HardLabs

Swarm-B2

paulodowd·Swarm-B2·pcb/Swarm-B_20230626.kicad_pcb

Swarm-B2 PCB layout, top view — open source AVR/Arduino board by paulodowd

About the Swarm-B2 PCB

Swarm-B2 is an open source AVR/Arduino PCB design by paulodowd, published on GitHub under the GPL-3.0 license. It is a 2-layer board measuring 81.7 × 72.1 mm, with 32 components from 18 distinct parts.

Its main chip is the Arduino_Nano_v3.x, from the AVR/Arduino family. Other key parts include the 74LS32 and TSDP34138. By type, the board carries 9 connectors, 8 diodes, 7 resistors, 5 ICs and 1 module.

It belongs with the robotics & motion designs in this gallery.

From the project

IR Communication board for Pololu 3Pi+ robots that also accommodates an M5 Stack Core2

The board functions as an i2c device, so it should be relatively easy to integrate into other projects using 5v, ground, SCK and SDA connections. The board can communicate with other SwarmB2 boards up to about 2.5m max, or down to less than a centimetre. The firmware for the board has been written with the intention that all (or most) configuration parameters can be set at runtime, so reprogramming firmware shouldn't be necessary.

Swarm-B2, from the project README
From the project README

Main components on the Swarm-B2

74LS32TSDP34138Arduino_Nano_v3.x

Swarm-B2 bill of materials (BOM)

32 components, 18 distinct parts — part numbers from the project's BOM.

QtyPartRefs
1
74LS32
U1
4
TSDP34138
U2, U3, U4, U5
1
Arduino_Nano_v3.x
A1
1
5v_3Pi
J1
1
GND_3Pi
J2
1
RX_Break
J3
1
Conn_02x15_Top_Bottom
J4
1
I2C_3Pi
J5
1
3PI_SWTCH
J6
1
I2C_Exp
J7
1
ProxA
J8
1
ProxB
J9
1
Bttn
PWR1
1
1K_Pot_IRLED
VR1
8
IR_LED
D1, D2, D3, D4, D5, D6, D7, D8
1
15R_IRLED
R1
3
LDR
R2, R3, R6
3
10K_LDR
R4, R5, R7

Swarm-B2 design files

The KiCad project lives in the paulodowd/Swarm-B2 repository on GitHub; these links point at the commit this page was built from.

Swarm-B2: common questions

What microcontroller does the Swarm-B2 use?

The Swarm-B2 is built around the Arduino_Nano_v3.x, from the AVR/Arduino family.

How big is the Swarm-B2 PCB?

The Swarm-B2 measures 81.7 × 72.1 mm, has 2 copper layers and is 1.6 mm thick.

How many components are on the Swarm-B2?

32 components, from 18 distinct parts, with part numbers taken from the project's own BOM. The full bill of materials is listed on this page.

Where can I download the Swarm-B2 design files?

From the paulodowd/Swarm-B2 repository on GitHub, which has the KiCad layout, the schematic and the BOM; the links under Design files point to each one.

Can I use the Swarm-B2 design in my own project?

Yes, under the terms of its GPL-3.0 license, which paulodowd chose for the repository.

Can I test firmware for the Swarm-B2 without the hardware?

Yes. HardLabs builds a simulation of the board from its netlist and BOM, so you can run and debug AVR/Arduino firmware against it before you order a PCB.

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