| 45 January 1979 elelgtor =. .A.|Can.$175 Ms, up-to-date electronics for lab and leisure | Universal digital meter i | How | beat _the monster Computers and ChessUK 4 — eloktor january 1979 elektor 45 Volume 5 Number 1 decoder Eloktor Publishers Ltd, Elektor House, 10 Longport, Canterbury CT1 1PE, Kent, U.K. Tel: Canterbury (0227)'54430. Teiex: 965504, (Office hours: &30- 12.48 and 13.20 16.45. Midland Bank Lid Canterbury, A/C, 11014887 ¢/e Lockbox 1969, Postal Station A, Toronto, Ontario, MSW TWS. A/C no. 160-269-7. Please make all cheques payable to Elektor Publishers Ltd at the above address Eloktor is published monthly. ‘Number 51/52 (July/August) is 3 double issue. SUBSCRIPTIONS: Mrs. S. Barbor Subscription 1979, January to December incl: UK USA./Can. surface mail airmail £850 ‘$21.00, $31.00 ‘Subscriptions normally run to December incl. Subscriptions from Frobuary issue: uk US.A/Can. other countries ‘surface mail airmail surface mail airmail £7.75 $19.00 $28.00 £7.75 £13.00 Back issues are available at original cover price. ‘Change of address: Please allow at least six wooks for change of address. Include your old address, enclosing, if possible, an address label from a recent issu ASSISTANT MANAGER: RG. Knapp ADVERTISING MANAGER: N.M. Wills National advertising rates for the English-language edition of Elektor {and international rates for advertising in the Dutch, French and German issues are available on request. EDITOR W. van der Horst K. EDITORIAL STAFF [Meiklejohn TECHNICAL EDITORIAL STAFF ‘A. Nachtmann 4 Oudelear AC. Pauptic KM. Walraven Pde Wintor 1e query service, Mondays only, 13.30 - 16.45, rested t0 dept. TO. lope or a self addressed ‘envelope plus an IRC. ART EDITOR: F. v. Rooij Letters should be addressed to the departmont concerned: TO" = Technical Queries ED = Editorial (articles sub- ‘ADV = Advertisements ‘ADM = Administration mitted for publiestions ete.) EPS. = Elektor printed circuit ‘SUB = Subscriptions board service “The circuits published are for domestic use only. The submission of designs or articles to Elektor implies permission to the publishers to Alter and translate the text and design, and to use the contents in other Elektor publications and activities. The publishers cannot guarantee to return any material submitted to them. All drawings, photographs printed eircuit boards and articles published in Elektor are copyright {and may not be reproduced or imitated in whole or part without prior ‘written permission of the publishers. Patent protection may exist in respect of circuits, devices, components te. described in this magazi ‘The publishers do not accopt responsiblity for failing to identify such patent or other protection. Dutch edition: Elektuur B.V., Postbus 75, 6190 AB Beck (L), the Netherlands. Gorman edition: Elektor Verlag GmbH, 5133 Gangolt, W-Germany French edition: Elotor Sorl, Le Douliou, 68940 Estaires, France. Distribution in U.K: Seymour Press Lt, 334 Brixton Road, London SW97AG. Distribution in CANADA: Fordon and Gotch (Can.) Ltd,, 55 York Street, Toronto, Ontario MBU 1S4. Copyright ©1978 Elektor publishers Ltd. — Canterbury. Printed in the UK. of soos are avoided wherever Sees TONG, The decimal point is tiated ly replaced by one of the What isthe EPS service? | folowing abbreviations What isthe 70 service? ee What is2 ising tink? eee imiso)= 10% Semiconductor types = 102 large numberof = 1 equivalent semiconductors exist = 108 ‘rth different type numbers: For = 10 this reoson, sbbrevietad type | A few examples ‘numbers are used in Eloktor wherever possible: 9°741" stand for wA741, LM741, MCB41. MIC741, M741, SN72741, © TUP' of "TUN (Transistor, Universal, PNP or NPN respect- ivaly) stand for any low fre- ‘quency silicon transistor thet "meets the following specit- cations: Capacitance value 4p7: 4.7 pF, or 0.000 000 000004 7 F Capacitance value 10n: thi international way of writ 10,000 pF or 01 uF, since 1 nis {ypes, unless otherwise specified. ‘The BC working voltage of capacitors (other than electro- Iytics) is normally assumed to be atleast 60 V. As a rule of thumb, 8 safe value is usually approxi- imately twice the DC supply voltage. Test voltages ‘Some ‘TUN’s ere: BC107, 8C108 | The DC test voltages shown ere ‘and BC109 families: 2N3BS6A, | meesured with a 20 kO/V instru: 2N3859, 2N3860, 2N3604, ‘ment, unless otherwise specified. 2N3947, 2N4124. Some “TUP’s 16177 and BC178 families; | YenotV C179 family with the possible. | The international letter symbol ‘exeption of BC159 and BC179; eee ae ad of the ambiguous 'V'. normally reserved for Volts’. For instance: Up = 10 V, 2N2412, 2N3251, 2N3906, 2NA126, 2N4201 ‘*"DUS' or DUG’ \Diode Univer- | not Vp = 10 V. sal, Silicon or Germanium respectively) stands for any | Meigs voltages diode that meets the following | No mains (oower line) voltages ‘specifications: are listed in Eloktor circuits. Its ‘sumed that our readers know [DUG] what voltage is standard in their TUR, max [25V _20V | part of the world! FReeaders in countries that use 60 Hz should note that Elektor circuits are designed for 0 Hz ‘operation. This will not normally bea problem; however, in cases Where the mains frequency is used {for synchronisation some modifi cation may be required. Technical services to reeders 1Nataa. ‘Some ‘DUG's are: OAB5, AST, ‘OA95, ATI, "802378", "8C5478" refer t6 the same family’ of ‘almost identical better-quality, Silicon transistors. In general, ‘any other member of the same family can be used instead. 86107 (8, 9) families: 8C107 (8, 9), BC147 (2, 9), '8C207 (8, 9), BC237 (8, 9); 8C317 (8, 9); BC347 (8, 9); 8C547 (8, 9), 86171 (2! 3); cig? (3; 4), BC382 (3, 4); 8C437 (8, 9); BC414 80177 (8, 9) families: 8C177 (8, 9), BC157 (8, 8204 ('5, 6), 8C307 (8, 186320 (-1! -2); BC350 (-1 ‘BC557 (-8, 9), BC251 (-2, C212 (3, 4); 80512 (3, C264 (-2; 2), B46. Resistor and capacitor values ‘When giving component values, ‘ble ready-atched and predrilled. ‘The ‘EPS print service list’ in the rent sue alnays ges acom- lets list of avait SFechnlcal queries, Meroe of the technical staff are available to antwar technical queries (ralating to articles published in Elektor! by telaphone on Mondays from 14.00 to 16.30. Lecters with technical queries should be ‘addressed to: Dept. TO. Please ‘enclose a stamped, self addressed ‘envelope: readers outside U.K. please enclose an IRC insteed of amps. ‘*Miasing link. Any important modifications to, no, improvements on or corrector in Elektor circuits are generally Tinted under the heading ‘Missing ink’ at the earliest opportunity. wt measuring by the book = input signal level for moving-coil in- puts: 2 mV at 1 kHz, again adjusted to follow the equalisation curve, All in all, a quite realistic measurement Procedure. Intermodulation distortion SMPTE intermodulation distortion (SMPTE-IM) is the well-known IM dis- tortion measurement, using 60 Hz and 7 kHz sinewaves at a ratio of 4:1. In our opinion a completely useless test, since it does not furnish any more information than the THD measurement. Without ‘Wasting time, let us move on to IB intermodulation distortion (IHF-IM). Two sinewaves, fi and f2, of equal amplitude and with a constant fre- quency difference (1 kHz) are applied to the input. The percentage of IHF-IM distortion components are plotted as a function of the ‘centre frequency” (th + f2). Five plots are specified, cor- responding to output levels of ~12 dB, ~9 dB, ~6 dB, ~3 dB and 0 4B with re- spect to the reference output level. A complete set of five plots should be given for all rated load impedances (power amplifier section) and for all inputs (preamplifier section; disc inputs driven via an inverse frequency correc- tion network). Never again need adver- tising copy-writers rack their brains to find a sufficient number of illustrations! It is also permissible to specify IHF-IM in figures. In that case, the highest percentage found is specified for each oad impedance and for each input. What exactly is the IHF-IM distortion percentage? Only the second- through fifth-order intermodulation components are ‘measured, defined as follows: second-order: fy + fy third-order: 2f, # fy and f, £2f fourth-order: 2f; + 2f fifth-order: 3f, £2f and 2f, +3f, OF these 12 components, only those whose frequency is less than 20 kHz and whose amplitude exceeds 10% of the amplitude of the strongest inter modulation component are included in ‘the final calculation. The RMS value of these components is calculated, and divided by the RMS value of the complex input. signal (f, +f). The result, expressed as a percentage, is the IHF-IM distortion rati Transient intermodulation distortion (TIM) receives honourable mention in the THF Standard: it is ‘a form of dynamic intermodulation distortion that may be associated with feedback amplifiers that use internal lag-compen- sation, and is caused by the non-linear operation (slew-limiting) of one or more of the gain stages within the feedback loop, under conditions that include a rapid change in input voltage’. However, the Standard does not specify a measure ment procedure; it merely informs us that ‘several ‘methods have _ been proposed in the literature. Any of these may be used, provided that the method be stated with the results of measure- ment’. How well an amplifier can handle rapid ‘changes in the input voltage is, however, to be measured: The slew factor is defined as the ratio of the highest frequency that can be applied to the input of an amplifier, at a level that produces rated output at 1 kHz, and be reproduced at the output with acceptable linearity, to 20 kHz. The measurement procedure is as follows: The gain control is set to give maximum gain (power amplifier) or to give +12 4B overall gain (preamplifier), A 1 kHz sinewave is applied to the input (each input is to be measured in turn) and the level is increased until the rated continue us average output power level (or volt- age output level, for a preamplifier) is obtained. ‘The frequency is now increased until the total harmonic distortion of the output signal is 1%. The frequency at which this occurs, divided by 20 kHz, is the slew factor. In other words, if the 1% level is reached at 10 kHe the slew factor is 0.5; on the other hand, if 1% THD is only found for frequencies above 20 kHz the slew factor is 1.0. ‘As with all distortion tests, the measure- ment must be repeated for all inputs and all rated load impedances; dynamic ‘or moving-coil cartridge inputs should be preceeded by a network having the inverse frequency response character- istic. Miscellaneous odds and ends ‘A great many ‘other’ standard measure- ments are described. Too many for this article. We will confine ourselves to the most interesting ‘ratings. The sensitivity rating of an amplifier refers to the RMS input voltage required to obtain a certain output level. To be more precise: the reference output level, ie. 1W for a loudspeaker output and 0.5 V for a preamplifier output. The measurement is carried out at 1 kHz, for all inputs, and with the gain control at maximum. If (preset) gain controls are provided for each input, the sensitivity ‘must be measured and specified in the two extreme settings of this control: first the maximum sensitivity, then the minimum, The maximum input signal rating refers to the maximum signal level, in volts, that the input amplifier can handle without clipping. Note that this applies to all stages preceeding the main gain control: the gain is progressively reduced to avoid clipping. It is quite easy to dis- stages preceeding the main gain control the gain is progressively reduced to avoid clipping. It is quite easy to dis- tinguish input- and output clipping, when using an oscilloscope: in the former case, adjusting the main gain control alters the output level but any ‘flat tops’ remain visible; if clipping is occurring in the output stage, the only effect of the gain control isto alter the te i loktor january 1979 — 1-05 width of the tops — the level remains constant. The measurement must be repeated at a number of frequencies within the rated bandwidth of the amplifier, and the ‘minimum value thus obtained taken as the maximum input signal rating. As usual, a frequency response correction network is used when measuring disc preamp inputs, We have one minor bone to pick here. All measurements relating to disc preamps that have been discussed so far are realistic, This one, in our opinion, is not — quite. As we have pointed out several times in the past, the signal handling capabilities of a disc preamp should be considered in the light of theoretically possible input signal levels: i.e. the maximum signal level that can be recorded, as a function of frequency. To cut a long story short, at frequencies above approximately 3kHz the maxi- mum input signal level rating as ‘measured according to the IHF standard procedure may decrease at 6 dB/oct without affecting the performance. Forcing manufacturers to specify the ‘minimum value obtained within the full rated bandwidth (up to, say, 20 kHz) may lead to unfairly biassed’ compari- sons, The maximum voltage output rating of preamplifier is the minimum sinewave ‘output level in RMS volts (or dBV) that can be delivered over the rated bandwidth at 1% THD. All inputs should be measured, and the gain control should be set to give +12 4B overall gain. A fairly straightforward definition, with one interesting twist: the output of the preamplifier must be loaded by a 10k resistor in parallel with a In capacitor (‘Standard reference load’ for a preamplifier). Signal-to-noise-raio (S/N) A riddle: A 100W power amplifier specification lists ‘S/N =80 dB’. The SIN ratio of a forty-watter is given as 70.dB. Which one is noisier? Any offers? The boy with the right answer can keep the manufacturers, with our compliments You come across the craziest things What about this one: an amplifier with a S/N ratio of minus 60 dB! The bulk of the circuit must consist of a broad- band noise generator. Signal-to-noise ratio. specifications are useless unless the relevant signal level is known. It must either be included in the specification given, or else the measure- ment must be performed in accordance with a standard that specifies a certain level. The IHF standard takes the latter approach: the signal-to-noise ratio must be. specified atthe output reference level (0.5 V for preamplifiers, 1 W for power amplifiers) The noise output is measured with the aid of a ‘weighting filter’, The frequency characteristic of this filter allows for the fact that some noise frequency bands are more annoying than others, The1.08 — cloktor january 1979 measuring by the book toneburst by the book For certain audio measurements, the IHF standard discussed elsewhere in this issue specifies a particular toneburst signal: a 1 kHz sinewave, at standard reference level for 480ms and at +20 4B for 20ms, then back to stan- dard level for 480 ms, and so on, The level changes must coincide with the zero-crossings of the sinewave, A. suitable design is shown in figure 1. Although this circuit is derived from the toneburst generator described in December 1978, it will not fit on the original board. Regrettably, by the time we received the IHF standard it was too late to modify that design. ‘The original shift registers ICL... IC4 couldn't count up to 480, so they have been replaced by 4017s. The signal at pin 2 of IC3 is ‘high’ for20 msand ‘low’ for 80 ms; at pin 2 of IC4, the signal is high’ for 100 ms and ‘low’ for 400 ms, ‘These two signals are ‘ANDed’ in N7 and N8, producing an output (TR) that is high for 20 ms and low for 480 ms: the "IHF standard’ toneburst duty-cycle. As with the original circuit, the output from the clock generator not only drives the counter; it is also fed to an active filter (IC7, IC8) that cleans it up to provide a sufficiently pure 1 kHz sinewave. The sinewave is passed to two electronic switches (ESI and ES2), connected in parallel to reduce the ‘on’ resistance. If desired, of course, all four switches contained in the IC may be connected in parallel. When the switches are closed, the sinewave attenuation is determined by the ratio of R14 to R19 (for AC, the lower end of R19 is effectively grounded!). When the switches open, however, P2 and R18 are connected in series with R14, To calibrate the unit, P1 should first be adjusted until the beginning and end of each burst coincide with the zero- crossings of the sinewave, as described in the original article, P2 is then set so that the level difference between ‘burst, on’ and ‘burst off” corresponds to 20 dB (10), « Lit: Tone-burst generator, Elektor December 1978, p. 12-10,measuring by the book lektor january 1979 — 1-07 IHF Standard therefore specifies the A-Weighted-signal-to-noise ratio (S/N). This is the ratio of the output reference level to the A-weighted output noise level, in dB. The measurement is per- formed on all inputs, with the gain Avweighting filter control set according to standard test conditions (e.g. 0 dB overall gain for a line input). The input under test must be terminated with a specified im- pedance: a 1k resistor for line inputs: a 100 © resistor for moving-coil inputs; the network shown in figure 5 for dynamic disc inputs. No nonsense: no short-circuited inputs, The terminations specified are reasonable approximations of the type of input load that will normally be found in practice, and so the measurement results are likely to be ‘more realistic than in the past. A great idea. The standard does include @ warning care should be taken that the termin- ation networks do not act as pickup links for electrostatic or electromagnetic fields. Not to worry: any unwanted pickup of this type would produce poorer figures — and no manufacturer will make that mistake. A similar measurement can be performed using the CCIR weighting network. In this case, the result is listed as the ‘CCIR/ARM signal-to-noise ratio’. Last but no least, the Transient overload recovery time of an amplifier refers to the time required for an amplifier to recover from a 10 4B overload of 20 ms duration, occurring at a repetition rate of once every 0.5 seconds. The tone-burst signal shown in figure 1 is applied to the relevant input. The gain control is set so that a reference-level {input will produce an output level 10. B below the continuous average power rating (or voltage output rating, as the case may be). The output signal is monitored on an oscilloscope; in pai ticular, that portion’ of the cycle that ‘occurs immediately following the return of the input signal to reference level. ‘The number of sinewaves that are still visibly distorted is determined; this figure, expressed in milliseconds, is the recovery time. In conclusion It will probably take a while for the new Standard to penetrate into advertising copy. Since it originates in the USA, it is to be expected that American (and Japanese) manufacturers will be the first to use it European manufacturers and standards institutes still haven't succeeded in coming up with a similar up-dated. standard. They're working on it, give them their due, but there's a distinct lag compared to the situation in the States. Come on boys, hurry it up! DIN 45.500 is dead. Its high time it buried, Lit: The official IHF Standard document IHF-A-202 can be obtained from: The Institute of High Fidelity, Inc. What about Europe? Embarrassed | 489 Fifth avenue, silence. The Common Market and | New York N.Y. 10017, USA. European Unity notwithstanding, | Price: $ 7.50. Decibels made easy B, it is useful to give the voltage The decibel (4B) is the tenth part of a ‘Bel, but for some reason decibels are the only ‘unit’ ever used. Who ever heard of centibels or millibels? The dB is used to specify voltage, current and power ratios (to name @ few) — on the lines of: how much larger is this voltage with respect to that one, The number of dBs is defined as 10 or 20 times the logar- ithm of the ratio in question; “10 times’ for power ratios and "20 times’ for voltage or current ratios. Why? In particular, why use logar- ithms, and why use'a different multi plication factor for power ratios? To start with the first point: the ratios that we are interested in can be very large, easily going up to 100,000:1 Furthermore, in most cases where Bs are used, ‘significant” changes in level are those where a signal is multiplied by a certain factor, For instance, the perceived increase in a power level from, say, 10W to 20 W (x2) is the same as the perceived increase from 100 W to 200 W! In ‘both cases the power is doubled, and that is what counts. Expressed in dB, both ratios are equivalent toa 3 dB increase, Use of the dB also solves the first point: power ratios from 100,000:1 to 1:100,000 correspond to a 4B scale from +50 dB to ~50 dB (for power ratios). In spite of this ‘scale compression’ (significant) ratio of 2:1 is still clearly expressed as +3 dB. The second point, the difference in multiplication ratios, is easy to explain. Power (in Watts) corresponds to voltage squared divided by resist- ance, Therefore, if a voltage increases from, say, 1V to 3V (x3), the corresponding power will increase from, say, 1 W to 9 W (x9). However, the effect is the same: these are just two different ways of expressing the same level change. When using dBs it is effects that interest us, and so itis preferrable to use the same dB-value fo express both ratios; in other words, if the power ratio is given in ratio squared. Since dBs are logar- ithmic, this is equivalent to multi- plying the logarithm of the ratio by 2: if ‘power-dBs’ are 107 the log of the ratio, voltage (and current, etc.) dBs must be 20 x the log of the So much for theory, In practice, dBs now lead a life of their own. Although it is quite possible to calcu- late logarithms of ratios, there is usually no need. Bearing in mind that adding Bs is equivalent to multi- plying the ratio, only a few dB values need to be memorised in oder to ‘calculate’ virtually any ratio with a sufficient degree of accuracy. Here we go number power voltage ratio of dBs ratio ratio 0 dl 31 #8 al yz e142) +6 aa ‘a +10 tor TO: @3:1) 420 100:1 10:1 To give a few examples: A voltage ratio is specified as 32 a 32=20+6+6, so the ratio is 10x2x2=40. Voltage ratio 34 dB: 34=20+20—6, so. the ratio is 10x 10x = 50. Note that the minus sign simply implies that the ratio works ‘in the opposite direction’ +6 4B = 2:1 (= x2), so ~64B = 1:2 x4). Voltage ratio 33.dB. Now what? Using a ‘rule of thumb’: 1 dB is approximately equal to 10% for volt- ages (20% for power ratios), so 33=32+1 (or 34 — 1) and the ratio js 40+ 10% ~ 44 (or 45), The output power of an amplifier is 60W. How many dBW? In other words, what is the power ratio in dB between 60W and reference level (.W)? One approach: 60 W is ‘just ‘over’ 50 W; S0= 100 2, 50 50 W is 20-3=17 dBW. 60W must be 2 bit_ more... How much more? 1 dB 20% ~ perfect! So 60 W must be 18 dBW. A spot-on accurate caleu- lation would give the following result: 17.78151250 .. 18" is near enough.4.08 ~ elektor january 1979 reliable nicad charger reliable nicad charger Nickel-Cadmium accumulators, or icad cells for short, are becoming ‘ever more popular. As prices drop and the number of available types increases, it has become a viable proposition to use them in almost any type of battery-powered equipment. For this reason reasonable to assume that many ‘owners of portable radios, cassette decks, electronic flash guns, pocket calculators and the like — not to mention remote-control enthusiasts — are on the look-out for a really good nicad charger. It shouldn't be expensive (otherwise it's still cheaper to use conventional batteries), but it must automatically provide the correct charging current and time: on the one hand, overcharging ‘must be impossible; on the other hand, the cells must be fully charged. Anyone who has had previous experi- ence with charging nicad cells will probably have discovered what features are desirable for a nicad charger. For that matter, even without the benefit of past experience ~ good or bad — the basic requirements are fairly obvious. A good charger should be reliable, and under no circumstances should it damage the nicad cells. Regrettably, not all commercially available chargers fulfil these requirements, The charger described in this article was designed to meet the following specifi- cations: © it should be suitable for practically all commercially available types of nicad cells; © the charging current should be held constant, at 1/10 of the capacity of the accumulator in Ah; however, it should also be possible to select a higher current for so-called sintered cells, since these may be charged at 1/3 of their capacity; a timer should be incorporated in the charger, to ensure the correct charg- ing time; © to preclude the possibilty of damag- ing the nicad cells, they should first be discharged to a well-defined level before starting the charging cycle. In this way, the danger of drastically overcharging near-full “batteries is virtually eliminated; © preferably, the changeover from discharge ‘cycle to charging cycle should be carried out automaticaly; © after completing the charging cycle, it should be permissible to leave the cells connected to the charger (for months, even). Furthermore, under these conditions they should be trickle-charged to keep them fully- charged at all times, This list of requirements was presented to one of our designers, with the request to come up with a cheap and reliable Cireuit, suitable for home construction —an important point, if it is to be published in a magazine! — that would do the job properly. After the usual head-scratching, breadboarding (more of a bird’s nest,” actually), testing and evaluating, a’ circuit evolved. The underlying principles are best clarified with the aid of a block diagram Block diagram Figure 1, the functional block diagram of the nicad charger, illustrates the basic principles of the final design. Compared ‘with most conventional chargers, this block diagram may seem frighteningly complicated. In practice, itis not nearly as bad as it seems, since several of the ‘blocks’ actually consist of quite simple units. For instance, the block marked “trickle-charge’ merely represents one resistor. To start at the beginning: When the start pushbutton is operated, 4 flip-flop (FF1) initiates the discharge cycle for the nicad cells), This is indicated by a red LED. When the voltage across the cell (or cells) drops below a preset level, a comparator (IC1) resets the flip-flop FFI, As a result, the discharge cycle is terminated and a second flip-flop (FF2) is triggered. The charge cycle is. now automatically initiated; a green LED lights to reassure any passing nicad owners . When FF2 changes state, a timer is triggered. This unit is inchided to fulfil one of the main requirements stated earlier: the charging cycle must be terminated automatically after a certain time has elapsed. At the end of the preselected time, FF2 is reset by the timer. The main charger (T1) is cut off, but the trickle-charger remains operative, maintaining the cells in the highly desirable fully-charged state. The charging current can be adapted ‘easily to suit most of the commonly available types of nicad accumulators. ‘The ‘heaviest’ cells that can be charged are 1,2 Ah types. However, when de- signing @ circuit and, more particularly, when specifying component values, some basic assumptions must be made. In this case, the component values specified are valid for charging the most commonly available 0.5 Ah types. of nicad cell. These cells are charged at 1/10 of their Ah rating — 50 mA ~ for the specified period of 14 hours. When charging sintered-cells — as stated earlier, these cells can withstand charging at up to 1/3 of their Ah rating — the charging ‘current can be ‘upped’ to 150 mA; at the same time, the charging time is re- duced to 3% hours, Wide-awake readers may have noticed that both theseraliable nicad charger lektor january 1979 ~ 1:09 Figure 1. Block dlogram of the automatic 4 ® harper for ncad eccumuletor. The call lor | tal) I fet dicharged to apres evel, after ao winceaty | | whlch the fxadcduraton charging yele share 7) feos (min 1, initiated, | > ‘max. 6 in series) eee ae Figure 2. The complete cult. Fanly stan- | ao dnd components are uted throughout. ae FF Fre i | ; | FELLFF2 =1C2= 4013 t N2Na.. NB = 168 » 4083 NINS= 105 = 40231.10 ~ eloktor january 1979, 3 periods exceed the nominal charge of the cells; however, they may rest ax sured: the total charge is well within the ‘manufacturer's tolerance. Charging with constant current has a significant advantage in practice: it makes no difference whether a single nicad cell or a series-connection of up to 6 ceils are charged at one time. Complete circuit The block diagram shown in figure 1 is derived from the complete circuit given in figure 2. The only additional com- ponents in the final circuit are the main supply (mains transformer, bridge recti- fier and capacitor C5) and two switches, $3 and S4, which offer the possibility of ‘manual override’: they can be used to initiate and terminate the charging cycle. Since the basic principles have been explained above, the discussion of the ‘complete circuit can be relatively brief. §2 is the ‘start’ button. Operating this pushbutton sets FF] ~ the Q-output of this flip-flop goes *high’. T3 and T2 are turned on, discharging the nicad cell(s) via a ‘fat’ resistor, R7. Simultaneously, D2 lights. After @ certain time, the cell(s) will be discharged to the point where the voltage across it (or them) drops below the level preset by means of P1. The latter voltage and the voltage across the ccell(s) are applied to the two inputs of a comparator, ICI. Normally speaking, the voltage across a ‘fully’ discharged nicad cell is taken to be approximately LV. For the discharge cycle to be terminated at the correct point, the voltage preset by P1 should be set at the number of series-connected nicad cells times 1 volt. Assuming that PI has been set correctly, the output of the comparator will switch from *high’ to ‘low’ when the cell's) are fully discharged, Via N1, flip-flop FFI is reset; its Q output goes ‘low’, turning off T3 and T2 and ter- minating the discharge cycle. Simul- taneously, a differentiating network (C2/R12)' resets FF2 via N2. The Q output of this flip-flop goes high, turning on T4; as a result, the current source (T1) comes into play. The nicad cells are charged, and D1 lights. Note that a green LED must be used for D1 this diode is not only used as indicator, it also provides the reference voltage for the current source. The voltage drop across green LEDs is higher than that for red LEDs (2.4V as opposed to 1,6 V) and the specified values for R1 and R? are only accurate for the higher voltage When FF2 changes state, initiating the charging cycle, its Q output goes ‘low’ ‘This enables the timer. The timer circuit is the essence of simplicity: it consists of a clock generator —NS, N6, an inverter incorporated in IC3 and a few passive components — and a frequency divider (C3). The frequency of the clock generator can be adjusted, by means of P2, until the correct timing intervals are obtained. Only a few components in the circuit remain to be discussed, R13 and C3 are included to reset the two flip-flops Parts list Resistors: Ri=a3.0 2-100. RO = 2k2 R4,R9,A12= 10 k RS 1k RG = 1209 R= 10/5 watt B= 390 2 FI0,A11,R13 = 22k Ria=10M RIS = 3Mo Capacitors: c1= 10 nb Vv 2=1nb C3 = 4u7/16 V C4= 5600 65 = 1000 w/16 V Semiconductors: 11 = 80 140/80 136 72 80139/80 135, 13,74 = 8c547 D1= LED green D2= LED red ici =741 {c= cD4o1s Ica = CD 4060 Ica = cD 4093 es = cD 4023 ‘Sundries: PL=1 k preser P2=1 M preset S1 = double-pole, double throw 52,5384 = single-pole pushbutton B40c800 ‘Te= 9.V/250 mA mains rans former. oe taliable nicad charger Figure 3. Printodeircuit board and component layout for the nicad charger (EPS 79024). ‘The only component mounted ‘otf-board’ is the mains transformer. Figuee 4, This wiring diogram clearly illustrates the connections from the p.c. board to the various switches, the wansformer and the niad calls. when power is initially applied — the circuit simply works, without first, having to fiddle with all sorts of reset buttons. Resistor R3, tucked away in the top right-hand comer of the circuit, is the ‘trickle-charger’: even after TI has cut off it continues to supply a small charging current into the nicad cells, in order to keep them ‘topped up’. Finally, the switches, The charging current’ is selected by means of Sla; with the values given for R1 and R2, the current is 50 mA in position 1 of this switch and 150 mA in position 2, To avoid mishaps, a second pole of the same switch sclects the corresponding charging time: the two positions of $16 correspond to 14 hours and 3% hours, as mentioned earlier, Normal operation is initiated by operating the start button, $2; as explained, this actually initiates the discharge cycle, If one is in a hurry, operating $3 initiates the charge cycle without first discharging the cells. At all times, both the charge and discharge eycles can be stopped by operating $4. Construction and operation The design for a printed circuit board and the corresponding component lay- ‘out is shown in figure 4. The connec- tions to the external components — mains transformer, switches and nicad cell(s) — are given in figure 5 Basic construction is fairly straightfor- ward, therefore; initial calibration and normal operation is hardly more com- plicated, There are only a few points to watch: ‘© As stated, from 1 to 6 cells (connec- ted in series) can becharged at a time, provided PI is set correctly: 1 volt per cell. Note however, that D2 will not light during the initial discharge cycle if only one cell is connected, Furthermore, if more than one cell is, to be charged they should all initially be discharged to approximately the same degree; if they have all been used in the same item of equipment, this will normally be the case, In case of doubt, it is advisable to first dis- charge each cell (or set of cells from the same unit) individually until the sgreen LED just lights If other charging currents are re- quired, the values of RI and/or R2 must be modified accordingly. The charging current (in amps) is equal to 1.6 V (the voltage drop across DI ‘minus the voltage drop across the base-emitter junction of T1) divided by the value of RI or R2, If the unit is to be used for rapid charging of 1.2Ah nicad cells (charging current approximately 360 mA), TI should be provided with a cooling fin. © If desired, accurate calibration of the timer circuit can be carried out by means of P2, However, there is no real harm in merely setting it in the mid-position. ... Perfectionists may consider this rather less than satis- factory, whereas they may also be rather reluctant to sit out the com- plete timing cycle of 3% or even 14 hours. No problem: there is yet another alternative, Monitor the Q4 ‘output of IC3 (pin 7) with a multi- lektor january 1979 — 1-11 ‘meter and operate the start button (no nicad cells connected). If this out- put swings positive after 45... 50 seconds, P2 is set correctly. One final — important ~ point: since this circuit first discharges and then charges the cell(s), no protection diodes could be incorporated at the output, Care should therefore be taken never to connect the cell(s) the wrong way round; furthermore, if they are left connected to the charger after the charging cycle has been completed, the charger must remain switched on, Otherwise the cell(s) would be “trickle-discharged’ through R3, RS and PI! K1.12 = oloktor january 1979 improved LED VU/PPM In April 197 (Elektor 24) a design was published for an audio output level meter. The meter, which incorporated a LED “thermometer-scale’ display, could be modified to give either a ‘VU’ or ‘PPM type of response. With the aid of the following add-on circuit, it is possible to improve the resolution of the meter at the lower end of its scale, allowing much more accurate measurement of signal levels during quiet passages of music and speech. JM, Heuss ‘The original meter employed a column of 20 LEDs to display the output level of each channel. As far as the upper half of the display was concerned, the differ- cence in signal level between two suceess- ive LEDs was 1 4B; the lower half of the display, however, was scaled in steps of 5 4B. In conjunction with the relatively long discharge time of storage capacitor C4 (see figure 2 of the original article), this meant that the display was unable to register small and rapid variations in Jow level input signals. This is illustrated in figure 1a of this article, where curve a represents the rectified audio input signal and curve b is the voltage on C4, ie. the voltage which is actually displayed on the LEDs. However, if one arranges that, as soon as the voltage on C4 drops below a preset reference voltage Uref the capacitor’s decay time constant is reduced, the volt- age across this capacitor will track rapid variations in the rectified input voltage much more closely. This process is illustrated in figure 1b, and in fact improved LED VU/PPM represents the basic function of the cireuit described here. The additional components required to improve the meter’s response are shown within the. dotted lines in the circuit diagram of figure 2. This diagram is for fone channel only and should of course bbe duplicated for stereo applications. Comparator K11 (K11'), the potential divider resistors and LED are as shown in figure 5 of the original article, The actual operation of the circuit is straightforward, When the voltage on (C4 (which is applied to the non-inverting input of K11) falls below Uref, LED DBI is extinguished and transistor T2 is turned off. T3 is then turned hard on and R83 appears in parallel with C4. This reduces the discharge time constant of C4, with the result that, at low input levels, the voltage across this capacitor follows fluctuations in the rectified audio signal much more accurately. If the ‘peak memory’ switch SI is in- cluded, it should be fitted with a second pole, Sib (for stereo applications two extra poles will obviously be required). It is worth pointing out that the fre- quency response and the ‘ballistics’ (attack-decay times) of the meter can be improved by replacing the 741 op-amps with more modern and faster devices For example, if less than unity gain is required, an LF356 can be used for IC1. Tf a gain greater than 5 is desired, then an LF357 jis also suitable (see original article regarding the choice of values for R2 and R3), As far as1C2, 1C3 and 1C4 are concerned, an LF356 will prove eminently suitable. If an LF356 is also used for ICS, then the offset adjustment can be dropped (ie. potentiometer P2 omitted). « unetion Ss‘orcillogrephies on board oscillographics on board | The Oscillographics circuit published in September 1978 has proved to be a highly popular design, and several readers have asked for a printed circuit board. For the benefit of those who have not seen the original article, the basic principles of the circuit are | repeated here in brief. lektor january 1979 ~ 1-13 Although an oscilloscope is an ex- ‘tremely useful instrument, it spends most of its life ‘displaying’ a horizontal line or even a blank screen. The Oscillo- graphics generator, shown in figure 1, can remedy this: it produces a multi- tude of fascinating and attractive geometrical patterns on the screen of the scope. The patterns are- actually so-called ‘Lissajous’ figures: two res- onant circuits (IC2/IC3 and 1C5/IC6) are triggered at regular intervals by a multivibrator (ICI), producing two damped sinusoidal outputs. These are fed to the X-and Y-inputs of the scope, producing an intriguing display. Both the frequency and the decay rate of each sinusoidal output are indepen- dently variable (by means of P1/P3 and P2/P4, respectively), so that a virtually infinite number of different patterns can be obtained, An ‘intensity’ output is provided (Z or Z, depending on the type of scope), which can be used to blank the spot on the screen during triggering of the resonant filters. It is also possible to modulate either (or both) oscillator signal(s) by an external signal applied to the Mx and My inputs, so that the patterns are continuously changing. Various types of (low fre- quency) modulation signal can be used: squarewave, triangle, ramp, etc., with varying amplitude and frequency. The only constraint upon the modulation signals is that they should not contain a DC component (in other words, they should be AC coupled), since otherwise there is the possibility that part of the pattern will be off the screen, The ‘maximum amplitude of the modulation signal is 15 Vpp. If desired, the values of R13 and R20 (and/or Ri4 and R21) can be altered if the effect of the modulation signal is more or less notice- able than was intended. Power supply ‘A suitable supply circuit for the Oscillo- graphics generator is given in figure 2. The positive supply rail is stabilised by an IC regulator (IC9). The negative rail ig referenced to the positive rail by ‘means of an opamp (IC10) and a transistor (T2), This is an interesting. little circuit, which can prove useful in many other applications: the voltage on the negative rail is maintained at such a level that the voltage at the R24/R25 junction is 0 V, Since R24 is equal to R25, the negative output voltage must be equal and opposite to the positive ‘output voltage. In other words, if the positive voltage is varied, the negative voltage will vary in step — providing a variable symmetrical output voltage. However, in this application a fixed £5 V supply is required. The printed circuit board Although it is the raison d’étre for this article, the p.c, board (figure 3) requires little comment. It accommodates the Oscillographies generator and the power supply, with the exception of the mains transformer. _ Both Z and Z modulation outputs are provided. These are, of course, only useful if a modulation input is provided fon the oscilloscope. Depending on the type of scope, one or other of these Outputs will give the desired result. If the picture is not completely flicker- free (again, this depends on the charac teristics of the scope), then the value of C1 can be reduced.= 1.14 ~ oloktor january 1979 ‘oxcillographies on board Figure 1. Circuit diagram of the Oscillo- araphics generator. Figure 2. A symmetrical stabilised power ‘supply is also incorporated on the p.c. board Figure 3, The printed circuit board for the ‘Oscillographies generator (EPS 9870). e117 9741 a 81184 18 4016, anes, yfloktor january 1979 ~ 1-15 (((( Parts list Rasistors: Capacitors Semiconductors: R1,A9,R10,R16,A17,R24, ct=47n TH = BC 107.8547 or eau. R25~ 10k €2...¢5=10n ‘2 = BC 177,8C557 or equ. R2,R3,RB,R11,R12,R14,R16, 8,07 = 2204/16 V cr =741 8,69 104/10 ica k LOSAICIZ AS,R23 = 4k7 D1... Da = 1NaoO1 G,AQ2= 1k Sundries: R7'= 2k2 Tel = 2x6 V/100 mA mains 13,820 = 220k transformer P1...P4= 10klin 81 = double-pole mains switeh Ft = 100 mA fuse1.16 ~ elektor january 1979 AC millivoltmeter and signal squirt AC millivoltmeter and signal squirt It is often useful to be able to measure low-level audio signals. However, the lowest AC range on most multimeters is usually several volts (f.s.d.) and — to make matters worse — it presents a relatively low load impedance to the circuit under test. A “preamplifier for multimeters’ can solve this problem. Since a suitable preamp should have a high input impedance and a sufficiently large bandwidth, seems logical to use FET-input opamps. Furthermore, since a single IC contains four of these opamps it is a relatively simple matter to include a ‘signal squirt’ on the same board. Figure 1. Block diagram of the millivolimeter (upper section) and of the signal squirt (lower saction).. Figure 2, The average value of full-wave rectified sinewave is higher than that of a helf-wave rectified signal. Furthermore, for the fullwave rectified sinewave, the RMS value is 1.11 x the average val Figure 3. Complete circuit diagram, As in the block diagram, the upper section is the millivoltmeter and the lower section is the signal squirt. Figure 4, For calibration purposes, the R1/C1 junetion must be offset by 45 mV (DC). This ‘can be achieved by temporarily adding Ra and Fb, os shown, ‘The circuit described here is quite useful in its own right. The output is not only suitable for driving a multimeter ~a normal panel meter can be used instead. It is also possible to use it in conjune- tion with the ‘Universal Digital Meter’ described elsewhere in this issue, Fur- thermore, the current consumption is so Jow that'a 9 V battery supply can be used, thereby retaining the flexibility and portability of the multimeter. When measuring very small AC voltages, it is important to ensure that the measuring instrument does not present an excessive load to the circuit being tested, This requirement can be fulfilled quite easily by using FET-input opamps. A further requirement is that the frequency of the signal being measured hhas no effect on the measured value. This is only possible, of course, over a limited bandwidth; therefore, this re- quirement can best be stated in two parts: the frequency response should be ‘flat’ within the specified bandwidth, and the bandwidth should be as large as possible, Based on these primary re- Quirements, and bearing various second- ary requirements in mind (price, re- liability, availability of components), it ‘was decided to use the Texas Instruments IC type TL084 — a quad FET-input ‘opamp. The upper section of figure 1 is the block diagram of the AC millivoltimeter. ‘An input capacitor blocks any un- wanted DC voltages, after which the remaining AC signal can be amplified to 4 reasonable level, So far so g00d, but amplifying the signal is not enough. A normal panel meter, or a multimeter switched {0 its most sensitive DC voltage or current range, tends to isplay the average value of the applied voltage or current, For a symmetrical [AC signal, the average value is 0 V. In order to obtain a display, some kind of rectification is required, Even after amplification, the level obtained in this circuit is not so high that a simple diode >‘AC millivoltmeter and signal squirt lektor january 1979 ~ 1-17 jin series with the meter will suffice =the forward voltage drop across the diode would swamp the signal. Since there are plenty of opamps available in the same IC, the solution is to incorpor- ate the diode(s) and the meter in the feedback loop around an opamp ~ the forward voltage drop actoss the diode is then compensated for automatically. If a job's worth doing, it’s worth doing well: instead of using half-wave rectifi- cation, as in most multimeters, full-wave rectification is used here. One advantage is apparent from figure 2. As stated earlier, the meter will measure the average value of an applied voltage. The average value for an AC voltage is Zero; for a half-wave rectified voltage it is positive, s0 it can be measured;however, for a full-wave rectified AC voltage it is larger still ~ giving higher reading on the meter, Extra ‘gain’ for free! While we're on the subject of AC voltages, a further point is worth ‘mentioning, Although the meter displays the average value, it is more common to specify the RMS (or ‘effective’) value of an AC signal. This is, done to keep electronics simple. . . For DC, power (P) in Watts is equal to the voltage, squared, divided by resistance, For the same formula to be valid for AC, the RMS value of the AC voltage must be used. The abbreviation ‘RMS’ stands for ‘Root Mean Square’, which is exactly what it is: the root out of the sum of the average values (mean) of the squares of the momentary voltages. This may sound quite complicated, but for the ‘moment the only important thing to know is that the RMS value of a sinewave is equal to 0.707 x the peak value. The ‘meter will display the average value, and for a sinewave this is 0.636 x the peak value. The ratio between RMS and average values is therefore 1.11, and when calibrating the meter the scale will have to be offset by this factor. This is no problem, as will be seen, So far, only two opampshave been used; however, the IC contains four. It seems 4 good idea to use the remaining two for a simple signal squirt ~ another item of test equipment that can prove quite useful to the home constructor. The lower section of the block diagram (figure 1) refers to this ‘signal squirt’, It little more than a conventional ‘Wien bridge’ oscillator. The Wien bridge proper is shown as a selective filter in the feedback loop around one opamp. Provided the total loop gain is greater than unity (no problem with opamps), the circuit will oscillate. The sinusoidal output is amplified by the last remain- ing opamp, to provide a 2 Vpp sinewave at the output. In order to obtain a ‘clean’ sinewave, the loop gain around the first opamp should be almost exactly unity. To avoid critical cali- bration procedures, this adjustment is performed automatically: the output signal is rectified and fed back to a suitable control point.| 1.18 — oloktor january 1979 AC millivoitmeter and signal squirt lise Resistors: RB,R10,R11 = 100.2 RO,RIT= 1 A12= 447. 13 = 100 k 14 = 100 k Rig 82 RIB 15k Rio 70:02 1k P2ab = 47 k (stereo) Capacitors: c1.05=14 €2= 1004/10 V 63,ca=a2n 6 = 100 n/4 Vv C7 = 560.0 68=22n/16V Semiconductors: : D1... 06 = DUS D7 = 4V7/400 mW zener diode 1,72 = BC 1078, BC547B or eau. ; Icl=A1,..A4=TLOB4 } Sundries 50uA...1 mA moving coil instrument or multimeter AC miillivoltmeter circuit The complete circuit is shown in fig- ure 3; the upper half is the AC milli voltmeter. A reference voltage is derived from the 9 V battery by means of R8, D7, R9 and C2, This voltage is applied, via Ri and R2, to both inputs of the first opamp, Al. RI determines the input impedance (approx. 1M). The gain of Al is determined by the ratio of R3 to R2— or, to be more precise, by the ratio (R3 +R2); R2 ~ in this case, a gain of x11 is obtained. The output from Al is fed to A2 via a preset potentiometer (P1); the latter can be used for full-scale calibration. The non-inverting input of A2 is connected to the reference voltage across C2 anda farther (small) offset compensation is introduced via R6, R7 and P3. Four diodes, D3’....D6, provide full- wave rectification. This part of the circuit operates as follows. Under Quiescent conditions (ie. without any signal applied to the input) the output ‘of Al will be equal to the reference Figure 5, Printed circuit board andeomponent layout for the complete unit (EPS 78035). voltage, Via PI this voltage appears at the inverting input of A2; since the voltage at the non-inverting input is also equal to the reference voltage, the ‘output of A2 will be at the same level any offset can be compensated by adjusting P3, When an AC signal is applied, the output of Al will start to swing alternately positive and negative with respect to the reference voltage. When this voltage swings positive, the output of A2 will swing negative — drawing current through D3, the meter, D6 and Pl. Since the non-inverting input of A2 remains at the reference voltage level, this opamp will attempt to maintain the same voltage at its in- verting input; in other words, the voltage drop across P1 must be equal to the shift at the output of Al caused by the AC signal. The current through PI (andthe meter!) must therefore be proportional tothe AC voltage — in spite of the diodes! When the AC signal at the output of Al swings negative, the same result is obtained — the only difference being that current now flows from the output of A2 instead of into it. In both cases, however, the current flows through the meter in the same direction — the diodes see to that, The final result is that an AC voltage applied to the input of the circuit produces an exactly proportional fullwave rectified current through the meter. The ‘signal squirt’ ‘The basic principles of the sinewave oscillator have already been explained. A Wien bridge, consisting of R10, R11, P2, C3 and C4, is used as a highly selective filter in the feedback loop around A3, The resonance frequency can be set by means of P2.‘AC milivoltmeter and signal squirt ‘The output from A3 is amplified by means of Ad (approximately x11) Diodes D1 and D2 rectify the output signal, charging C2; as the voltage across this capacitor rises, T2 is gradually tumed on. This, in turn, causes TI to be turned off; effectively, its ‘resistance’ increases. Since the ‘resistance’ of T] (in conjunction with R12) determines the gain of A3, this causes the gain to be reduced. Effectively, then, ifthe output voltage tends to rise above a certain level the gain is reduced; if the output tries to drop below that level the gain will be increased, There is only one option left for the circuit: the output level must remain constant, And it does. ‘The output frequency can be adjusted from 500 Hz to 25 kHz (by means of P2), The output level is approximately 2Vpp, and protection against inadver- tent short circuits is provided by the simplest means possible: a resistor, R19. Calibration procedure As far as the signal squirt is concerned, calibration couldn't be simpler: there isn't any. The millivottmeter is only slightly more complicated, First, the input to the circuit is shorted and P3 is adjusted until the meter reads exactly 0 V. Now, a DC calibration voltage of 45 mV is applied to the RI/CI junction. This voltage can be derived from the refer- ence voltage by temporarily adding resistors Ra and Rb as shown in figure 4, Full scale deflection of the meter can now be adjusted by means of PI. Since a DC reference of 45 mV is used, the fullscale deflection on AC will corre- spond to 0 mV — remember that fac- tor 1.11 between average and RMS values! Final notes A suitable printed circuit board and component layout are shownin figure 5. The circuit can be used to drive any DC meter with a sensitivity from 50 UA fs. to 1mA f.sd,~in other words, most commonly available panel meters as well as most multimeters. The maxi- ‘mum input voltage is specified as 50 mV, although in practice it will normally handle voltages of up to 100mV without difficulty. Higher voltage ranges can, of course, be included by adding suitable voltage divider circuits at the input, On the other hand, a multimeter offers the possibility of obtaining a more sensitive instrument: if the circuit is calibrated according to the above procedure on, say, the S00 HA range, then a 100 HA range will correspond to 10 mVisd. The frequency response of the meter is ‘3dB down’ at | Hz and 125 kHz — in other words, the meter reads 30% low at those frequencies. Of greater interest for practical use, perhaps, is the fact that the reading (for a sinewave input!) is within 5% from3Hz to 40kHz. DC polarity protection lektor january 1979 — 1-19 DC polarity protection Electronic equipment which is fed from an external DC voltage can easily be damaged if the terminals of the supply are inadvertently transposed. In circuits which have only a small current consumption this danger can be averted by connecting a diode in series with the supply line. The diode will then only conduct if the supply voltage is of the correct polarity. If the diode is replaced by a bridge rectifier, then it no longer matters which way round the terminals are connected. However, particularly in circuits with larger current consumptions, this approach is somewhat unsatisfactory, since it leads to noticeable power losses. ‘A more elegant solution, which results in no voltage loss and virtually no power Joss, and hence is suitable for circuits carrying relatively large currents, is shown in the accompanying diagram. The component values were chosen for a DC supply of 12 V. The circuit should be mounted inside the equipment it is meant to protect and the external supply voltage connec- ted to terminals | and 2. Assuming the polarity of the supply is correct, once the on/off switch, Sl, is closed, the relay, Re, will pull in, causing two things to happen. The normally closed contact, rel, will open, reducing the relay cur rent through 1. Since the drop-out current is less than the pull-in current, assuming R1 is the correct value, relay Re will remain energised. This little trick reduces the dissipation in the pro- tection circuit, Secondly, the normally open contact, re2, will close, thereby applying power to the rest of the equipment. However, if the terminals of the supply are transposed, diode D1 will be reverse- biased, preventing the relay from being pulled in. Diode D2 suppresses any inductive voltages produced when the relay coil is de-energised. If there is a fuse in the supply line of the equipment, then it is recommended that this be inserted between the supply and the protection circuit, so that it will blow should a fault occur in the latter. The current consumption of the protec tion circuit is 90 small compared with that of the equipment it guards that there is no need to alter the rating of the fuse, ‘The values of the components in the cir- cuit can of course be modified to suit other supply voltages. One should bear in mind that the pull-in voltage of the relay, Re, should be the same as the supply voltage. The value of R1 will depend to a certain extent on the type of relay used, and is best determined experimentally w1.20 = oloktor january 1979 sixteen logic levels on a scope R. Rastetter When troubleshooting digital ircuits it is often useful to be able to examine the logic level of a number of signals simultaneously. For example, one might wish to look at the logic state of all the pins of a dual-in- line IC. To this end there are a number of commercially available test clips, which, via rows of LEDs, dicate which pins are at logic ‘1’. If one has access to an oscillo- scope, @ similar result can be obtained with the aid of the circuit described here. Figure 1. The logic states at the pins of the IC under test are displayed on the scope as shown hore. Logic ‘8's are represented by "Blip" appearing where the filled-in circles drawn, and logic ‘1's by a blip where the dotted circles are. This pattern corresponds to the DiL-configueation of the IC pins. Figure 2. Block disgram of the DIL-indiestor. ‘The circuit ean be connected to the X-and Y- Inputs of a conventionel scope. Figure 3. Complete circuit. diagram. The circuit is constructed using TTL ICs, although in principle it is also possible to employ ‘cmos. ‘The DiL-indicator is used in conjunc- tion with 2 16-pin test clip, which is attached to the IC being examined. From the sixteen input signals provided by the test clip the circuit generates two new signals, namely the X- and Y- input signals for the scope. Figure 1 illustrates how the logic levels are displayed on the scope screen: ie, in the same pattern as the pins of the IC. The ‘high’ logic levels. are displayed slightly higher on the screen than the ‘low’ logic states, both being represented by a white “blip’, The block diagram of the DIL-indicator circuit is shown in figure 2. With the aid fof the two data-selectors the sixteen logie signals on the test clip are scanned ‘one at a time. Open inputs, for instance when testing 14-pin ICs, are represented. as being at logic ‘1’. Both data selectors are clocked by a four-bit binary coun- ter, which in tur is controlled by a separate clock generator. The counter also clocks a digital-analogue converter, the output of which provides a staircase waveform with & ‘steps’. The staircase voltage forms the X-input of the scope and determines the horizontal position of each spot on the screen. The vertical position of the spots are controlled by ‘the least significant bit of the counter and by the logic state of the signal selected by the data-selector, ie. the Y-input of the scope is obtained by summing these last two signals. ‘The complete circuit diagram of the DiL-indieator is given in figure 3. The circuit is constructed using TTL ICs and ig intended for use with this logic family. The two data-selectors of figure 2 are formed by 74151's, whilst a 7493 is used for the four-bit counter. The squarewave generator which provides the clock pulse for the counter is built up from two Schmitt triggers. The frequency of the clock oscillator is in the region of 70 kHz. By depressing switch SI this frequency can be lowered by around 3 kHz. This facility is needed lest the clock frequency of the circuit under test happens to coincide with that of the indicator circuit, with the result that a varying voltage may well appear constant. Operating the switch allows fone to test for such an eventuality. sixteen logic levels on 2 scope The summing circuit of the block diagram consists of nothing more than three resistors (R7, R8, R9), whilst the Gigital-analogue converter is. scarcely more complicated; it consists of three NAND gates (NI....N3) connected as inverters and resistors R1....R6. The identical circuit can also be built using CMOS ICs, in the event that it is to be used to test CMOS circuits opera- ting off a voltage supply other than the 5 V used here. Although it is possible to do so in principle, it isnot recommended thatthe indicator be built with the CMOS ICs and then used to test TTL circuits. (Problems may occur with correct timing and triggering). ‘The S V supply (stabilised) should be capable of providing at least 125 mA, eae anyow +sixtoon logic levels on # scope slektor january 1979 — 1-21 NI..N4=7400= 104 NB LN6= 7413 Ics,14:22 ~ elektor january 1979. class tells It would be nice to design a power amplifier which combined the inherently low distortion of Class-A output stages with the high efficiency of a Class-B configuration. The following article takes a look at a recent commercial design which appears to offer the best of these two worlds. Figure 1. Block diagram of a balanced push pull output stage. The size of the current | (with respect to i) determines whether itis & Class-A or aClass-B type. Figure 2. By employing @ combination of Cass and Class-B output stages itis possible to obtain both the low dissipation of the latter and the excellent _signalhandling ‘characteristics (low distortion) of the former. ‘The Japanese company Technics has recently introduced a new stereo power amplifier, the SE-A1, which has an ‘output of 350 Watts per channel. This in itself is nothing special, however the fact is that, despite its high output power, the SE-A1 does not employ a Class-B output stage. Although the price of the amplifier is such (around four thousand dollars) that it is beyond the means of most hifi enthusiasts, the operating principle of this new hybrid will doubtless be of interest to many readers, Class-A v. Class-B The debate on the relative merits and demerits of Class-A and Class-B power amplifiers has been waged for some considerable time now, and the argu- ments for and against are well-known: the primary advantage of Class-A amplifiers is low distortion, whilst their major drawbacks are price (more pounds per Watt) and their inefficiency. ClassB amps on the other hand are much more efficient, hence capable of providing greater output powers, but have higher distortion and are often claimed to sound worse than their Class-A rivals The reasons for these differences in performance can be explained quite simply. In Class-B amplifiers the output transistor is biased to the cut-off point, 0 that it is conducting only over one half of the signal waveform (in practice the transistor is actually biased just above the cut-off point with the result that it conducts for slightly more than half a cycle). This means that in the absence of an input signal the quiescent current consumption, and hence power dissipation, is theoretically zero. Since only half of the signal waveform is passed by the output transistor, Class-B output stages use two transistors ar- ranged in a push-pull configuration. Each transistor conducts for half a period, so that current flows in suc~ cessive half-cycles. This results in a considerable improvement in the ampli- fier’s efficiency Unfortunately, however, since the tran- sistors are biased to the cut-off point, it ‘means that they cannot conduct fully until the base-emitter junction of the transistor is forward-biased by at least 600 mV, The transfer characteristic of the transistor is therefore non-linear near the cut-off point, causing what is Known as ‘crossover distortion’ during ‘the transitional periods when one transistor is being switched off and the other is being switched on. Furthermore, since this distortion is relatively con- stant for any input signal level, the relative distortion of the output ‘stage deteriorates at lower signal levels. In a Class-A output stage, om the other hand, the transistors are biased to conduct over the entire cycle of the input waveform. The output stage is thus considerably more linear than is the case with ClassB configurations, thereby reducing the amount of neg: tive feedback required to keep distor- tion to acceptable levels. Unfortunately, the other side of the coin is a consider- able reduction in the efficiency of the ‘output stage due to the fact that a large amount of power is dissipated even under quiescent conditions. With the aid of judiciously applied negative feedback, the distortion levels of Class-B amplifiers have been reduced to levels which, to all intents and purposes, have no audible effect. However, if it were possible to virtually climinate the inherent problems of Class-A. output stages (inefficiency, low ‘output powers), then such a modified Class-A system would represent an extremely attractive proposition. Class differences Before examining the modified Class-A design, it is worth briefly considering the conventional configuration of push- pull output stages. The triangle in the block diagram of figure | represents the driver stage, whilst the complementary output transistors are depicted as the two blocks marked P and N. In the absence of an input signal, a quiescent current I flows from the positive rail + U via P and N to the negative rail -U. When an input signal is applied, however, the collector current of one of the transistors will rise by a value i, whilst the collector current of the other transistor will fall by “a corresponding‘lektor january 1979 — 1-23 amount, The difference between the ‘wo collector currents flows through the load, Thus the greater i is, the greater the voltage developed across the load, The size of the quiescent current, 1, determines which class the amplifier belongs to. In a class-A output stage I is, sufficiently large that both output ‘uansistors are conducting regardless of the value of i, In a Class-B amplifier, however, the quiescent current is 30 small that, when a signal is applied to the bases of the output. transistors, thereby driving them in antiphase, one of the transistors will soon be turned off, leaving the other to feed current into the load, ‘A compromise between the above two types of output stage is the Class-AB amplifier in which the quiescent current is chosen such that, below a certain output power the output stage func- tions as a Class-A amplifier, (Le. both output transistors are conducting), whilst sbove that point it operates as a Class-B amplifier (Le. the output transis: tors conduct in turn). Class A+B To the above three types of amplifier a fourth can now be added: the Class A+B, of which the Technics SE-Al is fan example. The block diagram of this new amplifier is shown in figure 2, ‘As can be seen, two amplifiers per channel are used: a Class-A amplifier and a Class-B amplifier, each with its ‘own driver stage. The two output stages are fed from symmetrical supplies: The Class-B stage is connected to + and -U3,, whilst the Class-A stage is fed by the floating supply + Uy. The junction of the U, supply lines 1s connected to the output of the Class-B amplifier. The quiescent current of the Class-A output stage is I. If we now arrange that both amplifiers have the same gain (by choosing suitable values for R1....R4), then for equal input voltages they must obviously have the same output voltage. Since the output of the Class-B stage feeds into the junction of the Uy supply rails, the supply voltages for the Class-A stage will follow variations in the output voltage. ‘The result is that, regardless of the input drive voltage, the voltage developed across the two output transistors of the Class-A stage will always be (almost) the same (U;), This being the case, Uy can be as small as is desired, in fact it need only be large enough to ensure that the output stage is still functioning satisfac- torily, This low value of U, is the secret of the circuit, It means that the Class-A output stage consumes very little power (since the latter is the product of total supply voltage and quiescent current). The Class-A output stage itself delivers very little power into the load, since the AC voltage across each half of the output stage is almost zero. Under the influence of the drive voltage, the current through the Class-A output ‘transistors may vary as much as it likes1.24 = oloktor january 1979 (and does in fact do so), but the stage itself cannot be used to deliver output power into the loudspeaker. Any power developed is dissipated as heat; however thanks to the low supply voltage, this is limited to safe levels, Thus the task of actually supplying the Watts is left to the Class-B stage, which as we have seen, is inherently mote efficient than Class-A output stages. AAs is apparent from figure 3 (figure 3a shows the case for a positivegoing signal, figure 3b for a negative-going signal), the output current of the Class-B stage is fed to the load via the supply lines +U; and the Class-A output transistors. The current Tis always sufficiently large to ensure that, regardless of the size of the AC signal current from the ClassB stage, the Class-A output transistors are never cut-off or saturated. Since the Classe-B amplifer has virtually no quiescent current, it is inevitably subject to crossover distortion. Does this then mean that the Class A + B amp must also be afflicted with this problem? Fortunately the answer is no. Although, in the absence of quiescent current, the Class-B output does indeed produce crossover distortion, the latter never actually has any effect upon the final output. Quite apart from the fact that the local negative feedback (round R3/R4 in figure 2) reduces the distor- tion to very low levels anyway, the sole effect of the ClassB induced crossover distortion is to cause a small difference in the output voltages of the two (Class-A and ClassB) stages — Le. a small AC voltage is produced across the Class-A stage. The current source/drain characteristic of the Class-A output stage is easily good enough to ensure that this has a negligible effect upon the output signal The result of employing both a Class-A and Class-B output stage in the above- described fashion is to obtain the high efficiency (disregarding the relatively small constant dissipation in the Class-A stage) and output power of the latter with the low distortion and excellent lin- carity of the former. The accompanying table lists and compares the power hhandling characteristics of Class-A, Class-B and Class A+B amplifiers for (an admittedly unrealistic) output power of 350W into 4. The distinctive performance of the A+B amp is expressed not so much in the figures for efficiency, but rather for maximum dissipation, which of course also has a decisive influence on the size of the amplifier and weight of the heat sink. In conclusion it can be said that the Class-A +B principle represents an interesting approach and one which need not always cost four thousand dollars to implement! K Figure 3. Current flow in the output stages of figure two for 2 postive and negstive-going ‘drive signal (figures 3a and 3b, respectively). class talls Table Power handling cheracteristics of Clas-A, Class-B and Class A + B em ‘Maximum ourput power $50 W into load resistance of 42. A 8 Ate ‘supply voliage Uy BV = SV supply voltage Uz = sv 53V ‘quiescent current A | 6.6 A = 665A quiescent current 8 = OA OA quiescent | power taken from conditions | supply 700 ow — 66w dissipation 700W ow 66W ‘output power ow ow ow efficiency O% - 0% ‘unputTavel | power taken Wom atwhieh supply Toows —.28aw +86W 350 dissipation | cissipation yoows 142 +66W 208 w ow: 142w + OW 1a2w Ox 50% 31% imax ouput rev supply 7oow = ag $8612. 350 W 96W 188M 162 w sow sso © + OW 350 50% 78% 68% * Meximum dissipation occurs under quiescent conditions wresiektor {lektor january 1979 ~ 1-25 Fe cee electronically variable resistance For control of signal levels, particularly in low-frequency circuits, some kind of elec- tronically variable resistance is often required. In the past, LDRs have been used in conjunction with LEDs or filament lamps; FETs or even bipolar transistors have been tried with varying success; one might even consider using a thermistor with some form of heating element. What these and similar approaches lack in sophistication they make up for in associated problems: distortion, noise, non-linearity, etc. Not to mention the difficulties involved in ensuring reasonable tracking between several units. However the alternative proposed here seems quite promising. en) ee EL) aad satis een ce Figure | shows a resistor, RI; a second resistor, R2, can be connected in parallel by closing a switch, 8. If $ re- mains open, the total resistance R between the two ends of the circuit is equal to RI (see figure 2b); if $ is kept closed, the total resistance is equal to RIfR2 (figure 2b). Not exactly world- shattering news, so far. However, If $ is replaced by an elec- tronic switch; if this switch is operated at a high switching rate (well over the highest frequency the circuit is expected to handle); if the duty-cycle of the switch-control signal is proportional to some external control signal ~ then the complete circuit will operate as an electronically variable resistor! Why? Let us examine figure 3. It is assumed that the control signal for the electronic switch is a squarewave with duty-cycle d (figure 3a). The effective total resistance will then vary as shown in figure 3b; for relatively steady-state signals, this is equivalent to the ‘average’ resistance of the shaded area in figure 3b; shaded area period time” 2+(1-d).R1 R=adR In practice, of course, an electronic switch such as the CMOS type 4016 or 4066 is not ideal: its ‘on’ resistance is not zero and its ‘off’ resistance is not infinite. A more accurate equivalent circuit diagram is shown in figure 4; the corresponding formula for the ‘average’ resistance R is as follows: 2b} Sartell R=4.R1M(R2+Ron) + +(1-4). RIM(R2+Roff). ‘The average resistance value varies linearly with the duty-cycle, d; if linear voltage-control is required, the only ‘missing link’ is a linear voltage-to-duty- cycle converter, This particular conver sion was dealt with quite recently, in the article ‘PWM audio amplifiers’ (Elektor December 1978). If accurate tracking of several variable resistors is required, a single voltage-to- duty-cycle converter is used to drive them all. For up to 4 resistors, toler ances in Ron and Roff can be quite small, since 4 electronic switches are contained on the same chip. For RI and R2, 5% tolerance types will usually prove quite satisfactory — although pre~ cision types or even accurately adjusted presets can be used if required. Depending on the circuit in which the variable resistor is to be used, it may prove necessary to include a low-pass filter before and/or after it~ as with any other sampling circuit. The principle outlined above may well prove useful in a wide field of appli- cations: ‘© amplitude control in RC oscillators; voltage-controlled oscillators; voltage-controlled filters; voltage-controlled attenuators; vibrato circuits in electronic organs; compander circuits; and so on; and so forth,1:26 — elektor january 1979 FMstereo generator FM-stereo generator Using relatively straightforward means it is possible to construct a simple yet extremely useful FM stereo generator, which can be employed to check the operation of stereo decoders and FM receivers. An interesting feature of the design is that the popular stereo decoder IC, the MC 1310P, is used to generate the 38 kHz subcarrier and 19 kHz pilot tone. For even the simplest of checks or the ‘most approximate alignment of a stereo decoder or FM receiver, some sort of test transmitter providing a stereo multiplexencoded FM signal is virtually indispensable. Although the stereo multiplex encoder which was described in the article of that name and published in Elektor 25, May 1977 proved — to judge from the reactions of readers — to perform quite adequately, the fact that it did not inclnde an FM test generator meant that it could not be used to test the entire FM receiver, but only the stereo decoder. Furthermore, it also failed to provide the lowpass filtering necessary if the multiplex stereo output of the encoder is to be modulated onto an FM carrier. For these reasons it was decided to pro- duce the design presented here, which features thorough filtering of the encoder output signal, requires virtually no alignment, has excellent channel separation and very low distortion. More importantly, the circuit also includes an FM oscillator and thus represents a com- plete PM stereo test transmitter. Stereo multiplex encoding Although the theory of stereo FM trans- missions has already been discussed in previous issues of Elektor, it is worth- while refreshing our memory on the main points In order to be able to transmit on the FM band in stereo, a cartier wave with a frequency between 87.5 and 108 MHz is frequency modulated with a so-called stereo-multiplexed (MPX) signal. The spectrum of this MPX signal is shown in figure 1, and as can be seen, it consists of three basic signals: = asum signal (LR) ~ a difference signal (L—R) which is modulated onto a 38 kHz subcarrier = 219 kHz pilot tone The sum signal (L+ R) is obtained by adding together the left and right chan- nel audio signals, The bandwidth of these signals stretches from approx 15 Hz to 30KkHz, Mono FM receivers receive only this sum signal, since the other signals shown in figure 1 lie out- side their passband. The stereo information is added to the transmitted signal by amplitude modu- lating the difference between the left and right channel signals onto a 38 kHz subcarrier. The L—R information is ‘thus contained in two sidebands, namely 23... 39.97 kHz and 38.03 ...'53 kHz The 38KkHz subcarrier is not in fact broadcast; in order to improve the efficiency of the transmitter, it is sup- pressed, and regenerated at the receiver by means of the low level 19 kHz pilot tone to which it is phase-locked, ‘The rise in the frequency response of the audio signal above approx. 3 kHz is the result of pre-emphasis at the tra mitter. This has the effect of boosting the higher frequencies and helping to improve the signal-to-noise ratio. A de- emphasis network in the receiver with the inverse characteristic ensures that the overall frequency response of the system is flat. Specifications. channel separation: osc. frequency: trans: output power: rmittor max. frequency deviation: harmonic suppression: > 50 dB forall harmonics » 50 dB (1 kHz); 40 48 (10 kHz) stereo FM. > 40.48 (1 kH2);30 dB (10 kH2) ‘encoder |max. input voltage: 100 mv AMS froquoney range: 30Hz 18 kHe distortion: £0.19 (1 kHz) 8B. 108 MHz (variable) 6...0d8 approx. | MHzFM-storeo generator Design ‘As one might expect, there are several possible ways of generating an MPX signal such as that shown in figure 1. The L+R signal and pre-emphasis are simple enough to realise, however the modulated L — R signal presents slightly more of a problem. In addition, there is the separate question of suppressing the 38 kHz subcarrier and all signal com- Ponents with a frequency greater than ‘53 kHz. In many stereo encoders (including that published in May °77) the L —R signal is obtained simply by inverting the R signal and then summing it with the L signal, before modulating the result onto the 38 kHz subcarrier. The circuit Figure 1. Frequency spectrum of a multiplex encoded stereo signal. Figure 2, Block diagram of the complete stereo generator. loktor january 1979 — 1-27 described here, however, operates on a different principle, which is both simpler and ensures better suppression of the subcarrier. The block diagram of the cir- cuit is shown in figure 2, ‘The left and right channel audio signals are first pre-emphasised before being fed to a chopper circuit which is driven by a 38 kHz signal. The latter is derived by dividing by two the output of a 76 kHz oscillator. The L and R signals are in fact sampled by opposite half cycles of the 38kHz clock signal. Summing the L and R samples produces an MPX sig- nal which does not have to be separated from the 38kHz subcarrier, since the latter is not in fact present — all that remains are the sidebands, The 19 kHz au voi: 19kHe1:28 = eloktor january 1979 FM-stereo generator 1c) = Est. E88 = 4086 Dioz=inerae Sareses THTa75 « BC549Coreas TeT7 BF aseeregn pilot tone, which is similarly derived by frequency’ division (and lowpass fil tering) from the 38 kHz subcarrier, is introduced via the summing amplifier. Before the MPX signal is fed to the modulator circuit, it is necessary to first feed it through’ a lowpass filter to eliminate all signal components above 53 kHz, The FM generator is simply an ‘oscillator whose output frequency can be varied between 88 and 108 MHz. The MPX stereo signal is frequency modu- lated onto the oscillator to produce the FM stereo test signal which can then be fed via coaxial cable (or twin feeder) to the receiver under test. If only the stereo decoder in the receiver is to be cheoked, then the modulator and pre- ceding lowpass filter are not required and the MPX signal can be fed direct to the decoder. Circuit As was apparent from the block dia- gram, the practical realisation of the cir- ‘cuit is a fairly simple affair, since many of the functional blocks are contained in a single IC. For example, the four electronic switches used in the chopper ‘circuit are present in one 4066, whilst the 76 kHz oscillator and the divide-by- two stages for the 38 kHz and 19 kHz signals are available in the shape of the well-known stereo decoder IC, MC 1310P. The circuit diagram of the stereo multi- plex encoder is shown in figure 3, whilst figure 4 shows the circuit of the FM oscillator. The various sections of the block diagram can be easily identified in the circuit of figure 3, The preemphasis for the audio signals is provided by TI/T2 for the left channel and T3/T4 for the right channel. The feedback net- works RS/C4 (L channel) and R10/C6 (Rehannel) ensure that the gain of these amplifier stages increases above approx. 3 kHz, whilst below this fre- quency the gain is roughly unity. The maximum gain is determined by the ratio of RS to R6 and RIO to Ril; C3/RS and C7/R10 limit the bandwidth of the audio signal to approx. 30 kHz by rolling off the gain above this figure. IC2, the MC 1310P, contains the 76 kHz oscillator and the’ dividers for the 38 and 19 kHz signals. The 38 kHz signal, which is available at pins 4 and 5 (the Q and Q outputs) of the IC, control the electronic switches ES! .... ES4, which sample the L and R audio signals. Since four of these switches are con- tained in a single 4066, two switches per function are employed to improve switching efficiency: when ES1 is closed, thereby letting the left channel signal ‘through, ES3 is also closed, so that the right channel signals simultane- ‘ously shorted to earth; similarly, when ES4 closes, passing the R signal, ES2 also closes grounding the L signal. The sampled L and R signals are fed via R20 and R21 to the summing amplifier formed by T6 and T7. After extensive lowpass filtering (R31, 13, L4, LS, C17. ..€20, R34), the 19'kHz’ pilot tone at pin 10 of C2 is also fed to the base of T6. The MPX signal can be taken (via C12 and P2) direct from the output of the summing stage, however if it is to be modulated onto an FM car- rier, it must first be filtered to remove all Signal components with a frequency greater than 53 kHz. This filter, which is formed by Ll, L2, C13 and C15, is absolutely necessary, since FM receivers will tend not to like the unfiltered sig- nal, and may react in rather an alarming way, The only section of the circuit which remains to be discussed is 5. Its fune- tion is to forestall any problems which might arise between the MC 1310P and the 4066. Since the output level of the MC 1310P is not fixed (it can be eg. 4 (01 6 V), some sort of buffer stage should be necessary. However, this would de- stroy the symmetry of’ the circuit, and for this reason TS was included to pro- vide the supply voltage for the 4066, using the output voltage of the MC1310P as.areference.{8 : 3 ture 1 mim enameled copper wire wound on 8 rm di former; no core {o: tur 02 mm enamale copper wien Terma, tapped ot 2nd 29..780 200 ..003 FM test generator Figure 4 shows the circuit diagram of the oscillator which, when frequency modulated by the MPX signal, will pro- vide an FM stereo-encoded signal which can be fed direct to the antenna input of the receiver to be tested. Despite the fact that it is constructed using only one dual-gate MOSFET, even under varying load conditions the oscil lator is extremely stable, and exhibits very little temperature drift. The output filter (C28, C29, C30, L9) ensures good suppression of harmonics and also has the advantage of requiring no adjust- ment. The ferrite bead transformer at the output (L10) allows connection to the receiver to be made either via coaxial cable (50 or 75 ©) or twin feeder. ‘A ring core is used for the oscillator coil (L7), which means 2 high Q, and also has the advantage of reducing the like- lihood of either producing, or picking up rf. radiation. The oscillator fre- quency can be tuned between approx. 88 and 108 MHz by means of trimmer 024, Construction and alignment Most of the components should prove to be fairy readily obtainable, Problems may be encountered, however, with the Darlington transistors, T2 and T4. If that is the case, then they can be re- placed by conventional BC 559C’s, pro- viding that R4 and R9 are reduced to 22k. The chokes, L1 . . . L6 should also be widely available, whilst as can be gathered from the details given in fig- ure 4, winding L7... L10 should be a straightforward affair. The Amidon ring core can be obtained from T.M.P. Elec~ tronic Supplies, Leeswood, Mold, Clwyd. The circuit as a whole is not especially critical, and assuming one takes the usual care, no difficulties should be encountered during its construction Wiring should of course be kept as short as possible, particularly around ESI... ES4, the input of the summing amplifier (T6/T7), and the FM oscil- lator. Thanks to the low current consumption of the circuit (approx. 40mA), the power supply can be kept both simple and compact. The most obvious solution is to use one of the many common regu- lator ICs, as does the circuit shown in figure 5. A few remarks regarding alignment: ‘The most obvious adjustment points are P2, P3 and C24. The potentiometers control the level of the unfiltered and filtered MPX signal respectively, whilst the trimmer varies the frequency of the FM oscillator. Preset PI influences the channel separ~ lektor january 1979 — 1-29 Figure 3. Circuit diagram of the multiplex ‘encoder. Tho 38 and 19kHz signals are derived from the storeo decoder IC, the Mc 1310". Figure 4. The FM generator basically consists of an exiramely stable oscillator in tho shape ‘of a single dusl-gate MOSFET, the output of which can be frequency modulated, Figure 5. A simple but perfectly adequate power supply circuit. R43 and the LED, 09, ‘are included to provide visible on/off indi- cation. ation, Although this is always at least 40 dB, Pi can be used to compensate for negative crosstalk caused by the output filter L1/L2/C13. $1 should be closed and PI adjusted for maximum separation. If the unfiltered MPX signal is used, SI can be left open and PI will of course have no effect. Preset P4 allows the frequency of the oscillator in the stereo decoder IC, MC1310P, to be accurately adjusted. ‘The procedure is as follows: ‘The output of an FM receiver tuned to a stereo transmission is used to provide the L and R input signals, whilst the MPX output of the stereo encoder is fed to an amplifier. P4 is then adjusted until a clearly audible beat note is produced as a result of the 19 kHz pilot tone in the L + R signal and the 19 kHz tone generated by the MC 1310P. Finally, we make no apologies for emphasising that, under no circum- stances should the oscillator output be connected to an antenna, Although the rf, signal level does not exceed roughly I'mW, this would nonetheless be suf- ficient to ensure a transmitter range of approx. 100 metres. One would there- fore not only incur the wrath of owners of FM receivers living in the immediate vicinity, but more importantly one would be breaking the law! «1-30 = oloktor january 1979, ssive Seciliosc Many users of oscilloscopes fail to get the best from their instrument simply through not using a proper input probe. It is not an uncommon sight to see “scopes being used with ordinary unscreened test leads, or with large lengths of screened cable hung on the input terminals. The unscreened leads may, of course, pick up all kinds of interference signals, whereas a long screened lead greatly increases the effective input capacitance of the oscilloscope — thus attenuating high-frequency signals from high source impedances. The latter problem can be overcome by using a passive oscilloscope probe. The 10:1 probe described here can be constructed from standard parts, passive oscilloscope probe 99x connection sable scope input If an oscilloscope is to present a true ‘picture’ of an electric signal, the connection between the signal source (ie. the circuit being tested) and the ‘scope must fulfil a few basic require ments, In the first place, excessive loading of the signal source must be avoided, since otherwise the amplitude and/or the waveshape of the signal may be modified, Secondly, having ensured that the signal is not modified at the source, it is also important to preserve the waveshape as accurately as possible when it is passed through the connec- tion to the ‘scope. To sum it up briefly: if a signal in a circuit is to be displayed on a ‘scope, it is important to ensure that both wave- shape and amplitude remain unaltered in the circuit and that the waveshape remains undistorted throughout the connection to the ‘scope. It is not so important to preserve the amplitude of the signal, provided the ratio between input and output signal level is known. In order to reliably fulfil these require- ments, probe, connecting cable and ‘seope must be considered as a whole. Generally speaking, however, commer- cially available probes are suitable for use with commercially available ‘scopes — even if they are made by different manufacturers — since the input im- pedance of oscilloscopes is fairly well standardised, Commercial probes do have one disadvantage for amateur use: they are fairly expensive. .. ‘The passive 10:1 probe described here is relatively cheap to build, and its performance is quite acceptable for amateur use, Depending on the care taken in the construction, reliable results can be obtained up to at least 500 kHz, The circuit of the probe is shown in figure 1. The input impedance of the ‘scope will normally be equivalent to a 1M resistor (R2) in_parallel with a 30 p capacitor (C3). The impedance of the connecting cable can be represented by a further capacitor (C2). By adding RI and C1 in the probs, a divide-by-10 frequency compensated attenuator can be obtained, Since R2 is 1 M, the 10:1 attenuation ratio implies that RI must be 9M. This value can be obtained by series-connection of a 6M8 and a 2M2 resistor In order to obtain a flat frequency response, the capacitive voltage divider (Cl, C2 and C3) should have the same 10:1 division ratio, Asstated earlier, thepassive oxcilloscope probe: value of C3 will normally be approxi- mately 30 pF. The value of C2 can be estimated: one metre of coaxial screened cable will normally have a capacitance of approximately 50 to 150 pF. For instance, ‘uniradio 70” cable has a capacitance of 67 pF per metre; for 50 £2 coax cable type RGS8U the figure is 100 pF per metre. The total capacitance of C2 and C3 in parallel is therefore in the order of 80... 180 pF for a I metre test lead. To obtain the desired 10:1 ratio, C1 must then be 9)... 20 pF; since the exact value is not known, 2 20p trimmer capacitor is used, The advantage of a 10:1 attenuator probe will now be clear: the load on the Figure 1. For optimal results, probe, con- necting cable and “scope should be dealt with ‘8 one complete unit. Bearing input im- pedances and cable capacitance in mind, the ‘complete circuit is equivalent to a frequency- compensated voltage divider. The probe proper consists only of C1 (20.p trimmer ‘apacitor) and R1, the lattor actually rep: rasonting the soriesconnection of two resistors (6MB ond 2M2). Figure 2, Mechanical layout of the home: made probe. Although constructed from odds and ends like piano wire and 2 mains flex ‘connector, the results can be quite good. Drm ‘lektor january 1979 ~ 1-31 circuit under test is drastically reduced ‘The input resistance has been increased from 1M (R2) to 10M (RI + R2); the input capacitance has been similarly decreased, The latter is perhaps less obvious, but to give an example let us assume ' that C3 (the ‘scope input capacitance) is 30pF; that C2 (the cable capacitance) is 100 p; and that the capacitance of the probe tip is 5 p. If C1 and RI are omitted, the total capaci- tance loading the circuit under test is then 135pF. However, the correct value for C1 under these conditions is 130 20145 pF; series-connection with C2 and C3 effectively reduces this to approximately 13 pF. The load capaci- tance at the probe’ tip is therefore reduced to approximately 13+5=18p! Construction The probe circuit can be housed in a standard. mains flex connector. This is ideal as it has a hole at each end, space for the components and cable clamps, To make room, the intemal dividers which normally separate the cable terminals can be broken out using a pair of pliers. The components can be mounted on a piece of Veroboard, and placed inside a screen bent from a piece of copper foil, with a single hole in it and the side of the connector to adjust Cl. The coax lead is connected at one end and fixed firmly under the cable clamp. The input connection to the probe is made by means of a coaxial socket into which the probe tip plugs. ‘This means that probe tips can easily bbe changed if damaged or if a different type of tip is required. Probe tips can be made by removing about $ cm (2") of the inner insulation from a piece of lowdoss UHF coaxial cable. In other words, the outer insu- lation, the screening braid and the core are all removed, leaving the inner insulation. This is then sleeved with a piece of brass tube (available from model shops) and a piece of piano wire is inserted down the centre. Instead of piano wire, any other type of stiff wire that is a good conductor and suf- fiently resistant to oxidation can be used (eg. beryllium-copper), the idea being to obtain a reliable and sturdy tip, The complete assembly is then mounted in a coaxial plug, the piano wire being soldered to the centre pin and the brass tube being gripped by the cable grip, Finally, the end of the probe tip is sealed with epoxy glue to prevent the ingress of dirt and moisture, and the brass tube is covered with silicone rubber, heat-shrink sleeving, or some other suitable insulation. Figure 2 gives an impression of the completed probe. To set up the probe a good, clean squarewave with a fast risetime is fed into it and C1 is adjusted until there is no rounding off nor peaking of the squarewave’s leading and trailing edges M4Programmable sound generator ‘A few months ago, 2 new ‘Complex Sound Generator’ introduced by Texas Instruments wat digcussed under the heading “Applikator’ {Elektor, September 1978). That IC could be Used to produce 2 wide variety of ‘complex sounds’: from trains and planes to gun-shots ‘and space war. The desired sound effect was ‘programmed’ by means of wire links and resistor and capacitor valu A distant relative of that IC is a new chip introduced by General. Instrument Micro: electronics (GIM): the AY-3-8910. This IC is @ programmable sound generator: it can ‘amit @ broad range of complex sounds under ‘mieroprocessor control. Although primarily intended for use in conjunction with General Insrument’s own PIC. 1600-series_micro- processor system, it will also interface easily With several other Bibit or 16-bit micro~ processors (e.g. Texas Instruments TMS 1000 ‘nd Intel 8000-sries). Sounds ranging from musical notes for musical instruments and complex sound-effects for electronic games ‘and broadeatting to jarring warning signals for Security applications ond ultrasonic signals for Femate control etc. are all easily generated. GIM are s0 impressed with the performance ‘and versatility of the Programmable Sound Generator (or PSG for short) that they are offering automatic demonstrations over the telephone to all callers. To hear a demon stration of the device simply call the special fhumber in London: 01 - 439 7052. lustrated in figure 1, the sound generator ed directly to the microprocessor chip particular example, GIM's own CP 1600 is shown. The link between the two chips consists of an B-bit data/address bus (DAQ,...DA7), three Bus Control Signals (8C1, C2, BOIR) and the reference clock signal b 1, Communication between the cor troller and the AY-3.8910 ie based on the concept of memory mapped 1/0. To a micro processor such as the CP1600, the sound ‘generator chip looks like a block of memory, organized as 16 consecutive memory location ‘The base address of this block of memory is determined by the chip select lines (cso... C82) In addition to the links to the microprocessor, the AY-3-8910 i¢ provided with two &bit parallel bidirectional data ports that ore TTL Compatible, Each of these ports corresponds to a chip that can be used either as input or 2s output. ‘Although these digital in- or outputs will be Useful in many applications, the main purpose ff this chip is to provide an enalog (sound) ‘output. In fact, the IC has three of these outputs, each of which can be individually programmed to produce any desired frequency ‘and/or noise signal. The possibilities for [programming the desired envelope are rather more limited: the AY-38910 contains only ‘one envelope generator, common to all three ‘analog outputs. Partly for this reason, the three outputs will normally be summed as shown in. figure 1 to obtain one total (complex) sound. ‘The envelope generator can be programmed to give either a ‘one-shot’ or a continuously varying envelope. The various possibilities are lustrated in figure 2. As can be seen, the ‘envelope shape is determined by four bits, labelled (rather loosely, as will become appar- tnt) “hol, ‘alternate’, ‘attack’ and ‘continue’. ‘The dotted lines in several of the envelope plots indicate ‘channel off’ —no output signal, In other words. “The effect of these four control bits ean bo described approximately a5 follows Hold: if this bit is @ the envelope can con- ‘inue 10 change freely; if the “hold” bit is 1, the envelope is fixed at the end of its first period. ‘Alternate: the amplitude of the envelope signal increases and decays during alternate periods. ‘Attack: when this bit is *high’ the envelope ‘will ‘atack’, Le. its amplitude wil rise mor or less rapiciy; when the bit is ‘low’ the envel- ‘ope will decay. Continue: generally speaking, when this bt is 1, the analog output will not shut off after ‘one cycle; when the bit is low, the output ‘only present during the first cycle of the envelope It should be noted that the envelope gener ator in the AY-38910 is not an analog Circuit: its (internal) output signal is a 4bit digital code, The wave shapos shown in figure 2 are analog approximations of the sctusl sltcase output, Programming for sound “The final output signals at the analog outputs [A, B and Care determined by the contents of 14 registers in the IC. Each of these register corresponds to 2 ‘memory location’ fas far as the controlling microprocessor is concerned) the address of each registar is equal to the bose address (set by CSO... CS2) displaced by the register number. The two 1/0 registers have no direct influence on the analog out- puts, Fhe’ function of the various registers is illustrated in Table 1: the effect of the con tents of each register is summed up briefly. As . PARALLEL UO. Under the heading Applikator, recently introduced components and novel applications are described. The dé applikator Sones cean be seen, the output frequency for each of ‘the thres ourputs ie determined by twolve bit ‘the eight least significant bits are stored in the fine tuning’ registers AO... R2, whereas ‘the four most significant bits ere stored in the ‘oars tuning’ registers R4...R6. The period time of the analog output is proportio: ral to the total 12-bit binary number, ie. the frequency is inversely related. Similarly, the period time for the envelope gonerator (Te in figure 2) is determined by the 16-bit ‘number stored in registers R3 and R7. Register RB is colled the ‘enable” register. Each bit controls a unique function, a shown in Table 2. The bits are ‘sctive tow’, in other words. they enable the corresponding func tion when they are logic @. For instance, an ‘analog signal is present at output A when bit O is et logic @; the output is turned off when ‘this bit iT’, Bits 6 and 7 determine the func- tion of the digital 1/0 registers (RA end R15, respectively); @ for input and 1 for output. The five bits in the next register, RO, derer- ‘mine the clock frequency of the internal digital noise generator. Register R10. contains the four envelope: control bits, “hold, ‘alternate’, ‘attack’, and ‘continue’. The effect of these bts has already been explained — se figure 2, ‘The lest three registers that can directly influence the analog output signals are RIT... R12, The contents of these registers ‘control the envelopes, as shown in Table 3, ind circuits given are based on information recetved from the manufacturer andjor distributors concemed. Normally, they will not have been checked, bull or tested by Elektor.applikator eloktorjnuary 1979 ~ 1.33 a ‘Table 1. pastel ee ena ome) Ms Fee gor Goce Gi ene Direc eT Toe Mss Similar to 10 but channel 8. Ms Sirilar tof but chanel C Mss cc Fine tunes eneloe prod CT to Cosre tunes chanel A thigh four bts). CMs a ‘Come ne chanel BB four bial, (TM ow ar Coarse tunes chanetC thigh four ie MMM oe (eee ae ie rote eo Each bit comrolsa unique funtion active low: we abe 2, [MME ro 5 Neoce ele algae eee eae aera [THE 10._ 4 emetope contol Each bit controle function nthe envelope serarstor: ae figure 2: : (IMM 16 emscce a P| CMMI «126 envelope Bf Eechot thee registers controls its respective anvlope at shown in table 3 (E196 eneionec Mss on With the contol bits of R10 set forthe output mode, data can be vrittn to these sors tem th CPU, and etched. With hw conte bl set for pu daa ean be Mss 105 feadine ie CILCEa el ee sroasy rapeerae oe caine se eee } rae thund nl conned baunc BVA freee a tee eee pie Tent showin fgure 3: er ae binary | number changes from 15 through 0 and back Or 6 Tor orichannel | Tope attasoal feiss in see ppec eines | i 4 Tone one! | hee eters eeteeite teres p | -- Bt 2 Tonwan canned 1 siatow’| | Seostyscoe a aean te, | aac s Fina ie Bik Caliet Senle = ome | ers Nei en crane & iy he cepelleg ceeemeea cae on BG Raise WO AN Wfor UE LUE cual ealceheaiioetitee ae Bit: Rogier AB 70 8) Hor oupu | | BH cpmaone wit rele saomy elssk charyneneeres: | Li {hr number 10 derermine the output sont | Generel Jnsrument Mioelectronic: Pein: \ | tool some kind of eitlsoaralcn comer | mary Infomation on’ the AY-78910 oite weno cae Ola Smee ee | sooaamemieseaed coma | corporatad in the IC; since humen hearing c Table 3 rit ax bitin aroltde a Rite nia erin Bo les cel ot eiogeon Sramratope | constant eee ns inst oneal sec ee erator Se re eee i te eeanine eee en verse 4 eel Se erscseral we meu boar toro Bel in coe rama of te regeie f ESHal ee Sees Bier or toh of ta anol ere og, ea of ta cree cape naar ae a is determined by the output of the envelope ae z pisiona x I ecpareltclnt ta coten eater ——| Sei eset ine rrp emir ane soa ‘ca emcee rc SR TE Under the heading Applikator, recently introduced components and novel applications are described. The data and circuits given are based on information received from the manufacturer andjor distributors concerned. Normally, they will nat have been checked, built or tested by Elektor.1:34 ~ elaktor january 1979 computers ETL e | CH Tat WR UCMUCUN mm ULLG) The game of chess has long been regarded as a symbol of man’s intellectual prowess. Until recently, the prospect of a chess- playing computer defeating a master-strength human opponent seemed remote. A few months ago, however, in a much publicised match an International Chess Master, David Levy, actually lost a game to a program from North America. The story of the match is recounted by Mr. Levy himself elsewhere in this issue. The following article takes a look at the background to computers and chess: how they play, their weaknesses and strong points, and speculates on the chances of Karpov being the last flesh-and- blood World chess champion! ‘Thirty years ago, with the electronic ‘computer still in its infancy and illus- trating above all else the First Law of Thermodynamics (‘Work is Heat’), the game of chess attracted the interest of a number of researchers in the field of artificial intelligence. The first person to actually propose how a computer might be programmed to play chess was the English Mathematician Claude Shannon, In 1949 he presented a paper entitled ‘Programming a computer for playing chess’, which was significant, both for the fact that it was the first paper expressly on this subject, and more importantly since many of Shannon's ideas are still employed in the strongest cchess-playing programs of today. Shannon's interest in chess program- ming stemmed from his belief that the | game represented an ideal test of machine intelligence. Chess is clearly defined in terms of legal operations (moves of the pieces) and ultimate goal (checkmate), whilst being neither so simple as to be trivial nor too complex to be unsusceptible to analysis. Board, pieces and moves Shannon suggested that the machine represent the chess board by assigning a location in computer memory to each square of the board. Each piece is then designated as a numerical value: +1 for a white pawn, +2 for a white knight, +3 for a white bishop etc; —{ for a black pawn, ~2 for a black knight, and so on. These numbers are stored in the memory location which represents the square occupied by the corresponding piece. An empty square is represented by storing a zero in the appropriate location, A number of more recent pro- grams also adopt this method, with the exception that a 10x 12 board is used instead of 8x8, and that a unique number (such as 99) is stored in all the off-board locations, thereby allowing the program to detect the edge of the board. This is illustrated in figure 1, where the addresses for each square are sven in the top left-hand comer and the contents (before the game starts) of the memory locations are also shown. The program generates legal moves simply by noting the mathematical relationship between the addresses of the different squares, For example, the addresses for each square may’ be assigned as shown in figure 1. Then, to calculate the possible legal moves of, say, a king standing on el (square 25) one adds the offsets +1, +9, +10, +11, 1, -9, -10 and 11 to that address. The program then checks the contents of these new addresses to determine the legality of the move. If the location con. tains the number 99, the square is off the board and the move illegal. If the location contains a positive number, the square is already occupied by a white piece. If the contents of the location are negative, on the other hand, the king can legally move to that square cap- turing an enemy piece (always assuming that the piece is not defended). Finally, a location containing a zero also re] resents a legal move assuming that the corresponding square is not attacked by an enemy piece. | Calculating the legal moves for a sliding piece such as a bishop, is only slightly more complicated. With a white bishop | situated on square XY (e.g. 54, where X=5 and Y= 4), the program examinescomputers and chess address [X + 1, Y + 1] (ie. 65), checks to see whether the contents of that location are zero, and if so proceeds to examine address [X+ 2, Y+ 2] and so on (if (X+1, Y +1] tums out to con- tain a negative number, then the bishop can move to that square, capturing @ piece, but obviously can move no further along that diagonal), The ma- chine repeats the above procedure for (X=1, ¥ = 1], [X - 2, ¥ — 2] ete, then does the same for [X—1, Y+1], X-2, Y+2] etc., and finally for X+1, ¥— 1], [X+2, ¥—2] etc, In this way the program can generate legal moves along all four diagonals of the bishop. Similar operations can be performed to determine the legal moves of all the pieces, although one must bear in mind that certain moves have to be checked for the existence of pins (is the piece pinned against the king, for instance) and the procedure is complicated when considering castling and capturing en | passant. _ Amore ‘logical’ approach The above approach is still adopted by | many modem programs, although an Figure 1. ‘The computer can represent the ‘chess board by assigning a location in mem- ory to each of the squares on the board. 1 off board | | : : eo : : off > board fora : | 991 99 | 99; 991 : eae eIq St OUM pur arr SI OWN UIe29 103 21 01 aIqHssodut SOUT st I Tey Tam os ssoyD AE ueiSord oy) yey2 st quouTedxe siqi Jo jurod oy “oNyM sem umsFord oy) 22y2 ‘owes ayy Zutnp 2du0 3sea] We ‘passend Alqeqord nok Jo Aunyy “amy Soa Tx niversal digital meter loktor january 1979 — 1-43 universal digital meter digital replacement for pointer instruments In all fields of electronic measuring, the conventional pointer instrument is becoming ‘outmoded. In many applications the inaccurate, mechanically delicate and short-lived electro- mechanical panel meter is being replaced by a robust and clearly legible digital display. Until recently, conventional meters were cheaper; however, things are changing. The delicate mechanical system is becoming more expensive (even when ‘Made in Hong Kong’), whereas its digital counterpart is becoming cheaper — ‘Made in Singapore’? Goodbye magnet — hello LED! It is perhaps an exaggeration to assume that our old and trustworthy friend, the mechanical pointer instrument, is soon to disappear completely. It still has some advantages over present-day digital displays. In some applications, especially where absolute accuracy is not so im- portant — as is often the case! — the analog pointer instrument is still prefer- able, Calibration procedures involving accurate recognition of peaks or dips in a voltage level (or any other level, for that matter) can be carried out with greater ease with a swinging pointer than with a rapidly changing numerical display. The same is true when it comes to detecting sudden (and sometimes unexpected) fluctuations in levels — a pointer jumping over a scale, or even wrapping itself round the pin, is decid- edly more noticeable than a digital dis- play changing from 153 to 999. However, digital meters have their advantages. The reading is clear and precise; the scale is usually clearly indicated; the unit is less sensitive to mechanical shock (see figure 1), Fur- thermore, the illuminated digits can be clearly read in most lighting conditions. When it comes to accuracy, a digital display can easily beat its analog rival, At best, on a pointer instrument with a full-scale calibration of 1000 units a reading of, say, 615 can be obtained: three digits. On a digital instrument, such as the 1/4 GHz frequency counter (Elektor, June 1978), it is possible to obtain a reliable reading in six digits (e.g. 10,7234 MHz) where only the last digit is doubtful How they work If digital instruments are so much bet ter, why aren't they used more often? ‘The reason is simple: they are more difficult to design. For an analog (poin- ter) instrument, some kind of conver- sion from one analog quantity to another is required (from current, say, to position of a pointer on a scale). In many applications, this conversion is relatively straightforward. Digital instru- ments, on the other hand, require a more complicated conversion: the analog quantity must be converted into 4 digital value (‘digitalised’, to coin a Figure 1. An analog measuring instrument (figure 1a) is not as easy to read as a digital instrument (figure 1b).‘1.44 — eloktor january 1979 universal digital meter horrible word). The unit which per- forms this conversion is aptly named. ‘Analog-to-Digital converter’, or A/D converter for short. This A/D converter is an essential part of most digital meters — the only excep- tion being meters that measure digital quantities. A chain is: never stronger than its weakest link, and the perform- ance of a digital meter is usually deter- mined by the A/D converter. As more and more ‘digits’ are desired, the de- mands placed on this component become increasingly severe: accuracy, linearity, range, stability and resolution ~ all to within'a ten-thousandth of one percent for a six-igit display! The high demands placed on an A/D converter are providing some of the best brains in the electronics industry with a fulltime job — witness the proliferation, in recent years, of new conversion prin: ciples, new designs, new hybrid and integrated circuits, Circuits for A/D converters tend to be complicated. Any attempt to. build them using discrete components soon gets out of hand, Integrated circuits are the obvious answer, and the number of suitable ICs presently available is stag- gering — with more being introduced almost every day. As IC technology progressed to medium and even large scale integration (MSI and LSI), it became tempting to go one step further: complete digital measuring instruments con a single chip became available. Rap- idly falling prices — a welcome by- product of advances in semiconductor technology — now seem to be hastening the final demise of the pointer instru- ment: a digital meter is now actually cheaper than its analog counterpart. A universal digital meter Many analog measuring instruments work on the principle that the quantity to be measured (voltage, resistance, capacitance, magnetic field strength, sound level, wind speed and so on) is first converted into an electric current; this current is then displayed on a milli- ammeter. In a sense, then, a mill ammeter is a universal analog meter: ‘once the quantity to be measured has been converted into a current, the poin- ter instrument takes care of the actual measurement and display. Tt would be useful to have a universal meter with a digital display: a universal digital meter. Such an instrument would be capable of measuring some basic analog quantity (such as current or volt- age) and displaying the result in digital form, Any other analog quantity can then be measured in the usual way, using suitable converters in conjunction with the universal digital meter. This idea is illustrated in figure 3. The traditional system is shown in figure 3a a ‘universal analog meter’ preceeded by a suitable converter. The input quantity, be it ohm, candle, apostilb or pascal” second (yes, they all exist), is converted into a current and displayed on the pointer instrument. Figure 3b represents the altemative: again, the analog input uantity is first converted (into voltage, say) and then displayed — this time on a ‘universal digital meter’. ‘The second section in figure 3b is the main subject of this article Recently, several ICs have been introduced that perform almost all the functions re~ quired for a universal digital meter. Furthermore, they are so cheap that the complete unit can be built for practi- cally the same price as a conventional pointer instrument, One of these ICs is the RCA type CA3162E. This integrated circuit ac- cepts an analog (voltage) input and delivers an equivalent three-digit output in multiplexed BCD code. The IC is intended to work in conjunction with a BCD to seven-segment decoder/driver, the CA3161E. Only 2 few more com- ponents are required for a universal digi tal meter that will out-perform even a good pointer instrument, The only disadvantage, in comparison with a pointer instrument, is that the digital ‘meter requires a power supply. A/D conversion ‘The A/D converter in the CA 3162E uses a principle called dual-slope inte- gration. A block diagram is given in fig- ure 4, The operating principle is as fol- lows: ‘The input voltage, ui, is first converted into a corresponding current (ij), This current charges a capacitor C, causing. the voltage uc to drop. Larger input voltages produce a greater charging cur- rent, causing the voltage across C to drop more rapidly (see figure 5). After | |a ‘universal digital meter slekctor january 1979 — 1-45 a certain fixed time, Ty, the switch is operated. The capacitor is now dis- charged by a fixed current, I; the dis- charge time is therefore proportional to the initial voltage drop across the capacitor. Again, this can be seen in figure $: two input voltages, ug and up (where up is the larger of the two) have caused initial voltage drops; the result- ant discharge times, Ty and Tp, are Proportional to these ‘voltage drops, To sum it up: if is proportional to uj; Uc,minimum i proportional to. ii; the discharge time is proportional to Uc,minimum - - . in other words, the discharge time must be proportional to the input voltage! During the discharge period, the output from a ‘clock gener- ator’ is counted; at the end of the Period, the total count must therefore correspond to the input voltage level. Which is what A/D conversion is all about, Dual-lope integration has a number of advantages, The value of the capacitor is relatively unimportant; the clock fre- quency doesn't need to be particularly constant, provided it is also used to define the initial charging time (T); the measurement itself is integrating, so that noise and the like tend to be averaged out. The CA3162E The simplified internal block diagram of the CA 3162E is given in figure 6. The U/l converter, reference current gener- ator, threshold detector and 786 kHz Table 1, ‘AID converter CAS162E Electrical charactor Figure 2. An essontial part of a digital meter is the A/D converter. This is the most difficult part to design... Figure 3. Many measuring instruments consist basically of 2 ‘quantity‘to-current converter followed by 3 milliammeter (figure 3a). The some principle can be used for digital measuring, provided a ‘universal digital metor’ is available (figure 3b). Figure 4, Simplified circuit diagram of the ‘dual-slope" A/D converter. Figure 5. During each conversion cyclo, th voltage uc in figure 4 first drops at a rate determined by the input voltage level; it then rises at a fixed rate. Since 7; is constant, the ‘ise time (Tq of Tp) must be proportional to the input voltage. Figure 6, Functional block diagram of the cAst6ze, Absolute maximum ratings Supply voltage (pin 14 to pin 7) Input voltage (pins 10 and 11 to 7) ies (Up = 5 V; PI contered; P2 sot to 2k4) Supply voltage Supply current Input impedance typ. 100 M21 Input bias current typ. ~80 nA. Unadjusted zero offset S12mv Unadjusted gain (display for Uin'= 900mV) 846... 954 mV. Linesrity 21 count Accuracy 0.19 = 1 count Common-mode input voltage range 200 mV BCD sink current (pins 1, 2, 16,16) min. 0.4 ma. Digit elect sink current (pine 3,4, 5) min. 1.6 ma, aro temperature coefficient typ. 10uVF°C Gain temperature coefficient (Uin = 900 mV) _ typ. 0.005%/°C. ure 4; the gating, counter and switch from figure 4 are all contained in the Seontrol logic, counter and multiplex’ block in figure 6. The counter actually consists of three BCD counters, one for each digit; the outputs appear at the BCD output in turn (multiplex oper- ation), Simultaneously, the correspond- ing ‘digit enable’ output goes low. The abbreviations MSD, NSD and LSD stand for, respectively: Most Significant Digit, Next Significant Digit and Least Signifi- cant Digit — from left to right in the three-digit number. The various timing intervals are derived from the 786 kHz oscillator. Division by 2048 provides the multiplex frequency: 384 Hz, Further division by 96 gives the conversion frequency, 4Hz; in other words, four measurements per second.1.46 — olaktor january 1979, sixteon logic levels on a scope ‘Table 2. ‘Velde 3. CAS161E tut table Docoder/driver CA3I61E s Abeolute maximum ratings Supply voltage (in 160 pin 8) sty Dae Oo u Input voltage (pins 1, 2, 6 and 7) +55 ; Votage at output pis ouput off av OS i ‘output ‘on" HOV Electrical charetoiics oo10 ce Supply voltage 478...625V Supply corret (ll Input igh) *36.25m8 Output low current (Up =2V1 0. 18mA | 0011 Input high voltage nin, 2 Input tow voltage max. 08 0100 Y Ostet GF rab Opa 10 & dilay colour | cepey types Getto oh re CQY 9iA, FND SS? frees Cav 82a, FND SS? fallow Cav esa, ENDS? 1000 A 1001 gq A SE oe division tsa A? + RT Idowced 1 eA E re tv | wie ink + wire ink 1.00 wv | sk + ak 1002 Mo a)t0 4 way, | amk a 400k 29.00 tov | tM. + wareting 101.00 } qov | 50% + 120k {01.00 1 Oe et 100 V 410k + 82k 99.57 Le 100 560k + 3M3 99.97 TA | retiok + ware ink ee 0 P 100 ma | wire link + wre tn e Toma. | wire tink + wie lnk i 2mar | wirelink + wie link = tae + When usd in conlunetion with the AC milivoitmetr. ‘This low conversion rate is only ob- | to operate in conjunction with the | displays together form most of the cir- tained with pin 6 floating or connected | CA 3162E, The inputs are TTL com- | cuit. to supply common; connecting this pin | patible, and the segment outputs are | The analog input is applied, via R1, to to-half-supply (2.5 V) stops the conver- | buffered. The output buffers operate as | the A/D converter IC. Two diodes, D1 sion, but the display continues (‘hold’ | current sinks, so the seven-segment LED | and D2, provide input protection 1 mode); with pin 6 connected to positive | displays can be connected direct to the | helps to keep the input ‘clean’ — the IC Supply, the conversion rate becomes |IC, without any need for current- | is designed to cope with a DC input! 96 Hz. limiting resistors. Three operating modes can be selecte: The permissible input voltage range is | The IC is pin-compatible with well | by means of $1: conversion rate 4 Hz 99 mV to +999 mV. In conjunction | known BCD to seven-segment decoders, | (position 1); hold (position 2), conver- with the companion decoder/driver, | such as the 7447 and 74247. A BCD | sion rate 96 Hz (position 3). C2 is the underranging is indicated by a input produces the digits from 0 to 9, | timing capacitor (C in figure 6); the two display and overranging by ‘EEE’. Nega- | as is to be expected; the remaining calibration potentiometers will be dis- tied voltages ae indicated with a'minus | binary numbers in a 4-bit code also pro- | cussed later. sign, e4. 55". Vide ‘useful displays, as illustrated. in | The BCD outputs from ICI are connec Feo portant specifications of | table 2 The main electrical character | ted to the corresponding inputs of IC the CA 3162E are listed in table 1. istics are given in table 3. the BCD to seven-segment decoder/ aise driver. The outputs of the latter IC are The CA 3161E The circuit connected direct to the corresponding The CA3161E is a BCD to seven- | The complete circuit is given in figure 7. | segments of the three displays. The segment decoder/driver, ideally suited | As can be seen, the two ICs and three | three digit-select outputs from ICI are1.48 — elektor january 1 v used to enable the displays at the cor- rect moment in the multiplex cycle, via transistors Tl . .. 73. Virtually any common-anode seven-seg- ment LED display can be used. Several suitable types are listed in table 4. The ‘decimal point’ pin for each display is provided with a current-limiting resistor. Depending on the application, these can either be brought out to a selector switch or else one of them can be permanently connected to supply com- mon by means of a wire link. The basic measuring range of the circuit is 99... 999 mV. By adding a voltage divider (R7 and RB), this range can be extended as required. Alternatively = and provided a voltage drop of up to 999 mV is permissible! — the ‘universal meter’ can also be used to measure cur- rent, In this case a suitable resistance value is chosen for R8, and R7 is re~ placed by a wire link. The value for RB is determined as follows: Re=—1 where If.s., is the desired full-scale cur- rent reading, For instance, if a 50 uA instrument is required, the correct value for R8 would be 20 k. Table 5 gives values for R7 and R8 for several voltage and current ranges. It is advisable to use precision resistors (1% tolerance): the accuracy of the basic unit is 0.1% +1 mV and the linearity is typically within 0.1 mV! There is room on the p.c. board to use two resistors in series for R7. If only one is required, the second position should be bridged with a wire link, Construction and calibration A suitable printed circuit board and component layout are given in figure 8. Any supply voltage from 7 to 15 V can ‘be used; the current consumption of the circuit is approximately 200 mA (all segments lit). If the unit is used as part of a larger system that already incorpor- ates a 5 V supply, the ‘on-card stabilis- ation’ may be omitted: IC3 is replaced by a wire link between input and out- put, ‘As is apparent from figure 7 the ‘0° input connection is floating, so that a symmetrical input is available if re- quired (eg. if the unit is used in con- junction with the AC millivoltmeter described elsewhere in this issue). Note, however, that the maximum input volt age range may not be exceeded! For ‘most applications, the ‘0’ input connec- tion should be connected to supply common by means of a wire link (shown dotted on the p.c. board). Calibration is, of course, important. For best results, some suitably accurate reference is ‘required — an accurately calibrated digital meter or an accurately specified calibration voltage. source is not as easy as one might think. ‘Reference zener diodes’ are not ac- curate: the normal tolerance is $% Specially-designed reference voltage sources, such as the National LH 0070 and some Analog Devices devices (sorry, wwe couldn't resist that one), are rather expensive for this application. There are, however, two readily-avail- able alternatives, A’miniature mercury battery, as used in cameras, hearing aids, digital Watches and the like produces 1.37V, within 3% Using a voltage divider, consisting of a 4k7 and a 10k resistor, a reasonably accurate reference voltage ean be ontained: 0.93 V, + 5%. Good enough for most purposes. ‘Alternatively, the calibration procedure can be carried ont using a multimeter as a reference. In both cases, however, the Least Significant Digit has no meaning and can best be omitted Once the problem of obtaining a refer- ence meter or a reference voltage source hhas been solved, the calibration pro- cedure is easy: ~ short the input to ground (a wire link across R8); — adjust PI until the displays read 000"; remove the short at the input, and connect the reference voltage source; ~ adjust P2 until the correct display is obtained. universal digital meter Finding a suitable reference voltage lighting unit automatic emergency This unit charges a nickel- cadmium battery from the mains to provide a standby power supply for emergency lighting in the event of a mains failure. When the mains supply drops out, the lighting is switched on automatically. The circuit of the unit is extremely simple. Trl, D1 and CI provide a half- ‘wave rectified and smoothed DC supply of approx. 6 V, which is used to con- tinuously charge the NiCad battery at about 100 mA via Ri and D2. A 2Ah NiCad can safely be charged at this rate. The voltage drop across D2 reverse- biases the base-emitter junction of Tl, so that this transistor is turned off and the lamps are not lit. When the mains supply fails, however, T1 is supplied with base current via R2; the transistor therefore turns on and the lamps are lit. As soon as the mains supply is restored, TI will turn off, the lamps are extinguished and the battery is once more charged via R1 and D2. The unit can be mounted wherever emergency lighting will be req the event of a power failure. An obvious example is in that infamous dark cupboard under the stairs, so that, should a fuse blow, a replacement can be easily found and fitted. A transformer with a slightly higher secondary voltage can be used, provided that RI is uprated to limit the current through this resistor to 100mA.be — ida ‘Number and colour coded BCD DIL switches Erg BCD dual in-line switches offer an ideal means of hardware BCD programming. Of low profile (body height only 7.9 mm ‘maximum) each switch status is clearly seen at a glance by the position of colour coded arrow hheads on the moving switch lements that stand out against ‘the white bodies, Each individual Switch is numbered in a standard 1, 2,4, 8 coding. The switches ‘may be set up with the aid of a small probe, such as the blade of a small screwdriver and, since the switching members have a positive etent action, they cannot be accidentally moved, Erg BCD dual in-ine switches have an initial contact resistance ‘of only 8 m2? (typical). A contact resistance repeatability of + 1 m2 (measured at only 10 mV/10 mA cover 100 operations) i usual. Tested to BS2011 Ea for vibration, the switches wil ‘operate reliably over 8 temperature range of ~$5°C to +100°C. Free samples of the Erg BCD dual indine switches are available on. request. 27g Industrial Corporetion Limited, Luton Road, Dunstable, Bedfordshire LUS 4LI (978m) Programmable TV games Genera Instrument Microelectronics have introduced anew set of MOS microciteuits for use in cartridge-based programmable TV games systems, Known as SYSTEM 8601, the cacuils include a clock generator, folour encoder, modulator and a Selection of cartridge micro- SSruits~ enabling fully programmable games systems to Be built at tow cost Each games eystem will consis of ‘Sconiole into which individual fame set cartridges aze slotted, Each console will contin clock, scoder and modulator, as well as contol, switches, power Seppe, ete. Each cartridge ontains individual games micro- _Seouits, plus interface circuitry, all sts will feature realistic sound generation and onscreen scoring. Some of the cartridgemounted rierocircuits ae alzeady Ballable, including the 8610 ‘Supersport’ (20 games), the 8765 Motorcycle" (8 games) the | ~ 8603 ‘Road Race’ (3 games), the 8607 “Target” (12 games), the £8606 ‘Wipeout (24 eames) and . £8605 Warfare" (10 games) ~ with more to follow before the end of the year. i Ser setos, ‘speed control of motors in David Letheren, GIM's Consumer | s¥8tems where a tachometer Marketing Mager beleeeumet | reference signal is available as an {indication of speed, It is ideal for the SYSTEM 8601 will prove ication of extremely popular with OEM's | ésign situations where current and amateur alike he ncn | Zogurements ae either Iss than ting wel timed forthe 1978 | 300 mA or greater than 2.4 Chrismas TV games buying peak. | (when drive can be provide He comments: "The chiet through an external power advantage of the low cost transistor or power darlington). © | programmable system is that it ‘The tachometer frequency can be ities Din titer ee generated in any manner, the only ‘number of game combinations ‘Constraint being that the signal, ‘vith cartridge flexibility ata, | avilable a the device's input ‘Console price ofapprarameately | terminals exceeds 100 mVp.p. ‘one-half that of the pro- Possible types of tachogenersior grammables curently in the ‘that can be used ince: a iarketplace, multiple pole motor winding, an ‘Wer intend to consolidate our | optical pick-up from the motor’s market lead by adding between | shaft or an optical or magnetic four and six additional cartridges | Pick-up from a tape recorder tothe system oerthe next t| eapsian or recor turntable. twee months ‘The wA 7392, on rcnpt ofthe In 1976 GIM introduced the tachogenerator signal, first Ayaas00vwnich as etnine | converts tito a pulse yith a the dedicated video game industry | defined width and amplitude, the standard. Since then the company | Pulse is then integrated to has dominated the market by a | generate a sawtooth waveform. combination of aggressive world- | Ths sawtooth is then compared ile marketing set contneat | witha DC reference and a pulse Innovation. ‘width modulated signal generated the duty eyele of which is elated {o the error signal. Average output current available from the 4A 7392 is up 10 300 mA ‘The motor inductance provides adoquate smoothing so ensuring What is essentially, a direct current through the motor, rovided the tachometer frequency isa sufficiently large multiple ofthe motor speed. ‘Two distinct design advantages are offered by the wA 7392 system. Firstly, speed regulation several of the major games, is independent of the amplitude manufacturers already of the tachometer signal — it {introducing models using this | depends only on the frequency. system GIM’s marketing plans appear to have been justified, General instrument Microclectronies Lt Regency House, 1-4 Warwick Street, London WIR SWB, England (979m) Secondly, at higher battery voltages the system more cit than gua DC onto! system, Tit results in, DC motor speed control | exten ife fox batty powered Fach’ proprietary 17392 equipment. Tfepin DIP DC moter spend | Specie deg features inchide contolcicult i desgned to | presslon perfonnance provide precision, clowilogp, | thequency-tovollage conversion elektor january 1979 — | stability is typically 0.1% for V+ from 10 V to 16 V); onchip thermal shutdown, overvoltage protection and 'staltimer’ facility: wide supply voltage range 6.3 V to 16 V and a clamping diode available on a separate pin. Fairchild Camera & Instrument (UK) Ltd, 230 High Street, Potters Bar, Herts, EN6 SBU (976m) MNOS non-volatile quad decade counter ‘A new addition to the "Novel" (non-volatile MNOS) range of ‘standard logi circuits is announced by Plessey Semiconductors, This is the MN910S which comprises 2 ‘decade BCD up/down counter with the output of each decade addressed from two input pins and available on a common 4-bit data highway. In parallel with an MOS counter is 16-bit MNOS memory into which the contents of the counter can be written by applying a SAVE signal fo the cireuit. When. this data has been written into the ‘memoty itis retained even in the absence of applied power, and ‘then it can subsequently be recalled from the memory to preset the counter, Data storage in the absence of applied power is guaranteed for at least one year at temperatures up ‘to 70°C, and the guaranteed ‘number of write operations is 10°. The device has a count frequency range from DC to 250 kHz. ‘A major feature of the MN9105 4s that it requires only normal MOS operating supplies of +5 volls and —12 volts. All inputs and outputs are TTL/CMOS compatible, ‘The MN9105 has a wide range of applications, for example as replacements for electzo- ‘mechanical batch counters in vending machines, or time elapse indicators Plessey Semiconductors, Qheney Manor, ‘Swindon, Wiltshire, SN2 200 (985 m) a SSUK 16 —slektor january 1979 feo ‘9 Watt audio amplifier A proprietary Fairchild design the uA 783 audio power amplifier is Gesigned for high voltage (24 V) applications driving 8 and 16 ohm loads. Encapsulated in the standard 12-pin package two heatsink configurations are available, Designed for use as a ‘ow frequency class B power amplifier it can provide 9 W into an 8 ohm load (typically). ‘The uA 783 is able to operate from a wide supply voltage range, ‘with a maximum of 30 V. A high output current (repetitive) capability of 2.5 A is also exhibited by the device. ‘An on-chip thermal limiting circuit offers the designer the following two advantages; 1) an ‘overload on the output, even if permanent, ox an above-timit Ambient temperature can be easily ‘handled, 2) the heatsink used can have a smaller factor of safety ‘compared with that of a conven- tional cixcuit. Should the junction temperature tse too high, power output, power dissipation and the supply current decrease so protecting the device. ‘Typical applications for the uA 783 include tv audio circuits, {inexpensive radio receivers et. A design point worth noting is that by operating audio amplifiers at higher voltages simplifies power supply filtering problems. Fairchild Camera & Instrument (UK) La, 230 High Street, Potters Bar, Herts ENG SBU (925 M) High speed 128 k word core memory Dataproducts (Dublin) Limited announce the availability of a new 128 k, 18 bit word core memory module, To be known as Maxi-store, the new memory ‘module has been designed to ‘combine high speed access time swith mass storage — a 325 nanosecond access time and 750 nanoseconds eycle time. Cost per bit with Maxistore isin market | SE the 0.2 cent per bit range for OEM quantities. The Maxistore modules are designed for mini and midi ‘computer applications where high speed large storage is a principal requirement, The Maxi-store is expandable to 1024 k words. Using a3 wire, 3D organisation, the basie Maxi-store module is on ‘a self sufficient planar card, with the address, data registers timing and control logic, The module operates in the read/restore, clear/write and read/modify/write ‘modes. It requires only two voltages: +5 volts DC and “+15 volts DC. Up to 4 Maxistore modules can ‘be housed in a 1014" (26.7 cm) high by 19° (48.3 em) wide by 24" (61 cm) deep rack mountable chassis. The chassis also contains @ ‘power supply and an extra slot for either a self-test card or a custom interface card. A memory protect circuit provides data saving upon loss of power. Optional chassis wiring permits 36 bit double word configurations ‘or daisy-chaining two chassis for expansion to 1024 k by 18 bit capacity. ‘The Maxistore may be purchased as.a complete system or as an individual module. Dataproducts (Dublin) Limited, Telephone (01) 31166 Dataproduets International Inc, Tel: Reading (0734) 38723 -6 (@31 m) Handheld 3-1/2 digit DMM controlled by CMOS microcomputer ‘The first handheld 3-1/2 digit multimeter to be fully controlled by aCMOS microcomputer chip has been introduced for less than $ 406 by Flectro Scientific Industries of Portland, Oregon. Called the Calcumeter 4109, itis ‘essentially a high performance calculator integrated with the ‘multimeter to enable some extraordinary capabilities: 1) Save the average design engineer hours per week by providing the ability to automaticaly and directly scale and offset (mx + b); sort With high-low limits; average noise away; measure dB volts directly; display in percent deviation; troubleshoot by sound. 2) Measure and HOLD one million times on a single 9V battery. Control and datalog remotely 3 with an accessory printer. 4) Perform math conversions ‘with 11 special keys. 5) Store measurements and/or caloulations in five different memory locations. 6) Operate with autoranging, autozeroing and autopolarity. 7) Select from three different display formats: Scientific notation, engineering notation (exponents in multiples of three) or any fixed decimal up to 7. The multimeter operates, in six ranges as follows 19 microvolts sensitivity through 1999 volts DC, 750 AC; 19 microamps sensitivity up to 200 milliamps (extended to 29 amps with accessory shunt); 9.1 ohms resolution through 29 mega ‘ohms, Basic accuracy is 9.25%DC V. Available since September, the ‘standard product comes with test leads (with fingenguard probes and recessed connectors), direct ‘prod for probing with instrument in hand, two alligator clips that serew of to the end of the probes, a complete Owner's Handbook consisting of more than 190 pages, shortform manual which snaps {nto a plastic storage case (the latter serves as a bonchtop cradle), and a spare fuse Micrometrics, Inc, of Portland, Oregon: ‘Suntek Business Park, 9450 S.W. Barnes Rd., Portland, Oregon 97225 (989 m) 8-bit bi-directional bus-buffer A new 8-bit TRISTATET™ bus ‘transceiver from National ‘Semiconductor provides bidirectional drive for ‘busoriented microprocessor systems. Offered in a single 20-pin DIP, the INSB208B device is ‘manufactured by low power Schottky technology. ‘The INS8208B is part of ‘National’ expanding Series 8000 family of microprocessor peripheral digital I/O, peripheral control, communications and ‘memory support products. All products are compatible with National's Universal Microbus™ ‘concept as well as all other bus-riented microprocessor systems, ‘The chip has 48 miliamperes drive capability on the B-port (Bus-transceiver) and 16 mA drive capability on the A-port; an additional PNP transistor input on both ports allows reduced input loading. ‘Typical short-cireuit output current is 38 mA for the A-port and $0 mA for the B-port, For 300 pf load, the A to B-port ‘propogation delay is 18 nano- Seconds for logical ‘0’, and 16 nanoseconds for logical ‘I” transition, Each receiver section requires a ‘minimum of 2 volts at only (0.1 micro-amperes (typical) for a logical “I” signal logical ‘0" requires 70 uA. The INS8208B has lower suppiy requirements than most other available bus ‘transceivers. The power supply sequirement will not exceed 130 mA. For simplified system inter- connections, the INS8208B ‘transmitter and receivers, ‘connected as reversed pairs in parallel, ae applied to two sets of eight 1/0 ports. Only two control ‘signals ate roquited — a transmit) receive signal to enable the trans- coivers and a chip disable signal ‘which places both sets of ports in a TRISTATE condition. National Semiconductor GmbH, Industriesirafe 10, 10-8080 Furstenfeldbruck, West Germany (7M)slektor january 1979 — UK 17 ate leg ee Dickcat terminal ‘eros, stats monitoriag, | Motor protection relay trip crt Tipping as occurs ote. ‘when the curents inthe outer The GR Electronics Pocket Pere ‘A range of temperature-sensitive | and centre phases differ by Terminal isthe mos practical iow | & nctinal nd home mmotorprotecuon relays which | approximately 12% ofthe full oe, hand held communications. | ~ computing have a rapid response-time with | joad value, unit yet developed, with a wide negligible overshoot, has been ‘The MW relays have a power range of input/output facilities announced by P & B Engineering | consumption of only 2VA per and multiple signalling options. | peseription Co, Ltd,, of Crawley, Sussex, phase at fullload. Their contact The unit isa hand-held terminal | England” Called the Model ‘mechanism ean be set to trip at with a d0-Key positive tactile | MW Golds Relays, they protect | any pereentage of fulbioad response keyboard comprising | industrial multephaso motors | current between 80% and 125%, {wo singleunction and 38 dual- | against damage from overloads or | Accuracy of setting is = 3%: unction keys. These give internal | faifure of a phase in the mains} repeatability at a given tip-stting control and allow transmission of | supply. isbetter than = 1.0%. Contact all 128 ASCI codes, with a max | Tho relays also provide a assemblies canbe ited with mum rate repeat facility. Audible | continuous indeation of the | auxiliary contacts for actuating response to an external signal is | percentage of fllload current at alarm systems and other switeng also provided by an internal | which the motor is operating. | fuctions. “blooper Additional relays which give | The relays are housed in ‘The display is of the 16-segment | protection against earth-leakage | dust-proof cases and can also be ‘starburst’ type, with capacity for | and short-circuit damage can be} supplied in withdrawable cases for ight characters inline. Alpha- | fitted. cease of inspection and mainten- ‘numerics and symbols are conven- | The new thermal relays are be- | ance. tionally formed, and the full twoen 25% and 50% less expens- | P & B Engineering Co. Ltd. is (64-character upper case ASCIL set | ive than solid-state electronic | looking for azents and distribuc may be generated. As characters | motorprotection devices and are | tors in France, Italy and Germany fare received via the data link they | extremely reliable, Fast operation | for its range of products which, in Its total portability and rugged | are stored in the unit's memory, | is achieved through the use of a | addition to thermal motor protec- packaging will make itan essential | which may be visualised as a special contact-mechanism tion devices, includes maximum- item of equipment for tech 32 character line. The display acts | which is actuated by three demand load indicators as well as nicians, programmers and asaneight character window" | bimetallic coil assemblies heated | portable earthing equipment for ‘operators ~ in fact anyone with a | onto the ‘memory linc’. Far left | dizoctly by current derived from | Earthing electricity sulrstations ‘need to communicate with and far right positions in the line | transformers in the motor's ‘and overhead-lines up to 400 kV computer systems or stand-alone | are reserved for display of the | supply. during maintenance. processors. internal control status, ie, ‘shift ‘The coil assemblies have a heating | p « g ENGINEERING CO, LTD. curve similar to that of most im- | 39137 Kelvin Way, ‘control’, repeat’, leaving 30 pos ‘tions for data received. dustrial motors. Each assembly | Graney Thediplay window may be | comprises two bimetallic coil, | GryrSoisex RIO 2PT, Fomures stepped left o right in blocks of | one mechanicallylinked toa” | meta * 16-segment ‘starburst” LED dis-| four characters along the line, or | contact ofthe contact mechanism, play providing instantly legible | in a single move tothe eft home’ | the other providing temperature. (1026 m) G4-character ASCIE alphanu- | or ‘ight home" limits. Location of | compensation. The coil ofthe pccananiE the display window in the line is | centre phase I linked to the * A128 ASCII codes generated | indicated on the display "W-shaped centre frame which from positive action Keyboard | The terminal allows two modes of | carvies the outer pairs of two sets | Dj i 2 * 30-character memory dis- | operation, In the fist, each of contacts The centre contact.” | DiOde for fiber optics playable in eight-haracter | character received is entered in| ofeach set is inked to one of the | The new inffared transmitter ‘locks the memory at a position deter- | other two phases. diode FV 21 IR from Siemens * ‘Single $V supply required at | mined by a cursor which may be ‘with flat epoxy encapsulation of 350 mA, typical controlled remotely by received ‘he light-emitting GaAs chip has * 110 or 300 baud transmission | codes, This allows data to be been designed specially for rates, internally selectable | entered in any required format, as, ‘opticabfiber cables. The glass * Full duplex operation, with | Wellas permitting data already in {her ends can be attached. Intetacefor20mA oop or | themsemory totgedied dlzetly, the wavelength of the IR ‘V24)RS232 levels Ia Ge peep aoaatisaicir i ‘beam is $80 am, The chip is * Party codes and stop bits _| static and information fs input at ‘mounted on a TO46 base plate, settable to suityour trans- | the right hand end of the memory the cathode being metallically mision standard lin, ‘shufMing’ existing data in connected to the housing. Internal ‘bleeper’ reacts to ‘BEL’ code; unit also responds | characteris received. If the line is to cursor controls, "display | filled in the fist mode, the clear’ and ‘new lin’ codes | orminal will automaticaly enter | Unser normal ndes normal operating con- the second mode ditions, all thre coils deflect Applications: ‘A removable panel on the rear of | through the same angle, o that ‘As well as its use in conventional | the Unit gives access to a switch | the centre contacts of each set smalkscale 1/0 operations the | se llowing the following options | rorssin mid-way between the Pocket Terminal ops up new | (9 beslced: | cuter contacts Sho the three ‘ange of applications made poss- | Roscoe eskial phases become unbalanced Irie dioad parriaes optic lc by its portability, low cost, a: por jplttoud the falureof pha, | power o mW ah ¢100mA Convenience and flexibly lables 1 | forexample ~ the Bemetalic cou | BOF 110 2mW at 100m f"tnatufaealgnosion | > PAY BKEVEN/ODDISET/ | Cite tcted pase dow | ie, Te Hossng as 2 processor-based systems 44, SOO/ETO baud transmission | EYE 10 its zero position (. © Clear, unambiguous mobile a0 asm gots cold) Atthe same time the | 50% 4G, zennalatelle flr communications Increased currents through the | SHem © Onsite reprogramming of other two phases deflect their | Information 13mm, GR Electronics Ltd., coils further, so that ina matter | Postfach 103 + Commisioning of ital | Fant House, Oureh Rood, |r secondn tn contact ofthe | 2.8000 Anchen 1 coe Newport, Gwent NPT 7ED atfected phase touches that of the | Federal Republic of Germany Interactive debug, information (983 m) | adjacent phase and completes the (1037 m) a EE RS