Thermocouple.

[hamster]

I've hooked up an Adafruit thermocouple amp to an old FPGA - going to turn it into a controller so I can use a toaster-oven for SMD reflow.

 

http://hamsterworks.co.nz/mediawiki/index.php/Thermocouple_demo

 

The SPI interface is a bit quick and dirty job - a few magic numbers everywhere, but pretty compact. Might add a UART to it so the data can be logged.

 

The ADC board used is http://www.adafruit.com/products/269

 

 

[alex]

This of course begs the question, what are you reflowing? I'd be quite interested in that, there's not enough hardware talk in here. I've been thinking that my next hardware project (whatever that is) I'll be using 0402 parts, down from 0603 which I've mastered even with hand soldering.

[hamster]

I am getting a toaster oven for Christmas.

 

I want to do a project which requires me to supply something that is not already in production, The easiest way to do this is to bundle in a custom wing with a made-to-spec Papilio,

 

Seeed can knock me up some bare PCBs, and I am sure I can reflow LEDs and 0603 resistors and a few push buttons. I also like the look of Seeed's Open Parts Library....

[Jack Gassett]

hamster,

 

I don't recommend the toaster oven method, the skillet/pancake griddle method is much more effective.

 

With toaster oven you can't really see what is going on, when all parts have reflowed, and you can't nudge things into place.

 

With a $20 pancake griddle you don't need any controllers because you can just watch and see when the solder melts, then you can use a dental pick to nudge any components into place that were not sitting right.

 

I used the pancake griddle technique with great success to get Gadget Factory off the ground and built several hundred Papilio and OpenBench Logic Sniffers that way. I also build all my prototypes that way. Highly recommended.

 

Jack.