 3.3V LDO power regulator
Android TM compatible...
All Atmega2560 pins exposed.
High quality PCB is ROHS/lead free, Gold immersed.
Dimensions: 4" x 1.6"

Resources:

WiFi Module - RN-XV (XBee footprint)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 11:26:55 GMT

The RN-XV module is a certified Wi-Fi solution especially designed for customer who want to migrate their existing 80.15.4 architecture to a standard TCP/IP based platform without having to redesign their existing hardware. This model comes with the 1/4 wave wire antenna.

The RN-XV module is based upon Roving Networks' robust RN-171 Wi-Fi module and incorporates 802.11 b/g radio, 32 bit processor, TCP/IP stack, real-time clock, crypto accelerator, power management unit and analog sensor interface.

The RN-XV module supports infrastructure networking for worldwide internet access directly by every node and adhoc connectivity for fully connected point to point networks, unlike many 802.15.4 implementations that need extensive, custom application profiles and additional bridging products. The RN-XV supports industrial temperature ranges, making it ideal for applications such as sensor networks, industrial or commercial controllers, utility meters, and M2M applications.

The module offers additional functionality through its on-board programmable GPIOs (8) and ADCs (3). The ADCs provide 14-bit resolution while the GPIOs can be configured to provide standard functionality or status signaling to a host microcontroller to reduce the need for serial polling between the Wi-Fi module and host microcontroller.

The module is pre-loaded with Roving firmware to simplify integration and minimize development time of your application. In the simplest configuration, the hardware only requires four connections (PWR, TX, RX and GND) to create a wireless data connection.

Developers can opt to use the RN-174 evaluation board for prototyping and designing their Wi-Fi systems based on the RN-XVee. The RN-174-K kit includes the RN-171 module mounted on a carrier board with status LEDs, power regulation, and a serial link to a PC.

Features:

Direct Internet connectivity provides internet access to every node
Point to point connectivity to every node without the need for custom profiles
Based on common 802.15.4 footprint
Ultra low power: 4uA sleep mode, 38mA active
Onboard TCP/IP stack includes DHCP, UDP, DNS, ARP, ICMP, HTTP client, FTP client and TCP
Firmware configurable transmit power: 0dBm to 12dBm
Hardware interfaces:TTL UART
Host data rate up to 464Kbps over UART
Supports Adhoc and infrastructure networking
8 general purpose digital I/O
3 analog sensor inputs
Real-time clock for time-stamping, auto-sleep, and auto-wakeup modes
Accepts 3.3VDC regulated power supply
Configuration over UART or wireless interface (via Telnet) using simple ASCII commands
Over the air firmware upgrade (FTP)
vSecure WiFi authentication: WEP, WPA-TKIP , WPA2-AES

Specifications

Networking Standards: IEEE 802.11 b/g
Data rates: 802.11 b: 1,2, 5.5,11 Mbps : 802.11 g: 6, 9, 12, 18, 24, 36, 48, 54 Mbps
Frequency Band: 2.412 - 2.484 GHz
Modulation: 802.11 b: DSSS(CCK-11, CCK-5.5, DQPSK-2, DBPSK-1): 802.11g : OFDM
Wi-Fi security: WEP, WPA, WPA2
Protocols: DHCP, DNS, ARP, ICMP, FTP client, HTTP client, TCP, UDP
Supply voltage: 3.3V �10%
Output power: 0dBm to +12dBm
Power consumption: 4uA sleep, 35mA active RX, 180mA TX (at +12dBm)
Data rate: 464Kbps over UART
Operating temperature range: -40C to +85C
Transmit power: Up to 150 meters (at +12dBm)
Interface: UART, Wi-Fi
Antenna: 1/4 wave wire antenna, SMA connector, U.Fl connector
Certifications: FCC, ICS, CE, Wi-Fi Alliance

For connecting this module to your latest project check out the XBee Explorer or the XBee Shield for Arduino.

Resources:

Data Sheet: RN-XV (PDF)
Application Notes

Surface Transducer - Large

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 08:54:32 GMT

Surface transducers give you the awesome power to turn almost any surface into a speaker. They're essentially just a speaker except instead of a cone, the coil is attached to a pad that conducts the vibration into whatever you press it against. Hook it up to an audio source and press it against the nearest table, wall or cardboard box. You can even put it against your head and play music directly into your skull (the ultimate surround sound).

Features:

Note: We are waiting on a datasheet. However, these have a 4 ohm nominal impedance and can handle about a watt continuous.

Dimensions: 50mm in diameter, 31mm tall

Weight: 260 grams (0.5 lbs)

Resources:

ShiftBrite V2.0 LED

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 12:58:51 GMT

The ShiftBrite V2.0 is an RGB LED module with a built-in driver featuring 10-bit digital brightness control on each color channel (over one billion colors). Multiple modules can easily be chained together and controlled from a single microcontroller to create large LED displays. This version has several improvements over the original ShiftBrite, including mounting holes and better power handling.

We now sell the cables which allow multiple ShiftBrites to be connected together!

ShiftBrites are modules by macetech that integrate the Allegro A6281 3-channel constant current LED driver with a large, high-brightness RGB LED. Using just three digital output pins and a simple protocol, your microcontroller can control a long chain of these modules. Each ShiftBrite in the chain can be independently changed to any of the 1,073,741,824 possible colors to create dynamic displays and decorations. Adjustable current for each color channel lets you correct for slight differences in brightness. In addition, the LED driver is protected from overheating by automatic over-temperature shutdown.

The ShiftBrite V2.0 is a redesigned version of the original ShiftBrite that offers the following key improvements:

New mounting ears and large mounting holes for easier installation.
Better indication of polarity and data direction on both top and bottom.
Larger power traces for improved power handling and chaining.
Additional power filtering capacitor.
The ShiftBrite V2.0 is only available with male header pins soldered in. The pin spacing is 0.1", making ShiftBrites compatible with breadboards and perfboards.

Dimensions

Size: 0.8" x 1.2"
Weight: 3.3 g

General specifications

Minimum operating voltage: 5.5 V
Maximum operating voltage: 9 V
Maximum output current: 60 mA1
Color: RGB
Lens type: Clear

Resources

Allegro A6281 LED driver datasheet (315k pdf)
ShiftBrite Documentation

RFID Button - 17mm

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 09:34:14 GMT

This is a simple, thumbnail-size RFID tag. These tags are great for sensing presence, identification, etc., and they're small, so they can be easily sewn into clothing or inserted into enclosures. Each tag comes with a unique 32-bit ID code and is not reprogrammable. The carrier frequency of this tag is 125kHz, so it works great with our RFID readers.

We tested this RFID tag with one of our ID-12 readers and measured a maximum read distance of about 32mm.

Features:

32-bit unique ID - non-reprogrammable
125kHz read frequency
EM4200 ISO based RFID IC
Manchester encoding

Dimensions:

Diameter: 17mm
Thickness: 2.5mm

Barometric Pressure Sensor - BMP085 Breakout

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 13:09:30 GMT

This is a simple breakout board for the BMP085 high-precision, low-power barometric pressure sensor. The BMP085 offers a measuring range of 300 to 1100 hPa with an absolute accuracy of down to 0.03 hPa. It's based on piezo-resistive technology for EMC robustness, high accuracy and linearity as well as long term stability. This sensor supports a voltage supply between 1.8 and 3.6VDC. It is designed to be connected directly to a micro-controller via the I²C bus

This breadboard-friendly board breaks out all pins of the BMP085 to a 6-pin 0.1" pitch header. The analog and digital supplies (VDDD and VDDA) of the BMP085 are tied together and broken out to a single pin. We've also put two 4.7k pull-up resistors on the I²C lines.

You can find the BMP085 sensor on its own here.

Features:

Digital two wire (I²C) interface
Wide barometric pressure range
Flexible supply voltage range
Ultra-low power consumption
Low noise measurement
Fully calibrated
Temperature measurement included
Ultra-flat, small footprint

Dimensions:

0.65 x 0.65" (16.5 x 16.5 mm)

Documents:

ChipworkX Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 09:42:48 GMT

ChipworkX is a 200 MHz ARM9 DIMM200 single board computer running .NET Micro Framework internally. This enables developers to write applications using Microsoft Visual Studio and C# programming language.

Micro Framework is fully supported, in addition to SideShow, USB Host, PPP and many GHI exclusive features. ChipworkX is the first and only OEM device that implements .NET Micro Framework and adds Database and Native User Code (Runtime Loadable Procedures, RLP) capabilities. Developers can now write their own native methods using C or assembly without the need for the Micro Framework porting kit or knowing anything about its internals or Interops interfacing.

Visit Microsoft's .NET Micro Framework for more details.

We sell the ChipworkX Development System which incorporates this module, you can find it here.

Software:

.Net Micro Framework
Windows SideShow
SQLite Database Support
Native Procedure (RLP)
LCD Support (TFT)
Touch Screen Support
FAT File System
Full TCP/IP Stack
SSL
PPP Stack
DPWS
USB Host Support (Thumb Drives, Hard Disk, Mouse, Keyboard, Printer ...etc)
Register Access
Many Other Native Functions

Hardware:

200 Mhz 32-bit ARM 9 Processor
64MB SDRAM
256MB NAND FLASH (seen as an internal drive)
8MB NOR FLASH (For user deployment and EWR)
JTAG Access
LCD Controller
Real Time Clock
10/100 Ethernet Interface
2 USB Host Ports
1 USB Device
80 Digital IO Interrupt-capable Pins
2 SPI (8/16 bit)
I2C
3 UART
SD/MMC Interface
PWM
-0 to +70 C Operational
Lead Free
Standard DIMM200 Mounting

Features:

Resources:

General

.NET Micro Framework

Pogo Pins w/ Pointed Tip

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 10:54:42 GMT

These 33mm (1.3") spring loaded pogo pins are great for programming and applications where you don't always want headers soldered onto your boards. You can use them for programming jigs in production. The pins fit snugly into most standard perf board holes. Solder them just like you would normal wire. This unit has a conical pointed tip.

Dimensions:

Length: 1.3" (33mm)
Travel: 1/4" (6.5mm)
Head size 0.05" (1.3mm)

Documents:

Dimensional

FEZ Spider Starter Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 16:07:23 GMT

The FEZ Spider Starter Kit is the first commercially available .NET Gadgeteer-compatible kit. it includes everything necessary for educators, hobbyists and even professionals. Embedded development is fast & easy (FEZ) thanks to .NET Micro Framework, .NET Gadgeteer and the numerous GHI value added features such as WiFi and USB Host.

Features:

FEZ Spider Mainboard
Display T35 Module (3.5" with touchscreen)
USB Client DP Module (with USB cable)
Camera Module
2x Multicolor LED Module (DaisyLink)
2x Button Module
Ethernet J11D Module
SD Card Module
USB Host Module
Extender Module
JoystickModule
10cm IDC cables (included with modules).
Additional cables:

4x 5cm IDC cables
3x 20cm IDC cables
1x 50cm IDC cable

The FEZ Spider Mainboard is a .NET Gadgeteer-compatible mainboard based on GHI Electronics' EMX module. This makes FEZ Spider Mainboard the most feature-full .NET Gadgeteer compatible device in the market. It contains all of .NET Micro Framework core features and adds many exclusive features, such as USB host, WiFi and RLP (loading native code). All these features combine to provide a rapid prototyping platform.

Key Features:

14 .NET Gadgeteer compatible sockets
Configurable on-board LED
Configuration switches.
Based on GHI Electronics EMX module

72MHz 32-bit ARM7 processor
4.5 MB Flash
16 MB RAM
LCD controller
Full TCP/IP Stack with SSL, HTTP, TCP, UDP, DHCP
Ethernet, WiFi driver and PPP ( GPRS/ 3G modems) and DPWS
USB host
USB Device with specialized libraries to emulate devices like thumb-drive, virtual COM (CDC), mouse, keyboard
76 GPIO Pin
2 SPI (8/16bit)
I2C
4 UART
2 CAN Channels
7 10-bit Analog Inputs
10-bit Analog Output (capable of WAV audio playback)
4-bit SD/MMC Memory card interface
6 PWM
OneWire interface (available on any IO)
Built-in Real Time Clock (RTC) with the suitable crystal
Processor register access
OutputCompare for generating waveforms with high accuracy
RLP allowing users to load native code (C/Assembly) for real-time requirements
Extended double-precision math class
FAT File System
Cryptography (AES and XTEA)
Low power and hibernate support
In-field update (from SD, network or other)

Dimensions: W 2.25" x L 2.05" x H 0.5"

Power

Supply voltages are regulated 3.3Volt and 5.0Volt DC.
Low power and hibernate modes
Active power consumption 160 mA
Idle power consumption 120 mA
Hibernate power consumption 40 mA

Enviromental:

Operating temperature: -20 to 65�C
RoHS compliant /Lead-free compliant

Resources:

Most EMX software features are GHI exclusive, see software documentation for details.

For more information about .NET Gadgeteer visit:
http://www.netmf.com/gadgeteer/

LPC-H1343 Header Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 16:09:43 GMT

Development Prototype Header Breakout Board For LPC11XX CORTEX M0 ARM Microcontroller

Features:

MCU: LPC1114 / LPC1343 / LPC11A14 / LPC11U14 / LPC11C14 Cortex-M0
Power supply circuit
Power-on led
USB connector only for power supply, not USB functionality
Debug interface – SWD (Serial Wire Debug)
UEXT connector
Eight user leds
Two user buttons
Reset button
Prototype area
FR-4, 1.5 mm, soldermask, component print
Dimensions:80x50mm (3.15 x 1.97")

Resources:

LPC-H1343 User Manual revision B

Hardware:

LPC-H1114 schematic
ARM JTAG connector (TOP view)

LPC-H1114 Header Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 16:01:31 GMT

Development Prototype Header Breakout Board For LPC11XX CORTEX M0 ARM Microcontroller

Features:

MCU: LPC1114 Cortex-M0
Power supply circuit
Power-on led
USB connector only for power supply, not USB functionality
Debug interface – SWD (Serial Wire Debug)
Reset button
Prototype area
FR-4, 1.5 mm, soldermask, component print
Dimensions: 38.1x38.1mm (1.5" x 1.5")

Resources:

LPC-H1114 User Manual revision B

Hardware:

LPC-H1114 schematic
ARM JTAG connector (TOP view)

MOD-PULSE Blood Oxygenation and Heart Rate Monitor

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 15:18:04 GMT

The MOD-PULSE is an instrument for monitoring the blood oxygenation of a human. By measuring the oxygen level and heart rate, the MOD-PULSE can display the levels of blood oxygenation and heart rate on it's LCD display. To be fully functional the MOD-PULSE requires an external sensor connected to it via the connector on the unit. The MOD-PULSE can be connected to a variety of development boards via it's UEXT connector.

Features:

MSP430FG439 microcontroller
JTAG connector for direct plug in MSP430 2x7 JTAG connector to provide power for the target board
UEXT connector so it can be connected to other boards as heart beat monitor sensor board
Based on Texas Instruments application note SLAA274a
Custom LCD
Two user buttons
Two status leds
Power supply switch
+3V lithium battery onboard connector
Battery connector for 2 x 1.5V AA batteries
DB9 � Female connector
System clock crystal
Extension pin holes for each microcontroller's ports
PCB: FR-4, 1.5 mm (0,062"), red soldermask, white silkscreen component print
Dimensions: 134.6x101.6mm (5.3 x 4.0")

Documents:

Hardware:

MOD-PULSE schematic
MSP430 JTAG connector (TOP view)

Software:

MOD-PULSE demo software

MOD-EKG Heart-Rate and ECG Monitor

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 10:29:15 GMT

The MOD-EKG is a digital heart-rate monitor based on TI's MSP430FG439 microcontroller. The heartbeat rate per minute is displayed on the LCD. In addition, the application outputs a digital data stream via an RS232 serial port to allow EKG waveform display on a PC. The only way to do this is via board's UEXT connector, where RS232 signals are sent. The connection between the PC and MOD-EKG can be made by using our USB to RS232 Converter.

An electrocardiogram (ECG), also called an EKG, is a graphic tracing of the voltage generated by the heart muscle during a heartbeat. In this application, the EKG waveform is used by the MCU to measure the heartbeat rate. Because heartbeat calculation is the major focus the electrodes are simplified to two connections, one to a right hand and the other to the left hand.

Features:

Microcontroller: MSP430FG439
EKG amplifiers realized with INA321EA
JTAG connector for direct plug in MSP430 2x7 JTAG connector to provide power for the target board
UEXT connector so it can be connected to other board as heart beat monitor sensor board
LCD custom display
Lithium coin battery holder
Extension headers for all microcontroller ports � no connectors mounted on the board
Right and left hands contact electrodes � HR1 and HR2
Two status LEDs
Two user buttons
Switch between Battery and UEXT power supply
Based on Texas Instruments application note SLAA280a
FR-4, 1.5 mm, soldermask, component print
Dimensions: 76.20 x 71.12 mm ( 3.00 x 2.80 ")

Documents:

SLAA280a Texas Instruments Application Note
MOD-EKG.pdf user manual

Hardware:

MOD-EKG schematic
MSP430 JTAG connector (TOP view)

Software:

MOD-EKG demo software

LSM303 Breakout Board - Tilt Compensated Compass

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 12:05:52 GMT

The LSM303DLH is a triple axis accelerometer combined with a triple axis magnetic sensor. This breakout board uses the LSM303DLH to give a you the data you need to feed into a microcontroller and calculate tilt-compensated output.

This version of the board has added circuitry to address concerns about voltage translation on the SDA and SCL pins.

Features:

+- 2/4/8 g dynamically selectable full-scale
+-1.3 to +- 8.1 gauss magnetic field full-scale
16-bit data out
I2C interface
Embedded self-test

Resources:

Arduino Ethernet without PoE module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 15:17:40 GMT

The Arduino Ethernet is a microcontroller board based on the ATmega328 (datasheet). It has 14 digital input/output pins, 6 analog inputs, a 16 MHz crystal oscillator, a RJ45 connection, a power jack, an ICSP header, and a reset button.

NB: Pins 10, 11, 12 and 13 are reserved for interfacing with the Ethernet module and should not be used otherwise. This reduces the number of available pins to 9, with 4 available as PWM outputs.

We sell PoE Cables too

The Ethernet differs from other boards in that it does not have an onboard USB-to-serial driver chip, but has a Wiznet Ethernet interface. This is the same interface found on the Ethernet shield.

An onboard microSD card reader, which can be used to store files for serving over the network, is accessible through the SD Library. Pin 10 is reserved for the Wiznet interface, SS for the SD card is on Pin 4.

A six pin header can be connected to an FTDI cable or USB Serial board to provide USB power and communication to the board.

Summary

Microcontroller	ATmega328
Operating Voltage	5V
Input Voltage (recommended)	7-12V
Input Voltage (limits)	6-20V
Digital I/O Pins	14 (of which 4 provide PWM output)

Arduino Pins reserved
- 10 to 13 used for SPI
- 4 used for SD card
- 2 W5100 interrupt (when bridged)

Analog Input Pins	6
DC Current per I/O Pin	40 mA
DC Current for 3.3V Pin	50 mA
Flash Memory	32 KB (ATmega328) of which 0.5 KB used by bootloader
SRAM	2 KB (ATmega328)
EEPROM	1 KB (ATmega328)
Clock Speed	16 MHz
W5100 TCP/IP Embedded Ethernet Controller
Power Over Ethernet ready Magnetic Jack
Micro SD card, with active voltage translators

Schematic & Reference Design

EAGLE files: arduino-ethernet-reference-design.zip

Schematic: arduino-ethernet-schematic.pdf

Power

The board can also be powered via an external power supply, an optional Power over Ethernet (PoE) module, or by using a FTDI cable/USB Serial connector.

External power can come either from an AC-to-DC adapter (wall-wart) or battery. The adapter can be connected by plugging a 2.1mm center-positive plug into the board's power jack. Leads from a battery can be inserted in the Gnd and Vin pin headers of the POWER connector.

The power pins are as follows:

VIN. The input voltage to the Arduino board when it's using an external power source (as opposed to 5 volts from the USB connection or other regulated power source). You can supply voltage through this pin, or, if supplying voltage via the power jack, access it through this pin.
5V. The regulated power supply used to power the microcontroller and other components on the board. This can come either from VIN via an on-board regulator, or be supplied by USB or another regulated 5V supply.
3V3. A 3.3 volt supply generated by the on-board regulator. Maximum current draw is 50 mA.
GND. Ground pins.

The optional PoE module is designed to extract power from a conventional twisted pair Category 5 Ethernet cable:

IEEE802.3af compliant
Low output ripple and noise (100mVpp)
Input voltage range 36V to 57V
Overload and short-circuit protection
9V Output
High efficiency DC/DC converter: typ 75% @ 50% load
1500V isolation (input to output)

NB: the Power over Ethernet module is proprietary hardware not made by Arduino, it is a third party accessory. For more information, see the datasheet

Memory

The ATmega328 has 32 KB (with 0.5 KB used for the bootloader). It also has 2 KB of SRAM and 1 KB of EEPROM (which can be read and written with the EEPROM library).

Input and Output

Each of the 14 digital pins on the Ethernet board can be used as an input or output, using pinMode(), digitalWrite(), and digitalRead() functions. They operate at 5 volts. Each pin can provide or receive a maximum of 40 mA and has an internal pull-up resistor (disconnected by default) of 20-50 kOhms. In addition, some pins have specialized functions:

Serial: 0 (RX) and 1 (TX). Used to receive (RX) and transmit (TX) TTL serial data.
External Interrupts: 2 and 3. These pins can be configured to trigger an interrupt on a low value, a rising or falling edge, or a change in value. See the attachInterrupt() function for details.
PWM: 3, 5, 6, 9, and 10. Provide 8-bit PWM output with the analogWrite() function.
SPI: 10 (SS), 11 (MOSI), 12 (MISO), 13 (SCK). These pins support SPI communication using the SPI library.
LED: 13. There is a built-in LED connected to digital pin 13. When the pin is HIGH value, the LED is on, when the pin is LOW, it's off.

The Ethernet board has 6 analog inputs, labeled A0 through A5, each of which provide 10 bits of resolution (i.e. 1024 different values). By default they measure from ground to 5 volts, though is it possible to change the upper end of their range using the AREF pin and the analogReference() function. Additionally, some pins have specialized functionality:

TWI: A4 (SDA) and A5 (SCL). Support TWI communication using the Wire library.

There are a couple of other pins on the board:

AREF. Reference voltage for the analog inputs. Used with analogReference().
Reset. Bring this line LOW to reset the microcontroller. Typically used to add a reset button to shields which block the one on the board.

Communication

The Arduino Ethernet has a number of facilities for communicating with a computer, another Arduino, or other microcontrollers.

A SoftwareSerial library allows for serial communication on any of the Uno's digital pins.

The ATmega328 also supports TWI and SPI communication. The Arduino software includes a Wire library to simplify use of the TWI bus; see the documentation for details. For SPI communication, use the SPI library.

The board also can connect to a wired network via ethernet. When connecting to a network, you will need to provide an IP address and a MAC address. The Ethernet Library is fully supported.

The onboard microSD card reader is accessible through the SD Library. When working with this library, SS is on Pin 4.

Programming

It is possible to program the Arduino Ethernet board in two ways: through the 6 pin serial programming header, or with an external ISP programmer.

The 6-pin serial programming header is compatible with FTDI USB cables and the Sparkfun and Adafruit FTDI-style basic USB-to-serial breakout boards including the Arduino USB-Serial connector. It features support for automatic reset, allowing sketches to be uploaded without pressing the reset button on the board. When plugged into a FTDI-style USB adapter, the Arduino Ethernet is powered off the adapter.

You can also program the Ethernet board with an external programmer like an AVRISP mkII or USBTinyISP. To set up your environment for burning a sketch with a programmer, follow these instructions. This will delete the serial bootloader, however.

All the Ethernet example sketches work as they do with the Ethernet shield. Make sure to change the network settings for your network.

Physical Characteristics

The maximum length and width of the Ethernet PCB are 2.7 and 2.1 inches respectively, with the RJ45 connector and power jack extending beyond the former dimension. Four screw holes allow the board to be attached to a surface or case. Note that the distance between digital pins 7 and 8 is 160 mil (0.16"), not an even multiple of the 100 mil spacing of the other pins.

Setup

With this board you need to change the boards.txt file in your Arduino directory (find it in: Arduino-00xx->hardware->arduino) with this updated version that include also the Mega ADK board: boards.txt

RF Link Transmitter - 434MHz

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 16:10:22 GMT

These are wireless transmitters which work on the 434MHz frequency. Use these components to transmit position data, temperature data, even current program register values wirelessly to the receiver. They can easily fit into a breadboard and work well with microcontrollers to create a very simple wireless data link. Since these are only transmitters, they will only work communicating data one-way, you would need two pairs (of different frequencies) to act as a transmitter/receiver pair.

We now stock the RF Link Receiver - 4800bps (434MHz).

Note:These modules are indiscriminate and will receive a fair amount of noise. Both the transmitter and receiver work at common frequencies and don't have IDs. Therefore, a method of filtering this noise and pairing transmitter and receiver will be necessary. The example code below shows such an example for basic operation. Please refer to the example code and links below for ways to accomplish a robust wireless data link.

Features:

434 MHz
500ft range (given perfect conditions)
4800bps data rate
5V supply voltage

Documents:

PIC32 Pinguino

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 15:02:19 GMT

This is an Arduino footprint board using the 32 bit PIC32MX440F256H MCU.

Features:

PIC32MX440F256H 80 Mhz microcontroller 256KB Flash 32KB RAM
DC/DC power supply allows power supply voltage from 9 to 30V DC thus making possible to take virtually any power supply adapter on the market, also enables applications using industrial power supplies 24VDC.
Carefully selected all components to work reliable in industrial temperature range -25+85C so the board can be used in industrial applications.
Ultra low power voltage regulators and the consumption is only few microamps, which enables handheld and battery powered applications.
Li-Ion rechargable battery power supply option with built-in on board charger, so when you attach a battery it is automatically charged and kept in this state until the other power source (USB or external adapter) is removed and it automatically will power the board - no jumpers, no switches!
UEXT connector which allow many existing modules like RF, ZIGBEE, GSM, GPS to be connected
Allows RTC - Real Time Clock.
Noise immune design.
Separate voltage regulator for the analogue part, which allow the ADC to be read correctly without the digital noise pickup.
Optionally if someone need higher precision and temperature stability in analogue reading we have provision on the board for Aref precise source.
The LEDs and buttons are on the edge of the board so there is easy access even if the boards have shields on them
All components are lower than the connectors, so the shields do not interfere with them
Mini USB connector is used which is common and used in most cell phones, so you do not have to buy other cables
Original Arduino design had flaw and the connectors were not spaced at 0.1" this made the use of perf board impossible, to keep the compatibility identical spacing has been used with an added connector next to this at 0.1" which the can use with perforated boards
All signals on the connectors are printed on top and on bottom of the board, so when you check with probe you know exactly which port you are measuring
4 mount holes make board attachment easier
miniICSP connector 0.05"step if you do not want to use Pinguino IDE and want to program this board with PIC-KIT3 you should use also PIC-ICSP convertor board, same applies for Microchip programmers.

Resources:

PIC32-PINGUINO.pdf

Hardware

Software

PINGUINO IDE INSTALLATION on Windows
PINGUINO IDE Linux installation script
Blinking LED example
PIC32-PINGUINO and MOD-RFID125-BOX - check the note inside for additional info
PIC32-PINGUINO and MOD-RFID1356-BOX - check the note inside for additional info
PIC32-PINGUINO SD card example - check the info inside the package
Blink interrupt example
PIC32-PINGUINO and MOD-GPS example v1.1
PIC32-PINGUINO-OTG and MOD-MAG example
PIC32-PINGUINO with MOD-CC2540 example receive character demo(refer to the readme and the comments in the code for more info)
PIC32-PINGUINO with SHIELD-EKG-EMG example (refer to the readme and the comments in the code for more info)
PIC32-PINGUINO and MOD-MP3-X demo code
PIC32-PINGUINO with MOD-BT command recognition example (refer to the readme and the comments in the code for more info)
PIC32-PINGUINO with MOD-GSM send receive SMS example (refer to the readme and the comments in the code for more info)
PIC32-PINGUINO with MOD-ZIGBEE-PIR and MOD-ZIGBEE movement sensor example (refer to the readme and the comments in the code for more info)
PIC32-PINGUINO with MOD-RTC example

Olimexino-STM32 Development Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 14:05:27 GMT

This is a board based on the Arduino foot-print featuring the STM32F103RBT6.

STM32F103RBT6 microcontroller
DCDC power supply allows power input voltage from 9 to 30V DC thus making possible to take virtually any power supply adapter on the market, also enables applications which are in industrial power supply 24vDC.
Carefully selected all components to work reliably in industrial temperature range -25+85C so the board can be used in Industrial applications.
Ultra low power voltage regulators and the consumption is only few microamps, which enables handheld and battery powered applications.
Li-Ion rechargable battery power supply option with Built-in on board charger, so when you attach battery it is automatically charged and kept in this state until the other power source (USB or external adapter) is removed and it Automatically will power the board - no jumpers, no switches!
UEXT connector which allow many existing modules like RF, ZIGBEE, GSM, GPS to be connected.
Allow RTC - Real Time Clock.
CAN with driver allows automotive applications.
MicoSD-card for data logging.
Noise Immune design.
Separate voltage regulator for the analog part, which allow the ADC to be read correctly without the digital noise pickup.
Optionally if someone requires higher precision and temperature stability in analog reading there is a provision on the board for Aref preciese source.
The LEDs and buttons are on the edge of the board so there is easy access even if the boards have shields on them
All components are lower than the connectors, so the shields do not interference with them
Mini USB connector is used which is common and used in most cell phones, so you do not have to buy other cables
Original Arduino design had a flaw where the connectors were not spaced at 0.1" this made perfo board use impossible, to keep the compatibility there is the same spacing and added next to this connector on 0.1" which you can use with perforated boards
All signals on the connectors are printed on top and on bottom of the board, so when you check with probe you know exactly which port you are measuring
4 mount holes make board attachment easier

DOCUMENTS:

OLIMEXINO-STM32.pdf - User manual

HARDWARE:

SOFTWARE:

MAPLE web site

Triple Axis Magnetometer Breakout - MAG3110

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 12:09:14 GMT

Freescale’s MAG3110 is a small, low-power, digital 3-axis magnetometer. The device can be used in conjunction with a 3-axis accelerometer to produce orientation independent accurate compass heading information. It features a standard I2C serial interface output and smart embedded functions. It's also a tiny QFN package which isn't very easy to play with so here is our easy to use breakout board. This board breaks out all of the pins for the MAG3110FCR1 to a standard 0.1" header and also supplies the necessary filtering capacitors so that you can easily use it in your next navigation project.

Features:

1.95V to 3.6V Supply Voltage
7-bit I2C address = 0x0E
Full Scale Range ±1000 μT
Sensitivity of 0.10 μT

Dimensions: 13.3 x 14.5 mm

Resources:

Breadboard Power Supply 5V/3.3V

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 11:41:50 GMT

A very simple breadboard power supply kit that takes power from a DC wall wart and outputs a selectable 5V or 3.3V regulated voltage. The .1" headers are mounted on the bottom of the PCB for simple insertion into a breadboard. Pins labelled VCC and GND plug directly into the power lines. The lone pair of pins have no electrical connection but help support the PCB.

There are two pins available within the barrel jack footprint. Any stripped +/- DC supply can be connected instead of the barrel connector. Board has both an On/Off switch and a voltage select switch (3.3V/5V).

Comes as a bag of parts kit and is easily assembled if you can follow the silkscreen indicators and have beginning experience with a soldering iron. You will need to read the resistor bands or use a multimeter to determine the resistor sizes.

Check out Sparkfun's Unregulated Power Supply Tutorial!

Kit Contains:

DC Barrel Connector (2.1mm center positive)
TO-220 Voltage Regulator (LM317 1.5A max current)
1N4004 Reverse Protection Diode
100uF 25V Capacitor
10uF 25V Capacitor
0.1uF 50V Capacitor
Red Power LED - High Brightness
2pcs SPDT Slide Switch
4pcs 0.1" Header Pins
2pcs 330 Resistor 1/6W
390 Resistor 1/6W
240 Resistor 1/6W
Bare PCB with Silkscreen Indicators
PTC resettable fuse

Documents: Schematic

Dimensions: 1.25x1.25"

IC Hook with Pigtail

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 11:03:45 GMT

These are good quality IC test hooks with a male connection wire. Instead of a single hook, these have two hooks that are capable of grabbing very small points (like SOIC IC legs). Comes in a bag of five IC hooks of different colors (black, red, white, blue, and green). We use them with the Bus Pirate logic analyser harnesses but are very cool on their own.

Wire length is 2.5" long. Male pin easily inserts into breadboard or other standard 0.1" connector.

Features:

Resources:

Flex Sensor 4.5 inch

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 10:22:18 GMT

A simple flex sensor 4.5" in length. As the sensor is flexed, the resistance across the sensor increases. Patented technology by Spectra Symbol - they claim these sensors were used in the original Nintendo Power Glove. I love the Nintendo Power Glove. It's so bad!

The resistance of the flex sensor changes when the metal pads are on the outside of the bend (text on inside of bend).

Connector is 0.1" spaced and bread board friendly. Check datasheet for full specifications.

Features:

Resources:

Solar Panel 1 Watt

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 11:12:58 GMT

This is 80mm x 100mm solar panel. At peak output it produces 0.935W power with a peak voltage of 5.5V and current of 170mA. The panel weighs around 34g. Its power connection wires are 12cm long and terminated with a 2 pin female JST plug, which can be easily cut off if not needed. The cell is quite tough, but like all solar cells small amounts of damage (scratches etc) can degrade performance.

Efficiency is 15.5% and the module is about 2mm deep.

Features:

Resources:

USB Host Shield

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 17:13:11 GMT

The USB Host Shield contains all of the digital logic and analog circuitry necessary to implement a full-speed USB peripheral/host controller with your Arduino. This means you could use your Arduino to interface with and control any USB slave device - thumbdrives, digital cameras, bluetooth dongles, and much more!

A four-wire serial interface is used to communicate with the host controller chip, so the shield connects the Arduino's hardware SPI pins (D10-13) to the MAX3421E. A USB type A female connector is wired up to the IC, and it also supplies 5V as any normal USB port would.

The Host Shield takes its power from the 'Vin' pin on your Arduino. Power from that pin is regulated to both 5V and 3.3V on the shield. All SPI signals are sent through a hex converter to step them down to 3.3V.

Features:

Resources:

Schematic
Eagle Files
Datasheet (MAX3421E)
Projects and Code (Thanks Oleg!)

Wearable Keypad

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 13:12:05 GMT

This flexible silicone keypad is all sealed up and ready to incorporate into your next wearable gadget. The button pad consists of five buttons: up, down, left, right and a center button. It even has a controllable red LED backlight! These would make great pads for controlling portable music players.

Features:

Resources:

3D Printer Extruder Head

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 10:36:11 GMT

A spare extruder head for our UP! Plus Personal Portable 3D Printer.

Passive PoE Cable Set

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 13:12:16 GMT

Integrating Ethernet support into your project is a great way to relay data through a local area network and even bounce information out to the internet. Sometimes it's hard to get power to your Ethernet devices. Wouldn't it be convenient to use the same cable for power and data? Using these power over Ethernet adapters, you can do just that!

Each cable has a female RJ45 on one side which is adapted to a male RJ45 and 5.5x2.1mm barrel jack connector on the other side. The 'injector' cable has a female barrel jack connector and the 'splitter' cable has a male barrel jack. Simply attach the cables at each end of your network cable, plug the male barrel jack from the splitter into your target device and plug your power adapter into the injector. Now you can use one cable to provide both power and data for your Ethernet enabled device.

Note: You are getting a set of two cables.

Documents:

Datasheet

We sell the Arduino Ethernet with PoE Module which can be powered via PoE

AttoPilot Voltage and Current Sense Breakout - 180A

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 09:29:53 GMT

This is a small voltage and current sense PCB. DC current is determined by measuring a voltage drop across a pair of parallel shunt resistors, then converted to a final analog voltage output by the TI INA-169. Voltage sense is accomplished by scaling to 3.3V ADC range by a precision resistor divider.

The PCB is supplied without leads or connectors. The pad sizes are large enough to accommodate 12 gauge heavy duty leads (see datasheet) but care must be exercised in soldering. Smaller gauge leads are considerably easier to solder without creating shorts.

Features:

51.8V Max
178.8A Max
Very low zero current offset
Analog output scaled for 3.3V ADC
Self Powered

Dimensions:4 x 15 x 19mm

Resources:

Documents:

ProtoSnap - LilyPad Development Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 12:33:40 GMT

The ProtoSnap series is a new way to prototype your project without a breadboard. Everything is wired together on a single board, which makes it easy to explore the possibilities of the components before snapping them apart and building them into your project.

The ProtoSnap LilyPad Development Board is designed to get you started in the world of e-textiles. Combining a LilyPad Simple Board with other LilyPad components like a buzzer, a vibration motor, an RGB LED, a button, a switch, five LEDs, a light sensor, and a temperature sensor, the ProtoSnap LilyPad Development Board lets you dive right into wearable electronics. When you’ve learned how to program the LilyPad Arduino Simple Board, break apart the components and explore the power of the LilyPad platform.

p>Included on the Board:

1 x LilyPad Simple Board
1 x LilyPad Button
1 x LilyPad Slide Switch
5 x LilyPad White LED
1 x LilyPad RGB tri-color LED
1 x LilyPad Light Sensor
1 x LilyPad Temperature Sensor
1 x LilyPad Buzzer
1 x LilyPad Vibe board
1 x LilyPad FTDI Basic

Features:

Resources:

ProtoSnap - Pro Mini

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 11:16:17 GMT

The ProtoSnap is an Arduino-compatible development platform aimed at teaching the basics of Arduino programming as efficiently as possible. It requires zero assembly, wiring, or soldering, so you can jump right into programming the ProtoSnap to control LEDs, buzzers, light sensors, and more. There's even a small prototyping space so you can add your own parts!

Once you’ve gotten a firm grasp of the programming, you can snap off the individual components of the ProtoSnap for use in future projects. Those components include an Arduino Pro Mini microcontroller platform and an FTDI Basic Breakout to program it.

Note: The first 3 rows of the protoboard are bussed together so you can use the for GND, VCC, or whatever else you need to connect together.

Features:

1 x Arduino Pro Mini 5V/16MHz
1 x FTDI Basic Breakout 5V
1 x Buzzer
1 x RGB LED
1 x Light Sensor
1 x Push Button
1 x Protoboard

Resources:

m3pi Robot with mbed Socket

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 13:58:51 GMT

The Pololu m3pi robot consists of a 3pi robot base with a fully assembled m3pi expansion board as its second level. This expansion board enables the use of ARM�s powerful 32-bit mbed development board as the robot�s high-level controller, which offers significantly more processing power and free I/O lines than the 3pi�s built-in 8-bit AVR microcontroller. There are also sockets for Wixel and XBee wireless serial modules as well as prototyping space for additional sensors and electronics.

The Pololu m3pi User�s Guide is available here.

The base Pololu 3pi robot is a complete, high-performance mobile platform featuring two micro metal gearmotors, five reflectance sensors, an 8�2 character LCD, a buzzer, and three user pushbuttons, all connected to a C-programmable ATmega328 microcontroller. Capable of speeds exceeding 3 feet per second, 3pi is a great first robot for ambitious beginners and a perfect second robot for those looking to move up from non-programmable or slower beginner robots.

The 3pi robot is designed to excel in line-following and maze-solving competitions. It has a small size (9.5 cm/3.7" diameter, 83 g/2.9 oz without batteries) and takes just four AAA cells (not included), while a unique power system runs the motors at a constant 9.25 V independent of the battery charge level. The regulated voltage allows the 3pi to reach speeds up to 100 cm/second while making precise turns and spins that don’t vary with the battery voltage.

The 3pi robot makes a great platform for people with C programming experience to learn robotics, and it is a fun environment for ambitious beginners to learn C programming. At its heart is an Atmel ATmega328P microcontroller running at 20 MHz and featuring 32 KB of flash program memory, 2 KB RAM, and 1 KB of persistent EEPROM memory. The popular, free GNU C/C++ compiler works perfectly with the 3pi, Atmel’s AVR Studio provides a comfortable development environment, and an extensive set of libraries provided by Pololu makes it a breeze to interface with all of the integrated hardware. The 3pi is also compatible with the popular Arduino development platform. A number of sample programs are provided to show how to use the various 3pi components, as well as how to perform more complex behaviors such as line following and maze solving.

The robot can be programmed by using any AVR 6-pin JTAG programmer. The ISP-500 or ISP-500-TINY from Olimex are ideal.

Features:

Resources:

Pololu 3pi Robot User’s Guide(Printable PDF: 3pi.pdf)
Pololu AVR C/C++ Library User’s Guide (Printable PDF: pololu_avr_library.pdf)Information about installing and using the C/C++ libraries provided for use with Pololu products. Pololu AVR Library Command Reference(Printable PDF: avr_library_commands.pdf)
Building Line Following and Line Maze Courses (Printable PDF: building_line_courses.pdf)
Programming Orangutans and the 3pi Robot from the Arduino Environment (Printable PDF: orangutan_arduino.pdf)
Guide to making the Arduino IDE compatible with the 3pi robot and the Orangutan SV-168, Orangutan LV-168, and Baby Orangutan B robot controllers, including Arduino libraries for interfacing with the all of their on-board hardware.
Sample Project: 3pi Wall Follower(Printable PDF: 3pi_wall_follower.pdf)
Sample Project: RC 3pi(Printable PDF: rc_3pi.pdf) Application Note: Using the Motor Driver on the 3pi Robot and Orangutan Robot Controllers (Printable PDF: motor_driver_application_note.pdf)
3pi Robot Videos
3pi quick-start sheet and schematic
3pi simplified schematic diagram
Pololu 3pi Robot guia de usuario
Line Maze Algorithm Presentation
WinAVR
AVR Studio
ATmega328P documentation
ATmega168 documentation
Pololu 3pi Forum Section
Pololu 3pi: the 10,000 Mile Review
AVR Freaks
Tutorial: AVR Programming on the Mac

Ribbon Crimp Connector - 10-pin (2x5 Female)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 13:34:53 GMT

These 2x5 crimp connectors can be snapped onto 10-wire ribbon cable to make your own cable assemblies and keep your connections organized. Simply press the connector onto your ribbon cable, no soldering required, which makes it easy to add as many mid-cable connectors as you need.

We also sell this 10 wire ribbon cable.

Ribbon Crimp Connector - 6-pin (2x3 Female)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 11:44:06 GMT

These 2x3 crimp connectors can be snapped onto 6-wire ribbon cable to make your own cable assemblies and keep your connections organized. Simply press the connector onto your ribbon cable, no soldering required, which makes it easy to add as many mid-cable connectors as you need.

We sell two 6-wire ribbon cables, a 15ft version and a 3ft version.

Ribbon Cable - 6 wire (15ft)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 11:32:59 GMT

Ribbon cable is really helpful in situations where you need to make a lot of connections without a big mess of wires. Nothing makes a project look more finished than a nice clean wiring harness.

This is a 15ft. length of 6-wire ribbon cable. We also sell crimp-on connectors that will fit this cable.

Features:

Resources:

Datasheet

Ribbon Cable - 10 wire (15ft)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 11:14:31 GMT

Ribbon cable is really helpful in situations where you need to make a lot of connections without a big mess of wires. Nothing makes a project look more finished than a nice clean wiring harness.

This is a 15ft. length of 10-wire ribbon cable. We also stock crimp-on connectors that will fit this cable.

Features:

Resources:

Datasheet

Ribbon Cable - 6 wire (3ft)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 10:54:04 GMT

Ribbon cable is really helpful in situations where you need to make a lot of connections without a big mess of wires. Nothing makes a project look more finished than a nice clean wiring harness.

This is a 3ft. length of 6-wire ribbon cable. We also sell crimp-on connectors that will fit this cable.

Wixel Programmable USB Wireless Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 10:36:38 GMT

The Pololu Wixel is a general-purpose programmable module featuring a 2.4 GHz radio and USB. You can write your own software or load precompiled, open-source apps onto the TI CC2511F32 microcontroller at the heart of the Wixel, turning it into a wireless serial link, data logger, or whatever you need for your current project. With 29 KB of available flash and 4 KB of RAM, the Wixel is even suitable as the main controller for a robot or other system. This version ships with 0.1" male header pins included but not soldered in, allowing for custom installations.

Features:

Full-speed USB
2.4 GHz Radio with 256 available channels that can be configured dynamically
Programmable through USB bootloader (no external programmer required)
Pre-compiled, open-source apps available
Wixel SDK for developing your own applications in C using open source tools and libraries
0.1" pin spacing (compatible with standard breadboards and 0.1" perfboards)
3 indicator LEDs
15 user I/O lines, featuring 6 analog inputs, 2 USARTs (for serial or SPI), and 7 timer channels (capable of PWM)
4KB of RAM and 29KB of application program memory (flash)

Specifications

Operating voltage: 2.7 - 6.5V
Operating current: up to approximately 30mA (can get down to ~100�A when in sleep mode)
Radio
- Frequency: 2400 - 2483.5 MHz
- Range: approximately 40 feet (under typical conditions indoors)
- Bit rate: programmable, up to 350kbps
- Effective data rate: up to 10KB/s
Size: 0.7" - 1.5"
Weight without header pins installed: 3.2g

Resources:

Conductive Thread Bobbin - 30ft

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 10:05:55 GMT

This is 30 feet of conductive thread spun from stainless steel fibre and wound on a plastic bobbin. Use it to sew up all of your e-textile projects. This small bobbin is a great way to get into wearable electronics without the upfront cost of buying an entire spool of thread. 30 feet of thread is enough to get a simple design stitched onto your shirt, backpack or hat.

What sets this thread apart from the other conductive thread that we carry is the fact that it's actually spun from stainless steel fibres and doesn't have a Nylon core. This means that while it may not be easy to solder to, because it's stainless, it also won't burn up when you touch it with a soldering iron. Also, it's somewhat 'hairy' and can be slightly more difficult to work with in close, fine conditions than the other thread. Our resident E-Textiles expert suggests waxing the thread for hand sewing, as this should take care of any 'hairy thread' issues. Since waxing is impractical in machine sewing applications, avoid sewing close connections by machine as the 'hairs' could potentially short across small distances.

Features:

Made from Stainless Steel Fibers
Resistance: 28 Ohms/Ft

Resources:

mbed LPC1768 Bundle

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 16:46:58 GMT

This bundle combines the popular mbed LPC1768 Workshop Development Board (version 2 rev b) with the mbed LPC1768 Header Board.

Arduino Mega ADK for Android

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 14:24:01 GMT

The Arduino ADK is a microcontroller board based on the ATmega2560 (datasheet). It has a USB host interface to connect with Android based phones.

It is compatible with Android's Accessory Development Kit examples. It has 54 digital input/output pins (of which 14 can be used as PWM outputs), 16 analog inputs, 4 UARTs (hardware serial ports), a 16 MHz crystal oscillator, a USB connection, a power jack, an ICSP header, and a reset button.

The ADK is based on the Mega 2560.

For information on using the board with the Android OS, see (Google's ADK documentation)

STM32-H107

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 12:36:44 GMT

Header board for STM32F107 Cortex-M3 Microcontroller.

The ARM Cortex-M3 processor is the latest generation of ARM processors for embedded systems. It has been developed to provide a low-cost platform that meets the needs of MCU implementation, with a reduced pin count and low-power consumption, while delivering outstanding computational performance and an advanced system response to interrupts. The ARM Cortex-M3 32-bit RISC processor features exceptional code-efficiency, delivering the high-performance expected from an ARM core in the memory size usually associated with 8- and 16-bit devices.
The STM32F107 Performance Line family has an embedded ARM core and is therefore compatible with all ARM tools and software. It combines the high performance ARM Cortex-M3 CPU with an extensive range of peripheral functions and enhanced I/O capabilities. STM32-H107 is low cost development board for the new ST Cortex-M3 based microcontrollers STM32F107VCT6. This board is perfect solution for USB peripherials development. All microcontroller ports are available on extension connectors.

Features:

CPU: STM32F107VCT6 32 bit ARM-based microcontroller with 256 KB Flash, 64KB RAM, USB OTG, Ethernet, 10 timers, 2 CANs, 2 ADCs, 14 communication interfaces
JTAG connector with ARM 2x10 pin layout for programming/debugging
25 Mhz quartz crystal
USB_OTG
Power Jack
WKUP button
RESET button
Two status leds
Power-on led
3V battery connector
Extension port connectors for many of microcontrollers pins
PCB: FR-4, 1.5 mm (0,062"), soldermask, silkscreen component print
Dimensions: 70x50mm (2.76x1.97")

Documents:

STM32-H107.pdf - users manual

Hardware:

Software:

Demo examples Blinking LED and USB OTG for EW-ARM 5.50

Lithium Polymer Battery - 110mAh

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 09:51:34 GMT

This is a very small, extremely light weight battery based on Polymer Lithium Ion chemistry. This is the highest energy density currently in production. Each cells outputs a nominal 3.7V at 110mAh! Comes terminated with a standard 2-pin JST connector - 2mm spacing between pins. These batteries require special charging. Do not attempt to charge these with anything but a specialized Lithium Polymer charger.

Battery includes built-in protection against over voltage, over current, and minimum voltage.

Note: Be careful with the JST connectors. They can stick in tightly and tugging on them can damage the connector. Check this tutorial for an easy way to remove them safely.

Features:

2C continuous discharge - very high for low price
Excellent long-term self-discharge rates (<8% per month)
Robust power source under extreme conditions (-25 to 60C)

Dimensions: 0.19x0.52x1.19" (4.7x13x28mm)
Weight: 2.65g

Resources:

Make: Arduino Bots and Gadgets

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 14:44:49 GMT

Want to build your own robots, turn your ideas into prototypes, control devices with a computer, or make your own cell phone applications? It's a snap with this book and the Arduino open source electronic prototyping platform. Get started with six fun projects and achieve impressive results quickly.

Gain the know-how and experience to invent your own cool gadgets.

With Arduino, building your own embedded gadgets is easy, even for beginners. Embedded systems are everywhere—inside cars, children’s toys, and mobile phones. This book will teach you the basics of embedded systems and help you build your first gadget in just a few days. Each learn-as-you-build project that follows will add to your knowledge and skills.

Experiment with Arduino, the popular microcontroller board

Build robots and electronic projects with easy-to-follow instructions

Turn your ideas into working physical prototypes

Use Android phones as remote controls in your projects

Work with an uncomplicated programming language created for artists, designers, and hobbyists

Get everyone involved, with projects that even beginners can build

Getting Started with the Internet of Things

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 14:37:11 GMT

What is the Internet of Things? It's billions of embedded computers, sensors, and actuators all connected online. If you have basic programming skills, you can use these powerful little devices to create a variety of useful systems—such as a device that waters plants when the soil becomes dry. This hands-on guide shows you how to start building your own fun and fascinating projects.

Learn to program embedded devices using the .NET Micro Framework and the Netduino Plus board. Then connect your devices to the Internet with Pachube, a cloud platform for sharing real-time sensor data. All you need is a Netduino Plus, a USB cable, a couple of sensors, an Ethernet connection to the Internet—and your imagination.

Develop programs with simple outputs (actuators) and inputs (sensors)
Learn about the Internet of Things and the Web of Things
Build client programs that push sensor readings from a device to a web service
Create server programs that allow you to control a device over the Web
Get the .NET classes and methods needed to implement all of the book's examples
Features:
Resources:

Fashioning Technology

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 14:26:11 GMT

Ready to take your craft projects to the next level? With "smart" materials, unorthodox assembly techniques, and the right tools, you can create accessories, housewares, and toys that light up, make sounds, or do even more. Fashioning Technology is an introductory DIY book that brings technology and crafts together in a fun and unique way. You get jargon-free primers and lots of how-to projects that will have you making -- and even wearing -- functional works of art.

Written for a broad audience, this book demonstrates how to blend sewing and assembly techniques with traditional electronics to assemble simple circuits using conductive thread, solder joints for snaps, and switches for buttons. With the sewing machine as a viable substitute for the soldering iron, you can craft a new generation of objects that are interactive, quirky, and fashion-conscious.

Author Syuzi Pakhchyan, a seasoned artist, roboticist, and teacher, explains how to use smart materials such as thermo- and photochromatic inks that change color by touch or sunlight, magnetic and conductive paints, polymorph plastic, fiber optics, and more.

In Fashioning Technology, you'll find:

An invaluable reference section that breaks down the materials, components, and tools with clear, concise explanations and photos
A wide range of projects, including electronic accessories, interactive plush toys, and color-changing blinds, all using diverse crafting techniques
Techniques for seasoned crafters interested in incorporating simple electronics into their own projects
Methods for makers proficient in electronics who are looking for unconventional ways to create novel projects

Each project encourages you to personalize and customize using your own designs, materials, and craft skills. Fashioning Technology translates traditional electronics into fun, fashionable interactive projects for the geek, fashionista, and the craft aficionado alike. Now you really can be the flashiest dresser in town.

We sell many of the products featured in this book, including the Lilypad range and conductive thread.

Features:

Resources:

STM32-P107

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 12:18:32 GMT

STM-P107 is low cost entry board for developing with STM32F107VCT6 Cortex M3 microcontrollers from ST. This board is perfect solution for USB peripherials development. All microcontroller ports are available on extension connectors.

Features:

CPU: STM32F107VCT6 32 bit ARM-based microcontroller with 256 KB Flash, 64 KB RAM, USB OTG, Ethernet, 10 timers, 2 CANs, 2 ADCs, 14 communication interfaces
JTAG connector with ARM 2x10 pin layout for programming/debugging
25 Mhz quartz crystal
USB_OTG
USB_HOST
100Mbit Ethernet
RS232
Mini SD/MMC card connector
UEXT connector
Power Jack
Two user buttons
RESET button and circuit
Two status leds
Power-on led
3V battery connector
Extension port connectors for many of microcontrollers pins
PCB: FR-4, 1.5 mm (0,062"), soldermask, silkscreen component print
Dimensions: 132.08x96.52mm (5.2x3.8")

Resources:

STM32-P107.pdf - users manual

Hardware:

Software:

Blinking LED Demo software for EW-ARM 5.50
Ethernet Demo software for EW-ARM 5.50
USB Demo software for EW-ARM 5.50
SD card Demo software for EW-ARM 5.50

5 Way Pin Header

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 13:47:44 GMT

This 5 way pin header has a 0.1" pitch so it will fit into a breadboard.

There is a datasheet available here.

Screw Terminals 3.5mm Pitch (3-Pin)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 10:51:02 GMT

Screw Terminals with 3.5mm pitch pins. They have the really cool feature of slide-locking together to form any size you need (up to 20 without problems). Rated up to 125V @ 6A. Terminal can accept 30 to 20AWG wire. 3.5mm/138mil pin pitch will not fit standard 0.1" perf boards but this is the most common pitch screw terminal.

Documents: Datasheet

SFE Eagle Library has this part!

Please note: These may fit standard perf boards if inserted diagonally.

iPod Connector Female SMD

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 16:11:25 GMT

This is the female connector found inside the iPod itself. Mates with the iPod connectors listed.

Features:

Resources:

Triple Axis Magnetometer Breakout - HMC5883L

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 16:05:06 GMT

This is a breakout board for Honeywell's HMC5883L, a 3-axis digital compass. Communication with the HMC5883L is simple and all done through an I2C interface. There is no on-board regulator, so a regulated voltage of 2.16-3.6VDC should be supplied.

The breakout board includes the HMC5883L sensor and all filtering capacitors as shown. The power and 2-wire interface pins are all broken out to a 0.1" pitch header.

Features:

Simple I2C interface
2.16-3.6VDC supply range
Low current draw
5 milli-gauss resolution

Dimensions: 0.7x0.7" (17.78x17.78mm)

Resources:

NetDuino Plus 2 Starter Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 11:34:46 GMT

This kit comprises a NetDuino Plus 2 development board and all the components you might need to get up to speed with the platform.

For technical details about the board please see the product page, and for more getting-started hints there is a projects page.

***NEW*** All kits now come in a lovely, quality compartmentalised plastic storage box - perfect for keeping all of your bits and bobs safe as your experiments get more complex!

Generic Starter Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 10:09:11 GMT

This kit includes all the components from our regular starter kits (Arduino Uno Starter Kit, Netduino Starter Kit), but without the board.

This is ideal if you already own a board and need a selection of handy parts to start experimenting.

NetDuino 2 Starter Kit

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 16:10:22 GMT

This kit comprises a NetDuino development board and all the components you might need to get up to speed with the platform.

For technical details about the board please see the product page, and for more getting-started hints there is a projects page.

Note: To complete all the projects in the Getting Started with Netduino book you will also need a servo motor.

***NEW*** All kits now come in a lovely, quality compartmentalised plastic storage box - perfect for keeping all of your bits and bobs safe as your experiments get more complex!

Arduino USB to Serial Converter

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 15:17:02 GMT

This board converts a USB connection into 5 volt TX and RX that you can connect straight to the Arduino Mini or other microcontrollers, allowing them to talk to the computer.

It features the ATmega8U2 programmed as a USB-to-serial converter, the same chip found on the Arduino Uno. The USB Serial module has an ISCP interface, allowing you to reprogram the chip when placed in DFU mode.

The pinouts on the connector are compatible with a standard FTDI header.

Software:

Windows users need a .inf file for this specific product: Arduino_USBSerial.zip

For installation follow the same procedure on how install an UNO board on your computer.

Arduino Ethernet with PoE module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 14:35:33 GMT

NB: Pins 10, 11, 12 and 13 are reserved for interfacing with the Ethernet module and should not be used otherwise. This reduces the number of available pins to 9, with 4 available as PWM outputs.

We sell PoE Cables too

The Ethernet differs from other boards in that it does not have an onboard USB-to-serial driver chip, but has a Wiznet Ethernet interface. This is the same interface found on the Ethernet shield.

A six pin header can be connected to an FTDI cable or USB Serial board to provide USB power and communication to the board.

Summary

Microcontroller	ATmega328
Operating Voltage	5V
Input Voltage (recommended)	7-12V
Input Voltage (limits)	6-20V
Digital I/O Pins	14 (of which 4 provide PWM output)

Arduino Pins reserved
- 10 to 13 used for SPI
- 4 used for SD card
- 2 W5100 interrupt (when bridged)

Analog Input Pins	6
DC Current per I/O Pin	40 mA
DC Current for 3.3V Pin	50 mA
Flash Memory	32 KB (ATmega328) of which 0.5 KB used by bootloader
SRAM	2 KB (ATmega328)
EEPROM	1 KB (ATmega328)
Clock Speed	16 MHz
W5100 TCP/IP Embedded Ethernet Controller
Power Over Ethernet ready Magnetic Jack
Micro SD card, with active voltage translators

Schematic & Reference Design

EAGLE files: arduino-ethernet-reference-design.zip

Schematic: arduino-ethernet-schematic.pdf

Power

The board can also be powered via an external power supply, the Power over Ethernet (PoE) module, or by using a FTDI cable/USB Serial connector.

The power pins are as follows:

VIN. The input voltage to the Arduino board when it's using an external power source (as opposed to 5 volts from the USB connection or other regulated power source). You can supply voltage through this pin, or, if supplying voltage via the power jack, access it through this pin.
5V. The regulated power supply used to power the microcontroller and other components on the board. This can come either from VIN via an on-board regulator, or be supplied by USB or another regulated 5V supply.
3V3. A 3.3 volt supply generated by the on-board regulator. Maximum current draw is 50 mA.
GND. Ground pins.

The on-board PoE module is designed to extract power from a conventional twisted pair Category 5 Ethernet cable:

IEEE802.3af compliant
Low output ripple and noise (100mVpp)
Input voltage range 36V to 57V
Overload and short-circuit protection
9V Output
High efficiency DC/DC converter: typ 75% @ 50% load
1500V isolation (input to output)

NB: the Power over Ethernet module is proprietary hardware not made by Arduino, it is a third party accessory. For more information, see the datasheet

Memory

The ATmega328 has 32 KB (with 0.5 KB used for the bootloader). It also has 2 KB of SRAM and 1 KB of EEPROM (which can be read and written with the EEPROM library).

Input and Output

Serial: 0 (RX) and 1 (TX). Used to receive (RX) and transmit (TX) TTL serial data.
External Interrupts: 2 and 3. These pins can be configured to trigger an interrupt on a low value, a rising or falling edge, or a change in value. See the attachInterrupt() function for details.
PWM: 3, 5, 6, 9, and 10. Provide 8-bit PWM output with the analogWrite() function.
SPI: 10 (SS), 11 (MOSI), 12 (MISO), 13 (SCK). These pins support SPI communication using the SPI library.
LED: 13. There is a built-in LED connected to digital pin 13. When the pin is HIGH value, the LED is on, when the pin is LOW, it's off.

TWI: A4 (SDA) and A5 (SCL). Support TWI communication using the Wire library.

There are a couple of other pins on the board:

AREF. Reference voltage for the analog inputs. Used with analogReference().
Reset. Bring this line LOW to reset the microcontroller. Typically used to add a reset button to shields which block the one on the board.

Communication

The Arduino Ethernet has a number of facilities for communicating with a computer, another Arduino, or other microcontrollers.

A SoftwareSerial library allows for serial communication on any of the Uno's digital pins.

The board also can connect to a wired network via ethernet. When connecting to a network, you will need to provide an IP address and a MAC address. The Ethernet Library is fully supported.

The onboard microSD card reader is accessible through the SD Library. When working with this library, SS is on Pin 4.

Programming

It is possible to program the Arduino Ethernet board in two ways: through the 6 pin serial programming header, or with an external ISP programmer.

All the Ethernet example sketches work as they do with the Ethernet shield. Make sure to change the network settings for your network.

Physical Characteristics

Setup

Crystal 16MHz

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 14:19:50 GMT

Standard frequency crystals - use these crystals to provide a clock input to your microprocessor. Rated at 20pF capacitance and +/- 50ppm stability. Low profile HC49/US Package.

Features:

Resources:

LilyPad Protoboard Large

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 13:49:30 GMT

This is a large board for prototyping through hole components with the LilyPad system. There are an array of pins all shorted together with 10mil traces. This allows for quick and easy prototyping - all you have to do is cut the traces between holes you don't want connected! Standard 0.1" array. Check rear photo for trace configuration.

Dimensions

50mm outer diameter
Thin 0.8mm PCB

E-Block Button

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 11:30:25 GMT

Connect this button to a digital pin to read its status. Additionally, the board includes a small LED that is automatically lit when the button is pressed. The output of this component is low when the button is pressed and high otherwise. It is connected through a standard JST3AA cable (included).

Works with any digital pin on a FEZ!

Features:

Resources:

E-Block Red LED

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 11:18:16 GMT

This large 8mm LED is available in Red and Green and is a must have for any project. Use for power indication, pin status, or even a traffic light. Works with any digital pin on a FEZ.

This LED connects through a standard JST3AA cable (included).

Features:

Resources:

E-Block Green LED

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 11:15:29 GMT

This large 8mm LED is available in Red and Green and is a must have for any project. Use for power indication, pin status, or even a traffic light. Works with any digital pin on a FEZ.

This LED connects through a standard JST3AA cable (included).

Features:

Resources:

DSO Quad - Pocket-Sized Digital Oscilloscope

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 10:55:25 GMT

The DSO Quad is an open-source pocket-sized 4-channel digital oscilloscope. It's based on the ARM cortex M3 32-bit platform, providing 72MS/s sampling rate with integrated FPGA and high speed ADC. The Internal 2MB memory can even store waveforms in various formats which you can transfer to your computer using a mini-USB cable.

Includes:

2 Mueller MCX Osilloscope Probes
2 Digital Probes
Li-Po Battery
User Manual

Features:

Portable (98x60x14.5mm)
Two 72MS/s analog channels plus two digital channels
2MB Internal Storage
3" TFT LCD (400x240)
8-bit Vertical Resolution
Signal Generator
Auto Measurement
Various Triggering Options
Easy waveform storage
Firmware upgradable
User applications
Open source

Resources:

MOD-ENC624J600 Ethernet Controller Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 10:36:03 GMT

Development board with UEXT connector and 100 MBit ENC624J600 Ethernet Controller.

Features:

MOD-ENC624J600 is the easiest way to add 100 Mbit ethernet connectivity to any of our boards with UEXT connector
ENC624J600 Ethernet controller with UEXT connector for easy connection to our other development boards with UEXT connector
LAN connecttor with build in transformer
two status LEDs on LAN connector
SPI/PARALLEL port interface to add Ethernet interface to your microcontroller project
UEXT 10 pin interface on 0.1" row pins header
PCB: FR-4, 1.5 mm (0,062"), soldermask, white silkscreen component print
Dimensions: 47x37 mm (1.85 x 1.45")

3D Printer Heater and Thermistor (Platform)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 16:21:46 GMT

This is a spare heater and thermistor for the platform of the UP! Plus Personal Portable 3D Printer

Features:

Resources:

Bluetooth Stereo Audio Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 15:41:04 GMT

Want to send stereo audio between two points, or listen to audio being transmitted from your Bluetooth enabled phone? This little module uses the A2DP profile and has the ability to become an audio 'source' or an audio 'destination'.

The module can be ordered to hunt for nearby devices and pair using a simple AT command set.

Audio quality is reasonable, and range is 10 to 20 metres line of sight depending on the aerial you use.

Features:

Module can pair with mobile phone or with another module
Module source/destination function changeable by AT command
Stereo input and output
Tiny size / lightweight
Play, pause, track forward / back commands
Volume up / down commands
Configurable auto pair on power on

Specs

Bluetooth1.2, Class II
Audio Codec : 15bits
Audio SNR : >90dB
Audio Encryption : 128bits
Dimension 20mm x 13mm x 2mm
Range : 10m
Supply Voltage : 3.3V port: 2.7~3.6V DC, 1.8V Port:1.75~1.9V DC
Working Current - 30mA typical when A2DP audio streaming, with standby current <0.5mA

Resources:

Programming Guide
Hardware Datasheet
Default module name = "BTAUDIOMODULE", default passcode = "1234"

Arm-USB-OCD-H Debugger

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 10:04:30 GMT

High speed 3-in-1 fast USB ARM JTAG, USB-TO-RS232 virtual port and power supply 5V DC device.

Features:

The first, on market, three-in-one USB JTAG debugger - offers JTAG + RS232 (full modem signals supported) port + power supply all in one compact device
The high speed USB 2.0 JTAG dongle interface, can be used with all ARM devices for programming and debugging
Uses ARM's standard 2x10 pin JTAG connector
Supports ARM targets working in voltage range 1.65 � 5.0 V DC
Supports adaptive clocking RTCK
Software supported by OpenOCD (open source) debugger
Adds virtual RS232 port to your computer with all modem signals like: DTR, DSR, DCD, RTS, CTS, Rx, Tx
Can be used as a power supply for your target board with 5V USB, source current is limited with resetable fuse at 300mA, at the different output voltage the maximum current is different: 5V/200mA, note that this also depend on your USB host's current capabilities, if other USB devices are attached to your computer or if the laptop is running on batteries these figures may be different and depend on your computer's USB host.
Downloadable Windows installer for full featured and open source tools as alternative to the commercial ARM development packages: GCC C compiler, openOCD debugger and Eclipse IDE.
Works with IAR EW-ARM 5.50 or newer
Dimensions 50x40 mm (2x1.6") + 20 cm (8") JTAG cable + 30 cm (12") power supply cable

Resources:

GNU/LINUX Step-by-step in-depth how-to guide - amazing manual for Cortex M3 manual provided by Peter Seng
Using OLIMEX ARM JTAGs with Free and Awesome CooCox Software - CoIDE, CoFlash
Using OpenOCD server and Eclipse CDT document
Using OpenOCD as a Standalone FLASH Programmer document
Using OpenOCD with TELNET connection document
Using OpenOCD server and IAR Embedded Workbench document
How to install GCCFG CD which comes with ARM-USB-OCD
How to repair your Open OCD drivers for ARM-USB-OCD-H
Using GCC+Eclispse on MAC
ARM-USB-OCD flyer
Using OpenOCD as Flash programming tool article written by Martin Thomas
ARM projects with OpenOCD by Martin Thomas
Using Open Source Tools for AT91SAM7 Cross Development - Revision B guide by Jim Lynch
(the old) ARM Cross Development with Eclipse (10MB) REV-3 very detailed tutorial by Jim Lynch how to setup and works with the free GNUARM tools LPC2106 board. The sample codes for this tutorial is here.
ARM Cross Development with Eclipse in Spanish language (3MB) REV-1 Paul Aguayo did a great job translating to Spanish language Jim Lynch's tutorial. He also shrink the size of the document without missing the quality of the pictures and tutorial text.
GNU toolchain setup with openOCD by Michael Fischer
RapidiTTy Lite development IDE from TTE Systems example with LPC-P2129 and ARM-USB-OCD
http://openocd.berlios.de/web/ - official site of the OpenOCD project, you can find the most up to date version of OpenOCD here, but you will have to build it yourselfm, aslo the full user's manual is here
http://www.yagarto.de/ - home of YAGARTO (Yet Another GNU ARM Toolchain). i.e. GCC compiler and bin utilities for Windows
http://www.eclipse.org/ - the Eclipse universe
http://forum.sparkfun.com/viewforum.php?f=18 - The very helpful discussion board for OpenOCD related projects
Toolchain setup
CrossWorks installation video
STELLARIS setup with OpenOCD
Reflashing HTC with OpenOCD

Hardware

ARM JTAG connector (top view)

Sooftware

OLIMEX ARM DEVELOPMENT PACKAGE V1.1 NEW tutorial how to build latest OpenOCD and Eclipse IDE setup, how to setup our JTAGs with IAR GDB server, drivers etc. readme.txt and revision history
Olimex's ARM GCC for Windows Dummies install CD - installs on your computer GCC + OpenOCD debugger + Eclipse for out of the box development with the open source GNU C compiler and OpenOCD debugger, supports flash loading with make examples for different ARM controllers. The current revision of the CD is 8.2 REV.I check the CD readme.txt and revision history
Drivers for working with OpenOCD 0.1.0 , Drivers for working with OpenOCD 0.4.0 ,Drivers for CrossWorks (FTDI drivers) , EEPROM content
openOCD open source debugger from Dominic Rath for debugging with Insight/GDB.
WinARM - easy to install open source GCC toolchain by Martin Thomas. We are working on CD install package for WinArm+OpenOCD+ARM-USB-OCD support
CrossWorks - commercial IDE version 1.7 supports all Olimex JTAGs, personal licensees start from US $125(!)
Building GCC for ARM tutorial
Building GCC for Cortex tutorial
Using OpenOCD tutorial
Installing OpenOcd-Rev. G drivers for Windows 7.pdf
For the moment the only supported package is GCC C compiler + openOCD debugger + Eclipse IDE. Olimex can provide the necessary information and cooperate with interested parties if they want to add low cost USB debugger support to their C compilers and IDEs.

Large Breadboard with Panel

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 12:15:06 GMT

This is a high-quality large breadboard, with three 4mm colour-coded terminals at the top for easy power supply. It has 1mm circular holes arranged on an alphanumeric grid, and a removable backplate for fitting switches, dials, etc.

Features:

Resources:

Pressure Sensor MPXV7002DP

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 16:02:18 GMT

This is a dual port pressure sensor from Freescale. It takes a 5 volt supply and gives an output between 0.5 and 4.5 volts. The output is proportional to the difference between one pressure input and the other.

Does this arrangement ring any bells? You betcha - it's exactly the same as is used on the biggest aircraft (and the smallest) to measure airspeed and altitude.

You can read more about how it works in this Wikipedia entry

There is a datasheet here with more details.

MOD-MP3-X-LITE MP3 Player/Recorder Module

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 14:44:54 GMT

This is a "lite" version of the MOD-MP3-X MP3 Player/Recorder Module.

Features:

Features:

Based on VS1053 hardware decoder for MPEG 1 & 2 audio layer 3 (ISO 11172-3), MP3+V, WAV and PCM files ; supports ADPCM encoding and decoding
Supports VBR (variable bitrate) for MP3; Supports streaming
Single 1.5V battery cell operation with on board low power DC/DC voltage boost converter
UEXT to connect to host microcontroller (standard connector on our ARM development boards)
Can work as stand-alone MP3 player operation
SD/MMC card on board
Stereo Audio microphone jack, Stereo Audio headphones jack
Can be used to record and playback
Triple action lever switch: Forward, Reverse, Play/Pause action
PCB: FR-4, 1.5 mm (0,062"), green soldermask, white silkscreen component print
Dimensions: 60x60 mm (2.36x2.36")

Resources:

MOD-MP3-X.pdf user manual

Hardware:

MOD-MP3-X LITE Schematic

Software:

MOD-MP3-X Newer demo code for IAR 6.30+
MOD-MP3-X Older demo code
MOD-MP3-X and PIC32-PINGUINO/OTG demo code
MOD-MP3-X and PIC32-PINGUINO-MX220 demo code
Making MOD-MP3-X + Duinomite boards work together
MOD-MP3-X example + OLIMEXINO-328 - instructions in the archive
MOD-MP3-X example + PIC32-PINGUINO-OTG - instructions in the archive

Breadboard with Terminals

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 12:33:16 GMT

This high quality solderless breadboard has 5 colour-coded 4mm terminals for easy power supply. It has 958 1mm circular holes on an alphanumeric grid.

This board is mounted on an peel-off adhesive base, and has slots on the edges so these can be securely connected to more of the same type to increase the size. The terminals at the top of the board are also removable to reduce the size of the board.

Gameduino Shield

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 11:51:08 GMT

Gameduino is a game adapter for Arduino - or anything else with an SPI interface - built as a single shield that stacks up on top of the Arduino and has plugs for a VGA monitor and stereo speakers.

Features:

video output is 400x300 pixels in 512 colors

all colour processed internally at 15-bit precision
compatible with any standard VGA monitor (800x600 @ 72Hz)
background graphics

512x512 pixel character background
256 characters, each with independent 4 color palette
pixel-smooth X-Y wraparound scroll

foreground graphics

each sprite is 16x16 pixels with per-pixel transparency
each sprite can use 256, 16 or 4 colors
four-way rotate and flip
96 sprites per scan-line, 1536 texels per line
pixel-perfect sprite collision detection

audio output is a stereo 12-bit frequency synthesizer

64 independent voices 10-8000 Hz
per-voice sine wave or white noise
sample playback channel

Resources:

Gameduino Quick Reference Sheet

66mm 64ohm Speaker

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 15:11:45 GMT

This is a 66mm diameter, 64ohm speaker with a power rating of 0.3W.

Mini FET Shield

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 15:31:06 GMT

Developed by Dave Vondle and IDEO Labs, this board is essentially the same as Sparkfun's Power Driver Shield, but the through-hole parts have been switched out for smaller SMD construction, allowing you to to drive high-current switches with your Arduino Pro Mini. This is a great shield for small prototyping.

Note: The power circuit chip is only rated to drive 0.6 amps. However, Sparkfun have successfully tested it to over 2A.

Features:

Resources:

Schematic
Eagle Files
Datasheet (FDMA1024NZ)
Datasheet (TPS61200DRCT)
IDEO Labs Page

E-Paper Breakout Board

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 16:19:03 GMT

E-paper displays are rad. But those 26-pin SMD connectors can be a real pain to solder, so we put together a breakout board to help you integrate this very cool technology into your next project. This board breaks out all of the major pins from the e-paper ribbon connector to a 0.1" pitch header. Because the e-paper display requires a 35V supply, the breakout also includes a voltage step-up so that you can power the display using either 3.3V or 5V.

Features:

Resources:

Schematic
Eagle Files
Datasheet (E-paper display)
Datasheet (SMD Connector)
Example Code

Monster Moto Shield

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 15:22:53 GMT

This is essentially a ramped up version of our Ardumoto motor driver shield. For this monster shield we've replaced the L298 H-bridge with a pair of VNH2SP30 full-bridge motor drivers. We've also beefed up the support circuitry so this board is capable of driving a pair of high-current motors! The VIN and motor out are pitched for our 5mm screw terminals (not included), making it easy to connect larger gauge wires.

Note: When using this board in extreme high-demand applications it may be necessary to improve thermal performance with a heat-sink or fan and to solder the wires directly to the board instead of using a screw terminal (in addition to the myriad other complications present in a 30A system) However, when using the board at currents up to 6A the chips will barely become noticeably warm.

Features:

Voltage max: 41V
Maximum current rating: 30 A
Current sensing available to Arduino analog pin
MOSFET on-resistance: 19 mΩ (per leg)
Maximum PWM frequency: 20 kHz
Thermal Shutdown
Undervoltage and Overvoltage shutdown

Resources:

RFID Tag - Laundry MIFARE 1K (13.56 MHz)

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 14:15:18 GMT

This is a basic RFID tag that functions within the MIFARE Classic 1K guidelines. You can use these for all sorts of identification and sensing applications. The tag also has 1K of data storage which can be read and written from a compatible device, such as the SM130 MIFARE Module.

This tag is has a diameter of 13mm and an overall thickness of about 2mm. They are also waterproof for use in laundry. It works with MIFARE 13.56 MHz compatible readers.

The MIFARE Classic card is fundamentally just a memory storage device, where the memory is divided into segments and blocks with simple security mechanisms for access control. They are ASIC based and have limited computational power. Thanks to their reliability and low cost, these tags are widely used for electronic wallet, access control, corporate ID cards, transportation or stadium ticketing.

Features:

Resources:

Breakout Board for Thumb Joystick

info@coolcomponents.co.uk (Cool Components) — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 11:01:51 GMT

This is the breakout board for the thumb joystick. Pins are broken out to a 0.1" header and the board includes 4 mounting holes in the corners.

Features:

Resources: