Personal tasks of this week:
Task: Finalize circuit design and layout
Definition: Finalize the design of the circuit and the selection of all its components. With Andrew, complete the schematic and layout of the PCB in Altium Designer.
Completion: The task is partially completed. We’ve finished the schematics and made significant progress in layout. Many problems in the circuit were identified and resolved, including insufficient tuning accuracy of some trimming potentiometers, as well as OpAmp oscillations due to parasitic capacitances. However, the PCB layout is not yet finished and ready to be ordered.
Next Steps:
My next step is to continue working on the PCB with Andrew. In addition, I will work on digital interface testing with Alvin, so the software running on the Raspberry Pi can interact with the analog circuit as soon as the PCB is manufactured.
Overall progress assessment:
My progress is somewhat behind schedule, because the PCB is not yet ready to be ordered.
Learning to use new tools:
A new tool I had to learn was LTSpice, which is a circuit simulation software designed for transient as well as frequency-domain circuit analysis. I learned how to use it though reading the official documentation as well as trail and error. Andrew also offered a lot of help since he learned to use LTSpice earlier than I did.