Prototyping Board (Glossary Entry)

 

Electronic Prototyping Board

A prototyping board, or breadboard as it is sometimes known, it a useful piece of equipment used in early stages of electronic design. The sockets are designed to allow compatible components to be inserted with gentle pressure, and connected by hidden copper connectors.

  • The main prototyping area is organized into columns (A-J in the image opposite).
  • For the columns A-E, all sockets in each row are connected by a strip of conductive metal. The same is true for columns F-J.
  • The centre channel is spaced such that the centre-most columns are spaced to host an DIP form-factor integrated circuit.
  • 8 vertical metal conductors back the 8 independent power rails (adjacent to the red and blue lines) running vertically.