I have developed most of the software and the circuits for an industrial spirits still based on the Arduino Mega 2560. I know I should have used a PLC, but it is what it is.
Now I am faced with mounting the Arduino and connecting it to the circuitry. My first thought was ribbon cables with male connectors on one end that would plug into the
female connectors on the Arduino. I could solder the other ends to pads on the one or more circuit boards that support the surrounding circuitry. It looks like I would need one 36 pin double row connector,
three 8 pin one row connectors and two one row 6 pin connectors. Does anyone have a suggestion for where to find such quality connectors (with attached ribbon cable if available)?
Another thought is to make a motherboard with male connector pins aligned to receive the Arduino connectors when it is turned upside down and pressed into place. The mother board could contain some of the surrounding circuitry (e.g. power supplies)
and connect to other supporting circuit boards. The alignment of all the pins sounds like it might be tough and perhaps not worth the risk of trying.
Does anyone have ideas that I should consider and sources for Arduino connectors?
What is a good source for connectors to associated circuitry. This Arduino will be mounted in an industrial cabinet, so I am looking for something that is reliable.
I was hoping to find ribbon cables connected to or connectable to the following:
36 pin double row male connector;
8 pin one row male connector
6 pin one row male connector.
I would solder the other end of the ribbon cable to supporting printed circuit boards.
Or, if someone has a better way to connect an Arduino to surrounding circuits in an industrial application, I would love to hear about it.
Just buy the appropriate headers. If you don't need to stack then just use standard male headers oriented downwards to plug into the Mega's female headers.
Thanks for the suggestion tack. I just ordered one to try it out.
I am thinking I will mount this prototype board to the mother board containing the supporting circuits. Then I turn the Arduino over and "plug" it in.
oldradio:
Thanks for the suggestion tack. I just ordered one to try it out.
I am thinking I will mount this prototype board to the mother board containing the supporting circuits. Then I turn the Arduino over and "plug" it in.
Absolutely. Or, if you are designing the motherboard, just add male headers directly to the motherboard, with the correct footprint, to plug the Arduino into.