Boredom can do strange things - And internet searches go in unexpected directions

[Crossy]

Well, I was doing an internet search, for what now escapes me but it's unimportant, when I saw an article on displaying large characters on a simple LCD.

 

Thinks I "must try that", half an hour later it's working, but with nothing useful to display.

 

Gotta be a clock!

 

A few more lines of code and we have a clock, no RTC in the bits box so it gets NTP sync off the internet.

 

Temperature and humidity sensor in the bits box, so lets add that.

 

So, ladies and gentlemen I give you the

 

"Thai Wife Digital Clock" (it's always right)

 

 

Arduino Uno sketch =Big_ntp_Clock_Uno_1.0c.ino

 

I don't think I trust the humidity sensor (it's been in the bits box for longer than I care to remember), 34C is believable, but 95% RH? 

 

EDIT The sensor spent all night in a ziplock with a bag of silica-gel. Still reading 95%, I think it's cream-crackered.

 

[Crossy]

And now my warped mind is thinking "how about an analog version with hands driven by stepper motors"?

 

The bane of my life is that we have half a dozen quartz clocks all showing a different, but always incorrect, time.

 

 

[Fruit Trader]

35 minutes ago, Crossy said:

I don't think I trust the humidity sensor (it's been in the bits box for longer than I care to remember), 34C is believable, but 95% RH? 

You might find a DHT22 sensor will provide more accurate humidity results. Also check your sampling rate is not too fast.

[Crossy]

DH11 is what was "in stock", sampling every 30 seconds, could slow that down significantly with no detriment to usability.

[Crossy]

The simple timing is losing about 2 seconds an hour without me doing any tweeking, probably not worth worrying about.

 

NTP sync. is on startup then every 2 hours, could easily stretch to once a day.

[Lacessit]

Half a dozen quartz clocks? Did you win multiple sporting events?

You certainly have too much time on your hands. Perhaps we TV denizens can make a number of offensive posts to keep you busy.

[Crossy]

A version for those with a 16 * 2 display, I think the smaller numbers look better actually.

 

 

And the sketch ????

Less_Big_ntp_Clock_Uno_1.0a.ino

 

Oh, and the dual-shaft stepper motor for the analog version should arrive today ????

 

[DJ54]

Maybe you should get a dog so you’re not bored..555

[Crossy]

After a couple of months playing with the ESP-8266 and discovering that it can be programmed using the Arduino development system an update.

 

Who needs the Arduino and the clunky "AT" commands to the ESP?

 

The ESP is a powerful microcontroller in it's own right and the level converters (5V to 3.3V) for the serial Tx and Rx ports on the module are bi-directional, so with a little research we now have the Wife Clock Mk2.

 

Give it 5V and an internet connection and you're good to go. The 5V LCD data goes via the Tx and Rx pins.

 

 

The adaptor schematic showing the level converters.

 

 

And the software ESP8266_Internet_Clock_Big_Digits_Use_serial_board_2.0.in.ino

 

 

 

[bodga]

youll  need  the special Thai adjustment tool  to correctly set everything.

[Daffy D]

Way back in the day when dinosaurs were still eggs, Crossy was still in his playpen gazing up at the wonder of the workings of the light switch and electronics was the new and exiting science, I remember constructing a Nixie clock.

 

In those days micro chips were the size of a matchbox and circuit boards were so big  you didn't need glasses and soldering was piece  of cake.

 

Amazing how rapidly things have progressed since those years, who would have thought.

 

For you youngsters this is what a Nixie clock look's like:-

 

If your interested in some retro look, software for Nixie desktop clock and Nixie clock screensavers can be found on the Internet. 

[timendres]

The first calculator I ever used had a nixie tube display..

[johng]

29 minutes ago, Daffy D said:

f your interested in some retro look, software for Nixie desktop clock and Nixie clock screensavers can be found on the Internet.

 

[sammieuk1]

I appear to have built a fully working bells and whistles singing and dancing time warp whilst not even trying with fully integrated groundhog effect and being trapped alone in Swindon works with 100% accuracy but alas building it in reverse is proving impossible due to the quite common General effect ????

[ravip]

On 5/1/2020 at 10:55 AM, Crossy said:

And now my warped mind is thinking "how about an analog version with hands driven by stepper motors"?

 

The bane of my life is that we have half a dozen quartz clocks all showing a different, but always incorrect, time.

 

 

What about the Radio clocks? Don't they work in TH?

The ones that automatically synchronise with a Satellite or some other source?

Edited August 4, 2020 by ravip

[Daffy D]

4 hours ago, sammieuk1 said:

I appear to have built a fully working bells and whistles singing and dancing time warp whilst not even trying with fully integrated groundhog effect and being trapped alone in Swindon works with 100% accuracy but alas building it in reverse is proving impossible due to the quite common General effect ????

Err! Have you tried the reset button 

[Crossy]

3 minutes ago, Daffy D said:

Err! Have you tried the reset button 

 

Nah, turn it off then on again is more effective in my experience.

 

Of course the volatile memory could then forget everything ... 

 

[Crossy]

13 hours ago, ravip said:

What about the Radio clocks? Don't they work in TH?

The ones that automatically synchronise with a Satellite or some other source?

 

I think we may be too far from any of the ULF transmitters, the Chinese ones may work.

 

But with the wide availability of internet connections and NTP servers all over the world I suspect they will die out.

 

[Peter Denis]

Boredom can do strange things - And internet searches go in unexpected directions

 

> You can say that again!  I have the habit of adding my initials to my internet searches and have come across some unexpected results, but never bored... Cheers,

Xander Xavier Xenakis

 

[Daffy D]

20 hours ago, Crossy said:

Nah, turn it off then on again is more effective in my experience.

 

Of course the volatile memory could then forget everything ... 

Exactly, could wipe the coordinates and we'd be stuck with him FOR EVER  

 

(only joking )

 

[Metropolitian]

On 8/4/2020 at 4:53 PM, ravip said:

What about the Radio clocks? Don't they work in TH?

The ones that automatically synchronise with a Satellite or some other source?

Hah that's funny.

Two weeks I was going to build a DCF (77) receiver again and this time for supplying a comparisation time for together with the gps time and online ntp time for my own local ntp server.

And only halfway to realize that it would not work !

The transmitter is in Frankfurt and doesn't go far more then 2000 km on average.

I forgot where we are

 

Did some research, and I found some information about a Chinese transmitter working on a higher frequency, 100khz, located in Shaanxi and transmitting on 800kW instead of the Frankfurter 400kW so pretty well over the 3000km which is fine as Bangkok - Shaanxi is 2500km.

 

Project postponed ????