The pillar I had been using was impressively tall, in my opinion, but the reality was that my ceiling was not up to the task of housing such a well-heighted structure. I built a new pillar with 1/3 of the LEDs but the same spacing as the tall one. This made it a lot easier to maneuver and test, but the new lights repeatedly gave me trouble.
I tried to resolder the lights, and I thought that fixed the problem. All the solder joints and Arduino connections were tested, and they seemed solid. More on that.
I programmed another Arduino to act as my clock module. This one was outfitted with a Real-Time Clock RTC module and battery. All of the rotation and display functions would be here, and it would send serial commands to the central controller. This separation would be close to what I can expect during the hack day as a computer talks to the unit.
The first day did not go flawlessly. Three out of four numbers displayed all right, it was 9:45 or 21:45.
The next day I learned to take better pictures of the lights, use different colors, and get all the numbers to show up. Still no rotation.
I had some troubles. With smoke. Coming out of my project. The worst was after a freshly soldered wire made contact where it shouldn't have and shorted out. All the insulation turned crispy, and it left a scorch mark on the PVC as it destroyed two LEDs.
Lights were in good working order, but rotation was still finicky. The problem stemmed from the homing routine, which was lazy at best but also a case of sloppy coding. On top of that, the magnet I used was so large that it triggered the home-position switch for a needlessly long time and the shape of the field triggered it twice. This combination led to a system which could not reliably find its position.
The rest of the summary posts have been arranged by date.
First time here?
Completed projects from year 1
Completed projects from year 2
Completed projects from year 3
Completed projects from year 4
Completed projects from year 5
Completed projects from year 6
Disclaimer for http://24hourengineer.blogspot.com and 24HourEngineer.com
This disclaimer must be intact and whole. This disclaimer must be included if a project is distributed.
All information on this blog, or linked by this blog, is not to be taken as advice or solicitation. Anyone attempting to replicate, in whole or in part, is responsible for the outcome and procedure. Any loss of functionality, money, property, or similar, is the responsibility of those involved in the replication.
All digital communication regarding the email address 24hourengineer@gmail.com becomes the intellectual property of Brian McEvoy. Any information contained within these messages may be distributed or retained at the discretion of Brian McEvoy. Any email sent to this address, or any email account owned by Brian McEvoy, cannot be used to claim property or assets.
Comments to the blog may be utilized or erased at the discretion of the owner. No one posting may claim property or assets based on their post.
This blog, including pictures and text, is copyright to Brian McEvoy.
Short pillar with malfunctioning lights
I tried to resolder the lights, and I thought that fixed the problem. All the solder joints and Arduino connections were tested, and they seemed solid. More on that.
The lights were working fine for this picture
I programmed another Arduino to act as my clock module. This one was outfitted with a Real-Time Clock RTC module and battery. All of the rotation and display functions would be here, and it would send serial commands to the central controller. This separation would be close to what I can expect during the hack day as a computer talks to the unit.
The first day did not go flawlessly. Three out of four numbers displayed all right, it was 9:45 or 21:45.
21:_5 in the evening
The next day I learned to take better pictures of the lights, use different colors, and get all the numbers to show up. Still no rotation.
14:46 but a short camera exposure
I had some troubles. With smoke. Coming out of my project. The worst was after a freshly soldered wire made contact where it shouldn't have and shorted out. All the insulation turned crispy, and it left a scorch mark on the PVC as it destroyed two LEDs.
Letting out a touch of the magic smoke
Lights were in good working order, but rotation was still finicky. The problem stemmed from the homing routine, which was lazy at best but also a case of sloppy coding. On top of that, the magnet I used was so large that it triggered the home-position switch for a needlessly long time and the shape of the field triggered it twice. This combination led to a system which could not reliably find its position.
Finding home position
The rest of the summary posts have been arranged by date.
First time here?
Completed projects from year 1
Completed projects from year 2
Completed projects from year 3
Completed projects from year 4
Completed projects from year 5
Completed projects from year 6
Disclaimer for http://24hourengineer.blogspot.com and 24HourEngineer.com
This disclaimer must be intact and whole. This disclaimer must be included if a project is distributed.
All information on this blog, or linked by this blog, is not to be taken as advice or solicitation. Anyone attempting to replicate, in whole or in part, is responsible for the outcome and procedure. Any loss of functionality, money, property, or similar, is the responsibility of those involved in the replication.
All digital communication regarding the email address 24hourengineer@gmail.com becomes the intellectual property of Brian McEvoy. Any information contained within these messages may be distributed or retained at the discretion of Brian McEvoy. Any email sent to this address, or any email account owned by Brian McEvoy, cannot be used to claim property or assets.
Comments to the blog may be utilized or erased at the discretion of the owner. No one posting may claim property or assets based on their post.
This blog, including pictures and text, is copyright to Brian McEvoy.
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