Tag: 時計

  • The Secrets to Long Life

    It’s a sobering thought, and not a particularly pleasant one, that your Oscilloclock might just outlive you

    But let’s not dwell on such talk! The real focus today is the oft-asked question: “How long will my Oscilloclock last?”

    The honest answer is: we don’t know.

    However, we do know how we try to maximize longevity, and we do have repair and return statistics from 15 years of delivering beautiful Oscilloclocks. We’ll go through all of this with you!

    Your Oscilloclock

    There are many different models and styles of Oscilloclocks (see the Gallery), with infinite variations in terms of parts that make up the final product.

    But in terms of longevity, we can broadly categorize components like this:

    • CRT – the cathode-ray tube display
    • Hardware – the case, mounting supports, thermal parts, nuts and bolts
    • Oscilloclock boards – the electronics designed and built right here in the Oscilloclock lab
    • Original device circuitry – the host device’s original electronics that are kept in use (if any)
    • Harnesses and cabling – wires, plugs and sockets; both internal and external

    In today’s post, we’ll tackle the proverbial elephant in the room – the CRT!

    Your CRT

    Your clock’s cathode-ray tube is actually a type of vacuum tube. There is a glass enclosure, with a screen coated with chemical phosphor. It has a heater (or filament), and other electrodes made of special materials. These are welded to wires that are soldered to pins protruding through airtight seals in the glass.

    Each italicized word adds up to this: A CRT is quite fragile!

    The CRT – easily the most delicate part of any Oscilloclock!

    CRTs have many “failure modes” – and we’ve seen them all! Let’s explore.

    Failure mode A: Natural causes

    Vacuum tubes (or valves) rely on thermionic emission. Electrons are emitted from one of the electrodes called the cathode, when it is heated up and voltage is applied.

    In a CRT, thermionic emission is used to create the all-important electron beam

    In any vacuum tube, this emission capability decreases over long periods of active use. This is most commonly due to a degradation of the special emissive material and coatings that are used in the cathode.

    Your Oscilloclock’s beautiful CRT will face the same issue eventually. As the number of electrons bombarding the phosphor screen decreases, the image will gradually get dimmer and dimmer, until eventually it cannot be seen.

    How long will a new, unused CRT last before it succumbs? Well, manufacturers quote working lifespans of tens of thousands of hours of active use (heated and voltage applied). This equates to a few years.

    We want our Oscilloclock CRTs to last decades, not years! So what do we do?

    Secret 1: Auto Power Off

    Strongly recommended by Oscilloclock labs, this feature simply turns the Oscilloclock off after a period of non-activity (not touching the control). Alternatively, owners can set a specific “Off at:” time.

    It may sound counter-intuitive, but in practice, all Oscilloclock owners to date have been comfortable to turn their unit on just when they intend to enjoy it, and allow it to switch itself off.

    For clocks that are permanent fixtures in offices and restaurants, staff manually turn their clocks on together with other appliances in the premises, and set them to turn off at the business closing time.

    Secret 2: CRT type and manufacturer selection

    While working with the owner to choose their CRT, we emphatically avoid tubes where the manufacturer quotes short lifetime ratings.

    Sadly, some CRTs that are most readily available today fall into this category. See the data sheet below, specifying an incredibly short maximum longevity of just thousands of hours!

    Q. What can be done for a CRT ‘on its last legs’?

    Sadly, it isn’t feasible to restore a dead CRT to factory condition. But there are two things that can be done before it reaches that state, to prolong the inevitable:

    Firstly, Oscilloclock owners can adjust the Intensity control, as described in the Operation Guide. This will drive the CRT harder and brighten the image.

    Secondly, here in the Oscilloclock lab, we can attempt a CRT rejuvenation. This procedure involves carefully applying higher-than-normal voltages to the heater, and between certain electrodes. Done correctly, this can ‘peel back’ a thin layer of the cathode surface that has degraded or suffered from ‘cathode poisoning’, to reveal a more emissive layer of material beneath.

    Q. Will a new (unused) CRT last longer than a used one?

    Theoretically, yes.

    BUT in all our experience at Oscilloclock.com, we see no evidence that new-old-stock CRTs last any longer than used ones.

    Why is that? Well, most CRTs we use are harvested from laboratory test equipment. Most operators typically switch lab equipment on only when needed – so the accumulated operating time is often very short.

    In fact, we openly encourage the owners to choose a pre-loved tube! We vet all our CRTs, testing them electrically and inspecting for any damage to heater, phosphor, glassware, or seals. No electrode is unturned; no emission-impacting detail is omitted!

    Failure mode B: Humpty Dumpty

    Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall…
    Humpty Dumpty had a great fall…

    Visit A Humpty Dumpty CRT for a truly woeful tale…

    If the CRT glass is cracked or broken, there will be rapid loss of vacuum inside, halting all electron emission. If voltage is applied, the heater will quickly burn out, due to oxidation.

    All the king’s horses and all the king’s men,
    Couldn’t put Humpty together again.

    Sadly, several CRTs have arrived at our lab in this woeful state.

    Secret 3: Shipping precautions

    We take great pains to ensure that Oscilloclock owners do not experience a Humpty Dumpty episode.

    • CRT mounting – in all Oscilloclock models we ensure the CRT is mounted with sufficient cushioning (silicon or rubber) against its mechanical supports.
    • Double-boxing – all separable components of an Oscilloclock are individually boxed prior to packing into a larger box for shipping.
    • Packing material – we use a combination of bubble wrap, foam peas, and Styrofoam to cushion the internal boxes and their contents.
    • Box selection – we love to recycle, and we have loads of used boxes on hand. We pick the stronger ones and make sure they are the right size – large enough to fit cushioning material, but never so large that the inner boxes might slide around!
    • Carrier – we have had extremely good results with the standard EMS service available from Japan Post, and this is what we always recommend.
    • Insurance – we always insure the shipment to a sufficient value.

    Thanks to this secret, to date we have only had one case of breakage for an item shipped out from our lab! And even then, the insurance claims process working with Japan Post was quite straightforward – if not even pleasant.

    Failure mode C: Gassy CRT

    No, CRTs can’t eat too many potatoes! But CRTs definitely do not like air.

    A CRT may become “gassy” if too much air leaks in via the pin seals or a fracture in the glass, such that its internal self-healing mechanism (formed by the getter electrode) is overwhelmed.

    On a gassy CRT, the image will become dimmer and dimmer until it disappears entirely.

    While there is no true remedy for this malaise, an owner can postpone the inevitable by adjusting the Intensity control. And in rare cases, the CRT rejuvenation procedure described earlier may stimulate the getter electrode to mop up some of the excess gas.

    Secret 4: Avoid potatoes mechanical shock

    Gassy CRTs crop up occasionally, usually as a result of excessive mechanical stress or shock.

    Besides shipping precautions (Secret 4), we are even careful when storing CRTs. Being situated in the Japanese archipelago, the Oscilloclock lab and all its contents must endure significant earthquakes occasionally.

    We therefore place the most precious CRTs in strongholds – small cavities in the woodwork that suffer less shaking and are very unlikely to collapse (even if the rest of the lab does). Touch wood!

    Failure mode D: Phosphor burn

    Roughly 10% of the CRTs we harvest exhibit a permanent scar, prominently visible to the naked eye…

    Phosphor burn – it looks ‘on’ even when it’s off!

    To understand why this occurs, first think of an iron burn. If you deliver too much heat for too long into the same spot, your nice new Oscilloclock brand T-shirt will feature a prominent (and permanent) mark as shown below.

    Iron burn – this shirt’s fibres have been literally scorched!

    In a CRT, a beam of fast-moving electrons bombards the phosphor coating on the screen to produce an image. If the beam is too intense, or it is allowed to trace the same route on the screen over a long period of time, the phosphor compound may degrade and lose its luminance. The result:

    • The screen won’t light up well in those spots any longer.
    • The damaged areas may appear dark even with the power off – a ‘ghost image’.

    Devastatingly, it just isn’t possible to restore the phosphor. But since these CRTs are otherwise perfectly healthy, we put them to good use in the lab for testing and experiments.

    Secret 5: Choose a decent CRT

    Some CRT types and brands are more susceptible to screen burn-in than others. Some factors include:

    • The factory list price (you do get what you pay for)
    • The manufacturer’s credit rating for reliability
    • The phosphor compound used
    • The thickness of the phosphor coating
    • Any additional technology; e.g. aluminized screens

    For more details, see our deep-dive post: Burn-in? Nope!

    Secret 6: Screen-savers and other protection mechanisms

    Remember the phrase “screen saver”? In the pre-LCD monitor days, most computers employed some form of software that would stop the same image being displayed for too long, to avoid screen burn-in.

    In addition to Secret 1 (Auto power off), Oscilloclocks have several more screen-saving features that protect the phosphor:

    • Hourly XY Bump – shifts the image by a small amount in the X and Y directions every hour
    • Auto screen switch – cycles through the screens (clock faces) at regular intervals
    • Bright/dim control – switches between preset beam intensities via a front-panel control (on some models)
    • Intensity control – manually adjust beam intensity if required to suit darker rooms

    For more details, see our deep-dive post: Burn-in? Nope!

    Failure mode E: Disconnected electrode

    Very rarely, the weld between an electrode and its connecting wire fails. Or the soldered joint between the wire and the external pin fails.

    The symptoms depend on which electrode has been disconnected, but one thing is for sure: the CRT becomes defunct. How awfully sad.

    Secret 7: Cry and move on…

    I would like to simply write, “Choose a reliable manufacturer.” However, they don’t get much more reliable than Tektronix!

    Besides protecting the CRT from mechanical shock (see previous Secrets), all we can do is accept fate…

    Failure mode F: Open heater

    A CRT heater (filament), just visible

    Remember incandescent light bulbs of yore, with a delicate filament wire suspended inside the glass? They burned out over time – typically with a break in the wire that you could even see with the naked eye!

    Well, the heater in a CRT is also formed from filament wire (albeit with different metals designed to emit more heat than light). If a CRT heater burns out, the cathode cannot be heated sufficiently to emit electrons, and the tube is rendered useless. A sad, sad state of affairs…

    But what causes such failure?

    Well, when did light bulbs typically fail? Yes! Right when you switched them on!

    The reason is that a cold filament has a very low resistance. When you apply voltage, a huge amount of current flows (called inrush current). This settles as the heater warms, but the initial power and sudden temperature change causes metal fatigue. And after many switch-on cycles, the wire can break.

    Secret 8: Soft-start!

    The best way to preserve the heater is to limit the inrush current, so that the filament can warm up gradually. Every Oscilloclock employs one of the following 3 types of inrush current limiter:

    1. The sacrificial lamb – a light bulb!

    In this scheme, we simply place a specially-selected incandescent light bulb in series with the CRT heater. Upon switch-on, most of the supply voltage is applied to the light bulb’s filament (because the CRT heater’s resistance is low), making it light up brightly.

    Primitive. Low-cost. Yet immensely effective!

    As the CRT heater gradually warms up, its resistance increases. The voltage across the light bulb decreases, making it dim and cool down, and its resistance lowers. By this time, the CRT has fully warmed up and stabilized, with most of the voltage now shifted to the CRT heater.

    Functional, AND beautiful to watch! Besides the Exo in the video, we’ve used it in the Heathkit OR-1 Oscilloclock and a few other custom pieces.

    2. Mister thermistor

    These long-legged beauties are called thermistors. They have an odd characteristic called NTC (negative-temperature-coefficient). The hotter they get, the less their resistance!

    Does that sound familiar? Yes! They can replace the light bulb used in method (1) above. Most of our Oscilloclocks employ these devices, because they are reliable, predictable, and very small.

    Nonetheless, we enjoy the switch-on supernova of the old-fashioned light bulb. And some owners do, too!

    3. Electronic soft start

    Both light bulbs and thermistors are passive devices; their resistance vs. temperature profile is known (and can be charted in a specifications sheet). BUT they are not aware. They don’t have any kind of feedback loop, so they don’t actively control the voltage across the CRT.

    Recent Oscilloclock Power Board designs provide an active soft-start option. This is a circuit that dynamically ramps the output voltage up from 0V to the final voltage in a preconfigured number of seconds.

    Effective and reliable, but just a little more complex!

    Q. Will running the heater at a lower voltage prolong the CRT?

    No. According to many folks, running filaments at lower voltages than specified can accelerate “cathode poisoning” – degradation of the cathode material due to absorption or chemical reaction with trace foreign substances. We don’t recommend this.

    Q. “Sacrificial lamb” approach – won’t the light bulb itself die?

    Yes, eventually. However, it will certainly outlast the CRT filament. Although the light bulb filament does suffer a high inrush current, even a cold CRT presents a small resistance into the circuit. The voltage across the bulb at turn-on is therefore less than its rated voltage, and this extends its life.

    Q. Isn’t there something that can be done to restore a CRT heater?

    Maybe. Some folks have managed to ‘fuse’ a broken heater together, by injecting a very high voltage (thousands of volts) across the gap. The resulting arc effectively welds the broken filament. We haven’t yet had the pleasure of trying this, but if we do we will certainly write it up for you!


    Replacing the CRT

    Fact: In 15 years of crafting Oscilloclocks, not a single unit has ever come back for CRT replacement!

    That said, every CRT we shipped will reach its end of life. It’s just a matter of time.

    But don’t despair! Oscilloclock carries spares for most common tubes, and we can supply and replace them. Some owners even choose to purchase spare CRTs with their original order, so that they have them on hand.

    Q. What about rare CRTs?

    If a clock was crafted from a particularly rare CRT, there may be no spare available. But again – do not despair! We can work with the owner to select another type of CRT, and modify their precious device to suit. By rejuvenating their clock ‘with a twist’, the owner may experience even more of a thrill than if we simply restored it to its previous state!

    A rare CRT: type D4P. Don’t worry – we can replace it with something!

    Q. Can owners replace the CRT by themselves?

    We always recommend shipping clocks back to the lab for CRT replacement.

    However some models, especially those in the Oscilloclock Exo series, employ a simple and safe mechanism to swap CRTs – and we provide instructions in the Operation Guide for doing this.

    Q. Does Oscilloclock.com produce or repair CRTs?

    No. We dream of one day establishing a CRT factory. Or at least a CRT repair facility. However with all the toxic chemicals, high vacuum, glasswork, and intricate welding involved, this is likely to remain a dream.

    Q. Are new CRTs being manufactured anywhere in the world?

    Yes – some types of CRTs are being manufactured in some countries. However many are not suitable for Oscilloclocks. They may employ electromagnetic deflection (which we don’t yet support), they are special-purpose for military or aerospace applications (too expensive!), they are very cheaply-produced (not reliable), or they have short lifetimes per design and require frequent replacement.


    Swappable CRTs!

    Many of our ‘Full Package’ type clocks (see Gallery) support display swapping.

    Essentially, we craft complete additional display units, which the owner can swap in at will simply by swapping cables to the Control Unit. There is no need to open a case, touch the CRT itself, or any form of delicate operation.

    This is normally used to change the ‘mood’ of an Oscilloclock, by swapping in different phosphor colors. But it also can be used to more easily swap in a replacement CRT.



    Do you want long life, both for yourself and for your precious electronic devices? Are you tired of modern society’s throwaway culture, built-in obsolescence, and device non-serviceability? Our goal: electronic artwork that might be passed down a generation (or more) in actual working order!

    Stay tuned for Secrets Parte II, where we will explore the life of other components!

  • Oscilloclocks keep time indefinitely, without needing any adjustment…

    Such unique time displays… and they’re accurate!

    How?

    By automatically synchronising time against a reliable external time source, at regular intervals.

    The current standard synchronisation sources are GPS satellites (via either onboard or external receivers), or NTP servers (via WiFi).

    The Oscilloclock Wave – a WiFi dongle to pull time (and other things) from the Internet

    And for the most decadant timepiece, there is an even cooler option: a rubidium time source. You can gain/lose at most 2 milliseconds per year!

    Even an Atomic Oscilloclock is an option.
    Because We Can.

    But let’s take a more in-depth look at the two standard options:

    GPS – stand-alone & reliable

    Yes, that’s right – you can get extremely accurate time from GPS satellites!

    The long-standing favourite amongst Oscilloclock aficionados is the External GPS (Garmin ‘puck’) option. Features include:

    • a long cable that allows positioning for best sensitivity
    • an inbuilt magnet for attaching to metal beams
    • a gorgeous connection system – satisfying haptics and robust locking

    Of course, we also have the internal GPS option, where the GPS receiver is mounted on the Control Board itself. This is super nifty, if there is no concern about satellite signal strength where the clock is placed. (This is very rarely an issue. These receivers are extremely sensitive!)

    Can you spot the onboard GPS module in this gorgeous OscilloBlock?

    Geolocation

    The GPS option allows the Oscilloclock to obtain not just time, but also geolocation information from satellites.

    Okay, it’s true that Oscilloclocks are generally placed in a fixed location, so showing the clock’s location on a map might not be very useful…

    Think again!

    How about an OscilloGlobe, to warm up your long-distance relationship? Plot you and your friend’s Oscilloclocks on a spinning globe, and count down the hours til you meet again…

    A delightful Heathkit SB-610 shows another Oscilloclock, live and ticking elsewhere in the world!
    (Want a closeup of this demo feature? See this video)

    Or perhaps you fancy an OscilloWear? A wearable Oscilloclock, sporting a miniature CRT and it’s-only-possible-in-Japan miniaturised circuitry! Complete with GPS.

    An OscilloWatch capable of recording your sporting activities? With OscilloMaps that guide you to the nearest Oscilloclock retailer? And of course: the OscilloPhone, or oPhone for short?

    Ahh, we could have so much fun making devices that use location data…!


    Want even more info on the GPS hardware option? We have a nice support page here: Garmin 18x GPS Puck.

    NTP – low-cost & extensible

    The Oscilloclock Wave is the glorious device that allows your Oscilloclock to connect to a Wi-Fi router and pull in time from NTP (Network Time Protocol) servers.

    It comes in different forms, both external and internal:

    The Oscilloclock Wave requires a WiFi connection (and Internet), and some initial configuration – it doesn’t just work straight out of the box, in a standalone way like the GPS option.

    However, the Wave has a distinct advantage: it can access various APIs (think: providers of data over the Internet) to pull in and display all kinds of information!

    Want to display the current weather on Mars? The latest news? Stock prices ticking madly? All this is technically possible… and can be implemented upon request.

    To date, we’ve used this capability in several themed Oscilloclocks: the Astro Clock (pulling in sidereal time from an API) and the AfterShock Clock (pulling in earthquake data).

    Sidereal time, for all the astronomers out there!
    Earthquakes are disasters – no joke. But a semi-live visualization in Lissajous figures? Too cool..

    Not saturated yet? For more on Wifi based synchronisation and various configuration options, see the support page: Oscilloclock Wave.

    The No Synchronization option!

    Do you want to take your Oscilloclock off-grid? We’ll craft you a unique clock powered by wind, solar, USB-C power bank, or even a hamster wheel. (We can even procure extremely low-power CRTs!) But to go fully off-grid, you won’t want to use GPS or WiFi.

    A (more likely!) scenario is simply that signal strength is just too poor. Maybe your clock sits in a basement 3 stories below ground…

    For such cases, you can set the time manually in the Time Setting screen. Once set, an on-board quartz oscillator then maintains reasonably good time (in the order of seconds per month). You’ll want to adjust it occasionally!

    Manual time configuration screen on the Tek 520 VectorClock

    Decisions, decisions…

    Must it be one OR the other? Can’t a gadget lover have their Oscilloclock source data of different types from both GPS and public APIs over the Internet?

    Sadly, no – not in the current Control Board revision. This supports only a single interface, which is occupied by either the GPS or the Wave module. (We have multiple input capability on the long to-do list!)


    Oscilloclocks are beautiful and entertaining. There’s that warmth of the CRT filament and the brilliance of coloured phosphor excitation, combined with all the features of our digital era.

    But above all – they are clocks! Hope you enjoyed this treatise on how time is managed.

    If you’re up for the craziness of an Atomic Oscilloclock, or if you want a custom theme using specific API data, let me know! Otherwise, stay tuned!

  • Made in Japan. Then. Now.

    Here at the Oscilloclock Lab, we see a lot of vintage Japanese oscilloscopes made in the 50’s to 70’s. Most were purely utilitarian and austere, with little aesthetic appeal.

    But this Toshiba ST-1612B is different. It’s cute, compact, and culture-rich. Just when we thought Toshiba had exhausted its artistic reserves with their stunning ST-1248D, they managed to come up with THIS. Wow…

    Oscilloclock’ed!

    We discovered our protagonist some years back – dirty, dusty, and destined for the trash heap. For aeons, it sat in stock, patiently waiting its turn.

    “Oh, when can I transcend test equipment mundaneness, and reach nirvana like my brethren?” screamed our protagonist.

    During our COVID-era hiatus, this unit’s pitiful wail fell on deaf ears. But with a strong recent recovery in parts availability, shipping routes, and other stabilizing factors, the Oscilloclock Lab has begun to thaw. Spring has arrived!

    And what better way to mark the occasion than to grant our Toshiba its wish?

    Done.

    And yes – it was made in Japan. Again.

    Exquisite exterior

    The case and knobs were in reasonably good condition and polished up very nicely…

    One knob is NOT original. Can you pick it?
    Class and style – even down to the model number plate at rear!

    Sadly, the leather carrying strap had seen better days. Yes, you read that correctly! This was designated as a portable oscilloscope, although it weighed in at more than 10kg, and had no battery supply!

    Nice leather. But was it really… portable?

    We love this adorable hatch compartment and secret patch panel. So utilitarian! Whole tribes of radio servicemen must have stashed their valuables here for safe keeping, before going away on holiday. Sadly, there was no jewellery or secret documents to be found in our unit…

    Take a look at this CRT hood. The phosphor screens in cathode-ray tubes are sensitive to external light, so many ‘scopes employed hoods or shades to keep ambient light out. This improves screen contrast for the lucky operator. Kudos to you if you can recognise the material used our Toshiba’s hood:

    Yes, it’s rubber. Solid rubber, with no metal tube inside. And while it’s a little banged up on the surface, it’s not disintegrating or brittle! It’s firm, yet still sufficiently flexible to support the CRT. And a little plastic polish did wonders. Good for another 60 years!

    Incredible internals

    Unlike many other scopes of the era, opening the case is easy. Just turn the latches with a coin, a single revolution. Voila!

    A nice complement of 12 tubes. Toshiba made them accessible for easy replacement

    As with its Toshiba brother and several other units crafted to date, we carefully installed amber LED lighting to simulate the original warm, gentle glow of electron tubes. This generates a beautiful, peaceful ambience.

    XY Input inspires!

    Avid readers may recall the XY Input feature first introduced in the Metropolis Clock, and included in several models since.

    This ST-1612B unit features a neat set of banana jacks in the rear hatch compartment, where the oscilloscope probes used to plug in. We repurposed them as X and Y channel signal input connectors.

    Driven by function generators, preamps, or even a mobile phone, we can explore an entirely different level of visual imagery!

    A function generator app
    A scene from “Planets” by Jerobeam Fenderson, played on the Toshiba

    A just-fit retrofit

    The ST-1612B was an engineering marvel. They packed an amazing amount of circuitry into a very limited space.

    But we needed to find space for two 100 x 80mm Oscilloclock boards. With legroom to isolate high voltage and provide circulation. And where controls can be reached. Not easy!

    Well, removing just a few bits and pieces* revealed two nice big cavities. And the best part? There were already access panels, complete with ventilation holes! What foresight those Toshiba designers had!

    In situ adjustments, made easy

    Control Freak

    You can’t beat vintage test equipment if you like controls: toggle switches, slide switches, rotary switches, potentiometers, trimpots – these guys have it all!

    But at Oscilloclock.com we target simplicity. There is only one control you need to turn the clock on and off, change faces, change settings, and generally play with your precious. Here, the focus control (焦点) gives you this authority. Who would ever guess?

    And for that most discerning owner, keen to install her beloved Toshiba ST-1612B in a moody environment such as a bar counter, living room, or bedroom: the intensity control (輝度) dictates the velocity of the electrons, as they smash haplessly into the phosphor. Okay, okay – it’s just a brightness control!

    Finally: we’ve wired up the frequency range switch (周波数範囲) to switch something on and off. We haven’t decided what. Let the Toshiba’s future owner decide its fate!

    What does this DO? You decide!

    Circle Graphics – with a caveat

    Oscilloclocks employ Lissajous figures to generate smooth, curvy artwork and characters on the screen. No pixelated, chunky graphics! But fastidious followers may spot that on the Toshiba ST-1612B’s screen, circles are not as perfect as advertised in our Circle Graphics post. And there are some jagged edges on the segments.

    This is because we’ve installed some prototype boards. These are early revisions of the yet-to-be-announced New Design, and the circle generator and deflection amplifier circuits aren’t quite right. But they’re too good to waste.

    Earlier prototypes of the New Design. – not quite right, but not wrong either!

    But we think it’s just fine! Tube amplifier enthusiasts understand: vinyl records and tube amplifiers actually sound better than digital devices, for some music. And our Toshiba here is 50 to 60 years old. A few kinky curves only add to its grace.


    The Toshiba ST-1612B Oscilloclock is in stock and ready to perform. Want to customize the screens? Decide on the secret switch’s secret? Work up some crazy XY effects? Check our Availability page!

  • Building the Astro Clock

    In the last post, we took a look at a funky new sidereal clock from the Oscilloclock Lab. Now let’s take a look at what fanciness went into it!

    The Hardware

    [Alan], our astronomer protagonist, wanted to install all the electronics inside his Tektronix 620 X-Y Monitor. He didn’t need a nice fancy case.

    Demonstration of a Lissajous circle
    No pixels here! Circle Graphics

    No problem! We supplied the Oscilloclock Bare – our stand-alone controller board that generates images and text rendered in smooth and silky Lissajous figures.

    The board ships on a cast acrylic mount to make it easy to test externally, prior to installation into the host piece of equipment.

    Next, we added the Oscilloclock Wave. This is a Wi-Fi adapter that allows an Oscilloclock to pull (Solar) time from NTP servers over the internet, keeping accurate time indefinitely.

    Bare-bones Wave Core module

    For [Alan], we left the cabling and aesthetics options open, and shipped the basic Wave Core module instead of the stand-alone type pictured above.

    Finally, we included a decent quality power pack, to allow running the assembly prior to installation.

    This would eventually be eliminated by powering the unit from the Tek 620’s internal supply itself.

    The software – Sidereal time enhancements

    To transform the Oscilloclock Bare into the astronomically great Astro Clock that it is today, we needed sidereal time.

    Querying the sidereal API. Easy as pie!

    Easy! The US Naval Observatory Astronomical Applications Department provides a publicly available API for querying sidereal time, given a location.

    The Oscilloclock Wave already had features to pull earthquake data from a similar API and push it to the Oscilloclock for display. Extending this for another API wasn’t astronomically difficult.

    The Wave sports a bunch of advanced settings for particularly tweak-loving oscillofans out there. We just needed to add a few more! These are to enable querying and sending sidereal time to the Oscilloclock, and to set the location.

    Setting up for sidereal time

    But why not just calculate sidereal time?

    Some readers may have guessed that formulae and code libraries for calculating sidereal time are readily available. Why didn’t we just implement the calculation in code, and avoid depending on an external API?

    Our minimalist PIC 18F2680 even had a terrible bug at one point…

    Well, I’ve mentioned before that the current revision Oscilloclock Control Board uses a minimal-specification microcontroller with very limited capabilities, and is heavily optimized by coding in assembly language.

    Sadly, this chip was already jam-packed to the hilt, and there simply wasn’t any more space left for the code and run-time memory needed to calculate sidereal time internally.

    And writing the necessary floating-point calculations in assembly would be no mean feat!

    Why Assembly Code?

    Because We Can.

    But, it sure ain’t easy…

    So NO – we couldn’t easily calculate sidereal time, and it was API Option full steam ahead!

    Astro Screens!

    Even with its minimalist microcontroller chip, we’ve managed to squeeze some amazing stuff into the Oscilloclock Control Board firmware.

    For more of the weird and wacky, see Screens & Things!

    For this build, we needed yet more screens.

    First, we used our trusty Figure Creator software to render a rudimentary telescope into Circle Graphics sprite code.

    Astro Clock splash screen

    We then crafted a simple Astro Clock splash screen, by adding some random circles for stars and laying out basic text around the telescope.

    Finally, we added some basic digital and analog clock screens, using the same telescope figure as a centrepiece. This was mostly straightforward, but the existing clock hand drawing code did need some tweaking, to reference either solar time or sidereal time depending on the active screen.

    Done!

    Invoiced. Paid. Shipped. Received. Treasured forever. Right?

    Wrong!

    Sidereal really sidelined…

    A year after [Alan] received his lovely Astro Clock, the unhappenable happened. The Astronomical Applications API was taken down!

    “undergoing modernization”… a harbinger of API death! Jan 2020 snap courtesy archive.org

    The site was taken offline for a planned six months, for “modernization”. [Alan]’s sidereal clock was relegated to a normal solar Oscilloclock, albeit temporarily.

    But as lovers of electron beams striking phosphor, we always look at the bright side! Six months is still relatively short in astronomical terms! We resignedly marked “X” on the calendar, and bided our time.

    But then… the unfathomable fathomed. The COVID-19 pandemic struck. The USNO site modernisation was completely halted – very likely deprioritised in the midst of indiscriminate illness, clinical chaos, and staff shortages.

    Halted… 2 years later, still no luck… Mar 2022 snap courtesy archive.org

    We waited, and waited, and waited. There were no fingernails remaining to chew when, after two and a half years, a revised API was finally made available at the end of 2022. Hooray! Thank the stars!

    API resurrected

    Fresh API documentation in hand, we set about modifying the Wave to use the fresh fruits of the USNO modernisation machine.

    Fortunately, there were only minor changes to the API – a few more mandatory data fields, a change in date format and such. These required a relatively small amount of rework in the Wave’s firmware.

    And … we were back in the amateur astronomy business.

    Almost like a big Christmas present from Santa!

    Was this [Alan]’s Christmas present? – Santa in your Clock

    Do we regret taking the API approach?

    It’s a good question. API death could happen at any time – possibly rendering the Astro Clock lifeless, listless, or lethargic yet again.

    But, no. The decision not to calculate internally was valid, based on the known constraints. And we did our veritable utmost to revive poor [Alan]’s Astro Clock as soon as possible.

    By the way, we at the Oscilloclock Lab certainly can’t complain about USNO’s API shutdown. We, too, have been heavily impacted by pandemic and other worldly events. As of this posting, our formal activities, too, remain on pause…

    … for now!


    Curious about other Oscilloclocks that use APIs? Check out the AfterShock Clock, which taps into an earthquake API to display earthquakes in (almost) real-time on a lissajous-rendered map!

  • Astro Clock
    Metropolis Time

    A few years ago, we introduced Metropolis Time, a time system based on the 20-hour, two-shift days featured in Fritz Lang’s iconic movie Metropolis.

    Since then, we’ve received a few requests to craft clocks that display some other calendar and time systems – from the ancient and archaic, to the religious, to the scientific.

    That’s Astronomical!

    Today’s exciting story began with a request from [Alan], a prominent amateur astronomer. He happened to have a lovely Tektronix 620 X-Y Monitor lying around, and wanted to turn it into a clock.

    Well, that would be easy – the Oscilloclock Bare is a bare-bones controller assembly that can be used to drive an oscilloscope or XY monitor that meets certain requirements (for the techies: a DC coupled Z-axis amplifier). And the Tek 620 is perfect – wonderfully performant, and perfectly compatible. Job done! Right?

    Oscilloclock Bare + Tek 620 + scientific passion = Astro Clock!

    No way! [Alan] didn’t want just any old clock. The custom splash screen above was pretty cool, but could his clock display something called “sidereal time“?

    Yes! Anything is possible, and here’s what we ended up delivering: several custom clock faces showing sidereal time (in both analog and digital formats), in addition to all the standard screens that are based on solar time.

    The shipped Astro Clock assembly!

    But what is sidereal time?

    A Solar day

    Well, most normal human beings and their clocks like to measure a 24 hour day by using the Sun as a reference point. One solar day is the time it takes for the Earth to spin on its axis enough and see the Sun at the same height in the sky as the previous day.

    For example, let’s say it’s 1 May 2023. It’s lovely weather out, and you happen to notice that the Sun reached its highest point in the sky at 12:30 pm. The next day, 2 May, you would find the Sun at its highest point at — you guessed it! — 12:30 pm. And if you ignore man-made tweaks such as daylight savings, you find the Sun is always at its highest point at 12:30 pm*, year-round, looking from the same location.

    *This is not quite true – because every day is slightly shorter or longer. But it averages out over the year.

    A sidereal day

    Sidereal time, on the other hand, uses the distant stars as a reference point to measure 24 hours. One sidereal day is the time it takes for the Earth to spin on its axis enough to see the same distant star at the same height in the sky as the previous day.

    Because the Sun is so close, and a distant star is so (relatively) far, there is a difference in the length of a sidereal day compared to a solar day. A sidereal day turns out to be approximately 23 hours, 56 minutes, and 4.0905 seconds.

    Confused? I don’t blame you. This video should help:

    History and Sidereal clocks

    According to this brilliant post, the concept and utility of sidereal time has been around a very long time. The length of a sidereal day was even calculated to a surprisingly high level of accuracy some 1,500 years ago!

    Here are two surviving sidereal clocks that were made “recently” – just a few centuries ago.

    But who on Earth would use sidereal time?

    Astronomers would.

    Most people don’t look at the boring old Sun all the time. We look out to the stars and galaxies far, far beyond our solar system. If an astronomer wants to track the position of Betelgeuse day after day, she can record the sidereal time that she saw it, and know that it’ll be at the same ascension at the same sidereal time the following day. Brilliant!

    Mariners and Astronauts would.

    They can fix their location even when the Sun is not visible, by observing the position of the stars and calculating their position back from the current sidereal time. Life-saving!

    Oscilloclock Labs would.

    Because we can.


    In the next post, we’ll take a look at the build. What hardware went into this Astro Clock? How on earth does it tick? Can you figure it out?