This is a BTR / RS232 to tape reader converter board out of a Mori Seiki SL1 lathe w/ Yasnac 2000GII controller.
It was made by an out-of-business company in the 90's.
I decided to see if I could make a copy of it given that they are somewhat rare and I know several people who would definitely like one for their old mori.
Its 2 layer and through hole. There are about 50 unique components on it. No firmware or processors. All standard logic parts, with a baud rate generator and a UART. No surprises.
It took me about 16 hours to make a fully digital copy in professional CAD software, ready to turn into a PCB. I havent made the layout yet but it will be trivial for this design.
The process was straightforward but pretty boring. I have an improved process in the works which will greatly reduce the time it takes and make it almost completely automated as far as generating the netlist directly from the PCB traces. The only work left will be to generate the component library from visible markings and online datasheets. 2 layer is definitely doable. 4+ layer would be much more difficult but not impossible depending on the complexity and whats on the inner layers.
The BOM cost for this PCB looks to be about $20 in low quantity. The PCB itself could be made for about $10 each in 5 qty from pcbway.
Given how this board works, I think nearly the entire circuit could be replaced with a microcontroller and a few high voltage translators. I would imagine thats probably true for alot of the electronics in old machines.
Im looking for another PCB challenge now, something machining related, that hasnt been done before, and would be useful to alot of people. So probably another RS232 to tape adapter. But I'd be open to other stuff for sure.
It was made by an out-of-business company in the 90's.
I decided to see if I could make a copy of it given that they are somewhat rare and I know several people who would definitely like one for their old mori.
Its 2 layer and through hole. There are about 50 unique components on it. No firmware or processors. All standard logic parts, with a baud rate generator and a UART. No surprises.
It took me about 16 hours to make a fully digital copy in professional CAD software, ready to turn into a PCB. I havent made the layout yet but it will be trivial for this design.
The process was straightforward but pretty boring. I have an improved process in the works which will greatly reduce the time it takes and make it almost completely automated as far as generating the netlist directly from the PCB traces. The only work left will be to generate the component library from visible markings and online datasheets. 2 layer is definitely doable. 4+ layer would be much more difficult but not impossible depending on the complexity and whats on the inner layers.
The BOM cost for this PCB looks to be about $20 in low quantity. The PCB itself could be made for about $10 each in 5 qty from pcbway.
Given how this board works, I think nearly the entire circuit could be replaced with a microcontroller and a few high voltage translators. I would imagine thats probably true for alot of the electronics in old machines.
Im looking for another PCB challenge now, something machining related, that hasnt been done before, and would be useful to alot of people. So probably another RS232 to tape adapter. But I'd be open to other stuff for sure.