Week 7: When the Parts Arrive… But Not As Expected

Welcome back to my blog!

After weeks of design and preparation, the first batch of custom PCBs finally arrived, which was a major milestone in the hardware side of my project. I had been anticipating this moment for a while, and unboxing the boards felt like real progress. But as I quickly found out, having the boards in hand doesn’t mean they’ll work as intended.

Right away, I noticed a few critical issues. Some of the IMU sensors weren’t communicating at all, and after double-checking connections, it became clear that a few of the traces on the board weren’t properly routed. In at least one case, a signal line that should’ve been continuous was broken entirely, likely due to a misalignment in the design that wasn’t caught during the DRC (design rule check). I also discovered that the board was slightly too rigid near the connector, making it uncomfortable to wear on curved finger joints, especially for longer practice sessions.

Additionally, some solder pads ended up being too small, making reliable sensor attachment nearly impossible. Given the small scale of the components, even a minor footprint miscalculation had major consequences. These aren’t things that can be fixed with simple rework. They’re baked into the physical design, which means I’ll need to make a revised version of the board and place another manufacturing order.

While it’s frustrating to have to reorder, this is a normal part of the hardware development process. These early-stage boards served their purpose: they exposed flaws in the design that I can now correct with confidence. I’ve already started modifying the layout: fixing broken traces, enlarging pads, adjusting the board shape, and generally tightening up the design. With these changes, I expect the next batch to be much closer to what I need.

For now, it’s a waiting game, but one that moves me closer to a fully working system.

Hope to see you guys next week!