Creating a Second Factor Authentication Token
Today I learned all about the many different methods of pad repair! After watching a couple videos, I came to the realization that basically, people do whatever they can to make the pad work again. YouTube Videos Watched: “PCB Solder Pad Repair & Corrosion Clean Up- the Epoxy Method”- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vx50YtEC2S8 “Silver Conductive Pen- DIY PCB Trace …
Today I attempted to remove the faulty parts from our finished PCBs. This proved to be a lot harder to do without tearing off a pad than expected. Every technique I tried would rip at least 1 pad off of the LED’s spot. The capacitor on the other hand, was smooth sailing every time. To …
Today I learned all about the computer software, Simplicity Studio. Simplicity Studio is a Silicon Labs product that allows you to program and run tests on circuits or microcontrollers. Here’s the link to download the software (it’s free)- https://www.silabs.com/products/development-tools/software/simplicity-studio-version3 I had some issues getting Simplicity Studio to run in the beginning. First, I didn’t have …
The last couple of days we’ve been struggling to figure out what’s causing the voltage overage in our finished PCB. Finally, we found the problem. We got the wrong type of C4 (4.7µF capacitor). We ordered a 0508 size instead of a 0805 size, meaning that the cap doesn’t sit on the pads properly. So, …
Today we worked on the continuity problem we’re having with the finished U2F tokens. After much discussion and looking at the token’s wire diagrams, it was decided that we should try taking parts out of the circuit to test the continuity. This meant that I had to learn how to desolder surface mount components- a …
PCB Stencils- what are they? When trying to apply solder paste to a printed circuit board for surface mount soldering, a PCB stencil can be very useful. A stencil is a flat sheet with pads cut out to match your pcb design. This allows you to build boards faster, better, and more easily. Most PCB …
Today I worked on the blog, helped rearrange the office, opened up all our beautiful PCBs (https://blog.redkeyu2f.com/2018/07/05/u2f-token-building-the-pcbs-arrive/), and started learning about reflow ovens. Now that all our parts are here, we have to learn how to properly use our toaster oven to solder our boards. Apparently there’s quite a bit of technique to this- good …
Today our package from http://dirtypcbs.com/store/pcbs arrived! We ordered a +/- 10 protopack of a design we knew should work, as well as a protopack that I had updated the Gerber files on and resubmitted. We had NO idea if these would turn out at all, but they look perfect. Here’s the package the 22 PCBs came in …
Today I sat and learned a whole bunch from my employers. We talked about different jobs, how other employers act, money, and a whole lot of other stuff. Then, I set off to try and clear the fog that learning about electronic components had put on my brain. Just watching videos wasn’t working, so luckily …
We found all the parts needed to build a simple U2F security token thanks to Github. Here’s the link: https://github.com/conorpp/u2f-zero/wiki/Parts-List Basically there are 8 components per token. All should be surface mount parts. Here’s what you need: PART MANUFACTURER PART NUMBER PRICE PER WHERE TO FIND Microcontroller EFM8UB11F16G-C-QSOP24 $1.38 https://www.digikey.com/ Secure Element (Authentication chip) ATECC508A-SSHDA-B $0.75 …