标签: nixie

Just to make sure we're all tap dancing to the same drum beat, let's remind ourselves that, sometime ago, I ran across some mega-cool Nixie tube constructions and I was so excited by what I saw that I decided to build one of my very own.   The key players in this drama are Paul Parry of Bad Dog Designs (Paul made the original clocks), Pete Virica of PV Electronics (not surprisingly, Pete supplies the electronics), Andy and Mandy Blackett of Engraving Studios (they fabricate the brass panels), and Dalibor Farny (he hand-crafts the uber-large R|Z568M tubes I'll be featuring in my Nixie clock masterpiece).   As an aside, Andy and Mandy recently made some brass plaques for me to attach to my various projects, but we digress...   Now, I really love the clocks Paul has created -- especially the ones with the Steampunk look-and-feel. One that caught my eye even has a small steam engine on top, but I can’t just go around copying someone else's work -- I have an uncontrollable urge to express my own insanity individuality.   Whilst pondering this poser, I leaned back in the supreme commander's chair in my office, glanced around the room, and spotted some antique relays sitting on one of the shelves.   (Source: Max Maxfield / Embedded.com)   "Hmmm," I thought to myself, "these really are rather tasty." I've been waiting for an appropriate project to come along for these little rascals, and I think this may well be it. You have to admit that these little beauties are really rather special.   (Source: Max Maxfield / Embedded.com)   (Source: Max Maxfield / Embedded.com)   I have a really cunning plan for the role these relays have to play in this enterprise, but we'll leave that for a future column. Now, before I plunge headlong into the fray with a project of this type, I typically start by constructing a paper and cardboard mockup as illustrated below.   (Source: Max Maxfield / Embedded.com)   In the fullness of time, the cabinet for this clock will be made out of wood. I want this to look antiquated and sumptuous and splendiferous -- possibly a dark cherry-red-brown color with some intricate carving. In the image above we can see where the relays will be positioned on the front panel. On top we see the location of the brass plaque that will surround the Nixie tubes (the paper versions of these tubes are seen lying flat on the table waiting to be cut out).   Observe the donut-shaped representation on the end of the cabinet. The dark ring will be brass, while the white center will be glass. Behind this glass will be slowly-turning metal-looking gears from a clock that was fortuitously to be found on another shelf in my office (I tell you, it's like an "Aladdin's Cave" in here).   (Source: Max Maxfield / Embedded.com)   What? Yes, of course there will be lighting effects. I'm surprised you even thought to ask. In the case of this geared mechanism, I'd originally consider having two white lights at opposite sides from each other racing round and round the circle (I will be using NeoPixels for all of this). I'd also considered having a steady dull red glow, or perhaps a "breathing" effect with red light.   However, based on the success of the camp fire effect we're using in our Caveman Diorama project, I'm certainly going to incorporate this effect into the clock. In reality, I'll probably go with all of these modes -- and more -- and select the effect du jour as the mood takes me.   OK, let's pause for a moment and take a look at this video showing the mockup in its early stages (observe the gears from the clock slowly rotating and imagine seeing these through a flickering furnace lighting effect).   I only took the above video a short time ago, but things have moved on, as they do. Take a look at the more recent photograph below. In particular, note the three reclaimed telephone switches I'll be using and their intended location on the bottom row, just to the right of the left-most relay.   (Source: Max Maxfield / Embedded.com)   Also observe the five 3/4" diameter circles associated with each relay (also the three circles under the switches). The ones with the dark centers will host wires, while the ones with the light centers will hold LEDs. More specifically, I'll be using antique-looking cloth-covered wires, and plastic (mother-of-pearl style) "dots" in front of the LEDs. Furthermore, I'm not going to use rubber grommets for the surrounding circles; instead, I'm planning on using hand-carved wood rings (creating these will be a problem for the future).   Of course, the pièce de résistance of this whole thing will be the hand-crafted Nixie tubes created by Dalibor Farny, whose R|Z568M creations are pin-compatible with the legendary Z568Ms.   (Source: Dalibor Farny) Dalibor kindly sent a non-functional tube for me to play with as shown in the picture below. The base is aluminum and the anode cage inside is some sort of steel (I think). You can just see the wires forming the numbers inside the tube, but I have no idea what these are made of.   (Source: Max Maxfield)   The really exciting thing is that Dalibor is currently creating a custom set of tubes for me. These will have bronze bases and copper anodes and they will positively "ooze" Steampunk. I've also added a few more touches to the prototype as you'll see in this video .   Andy and Mandy are already working on the brass plaques, so the next step is for me to start working on the cabinet. Watch this space...

I previously wrote a blog about a Kickstarter project that excited me so. I think this smart Nixie Tube concept is a really great idea. So do a lot of other folks, apparently. This Kickstarter project is already funded to twice its original goal, and it still has 13 days to go at the time of this writing. I must admit that this project really interested me, so I reached out to its creator, Tyler Nehowig, to ask him more about it. He very kindly sent me a photo of himself holding a 10-digit display (I want one), and he explained how and why he instigated the project, as discussed below.   Max Maxfield: How did you come up with this concept? Tyler Nehowig: I came up with the idea after my first Kickstarter project, the open-source Nixie Tube Shield . I was getting a lot of questions regarding which Arduino board the shield was compatible with, etc. As a result, I set out to integrate the Arduino Uno hardware into the Nixie Tube design to reduce confusion on compatibility. In the middle of the design process, I thought it would be great to make this display modular, so that if you required only two digits, for example, then that's all you had to purchase. And if you subsequently decide that you need six digits, you can easily add four more. Lastly, I wanted to integrate RGB lighting, so users can easily change the accent lighting to suit their preferences. Max Maxfield: What were the design decisions you made, and why? Tyler Nehowig: One of the major design decisions I made was to stack the PCBs in order to keep the design compact. This allowed multiple digits to connect close together and, once enclosed, look like a single display. It also allowed an easy way to light the tube from below, as the RGB LED is directly under the Nixie Tube. The nice part about splitting the layout into two circuit boards is that all of the hardware required to control the Nixie Tube digits is on the top PCB, while all of the hardware to run the microcontroller is on the bottom PCB. This means that someone could design a new PCB for a completely different Nixie Tube series and be able to plug their board into the existing bottom PCB and immediately be running with zero firmware/software changes. Max Maxfield: What issues did you run into along the way? Tyler Nehowig: Luckily, I was able to glean a lot of experience from my open-source Nixie Tube Shield Kickstarter project and apply it towards this new project. The boost circuitry was already proven. In fact, with the help of some of the backers from the first Kickstarter, I was able to improve the efficiency of the boost. Creating the Arduino Uno section of the schematic was extremely easy, since there is so much great documentation out there from multiple vendors— Arduino.cc , Adafruit.com , SparkFun.com , etc. Obviously, there are a limited number of Nixie Tubes out there, so getting a hold of a large quantity is always a challenge. I proactively purchased a few hundred for this project to establish some key relationships with guys in Eastern Europe, so hopefully, if all goes well, I can purchase plenty more to fulfil as many smart Nixie Tubes as people are willing to buy. Also, price was a huge consideration for this project. I wanted to make it as affordable as possible for people while still making it worth my time to design the layout and procure the Nixie Tubes. The nature of modularity often comes at a price, and in this case it means having a microcontroller on every digit, which drives up the cost when compared to similar nonmodular displays. At the same time, I believe modularity is the smart Nixie Tubes' greatest strength. Well, I for one am very impressed with Nehowig's work. I wish I had his get up and go when I was his age (unfortunately, my get up and go got up and went years ago). I predict a bright future for him, and I will be watching with great interest for his future Kickstarter projects. What do you think about all this?  

I was just browsing the Kickstarter.com website (as you do) for various projects when I ran across an amazingly cool project that mixes two of my favourite things—Arduinos and Nixie Tubes. What we have is a module containing an Arduino-compatible controller with a Nixie Tube on top: In addition to being able to activate the digits inside the Nixie Tube, you can also control tri-state LEDs under the tube to generate amazing effects:   If you visit this project on Kickstarter , you'll be tempted with all sorts of cool project ideas. Of course, seeing this triggered a cascade of thoughts in my brain, starting with my Nixie Tube wristwatch (which I acquired from David Forbes at Cathode Corner ) and ending with my ongoing experiments to light antique vacuum tubes with tri-coloured LEDs. At the time of this writing, Tyler Nehowig, the creator of this Kickstarter project, has already exceeded his rather modest $5,000 goal, and the project still has 14 days to run. You have to admit, the first image on Tyler's Kickstarter project page is rather beautiful. I must admit that I'm tempted, but I already have my hands full with my own projects. There are just so many cool things out there to play with, but so little time to play with them all. What say you?  

Have you seen the first video of the GPS-Driven, FPGA-Decoded Nixie Tube Speedometer created by Luke Miller (a.k.a. The FPGA Expert )? As Luke says: "When I purchased a 1953 International pickup truck, I decided to add a digital speedometer. I elected to use Nixie tubes because they have an appropriate vintage feel and bring a warm, fuzzy feeling to the party. Furthermore, I decided to use a GPS unit that would let me determine my speed without hacking into my speed cable or cobble Hall effect sensors and the like together." Luke has been describing the construction of this little beauty as a series of blogs. The end result is a thing of beauty:   I'd love one of these in my own truck, and I can't wait to see the follow-up video showing the Nixie tube implementation in action!

So here's the deal. I'm already the proud owner of the coolest, geekiest watch on the planet ... quite possibly in the known universe. I am of course referring to my Nixie Tube Watch from the folks at Cathode Corner .   Steve Wozniak (the co-founder of Apple Computers), also owns one of these little beauties. In fact, he's on the record as saying that out of all the things he's seen, this is the one he wishes he'd invented himself. So who could want anything more? Well, certainly not I ... until that little rascal Jay Dowling emailed me to say "Have you seen this cool timepiece?" Jay also thoughtfully provided a link to the Navitron Steampunk Wrist Compass and Sundial page on the Think Geek Website.   Arrggghhh! May 1,000 curses rain down on Jay's head. I am in torment. Just look at the evocative words from the folks at Think Geek: The wind blows through your hair as you steer your personal dirigible along the wispy seas of air. For a moment, you forget yourself in the beauty of it all. But then you remember the lunch meeting you have. You quickly look to your wrist, get your bearings, and check the time – all without electricity – because, naturally, you're using your Navitron Steampunk Wrist Compass and Sundial. Made of antique brass, this little scamp acts as a sundial, latitude finder, and compass (with locking button), all strapped to a heavy-duty, brown leather band. Furthermore, all of the features, including sundial and angular latitude arm, fold flat for a compact look.   Now I obviously do not need this. In addition to the fact I have my Nixie Tube Watch, I've also been blessed with the talent to always know the right time. Seriously! It doesn't matter if it's day or night or if I'm in the Northern or Southern hemispheres. All I have to do is look at the sky and observe the position of the sun, moon, and stars, and I can say without any doubt of hesitation: "It's time for a beer," and I'm always right!