Ice Tube Problems

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russell 27
 
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Re: Ice Tube Problems

Post by russell 27 »

I built one of these clocks also, with a few of my own modifications, wakes me every morning. Some things in configuration h do need to be set properly. I'm sure john will have all the scoop on that. If I'm not mistaken, in the hardware folder there is a default firmware file to be compiled.

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jarchie
 
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Re: Ice Tube Problems

Post by jarchie »

Russell 27 wrote:I'm sure john will have all the scoop on that.
Not this time. You and Phil have already explained the most likely problem and corresponding solution, so there's really nothing for me to add. :-)

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smilenjohn
 
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Re: Ice Tube Problems

Post by smilenjohn »

WOW!!!!!!! Thanks so much PhilD13!!! It actually worked once I used the correct config file. Seems sooooooo simple, once I know what the problem was. I can't tell you how many hours I spent try'n to figure this out. I was goin nuts!!! Hate to admit it,,,,,,, but my first rev d board exploded. Well maybe "Exploded" is the correct term, but it is in a dozen pieces after it (Somehow?) smashed against the cement wall in my basement at an extremely high velocity. Maybe I'll hang some bubble wrap on my walls to prevent anymore unexplained explosions. :) The good news is that my Xmas Ice Tube Clock 2 appears to be up and running. (Thanks Again)
On the rev d board there are two additional headers. The 3 pin header is labelled, and appears to be the GPS input and power outputs, but I'm not sure what the two pin header is for. I assume it's for the jumper, and it appears to be related to the middle button?
Also I am making my own case for my clock, and I would like to use a 4" ribbon cable to connect the IV-18 tube. When I try this is get hieroglyphics instead of the time. I'm assuming the added resistance of the ribbon cable is just too much. Do you think increasing the grid/segment voltage will "safely" compensate for this? I'd like your opinion before I try it. I'd rather not burn, melt, smoke or exploded anything else if possible.

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russell 27
 
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Re: Ice Tube Problems

Post by russell 27 »

I built my test clock with 6" jumper wires connecting all tube pins, no problems. Possible an incorrect connection. You could always solder a male and female header on both sides of ribbon cable to make a plug, so to speak. The dual pads you are referring to; If you take a look in his drawing in the hardware folder, I believe it is for battery sensor. By the way, that exploding board deal, would have liked to see that, just happens sometimes.

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phild13
 
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Re: Ice Tube Problems

Post by phild13 »

It is easy to get mixed up and you are probably transposing the tube connections when you are using the ribbon cable. Russell 27 has some good suggestions on ways to connect the two.
Inner row on the main board goes to the upper row on the tube board and outer row on main board (closest to board edge) goes to lower row (closest to edge of board) on tube board.

The 2 pin pads labeled JP1 are battery sense header and is not related to any buttons. Don't jumper those together as you would connect +5V from the regulator directly to ground.

The 3 pin pads next to the processor are the GPS pads Center pad is GND left pad is +5 volts from regulator and right pad is RXD

I attached a pdf file of the main board schematic so you can see what is going on. Just remove the .txt from the end of the file after you download it.
Attachments
xmas-icetube_revD_mainpcb.pdf.txt
download and rename to xmas-icetube_revD_mainpcb.pdf to view
(24.81 KiB) Downloaded 151 times

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: Ice Tube Problems

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

I built my test clock with 6" jumper wires connecting all tube pins, no problems. Possible an incorrect connection.
I agree. A moderate extension of the tube leads is not a problem.
This one has about 5" long jumper wires from the tube to the board.
Image

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russell 27
 
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Re: Ice Tube Problems

Post by russell 27 »

My board has a mask if this is of help.
image.jpg
image.jpg (515.08 KiB) Viewed 732 times

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smilenjohn
 
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Re: Ice Tube Problems

Post by smilenjohn »

Thanks for all the responses, they've been very helpful. I seem to have my clock2 functioning as intended, I just have a few tweaks and should be all set.
What are the battery sensor (JP1) pins for? Do they do anything that might be....... "Fun" to tinker with?
During the assembly process I've used an Ultimate GPS breakout for my clocks, but I have come across a couple dozen used ublox TIM-LF GPS Modules. I would like to keep my Ultimate GPS for prototyping, and use one of these modules if possible. According to the spec sheet, they are 3.3v, so I would have to adjust for that, but the serial port says "2 UARTs @ 3 V levels 5V TTL Compatible inputs" The Ultimate GPS specs say " Serial Data Output for NMEA Output (UART TTL)" I'm gonna have to show my ignorance in this matter,,,,,, and admit, I have no idea what this means...... I "Googled" it, and ok, maybe I have a very basic understanding of it, but just enough to be dangerous. Any suggestions or input would be helpful.

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russell 27
 
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Re: Ice Tube Problems

Post by russell 27 »

I have used 3v3 Zener diodes to regulate SD cards and UART lines, but in your case if Vcc is 3.3 volts a linear regulator might be decent way. Some other builders that have used these units may have some other advice. If you look at john's readme notes in his firmware or software folder, there should be an explanation of battery sensor. Basically the voltage divider formed between the 270k and 100k is the reference voltage that turns off microcontroller and display during battery backup; The pads may be there for something additional.

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jarchie
 
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Re: Ice Tube Problems

Post by jarchie »

smilenjohn wrote:It actually worked once I used the correct config file. Seems sooooooo simple, once I know what the problem was. I can't tell you how many hours I spent try'n to figure this out.
I hesitate to mention this, but if any similar issue comes up, it's worth reading the xmas documentation to avoid more exploding clocks. In this case, the answer was in the first step of the installation instructions (firmware/README). I only point this out because knowing that the xmas documentation is decent might help avoid similar frustration in the future.
smilenjohn wrote:What are the battery sensor (JP1) pins for?
As Russell pointed out, the purpose of JP1 is described in the hardware/README. But I would like to add that JP1 is the "programming jumper" described in the feature list.

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smilenjohn
 
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Re: Ice Tube Problems

Post by smilenjohn »

Thanks AGAIN for all the great responses, And I take no offense what so ever at being given the good advise of "Read the damn instructions bone head!) Albeit much more politely. Believe it or not I did attempt to read them, or maybe I should say I "skimmed" through them, when I first started this project. When I don't understand what it is I'm reading, (especially when most of it seems to be a different language) I tend to skim through and hopefully pick up on the important bits. A process that I admit, doesn't appear to be working very well. But after my failed attempts to understand them, I never really went back and "Read" them. Anyways, now after working on this project for several months, I just went back through and reread, of maybe I should say actually read all the "Read me" files, and (POOF) they actually make alot more sense. That said, I would have never got this far without all the help, so Thanks again. I'm almost done. Just need to figure out these GPS modules. Fun Fun!!!

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jarchie
 
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Re: Ice Tube Problems

Post by jarchie »

smilenjohn wrote:Believe it or not I did attempt to read them, or maybe I should say I "skimmed" through them...
I assumed as much, but now that you have programmed a couple of chips, I wanted to nudge you toward thinking of the documentation as a resource rather than an impenetrable tome written in some derivation of Greek. I totally understand that the docs can be difficult to follow in the beginning.

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