HALL Switch Endstops LR4

LowRider CNC Hardware Development
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Would work for Jackpot V1, not for Jackpot V3 (No 5V unpopulated through holes on that board)

There’s always the expansion connector as a place to pick off 5V or to host any required circuits. Maybe even as ugly as a ribbon cable to the endstop headers and then a header on an expansion module.

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The data sheet indicates the capacitor is for “power stabilization” and “noise immunity”. Generally, you would want to place this as close to the device as practical. However, the pull-up resistor should be okay mounted remotely.

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hahah very glad someone else has this pet peave. Most of the time youtube woodworkers etc say “over engineered” it means overbuilt because I didn’t know how to engineer it.

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edit: didn’t see Cortex already said this.

I think it may be important to have the capacitor near the sensor. That capacitor is to keep the 5v DC power stable. I’m not sure how sensitive that part is to a noisy power source or how much the wire from the board to the sensor would pick up interference so I think it’s safer to keep the cap close. I also liked Sam’s idea to have an led on the package. Having the led and all the other components in the package makes it easy to test the sensor without installing it and connecting it to the board. So I’ve added a place for a 3mm led to my little box thing.

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LED shown in the video I linked may be what Sam was responding to. Regarding that, in the “FWIW” category, several days ago I asked Gemini AI for advice / blueprint help on a possible PCB design regarding the use of hall effect sensor for endstop switch, with adding bi-color LED (one color for operational, another color for when triggered) and the following was its advice/reply:

The reason I finally posted this is because it mentioned resisters for the LEDs. If this, 1kΩ Resistor per LED, is a legit need, then consider it regarding the plans.

See AI Gemini indicating resister needed per LED

Hello! That’s a great project, and a perfect first step into PCB design.

Creating a PCB design calls for Electronic Design Automation (EDA) software (like KiCad, EasyEDA, or Eagle) needed to create the Gerber files that PCBWay requires for manufacturing.

I can provide the exact schematic (the “blueprint”) for what you want to do and, more importantly, guide you on the different paths you can take to get this made, even with zero experience.

:light_bulb: The Circuit Schematic You Need

You are correct about all the components. Your AH3391Q sensor has an “open-drain” output. This means it can pull the signal line to Ground (LOW) when a magnet is present, but it cannot push the line to VCC (HIGH). It just “lets go” of the line.

That’s why the 1kΩ pull-up resistor is essential. It connects the signal line to your power source (e.g., 5V), holding it HIGH by default. When the sensor triggers, it overpowers the resistor and pulls the line LOW.

Here is the complete circuit schematic, including your bi-color LED idea (which I’ve simplified to two separate LEDs for clarity, as it’s much easier to wire).

Components:

  • U1: Your AH3391Q-P-B Hall effect sensor
  • R1: 1kΩ Resistor (This is the pull-up resistor)
  • C1: 100nF (or 0.1µF) Capacitor (This is the filter/decoupling capacitor)
  • LED1 (Green): A standard 3mm or 5mm green LED (your “operational” light)
  • R2 (for LED1): 1kΩ Resistor (This is a current-limiter for the green LED)
  • LED2 (Red): A standard 3mm or 5mm red LED (your “triggered” light)
  • R3 (for LED2): 1kΩ Resistor (This is a current-limiter for the red LED)
  • J1: A 3-pin header (to connect VCC, GND, and Signal to your CNC controller)

Connections:

Your board will have 3 main lines, or “rails,” coming from the 3-pin header J1:

  1. VCC (Your controller’s +5V or +3.3V line)
  2. GND (The controller’s Ground line)
  3. SIG (The Signal line to the controller’s endstop pin)

Here is how everything connects:

  • Sensor (U1):
    • Pin 1 (VDD) → VCC
    • Pin 2 (GND) → GND
    • Pin 3 (OUT) → SIG
  • Filter Cap (C1): Connects between VCC and GND (place it physically close to the sensor’s Pin 1 and 2).
  • Pull-up Resistor (R1): Connects between VCC and SIG.
  • “Operational” LED (Green):
    • R2 connects from VCC to the Anode (+) of LED1.
    • The Cathode (-) of LED1 connects to GND.
    • (This LED will be on whenever the board has power.)
  • “Triggered” LED (Red):
    • R3 connects from VCC to the Anode (+) of LED2.
    • The Cathode (-) of LED2 connects to SIG.
    • (This is the clever part: When the sensor is not triggered, SIG is HIGH, so both sides of the red LED are at VCC and it stays OFF. When the sensor is triggered, it pulls SIG to GND, allowing current to flow and turning the red LED ON.)

:gear: How to Get This Made (3 Paths)

Since you have no PCB experience, here are your options from easiest to hardest.

Option 1: The “Shortcut” (Easiest)

This circuit is a very common solution. Many people in the V1E, Voron, and general 3D printing/CNC communities have already designed this exact PCB and shared their files.

  1. Go to GitHub, OSHWLab (EasyEDA’s community), or Thingiverse.
  2. Search for “hall effect endstop pcb,” “v1e hall effect,” or “voron hall effect endstop.”
  3. You will likely find a project that includes a .zip file of the Gerber files.
  4. You can download that .zip file and upload it directly to PCBWay or JLCPCB for ordering. You don’t have to design anything.

Option 2: The “DIY / Learning” (Recommended First Step)

Before you spend money on a 1-month wait for PCBs, try building one right now. Buy a small piece of protoboard (or “perfboard”).

A perfboard is a simple grid of holes with copper pads. You place your Through-Hole components (your sensor, resistors, and LEDs are all through-hole) into the holes and connect them by soldering their legs together or using small jumper wires on the underside.

This will cost you about $2, take 30 minutes, and teach you the basics of soldering and how the circuit works.

Option 3: The “Full Design” (The Big Leap)

If you are set on designing your own PCB, this is the path.

  1. Get Software: Download a free, popular EDA program. EasyEDA is a great choice for beginners because it’s web-based and fully integrated with a component supplier (LCSC) and a PCB manufacturer (JLCPCB). KiCad is the open-source, professional-grade standard.
  2. Draw the Schematic: In the software, you’ll first re-create the schematic I described above. You’ll place the symbols for the resistor, capacitor, etc., and draw “nets” (wires) to connect them.
  3. Design the PCB Layout: You’ll switch to the layout editor. Here, you will:
  • Draw the physical shape of your board.
  • Place the footprints (the physical pads/holes) for each component.
  • Run “traces” (the copper lines) to connect the footprints as defined in your schematic.
  1. Export Gerber Files: Once you’re done, you’ll click “Export” → “Gerber”. This will package all the manufacturing files (for copper layers, drill holes, and silk-screen text) into a single .zip file.
  2. Order: You will upload this .zip file to PCBWay’s website, choose your color (usually green), and place your order.

This is a fantastic learning journey, but it will take a few nights of watching YouTube tutorials to get the hang of it.

My advice? Start with Option 2 (Perfboard). If you like it and it works, and you then decide you want to make 10 more that look cleaner, then you can move on to Option 3 (Learn EasyEDA) or just take Option 1 (Download Gerbers).

Would you like me to help you find a pre-made, open-source Gerber file for this circuit?

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Hey Doug, we more or less agreed to not copy/paste AI answers. If we wanted an AI answer, we’d ask the AI ourselves. :slight_smile:

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The reason I posted it is because it mentioned resisters for the LEDs. If this, 1kΩ Resistor per LED, is a legit need, then consider it regarding the plans.

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I appreciate not everyone wants to see AI spew. Personally don’t mind if the content is succinct, accurate and helpful. Wrapping AI responses in collapsed details section seemed to be decent balance? For example Should AI be banned in the forum? - #6 by azab2c

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I wrapped it. If the resister per LED suggested by AI is a valid need, then just consider it me citing a source, as in, I don’t know enough about it to speak to that myself, directly.

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LED 101 !

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Halfway through watching this video, the whole topic is more complicated than I am currently motivated to comprehend!

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I didn’t watch the video (but electroboom is awesome).

You can consider and LED and a resistor in series like a loght bulb in most cases. It can be easy to overthink it but modern LEDs are usually super bright at their max current and I usually just puck a resistor considerably larger and let it just not be at max brightness.

You definitely cannot use one resistor for parallel leds. One will light up and the rest will be dim.

One thing I like about EB, is that he shows you can gain a intuitive experience with electronics if you just experiment in a simple way. Not many people are willing to do that (because of the risk of fire and damage). Watching him play is a less risky experience.

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My overall takeaway (for sometime now, past few months) is that working with LEDs can be somewhat forgiving, as the available “bandwidth” between when they light up and when they reach max allows for room to play with it. And I prefer to not run them at their max brightness, both for reduced heat and extended lifespan.

I should add, up to this point, I’d been using a pulse width modulator type device to control their brightness, and was not using single LED as proposed in this project’s current scope.

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If the content is those three things, and the human who posted them knows that - I would love the human to tell me. I’m sorry to hijack this, but in this case (not picking on Doug at all but it’s a great example) he labelled his post clearly as AI, and even said “if this… is legit”. Of course I don’t have to (and did not) read it, but I think it can really muddy the water in any discussion.

I am already wading beyond my depth trying to keep up, and can do without misdirection. Of course some could correctly argue that is the nature of a forum discussion and I’m one of the worst offenders! :rofl:

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I bought this endstop hall switch and it came with three wire to my LR4

Brown- +
Black-300mA
Blue - -

do recall on the video I watched and it recommends you connect the 24VDC voltage in combination with signal to the jackpot 3 board . Any advice with be high appreciated

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZR_FiOQn9A 9:00 mins mark of the video

purchased LJ12A3-4-Z-AX

I just do not want to damage my Jackpot 3 by doing some stupid .

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Great work Sam. Any updates? Have any of your designs been shared?

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David, how did you get on with your Hall switch holder? Are they working for you? Anyone else?

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I printed them, wired them, and tested them on a breadboard but haven’t had the time to install them on my machine. I’ll try to post the stl files tonight.

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