Vacuum fluorescent clock design/kits available!

[David Pye]

Hi all,

I've been working on a design for a clock based on the IV-11 russian VFD tube for some time, and have finally finished the design.

The whole thing (firmware/design) is open source, so it's ideal for a project, and for something for people who like to also fine-tune their clocks.

The firmware/build instructions/KiCAD design is on my github account: 

https://github.com/davidmpye/VFD/wiki/Assembly-instructions

In terms of features:

• Either 6 tubes (as a conventional HH MM SS clock), or you can put all 8 in, and use it to display hexadecimal things, such as the time in UNIX Epoch mode (amusing, but not terribly practical!)
  
• Each tube has a smart RGB led for bottom-lighting (as they're 'smart', each can be a different colour, so there's a nice rainbow effect etc as well as several other lighting modes based on colour)
  
• PWM dimming of tube brightness for night time
  
• Laser cut 3mm ply case 
  
• Microcontroller supports WiFi, so can join your network and get time from NTP, or display messages you send to it (given the limits of 7-segment displays, no M or W etc)
  
• Battery backed real time clock
  
• Four buttons on the back to allow setting of time/LED mode etc.
  
• Open source hardware and software

If anyone would like a kit, I can supply all the parts (inc tubes and case) - for sale via Ebay or Tindie as you prefer:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Vacuum-Fluorescent-Display-Clock-Kit-IV11/153430459900

https://www.tindie.com/products/davidmpye/iv-11-vacuum-fluorescent-display-clock-kitwifi/

If anyone decides to build one (either as a kit, or off your own back etc), I'd very much appreciate comments and feedback.

Kind Regards,

David

[Dekatron42]

Nice!

I couldn’t find the KiCAD files though, can you post the link to them please. I am currently using Designspark but I want to try KiCAD and thought this might be a good project to start with.

/Martin

[David Pye]

Hi Martin

Those files are in here :

https://github.com/davidmpye/VFD/tree/master/IV11

I believe all the footprints and symbols needed are included so it should just open but if it doesn't let me know!

David

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[Dylan Distasio]

I grabbed one, David.  I'm looking forward to putting it together!

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[Michail Wilson]

David,

I would like to get one, but….

Tindie says no stock.

eBay doesn’t let me bid or even see it when I log in since you’re not shipping to the USA.

 

Resolution?

 

Michail

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[Dekatron42]

Hi,

Thanks!

It works but in the latest version if KiCAD I installed I get this error, do you have any idea what that can be due to? It wouldn't even open in the earlier version I had which I believe was 4.6.2 or something - which version are you using?

/Martin

On Thursday, 28 March 2019 11:20:12 UTC+1, David Pye wrote:

Hi Martin

Those files are in here :

https://github.com/davidmpye/VFD/tree/master/IV11

I believe all the footprints and symbols needed are included so it should just open but if it doesn't let me know!

David

On Thu, 28 Mar 2019, 08:43 Dekatron42, <martin....@gmail.com> wrote:

Nice!

I couldn’t find the KiCAD files though, can you post the link to them please. I am currently using Designspark but I want to try KiCAD and thought this might be a good project to start with.

/Martin

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[David Pye]

Hi Michail,

I have updated the Tindie stock levels, so you should be able to get one now :-)

Thanks

David

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[David Pye]

Hi Martin,

I am using 5.0.2 on Linux but that shouldn't matter....

Have you checked out the files from Github, or downloaded them individually?  If you open the VFD.kicad_pcb file with a text editor, what does it look like?

What I normally do is open the 'pro' project file from the main Kicad application, then double click on the PCB file, and that should open the PCB editor in pcbnew.

Cheers

David

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[Dekatron42]

Hi,

Clicking the .pro file worked better and a quick googling after that worked showed me that clicking other files, like the .pcb file which I clicked on, show errors like the one I got. Thanks for helping me, this was perhaps the fourth or fifth time I have started KiCAD!

/Martin

[Hannah Mishin]

NICE!

[David Pye]

Thanks Hannah!

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