AYUCR
Camera Controller
Assembly Instructions

Building and Testing the Camera Controller

To assemble the Camera Controller you will need the following tools

• Soldering iron (15 or 20 watt)
• Solder
• Small pliers
• Wire cutters
• Alcohol and a toothbrush to clean solder residue
• Masking tape to hold some parts in place while soldering
• 12 Volt N-size battery. Radio shack sells these as "remote control" batteries
• Patience!

Tips

• Read all instructions first and make sure you understand what each step is asking you to do.
• Work slowly and test fit each part before you solder to make sure it's placement is correct.
• Solder all parts from the back side of the board.
• Certain parts have polarity and will not work if inserted backwards. Make sure you can itentify the orientation marks of these parts and insert them correctly.
• Flux residue from soldering can contaminate the board and prevent it from working properly. Clean off solder residue with alcohol and a soft tooth brush as you go. Once the board is fully populated cleaning it may be more difficult.
• Check solder joints from both sides to ensure a good joint. Don't use too much solder. Solder joints should be concave like fin fillets.

Part I

In this part of the assembly you will first build the minimal circuit. This won't do much, just flash the LED, but it helps to diagnose certain building errors early when they can be easily fixed. Take your time and test fit each part to make sure you are inserting it in the correct holes.

	Step 1: Identify all of the parts using the parts list above for reference.
	Step 2: Identify the top side of the board. It should say "AYUCR Camera Controller" Solder the 8 pin socket (not the chip itself) in the position indicated. The notch at the end of the socket should be oriented so its facing up with the square pad (pin 1) in the upper left.
	Step 3: Bend the leads of the LED as shown. The lefthand lead is the cathode and corresponds to the flat spot on the LED. The idea here is the LED will be mounted on a right angle to the circuit board. If the board is mounted with the board perpendicular to the outside of the airframe then the LED will shine out the hole for arming switch access. This step is optional.
	Step 4: Solder the LED in place as shown. Make sure you observe polarity and solder the cathode (flat spot on LED) to the square pad. Clip the leads flush with the board.
	Step 5: Solder a 470 Ohm (Yellow Violet Brown) in the location indicated. Stop here and check your work. It is a good idea to clean up solder and flux residue as you go. Too much flux residue can make the circuit behave eratically or not at all.
	Step 6: Solder the voltage regulator in place as indicated. The flat side faces down.
	Step 7: Solder the 2 pin header in place near the lower edge of the board. Since this part will undergo the stress of placing and removing the power jumper make sure you make a strong solder connection.
	Step 8: Solder the two battery clips to the board facing each other. The battery will be inserted between them. Again, make sure these solder joints are strong. This will require more solder than the olther solder joints. The hole in the board should be completely filled.
	Step 9: Add two 10K ohm (Brown Black Orange) pullup resistors as shown.

Testing and Toubleshooting

Once you have gotten this far you should be able to test the circuit. Make sure there is no flux residue left on the board. It is a good idea to test the PIC socket using a multimeter before inserting the PIC. Place a fresh 12V battery in the battery holder with the positive side up. Power the cicuit on by placing the red power jumper on the power header. Using the minus side of the battery as your ground Pin 1 of the socket (upper left) should have +5V and pin 8 (upper right) should have 0V. If not recheck all of your work before proceeding.

Turn the power off by pulling the red jumper. Insert the PIC processor in its socket with the notch on the chip oriented up. The notch on the socket should coincide. Power up the unit again. The Camera Controller LED should blink slowly indicating the unit is powered up in standby mode.

If the LED does not light or the LED lights but stays lit remove power and debug the circuit

• Double check all your connections as well as check for flux residue.

• Check the output of the voltage regulator (pin 1) This should be 5V.

• Check the voltage across the LED. It should fluctuate from zero to +1.6V If you see the voltage fluctuation the LED may be reversed.

• Check that the battery voltage is at least 6V.

Part II

Time to finish the circuit. Remove the battery from the battery holder before continuing. Follow the remaining directions to complete the Camera Controller.

	Step 10: Solder the 0.1uF decoupling capacitor in place as shown. Some capacitors have polarity. If there is a plus sign marking one pin this goes on the left.
	Step 11: Solder the 6-pin relay in place with the dot or notch facing up. Solder one 2.2K Ohm (Red Red Red) resistor in place as shown.
	Step 12: Solder the two serial port resistors in place as shown. The 100K Ohm (Brown Black Yellow) resistor in the lefthand set of holes and the 2.2K ohm (Red Red Red) resistor in the righthand set of holes.
	Step 13: Solder the 3 pin serial connector and the 4 pin shutter/power connector in place as shown. The solder joints should be strong to withstand the stress of plugging and unplugging the connectors.
	Step 14: Solder the arming switch in place. Use strong solder joints on all five pins.
	Step 15: Solder the acceleration switch in place. The flange should face aft. If the acceleration switch is soldered in backwards it won't sense liftoff.
	Step 16: Identify the negative lead of the 470uF backup capacitor. It is the shorter of the two. Bend bothe leads over at a right angle and solder the capacitor in place where indicated in the photo. The negative lead goes on the left. The capacitor will be lying down to give it a lower profile.
	Done!

Optional steps

The following steps are optional. You can implement either or both as you see fit

User Mode Header: If you will not be using the serial port to program the controller you may add a 2 pin header where shown. This can be used to connect a momentary contact button to enter and navigate User Mode.

The 4 pin connector and crimp pins provided are for making a cable to interface with your camera. Using pliers crimp the little pads on the pins around the insulation and exposed conductor on the wire then insert the crimp pins in the cable header provided.

You should now test the parts of the circuit you added in part II. Power up the timer by placing the red jumper on the power header pins. Make sure the arming switch is up (standby mode) The LED should blink slowly, about once every two seconds. Arm the timer by sliding the arming switch down. The LED should now blink faster. Disarm the controller. To test the serial port see the instructions for using the programming software.

Good work! Make sure you understand how the timer works and it is tested and trimmed prior to your first flight.

See the Articles section of the website to find instructions on assembling a cable to interface the Camera Controller with a PC or Palm.