Multiple boards in to one

Thread Starter

Jimmy Falk

Joined Sep 19, 2018
17
Hi fellow members
i have started a project that uses multiple circuit boards connected true hdmi cables and USB port etc and controlled with an raspberry, (it’s a lot of cables.)
now i told my self I was going to try and make all of it in to one board and one power source and skip all the hdmi/usb/power connectors

my question is how do I do this simplest. I’m a newbiein electronics but know my way around.

I was thinking of copying all the boards and add them in to some program so starting to search around the web but I ran flat.

So I trued to start tracing all the boards myself but turned out to be a pain

so anyone with some ideas or can point me in the right pathD1001219-FDB4-48D0-A8B1-0D18277C0378.jpeg
 

Thread Starter

Jimmy Falk

Joined Sep 19, 2018
17
Picture I just the prototyp/project. but all the component that is going to be used.
only thing that is going to change is the raspberry pi.
Which is going to be a zero instead
 

MisterBill2

Joined Jan 23, 2018
18,167
What the pictures show is an overall circuit that is very complex, at least the complexity of a modern computer, possibly even more so. So I suggest first creating a drawing showing each block and the connections to the adjacent blocks, and then creating a functional block diagram.
 

dl324

Joined Mar 30, 2015
16,845
So I trued to start tracing all the boards myself but turned out to be a pain
Reverse engineering the designs may sound okay to you, but that's considered theft in most regions of the world.
so anyone with some ideas or can point me in the right path
Design the modules from scratch and put them in a form that will make assembly easy. Unless you plan to make more copies, what's wrong with your prototype?
raspberry pi
The people who designed the Raspberry Pi expended a lot of effort so we wouldn't have to do the heavy lifting ourselves. The least you could do is learn to spell things correctly. Raspberry, Pi, and Zero should all be capitalized.
 

MisterBill2

Joined Jan 23, 2018
18,167
My suggestion was to first create a drawing showing all the boards and how they are connected to each other. That is not reverse engineering, and anyway, the TS created the system design and thus is the owner of that design. The second step then is to take that drawing and add descriptions of what each block does with each signal that comes in to that block, and what signals are sent out of each block. This step is undoubtedly complicated and will take both time and thinking. At this point the other thing to do is to generate a description of what the whole system delivers to the outside, based on whatever inputs it gets. The purpose of all this documentation is to be able to create a simpler block diagram that delivers all of the same outputs for the same inputs. There may be several stages in this simplification, with the goal being to create a much simpler design.
At that point none of the original boards will be copied at all. Some might be used in the new system, but probably not. The original boards would not be copied, only portions of their functions would be duplicated.
So the final choice will be between designing and building a new board or using a purchased board and a control program to deliver the required functionality. Nothing copied except the engineers creative design.

And it would be interesting o get an expanation of what that extended assembly of boards does presently.
 

Thread Starter

Jimmy Falk

Joined Sep 19, 2018
17
Thanks for all the feedback.

Merging boards is a lot more difficult than making a "backplane" that all broads can plug into. Why not go the backplane route?
I’m thinking backplate as well and have started to and started to sketch on one.
The people who designed the Raspberry Pi expended a lot of effort so we wouldn't have to do the heavy lifting ourselves. The least you could do is learn to spell things correctly. Raspberry, Pi, and Zero should all be capitalized.
Reverse engineering the designs may sound okay to you, but that's considered theft in most regions of the world.
A: I’m not planing to steal anything just trying to make it more compact
And
B: dident know this was a correction spelling forum.

What the pictures show is an overall circuit that is very complex, at least the complexity of a modern computer, possibly even more so. So I suggest first creating a drawing showing each block and the connections to the adjacent blocks, and then creating a functional block diagram.
going do add some drawings and explanation when I get back home.
 

jpanhalt

Joined Jan 18, 2008
11,087
So you seem to have pushed back on every suggestion.
Jimmy Falk said:
my question is how do I do this simplest. I’m a newbiein electronics but know my way around.

I was thinking of copying all the boards and add them in to some program so starting to search around the web but I ran flat.
So I trued to start tracing all the boards myself but turned out to be a pain
You asked the simplest way. That's to use a backplane. You already determined that a single combined board will be a "pain." Are there options? Sure, pay someone to do it for you or buy something already made.
 

Thread Starter

Jimmy Falk

Joined Sep 19, 2018
17
So you seem to have pushed back on every suggestion.


You asked the simplest way. That's to use a backplane. You already determined that a single combined board will be a "pain." Are there options? Sure, pay someone to do it for you or buy something already made.
i did followed your suggestion so im looking in to the backplane route to Plug all the stuff in to.
And in going to look in to the rest of the suggestions aswell and see what is available for me to use with my skill.
 

MisterBill2

Joined Jan 23, 2018
18,167
I see at least 11 multi-pin connectors and quite a few power connections and several discreet wires to terminals. And consider that every HDMI connector has 21 pins, or some number close to that. Creating a backplane will be rather demanding since there would be quite a bit of very fine line connections that carry analog signals at high frequencies, subject to noise pickup. I see at least 3 HDMI inputs at the one end and a composite video connector at the opposite end, and so this setup has to do with video. I am guessing that stereo audio is also involved.
So one option to make it more compact is to be able to produce cables just the length that you need. That could be a lot simpler than creating a back-plane board, and it would cost no more because the number of connectors would be the same. The advantage is it would make replacing any single board much easier.
Can the TS tell us what this assembly does?
 

dl324

Joined Mar 30, 2015
16,845
A: I’m not planing to steal anything just trying to make it more compact
And
If you copy someone's design, you're taking advantage of their work and depriving them of the revenue they would have received if you bought another. Unless it's open source, which I doubt, or you have permission from the relevant content owners to copy, it's stealing.
B: dident know this was a correction spelling forum.
In electronics, incorrect capitalization can make a huge difference. The difference between 1mW and 1MW is 9 orders of magnitude.

My first calculus professor took points for bad grammar. In my case, it was using 'the' when I should have used 'a'.

Not capitalizing proper nouns is just bad grammar. Whether you like it or not, everyone reading what you post is likely critiquing your grammar.
 

Thread Starter

Jimmy Falk

Joined Sep 19, 2018
17
My first calculus professor took points for bad grammar. In my case, it was using 'the' when I should have used 'a'.
Point taken but I’m struggling with two other factor to I’m dyslexic and English is not my native language.

Working on the drawing and the information ask for and my intentions was not to copy more to make something with all modules combined how ever maybe it was wrong to ask in this forum since I got/get flamed for almost everything about it.
 

dl324

Joined Mar 30, 2015
16,845
Working on the drawing and the information ask for and my intentions was not to copy more to make something with all modules combined how ever maybe it was wrong to ask in this forum since I got/get flamed for almost everything about it.
Asking for ideas or help is why this site exists. Asking for help to do anything illegal or unsafe violates the user agreement.

It would be helpful if you drew out a block diagram of how you have the modules connected and, if only part of the functionality is being used, what it is from each module that you're using.

Any modules that have microcontrollers will have to be used as is. That's how the manufacturers intended for the modules to be used. Things that are designed to only be used with Raspberry Pi would have used the standard header pinout so you could stack them.
 

Thread Starter

Jimmy Falk

Joined Sep 19, 2018
17
Here is the sketch is hand drawn since I don’t have any fance programs to do it in.
The project is a multi source ambilight system that is set up with my 90inch projector screen with 140 leds
with 5 sources connected and two out puts one to the projector and one to the ambilight system

the relay is used as a power on for the system using the projectors 12v trigger signal that is uselly used for screen motors

257F480D-A6B6-4ECC-870A-B2A922ECE6B7.jpeg
 

Thread Starter

Jimmy Falk

Joined Sep 19, 2018
17
Let’s hope I dident make it even more confussing now. There is also a relay to cut power to the leds when system is off but I added it out since i dident think it was nessisary for this
 

MisterBill2

Joined Jan 23, 2018
18,167
I am thinking that part of it is a video frame grabber, and that the input is two HDMI ports. But then it does get confusing because of there being a video source in the middle of everything . So now that we see the blocks some description of what it does would help. What does the HDMI converter convert it to?
 

Thread Starter

Jimmy Falk

Joined Sep 19, 2018
17
Well the source (Ps4,Computer,Switch,Reciver) is connected true HDMI ports to the HDMI Switch inputs,
The Switch is connected with HDMI to a HDMI splitter.
Which send one HDMI output to my projector and the other HDMI output to a HDMI To Cvbs converter.
which is connected to a video frame grabber
That turns the video frame in to picture and sends in to the Raspberry Pi.
The Pi translate the picture in to colours for which the leds should use around the canvas screen

Everything is powered by 5v which is connected true a 12v relay that close the 5v circuit when the projector is on and opens it when it’s off (on/off switch)
 
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MisterBill2

Joined Jan 23, 2018
18,167
OK, now it is clearer just what is being done. Quite a bit, really. One more question is what controls which HDMI input is selected? Is that a function that depends on which input is active, or is it done manually? That matters quite a bit.
 

Thread Starter

Jimmy Falk

Joined Sep 19, 2018
17
When you turn a source on it changes to that HDMI port. Put can be change manually with a remote or a button on the switch. So all source can be on att the same time but the switch choose the port that is turned on last
 

Thread Starter

Jimmy Falk

Joined Sep 19, 2018
17
So my general idea is was to remove all the connections between modules (all HDMI ports etc) or make one board that does it all but seams like an hard thing to do
 
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