R.I.P. DC-16

[JonnyMac]

Well, friends, the DC-16 is dead -- as a product, anyway.  One of our customers, a mouse-friendly operation that has a few theme parks around the world, bought up the rest of our stock.  This came a little unexpectedly, and a little sooner than we planned as the replacement for the DC-16 is not in the manufacturing process yet.

What's replacing the DC-16? you ask.  The HC-8ss.  The HC is for "high current."  We're switching from the ULN2803 to TIP120s (big ol' Darlington transistors) on each output, and we're going with high-side drive (output "on" is V+, common is ground).  The reason for the current is obvious; this board with be able to switch up to 2 amps per channel (board limit will not be 16, it will probably be in the neighborhood of eight -- has to do with connectors and copper traces).

In a nutshell:
-- 8 high-current, high-side (positive) outputs
-- 8 independent TTL inputs
-- built in RS-485 for networking (DMX, ModBus, Renard, etc.)
-- standard EFX-TEK TTL serial connection/configuration (Baud, A1, A0)
-- two terminals (OUTx, GND) per channel simplifies wiring.
-- end-user reprogrammable

Even cooler: the HC-8ss is our second product that uses the Propeller microcontroller from our pals at Parallax.  If one brain is good, eight is better, right?  You bet.  The DC-16 was a digital-only device.  The default version of the HC-8 will, technically, be DC dimmer (great for LEDs, and the high-side drive will work with common-cathode RGB LED modules).  You can, of course, digitally set an input to full off or full on, but you'll also be able to set it to a brightness level with 256 steps (0 is a level).  The power of the Propeller chip lets us do this with ease.

The HC-8 will have a built in programming port so you can reconfigure the board to do anything you want (you'll need a Parallax Prop-Clip and the Propeller Tool IDE); add features, turn it into something else, your call -- we are deliberately making this product "hacker friendly."

No release date is set.  As you can imagine, we're quite busy at the moment but are doing our best to move the process along faster as the DC-16 inventory was consumed faster than we expected.

[bsnut]

The mouse with big pockets buys the rest of DC16. So, how many did the mouse buy? I see there is no photos of the new baby, because of it is not out of production process. I will love to see the new bouncing baby that is the HC8.

[JonnyMac]

All I can say is that they've been using them in pretty big #s for the last couple years and bought the rest.  We've had discussions with them vis-a-vis the HC-8 (since there are no more DC-16s for them to buy) and they're quite excited.  We hope everyone is -- I think it could be one of our coolest products to date, and when mated with the AP-16+ is going to really rock with control and sound.

The deliberately "hacker friendly" elements of the HC-8ss are going to provide good times for a lot of creative people.

[nathand.]

Hello,
Just wondering if there were any updates on the HC-8.  Still any chance of it being released this winter?  I've got some projects coming up and from the sounds of it, the HC-8 would be perfect.  Hopefully the timing will work out.  Thanks.

[JonnyMac]

The next time we make an announcement it will be a public viewing -- no time for talk, we're working hard to get it done and even more flexible than we originally envisioned.

[JonnyMac]

Here's an image (with notes) of the first prototype HC-8+.  We have a couple small changes to make, but otherwise, we're really close.

[bsnut]

It looks realy cool Jon you and John out did yourselfs agian. I see the baby is born that is the HC-8 ;D. Did you both give yourselfs a ciger for the birth of the HC-8 ;D?

[leving]

Is there a chance we may see the new HC-8 and others at HauntCon in Louisville?

[JonnyMac]

We can show you the prototype but we won't have the final product until MHC.  We've also made some minor updates to the EZ-3micro and will be rolling it into production very soon.

[bsnut]

I was wondering Jon. Can you shead some light on the Option header and what it can be used for?

[JonnyMac]

Well, on example we'll show off is attaching a microSD socket to the board.  We have other ideas, too.

[bsnut]

From what I understand from your idea, these pins go straight to the propeller, is this correct? What is the voltage at this header?

[JonnyMac]

The pins are pulled up to 3.3v and do go to the Propeller.  The OPTION switch can ground these pins (when using the option inputs for other things you must open all OPTION switches).  On the production board we provide 5v, 3.3v, the pins, and ground.

[bsnut]

On the production board can some pins be set for 5v and another pins set for 3.3v or they need to be set for one voltage (5 or 3.3) for all the pins? 

[JonnyMac]

The new header is 8 pins:

5v
3.3v
BIT3
BIT2
BIT1
BTI0
Gnd
Gnd

I have to check with JB on the position of the 5v and 3.3v, but I think I'm correct as I was with him in his office when we made adjustments to the board (my prototype only has the 6-pin header).

If by your question you want to interface 5v devices to the 3.3v Propeller this is not a problem: simply insert a 3.3K (or higher) resistor in series with the pin; this will limit the current through the pin protection diodes to a safe level.  We do this all the time.  In fact, on the HC-8+ we use 5v for the 74HC165 shift registers (which take inputs from the TTL header array) and for the RS-485 circuitry.  We have 3.3K resistors on the input pins to the Propeller to protect them.  If you look very closely you'll see a small resistor just to the right of the center left mounting hole; this is the 3.3K resistor that is feeding the bits from the shift registers to the Propeller.  

Note that you only need the resistor on INPUT pins, or pins that will serve dual purpose.  For example, a friend who works for a large amusement part asked me about adding analog inputs to the HC-8+; I will do this by connecting the MCP320x series (12-bit) ADC to the board through the option header.