Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[mnementh]

@mnementh I also looked at one of these calculator kits last year and decided against it, however I may just review that decision to break the boredom up.

   Well... that was satisfying, but not nearly long enuf. All the actual "make"-ery is done... now it's just assembly. I might mod it with a an old camera Li-Ion cell tho; it appears to have a backlit LCD & I don't imagine CR2032s will last long.   Still... def worth the pittance they charge to occupy a afternoon. 

mnem

Yeh, it does make you wonder as to why they didn't include a power socket and make the batteries rechargeable, shouldn't add all that much to the kits cost?

Seeing it all sitting there now, kinda makes me wish I had one to build to... I may have to pull the trigger on one myself soon 

Ugghhh... no runsies on single LiPo. While STC15W408AS processor runs down to 2.4V, the cheap 1602A LCD still requires min 4.7V to operate. That explains the choice of 2 CR2032s as power source. While everything does run off a 7550-1 5V LDO which can easily be powered with a 2S LiPo, then BMS becomes a bit more complicated, as the tiny micro-USB all-in-one BMS boards only do a single cell. They do make 2S versions, but much larger and I only have the 1S version on hand. 



Trying to decide if I really give even half a rat's ass on this toy... Measured total current draw is 16.5mA operating, 9-10uA quiescent. Figuring approx 160-170mAH capacity on a CR2032 (down to 2.8V*2 or so for the 5V LDO) that's still a solid 2 years standby give or take, which seems pretty good... except the operating draw is aboot 100x the CC a CR2032 is designed for, and more than twice the expected pulse current.

I'm still looking for some actual stats at a 16mA draw; everything with useful figures has been for pulse loading in the uS-mS range, not continuous for many seconds or minutes at a time. At this point, no idea how such a high current draw will affect actual capacity in mAH... but I would be surprised if actual yield is more than double-digits. 

mnem
"It's always somethin'..." ~Rosanne Rosanna-Danna

[Cerebus]

On that note I think I’ve decided to buy a series 3 Land Rover again 

I think you need a Landie better suited to London traffic conditions:



In that context I think the GPMG is not optional.

[sb42]

Wrecking balls... wrecking balls... gitcher wrecking balls right here, only 2 quid apiece!!!

I'm afraid the proper wrecking ball design is a tad more expensive. Only 5 left in stock

[mnementh]

*clicks linky, even tho I know I shouldn't*

Oh, fer cryin in the mud... 

mnem
"A Phūl and his money are some party." ~me

[Specmaster]

On that note I think I’ve decided to buy a series 3 Land Rover again 

I think you need a Landie better suited to London traffic conditions:



In that context I think the GPMG is not optional.

That must have got stuck in one hell of a traffic jam, vegetation has begun to grow all over it 

[bd139]

On that note I think I’ve decided to buy a series 3 Land Rover again 

I think you need a Landie better suited to London traffic conditions:



In that context I think the GPMG is not optional.

I was already thinking the attached 

[Specmaster]

@mnementh I also looked at one of these calculator kits last year and decided against it, however I may just review that decision to break the boredom up.

   Well... that was satisfying, but not nearly long enuf. All the actual "make"-ery is done... now it's just assembly. I might mod it with a an old camera Li-Ion cell tho; it appears to have a backlit LCD & I don't imagine CR2032s will last long.   Still... def worth the pittance they charge to occupy a afternoon. 

mnem

Yeh, it does make you wonder as to why they didn't include a power socket and make the batteries rechargeable, shouldn't add all that much to the kits cost?

Seeing it all sitting there now, kinda makes me wish I had one to build to... I may have to pull the trigger on one myself soon 

Ugghhh... no runsies on single LiPo. While STC15W408AS processor runs down to 2.4V, the cheap 1602A LCD still requires min 4.7V to operate. That explains the choice of 2 CR2032s as power source. While everything does run off a 7550-1 5V LDO which can easily be powered with a 2S LiPo, then BMS becomes a bit more complicated, as the tiny micro-USB all-in-one BMS boards only do a single cell. They do make 2S versions, but much larger and I only have the 1S version on hand. 



Trying to decide if I really give even half a rat's ass on this toy... Measured total current draw is 16.5mA operating, 9-10uA quiescent. Figuring approx 160-170mAH capacity on a CR2032 (down to 2.8V*2 or so for the 5V LDO) that's still a solid 2 years standby give or take, which seems pretty good... except the operating draw is aboot 100x the CC a CR2032 is designed for, and more than twice the expected pulse current.

I'm still looking for some actual stats at a 16mA draw; everything with useful figures has been for pulse loading in the uS-mS range, not continuous for many seconds or minutes at a time. At this point, no idea how such a high current draw will affect actual capacity in mAH... but I would be surprised if actual yield is more than double-digits. 

mnem
"It's always somethin'..." ~Rosanne Rosanna-Danna

My kit arrives tomorrow

[bd139]

So it’s an 8051. Is there any room for a daughter board inside the case. Was thinking STM32 adapter and running WP34s on it 

[Specmaster]

@bd139
Your Land Rover reminded me of the car that Richard Hammond had for the Grand Tour Madagascar Treasure Hunt program on Amazon recently 

[bd139]

WTF is that a Ka? 

[Specmaster]

WTF is that a Ka? 

Nope, its the new Focus RS.

[bd139]

Ah Ford Fuckarse 

[Specmaster]

Yus master

[Robert763]

On that note I think I’ve decided to buy a series 3 Land Rover again 

I think you need a Landie better suited to London traffic conditions:



In that context I think the GPMG is not optional.

That is a Series 3

I've always Fancied a 101" FC Radio Body
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_Rover_101_Forward_Control#/media/File:Land_Rover_101_Forward_Control.jpg
There is a very Dilapidated GS in the village, beyond what I'd attempt, but even so the owner won't sell it so it's rotting away.

[tautech]

I've always Fancied a 101" FC Radio Body
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_Rover_101_Forward_Control#/media/File:Land_Rover_101_Forward_Control.jpg

Our local Landie wrecker has one and he used as his runabout for a while some years back when I had a heavily modified SWB S3 a bit like Beans one.
After a couple of decades of always fixing nearly every little thing on it I let it go for something more modern.
186 6cyl Holden donk and aftermarket high torque head, std carb and ignition, adaptor plate to a S2a gearbox (strong) Mahindra (IIRC) overdrive, S3 transfer case (strong), Rover 90 4.3:1 diff gears swapped into the stronger S3 diff heads and cut and widened Landy rims then hot dipped galv'ed for beach work. Ran 265/16 LT radials on them. Track width was 3" wider overall from the widened rims and it seemed like a totally different truck.
One of the better mods was biffing out the SWB rear leaf springs and fitting a std LWB set that had less main leafs and some beefy overloads so that an unloaded ride was far more comfortable.

The thing was reasonably economical if you kept under ~90kph and with the 2850cc 6cyl good and torquey for hill work. Missed it after sale for a few years then yeah...nah.

[tggzzz]

The, um, unforgiving ride in a Landie was for a good reason: to protect the car when in the middle of nowhere. The basic concept was that you felt you were in dander of damaging yourself and slowed down - which reduced the stresses on the car.

[Cerebus]

I've always Fancied a 101" FC Radio Body
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_Rover_101_Forward_Control#/media/File:Land_Rover_101_Forward_Control.jpg
There is a very Dilapidated GS in the village, beyond what I'd attempt, but even so the owner won't sell it so it's rotting away.

About 20 years ago, when I still used to regularly go hillwalking in the kind of places a Landie would be a good idea, I gave some very serious consideration to getting a 101 FC, either radio body (comparatively rare), or ambulance body (comparatively common) to use as an ersatz camper van.

[bd139]

I've always Fancied a 101" FC Radio Body
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_Rover_101_Forward_Control#/media/File:Land_Rover_101_Forward_Control.jpg
There is a very Dilapidated GS in the village, beyond what I'd attempt, but even so the owner won't sell it so it's rotting away.

About 20 years ago, when I still used to regularly go hillwalking in the kind of places a Landie would be a good idea, I gave some very serious consideration to getting a 101 FC, either radio body (comparatively rare), or ambulance body (comparatively common) to use as an ersatz camper van.

Only problem with the 101 is if you hit anything in it you are basically riding the front end of a person juicer. Also you have to be weird shaped to get in one. I drove one off road once and it scared the shit out of me. I did the same in my 3 as well and scared the shit out of my passenger at the time as well  . 

To be honest tggzzz’s comment about the unforgiving ride of the Land Rover which I had forgotten entirely and the (sorry for the TMI comment) current state of my arse hole at the moment have put me off the idea now entirely 

Edit: finding the seats in my C3 a little hard at the moment to be honest 

[tautech]

The, um, unforgiving ride in a Landie was for a good reason: to protect the car when in the middle of nowhere. The basic concept was that you felt you were in dander of damaging yourself and slowed down - which reduced the stresses on the car.

The 1/2 ton SWB rear spring stack was a POS and uprating it to the 1t LWB was a desirable mod due to the vast improvement in ride. The LWB vs SWB diffs. chassis, spring fixtures were so little different you could swap stuff to and fro as you liked. S2a and later where the stronger mechanically and when you have bits from each apart on the bench it's easy to see why.

The Landy wrecker I mentioned earlier recommended such a mod and as he'd served his time in the Landy factory in UK before immigrating to NZ he had a fair idea of all the improvements you could make to them.
I also had decades of experience to call on from chaps that had worked for the local Landy agent...the largest at that time in NZ.

[BU508A]

I got this week some 3.3V voltage references from Texas Instruments.

Type: REF3033AIDBZR, SOT-23
The datasheet can be downloaded here.

Anybody interested in playing around with them? If yes, drop me a PM
and I'll send you five of them, including five little adapter PCBs.
Since these are very small parts, I'll send them worldwide.

I can share totally 50 REF3033 and 50 adapter boards.

See attached image.

[mnementh]

Ugghhh... no runsies on single LiPo. While STC15W408AS processor runs down to 2.4V, the cheap 1602A LCD still requires min 4.7V to operate. That explains the choice of 2 CR2032s as power source. While everything does run off a 7550-1 5V LDO which can easily be powered with a 2S LiPo, then BMS becomes a bit more complicated, as the tiny micro-USB all-in-one BMS boards only do a single cell. They do make 2S versions, but much larger and I only have the 1S version on hand. 

   Trying to decide if I really give even half a rat's ass on this toy... Measured total current draw is 16.5mA operating, 9-10uA quiescent. Figuring approx 160-170mAH capacity on a CR2032 (down to 2.8V*2 or so for the 5V LDO) that's still a solid 2 years standby give or take, which seems pretty good... except the operating draw is aboot 100x the CC a CR2032 is designed for, and more than twice the expected pulse current.

I'm still looking for some actual stats at a 16mA draw; everything with useful figures has been for pulse loading in the uS-mS range, not continuous for many seconds or minutes at a time. At this point, no idea how such a high current draw will affect actual capacity in mAH... but I would be surprised if actual yield is more than double-digits. 

mnem
"It's always somethin'..." ~Rosanne Rosanna-Danna

My kit arrives tomorrow

So it’s an 8051. Is there any room for a daughter board inside the case. Was thinking STM32 adapter and running WP34s on it 

   https://www.amazon.com/Seeeduino-Smallest-Microcontroller-Interfaces-Compatible/dp/B087D2VSBL/

Okay, now that's freaky. I found the screws I needed in black for cheap... so I started looking for ATSAMD21G18 boards (Like the Adafruit Adafruit Metro M0) from the CircuitPython "Already Supported" list that were actually in stock up here so I could get started with CircuitPython. Got a Ardu MKR Zero on the way, but these were on the same page.

So out of curiosity I dropped a 3-pack of 'em in my cart. Looks like pretty much a ATTiny85 thumbnail board, only with ARM 32-bit power; and even if I can't get the Python interpreter image to work on it (I know I'd have to add some form of storage for the Python scripts), can always fall back on the Ardu IDE to make some use of them; maybe do Father & Son Time or summat.

mnem
 

[nfmax]

My neighbour's new spaniel arrived ahead of schedule while her mother (a working dog) was being transported in the Land Rover. The pup is now officially named Landie. 

[bd139]

Ugghhh... no runsies on single LiPo. While STC15W408AS processor runs down to 2.4V, the cheap 1602A LCD still requires min 4.7V to operate. That explains the choice of 2 CR2032s as power source. While everything does run off a 7550-1 5V LDO which can easily be powered with a 2S LiPo, then BMS becomes a bit more complicated, as the tiny micro-USB all-in-one BMS boards only do a single cell. They do make 2S versions, but much larger and I only have the 1S version on hand. 

   Trying to decide if I really give even half a rat's ass on this toy... Measured total current draw is 16.5mA operating, 9-10uA quiescent. Figuring approx 160-170mAH capacity on a CR2032 (down to 2.8V*2 or so for the 5V LDO) that's still a solid 2 years standby give or take, which seems pretty good... except the operating draw is aboot 100x the CC a CR2032 is designed for, and more than twice the expected pulse current.

I'm still looking for some actual stats at a 16mA draw; everything with useful figures has been for pulse loading in the uS-mS range, not continuous for many seconds or minutes at a time. At this point, no idea how such a high current draw will affect actual capacity in mAH... but I would be surprised if actual yield is more than double-digits. 

mnem
"It's always somethin'..." ~Rosanne Rosanna-Danna

My kit arrives tomorrow

So it’s an 8051. Is there any room for a daughter board inside the case. Was thinking STM32 adapter and running WP34s on it 

   https://www.amazon.com/Seeeduino-Smallest-Microcontroller-Interfaces-Compatible/dp/B087D2VSBL/

Okay, now that's freaky. I found the screws I needed in black for cheap... so I started looking for ATSAMD21G18 boards (Like the Adafruit Adafruit Metro M0) from the CircuitPython "Already Supported" list that were actually in stock up here so I could get started with CircuitPython. Got a Ardu MKR Zero on the way, but these were on the same page.

So out of curiosity I dropped a 3-pack of 'em in my cart. Looks like pretty much a ATTiny85 thumbnail board, only with ARM 32-bit power; and even if I can't get the Python interpreter image to work on it (I know I'd have to add some form of storage for the Python scripts), can always fall back on the Ardu IDE to make some use of them; maybe do Father & Son Time or summat.

mnem
 

Nice toy those boards. Let us know if it works out as I’m after some small microcontrollers that I don’t have to argue with C any more with. Done too many years of that now. I’m fucking done 


On ARM, yesterday was actually the 32nd anniversary of my ARM based desktop computer ownership. I blew my entire inheritance from someone on an Acorn Archimedes. This machine lasted until around 1995 when it was replaced with a RiscPC. Then I left the market for Windows NT in 1997 with a Compaq Professional Workstation 5000. Sad times.

But here I sit now again 32 years later and my main desktop machine is an ARM again, I’m writing this on an ARM phone and discussing ARM microcontrollers.

What a ride.

Edit: also a British product that wasn’t shit 

[tggzzz]

I've always Fancied a 101" FC Radio Body
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_Rover_101_Forward_Control#/media/File:Land_Rover_101_Forward_Control.jpg
There is a very Dilapidated GS in the village, beyond what I'd attempt, but even so the owner won't sell it so it's rotting away.

About 20 years ago, when I still used to regularly go hillwalking in the kind of places a Landie would be a good idea, I gave some very serious consideration to getting a 101 FC, either radio body (comparatively rare), or ambulance body (comparatively common) to use as an ersatz camper van.

Only problem with the 101 is if you hit anything in it you are basically riding the front end of a person juicer. Also you have to be weird shaped to get in one. I drove one off road once and it scared the shit out of me. I did the same in my 3 as well and scared the shit out of my passenger at the time as well  . 

To be honest tggzzz’s comment about the unforgiving ride of the Land Rover which I had forgotten entirely and the (sorry for the TMI comment) current state of my arse hole at the moment have put me off the idea now entirely 

Edit: finding the seats in my C3 a little hard at the moment to be honest 

Sounds pike you need me of these https://www.completecareshop.co.uk/chairs-and-seating/chair-pressure-cushions-high-risk/high-risk-chair-pressure-cushion

Poor old man

[bd139]

Hahaha. If I can cut a hole in the middle of it I’m good