Hey guys and how you doing!

So this is the EREN YEAGER PCB ART or a Blinky Board which is based around 555 Timer IC.

On the TOP side, I've added a custom silkscreen layer that consists of a BMP image of EREN YEAGER Titan form.

For those of you who have no idea who or what EREN YEAGER is, well let's just say he's one very disturbed lad from a fictional show called "AOT or Attack on titan"

I made this setup as a soldering challenge kit, We solder all the SMD components with a soldering iron and the end result will be a complete Bi-Flasher working circuit which is themed after our beloved hero turned antagonist EREN YEAGER.

In this post, I'm gonna show you guys how you can solder this kit in a few easy steps along with a few soldering tips and tricks.

Material Required

• Eren Yeager PCB
• 555 timer IC
• 10K Resistor
• Coin cell holder
• CR2032 Coin cell
• 22uf Capacitor
• Slide Switch
• RED 0805 LEDs

Basic Idea and Design Process

The goal for making this Soldering Kit was to make an easy yet fun to assemble soldering kit that anyone can assemble and learn a few things about electronics in general.

My whole approach here was minimalism, I could use a Microcontroller to drive the onboard LEDs but I choose the 555 Bi Flasher setup as it was proper old school electronics and requires few components.

I first prepare the schematic for the project which was this-

The main component here is the Mightly 555 timer ic which is set up in a Bi Flasher Mode. This means at the output Pin, two LEDs are connected in such a way that when a positive signal gets out of Pin 3 this will make LED 2 Glow and LED 1 will remain LOW, and when the positive signals don't get out of Pin 3 LED 2 will become LOW and LED1 will start glowing.

Bi Flasher constantly turns Both LEDs ON and OFF by repetitive biasing of both LEDs through pin 3.

The flashing rate can be controlled by changing the value of the capacitor connected between Pin 2 and GND. right now I'm using a 22uf 16V capacitor but if we use a 10uf capacitor, the flash rate will increase.

EREN YEAGER Silkscreen

After preparing the schematic, I move on to the PCB Making Part.

The main aspect of this Board was the custom EREN YEAGER image, I first search around for a black and white image of a close-up shot of EREN YEAGER NEW FORM.

To import it into my OrCad PCB Suite, I had to convert it from JPEG to BMP as my PCB SUITE only imports images from BMP format.

I then imported the image in my PCB DESIGN and place all the components in the opposite layer which was the bottom layer.

EREN YEAGER image will be on the TOP layer and all the components will be placed from the bottom layer.

After placing everything and finalizing the board, I send its Gerber data to PCBWAY for samples.

Getting PCBs from PCBWAY

I used PCBWAY PCB Service for this project. I uploaded the Gerber file of this project on PCBWAY's quote page. For this PCB ART BOARD, I went with White Soldermask and Black silkscreen.

After placing the order, I received the PCBs in a week and the PCB quality was pretty great, the silkscreen I used is completely random and asymmetrical so it's pretty hard to make but they did an awesome job of making this PCB with no error whatsoever.

You guys can check out PCBWAY if you want Great PCB Service at an Affordable rate and low price.

Soldering Process

After Receiving the board, all that was left to do was the soldering process that includes a few steps.

Now, this board contains SMD components and for soldering them, I prefer the Solder paste and Hotplate Reflow process but for this build, I will use a normal soldering iron.

Because this is a soldering kit, most people will use a normal soldering iron, not some fancy method.

#1 ADDING SOLDER TO ONE SIDE FIRST

• First set up your soldering station with an Iron Tip Temp of 316°- 343°C.
• We start by adding solder to each component pad first, just on one side

#2 ADDING IC & RESISTORS

• We now add the timer IC in its place and all the 10K Resistors by picking them up with a tweezer and heating up the solder we added on one side of the board
• this will hold the component from one side, we then later add solder to the other side of the component

#3 COIN CELL HOLDER

• Now we place the coin cell holder in its place by lifting it up with a tweezer and placing it on its assigned pad in right polarity, then heating the one side of its pad to solder it from one side. then we apply solder to its other pad.

#4 ADDING LEDs

• Now we add LEDs in its place.
• Here's a little twist, I've placed a custom LED Pad that has a hole in the middle.
• We place LED Upside down and its glow will be visible from TOPSIDE.
• The soldering process for these LEDs is also the same but a little tricky, we place LEDs upside down in right polarity, then hold the LED with a tweezer and then add solder paste to one side. then after the LEDs are locked in their place, we add solder to another pad which permanently attaches the LED to the given Pad.

#5 ADDING SLIDE SWITCH

• Now we add a slide switch from the BOTTOM side of the board, its pad will be soldered from the topside.

#6 ADDING CAPACITOR

• At last, we add 22uf Capacitor to its place, now I've removed the general holes that are required for soldering THT Capacitor, instead, I've added pads.
• we add a capacitor to these pads from the BOTTOM SIDE of the board.
• This was the soldering process and the badge is completed.

RESULT

For powering this badge, we have to add a CP2032 Lithium Coin cell in its holder and turn on the switch. Both LEDs will start flickering in a chasing sequence, the first led will glow and the second will stay low, then the second led will turn HIGH and the first led will turn LOW, and this process will get repeated over and over.

I've made similar projects with this same circuit which are these-

https://www.hackster.io/Arnov_Sharma_makes/c-3po-blinky-board-80662b

https://www.hackster.io/418992/yet-another-badge-a-ghost-badge-made-from-555-timer-ic-92dfbf

This is it for today folks, Leave a comment if you need any help.

Peace out and have a nice day!

TATAKAE!