July 12, 2013

Build an Arduino-based 5MSPS oscilloscope

 It's always interesting to see what sorts of test equipment can be created around the Arduino platform, and an oscilloscope is generally one of the most difficult tasks, as most projects are limited to the use of the internat ADCs. However the following example by Bob Davis really takes Arduino-based 'scopes to the next level.

 A lot of effort has been taken with the measurement side - as Bob has used the Intersil CA3306 analogue to digital converted IC, as well as a front-end that allows for user-adjustable gain in hardware. According to Bob, the sampling speed is up to 5 million samples per second. The display is via a common variety TFT LCD, and the results are demonstrated in the following video:


And if you don't have a TFT handy, the measurements could instead be sent to a PC to analyse with processing or simply logged for later analysis. Either way, the hardware and sketch can be found on Bob's website. And for more, we're on twitter and Google+, so follow us for news and product updates as well. 

When your projects outgrow the normal Arduino-compatible boards, running out of program and flash memory space, or you're stacking on Ethernet and microSD shields, or all at once - it's time to upgrade to the Freetronics EtherMega:


Quite simple the EtherMega is the fully-loaded Arduino-compatible board on the market today. Apart from being completely Arduino Mega2560-compatible, it includes full Ethernet interface, a microSD card socket, full USB interface, optional Power-over-Ethernet support and still has a circuit prototyping area with extra I2C interface pins. So if your project is breaking the limits, upgrade to the EtherMega today. 

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