My very first question: design

[guillermoe]

Greetings.
This is my first post in this awesome forum I happened to find while browsing the net. Have already read some of the topics and was surprised of the huge quantity of information available here.

I have a doubt I want you ask you all, oh fearless electro-gurus:
I am an automation engineer. I know the basics of electronics and have applied some of them in both personal and job projects. Now, I want to start research and development of robot project to use in my way to achieving some experience before studying a master on the subject. I have made some small projects using the ones already included in some of the books I bought and som others found on the net. Now, I want to make the next step... design. I have never understood which is the way electronic circuits are designed, why they are given certain power supplies, why an electronic element is used instead of other and so on.
Is there a book or online resource which could explain the design process of a electronic circuit for somebody with regular knowledge on electronics?

Thanyou and, again, this forum rocks.
Guillermo.

 

[bmcculla]

Its tough to find good general info on electronics design. I would recommend a couple magazines. EDN has good info and some neat circuit ideas in the back. I just got my first copy of "Electronics design" and it seems to have good content also. Both of these are free if you sign up online. Another one i'd recommend is "Circuit Cellar" evey month thay have new complete projects with schematics and source code. They also do articles on popular or inovative ICs every month.

I'd also recommend spending a little time on digikey.com surfing through data sheets. They have an awsome search engine - just do a blank search to get a listing of all their catagories. Most of the trouble of learing electronics design is just learning what tools and ICs are available.

Finaly You should just try building a simple robot. Even with basic knowledge you should be able to come up with some fun stuff. Just try out different ICs.

Hope this gets you started
Brent

 

[Johnson777717]

I agree with Bmcculla.

I think gaining a full understanding of "why this component is there" or "how come a certain power supply is used" is developed through some study, experimentation and mistakes.

An approach that we have been taking in school, is to study basic circuits, such as transistor circuits, Op amps etc. We literally pick apart each minor detail to find out what is happening.

For instance, we could take a very simple 555 timer circuit (maybe a LED flasher or something) and follow the circuit through, step by step to see what voltage, amperage and what is happening at each stage in the process. This helps us understand why a capacitor is placed at a particular stage, why a resistor is placed at a certain stage, what the specific IC is doing etc etc. We usually spend 1 week just picking apart a certain circuit and analyzing the outputs. At this time, we have a pretty good idea of why everything is in the circuit, and have opened doors of opportunity to improve or add on to the circuit.

If you haven't already, I suggest analyzing the basic building blocks of electronic circuits, such as:
1. Transistor circuits
2. Op amp circuits
3. Basic timing circuits such as a 555 etc

It seems kind of boring because the circuits are so plain and simple, but the task will really open your eyes to what is really happening. Pick these circuits apart until you're blue in the face, and you can tell yourself what is happening at each stage of the process. From here you can move on to power supply analysis, etc. on up to microcontrollers.

If you would rather read up on the subject, and there is a local college nearby, I suggest going to their bookstore and purchasing an Electronic Circuit Analysis book. Though these books are pretty expensive, there is a LOT of good information for the designer to be.

 

[ljcox]

Electronic design is a process where you start with an objective, say to design a LED flasher and then explore the various ways it can be done, the frequency and duty cycle of the flash, whether it is to be mains or battery powered, etc. The supply voltage will depend upon the design you choose (eg. some ICs only work on 5 Volt) and the desired energy source.

Some electronics magazines have a "Circuit Ideas" column, eg. Electronics World, and it is instructive to analyse the circuits published (some are pretty hopeless) both in this column and the ones presented as feature articles by the magazine designers.

Len

 

[Screech]

What governs my designs are:

component price,
component avalability at the nearest supplier,
component looks,
the nearest component to the one I want, that they don't stock.
the components that I am familiar with.
pin layout,

it's not like I have much of a say.

 

[spuffock]

See if you can get hold of a copy of "the art of electronics" by Horowitz and Hill. It may be fifteen years old by now, but it explains an awful lot of components and circuits without requiring a degree in maths. I thoroughly recommend it. You cn't have my copy!

 

[laroche73]

learning design skills

These are all good suggestions. The first edition of AoE was 1980, and even that edition holds up well over time.

https://www.electro-tech-online.com/threads/anti-surge-devices.3282/

I've kept a collection of design ideas/briefs from EDN and Electronic Design going back to the mid-80's, they're usually well-explained and often ingenious. The ideas can give you insights often lacking in standard (theory) textbooks, since they're written by working engineers trying to solve specific problems. The EDN and ED website archives are a good place to start (EDN goes back to the mid-90s while ED only has the most recent years). Circuit Cellar is excellent, too. - Claude

 

[guillermoe]

Thankyou guys, I will try to start a simple project trying to understand why it was built that way... must start by improving my nearly null soldering skills. :lol:
Will try to get those books you tell me about, kinda difficult as i am outside of US.

Thanks, will be back soon with more question.

 

[Nigel Goodwin]

Will try to get those books you tell me about, kinda difficult as i am outside of US.

That's why you should fill your loacation in!, then people know where you are.

 

[samcheetah]

in addition to EDN, Electronics Design and Circuit Cellar i would recommend subscribing to EPE (everyday practical electronics) they have great projects based on the PIC microcontroller. one day u might use a PIC in your robot so u should read alot about the PIC microcontroller. plus there is alot of other info in EPE too

go to https://www.epemag.com

 

[guillermoe]

Lol... nice point Nigel. I live at Monterrey, Mexico.

Ty samcheetah, i am starting with PICs right now... interesting little things. My only experience with procesors is Motorola's HC11.

 

[petesmc]

You might want to look up some school exercise books, or possibly though electronic kits, that has the pieces already connected, and you just joined them with wires.

I started electronics using the kit, didn't understand any of it, then i did a course on it, and we always built circuits really quickly using just paper, and stick on copper. This allows you to get the circuit built asap so that you can spend more time figuring it out.

I recommend start out with simple LED circuits, measuring voltages to prove the V = IR relationship, etc. Then move onto 555 timers for astable / monostable circuits. From here, try and figure out what transistors are and how they work. Where you go from here is up to you. I personally, spent alot of time in classes doing through many different ICs like decade counters, etc, but you may want to head into Op-amps.

Either way, plan a project, break it into components and over time you'll realise you can build another component of your robot.

Good Luck