raspberry pi blog by MyPiFi: Kickstarter MyPiFi LED Board assembly guide

Saturday, 14 June 2014

Kickstarter MyPiFi LED Board assembly guide

Firstly thank you for purchasing this excellent budget board.

We will start by placing the pcb on the table with a GPIO header, button, three LEDs and four resistors (220 ohm).

First job is to solder the GPIO header, being extended you will find it near impossible to solder last, which is why I have chosen the beginning.

Put the pins through the bottom holes so they protrude like this.

Then push it all the way.

Next solder each of the header, to do this place the hot soldering iron tip touching the pin and the gold ring on the whole after a second touch the solder to the tip of the soldering iron and pin and allow solder to flow round feeding the solder as it melts, this should take two to three seconds for each pin, as each pin is filled stop feeding the solder and then remove iron and let the solder cool which will take about a second.

You might find a bit of blue tack under the pcb board where 2014 is to keep board straight and flat so the GPIO sits flush to the board.

Next we will putthe resistors in, it doesn't matter which way round they go, but I find it looks tidy if they all face the same way.

Bend the legs like this to keep them in place.

Then solder them touching the leg where it meets the gold ring on the whole then touch with some solder to look like this.

With a pair of electrical pliers cut away the legs as close to the board possible without breaking the solder off the joins.

Next is to add the three LEDs the negative leg is the shorter and this needs to go on the GPIO side of the two holes whilst the positive furthest away. On the picture of the LED on the board there is a flat bit by the word LED 1 LED 2 LED 3 this in the electronics world the information to tell you negative sits that side. You will also notice looking at the LED that it's all round apart from the side the negative leg is which is flat, this again is in case you cut the legs on a different project that you can still work out the negative and positive. If you put them in wrong this WILL NOT WORK so to save on tears please double check.

Bend the legs out underneath to stop the LEDs falling out and repeat the same process you used on the resistors to solder the LEDs in, once done feel free to cut the legs off like you did with the resistors.

Lastly we have the button, this is slightly rectangular to stop it being placed into the board the wrong way. Again if it is not placed in correctly it will not work.

So by looking at the picture here we can see that we want to put the button on so the legs are showing their slightly zig zag shape this way.

The top to pins of the button fit on the bottom to pins of the square like shape and the two pins resting on my bench here will go in top two pins to look like this.