amiga600keyboardusbadapter

Amiga600 Keyboard USB Adapter

This project enables an existing Amiga 600 Keyboard to operate as a USB Keyboard with the Case LEDs to indicate power/scroll lock and numlock. This is a reimplementation of my previous Teensy 2.0++ based PCB and QMK Firmware adapter however as the Teensy 2.0++ is approaching end of sales availability and is relatively expensive, this recreation uses the Raspberry Pi Pico in combination with a MCP20008 IO Expander for the keyboard interface and the keyboard driver software written in CircuitPython

The Kicad files used to create the PCB are in the PCB-Amiga600Keyboard_USB_Pico directory - generated gerbers are the plot directory The CircuitPython code is in the CircuitPythonCode-Amiga600Keyboard_USB_Pico directory

Please note that the code requires the following libraries in addition to the base CircuitPython Install

• Adafruit_CircuitPython_HID
• Adafruit_CircuitPython_MCP230xx

Bill of Materials

Designation	Item	Description	Manufacturer
U1	Raspberry Pi Pico	RP2040 Board with USB Connector	https://www.raspberrypi.org/products/raspberry-pi-pico/
U2	MCP20008	8 bit I2C IO Expander	https://www.microchip.com/wwwproducts/en/MCP23008
J1	4 Pin Header Right Angle PCB Mount 2.54mm spacing	Connects to Amiga 600 Case LEDs	Sullins Connector Solutions SWR25X-NRTC-S04-RB-BA available from Jaycar as HM3424
J2	30 Pin FPC Connector 1.25mm spacing	Connects to the Amiga 600 Keyboard Ribbon	Molex 39532304
R1 & R2	4K7 Ohm Resistor	Pullups for I2C	various

PCB

This is a fairly simple two layer through hole design. There are holes in the PCB to accomodate 3mm Nylon standoffs, self-adhesive types mean you can attach it to the back of the keyboard if desired.

Assembled Prototype PCB

Assembled Prototype PCB connected to a Keyboard

Construction Notes

This PCB does not require any advanced soldering skills, it may be best to work with an experienced friend or watch some youtube videos on build techniques if you don't feel confident.

The hardware and software as written by me is distributed under a GPL Version 3 License

No claims to the name or any trademarks associated with Amiga, Raspberry Pi, Pico or Tim Tam are asserted here.