Related Manuals for PV Electronics Nixie Maestro
Summary of Contents for PV Electronics Nixie Maestro
- Page 1 Assembly Instructions and User Guide Nixie Clock Type ‘Nixie Maestro’ Nixie Clock Kit ' Maestro’ - 1 - ISSUE 5 (01 June 2018) www.pvelectronics.co.uk...
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Page 2: Revision History
REVISION HISTORY Issue Date Reason for Issue Number 01 June 2018 New Version PCB 01 April 2017 New version with neons for AM / PM 10 December 2014 Typing errors corrected. Updated photos. Added MSF and DCF support 27 December 2012 GPS Indicator LED function clarified 06 December 2012 New document... - Page 3 INTRODUCTION Nixie Maestro is a fully-featured nixie clock kit, using a semi - assembled SMD board. The clock shows time and date on six vintage IN-12 Nixie Tubes, which are sourced from the former Soviet Union. Each tube has a RGB LED to illuminate it, which creates a beautiful spectrum of colour effects.
- Page 4 Additional wireless functions if XTERNA module used: - Display of outdoor temperature in Celsius or Fahrenheit each minute - Min / Max temperature in last 24 hours - Wireless, Auto Sync of time from GPS with auxiliary TCXO - GPS Sync time, and time since last GPS Fix - Voltage of XTERNA module battery - Firmware version of XTERNA module Nixie Clock Kit ' Maestro’...
- Page 5 SAFETY DANGER: The clock pcb includes a switched-mode voltage booster circuit. This generates nominally 170 Volts DC. Assembly may only be undertaken by individuals who are suitably qualified and experienced in electronics assembly, and are familiar with safe procedures for working with high voltages.
- Page 6 TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT REQUIRED Tools required to assemble the PCB. The following tools will be required to assemble the PCB: Soldering iron with a small tip (1-2 mm). Wire cutters to trim the excess component leads after soldering. (Tip: A small pair of nail clippers works very well for this function). Wire strippers (Tip: A small pair of scissors is quite suitable).
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Page 7: List Of Components
LIST OF COMPONENTS Part Description PCB Marking Piezo sounder 220uF Capacitor 16 – 25V C1, C2, C3 1uF Capacitor 250V Vertical 3.5mm jack socket SYNC CONN Vertical 2.1mm power socket 0.22F Capacitor Vertical push switch SET, ADJ, ALARM, DST 5mm Yellow LED DST LED, ALM 5mm Green LED SYNC... - Page 8 ASSEMBLY OF THE PCB 66 Harwin Sockets Install and solder the sockets one tube location at a time, as follows. Be sure to insert from the front of the PCB. You may need to push in firmly. To hold them in place whilst you solder, insert a IN-12 tube then flip over the PCB and solder the sockets from the back of the PCB.
- Page 9 C1, C2, C3 (220uF) C4 (1uF) Noting the orientation of the pale stripe on the part, bend the leads of the three 220uF capacitors as shown below. Now solder into the PCB. It is easier to solder the top pads rather than the bottom pads.
- Page 10 Tube Test Now comes a very exciting part of the assembly – the first tube test. Take your six Nixie Tubes and carefully insert into the sockets. Take care, as high voltage will now be generated. Do not touch the PCB when it is powered. Now power up.
- Page 11 ALM, DST LED (5mm Yellow LEDs) SYNC (5mm Green LED) Solder the three LEDs as shown below. The longer LED Lead goes in the hole with a circle marking. Sync Conn (Vertical jack socket) Insulating Sheet If you will not be using the CY18 Receiver module, you can omit steps 4.7 to 4.8.
- Page 12 Then position on the PCB. Press the black connectors level with the the PCB,and check alignment of the module before soldering the four pads. Then withdraw the CY18 module until later. Finally, measure out exactly 17cm of the antenna wire cable, strip off 2mm from one end and solder to the ANTENNA Pad.
- Page 13 4.10 C5 (0.22F) Solder as shown below, noting the direction of the arrows on the part. 4.10 RGB1 – RGB6 (APA106 RGB LED) Using the large hole in the LED jig, bend the LED leads two steps as shown below, noting the position of the longer two leads. Nixie Clock Kit ' Maestro’...
- Page 14 Then install the RGB LEDs from the back of the PCB, and solder from the front of the PCB. Clip off the excess leads, probably just from the two longer leads. Now solder the remaining RGB LEDs in the same way. 4.12 AM1, AM2, PM1, PM2 (4mm neon lamp) Cut the clear heat shrink into eight lengths of 15mm and slip over the neons leads then shrink with a hot air gun.
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Page 15: How To Operate The Clock
HOW TO OPERATE THE CLOCK The four buttons have the following functions: SET: Exit tube test routine on cold power-up; Show date; Set time and date; Enter configuration menu; ADJ: Adjust: time, date, alarm time, configuration parameters; Enter XTERNA Stats Menu; ALARM: Set alarm time;... - Page 16 Parameter Description Values Software revision 20 = version 2.0, 12 = version 2.1 etc 12 / 24 Hr mode 0 – 12 Hr (default) 1 – 24 Hr Date format 0 = MM.DD.YY (default) 1 = DD.MM.YY 2 = YY.MM.DD Leading zero blanking 0 –...
- Page 17 1 – Slots every minute 2 - Slots every 10 minutes (default) 3 - Slots every hour 4 – Slots at midnight Reserved Reserved Reserved Display Mode 0 – standard change of digits 1 – fading digits 2 – fading digits with scrollback effect (default) Auto date display each 0 –...
- Page 18 Setting the Time and Date: Before setting the time, press 'DST' briefly to toggle between DST and standard time modes. Set according to whether you are currently in DST time or not. The adjacent DST LED will light or extinguish accordingly. From time display mode, press and hold ‘SET’...
- Page 19 Cancelling Alarm: Press ‘ALARM’ briefly to cancel alarm and enter snooze mode, or a longer press until the clock bleeps, to cancel snooze. Alarm remains set for subsequent days. Rapid DST Adjustment Press ‘DST’ briefly to toggle between DST and standard time. The indicator shows whether DST mode is active or not.
- Page 20 XTERNA FUNCTIONS About the XTERNA Module XTERNA is our new concept for synchronising time and capturing outdoor temperature for display on our clock and thermometer kits. Driven by a PIC microcontroller with advanced low power modes, the XTERNA captures time from GPS satellites every 6 hours, and stores in an on-board Temperature Controlled Crystal Oscillator (TCXO).
- Page 21 Time Synchronisation Function XTERNA broadcasts every 10 minutes. After configuring your clock, please be patient in waiting for the first Synchronisation. Upon synchronisation the yellow LED D7 will illuminate. Remember to set DST (‘Summer Time’) with the DST button. Temperature Display The temperature is also transmitted with the time.
- Page 22 XTERNA Stats menu The Stats menu is accessible only if relevant XTERNA data has been received. From time display, press ADJ to enter the Stats Menu. Six items of data are displayed in sequence, stepped through by pressing the ADJ button sequentially, and finally exiting back to time display.
- Page 23 CONFIGURING THE RGB LED TUBE LIGHTS The clock features a separate and dedicated setup menu for the RGB LED lights, accessed from the ‘DST’ button. All settings are stored to non-volatile memory, so your favourite colours will still be there after even a long power off. You can set fixed colours and intensities, or program an auto colour cycling effect at your choice of speed.
- Page 24 Colours are displayed live during RGB menu: In the example above, between 8 and 9 hours, the LEDs will be purple (8 red, 0 green and 8 blue). In the example below, between 19 and 20 hours, the LEDs will be blue with a hint of green (0 red, 2 green and 8 blue).
- Page 25 Setting auto colour cycling Setting colour to value 9 has a special meaning: This will enable auto colour cycling for the specified hour. The speed of the cycling will then be governed by the GREEN value: 0 = very slow change 9 = very fast change This auto colour cycling mode is explained in the picture below: Red = 9, therefore Auto Colour Cycling is enabled for 12-13 hours.
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Page 26: Using A Gps Receiver
8. USING A GPS RECEIVER The clock can receive time from a GPS receiver that transmits information using NMEA-0183 protocol, using the $GPRMC sentence. Configuring for GPS Synchronisation. Set parameter 12 to value 4. Set the baud rate in parameter 13. ...