I like to see the old technology but it is something you would really use? It is easy enough to get or build a 6-digit voltmeter today. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Tony Smith" To: "'Microcontroller discussion list - Public.'" Sent: Wednesday, May 23, 2007 11:42 AM Subject: RE: [EE]: Digital voltmeter from 1960 > > >> >A real gem. Pity there is no schematic available: > > >> > > > >> > http://www.wps.com/projects/instruments/Cubic-V45/index.html > > >> > > > >> >Peter P. > > >> > > > >> Fascinating instrument, a real gem as you say. I'm not > > sure I agree > > >> with the authors suggestion that "Display technology has improved > > >> only slightly" though! > > >> > > >> Regards > > >> > > >> Mike > > > > > > > > >What to do when Nixies haven't been invented yet. Years ago I came > > >across Nixies, and figured I could emulate the display by, > > you guessed > > >it, etching numbers in glass, edge lit & stacked. Worked > > nicely as a > > >clock, and I was suitably chuffed at my technical progress. > > > > > >I was less chuffed when I discovered voltmeters like this, and even > > >less when I found out the Russians did it 30 or so years before that. > > > > > >I've been meaning to make a 7 seg version, you only need 7 pieces of > > >glass/plastic per digit then. > > > > > >Tony > > > > If you had enough sheets you could even make a dot matrix display :-) > > > > Mike > > > That thought had not occurred to me. Probably a good thing. > > Hmmm. > > 7 thin strips, a dot on each, being one vertical line. 5 strips for a > typical display, so 35 pieces. A clock needs at least 4 displays, so that's > 4 x 5 x 7, or 140 pieces. With LEDs @ 20mA, that's pushing 3 amps. > > It's hard to cut thin strips of glass, 5mm should be ok. Assembled would be > 35 x 25mm per 'number'. > > Bi-colour can be done by having a LED at each end of the glass strip (window > glass is 3mm, for pictures it's 2mm). Gosh, where would I find a 2 x 5mm > LED? > > I'll add it to the pile. Don't expect much progress :) > > Tony > > -- > http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive > View/change your membership options at > http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist -- http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive View/change your membership options at http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist