👑 Xiao RELAY - 6 ... A six channel Xiao controlled Relay Bank Designed on livestream!

[PJ_Glasso]

Merry christmas to all my Fellow Technologists…

Xiao RELAY - 6 ... A six channel Xiao controlled Relay Bank Designed on...

I received a surprise in the post from those Awesome Seeed Imagineers. This time they made good on the promise to Designing and building ON livestream in REALTIME… to show users and makers that Seeed has the vision & bringing the receipts

This unit is robust. My only add’s would be the Socket for a Xiao of your choice,based on power, budget, and features required for your topology. I can see a Matter controlled or Zigbee HA relay bank. Very Cool. It needs a power switch also.

It comes preloaded with a cycle relay “on” and “off” round robin code on it. (red leds) on each channel indicate relay status.

After checking it out and observing how well they followed my Tech on soldering the Battery pads on th PCB by adding the oval plated holes. Looks Tight!

So I wasn’t about to just live vicariously through their efforts, so I figured an Enclosure was in order and would be my give back to the community and get a grip on making a parametric enclosure in FreeCad for Christmas.

a Parametric model is this:
Parametric modeling is a computer-aided design (CAD) technique that uses parameters, constraints, and relationships to create 3D models. It’s used in many fields, including engineering, architecture, product design, and aerospace.

Here are some key features of parametric modeling:

• Parameters

Adjustable variables that define the model’s geometry, such as dimensions, constraints, formulas, and material properties.

• Relationships and constraints

Define the behavior of the model’s geometry when changes are made.

• Design intent

Parametric modeling ensures that the model maintains its intended behavior when modifications are made.

• Automation

Parametric modeling automates much of the design process, allowing users to automate repetitive changes. Parametric modeling is different from direct modeling, where the designer manually creates shapes.

But in a NUTSHELL… it uses a spreadsheet to determine the dimensions , So you can change the basic L,W & H in the spreadsheet and then have a box for any size.(you can add your own hole locations easy.)
The video has some screen shots of it open in FreeCad.

I have added a Zip file with the FreeCad files and the 3D printer .STL files for the Xiao RELAY-6 enclosure. New users can learn FreeCad in an hour.
These are some Links to very good How to basics, easy enough a 3rd grader could do it. The Final Release candidate Version 1.0 is really Great!
I can’t believe it’s free.

I also went a tad over and made a custom LID with Inlaid letters (WIP) albeit the stock lid is perfect too! Seeed needs to sell the Sweet Green PLA+ I bought 3 rolls. Its a Unique Hue of Green not Fluorescent but a Satin Gloss , Even BIC lighter loves the Shade

I see this with the watcher controlling it or even the Wio Terminal anything with a Gove port is possible. a WiFi connected web page controlled relay bank or just a Display and a push button for local control works too. This is the closest to a multi-tool of relay banks.

This PCB has a Xiao ESP32C3 in it currently but any Xiao should make it go…
It powers up with USB also, and has a JST battery connector on board. Works on Battery power very well. Add your own Holes for cables.

Everyone is gonna want one of these if the price is right . HA is gonna love this thing.
Probably the BEST Tech Christmas gift soFar from Seeed Studio. (the reCamera) close 2nd

GL PJ

Merry Christmass to all and to all a Good night!
Enclosure_6Relay_2Grove_box-Body_lid.zip (2.1 MB)

[ilikecake]

Is this relay board an earlier version of this (6-Channel DC Relay Based on Seeed Studio XIAO ESP32C6)? I recently purchased one of these and it works pretty well. The product page mentions that we should provide feedback and suggestions for this board. I have a few suggestions, but I can’t find a way to post them anywhere.

[PJ_Glasso]

Hi there,

And welcome here …

So post them here, it will bump the topic to the top and Seeedineers will see them, often the product mngr. Is alerted and replies and comments are often the beginning of newer revisions or extra features.

YOLO…

(not the ai model)
HTH
GL PJ

Not to mention, the one I received is still working extremely well.

[ilikecake]

Sounds good. Here are a few suggestions based on my application where I am taking the PCB out of the case and putting it into a custom printed enclosure with a few other parts. Most of these suggestions (except the last one) would be pretty easy to implement with minimal changes to the PCB and BOM.

1. Add a 3rd mounting hole. I realize the printed enclosure from Seeed uses a clever clamp together design to get rid of the need for more mounting screws, but for my application, a third mounting hole would help mount the PCB in my enclosure. There appears to be plenty of PCB real estate between the relays to put a third hole.
2. Related to #1 above: Provide a mechanical drawing of the PCB size and mounting hole locations (and diameters). I was able to back this out with calipers and the 3D model of your case, but it would have been a lot easier if you just had that info on the wiki somewhere.
3. Add a header or a footprint on the PCB to break out power for the Xiao. At minimum, I would suggest adding two pads/holes on the PCB that connect to VBUS and GND on the Xiao. The pin going to VBUS should probably have a forward biased schottky diode so that you don’t feed power back to the USB upstream device if you connect both the cable and the DC power.
4. Bonus: In addition to #3 above, add a step-down regulator to the DC pins so that you can power the Xiao from the same voltage as the relays. For my application, I am powering a few 24V solenoids, and I purchased a separate step-down regulator to provide 5V to power the Xiao from the same 24V input. If this was built-in to the PCB, that would be even better.