Good morning all,

I wanted to ask something related to breadboard designing.
Is this possible that we can design own breadboard such that when it interact with software, then if you put the leads between the nodes of any electronic component then it can measure the voltage and show that voltage on software(just like when you put multimeter leads in between any component then it can measure the voltage of that component). I want to replace the multimeter with my software.
Please suggest me.

 

Technically, you can - provided you are not handling Very High Voltages / Currents / Frequencies.
All points to be monitored are extended to a bank of "multiplexers" and selection of the "test" point and monitoring (or feeding) is done by software control.
"Module" testers in production lines are such examples.

That aside, if you can be more specific on what you intend to do, there will be more ideas coming by.

 

Hi @Ramussons, Thank you for your prompt and positive response. I am a newbie for this topic.
Actually, the circuit which I usually design on the breadboard, I have to test the current or voltage across component through the multimeter. so, I am just trying to make a prototype board on which if we design the circuit then rather acquiring voltage or current through multimeter, a software will be able to test the voltage.
Yes, The voltage will be 3.3 or 5V only.
Can you please give me more details related to this? If there is any link(example) or document which I should prefer to complete the task please provide me.
Thanks,
Priya

 

Hi Priya. What you are seeking falls under the general heading of a data acquisition unit. These vary in speed, accuracy, what they can measure, measurement point count, computer interface, and especially cost.

They can be as simple as a cable from a digital voltmeter to a USB or serial port (my $40 meter at home has a serial connection) to thousands of dollars running under expensive programs such as LabView.

Try googling "data acquisition unit" and see if anything looks good to you, then come back if you have more questions.

 

Good morning all,

I wanted to ask something related to breadboard designing.
Is this possible that we can design own breadboard such that when it interact with software, then if you put the leads between the nodes of any electronic component then it can measure the voltage and show that voltage on software(just like when you put multimeter leads in between any component then it can measure the voltage of that component). I want to replace the multimeter with my software.
Please suggest me.

I think you have it backwards. Proper engineering design begins with a concept and a block diagram. In electronics one would proceed to the next stage and that is a drawing of a circuit diagram. Next, one may choose to enter the schematic into a circuit simulator which will assist in the design stage and choosing component values.

Only then would one proceed to the breadboarding stage. This provides verification of the design with real-world parameters and influences. From this, the design may require some additional iterations between circuit tweaking, simulation, breadboarding and testing before moving on to a PCB layout, fabrication and assembly.

The bottom line is, nothing can replace the stage of ultimate paramount importance, and that is, test, test and test again.

 

ErnieM gave me the term I forgot "data acquisition"...

This should put you in the right direction.
https://lumen.ni.com/nicif/us/ekitdaqsys/content.xhtml

 

ErnieM gave me the term I forgot "data acquisition"...

This should put you in the right direction.
https://lumen.ni.com/nicif/us/ekitdaqsys/content.xhtml

National Instruments will sell you a solution, but you may be able to buy a house for what it costs. Certainly a car. (And don't start me on their programming language called "LabView".)

 

Another data acquisition option: https://labjack.com/products/u3

I have one and control it using Excel. It's connected to my computer over USB. I like it a lot.

 

This is probably an absurd idea but here it goes:
If you connect every line of connections on a breadboard to a high impedance sensor like an op-amp voltage follower, you might access any two op-amp outputs and thus compare their voltages. This quickly gets into hundreds of op-amps and hundreds of multiplexed inputs. That is why ErnieM is talking about the price of a car to do this.

Yes, it can be done. You could build a Universal Testing Breadboard with every pin monitored by a voltage buffer. The next consideration would be whether you could replace a human (like me) with enough software to check every voltage and decide what to do if it is "wrong". The usual practice is to do some testing in software and only kick the board to me if something is wrong because trying to program for every possible thing that can go wrong seems impossible.

 

Good morning all,

I wanted to ask something related to breadboard designing.
Is this possible that we can design own breadboard such that when it interact with software, then if you put the leads between the nodes of any electronic component then it can measure the voltage and show that voltage on software(just like when you put multimeter leads in between any component then it can measure the voltage of that component). I want to replace the multimeter with my software.
Please suggest me.

Actually rather than replace your multi meter with software you would replace the multi meter with a sensor to be read using some software. My guess is you are supplying power to a breadboard and wish to monitor the voltage and current? Should that be the case I would look for a sensor for current and depending on the current range (you don't mention that) likely choose something like this. I like units like that because they neatly package the sensor in a convenient breakout board. They also output a linear voltage proportional to sensed current. Once a current sensor is figured out I would just use a simple uC (micro-controller) with a few analog inputs, could be as simple as an 8 pin little PICAXE chip or program the uC of your choice. Depending on exactly what you want to measure (how accurate and to what resolution) you really do not need much. A single PICAXE 08M2 would be adequate in most cases. Easy to program and really not much to them. I only use PICAXE as a simple example, any of a dozen plus uC chips would work.

Ron

 

Yes, it can be done. You could build a Universal Testing Breadboard with every pin monitored by a voltage buffer. The next consideration would be whether you could replace a human (like me) with enough software to check every voltage and decide what to do if it is "wrong". The usual practice is to do some testing in software and only kick the board to me if something is wrong because trying to program for every possible thing that can go wrong seems impossible.

Hi @#12, Can you please elaborate more about how to monitor each pin through voltage buffer? I am reading more about this and I'm still not completely getting how to do this? Any thread or document which I should prefer, please suggest me..

 

how to monitor each pin through voltage buffer?

Connect a wire to each place you want to monitor for voltage. Connect the other end of the wire to the non-inverting input pin of an operational amplifier. Connect the amplifier to power supplies both positive and negative. Configure the operational amplifier as a voltage follower by connecting a wire from its output to its inverting input. Connect the output of the amplifier to a multiplex chip. Do that a whole bunch of times. Tell the multiplexer chips which amplifier output you want to measure. The multiplex chip will allow the output of that amplifier to appear on its output. Connect that to an ADC converter and have your microprocessor display the voltage where you want it displayed or compare it to something.