New Project: Nixie Clock part 1

And I'm back...

Its been a while since I updated my projects blog.  This is mostly because I got discouraged by my Hard Drive clock project.  I ran into a lot of problems and in the end, I took an extended break from it.  Eventually I may go back to it but for now I have something new and a little easier to work with, Nixie Tubes!!

If you remember from my last post, I was working on a clock project because there is not an easily accessible clock in the house.  Also you may remember that we were on a tight budget last time.  Well I got my excuse to get this project going, I turned 30.  Fitting right?  I thought so.  Also I needed something to break in my new Hakko Soldering Iron I got for my birthday.  Its awesome btw.  0-400 degrees in 10seconds.  Beats this shit out of the one I have at work.  I can go out for coffee before that one gets warm enough to melt solder.

So what are Nixie Tubes again?  A Nixie tube is an electronic device for displaying numerals or other information. The glass tube contains a wire-mesh anode and multiple cathodes. In most tubes, the cathodes are shaped like numerals. Applying power to one cathode surrounds it with an orange glow discharge. The tube is filled with a gas at low pressure, usually mostly neon. Nixies were used as numeric displays in early digital voltmeters, multimeters, frequency counters and many other types of technical equipment. They also appeared in costly digital time displays used in research and military establishments. They have been made obsolete by LED technology.

Except for in the Soviet Union, where they were mass produced into the '90s.

OK!  So lets get the parts list going cause a lots changed in the last few months.

Parts!

For this project, I ordered my Nixie Tubes from http://www.ogilumen.com.  Their kit was very easy to use and there were great instructions on their website for putting the parts together.  Here is what I ordered:

50 mA NIXIE TUBE POWER SUPPLY

OGI LUMEN provides this heavy lifter high voltage switch mode power supply pre-assembled.

It is currently offered in a 50mA output version, adjustable from 150 to 220 VDC, from a 9 to 16 VDC source. There is sufficient power produced by one 50 mA NIXIE TUBE POWER SUPPLY to drive twelve NIXIE DUO boards (twenty-four IN-12A nixie tubes). Our 12 VOLT AC/DC ADAPTER will easily drive this nixie tube supply.

NIXIE DUO and NIXIE DRIVER KITs

All parts provided for solder assembly of pictured extra thick epoxy boards. You get two phenolic sockets, two shiny NOS IN-12A nixie tubes, and all the other bits you'll need. The NIXIE DRIVER prepares a NIXIE DUO to receive serial input from an external microcontroller (Arduino), and power from a NIXIE TUBE POWER SUPPLY. You can further string these assemblies end-to-end for rows of humming digits.NIXIE DUO and NIXIE DRIVER KITs

I ordered 2 of the Nixie Duo and Nixie Driver Kits since I needed 4 digits. 

The next set is from http://www.sparkfun.com.  I ended up needing a lot of little parts so for simplicity, i created a wish list which you can access here:  Parts for Nixie Tube Clock  I'll try to explain what the "odd" parts are for quickly:

Momentary Push Button Switch: Controls to change time as well as "theme"

Triple Output LED RGB: Back light for the Nixie Tubes

FTDI Cable 5V: Programming cable for my Arduino mini Pro

Breadboard Power Supply 5V/3.3V: Ran into problems my first build getting steady 5v power to my Arduino. I ended up burning out the boot loader on my first Arduino as well as two voltage regulators, so I got this for simplicity. There are heat sinks in the list for the voltage regulator as well.

DC Barrel Jack Adapter: Got this to easily connect the Breadboard Power Supply in parallel to my Nixie Tube Power Supply.

Screw Terminals 5mm Pitch (2-Pin) & (3-Pin): Got these to easily connect my lines to the Nixie Tube Power Supply without jacking up the solder points.  I added these to the list in retrospect since I ended up soldering and desoldering my power lines a few times and damaging the board a little.

I also picked up a small 9"x20" Shadow Box from Michael's to house the project.  I had to modify it a little for my purposes.  I removed the glass panel because the box ended up being not deep enough and I replaced the foam board backing with a 3/8" thick piece of basswood from JoAnn Fabrics as well as some black fabric from JoAnn as well.  I used two layers of the fabric hide the cables I ran underneath.  Finally, I went to radio shack and picked up a sheet of perforated board for any small custom sized boards i need as well as a pack of 100ohm resistors for the led back lights.

The Build

So here is the working project.  I'll post how I built the clock later.  For now, Enjoy.