Any tips / suggestions or experience having solutions manufactured w/ a Teensy?

M

madmyers

Active member
As I'm working through my prototype, I'm starting to consider how a hobby product with Teensy on a custom pCB could get manufactured.

I've order PCBs from JLCPCB with success, but I'm not sure how the complexity of acquiring Teensy's would work or how they would mount them. If I go to scale, which I assume is 100s not 10,000s, don't want to be soldering the Teensy's on there.

It's also complicated because I do want the Ethernet.

It would be amazing if anyone could share their experiences or thoughts here. Thank you.
 
Since you are mentioning Ethernet, I assume you are talking about the Teensy 4.1, correct?
For a 100pcs series, I would consider using low-profile IC sockets like this:
1727381941577.png

You would need to purchase the Teensy 4.1 with soldered pins and Ethernet chip then.
For the Ethernet signals to be fed out to the Ethernet jack on your custom PCB, you have 2 options:
1. solder a 3x2 2mm header on the top of the Teensy 4.1 and use a flatcable to your custom PCB like the Teensy Ethernet kit,
or 2. solder a 3x2 2mm header on the bottom of the Teensy 4.1 and use an appropriate 2x3 2mm socket on your custom PCB.

Either way, personally I would not purchase a Teensy 4.1 via JLCPCB but do this privately, and solder the 3x2 2mm header myself.

You may want think about shock & vibration requirements for your complete assembly when using a socketed Teensy.

I realize that there may be lots of other scenario's as well, so hopefully others chime in too.

Paul
 
There are places that will supply the Teensy 4.1 with attached IO and ethernet headers, e.g. protosupplies. So you'd be paying ~$3 more per unit to save the trouble of adding the ethernet header yourself.
 
I have some experience in this area.

Generally Teensy are socketed rather than soldered directly to the PCB for easier serviceability. Have JLCPCB install sockets for you and install the Teensy yourself since it just needs to be plugged in.

As already mentioned, you can modify the Teensy yourself or it can be ordered in whatever configuration you want from ProtoSupplies.com. If you are making product for sale you will want to ensure the quality is good to avoid problems in the field. If you do the rework yourself, I suggest making a bit of a fixture to hold good connector alignment and also have a good magnification setup so you can be sure of the quality of the soldering and not rely on testing to try to find poor soldering joints.

Be aware that the regular IC style sockets like shown above will not work with the large 0.064" square Teensy pins. You need to use a couple of 1x24 female header sockets like shown below. JLCPCB carries these, but they are not always in stock.

1727387074742.jpeg


For connecting Ethernet, as already mentioned a cable can be used with the male header on top of the Teensy and connect it to a similar header on your baseboard as below. This works fine, but the connection is not a locking style, so the cable could come loose under vibration or shock

1727387537131.jpeg


A better solution is to use a female header socket on the bottom of the Teensy which mates with an extended reach male header that is on your baseboard. The extended reach male header is required to make the stack-up work with the female header sockets shown above. The problem with this approach is that JLCPCB won't have these special length male headers. They are available from PJRC or ProtoSupplies.com but difficult to find anywhere else.

1727387784986.jpeg


1727387642022.jpeg


As an alternative, you can swap the male/female headers, so the Teensy looks like shown below. In that case, JLCPCB has a compatible female mating connector they can solder for you. This version of Teensy with the extended reach male header is currently made for AgOpenGPS applications (robotic harvesting equipment).

1727387934232.jpeg


If you need a lower profile setup, then shorter pins can be installed on the Teensy to mate with shorter female header sockets. In that case, the stack-up works out so that a regular length male Ethernet header can be used rather than the special length one. I don't think JLCPCB has short mating female headers, so if you went this route, you would probably need to install the female headers yourself. I wouldn't go this direction unless you really need the shortest height possible.

--- Ken
ProtoSupplies.com
 
This is all AMAZING info, really really appreciate it. Would love to hear more, if anyone has stuff to share. Really helpful. Thank you.
 
@PaulS @KenHahn Are those version of Teensy you sell (with the headers or with the headers+ethernet) the secure Teensy variant? That's what I'd need. I didn't see it mentioned, but perhaps I missed it.
 
Yes, the Teensy can be configured in any way that is needed including being based on the lockable version of Teensy. You can reach me directly at ken@protosupplies.com if you want to discuss any details further.

--- Ken
 
KenHahn said:
Be aware that the regular IC style sockets like shown above will not work with the large 0.064" square Teensy pins. You need to use a couple of 1x24 female header sockets like shown below. JLCPCB carries these, but they are not always in stock.

View attachment 35928
Click to expand...
Do you think this 1x12 female header socket will work? https://jlcpcb.com/partdetail/Zhouri-PM2_54_112/C5224029 The datasheet doesn't say the size of the square pins.

Currently JLCPCB doesn't have 1x24 sockets in stock, so I'm hoping to have JLCPCB solder 4 of these 1x12's on my PCB, and then insert the 48 pins of my Teensy 4.1 into it.
 
That socket will fit the Teensy pins OK.

The issue you would likely run into is that you usually can't butt two of these types of connectors together on 2.54mm centers because the housings have some tolerance on their overall length and are usually a little oversize. The ends can be sanded down slightly if needed to make them fit, but I don't know if JLCPCB would do that or not. You could drop them a note to see what they say.

The correct 1x24 pin version shows an estimated lead-time of 10 days, so perhaps wait for those parts to come in?
 
That one will work fine and is a higher quality part with gold plating. Didn't find it when I did a search. The JLCPCB search function tends to be a little clunky.
 
Actually you _can_ use those low profile IC sockets (as pictured in post #2) for 0.65mm(*) Dupont header pins, but it will permanently stretch them and isn't good practice.

(*) definitely not 0.064" as stated above!!
 
MarkT said:
Actually you _can_ use those low profile IC sockets (as pictured in post #2) for 0.65mm(*) Dupont header pins, but it will permanently stretch them and isn't good practice.

(*) definitely not 0.064" as stated above!!
Click to expand...
Should be OK with Turned Pins on Teensy. Some here.
 
True, those round turned pins will work with a standard IC socket. I sell those pins myself for installing in small SMD to DIP adapter boards that are destined to be plugged into a standard IC socket and they work well for that.

I personally wouldn't use them on something as big as a Teensy 4.1 as they are pretty weak pins and fairly easily bent and damaged. If bent during insertion, they can potentially break off when straightening them and then you have a big problem if you need that pin. But I also haven't tried them on a Teensy due to those concerns, so I can't speak from experience, but perhaps someone else has.
 
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