A bit of a follow up on this. I think the point about stereo microscopes giving indication of depth is invaluable, and exactly the kind of information one hopes to get on here.?
But I will say I also got one of these "thick pen" sized microscope cameras - working wirelessly on phones, or through USB on computers - and I think this is an excellent addition to the bench. Its best use is inspection - where the large screen does a tremendous job at displaying huge solder joints and component pins and?burned flux etc - and not soldering, due to the point above. I paid about $30 for mine, which I think is a steal for what it does.?
Certainly, I'm still pursuing getting a real, lab-grade stereo microscope. Currently hesitating between giving the Nikon(s) I mentioned above a test drive, and just biting the bullet and getting a SWIFT trinocular brand new (any input on the brand?).? Radu.?
On Tue, Mar 18, 2025 at 8:56?PM Radu Bogdan Dicher via <vondicher= [email protected]> wrote: To assist with feedback on this local offer for the Nikon microscopes, I uploaded to the photos section pictures of the two units this local seller has: /g/HP-Agilent-Keysight-equipment/album?id=301362.? A couple of questions: - Is anyone familiar enough to maybe tell what the differences between the two are? I'm not sure which one I should get, if I go for this.?
- I think both seem to come with booms, which I think are a little costly on their own. Maybe this makes their offer a bit more competitive??
Thank you, Radu.?
And that, my dear sir, is exactly why I wrote the program.
Please contact me off? list.? I didn't exactly design some of this for
public consumption (mostly the Embarcadaro stuff), and you'll need the
libraries I've created.
Haven't tried to rehost it, so it'll be an experience.
madyn@...
Harvey
On 3/18/2025 4:59 PM, David McQuate via wrote:
>
> I use C++ a lot, usually with QtCreator, though I have previously used
> Visual Studio.? I have Eagle 7.5, 7.6, and 7.7.? I use SCAD for 3D
> printing and also for general 3D modeling.? Your program seems like a
> natural for designing 3D printed cases for PC boards, and also for
> creating parts placement files for automated PC builds, such as that
> done by JLCPCB.? Would you be OK giving me a copy of the source?
>
> David
>
> On 2025-03-18 13:14, Harvey White wrote:
>
>> I wrote a C++ program that disassembles the .brd file for a project.
>> It creates an OpenSCAD document that places models of the parts onto
>> the board, giving you a board visualization.? It can handle internal
>> and external fillets on the board edges. Depending on which parts you
>> use, you may or may not need to model some specific parts (in
>> OpenSCAD) to build up your own library.
>>
>> As part of the process, the program has to read and calculate the
>> part placement? from the .brd file.? I know it does EAGLE 7.7, not
>> sure about what else.
>>
>> It was originally based on NopHead's libraries, but I got errors I
>> couldn't track down (not documented), and just bagged it and wrote my
>> own.
>>
>> How?are?you?with?C++?(Embarcadero?C++?community?version)?
>>
>> Harvey
>>
>> ps:?I?can?attach?a?picture.
>>
>>
>>
>> On?3/17/2025?11:29?PM,?David?McQuate?via??wrote:
>>>
>>> I'd like to know more about the program that allows you to model the
>>> PC board in SCAD, and find the XY of any part.
>>>
>>> Thanks!
>>>
>>> David
>>>
>>> On?2025-03-17?20:01,?Harvey?White?wrote:
>>>
>>>> I use an American Optical (because it was cheap) and found a nice
>>>> heavy stand to hold it up.? I have a fiber optic ring light on the
>>>> microscope.
>>>>
>>>> I?find?that?an?auxiliary?light?can?help?to?illuminate?from?the?side?as?well.
>>>>
>>>> I would build a board holder that allows you to position any part
>>>> of a board under the microscope without moving the microscope. How
>>>> complicated you make that little board holder is up to you. Maybe
>>>> move manually and lock into place.
>>>>
>>>> if you were building boards by hand, and using EAGLE, then I can
>>>> show you a program that models the PC board in OpenSCAD. That same
>>>> parsing routine can find the XY of any part.
>>>>
>>>> that?might?help?a?bit.
>>>>
>>>> Ideally, you want to move the board in X and Y, then rotate for the
>>>> best soldering angle.
>>>>
>>>> Harvey
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On?3/17/2025?2:59?PM,?Radu?Bogdan?Dicher?via??wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> Thank?you?all,?great?input.
>>>>> From these choices, it sounds like a stereo microscope on a boom
>>>>> would be ideal. I do tend to work on all sorts of positions and
>>>>> oftentimes spill outside of the desk/bench. Also, some of the
>>>>> boards I need to examine are too large to fit under a microscope
>>>>> with a stand. I'm not sure exactly how well this relative freedom
>>>>> to move the microscope around works. But the idea to have that
>>>>> available is very exciting - I'm really tired of using my multiple
>>>>> hand magnifiers with their own lights and often another flashlight
>>>>> on the other hand. My eyes get terribly strained with that setup.
>>>>> Probably a stupid question, but I know nothing on the "stereo
>>>>> microscope" topic - are these working well for people wearing glasses?
>>>>> Thank?you.
>>>>> Radu.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> On Mon, Mar 17, 2025, 10:29 AM John Griessen via
>>>>> <> <john=[email protected]> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> ????On?3/17/25?07:59,?Dave?McGuire?via??<>?wrote:
>>>>> ????>?On?3/17/25?00:02,?Radu?Bogdan?Dicher?via?
>>>>> ????<>?wrote:
>>>>> ????>>?Having?done?enough?(red)?eye?cracking?smd?soldering?jobs?or
>>>>> ????inspections?in?case?of?suspected?failure?(cold?joints,?etc.),?I've
>>>>> ????>>?decided?to?invest?a?bit?on?a?better?optical?setup.
>>>>> ????>>?There's?plenty?of?cameras?on?the?marketplaces?and?retailers?out
>>>>> ????there,?but?what?are?some?better?choices??Good?experiences?with
>>>>> ????>>?some?specific?models?
>>>>> ????>>?Also,?what?to?watch?for??Specs,?minimal?magnification?that
>>>>> ????crosses?over?a?good?threshold?
>>>>> ????>>?I?have?a?couple?of?large?screens?at?my?bench?-?I'm?thinking
>>>>> ????this?will?be?best?done?by?shooting?this?over?to?one?of?those.?USB,
>>>>> ????>>?HDMI?...
>>>>> ????>>?Lighting/LEDs?making?a?significant?difference?
>>>>> ????>>?Thank?you?for?your?input.
>>>>> ????>
>>>>> ????>????The?Mantis?by?Vision?Engineering.
>>>>> ????>
>>>>> ????>????On?the?prototyping?bench?I?moved?from?a?Nikon?SMZ-1?with?an
>>>>> ????after-market?LED?ring?light?to?a?1st-generation?Mantis?about?ten
>>>>> ????>?years?ago,?and?upgraded?to?a?Mantis?Elite?last?year.
>>>>> ????>
>>>>> ????>????The?Nikon?is?a?binocular?inspection?microscope?with?great
>>>>> ????optics?(typical?of?Nikon)?and?excellent?overall?performance.??I?had
>>>>> ????>?an?opportunity?to?try?out?a?Mantis?when?visiting?a?customer's
>>>>> ????lab.??I?was?astonished?by?its?capabilities?and?purchased?one
>>>>> ????>?immediately.
>>>>> ????>
>>>>> ????>????My?upgrade?to?the?Mantis?Elite?last?year?was?a?similarly
>>>>> ????impressive?thing.
>>>>> ????>
>>>>> ????>????Two?important?considerations?are?binocular?optical?paths?and
>>>>> ????lighting.
>>>>> ????>
>>>>> ????>????Binocular?optics?are,?IMO,?absolutely?required?for?SMT?work.
>>>>> ????>
>>>>> ????>????Lighting?is?next.??People?often?skimp?on?this?and?use?a
>>>>> ????random?desk?lamp?or?whatever?happens?to?be?lying?around,?but?a?proper
>>>>> ????>?lighting?system?makes?all?the?difference.??There?are?cheap
>>>>> ????aftermarket?LED?right?lights?that?are?surprisingly?effective;?this
>>>>> ????>?suggests?that?the?lighting?really?isn't?that?difficult?a?problem
>>>>> ????to?solve.??The?key?is?360-degree,?oblique,?even?lighting?to
>>>>> ????>?eliminate?shadows.??(lighting?is?built-in?on?the?Mantis?microscopes)
>>>>> ????>
>>>>> ????>???????????????-Dave
>>>>>
>>>>> ????Hi?Radu,
>>>>>
>>>>> ????I've?got?Greenough?scopes?(binocular)?by?Olympus?and?Vision
>>>>> ????Engineering?(precursor?to?Mantis),?and?fiber?light?rings?and?sources
>>>>> ????to?sell.
>>>>>
>>>>> ????The?Vision?Engineering?ones?are?kind?of?large,?but?trying?an
>>>>> ????Olympus??Greenough?would?be?painless?--?you?could?return?it?if?not
>>>>> ????liking?it.
>>>>>
>>>>> ????When?I?assemble?SMT?boards?I?use?a?Greenough?on?a?boom?that?lets
>>>>> ????me?move?with?fine?dials?in?X?and?Y?(and?of?course?Z?for?focus).
>>>>>
>>>>> ????I've?also?tried?the?Vision?Engineering?and?it?would?probably?be?a
>>>>> ????speedup?tool,?but?Ive?not?afforded?enough?bench?top?space?to?use
>>>>> ????one?effectively?yet.
>>>>>
>>>>> ????Also?have?Nikon?SMZ-7?and?a??Vision?Engineering?Greenough?for?sale.
>>>>>
>>>>> ????Booms?to?hold?them?are?super?heavy,?so?looking?locally?makes?the
>>>>> ????most?sense.
>>>>>
>>>>> ????I?agree?with?Dave,?that?if?you?want?to?do?prototypes?your?speed
>>>>> ????and?quality?will
>>>>> ????improve?drastically?with?stereo?vision?--?it?puts?your?"there"?in
>>>>> ????the?micro?world...??Also?you?will?notice?more?since?flat?view
>>>>> ????onscreen?doesn't?translate?to?3D?in?your?mind?well.
>>>>>
>>>>> ????The?large?screens?might?be?OK?for?some?things,?but?not?for?active
>>>>> ????seeing?when?looking?for?tiny?cracks,?missing?solder,?adequate
>>>>> ????solder?paste,?etc.
>>>>>
>>>>> ????Now?to?get?busy?cleaning?and?photographing?the?ones?I?mentioned...
>>>>> ????--?????John?Griessen
>>>>> ????Albuquerque?NM
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>
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