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Nixie Tube Clock ‘Frank 2 IN-16’ 

www.pvelectronics.co.uk

 

- 3 - 

 

 

1.3

 

SAFETY 

 

 

DANGER: The clock pcb includes a switched-mode voltage booster 

circuit. This generates nominally 170 Volts DC, but is capable of 

generating up to 300 Volts before adjustment. Assembly may only be 

undertaken by individuals who are suitably qualified and experienced in 

electronics assembly, and are familiar with safe procedures for working 

with high voltages. If in doubt, refer to a suitably qualified engineer 

before proceeding.  

 

The voltages generated by this circuit can give a potentially 

LETHAL ELECTRIC SHOCK.  

 

DISCLAIMER: This product is supplied as a kit of parts, intended only for 

suitably qualified electronic engineers, who are suitably qualified and 

experienced in electronics assembly, and are familiar with safe 

procedures for working with high voltages. The supplier, his agents or 

associates accept no liability for any damage, injury or death arising from 

the use of this kit of parts.  

 

This is not a finished product, and the person assembling the kit is 

responsible for ensuring that the finished product complies with any 

applicable local regulations governing electrical equipment, eg. UL, CE, 

VDE.  

 

Summary of Contents for Frank 2 IN-16

Page 1: ...Nixie Tube Clock Frank 2 IN 16 www pvelectronics co uk 1 Assembly Instructions And User Guide Nixie Clock Type Frank 2 IN 16 Software version 7R PCB Revision 11 April 09 ...

Page 2: ... the tubes will last for many years and should not need replacing 1 2 Clock Features Nixie clock type Frank 2 has the following features Hours Minutes and Seconds display Uses the mains AC as the timebase Selectable to work with 50Hz Europe or 60Hz Americas Simple time setting using two buttons 12 or 24 hour modes Programmable leading zero blanking Five programmable neon colon settings Flashing AM...

Page 3: ...roceeding The voltages generated by this circuit can give a potentially LETHAL ELECTRIC SHOCK DISCLAIMER This product is supplied as a kit of parts intended only for suitably qualified electronic engineers who are suitably qualified and experienced in electronics assembly and are familiar with safe procedures for working with high voltages The supplier his agents or associates accept no liability ...

Page 4: ...ldering wick braid can be useful if you accidentally create solder bridges between adjacent solder joints 2 3 Other items you will need The clock kit does not include a power adapter This is because the kit is sold to many countries around the world each with very different household mains outlet socket types It is more efficient for the user to buy a suitable adapter locally This saves shipping a...

Page 5: ... C4 22nF ceramic or polyester C5 1uF 250V Electrolytic C6 22nF ceramic or polyester C7 C10 Not Installed Transistors Q1 MPSA42 NPN Q2 IRF730 N Channel Mosfet Q3 Q8 MPSA92 PNP Q9 Q16 MPSA42 NPN Diodes D1 D4 1N4001 D5 1N4936 fast recovery diode D6 5 6V Zener Diode Integrated Circuits IC1 78L05 5V voltage regulator IC2 NE555 Timer IC IC3 PIC16F628A 8 bit Microcontroller IC4 74141 K155N Nixie driver I...

Page 6: ...Mosfet 1 MPSA92 PNP 6 MPSA42 NPN 9 Diodes 1N4001 4 1N4936 fast recovery diode 1 5 6V Zener Diode 1 Integrated Circuits 78L05 5V voltage regulator 1 NE555 Timer IC 1 PIC16F628A 8 bit Microcontroller 1 74141 K155N Nixie driver 1 Miscellaneous 100uH 470uH Inductor 1 Nixie tube 6 Miniature push button 2 1K Potentiometer 1 4mm Wire ended neon 2 PCB 1 IC Socket 18 way DIL 1 2 1mm PCB Power socket 1 It i...

Page 7: ...may be marked 22nF 22n or 223 Transistors Transistors The MOSFET Q2 can easily be identified as it has a large metal heatsink Note Due to part availability this part may be substituted for a different but equivalent part number so the part marking may not necessarily be IRF730 Diodes The four 1N4001 diodes D1 D4 are black and are marked 1N4001 1N4007 diodes may be supplied instead They are identic...

Page 8: ...the holes on the PCB Insert the four diodes taking care to match up the white bands on the components with the component marking on the PCB See Figure 2 below Figure 2 Solder in the diodes then using the wire clippers trim off the leads 4 2 Diode D5 D5 is the remaining black diode Again noting the position of the white band place in position solder in and trim the leads Figure 3 ...

Page 9: ...C1 and Q1 IC1 and Q1 look very similar so be careful to identify them correctly by the white marking on each component The leads should not need to be formed just separated a little Align the flat of the body of these components with the marked flat on the PCB Push each component into it s holes until the body is just 2 mm from the pcb Solder in and trim the leads Figure 5 Q1 left and IC1 right Fi...

Page 10: ...R5 These resistors indeed all the resistors on the board need to be mounted upright to save space The leads need to be formed as shown in figure 7 Bent the leads of each resistor as shown and solder in to the correct postion making sure the component body is as close to the board as possible Figure 8 R1 to R5 placed vertically Figure 7 Resistor leads formed for mounting upright Figure 6 Bending th...

Page 11: ...ve the Nixie tubes 170 180V 4 8 Inductor L1 Place L1 in position and ensure it is as close to the board as possible The leads of the component may not match exactly the spacing on the board this is perfectly normal You can slightly form the leads so it is a nice firm and snug fit to the board Solder and trim the leads as short as possible Figure 10 Figure 9 showing VR1 ...

Page 12: ...it will fail Each capacitor has a positive lead which has the longer lead and a negative lead marked by a white or grey stripe on the body In Figure 11 the longer lead ve and white stripe VE can be clearly seen Figure 11 Electrolytic capacitors Place each component as shown in figure 12 below with the longer lead in the hole marked Solder in and trim the leads Figure 12 Electrolytic capacitors pla...

Page 13: ... need to have the 9 12V AC power adapter to hand Also at this stage you will need a small flat blade screwdriver and a multimeter DANGER At this point observe the safety warnings in section 1 3 When powered up the board will generate up to 300V DC and live parts are exposed Observe high voltage precautions 4 10 1 Testing the power supplies First check that the 5V supply is in order Use the GND 5V ...

Page 14: ... Q14 R6 R23 This is perhaps the most time consuming stage of the assembly There are six anode driver clusters The function of each is to take the logic output from the 5V microcontroller and switch on the 170V Anode drive to the respective nixie tube Pay particular attention to installing the correct transistor type MPSA42 or MPSA92 in the correct location 4 14 Nixie tubes IN 16 To facilitate easy...

Page 15: ...d each lead into the PCB in turn Now you can insert and solder in the tubes one at a time PLACE THE TUBES ON THE OPPOSITE SIDE OF THE PCB TO THE COMPONENTS Feed all the wires in progressively It is not as hard as it seems at first After soldering in trim flying leads Figure 17 IN 16 flying leads trimmed to aid insertion into the PCB Figure 16 IN 16 Anode at the back of the tube ...

Page 16: ...1 SW2 Push buttons SW1 and SW2 are mounted on the component side of the PCB so that the clock is adjusted from the back tubes are on the non component side You can also choose to mount them on the front face if you wish depending on your own particular clock case design 4 16 NE1 NE2 The two neons can be installed either now Set at a height appropriate for the case you will be using ...

Page 17: ...omponents should now have been installed Make a final check that all components are well soldered in and that there are no solder bridges unintentional solder links between adjacent pins Insert IC3 matching up the notch on the resin body with the notch on the socket and the PCB markings ...

Page 18: ...alues by pressing the Up button When the desired value has been reached move on to the next parameter by pressing the Set button When the last parameter has been set pressing Set one more time will revert the clock back to time display mode Parameter Description Values 1 AC timebase 0 60 Hz default 1 50 Hz 2 12 24 Hr mode 0 12 Hr default 1 24 Hr 3 Leading zero blanking 0 leading zero blanked defau...

Page 19: ...Resetting seconds From time display mode press and hold Up Reset Secs button for 2 seconds Seconds will be set to zero and held until the button is released Setting the display mode From time display mode briefly press Set button to toggle between the four display modes Dim standard change of digits Bright standard change of digits Bright Fading digits Blanked display tubes are switched off Night ...

Page 20: ...Nixie Tube Clock Frank 2 IN 16 www pvelectronics co uk 20 7 CIRCUIT DIAGRAM ...

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