Overview

RFX Teensy 3.x/LC carrier board with Arduino shield breakout, prototyping area and nRF24L01+ headers. Easy assembly using all through-hole components, so no advanced soldering skills or equipment required!

This Uno-sized (~7cmx5cm) breakout board for PJRC Teensy 3.0/3.1/3.2/LC is a convenient way to add nRF24L01+ module and Arduino shield compatibility to a Teensy 3.x/LC project, as well as providing a general purpose breakout board with built-in prototyping area for the Teensy 3.x/LC.

The carrier board supports the standard Arduino Uno R3 shield header layout, as well as a second breadboard compatible (i.e., proper 0.1″ pitch grid-aligned) header layout, so you can also easily connect the board to breadboards, or common 50mm (or wider) proto boards.

Use cases

This board was originally designed as part of the Radio For X:duino (RFXduino) project, as a convenient and easy way to add nRF24L01+ module and Arduino shield compatibility to a Teensy 3.x project, as well as providing a general breakout board with built-in prototyping area.

The board's design also makes it useful as a compact general-purpose breakout/prototyping/deployment board for the Teensy 3.x, even when the nRF24L01+ radio capability is not required.

Details

The carrier board supports the standard Arduino Uno R3 shield header layout, as well as a second breadboard compatible (i.e., proper 0.1″ pitch grid-aligned) header layout, so you can also easily connect the board to breadboards, or common 50mm (or wider) proto boards.

Carrier board has provision for a 3x2 connection header to the ICSP hardware SPI pins, which is required by some shields if accessing hardware SPI.

Carrier board also has two 8 pin (4×2) headers for plugging in a nRF24L01+ module, one header providing connection to the hardware SPI pins D11-D13, and the other to an alternative set of pins, D4-D6, for a software SPI (“bit banging”) implementation if preferred. IRQ pin is set at D2, CE is D3 and CSN is D7.

All Teensy pins are broken out on headers, including (optionally) the "pads" for additional digital pins D24-33, and analog pins A12-13, on the underside of the 3.0/3.1 boards (note: LC board doesn't have these pads). Access to these pads is via a 2x7 male SMT pin header plugging into a matching 2x7 low profile through-hole female header. Note that Paul Stoffregen, the designer of the Teensy boards, advises that these pads aren’t really strong enough to sustain frequent plugging/unplugging, so care will be required if using this option. (See here.) The other simple option for access to these pads, if required, is fixed wiring (e.g. flexible hook-up wire to the proto area).

Flexible power options. Power can be supplied by 5V micro USB connection directly to Teensy, either from a “phone charger” style power supply with a micro USB connector, or USB connection to a computer. This will also power the external 3v3 voltage regulator, with a limitation of 500mA supply (poly fuse in the Teensy limits the supply current.) 5v to the 5V pin on the power header is also provided in this configuration.

Alternatively, the 3v3 regulator can be powered directly by e.g., the DC barrel jack connector mounted under the Teensy (standard 5/2.1mm size -- refer photos). This has the advantage of bypassing the 500mA poly fuse limitation, if you need higher current available on the 3v3 rail. (Note that the Teensy is powered from the main 3v3 rail on this board, so it not necessary to power the Teensy via the micro USB connection -- you just need to get power to the external regulator.)

Supplying 3v3 directly to the rail via a well regulated 3v3 supply is also an option, of course, eliminating the need for the 3v3 regulator. And the prototyping area gives flexibility for many more possible configurations!

For many Arduino shields, a set of stackable headers will have to be used for the shields to clear the height of the Teensy (which is mounted at the same level as a shield). So a set of stackable headers (available as a kit option) is recommended if deploying shields is a consideration.

The other advantage of using the stackable headers with shields (even those that would clear the placement of the Teensy) is that they also allow clearance for a nRF24L01 module if mounted on the board headers. (Refer to photos.)

So lots of flexibility and configuration options with this carrier board! Combined with the generous prototyping area, this can make deploying of nRF24L01+ enabled projects using a Teensy 3.x faster and neater.

Photos show populated board with Teensy 3.x, with and without Arduino shield mounted on stackable headers (Teensy 3.x and shield not included, shown for demonstration purposes). Shown beside Arduino Due and Leonardo for scale.

Kit Options

Available as bare PCB, or PCB with basic kit components (headers, caps, voltage regulator, etc.).

A set of stacking headers is an optional add-on, to provide additional height clearance for shields, as described above.

Another kit add-on is a set of "long pin" male header "gender changer" headers for breadboard connectivity via the secondary grid-aligned headers. (To see how these are designed to work, review this thread. Specifically, reply #7. I'm describing a different RFX board, but the breadboarding set-up described using the grid-aligned headers applies equally this carrier board.)

If connectivity to underside pin "pads" is required for a 3.0, 3.1 or 3.2 board, a 7x2 SMT pin header and low-profile socket set is available as an option (not required for an LC board -- no underside pads!) Note: The SMT pin header is a surface mount component; otherwise all components in the kit are through-hole. (Much easier to mount the SMT pin header on the Teensy before the through hole pin headers are attached.)

Finally, a low or high-power nRF24L01+ radio module can also be added as a kit option.

Note that in kits, female pin headers supplied in 40-pin strips that need to be cut to length (all instructions supplied). Additional strip included in case of goofs!