{"id":511,"date":"2015-03-05T03:48:06","date_gmt":"2015-03-05T03:48:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/itp.fromjia.com\/?p=511"},"modified":"2015-03-05T03:53:17","modified_gmt":"2015-03-05T03:53:17","slug":"pcb-milling-with-hacked-roland-modela","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/itp.fromjia.com\/?p=511","title":{"rendered":"PCB milling with hacked Roland Modela"},"content":{"rendered":"

Class was replaced by a Roland milling workshop this week. We used a machine in the PCB lab that was modified by the incredible\u00a0Andy Sigler<\/a>, who conducted my workshop. Andy had created a web interface that allowed us to work with our EAGLE file and control the machine. The setup is very junk-shelf-fabulous and caters to ITPers’ needs specifically. We can print hundreds of our own boards right on the floor! Think of all the madness we can create.<\/p>\n

Here are the steps to PCB milling with our Roland Modela. We used Sam’s bike notification device schematic.<\/p>\n

1. Measure the precise thickness of the board\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

2. Open Nodela (our custom milling web interface) and drag the file on to the program<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"IMG_4815\"<\/a><\/p>\n

3. Tighten the screws around the board\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"IMG_4816\"<\/a><\/p>\n

4. Make sure there are no leftover job on the machine by pressing up and down simultaneously.<\/strong> If the light blinks, press delete job<\/p>\n

5. Screw in the 1\/32 bit and set Z origin<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"rollen\"<\/a><\/p>\n

6. Run the machine. Once the 1\/32 bit is done, replace with the 1\/64 bit and run the machine again<\/strong><\/p>\n

7. Screw in the drill bit and drill any holes in the design<\/strong><\/p>\n

8. Replace the drill bit with a flat drill bit and run the machine to trace the shape of the board<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"rollen2\"<\/a><\/p>\n

9. Vacuum the board<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"IMG_4822<\/a><\/p>\n

10. Almost there! Take the board out, scrape it and clean it up.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

There’s also tutorial on setting up the EAGLE file for the milling machine here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

From etching PCB board with vinegar and acid to milling it with custom crafted machine and web interface, I’ve begin to see making circuit boards as a craft and even an art form. I’m excited for the possibilities that can come out of my new found ability to design and print my own circuits. There are a couple of projects that I’d love to build with custom\u00a0boards. One is a collection\u00a0of wearable Bluetooth devices that would create small mesh networks. I’ll have to figure out what is feasible for the next few weeks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Class was replaced by a Roland milling workshop this week. We used a machine in the PCB lab that was modified by the incredible\u00a0Andy Sigler, who conducted my workshop. Andy had created a web interface that allowed us to work with our EAGLE file and control the machine. The setup is very junk-shelf-fabulous and caters […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-511","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-circuit-design-and-prototype"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/itp.fromjia.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/511","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/itp.fromjia.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/itp.fromjia.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/itp.fromjia.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/itp.fromjia.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=511"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/itp.fromjia.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/511\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":519,"href":"http:\/\/itp.fromjia.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/511\/revisions\/519"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/itp.fromjia.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=511"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/itp.fromjia.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=511"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/itp.fromjia.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=511"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}