So, I still want to relocate the buttons.. THe issue here is that the buttons are attached to the PCB and I want to run them to a different location in the car.. Here is what I mean: the white area.. All those buttons I want relocated somewhere else.. Anyone here able to help out? WQhat should I do? I have a few other electronics going in here that need to0 have the buttons relocated as well.. If I can figure this one out, I can apply it to the rest.. My thoughts were to solder wires to the contacts, and run the wires, solder the buttons to them, and call it a day.. Help me if I'm wrong..
That would work, desolder the buttons and run extension wires off of them to the board they came from. In "touch sensitive" do you mean actually barely brushing against the button or actually pushing down?
two things you could do... either desolder each button individualy and run 2 wires to each, or just extend the ribbon cable that is there now. it looks to me like the upper ribbon cable is for the VCD, and the lower one is for the buttons. if this is the case, you may be able to saw the PCB in half (very carfully, check to make sure your not cutting traces) and only relocate one half.
I would not reccomend sawing the board in half unless you are absolutey sure that it is not a multy layer board and that you will not damage any of the traces. I would go with just de-soldering the buttons or trying to map out the schematic of the button matrix. that way you wouldent need as many wires.
with something like that, it is almost definitely a single layer board. The presence of jumpers confirms it.
For how much I paid for this, and the abundance, I could sacrifice it to see if I can saw it in half.. If I can, that would TOTALLY own.. Thanks guys.. Ill update and see what happens if I can saw it in half..
Okay.. Sawing it in half wont work.. It has copper traces all the ewa around.. I can "almost" make it.. there are 2 friggin traces there that go ALL the way around.. I can only get around it by going up through the part with the VFD, whis would do nothing for me.. So it looks like I am back to button relocation.. I have a new spot picked for the VFD, and the buttons.. Gonna look killer.. Real quick, each button has a total o 5-6 contacts.. should I run them all with wires to the new button locations?
yeah... some people it looks from your pic that the VFD has a ton of pins. is there another controler chip on the keypad? if so, then it is probably multi layer. but it also doesnt look like there are traces on the top, which is the cheapest place to put the second layer, so it may be single. are there any vias? that means, little holes that dont have components solderd to them that are all over the PCB, connecting to (seemingly) nowhere? if there arent, the it probably isnt multilayer. if there are just two traces that you can see in your way, go ahead and cut it. then use a file and rub off some of the protective coating that covers the traces that you cut, and solder wires to them to restore their functionality. this is a lot easier then figuring out the multiplexing and making your own keypad. theoreticly, you can also cut the plastic box in half so that you keep the original buttons with out keeping the display housing. the control circtury can be remotly mounted from the VFD and the keypad
Yea.. The buttons are being moved to an overhead console doo dad.. I already have another set of controls routed there, but that was easy.. They were already hooked into the unit in its original form by wires.. Just extend those, and were golden.. These DIS buttons.. Theyre another story..
if the second ribbon cable IS just for the buttons, maybe you could just desolder the current one, put your new one in, and as someone said earlier, map out the button schematic. or, seeing as you can get more of them, you could just get the keypad from a second one, and put a ribbon cable between the two. maybe you could even cut the vfd off, if the traces that go right around are only for that.
Alright.. Even with bad eyes, I followd the traces uround.. The come from 2 points down in the lower region where the buttons are, and go up into 2 points into a micro controller of sorts (Most likely a memory or program chip)..What I was thinking was getting a second one, removing the VFD, and then cuttong it, leaving the 2 traces intact.. THEN extending the ribbon cable.. Down from the roof ofthe car to the VFD pieces..
