Trilobot breakout garden connectors

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1

I’m finally getting round to building a Trilobot kit I bought about two years ago. I recently bought some breakout garden sockets and a 8x8 TOF array in the sale.

I was going to solder all the breakout garden sockets onto the top of the board before i started, but I have a couple of issues:

  1. The pins in the breakout garden sockets aren’t long enough. There are four plastic nubs, one on each corner of the socket which prevent it from sitting flush with the Trilobot board. Is it just a case of cutting these off?

  2. Presumably if I solder on the front socket, I have to permanently remove the Trilobot’s ultrasonic sensor?

  3. Other than the above, is there any disadvantage to soldering the breakout sockets on before I build it?

Thanks,
Neil

2

If you look at any of their Breakout Garden boards, the pins on the sockets actually don’t poke out through the bottom (e.g. look at the underside photo of the Pi HAT).

Not sure about the other questions, I don’t have a trilobot. Do the breakouts definitely get in the way of the ultrasonic sensor?

3

Thanks, Shoe.

The front breakout solder pads are directly below the “eyes” of the ultrasonic sensor, and there isn’t enough clearance for the socket.

I’m also wondering how you’d solder the socket on if the pins don’t protrude slightly from the bottom of the board…

4

I have carefully cut those nubs off of the socket. They will still solder in if you don’t, you just end up with a very flush solder connection, no pin tip showing. I personally don’t trust that i have a good solder joint that way. I like to heat the pin up when I solder something. That’s not so easy when its hidden just out of reach.
I would test each breakout separately before you solder them to anything. If you can, that is. It’s a PITA if you have a defective breakout and have to unsolder it. ;) I like to test mine as soon as I receive them. I don’t want to find out a month or more latter when I actually use one in a project that it’s defective. I have test setups with the hats / packs just for that purpose. I use them with Pi’s and Pico’s.

5

I have one of those 8x8 TOF breakouts wired up to an Inventor 2040 W. Not the best picture, but it’s mounted where the breakout garden socket is meant to go. I just used a male 90 degree header.

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6

Thanks, alphanumeric. That’s helpful. I was also pretty worried about soldering without heating the pins properly. I will cut the nubs off.

My 8x8 DOF comes with a 90 degree male header so I think I could do the same as you and still keep the ultrasonic sensor too. If nothing else, it makes the bot look like Johnny 5 from Short Circuit!

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7

Improvising is the name of the game with a lot of this stuff. IMHO anyway.