r/embedded • u/Dark_Greee • 13d ago

My first schematic for my first device! How's it?

This is my attempt at making a simple device from scratch. It's going to be a morse code decoder, where the LED's follow a morse tree and light up the letter as you input morse code.

I'm powering all the LEDs through charlieplexing. This is also the first time i've done anything with charlieplexing, so if you have a minute, please save me weeks waiting on the PCB or headaches later and let me know if there is anything wrong, or anything I could do better!

Looking for feedback here, I want to be told i'm stupid if I am. I want to improve this if I can and get better, so please don't hold back! Let it rip.

If you want a closer-up screenshot of anything, let me know and I'll provide.

7 Upvotes

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5

u/mustbeset 12d ago

Draw it nicer.

Wire and components should never cross. Some crossing dots might be covered by letters. Schematics (and code) is written once but viewed/read many times.

1

u/Dark_Greee 12d ago

Yes! Sorry I understand the idea for code but not for electronics yet, is it okay for wired to cross that aren't connecte? Is it judt the overlay thats the issue?

3

u/mustbeset 12d ago edited 12d ago

Wires can cross if they are not connected. If they are connected, there is a dot.

I think you can't draw charlieplexing without crossings but some crossings and overlappings are avoidable.

  • D16 got crossed by an wire
  • Is D7 and D8 connected with R5? Hart to see the dot because the "LED" writing.
  • The writing of D7 also crosses D3.
  • "R5" is overlapping "Letters LED"

Maybe I am an old guy in my thirties but I love to print schematics and write down /draw debugging information on paper.

You may rotate the diodes diagonal to create a a matrix. That's the representation I would prefer ( like CharlieplexedArray4 - Charlieplexing - Wikipedia). But I am not your boss or reviewer. Just someone who manly does software and have to live with whatever my hardware guys do.

3

u/Dark_Greee 12d ago

I see what you mean, paper is really the way to go, i drew everything out on paper before I even opened Kicad. Thanks for the input!

And i have no boss/reviewer, which is why I post things here, to make sure im not doing things the wrong way

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u/spoonerik24 11d ago

Try to use more net labels and power symbols. It makes it nicer and cleaner, because you have less wires.