small job ...interested?

[XTRKTR]

first off i hope its OK for me to do this in this forum..i guess i ll find out soon enough

here s the job description
i need 50 separate circuit boards that would create timers, based on a 555 chips which would be "ON" for approx 5 seconds and followed by an "OFF" time of 1 minute
and repeat this astable sequence indefinitely .now the circuit only needs to power up a standard size RC servo motor(ON for 5 sec) and the circuit should be as energy efficient as possible(during the 1 min off)

i have already done this circuit and is known to work well but i just don't have the time or the patience to make 50 of them, so i am looking to sub this job out for $$....any takers?
Voltage parameters 2-6 v.
MAX.anticipated current draw =standard RC servo motor (stalled)or (300ma)
BTW i use the servo as a gear case no pulses needed
i live in Oshawa Ontario Canada

 

[dknguyen]

Just get a board house to do it. At 10 it's cheap. At 50, it's almost nothing per board.

These guys seem to be the cheapest to me:
**broken link removed**

THese guys are good too I think and can do more...at a price:
http://www.protoexpress.com/

Honestly, if you need 50 it's so easy to find a board house since everything is so cheap at that quantity.

 

[blueroomelectronics]

I'm in Toronto Canada, if you want PCB artwork designed. There are a couple of local PCB shops around Toronto too.

 

[XTRKTR]

hey.! thanks a lot man..i just didn't know where to look

 

[blueroomelectronics]

Do you get into Toronto? I'm in the east end of the city. What do you want the servo to do for 5 seconds?

 

[XTRKTR]

all i need them to do is rotate a light load so i hack it and treat it a gear box.
i did buy a geared motor with the same specs while back from a robot store but they were sloppy and noisy as hell,
I like the quality of servos but i find them a bit pricey for a gear box......any alternative?
BTW i will end up needing lots of them

 

[Analog]

Probably better to use a PIC? Oshawa -eh? GM town...

 

[blueroomelectronics]

A servo is a motor with feedback, you can make it rotate about 180 degrees but unless modified they don't do a full revolution. Do you need a motor that simply spins for 5 seconds? how many RPM?
Servos in Toronto are about $15 but you can probably get a deal when buying quantity.
I'd use a PIC if driving a servo, the tiny 8pin ones are pretty cheap.

 

[XTRKTR]

ya i know about pics i ve used em before but the problem is they get flaky below 4 v and restart the program from the beginning so they tend to get stuck in a endless loop until the sun picks up and recharge the batteries(solar panels is the main source of energy) and i need for the device to run all night
know what i mean?
as far as the rpm a hacked servo will yield about 37 rpm if my memory serves me well so the equivalent is good give or take10 rpm

 

[blueroomelectronics]

Must be a large solar cell to provide the 6V @ 600ma you'll need to run the motors, do you have specs on the cells you're thinking of using?. Also LF series PICs will run as low as 2V (your servo motor probably won't). A 7555 should be fine as its current consumption will be minimal anyway.
Tamiya makes a buch of gearboxes that run fine at 3V some are noisy but with PWM you can lower the power, speed and noise they'll make.

 

[XTRKTR]

just wondering ...
what needs to be done exactly to get PC boards made up from a board house?
is there software i should use to draw the circuit in then send it to them?
what would you guys do if you had to get 50 boards made up?
and also i really don't want to solder that many parts i d much rather pay to get it done

 

[blueroomelectronics]

You need a gerber file (the artwork) for each layer, and an NC drill file. What's your budget? $100 - $10,000?

 

[XTRKTR]

ok i think i know what a nc drill file is as i own and operate a cnc (that i have for the most part created) so i also deal with cad software and cam software
but it is all about the learning curve and at this point i just don't have the time to learn something like that
so i am wondering if maybe you may be interested in "subbing"this job
of course there will be a financial compensation for your efforts
i will not mind paying someone to do this 20$-30$/hour or just give me a price for the ol job

there isn't a real budget as long as it is reasonable...you know!
here s what need to be done :
first:
i sort of fake electronic i ve learned it on my own so my circuit may need to be cleaned up by someone knowledgeable (but it works!)
second:
i would need to test the new circuit(if it needs cleaning up) and pay for half of the job to the sub(you)

P.S. the circuit is a simple astable timer based on a 555 of the SMD kind(low power consumption)
third:
the art work+nc file needs to be created then i pay the remaining balance
to the sub(you) then send me the file and art work

and finally every body s happy

interested?

 

[blueroomelectronics]

Well I can do the artwork (layout) and handle the PCB fab house. 50pcs is reasonable for a prototyping run. SMD is no problem it's just more a pain to solder by hand (for me anyway)
You'll need a working prototype or decent spec before you start. You've not finalised the motors and IMO servos are not the way to go (you'll need at least two 555s, one for the main timer, the other to generate the rotation pulse) A standard motor like the servobotics kind would be cheaper.
How many rotations in 5 seconds do you want, does it have to be accurate?

 

[XTRKTR]

i hear you about the servos i think i ll try these motors instead
**broken link removed**
and i cracked open the working prototype today and noticed that i did use a standard dip nec555 for it and i recall doing a non stop experimental run over two months last summer(day and night)on solar panels/batteries so i guess that the standard 555 ll be fine
no precision needed for this device only requirement is for it to run continuously and at about 30 rpm give or take 50%

here's some pics to give you an idea of what the timer looks like
and also the solar panel unit that i vacuum formed
ill redraw the circuit and post it