3pi LEDs

Hi,

I just received my 3pi robot and it seems like a miniature miracle!
My question is : Where am I supposed to solder the LEDs? Is there any guide with photos? And why arent they soldered from factory?..In a 3pi video in youtube I saw that it has blue LEDs as well.Why does my kit have only green and red?

Another question is : Why are there so many shorting blocks included with the kit? Where are they supposed to be used?

Thanks for your patience and this great product of yours! :slight_smile:

Hello,
The 3pi comes with red and green through-hole LEDs and extra shorting blocks so that you can give your 3pi a little bit of customization. But none of those pieces are required, since there are surface mount red, green and blue LEDs built into the board, and jumpers are preinstalled. Turn on your 3pi, go to the LED section of the demo program, and you should see all four of the built-in LEDs working. See Included Accessories in the 3pi User’s Guide for more information.

-Paul

Hi, stamanol.

The top picture on this page of the user’s guide labels the locations for the two optional user LEDs and the optional power LED. The surface-mount LEDs come preinstalled, but they are on the underside of the PCB, so we give you the option of installing your own through-hole LEDs on the top side of the robot.

- Ben

If I use he extra board with cutouts,is it better to solder the extra leds on it so that they would be visible?

That would be a matter of personal preference, but note that the LED sockets aren’t routed up to the expansion board, so you would have to effectively route them there yourself. I’d recommed just soldering them to the base where they’re supposed to go if you want to have them.

- Ben

Soldering LED’s to the board could be risky if not experienced. A better way might be this: Use a .1" Snappable SIP Socket. Solder it to board, and then plug the LED into it. That way, one could change colors or types without unsoldering and resoldering. One place to find this SIP socket is at All Electronics.

http://www.allelectronics.com/index.php?page=search&search_query=SIP-30&x=0&y=0

donde