Transcript
IN17x7 Nixie System User Guide POB 50 Great Falls, VA 22066 USA www.cogwheelcircuitworks.com
[email protected] www.cogwheel.com
Document Version 1 Hardware Revision A Firmware Version 1.0 February 2011
CONTENTS QUICK START ...........................................................................................................................................................2 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................................................2 Warnings ...................................................................................................................................................................2 Liability ......................................................................................................................................................................2 Appearance ...............................................................................................................................................................2 Background ...............................................................................................................................................................2 Features .....................................................................................................................................................................2 CONFIGURATION AND CONTROL USING THE BUTTONS ..................................................................................3 Setting the Time ........................................................................................................................................................5 Setting Other Configuration Parameters................................................................................................................6 Configuration Option List ........................................................................................................................................8 Configuration Parameters Description...................................................................................................................8 Resetting To Default Values ................................................................................................................................. 11 CONFIGURATION AND CONTROL VIA THE USB INTERFACE ......................................................................... 11 Serial Command Interface .................................................................................................................................... 13
© 2010 Cogwheel, Inc.
Cogwheel Nixie System
Quick Start POWER UP: Find the power socket and wall adapter. Plug them in. The clock will turn on and start displaying time. SETTING TIME: Find the SET, UP, and DOWN buttons. Press and hold SET and release when the display blinks. Now, press UP and DOWN as necessary to adjust the time. Holding UP or DOWN will advance time faster. When the correct time is reached, press SET and the clock will resume normal operation.
Introduction Greetings ! And thank you for your interest in the Cogwheel Nixie System. This document is intended for the enduser of the device. It will describe how to setup, configure, and operate the device. More detailed information on the inner-workings will be found elsewhere. This document decribes the IN17x7 Series 1 version shown at the top of this document. As the firmware is upgradeable, it is important to check www.cogwheelcircuitworks.com for updates
Warnings Nixie tubes operate at voltages which can electrocute. If you disassemble the device for any reason, do not handle the circuit board with power applied.
Liability By purchasing this device, you release the manufacturer, seller, and any of their suppliers or affiliates from any and all legal liabilities with respect to use, inability to use, or personal or property damages stemming from purchase and use of this device.
Appearance The nixie tubes used are Russian “New Old Stock”. At least 20 years old. While they are hand-picked for consistency, there will still be some amount of variation in appearance. The same is true for the enclosures; They are built in small batches and finished by hand, so there will be some variations.
Background Nixie tubes are essentially neon lights with 10 or more individual elements each shaped like a number, letter symbol or segment stacked front to back inside the tube. Nixie tubes were used during the 1960‟s and 1970s, and are considered obsolete and no longer manufactured. All tubes are typically New Old Stock (NOS), or salvaged from equipment. This clock utilizes IN17x7 tubes from the former Soviet Unions. They were most likely destined for cold-wa era military equipment. More info can be obtained by google, or visiting the Wikipedia page
Features 7 tubes allows time to be displayed accurate to one-tenth of a second Time-keeping accurate to within 1 second per month Time, Date and configuration is maintained across power failures Automatic Daylight Savings Time adjustment © 2011 Cogwheel Circuitworks
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Month, Day and Year display Alarm with snooze function USB interface to allow control from PC and upgrade of firmware Daily display shutdown / start-up times Adjustable Brightness Optional periodic chime on the hour, half-hour or quarter hour Cross-fade (next digit is lit before previous digit extinguished) Transition effects: Fade down/up, „Slot Machine‟, Curtain Wipe, Random Wipe
Configuration and Control using the Buttons LOCATION OF BUTTONS AND CONNECTORS The following diagram shows where the buttons and connectors are located.
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LOCATION OF BUTTONS AND CONNECTORS
CONNECTING POWER In North America, the clock ships with a „wall-wart‟ power supply. If a wall-wart was not supplied, the clock requires a 12VDC at a minimum of 120ma with negative on the outer conductor of the connector. The barrel connector is a very common 2.5mm x 5.5mm variety. Attaching the power is straightforward; Simply connect the wall wart‟s barrel connector to the corresponding connector on the clock, connect the wall wart to the power outlet.
START-UP When the clock powers up, it will go through a power-on-self-test routine which should complete within 5 seconds. The clock will then enter normal operation. BUTTON COMMANDS DURING NORMAL OPERATION If any button is briefly pressed and released, the clock will cycle between showing the current month and day, the year, and turning off the display. Pressing once more will return the clock to normal operation. The sequence of operation is shown in the following state diagram:
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BUTTON ACTIONS DURING NORMAL OPERATION
Setting the Time While the clock is displaying time press and hold SET for at least 2 seconds. When the display blinks, release the button. The clock will now display what was the current time but it will not be changing. To increase the time on the display, press the UP button. To decrease the time, press DOWN. If you press and hold either UP or DOWN the rate of time change will gradually speed up. When the display shows the proper time, press the SET button. The clock will return to normal operation with the new time. The best technique is to set the time against a very accurate source such as a PC clock synchronized via the Internet. Set the clock for a few seconds before the current time. When the time source and the clock match, press SET. The clock begins to keep time the moment the SET button is pressed. The following diagram depicts how to set the time:
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SETTING THE TIME
Setting Other Configuration Parameters The procedure starts the same way as setting the time; While the clock is displaying time press and hold SET for at least 2 seconds. When the display blinks, release the button. Now press set once more; You should see the following display:
The two digit number on the left is the option number, on the right is its value. Pressing the UP or DOWN buttons will adjust the value, and pressing SET will advance to the next option number. At any point if you wish to exit SET mode, press and hold SET for at least two seconds and the clock will return to normal display mode. The following digram depicts the overall flow;
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ADJUSTING CONFIGURATION PARAMETERS
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Configuration Option List 01
Alarm Hours
13
Wipe Rate
02
Alarm Mins
14
Display Cycle
03
12/24 Hour Mode
15
Chime
04
Year
16
On Time
05
Month
17
Off Time
06
Day of Month
18
DST Enable
07
Day of Week
19
DST Start day of week count
08
Brightness
20
DST Start day of week
09
Cross Fade
21
DST Start month
10
Date Order
22
DST End day of week count
11
Transition Effect
23
DST End day of week
12
Wipe Style
24
DST End month
Configuration Parameters Description 01
Alarm Hours Range: 0-23. If alarm hours and minutes are both set to 0 the alarm is disabled. Alarm must be set using 24 hour terms even if the clock is to display in 12 hour mode
02
Alarm Mins Range: 1-59. If alarm hours and minutes are both set to 0 the alarm is disabled. Alarm must be set using 24 hour terms even if the clock is to display in 12 hour mode
03
12/24 Hour Mode Select 0 for 12 hour mode, 1, for 24 hour mode. (Note: on the IN17x1 Series 1 enclosure that the PM indicator LED is not exposed.
04
Year Range: 2000-2099
05
Month Range: 1-12
06
Day of Month Range: 1-31
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07
Day of Week Range: 1-7. 1=Sunday.
08
Brightness Range: 0-15 (brightest). Set to minimum value that still provides acceptable brightness to maximize nixie tube life.
09
Cross Fade Cross-fade is a pleasing effect when the next symbol in a tube is lit before the previous one extinguishes. Set this parameter to 0 for off, 1 for on.
10
Date Order 0: Displays Date in the following order: mm dd, then yyyy. 1: Displays Date in the following order: yyyy mm dd
11
Transition Effect Affects how the display changes from showing time to showing date and back;
12
0
None - No special transition is applied
1
Blink - Display blinks briefly during transition
2
Fade - Display fades during transition
3
Wipe Via Off – Display transitions like a curtain to off, then again to on
4
Wipe slot – Display transitions to a rapidly changing „slot machine‟ effect
Wipe Style When the Transition Effect parameter is set a Wipe Type (3 or 4), Wipe style controls how the wipe occurs;
13
0
Wipe from Right to Left
1
Wipe From Left to Right
2
Toggle Direction Right to Left, then Left to Right alternately
3
Transition tubes in random order
Wipe Rate When the Transition Effect parameter is set a Wipe Type (3 or 4), Wipe Rate controls the speed of the transition; 1 is the slowest setting, 8 is the fastest.
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14
Display Cycle Controls how often the display cycles between showing time and date; 0 Show time only
15
1
Once per minute
2
Twice per minute
3
Three times per minute
4
Five times per minute
Chime
0
Off
1
Hourly
2
Twice per hour (:00 & :30)
3
four times per hour (:00,:15,:30,:45)
16
On Time
17
Off Time Range: 0-23 To maximize the life of the tubes, the display may be turned off for period during any 24 hour cycle; The clock will go off at the hour Off Time is set to, and turn back on when On Time is reached. If On Time and Off Time are the same, the display will stay on all the time.
18
DST Enable 0: Disable, 1:Enable When enabled, the clock will automatically shift forward 1 hour at 02:00 on a specified Start Date, and shift backward 1 hour on a specified End Date (see below).
19
DST Start day of week count Range: 1-4, 1:First week, 2:Second Week, 3:Third Week, 4:Last Week
20
DST Start day of week Range: 1-7, 1:Sunday
21
DST Start month Range: 1-12, 1:January
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22
DST End day of week count Range: 1-4, 1:First week, 2:Second Week, 3:Third Week, 4:Last Week
23
DST End day of week Range: 1-7, 1:Sunday
24
DST End month Range: 1-12, 1:January Clocks are shipped for USA Daylight Savings time; This corresponds to the following: Parameter
Default Value
Description
DST Start day of week count
2
DST Start day of week
1
Second Sunday in March
DST Start month
3
DST End day of week count
1
DST End day of week
1
DST End month
11
First Sunday in November
Resetting To Default Values To reset the clock to default values do the following: Remove power, then hold down any button while reapplying power. The clock will start up and begin to beep every few seconds. Press the UP button once. Verify that the clock is now repeating one short beep every few seconds. Now press SET. Verify the clock is now emitting the pattern: short beep – long beep – short beep. Now, remove and reply power. The clock will come up with all default settings. You will now need to set the time and date and other configuration parameters that you wish to.
Configuration and Control via the USB Interface The clock is also equipped with a USB Serial hardware interface. The clock can be programmed and firmware updated via this interface. Setting up the USB Interface on a PC The following describes the basic procedure on a PC running Windows XP with an Internet connection. When you connect the clock to the PC, the interface should auto-detect and try to find a driver. You will be asked if you wish to search for the driver automatically. Check this box and click next. The system should search for the driver and install it. You should then see a pop-up from your taskbar tray that says the hardware is ready to use.
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If this procedure fails, the device driver may be downloaded from www.ftdichip.com . Setting up the USB Interface on other Operating Systems The USB Serial chip used is the FT232R from www.ftdichip.com . You can visit their site to download drivers for other operating systems. The VCP version of the driver is recommended. Connecting to the clock using terminal emulator software One the USB Serial driver is installed, any terminal emulator program can be used to communicate with the clock. On a PC, You need to open Control Panel->System->Hardware->Device Manager. Under Ports (COM & LPT), you should see a new entry “USB Serial Port (COMx)” where x is the port number. Take note of this number. You may then use either the Hyperterminal application or a third party terminal emulator to access the clock‟s
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command line interpreter (CLI). Set to the Application to the following: COM Port Number
The one found in the step above
Bit Rate
57600
Data Bits
8
Parity
None
Flow Control
None
Serial Command Interface Once connected, to the clock via the terminal emulation software, the clock should initialize. On the serial interface the following message should appear: : Cogwheel Nixie System : Ver:x.x, Build:xxxx, dd-mm-yyyy hh:mm:ss : (C)2010 Cogwheel, Inc.
Command Set Commands consist of a 3 character name followed by a space, followed by one or more arguments, followed by a carriage return. If the command name is entered without arguments followed by a carriage return, the current status of that command will be reported. Most commands set configuration parameters and are the same as their corresponding configuration parameters accessible via the buttons. COMMAND
ARGUMENT(S)
FUNCTION
EXAMPLE
ala
[0..23]:[0..59]
Set Alarm.
To disable: “ala 00:00”. Set for 7:30 “ala 07:30”
bla
[0..1]
Blank Display.
Off: “bla 1”, On: “bla 0”
bri
[0..15]
Brightness. DESCRIPTION
Dim: “bri 4” Bright: “bri 15”
cfa
[0..1]
Cross-fade enable/disable
Disable: “cfa 0”, enable: “cfa 1”
chi
[0..3]
Chime 0:off 1:hourly 2:2x/hr 3:4x/hr
Chime once hourly: “chi 1”
dcy
[0..4]
Display Cycle 0:off 1:60s 2:20s 3:30s 4:10s
Cycle once per minute: “dcy 1”
dor
[0..1]
Display Order Date; 0 - 'mm dd yyyy', 1 - 'yyyy mm dd'
Order mm dd yy: “dor 0”
dow
[1..7]
Day of Week 1=Sunday
Wednesday “dow 4”
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dse
[0..1]
Daylight Savings Time Enable
Enable: “dse 1”
dst
[...]
Daylight Savings Time Set.Takes 6 parameters: start week number, start day of week, start month, end week, end day of week, end month.
Set DST to USA rules: (Starts second Sunday in March, Ends First Sunday in November: “dst 2 1 3 1 1 11”
hel
[c,b]
Help on c)ommands or b)uttons
Display help with buttons: “hel b”
oft
[0..23]
Off Time. Disabled if on time and off time are the same
Turn display off at midnight: “oft 0”
ont
[0..23]
On Time. Disabled if on time and off time are the same
Turn display on at 5 am: “ont 5”
Report all option states
“rep”
rep tfx
[0..4]
Transition Effects:0:None 1:Blink 2:Fade 3:Wipe-off 4:Wipe-slot
Set for wipe slot: “tfx 4”
tim
hh:mm:ss.t [a,p]
Set Time. For 12h end w/ a or p for am or pm.
Set time to 23:50: “tim 23:50”
ver
Show Version
wis
[0..4]
Wipe Style : 0:Right>Left 1:Left>Right 2:Toggle-dir 3:Random. Note tfx must be set to a wipe type for wipe style to have any effect.
wir
[1..8]
Wipe Rate : 1:Fastest 8:Slowest. Note tfx must be set to a wipe type for wipe style to have any effect.
ymd
yyyy/mm/dd
Set year, month, day
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Set wipe style to
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