Practical
Electronics
Volume 52. No. 10
October 2023
ISSN 2632 573X
Contents
Projects and Circuits
Automatic Level Crossing and Semaphore Control by Les Kerr
Combine our Model Railway Level Crossing and Semaphore Signal projects
with a Li’l Pulser Mk.2 train controller to automate a model railway layout.
16
Multi-Stage Buck-Boost Battery Charger by Tim Blythman
This low-cost add-on turns our Buck-Boost Driver into a fully featured multi-stage
battery charger. It has a charge status display and works with multiple battery types.
24
New PICs and AVRs, plus Breakout Boards by Tim Blythman
34
We look at new PIC/AVR ICs from Microchip and build a handy trio of breakout boards
to plug into a breadboard while also connecting to a Snap or PICkit 4 programmer.
Series, Features and Columns
Techno Talk by Max The Magnificent
Holy Spheres, Batman!
8
Net Work by Alan Winstanley
10
Reports on advances in AI-powered image processing, space news and dealing
with old British paper banknotes.
Max’s Cool Beans by Max The Magnificent
Arduino Bootcamp – Part 10
42
Audio Out by Jake Rothman
Discrete audio op amp – Part 2
46
KickStart by Mike Tooley
Part 13: Using low-cost colour LCD displays with the Raspberry Pi Pico
54
Circuit Surgery by Ian Bell
Gyrators Part 2 – Equaliser Circuits
62
Regulars and Services
Wireless for the Warrior
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NEW! Practical Electronics back issues DOWNLOADS – 2022 now available!
Reader services – Editorial and Advertising Departments
Editorial
Time for some new PICs
Exclusive Microchip reader offer
Win a Microchip MPLAB ICD 5
PE Teach-In 8
Teach-In bundle – what a bargain!
Practical Electronics PCB Service
PCBs for Practical Electronics projects
Classified ads and Advertiser index
Next month! – highlights of our next issue of Practical Electronics
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Made in the UK.
Written in Britain, Australia,
the US and Ireland.
Read everywhere.
© Electron Publishing Limited 2023
Copyright in all drawings, photographs, articles,
technical designs, software and intellectual property
published in Practical Electronics is fully protected,
and reproduction or imitation in whole or in part are
expressly forbidden.
The November 2023 issue of Practical Electronics will be
published on Thursday, 5 October 2023 – see page 72.
Practical Electronics | October | 2023
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