399:. In the middle of a terminal strip of a breadboard, one typically finds a notch running in parallel to the long side. The notch is to mark the centerline of the terminal strip and provides limited airflow (cooling) to DIP ICs straddling the centerline. The clips on the right and left of the notch are each connected in a radial way; typically five clips (i.e., beneath five holes) in a row on each side of the notch are electrically connected. The five columns on the left of the notch are often marked as A, B, C, D, and E, while the ones on the right are marked F, G, H, I and J. When a "skinny" dual in-line pin package (DIP) integrated circuit (such as a typical DIP-14 or DIP-16, which have a 0.3-inch (7.6 mm) separation between the pin rows) is plugged into a breadboard, the pins of one side of the chip are supposed to go into column E while the pins of the other side go into column F on the other side of the notch. The rows are identified by numbers from 1 to as many the breadboard design goes. A full-size terminal breadboard strip typically consists of around 56 to 65 rows of connectors. Together with bus strips on each side this makes up a typical 784 to 910 tie point solderless breadboard. Most breadboards are designed to accommodate 17, 30 or 64 rows in the mini, half, and full configurations respectively.
605:
380:
117:
431:
736:
441:(also called jumper wires) for solderless breadboarding can be obtained in ready-to-use jump wire sets or can be manually manufactured. The latter can become tedious work for larger circuits. Ready-to-use jump wires come in different qualities, some even with tiny plugs attached to the wire ends. Jump wire material for ready-made or homemade wires should usually be 22
46:
32:
588:
assembly methodology to exploit full-speed operation. A single small SoC often provides most of these electrical interface options in a form factor barely larger than a large postage stamp, available in the
American hobby market (and elsewhere) for a few dollars, allowing fairly sophisticated breadboard projects to be created at modest expense.
660:
prototype systems with thousands of connecting points, but great care must be taken in careful assembly, and such a system becomes unreliable as contact resistance develops over time. At some point, very complex systems must be implemented in a more reliable interconnection technology, to have a likelihood of working over a usable time period.
310:
597:
411:(inductively coupled noise) on the power supply bus. Often the groups in a bus strip are indicated by gaps in the color marking. Bus strips typically run down one or both sides of a terminal strip or between terminal strips. On large breadboards additional bus strips can often be found on the top and bottom of terminal strips.
480:
discipline are often adhered to for consistency. However, the number of available colors is typically far fewer than the number of signal types or paths. Typically, a few wire colors are reserved for the supply voltages and ground (e.g., red, blue, black), some are reserved for main signals, and the
406:
are used. A bus strip usually contains two columns: one for ground and one for a supply voltage. However, some breadboards only provide a single-column power distribution bus strip on each long side. Typically the row intended for a supply voltage is marked in red, while the row for ground is marked
387:
Solderless breadboards connect pin to pin by metal strips inside the breadboard. The layout of a typical solderless breadboard is made up from two types of areas, called strips. Strips consist of interconnected electrical terminals. Often breadboard strips or blocks of one brand have male and female
139:
Breadboards have evolved over time with the term now being used for all kinds of prototype electronic devices. For example, US Patent 3,145,483, was filed in 1961 and describes a wooden plate breadboard with mounted springs and other facilities. US Patent 3,496,419, was filed in 1967 and refers to
659:
Very complex circuits can become unmanageable on a solderless breadboard due to the large amount of wiring required. The very convenience of easy plugging and unplugging of connections also makes it too easy to accidentally disturb a connection, and the system becomes unreliable. It is possible to
655:
or dual in-line layout, for insertion into a solderless breadboard. Larger components are usually plugged into a socket on the adapter, while smaller components (e.g., SMD resistors) are usually soldered directly onto the adapter. The adapter is then plugged into the breadboard via the 0.1 in
587:
is then developed for the MCU to test, debug, and interact with the circuit prototype. High frequency operation is then largely confined to the SoC's PCB. In the case of high speed interconnects such as SPI and I²C, these can be debugged at a lower speed and later rewired using a different circuit
415:
516:
For high-frequency development, a metal breadboard affords a desirable solderable ground plane, often an unetched piece of printed circuit board; integrated circuits are sometimes stuck upside down to the breadboard and soldered to directly, a technique sometimes called
715:
designs are a more extreme version of the same process: since producing prototype silicon is costly, extensive software simulations are performed before fabricating the first prototypes. However, prototyping techniques are still used for some applications such as
723:
It is also possible to use a square grid of pairs of holes where one hole per pair connects to its row and the other connects to its column. This same shape can be in a circle with rows and columns each spiraling opposite clockwise/counterclockwise.
636:, depending on the nature of the circuit. The relatively high contact resistance can already be a problem for some DC and very low frequency circuits. Solderless breadboards are further limited by their voltage and current ratings.
465: in (4.8 to 7.9 mm). Shorter stripped wires might result in bad contact with the board's spring clips (insulation being caught in the springs). Longer stripped wires increase the likelihood of short-circuits on the board.
407:
in blue or black. Some manufacturers connect all terminals in a column. Others just connect groups of, for example, 25 consecutive terminals in a column. The latter design provides a circuit designer with some more control over
159:
patented a solderless breadboard connecting rows of holes together with spring metal. In 1971, Ronald
Portugal of E&L Instruments patented a similar concept with holes in 0.1 inches (2.54 mm) spacings, the same as
496:
Some manufacturers provide high-end versions of solderless breadboards. These are typically high-quality breadboard modules mounted on a flat casing. The casing contains additional equipment for breadboarding, such as a
108:, relatively high resistance, and less reliable connections, which are subject to jostle and physical degradation. Signaling is limited to about 10 MHz, and not everything works properly even well below that frequency.
359:) can be inserted into the remaining free holes to complete the circuit. Where ICs are not used, discrete components and connecting wires may use any of the holes. Typically the spring clips are rated for 1
643:
devices (SMD) or components with grid spacing other than 0.1 inches (2.54 mm). Further, they cannot accommodate components with multiple rows of connectors if these connectors do not match the
651:
adapters called "breakout adapters" can be used to fit the component to the board. Such adapters carry one or more components and have 0.1 inches (2.54 mm) spaced male connector pins in a
1095:
Dead-bug breadboards with ground plane, and other prototyping techniques, illustrated in
Figures F1 to F24, from p. AN47-98. There is information on breadboarding on pp. AN47-26 to AN47-29.
481:
rest are simply used where convenient. Some ready-to-use jump wire sets use the color to indicate the length of the wires, but these sets do not allow a meaningful color-coding schema.
521:" construction because of its appearance. Examples of dead bug with ground plane construction are illustrated in a Linear Technologies application note.
656:(2.54 mm) connectors. However, the need to solder the components onto the adapter negates some of the advantage of using a solderless breadboard.
545:(IO) pins in a header suitable to plug into a breadboard, and then to prototype a circuit which exploits one or more of the MCU's peripherals, such as
132:
was first glued to the board as a guide to placing terminals, then components and wires were installed over their symbols on the schematic. Using
489:
In a more robust variant, one or more breadboard strips are mounted on a sheet of metal. Typically, that backing sheet also holds a number of
94:
or destruction of tracks and are hence reusable. For this reason, breadboards are also popular with students and in technological education.
445:(0.33 mm) solid copper, tin-plated wire - assuming no tiny plugs are to be attached to the wire ends. The wire ends should be stripped
1160:
1135:
422:
Some manufacturers provide separate bus and terminal strips. Others just provide breadboard blocks which contain both in one block.
347:(DIPs) can be inserted to straddle the centerline of the block. Interconnecting wires and the leads of discrete components (such as
493:. These posts provide a clean way to connect an external power supply. This type of breadboard may be slightly easier to handle.
1165:
1155:
124:
In the early days of radio, amateurs nailed bare copper wires or terminal strips to a wooden board (often literally a bread
97:
A variety of electronic systems may be prototyped by using breadboards, from small analog and digital circuits to complete
704:
796:
1110:
546:
669:
574:
562:
558:
518:
20:
692:, do not lend themselves to prototyping using breadboards, as their complex designs can be difficult to lay out and
1150:
1061:
236:
156:
847: : "Device for facilitating construction of electrical apparatus", filed 7 Jul 1960, retrieved 14 Jan 2017.
640:
98:
632:, solderless breadboards are limited to operation at relatively low frequencies, usually less than 10
652:
609:
566:
37:
400 point solderless breadboard with 0.1 inches (2.54 mm) hole-to-hole spacing, top and bottom views
708:
648:
629:
621:
538:
141:
105:
52:
680:, and boards like the stripboard. Complicated systems, such as modern computers comprising millions of
164:
IC packages, which became the basis of the modern solderless breadboard that is commonly used today.
886: : "Primary electrical training test board apparatus", filed 10 Apr 1943, retrieved 14 July 2017.
644:
613:
344:
161:
75:
442:
946: : "Mounting assemblage for electrical circuits", filed 14 Nov 1958, retrieved 14 July 2017.
934: : "Quick attaching and detaching circuit system", filed 8 Sep 1958, retrieved 14 July 2017.
741:
712:
466:
340:
79:
910: : "Board for demonstrating electric circuits", filed 10 Apr 1945, retrieved 14 July 2017.
862:: "Breadboard for electronic components or the like", filed 1 Dec 1971, retrieved 14 July 2017.
604:
379:
1077:
700:
647:
layout—it is impossible to provide the correct electrical connectivity. Sometimes small
624:
compared to a properly laid out PCB (approx 2 pF between adjacent contact columns), high
317:
A modern solderless breadboard socket consists of a perforated block of plastic with numerous
129:
769:
759:
570:
530:
506:
502:
268:
116:
1065:
800:
764:
717:
534:
321:
211:
16:
Board with embedded spring clips that allows for electronics to be wired without soldering
817: : "Test board for electronic circuits", filed 4 May 1961, retrieved 14 July 2017.
389:
1144:
774:
677:
325:
125:
1026:
414:
104:
Compared to more permanent circuit connection methods, modern breadboards have high
542:
498:
490:
339:
The spacing between the clips (lead pitch) is typically 0.1 inches (2.54 mm).
895:
859:
430:
336:. The number of tie points is often given in the specification of the breadboard.
832: : "Printed circuit breadboard", filed 25 Apr 1967, retrieved 14 July 2017.
510:
1038:
1003:
991:
979:
967:
955:
943:
931:
919:
907:
883:
844:
829:
814:
735:
1106:
970: : "Electrical experiment kit", filed 5 Nov 1964, retrieved 14 July 2017.
871:
793:
749:
731:
681:
625:
477:
473:
are helpful when inserting or removing wires, particularly on crowded boards.
87:
1006:: "Miniature tandem spring clips", filed 23 Jun 1971, retrieved 14 Jan 2017.
720:
circuits, or where software models of components are inexact or incomplete.
673:
633:
628:
of some connections and a relatively high and not very reproducible contact
438:
408:
348:
149:
133:
91:
83:
958: : "Circuit assembly board", filed 21 Nov 1960, retrieved 14 Jan 2017.
922:: "Modular circuit fabrication", filed 4 Apr 1955, retrieved 14 July 2017.
45:
994:: "Educational training aids", filed 11 Oct 1968, retrieved 14 July 2017.
754:
689:
584:
470:
356:
352:
898:"Electrical instruction board", filed 4 Oct 1944, retrieved 23 Oct 2022.
1136:
Large parallel processing design prototyped on 50 connected breadboards
1058:
318:
31:
874:"Electrical switch board", filed 31 Aug 1880, retrieved 4 August 2019.
395:
The main areas, to hold most of the electronic components, are called
392:
notches so boards can be clipped together to form a large breadboard.
328:
alloy spring clips under the perforations. The clips are often called
309:
982:: "Electronic building set", filed 5 May 1966, retrieved 14 Jan 2017.
360:
175:
148:. Both examples refer to and describe other types of breadboards as
578:
596:
55:(PCB) is electrically equivalent to the above solderless breadboard
1081:
693:
685:
608:
Prototype microphone preamp built with SMD components soldered to
603:
595:
554:
429:
413:
378:
308:
299:", E&L Instruments. This is the modern solderless breadboard.
115:
550:
368:
364:
128:) and soldered electronic components to them. Sometimes a paper
1015:
313:
Breadboard consisting of only terminal strips but no bus strips
1027:
E&L Instruments in Open
Database Of The Corporate World.
233:
Device for facilitating construction of electrical apparatus
383:
Solderless breadboard with dual bus strips on both sides
699:
Modern circuit designs are generally developed using a
19:
This article is about electronics. For other uses, see
1082:"Application Note 47: High Speed Amplifier Techniques"
74:
is a construction base used to build semi-permanent
1016:
707:before the first prototype circuits are built on a
1107:"EEVblog #568 - Solderless Breadboard Capacitance"
855:
853:
840:
838:
825:
823:
810:
808:
672:(reminiscent of the original wooden breadboards),
639:Solderless breadboards usually cannot accommodate
136:or small nails as mounting posts was also common.
297:Breadboard for electronic components or the like
187:Primary electrical training test board apparatus
402:To provide power to the electronic components,
668:Alternative methods to create prototypes are
600:Complex circuit built around a microprocessor
8:
219:Quick attaching and detaching circuit system
226:Mounting assemblage for electrical circuits
434:Stranded 22AWG jump wires with solid tips
201:Board for demonstrating electric circuits
786:
418:Inside of a solderless breadboard strip
120:Educational circuits on blocks of wood
703:and simulation system, and tested in
7:
1113:from the original on 21 January 2014
295:US Patent D228136, filed in 1971, "
288:US Patent 3733574, filed in 1971, "
281:US Patent 3540135, filed in 1968, "
274:US Patent 3496419, filed in 1967, "
263:US Patent 3447249, filed in 1966, "
256:US Patent 3277589, filed in 1964, "
249:US Patent 3145483, filed in 1961, "
242:US Patent 3078596, filed in 1960, "
231:US Patent 3085177, filed in 1960, "
224:US Patent 2983892, filed in 1958, "
217:US Patent 3062991, filed in 1958, "
206:US Patent 2885602, filed in 1955, "
199:US Patent 2568535, filed in 1945, "
192:US Patent 2592552, filed in 1944, "
185:US Patent 2477653, filed in 1943, "
794:Description of the term breadboard
509:, LED display or LCD modules, and
251:Test board for electronic circuits
14:
367:and 0.333 amperes at 15 volts (5
734:
541:(PCB) which exposes an array of
44:
30:
476:Differently colored wires and
1:
290:Miniature tandem spring clips
155:In 1960, Orville Thompson of
90:, breadboards do not require
547:general-purpose input/output
212:National Cash Register (NCR)
194:Electrical instruction board
670:point-to-point construction
575:Serial Peripheral Interface
563:digital-to-analog converter
559:analog-to-digital converter
208:Modular circuit fabrication
21:Breadboard (disambiguation)
1182:
533:(SoC) era is to obtain an
276:Printed circuit breadboard
146:Printed Circuit Breadboard
18:
1161:Electronic test equipment
537:(MCU) on a pre-assembled
283:Educational training aids
258:Electrical experiment kit
237:DeVry Technical Institute
157:DeVry Technical Institute
641:surface-mount technology
620:Due to relatively large
178:231708, filed in 1880, "
99:central processing units
375:Bus and terminal strips
265:Electronic building set
180:Electrical switch board
1166:Electronics work tools
1156:Electronics substrates
617:
601:
567:pulse-width modulation
435:
419:
384:
314:
292:", Vector Electronics.
244:Circuit assembly board
121:
709:printed circuit board
622:parasitic capacitance
607:
599:
557:serial transceivers,
539:printed circuit board
433:
417:
382:
345:dual in-line packages
312:
142:printed circuit board
119:
106:parasitic capacitance
68:solderless breadboard
53:printed circuit board
1004:U.S. Patent 3733574.
992:U.S. Patent 3540135.
980:U.S. Patent 3447249.
968:U.S. Patent 3277589.
956:U.S. Patent 3078596.
944:U.S. Patent 2983892.
932:U.S. Patent 3062991.
920:U.S. Patent 2885602.
908:U.S. Patent 2568535.
896:U.S. Patent 2592552.
884:U.S. Patent 2477653.
860:U.S. Patent D228136.
845:U.S. Patent 3085177.
830:U.S. Patent 3496419.
815:U.S. Patent 3145483.
529:A common use in the
872:U.S. Patent 231708.
705:software simulation
341:Integrated circuits
80:electronic circuits
1064:2011-10-09 at the
1059:Powered breadboard
799:2007-09-27 at the
742:Electronics portal
713:Integrated circuit
618:
602:
467:Needle-nose pliers
436:
420:
385:
315:
271:blocks / dominoes.
122:
1151:Electronic design
1078:Linear Technology
701:schematic capture
696:on a breadboard.
507:serial interfaces
503:signal generators
130:schematic diagram
1173:
1123:
1122:
1120:
1118:
1102:
1096:
1094:
1092:
1091:
1086:
1074:
1068:
1056:
1050:
1049:
1047:
1045:
1035:
1029:
1024:
1018:
1013:
1007:
1001:
995:
989:
983:
977:
971:
965:
959:
953:
947:
941:
935:
929:
923:
917:
911:
905:
899:
893:
887:
881:
875:
869:
863:
857:
848:
842:
833:
827:
818:
812:
803:
791:
770:Iterative design
760:Expansion spring
744:
739:
738:
531:system on a chip
485:Advanced designs
464:
463:
459:
454:
453:
449:
48:
34:
1181:
1180:
1176:
1175:
1174:
1172:
1171:
1170:
1141:
1140:
1132:
1127:
1126:
1116:
1114:
1104:
1103:
1099:
1089:
1087:
1084:
1080:(August 1991).
1076:
1075:
1071:
1066:Wayback Machine
1057:
1053:
1043:
1041:
1039:"wire stripper"
1037:
1036:
1032:
1025:
1021:
1014:
1010:
1002:
998:
990:
986:
978:
974:
966:
962:
954:
950:
942:
938:
930:
926:
918:
914:
906:
902:
894:
890:
882:
878:
870:
866:
858:
851:
843:
836:
828:
821:
813:
806:
801:Wayback Machine
792:
788:
783:
765:Fahnestock clip
740:
733:
730:
666:
594:
535:microcontroller
527:
487:
461:
457:
456:
451:
447:
446:
428:
397:terminal strips
377:
322:phosphor bronze
307:
302:
170:
114:
60:
59:
58:
57:
56:
49:
40:
39:
38:
35:
24:
17:
12:
11:
5:
1179:
1177:
1169:
1168:
1163:
1158:
1153:
1143:
1142:
1139:
1138:
1131:
1130:External links
1128:
1125:
1124:
1105:Jones, David.
1097:
1069:
1051:
1030:
1019:
1008:
996:
984:
972:
960:
948:
936:
924:
912:
900:
888:
876:
864:
849:
834:
819:
804:
785:
784:
782:
779:
778:
777:
772:
767:
762:
757:
752:
746:
745:
729:
726:
665:
662:
653:single in-line
616:adapter boards
593:
590:
569:(PWM; used in
526:
523:
501:, one or more
486:
483:
427:
424:
376:
373:
334:contact points
306:
303:
301:
300:
293:
286:
279:
272:
261:
254:
247:
240:
229:
222:
215:
204:
197:
190:
183:
171:
169:
166:
113:
110:
50:
43:
42:
41:
36:
29:
28:
27:
26:
25:
15:
13:
10:
9:
6:
4:
3:
2:
1178:
1167:
1164:
1162:
1159:
1157:
1154:
1152:
1149:
1148:
1146:
1137:
1134:
1133:
1129:
1112:
1108:
1101:
1098:
1083:
1079:
1073:
1070:
1067:
1063:
1060:
1055:
1052:
1040:
1034:
1031:
1028:
1023:
1020:
1017:
1012:
1009:
1005:
1000:
997:
993:
988:
985:
981:
976:
973:
969:
964:
961:
957:
952:
949:
945:
940:
937:
933:
928:
925:
921:
916:
913:
909:
904:
901:
897:
892:
889:
885:
880:
877:
873:
868:
865:
861:
856:
854:
850:
846:
841:
839:
835:
831:
826:
824:
820:
816:
811:
809:
805:
802:
798:
795:
790:
787:
780:
776:
775:Optical table
773:
771:
768:
766:
763:
761:
758:
756:
753:
751:
748:
747:
743:
737:
732:
727:
725:
721:
719:
714:
710:
706:
702:
697:
695:
691:
687:
683:
679:
678:wiring pencil
675:
671:
663:
661:
657:
654:
650:
646:
642:
637:
635:
631:
627:
623:
615:
611:
606:
598:
591:
589:
586:
582:
580:
576:
572:
571:motor control
568:
564:
560:
556:
552:
548:
544:
540:
536:
532:
524:
522:
520:
514:
512:
508:
504:
500:
494:
492:
491:binding posts
484:
482:
479:
474:
472:
468:
444:
440:
432:
425:
423:
416:
412:
410:
405:
400:
398:
393:
391:
381:
374:
372:
370:
366:
362:
358:
354:
350:
346:
342:
337:
335:
331:
327:
326:nickel silver
323:
320:
311:
304:
298:
294:
291:
287:
284:
280:
277:
273:
270:
266:
262:
259:
255:
252:
248:
245:
241:
238:
234:
230:
227:
223:
220:
216:
213:
209:
205:
202:
198:
195:
191:
188:
184:
181:
177:
173:
172:
167:
165:
163:
158:
153:
151:
147:
143:
140:a particular
137:
135:
131:
127:
126:cutting board
118:
111:
109:
107:
102:
100:
95:
93:
89:
85:
81:
77:
73:
69:
65:
54:
47:
33:
22:
1115:. Retrieved
1100:
1088:. Retrieved
1072:
1054:
1042:. Retrieved
1033:
1022:
1011:
999:
987:
975:
963:
951:
939:
927:
915:
903:
891:
879:
867:
789:
722:
698:
667:
664:Alternatives
658:
645:dual in-line
638:
619:
583:
543:input/output
528:
515:
511:logic probes
499:power supply
495:
488:
478:color-coding
475:
437:
421:
403:
401:
396:
394:
386:
338:
333:
329:
316:
296:
289:
282:
275:
264:
257:
250:
243:
232:
225:
218:
207:
200:
193:
186:
179:
154:
145:
144:layout as a
138:
123:
103:
96:
71:
67:
63:
61:
1109:. EEVblog.
682:transistors
592:Limitations
82:. Unlike a
1145:Categories
1117:15 January
1090:2016-02-14
781:References
750:Brassboard
630:resistance
626:inductance
577:(SPI), or
439:Jump wires
426:Jump wires
404:bus strips
349:capacitors
330:tie points
319:tin plated
134:thumbtacks
88:stripboard
76:prototypes
72:protoboard
64:breadboard
51:400 point
690:resistors
674:wire wrap
409:crosstalk
357:inductors
353:resistors
343:(ICs) in
168:Prior art
150:prior art
92:soldering
84:perfboard
1111:Archived
1062:Archived
1044:14 April
797:Archived
755:DIN rail
728:See also
585:Firmware
549:(GPIO),
519:dead bug
471:tweezers
390:dovetail
267:". See
101:(CPUs).
565:(DAC),
561:(ADC),
460:⁄
450:⁄
269:Lectron
112:History
688:, and
686:diodes
361:ampere
355:, and
305:Design
176:Patent
1085:(pdf)
694:debug
612:- or
555:USART
369:watts
365:volts
363:at 5
70:, or
1119:2014
1046:2023
551:UART
525:Uses
469:and
649:PCB
634:MHz
614:DIL
610:SIP
581:.
579:I²C
573:),
455:to
443:AWG
371:).
332:or
324:or
235:",
210:",
174:US
162:DIP
152:.
86:or
78:of
1147::
852:^
837:^
822:^
807:^
718:RF
711:.
684:,
676:,
513:.
505:,
462:16
452:16
351:,
285:".
278:".
260:".
253:".
246:".
228:".
221:".
203:".
196:".
189:".
182:".
66:,
62:A
1121:.
1093:.
1048:.
553:/
517:"
458:5
448:3
239:.
214:.
23:.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
