Simple Universal Motor Speed Controller

Well, that didn't go well :(  Apparently my Canon printer doesn't work well for toner transfer.  Going to try one of the HP printers at the office tomorrow.

So, this is my first attempt at home etching a PCB.  I'm attempting to use the toner transfer method using magazine pages.  The method itself seems to be sound, I'm just having trouble getting my print settings correct (SCREW YOU ADOBE!!!).  Once I get a decent transfer onto the PCB, I'll be using the muriatic acid and hydrogen peroxide method of etching.  Wish me luck!

Also wanted to mention something else on the to-do list.  As this controller deals with live household current, it should definitely be contained in an enclosure when in use.  So, in addition to what I am already working on, once I have the PCB design finalized, I will also design a 3D printable enclosure.  As I already have a 3D printer, this makes more sense than trying to fit the assembly into a stock project enclosure.

Just hammered out revision .01 of the firmware for this controller.  There will be an update to the hardware design files as well once I have time to add in at least a couple of inputs (on/off and autotune), and possibly an LED output.  This firmware is currently untested as I am waiting for the components to show up to actually build the circuit.  Next step will be to etch a prototype PCB once I finish tweaking the design file.  This will be my first attempt at etching PCBs, so that should be an adventure in and of itself :)

Spent a little time with my Arduino and a breadboard last night testing the zero cross detection circuit.  I was a little skeptical as to whether this would work, even though I found out about it through an Atmel datasheet.  However, it works as advertised.  I do not have a local source to acquire a the necessary triac from, so I will have to wait till it shows up from Mouser before I can test the output side of the circuit.  That should give me time to get started on writing the code.  Once I have some code going to work with, I should be able to do some testing with a logic analyzer to verify that the triac trigger signal is happening when it is supposed to in relation to the AC phase.

**********WARNING*************

Also, as mentioned before, if you are not familiar and/or comfortable working with live household current, DO NOT ATTEMPT THIS PROJECT