Tools/electronicsbench

Electronics Benches

Introduction Edit

The lab electronics benches. Used for design, prototyping, construction and repair of all manner of electronics and small electrical items.

Please feel free to use tools on the benches or elsewhere in rLab, but always return things to their original location.

Electronics Benches
Micro-Electronics and processors
Power electronics and mains electrical work

Current Status Edit

Date	Status	Comment
3rd October 2020	Fully Functional	No reported problems

More work is planned to bring in additional tools and consumables, and sort out where everything will live, however the benches are fully operational.

Tools Edit

None of the tools listed here require induction before they can be used.

User manuals (where available) are linked from the individual tool pages.

Please post on the rLab Google Group if you want help in learning how to use any of the tools or advice on how to approach a particular problem.

Tools live on both the benches. Common tools such as soldering equipment, power supplies, oscilloscopes and multimeters should be on both benches with the less frequently used tools available to either bench. Small parts, cables, and accessories are stored in the boxes on the shelf above the benches.

Both benches have a standard selection of hand tools, including screwdrivers, pliers, cutter and wire strippers available.

Tool Name	Photo	Purpose
Qinsi QS-5100 Reflow soldering oven		Soldering surface mount circuit boards
AT858D Reflow soldering station		Reworking surface mount boards. Controlled hot air source
Hotplate		Pre-heating surface mount boards before soldering or rework
ZD-8915 Desoldering station		Desoldering components
uCurrent Gold precision current shunt		Precise current measurements
BattLab-One IOT Battery Life Estimator		Measures wake and sleep current draw and estimates the battery life of different battery types based on their discharge profiles
Component tester		Identifying and testing small components
Beagle USB 480 Analyser		USB Protocol Analyser
Decade Boxes		Precise resistance and capacitance test boxes
Fluke 8846a Bench multimeter		General measurements
Handheld multimeters		General measurements
GW Instek GPS-4303 quad channel PSU		Variable DC power source
Tenma 72-13310 triple channel PSU		Variable DC power source
Tenma 72-2925 single channel PSU		Variable DC power source
HP 8714B RF network analyser		Radio frequency spectrum analyser
HP 8647A RF signal generator		Radio frequency signal generator
Thurlby Thandar TF820 Frequency meter		Frequency measurement
GW Instek SFG-2110 Function generator		Waveform generater
Rigol DS1104z Plus Oscilloscope / function generator / logic analyser		Waveform measurement, generation, logic analyser and protocol analyser
GW Instek GDS-2204 quad channel oscilloscope		Waveform measurement
Tektronix 2235 dual channel analogue oscilloscope		Waveform measurement
Agilent DSO3062A 60Mhz Dual-channel oscilloscope		Waveform measurement
Zeroplus LAP-C logic analyser		Logic analyser
Brother PT-E550WSP label printer		Label Printer
3KVA Isolating Transformer		3KVA isolation transformer for use with equipment that's suspect to have mains faults. Recommended for use only by people with suitable experience/training as it's possible to create dangerous situations with this device.
6A Variac		6A Variable Auto-transformer, produces output from 0Vac to 270Vac. Does not provide isolation from mains, Use with caution!
Mains Quick Tester		Quick connection & isolation tester for mains power. Do not exceed 10A load. Has a 40% duty cycle above 5A - 4 minutes on, 6 minutes off. Below 5A, 100% duty cycle.
Mains Multi-Meter		In-line multimeter for Mains AC use. Measures Volts, Amps, Watts, Power Factor, Frequency and KWh. Fused at 10A. Useful with the Variac and Quick Tester.
East Tester ET5410 400W Electronic Load		400W programmable electronic load
Solder Paste Dispenser		Air-powered solder paste dispenser
Seaward PrimeTest-100		PAT (Portable Appliance Tester) for checking the safety of mains equipment
LCR Meter		Accurate measurement of inductors and capacitors
Tachometer		Measuring rotational speed of motors, shafts etc
Chip programmer/tester		Universal programmer and tester for EPROMs, logic chips, memory, etc
Clamp Meter		Measuring AC currents up to 400A without having to break into a circuit
100W gun-type soldering iron		Heavy soldering jobs involving larger gauge wire or PCB ground planes