List of all modules

Boffin magnetic

Micro computer (brain of the boffin kit)

Control unit

Component, sometimes called the brain of the whole Boffin magnetic kit.
It is a microcomputer, which can allow you to play games or measure temperatures or other variables. If you are technically proficient, you can reprogram it according to your wishes or upload new program into it, which we are going to publish regularly.

Joystick

Buttons

A component that substitutes several buttons. If you want to move in all 3 directions in a game and jump on top of that, you are going to need at least 5 buttons. Joystick is full-fledged substitute for these 5 buttons and it can do a lot more.

Display

Displays

Small OLED display with 128x64 pixels resolution. Where one pixel represents a small square that forms an image on the display. This display is connected directly to the microcomputer with correspondingly named connectors.

Relay

Buttons

Electromagnetic relay is a component for switching or disconnecting electrical connections. In simple terms, it works as a switch that you don't operate by hand, but instead with an electromagnet. After the voltage is applied to the coil in the relay, magnetic field is created and an anchor with movable contacts is pulled towards it.

Resistor

Resistors

It is one of the elementary components no electrical circuit can do without. It has one property and that is electrical resistance. Reason for including a resistor in a circuit is lowering value electrical current or gaining a certain level of voltage drop.

Speaker

Sound

Speaker receives electrical energy and converts it into acoustic (sound) energy. Speaker generates pressure waves in the air using different methods and it stimulates human hearing organs. Audible sound for a person has a frequency from about 16 Hz to 20.0000 Hz.

Photo-resistor

Light

A component with a resistance value dependent on the lighting conditions. That means more light shines onto it, less resistance it has and if there is a motor in the circuit for example, it can run faster. If you block the light shining on the photo-resistor with your finger, its resistance is going to increase greatly and the motor will stop spinning. You can use this component to create many interesting and experimental circuits.

Battery

Power source

Simple galvanic cells serving as a source of electrical voltage. No circuit can work without such power source.

Light bulb

Light

Light bulb is simple electrical device that converts electrical energy into light. It functions on principle of heating up thin, usually tungsten, wire by the current flowing through it. It starts to emit light when it reaches high temperature, but it consumes most energy emitting heat. Because of that LED lights are now used, which are much more efficient and saves power. You can test and compare both types of lights in one of the circuits.

Driver

Control unit

Component that can control direct current motors. Because of that, you can change the direction of the motor or its speed for example. With this component, you can build yourself functional RC car using Boffin components.

Microphone

Sound

Component that converts acoustic signal a.k.a sound to electric signal. This component allows you to hear the signer even in back rows.

LED diode

Light

Component with the main purpose to produce as much light as possible. It is a semiconductor component with two directions, forward and reverse. If the diode is plugged in in reverse direction, no current will be able to pass through it and it won't light up. If it is plugged in forward direction, the current will start to flow through and the diode will light up.

Conductive bridge

Power source

It is a simple component that serves to connect other components together to form a functional circuit. It is made only from a conductive trace that it meant to transfer electric energy from a point A to point B.

Rotary potentiometer

Buttons

Component that changes its resistance according to rotary element and because of that, it is used for direct control of sound volume or light intensity for example. With Boffin magnetic kit, you are going to find out that it can also be used as a steering wheel to control a driving game.

Diode

Power source

This component has one main purpose to let the current only flow in one direction. It is made from two semiconductors and it has anode and cathode.

Capacitor

Capacitors

It is an electronic component used in circuits to store electric charge and with that to preserve potential electric energy.

AB switch

Buttons

It a electronic component using the similar principle to on/off switch. If we were not to connect one of the terminals, we would create cut off switch. This component serves to switch between different circuits.

NPN transistor

Control unit

Main property of a transistor is its ability to amplify. In simple terms it means that small differences in voltage or current on the input can cause large changes of voltage or current on the output.

Buzzer

Sound

Based on piezoelectric effect this component produces squeaky tone. This effect is caused by variation of current, which is connected to a crystal.

Button

Buttons

It is a simple button that serves to directly control electronic device.

On/off switch

Buttons

It is small hand-operated mechanical on/off switch for electric circuits. In one position, the circuit is conductively linked and in the other disconnected.

Reed switch

Buttons

Reed switch is a mechanical switch controlled by magnetic pole.
If you bring magnet close to the reed switch contacts will be linked and conductive connection therefore established.

NE555

Control unit

Simple integrated circuit , which can be used as a tone generator for piano or controller to change a speed of an RC car. It contains two comparative circuits (comparators) and flip-flop circuit that switches the output according to input comparators.