I am looking for a easy way for connecting digital inputs, analog inputs, SPI signals and I2C signals to either Hydra or Spider. So far all I seen is modules dedicated to a particular sensor. Where as what is needed is an uncommitted module that lets a user connect signals from user supplied sensors to either Hydra or Spider. Yes, the user would be responsible for making sure the signals are compatible with Hydra or Spider.
My first choice would be to purchase several if they were available from GHI Electronics. Second choice is make my own adapter module.
Welcome to the community. By “uncommitted” do you mean a module to breakout any socket’s pins? If so, check out the Extender module. http://www.ghielectronics.com/catalog/product/273 . There is also an eBlock module, which brings power and ground to each JST connector for each pin.
Shameless pitch - I also have one available for purchase as a kit, but burned through my first batch very quickly. They are currently backordered about a month. http://www.ransomhall.com/Pages/MakeBread.aspx
Yes, by soldering a female header to an Extender Module it will meet approximately 50%
of my requirements. But I still need an uncommitted module with a terminal strip.
Which eBlock module were you referring to when you said “There is also an eBlock module, which brings power and ground to each JST connector for each pin.”.
I am interested in purchasing 2 Make Bread Modules when they are available.
Howard - making your own JST connections is more trouble than it is worth. My suggestion is to buy the male end pre-wired and solder to the wires. It will save you much frustration.
Maybe your vendor is a mind reader but I checked eBay and JST’'s electronic catalog and found a bewildering array of choices. I need more specific information than “These are standard JST connectors/cables”.
Or you could start selling JST connector cables. It looks like it would be the lowest cost way even if it meant cutting off the connector at one end.
That is a good suggestion about cutting a cable with connectors on both ends in half. But instead of looking for a cable with 2 connectors I am going with the cables Sparkfun sells. Time to move on instead of spending more time looking for an optimal solution.
My thanks to all who ave answered my questions and provided a good solution.
I find my self in EXACTLY the same position. I recently “upgraded” from years of Fez Domino programming/use to a fresh new spider kit. It sounds crazy but I’m feeling limited by the massive number of devices that I got with the kit simply because I can’t use the hundreds of digital and analog components that I’ve amassed for 'duino and Domino use. I got two extenders with the idea of breaking them out (I like the design mentioned here as well) but I can’t find the breakout for a given port and honestly I still haven’t wrapped my head around how the ports are switched based on the .gadgeteer diagram. I’m amazed at how quickly I built a web server that takes pictures through the camera, displays them on the screen and saves them to SD, but I’m frustrated by not being able to plug a simple DS18B20 into the thing. That’s something that take seconds on a Domino. I’ll get there once I hit the garage and solder some headers on this extender.
Can anyone tell me if they’ve had good luck with the e-block or seeedstudio Grove breakout? I’m probably more interested in doing something like that rather than breaking out the single cable.
@ jr57k - If you noticed on the support page, there is gadgeteer tutorial section that will be added soon. We realize the need for more info on how to build modules or how to extend the system.
Gus, Thanks for the quick reply as always. BTW, I LOVE the board so no complaints there. I’m making converts everywhere I go! I just miss how simple it was to wire something up. The e-block is out of stock, I guess I could just get a Duino’ Proto and go with that for now.
I’d be happy to write up some tutorials if you’ve got a list you’d like someone to work down. I’ve noticed that with the wiki, tutorials, forum and the code repo it’s getting a little more confusing to find something even though there are some really great examples out there.
The e-block interface was out of stock when I looked. I realize I can do the extender, that’s why I bought two, I just haven’t had the time to solder a header on it yet.
