Once you have your PCB, the next step is to place the "pogo pins".
What are these pogo pins anyway?
Pogo pins are basically spring-loaded metal sticks. They are used to test specific pins on each board.
The pogo pins in this guide are about 0.5" long and have a spear point. They also fit snugly into 'standard' 0.035" (0.9mm) drill holes so they are easy to insert and stand up straight. We carry these pogo pins in the Adafruit shop! They're called "P75-LM" type, you can also pick them up on ebay. If you're buidling something that will be used for a long time it's probably a good idea to use socket holders.
Use tweezers to push pogo pins into the designated holes in the board. |
The pogo pins may be skewed all over the place at this point. That's ok, we're going to fix it!
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Screw down board that will be tested |
Straighten pins |
Repeat this process for all pogo pins
Examine your work. Pins should all now be straight! |
Solder on resistor. |
For comfort, you may want to switch the position of your PCB to a stand.
Install LED, making sure it's oriented correctly (longer leg is the anode).
Clip off any excess from the LED with snips. |
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Solder piezo buzzer into place.
These little buzzers are great for adding an auditory element to any test procedure. |
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Solder in reset button.
This button is a handy way to re-start a test. |
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Give it some rubber booties! These little adhesive rubber feet will prevent your tester from slip-sliding all over the place while you're trying to use it. |
Load your test program onto your Metro board (shown here using TinyUSB). You're now ready to start testing! |