Embedded Files
Ordering Pre-Fabricated Components
Ordering Pre-Fabricated Components
It is possible to order pre-assembled PCB components to avoid soldering components yourself. However, it is generally more expensive to do so. If surface-mount soldering is new to you, ordering pre-assembled components may be the right choice.
Ordering Components for DIY Soldering
Ordering Components for DIY Soldering
For these instructions, we’ll be guiding you through the ordering process using Oshpark and OSH Stencils, which are US-based companies for low-volume fabrication. There are many other PCB fabrication companies such as Advanced Circuits and PCBWay that will use similar processes.
There are 4 PCBs that need to be fabricated for the GelSlim 4.0 sensor: the LED Driver, Red LED Harness, Green LED Harness, and Blue LED Harness. While the LED Driver and Green LED Harness have their own boards, the Red LED Harness and Blue LED Harness are tiled together on a board. We'll call the board with the Green LED Harnesses "LED Harness Straight" and the board with the Red and Blue LED Harnesses "LED Harness Turn". All 3 boards are shown below. These boards were designed by Ian H. Taylor for the GelSlim 3.0 sensor.
Before beginning the instructions below, make sure to download LED_driver.zip, LED_harness_straight.zip, and LED_harness_turn.zip from the GelSlim 4.0 hardware repo on GitHub.
Left: LED Driver BoardMiddle: LED Harness StraightRight: LED Harness Turn
Ordering PCBs with Oshpark
Ordering PCBs with Oshpark
Create an account with Oshpark
From the home page, click "Browse for Files" under the "Let's get started!" panel, shown below
Front page of Oshpark
Find and select LED_driver.zip on your operating system
Click "Open" then wait for Oshpark to process the file
Once the file is processed, you'll see a screen that says "About your board" that should look like the preview below
Preview of LED Driver board
If your screen matches the "About your board"preview above, click "Continue"
If your screen does not match, please verify that you've uploaded the correct file
The next screen will say "Verify your design" at the top and contain previews of the board
Scroll to the bottom of this verification page and click "Order"
In the "Quantity" field for the LED Driver component, enter your desired number of boards.
Note: Oshpark produces boards in multiples of 3. Each GelSlim 4.0 sensor requires 1 LED Driver component. It is advisable to order extras! Mistakes happen in fabrication so it's convenient to have spares.If you are ordering 10+ boards, consider selecting "Medium Run"
This ordering method is slower, but with a 40% discount
This ordering method produces components in multiples of 10
If you need these components quickly, consider selecting "Super Swift Service"
Super Swift Service is not an option with Medium Runs
After selecting your optins, click "Add another board" at the bottom of the screen
Note: Add all your boards before proceeding to checkout. There are 3 boards in total that need to be ordered.Click "Browse for Files" under the "Let's get started!" panel
Find and select LED_harness_straight.zip on your operating system
Click "Open" then wait for Oshpark to process the file
Once the file is processed, you'll see a screen that says "About your board" that should look like the preview below
Preview of LED Harness Straight board
If your screen matches the "About your board" preview above, click "Continue"
If your screen does not match, please verify that you've uploaded the correct file
The next screen will say "Verify your design" at the top and contain previews of the board
Scroll to the bottom of this verification page and click "Order"
In the "Quantity" field for the LED Harness Straight component, enter your desired number of boards.
Note: Oshpark produces boards in multiples of 3. Each GelSlim 4.0 sensor requires 1 LED Harness Straight component. There are 4 LED Harness Straight components per board. It is advisable to order extras! Mistakes happen in fabrication so it's convenient to have spares.Select "Flex" to order the necessary thin, flexible material for this component
After selecting your optins, click "Add another board" at the bottom of the screen
Note: Add all your boards before proceeding to checkout. There are 3 boards in total that need to be ordered.Click "Browse for Files" under the "Let's get started!" panel
Find and select LED_harness_turn.zip on your operating system
Click "Open" then wait for Oshpark to process the file
Once the file is processed, you'll see a screen that says "About your board" that should look like the preview below
Preview of LED Harness Turn board
If your screen matches the "About your board" preview above, click "Continue"
If your screen does not match, please verify that you've uploaded the correct file
The next screen will say "Verify your design" at the top and contain previews of the board
Scroll to the bottom of this verification page and click "Order"
In the "Quantity" field for the LED Harness Turn component, enter your desired number of boards.
Note: Oshpark produces boards in multiples of 3. Each GelSlim 4.0 sensor requires 2 LED Harness Turn components. There are 4 LED Harness Straight components per board. It is advisable to order extras! Mistakes happen in fabrication so it's convenient to have spares.Select "Flex" to order the necessary thin, flexible material for this component
After selecting your options, click "Checkout" at the bottom of the screen
Verify that your cart matches the preview shown below
Continue with shipping options and complete the order
Preview of all boards in the cart
Ordering Solder Stencils with OSH Stencils
Ordering Solder Stencils with OSH Stencils
If you use Oshpark to order your PCBs, we recommend that you use OSH Stencils for ordering stencils. It is possible to 3D print the LED Harness Solder Stencils, but these 3D-printed versions clog easily and can only be used to produce between 3-5 boards before they become unusable. For those instructions, see the next section. We recommend purchasing a traditional metal solder stencil because it is easy to clean, inexpensive, and good to produce many components over time.
Unzip LED_driver.zip and LED_harness_straight.zip locally
Create an account with OSH Stencils
Click "Upload Design"
Find and select LED_driver_stencil.gbr from the unzipped files on your operating system
Click "OK" on any pop-ups
Set"Filetype" for LED_driver_stencil.gbr to "Top Stencil" and click "Update"
Click "Add Files"
Find and select LED_harness_stencil.gbr from the unzipped files on your operating system
Click "OK" on any pop-ups
Set"Filetype" for LED_harness_stencil.gbr to "Top Stencil" and click "Update"
Click "Generate Stencils"
Configure LED Driver stencil
In "Projects", click "Top Stencil" under the LED Driver project folder
Click "Select Material Type"
Select Stainless Steel
Select Frameless
Select 4mil (0.004"/0.101mm)
Set "Border Size" to 0.75
Set "Custom Engrave Text" to "GelSlim 4.0 LED Driver"
Click "Save Settings" and check that the stencil preview matches the preview below
Click "Add this Stencil to Cart"
Preview of the LED Driver solder stencil
Configure LED Harness stencil
In "Projects", click "Top Stencil" under the LED Harness project folder
Click "Select Material Type"
Select Stainless Steel
Select Frameless
Select 4mil (0.004"/0.101mm)
Set "Border Size" to 0.75
Set "Custom Engrave Text" to "GelSlim 4.0 LED Harness"
Click "Save Settings" and check that the stencil preview matches the preview below
Click "Add this Stencil to Cart"
Continue with shipping options and complete the order
Preview of the LED Harness solder stencil
Example Order Timelines
Example Order Timelines
We have placed several orders with Oshpark. See below for the timelines of fulfillment that we experienced, noting that the company does provide its own parameters for fulfillment. Your timelines may be different than those we experienced.
LED Driver
LED Driver
Order #1
We ordered 9 boards with Super Swift Service on August 30th, 2023 and saw the following timeline:
Boards panelized on August 30th, 2023
Boards fabbed on September 6th, 2023
Boards shipped with FedEx Priority Overnight on September 6th, 2023
Boards received on September 7th, 2023
Order #2
We ordered 18 boards on October 9th, 2023 and saw the following timeline:
Boards panelized on October 10th, 2023
Boards fabbed on October 13th, 2023
Boards shipped with USPS Free Shipping on October 13th, 2023
Boards received on October 18th, 2023
LED Harnesses
LED Harnesses
Order #1
We ordered 3 LED Harness Turn boards (total of 6 of each component) in Flex material on August 30th, 2023 and saw the following timeline:
Boards panelized on August 30th, 2023
Boards fabbed on September 14th, 2023
Boards shipped with FedEx Priority Overnight on September 14th, 2023
Boards received on September 15th, 2023
We ordered 3 LED Harness Straight boards (total of 12 of each component) in Flex material on August 30th, 2023 and saw the following timeline:
Boards panelized on August 30th, 2023
Boards fabbed on September 14th, 2023
Boards shipped with FedEx Priority Overnight on September 14th, 2023
Boards received on September 15th, 2023
Order #2
We ordered 12 LED Harness Turn boards (total of 24 of each component) in Flex material on October 9th, 2023 and saw the following timeline:
Boards panelized on October 9th, 2023
Boards fabbed on October 18th, 2023
Boards shipped with USPS Free Shipping on October 18th, 2023
Boards received on October 23rd, 2023
We ordered 6 LED Harness Straight boards (total of 24 of each component) in Flex material on October 9th, 2023 and saw the following timeline:
Boards panelized on October 9th, 2023
Boards fabbed on October 18th, 2023
Boards shipped with USPS Free Shipping on October 18th, 2023
Boards received on October 23rd, 2023
Solder Stencils
Solder Stencils
Order #1
We ordered 2 LED Driver solder stencils on September 20th, 2023 and saw the following timeline:
Boards shipped with USPS Priority Mail Shipping on September 22nd, 2023
Boards received on September 26th, 2023
Order #2
We ordered 1 LED Harness solder stencil on September 28th, 2023 and saw the following timeline:
Boards shipped with USPS Priority Mail Shipping on September 29th, 2023
Boards received on October 3rd, 2023
3D Printing LED Harness Solder Stencils
3D Printing LED Harness Solder Stencils
Although we recommend ordering a traditional metal solder stencil, it is possible to 3D print them instead for the LED Harness. Each 3D printed stencil should be able to produce 3-5 LED Harnesses before it clogs with solder paste.
Download LED_harness_stencil.stl from the GelSlim 4.0 hardware repo on GitHub
3D print LED_harness_stencil.stl
Note: Reduce the layer height and nozzle diameter as much as possible. The more accurate the resulting geometry, the better the application of the solder paste.
Blue LED Harness aligned with a 3D printed solder stencil
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