Newbie production question

Greetings, Forgive me if this is too naive but I was wondering about how other go about producing more than a prototype. When I have a working prototype, what is the next step? For a small number of microcontrollers, it is not a big feat to flash the program into each one, but when the number grows, it becomes unrealistic for a single person or even a handful of engineers.

I am guessing that people usually sell the idea and prototype to some big company? what happens if there is an improvement to be done?

As you can see, my knowledge is less than basic so any leads or hints is highly appreciated.

Best,

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Reply to
amerdsp
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If you are getting systems manufactured then that company will program them with whatever you want. If you have big enough volume then the semiconductor company might deliver the chips ready programmed.

Peter

Reply to
Peter

I think it is quite a challenge to take your first ever prototype into production. There can be many pitfalls.

In no particular order:

1) are the ic's/LCD/special parts that you are using about to be discontined? 2) have you designed an enclosue ( a box) 3) do you need to pass FCC15 or CE specs ($$$)

I would find a small (local) wiring shop/ fabrication company and ask them how much it would cost to assemble, they can often get better price deals that from the catalogue sellers.

The shop may be able to suggest better ways of assembling your widget.

Thats just a few points.

And then there is "marketing"

martin

Reply to
martin griffith

micro controllers and flash chips can be programmed by the distributor (eg Avnet) when the quantities get into the 100s and above. They will need an image file, of course. They'll charge you an extra I am guessing that people usually sell the idea and prototype to some

Um, no. Selling a prototype to a big company in hopes that they will make it and market it for you (and pay you a royalty or something) is a fantasy. It's known as "working on spec" as in "speculation". Big companies like to do the market research *before* the design. Then, you (the garage operation)

*might* convince them that you can do the design. Of course, they will then want to pay you a one-time fee (if they think it will sell millions) or a percentage (if they think they can screw you better that way). They will think of you as no different from the rest of their sub-contractors (like the janitor service) and consider it their duty as a corperation to squeeze you as hard as they can.

that would be next year's model. ;-)

If you think your widget has a market, then you need to produce it and sell it. The production is relatively easy: sub-contract it to an assembly house if you don't want the hassle of hiring your own production empoyees. Getting it in front of the consumer is a lot harder. Without knowing what the widget is, I can't help with that.

Good luck and remember to have fun, Bob

Reply to
Bob

For flash programming there are gang programmers that can do many chips at once, or you can get the microprocessor manufacturer to program the chip for you.

It would help if you told us what the market is for the product, quantity etc, (i.e., is a specialized piece of test of equipment or something for the general public that would be displayed in the checkout line in walmart).

But generally if you have prototype working that is a very good thing, there are engineering firms that you can hire that will evaluate the prototype for manufacturability, part availability etc

Reply to
steve

Why be so positive !

martin

Reply to
martin griffith

Most of what I do at the moment is manufactured in small batches. My PCB designers have a deal with a PCB manufacturer and another deal with a "stuffer" - a subcontract assembly plant. I find it's cheaper to use them than to build batches myself, even for prototypes. And with SMT - no question. There's a setup fee, but it's relatively peanuts - far less than a few years ago. Times have changed.

As for flashing: for a small per-unit fee I provide the image, they do the work. (OTOH I try to arrange for my products to be field-upgradeable, easily and cheaply, so this rarely matters.)

Er, no. If you have a product, by all means license it, but don't expect $big_company to believe in what you're doing as much as you do.

Steve

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Reply to
Steve at fivetrees

They can be bought program to your spec from a chip distributor. Most PCB Assembly places will handle the chip programming.

Very bad guess. Most will not even talk to you to avoid bing sued (in the US anyway). While possible, not quite a business plan.

Reply to
Neil

"amerdsp" wrote

Can you in-circuit program? If so...

I'm guessing your equipment will need testing. That is, once produced it will need to be checked against a test specification to make sure it meets the requiremnents. Any calibration can also be done at this time. In my experience this is also the best time to program flash parts as long as you are able to in-circuit program. Programming at test time, in-circuit, reduces the overall programming cost and is a good way of controlling the software version currently released into production.

regards Jim

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Reply to
Jim

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