Fake news – a common keyword these days. Fortunately, Oscilloclocks do not display fake news. But wouldn’t it be handy to see quake news on an exotic scope clock? This is the challenge [Atif] gave me – and one year and many grey hairs later, here is the result: The AfterShock Clock!
This custom-crafted Oscilloclock Core Duo assembly is a unique first in several ways:
- It’s the first scope clock ever that pulls in and displays real earthquake data!
- It’s the first scope clock ever that puts a dual-beam CRT to good use – one beam for the clock display, and the other for the earthquake and map overlay!
Earthquake display
The AfterShock Clock’s WiFi module connects at regular intervals to two public APIs (servers) to collect the latest earthquake events. It then feeds earthquakes to the clock’s quake gun controller, rotating quakes every 30 seconds. Cool!
(Note: flickering is due to camera effects and is not visible to the human eye)
Of course, there is the usual wide variety of standard clock screens to cycle through! The quake map’s beam is automatically dimmed for most of the screens, giving a soft ‘watermark’ effect.
Dual-beam CRT
The E10-12GH CRT used in this clock is certainly not mundane!
Oscilloclock Core Duo
Atif wanted to create his own case, so he initially asked for an Oscilloclock Core. But currently a single Core set does not provide control, deflection, and blanking circuits to drive TWO electron guns… So he had two choices:
- Wait an eternity for me to redesign the boards to fully support dual beams.
- Get started now! Simply put two Core assemblies together, with some degree of inter-control and removing any redundant circuits.
Atif chose the latter – and the Oscilloclock Core Duo was born!
WiFi setup
Setting up the WiFi connection is easy – just connect a device to the clock’s administration SSID and pull up the admin page. (To foil any would-be hackers out there, the admin SSID is available only for the first 5 minutes after power is applied.)
Then, access the admin URL and configure the connection to your home router:
There are a million other advanced settings to tweak things such as quake polling interval, quake magnitude filters, maximum quake age before purge, and other geeky aspects….
Oh, I forgot to mention – the clock also synchronizes time against an NTP server, eliminating the need for a GPS module.
Like what you see?
Do you go for electron guns? idolize intricate electrode assemblies? Have a filament fetish? Or just want some quake news? This kind of clock might fit the bill. Let me know!