Saturday 16 August 2014

Altium MultiChannel

Multi-Channel Rules

Just recently I was reading this post on the EEVBlog forum and thought "Ah ha!  I've done this before." Should be easy.  Famous last words.

So after spending a ridiculous amount of time workign out what the missing step was, I thought I'd better capture it for the next time I want to use it.

WHY MULTI-CHANNEL


You use a multi-channel design in Altium when you have multiples of an identical sub-circuit.  QAll you need to do is lay out the one channel, and then you can duplicate the layout by 'Copy Room Formats".  This has saved me a ton of time in the past.

THE PROBLEM

Altium uses a complex naming convention:


Monday 4 August 2014

Multi Channel Meter, Part 2

From Idea to Implementation

What I really love about my hobby projects is that I can develop answers to questions that I can't explore at work.  20kW HF transmitters, Radar Installations all over the world, and Cutting Edge elemental analysers?
No worries.

Digitally Controlled GainIsolated PSU Choices?  Fergedaboudit.

In part 1, I detailed my path from the concept of a multi-channel volt meter, to a working system based on individual modules.  Here I'd like to talk about how I refined the design into my first prototype and then look at where I'm going from there.  Like Art, Engineering is never finished, you just chose a point to stop...