ULN2003 driver board mod

[ValkyrieAutomotive]

Hey everyone, you know those ultra cheap ULN2003 boards with the ULN2003APG chip on them? im wantint to make them even smaller by getting rid of the LED's and resistors, but ive noticed what looks like a cap bridging positive and negative inputs, does anyone know if its really required? or what it actually is, most layouts ive found don't shed any light on it

[cowana]

Search for 'decoupling capacitor' - it's used to remove electrical noise from the supply and ensure reliable operation of the device.

It's recommended to have one capacitor per IC (minimum), mounted physically close to the device.

[nctnico]

You can remove the capacitor as well. The ULN2003 is a transistor array.

[digsys]

Why not look for a surface mount version .. it's even smaller !!

[Pack34]

It would be hard to get much smaller than this.

http://www.superdroidrobots.com/shop/item.aspx/7-channel-high-current-ttl-driver-smd/1724/

[BlueBill]

Why not just use the IC itself. No need for a breakout PCB if using the DIP package.