Use for the Tesla Switch

[citfta]

Thanks to Bit's and Sobakin,

I tried both programs on the simulator and they both seem to work. I had to adjust the timing on Bit's program slightly but Sobakin's seem to be dead on without any adjustment. I'll be able to tell better when I get back to running the TS and can look at it on the scope under real conditions.

If anyone else is planning to use the Picaxe 18x you need to look at the timing on a scope because my modified Radio Shack transformer seemed to transfer the power to the secondary better after I got the timing pulses even.


Carroll

[Sobakin]

I've done testing switch on 21W bulb load, working time was 1 hour 30 minutes:
30 minutes, then swap batteries, rest for 5 minutes;
30 minutes, then swap again, rest 5 min;
15 minutes, swap, rest 5 min;
15 minutes.
- and after that batteries was almost completely discharged (loaded transformer output less than 8V).
Now I'll charge them and try some light load, something about 2W, propeller from computer cooler, for example.

[Turion]

Ok, so I know less about the Stamp than I thought I did. Having trouble getting it to work, and I'm pretty sure it's just me. I can run the basic program which is the first program in the instruction book, but when I try to test my circuits (through connections on the Homework Board) nothing happens. So either
1. I don't have my wires for pin one and pin two plugged into the correct place on the board or....
2. Something is wired wrong somewhere else
I'll go with door number one, since I checked all the connections a half dozen times and even traced each connection out and then marked over it on the schematic with a highlighter so I could make sure everything was hooked up right.

Attached is a picture, and I will hit the book again to see if there is anything there that will help me figure this out. Sooner or later I'll get it.

[Matthew Jones]

Isn't the "Pause" command based on Millisecond and the Pulseout command based on Microsecond?

So a pause of 2 is 2000 microseconds?

It is in the stamp anyway.

Matt

[citfta]

Pause command

Hey Matt,

yes you are correct, but there is also a pauseus which lets you time the pause in microseconds. So that command could be useful. I did find that Sobakin's idea of just repeating the goto command seem to work really well without having to adjust anything. Sorry Jeff.

Later, Carroll

[Bit's-n-Bytes]

Hey Matt,

yes you are correct, but there is also a pauseus which lets you time the pause in microseconds. So that command could be useful. I did find that Sobakin's idea of just repeating the goto command seem to work really well without having to adjust anything. Sorry Jeff.

Later, Carroll

No prob. More than 1 way to program a chip.

Cheers

Jeff

[SkyWatcher]

Hi folks, I have taken apart my small transformer that I think was from a battery charger of some kind.
Just have to file off center plastic a little bit and wind the magnet wire.
Thing is, I have a boat load of 24 gauge wire and not so much of the 18 gauge left, though I should be able to scrounge enough 18 gauge, anyone think 24 gauge would be okay for the small M.J. tesla switch. Here is a pic of it dismantled.


Uploaded with ImageShack.us
peace love light
tyson

[Matthew Jones]

To Hoppy @ Overunity Research.com

I'm sorry to here that after few runs you have decided its not going to work out.
I might be wrong on your intention but thats what I got from your post.

But my suggestion would be if your setup did not work out for you try something a little closer to what I suggested in the PDF. Don't be so sure that your flavor isn't part of the problem.

Like I have said before about the batteries. You are not extending anything internally to battery. You are simply passing the same current you initially pulled back and forth between battery sets. The power in the battery is added and supplements that current as it grows weaker from losses in heat and entropy.
But this amount is far less than would be consumed if you ran your load straight to ground. So the end result is extended run times.

At least now I know I am not alone in experiencing this. 3 people on this board now are moving along and seeing the same kind of results I do.

As far as before and after reading. My BK capacity meter will tell a different story, and has many times. It does not lie or have an opinion, so I believe it. And this why I suggest looking at the measurement. As far batteries that show higher voltage and run down quick, well thats a bad battery.
Everything from sulphation to a high PH can cause this. You may want to look into it.
I have some really old 4.5 amp hour batteries that were restored from the dead, cooked again, cleaned up, low acid levels. You name it. They will run a very small switch for a very long time. And have many times.

So I hope you can move forward on this. I would love to be more help but I cannot join that group. And if I did I would be square in hostile territory from what I've seen.
If you do move on I would be happy to keep hearing from you and helping you in anyway.

Cheers
Matt

[Matthew Jones]

Hi folks, I have taken apart my small transformer that I think was from a battery charger of some kind.
Just have to file off center plastic a little bit and wind the magnet wire.
Thing is, I have a boat load of 24 gauge wire and not so much of the 18 gauge left, though I should be able to scrounge enough 18 gauge, anyone think 24 gauge would be okay for the small M.J. tesla switch. Here is a pic of it dismantled.


Uploaded with ImageShack.us
peace love light
tyson

The best advice I have is try to figure how much wore your going to put it on it and see if your going to have alot resistance when your done.

This is calculator I use sometimes because I cannot remember equations
Resistance of Wire (Wire Resistance Calculator).

Your shooting for no more than 1 ohm. But on a side note Cifta is having real good luck with his stock transformer and I know he has some resistance in it.

Cheers Brother
Matt

[SkyWatcher]

Hi Matt, thanks for the reply.
Based on many 24 gauge coils I have made in the past, I think with 3 strands on this transformer, it will probably be around 2 ohms or less per strand with 24 gauge.
So I think I will try 24 gauge magnet wire.
I was a little confused by one direction in your pdf Matt, the part when you said,

"IE.. You laid out 50 ft. Now that the spool is wound you have 30 ft left over. You know you have 20 ft on the spool. So 25% of the total length is 5 ft. You have 3 strand so pull off 1.5 ft off the spool. Take 2 wires and cut them. Make sure you leave yourself some extra wire for leads and mark them as the finish of those 2 wire. Then finish filling the spool with the third wire."

Did you mean to say 'pull off 5 feet of wire from 2 strands so that the 3rd strand is 25% longer' in the example you gave. Thanks
peace love light
tyson

[Matthew Jones]

Hi Matt, thanks for the reply.
Based on many 24 gauge coils I have made in the past, I think with 3 strands on this transformer, it will probably be around 2 ohms or less per strand with 24 gauge.
So I think I will try 24 gauge magnet wire.
I was a little confused by one direction in your pdf Matt, the part when you said,

Did you mean to say 'pull off 5 feet of wire from 2 strands so that the 3rd strand is 25% longer' in the example you gave. Thanks
peace love light
tyson

Ya thats pretty much it. Its hard to figure how much wire is going to fit, so just make sure you gotta enough laid out and measured and then you should know about where your at when you get full so you can pull a little off to make sure the output is 20 - 25% longer.

Matt

[citfta]

Winding resistance

Hey Matt,

I checked the winding resistance of the stock Radio Shack transformer that I used by separating the center tapped winding. Each of the now separated windings measured about .4 ohms with a regular multimeter. Since these meters normally will show some resistance when measuring something on the lowest scale, I first measured with the meter leads shorted to each other. Then I measured the resistance of the winding and subtracted the first reading from the second. I did this a few times to get a good average. I agree with you Matt. I think anything over 1 ohm is probably not going to give you good results. Hope this helps.

Carroll

[garrypm]

Hi all,

Sorry for not looking hard enough. Next time I'll open my eyes. Thanks anyway.

Well I banged it all together.

One of my SLAs is not holding up, so I'll get a newy in the morning. The lamp
(microwave oven bulb - 240v) lights ever so dimly. Using an off the shelf twin
12 v winds / 240 wind. Measured voltage from 240 side of transformer is around
19v. It takes a little while, maybe 4 or 5 seconds to climb there. I susupect
the bad SLA.

Do you guys disconnect your arduino or pic etc before making changes ?

So, thanks for your help and I'll report once the new SLA is in place.

Thanks, Garry

[Turion]

Matt,

Having never used a microprocessor before, I am a little confused as to what to do to connect up to the Basic Stamp homework board.

You said in your instructions to look at the program for lighting a light bulb. The tutorial for turning an LED on and off says take a jumper from the pin 1 IO port on the left of the Homework Board to any row on the breadboard. Connect a resistor between that row and any other row. Now connect the light between this new row and ground at Vss. The idea being that the IO port would be supplied with power on command which would then go through the resistor, through the LED and to ground, lighting the light. The key being that the pin 1 IO port receives the voltage on command.

I figured that to connect up, all I would have to do is connect to the pin 1 IO port with my wire to receive power since power is all I am looking for as the other side of the circuit is a common ground since the Stamp is powered off the 12 volt battery. Is there a flaw in my logic?

Anyway, it is almost 4:00 AM and I'm calling it a night. I had hoped to fire this thing up tonight, but right now my brain is fried from trying to figure this out. I don't have any idea what I am doing wrong, but I can't get that 24 volt reading when the two batteries are supposed to be in series, and I have checked all my connections. Not once or twice, but a bunch of times. I have disconnected the transformer 12 volt wires, but left the AC side connected as that shouldn't impact anything.

In only ONE of the drawings are the batteries numbered, but I am assuming the numbering of the batteries is the same on all of them. If not, that could be my problem. I built the simple relay circuit. I have the other two circuits built also, but wanted to run this one first.

First thing I will do in the morning is put my meter between pin 1 IO port and ground and run the program and see if I have power going on and off. I'm not in the shop now, or I would do that. Oh wait, it IS morning! Should have done that before I began this mumbling.

David

[garrypm]

Hey guys,

The arduino has now been disconnected from power for ten minutes, but the
base of the transistors still show pulsing. This is only a couple of volts, but I
thought it weird.

Rest of the wiring still in place and maybe cause its so messy using leads with
aligator clips, it maybe picking up rf.

Using an av plug, the leds light ever so dimly.

Weird huh


Thanks, Garry