Mini Pi Out

All the code in the Coding Club books works really well on a Raspberry Pi. The Pi is also great for embedded programming, using computers to control everyday objects such as garage doors. There are many systems out there that enable you to get quick access to the GPIO pins on the Raspberry Pi but none of them are very easy with my PiBow case. Inspired by the simple solution to labelling the pins produced by Simon Monk ( Raspberry Leaf ) I thought up a quick solution to my problem:

The Mini Pi Out – is it the smallest break-out solution yet?

The Mini Pi Out also allows you to use the bundles of wires shown that are readily available and cheap (currently £4.99 for 65pcs on amazon ).

It should work well with all cases that a ribbon cable can get out of.

You need to purchase one of these ( currently £2.99 on amazon ):

You should find that with a little careful prising you can easily remove the plug from one end and then rejoin it at a nice tight length the other way up.

1. First fit the remaining plug onto Pi in your case and mark on the ribbon where to place the edge of the removed plug.
2. Now take it off the Pi and position the removed plug onto the ribbon and close it carefully in a clamp.
3. After this trim off the spare ribbon cable with a craft knife. (I also needed a good plaster to go over my cut when I slipped with the craft knofe, but this bit is optional). NOTE: Adult supervision is essential!
4. Finally check all connections have been made correctly with a circuit tester. Then fit it into your case.

This is how the Mini Pi Out looks before putting the PiBow back together:

Note carefully that this makes the inner row of pins become the outer row of sockets on the Mini Pi Out. Therefore you need to label them. This can be done with these pdfs:

mini_pi_out_r1.pdf (if you have the early Revision 1 Pi)
mini_pi_out_r2.pdf (if you have the later Revision 2 Pi)

(Feedback and suggestions for improvement are very welcome.)