Functional Pip-boy 3000 Mk IV from Fallout 4

[bbroerman]

So, instead of keeping the normal potentiometer and using the spring/ball plunger as a detent mechanism, I went ahead and ordered a 10k potentiometer that will fit the model perfectly that already has the detents in it... I had to buy 25 even though I only needed 2 (one is a backup).

The ball plunger keeps pushing the knob up off the shaft and loosening it up. May not be a problem for some of you guys if you're using ABS/ASA but with PLA it is

Anyway, If it works better than what I have, I'll be selling off the rest of them, 0.80 plus shipping, to anyone else doing a pip-boy... I'll let you know how it works. If anyone is interested, let me know. I doubt I'll have many other projects that need them, and I hate keeping a bunch of stuff I'll never use.

 

[bbroerman]

No I didn’t use the CS8190. For one: It was out of stock for months when I started the project, it also has a return to zero function I don’t need. If you’re fine with that, then it probably works.

Instead I am using a TB6122 Motor controller. To save you the pain, this is the controller you need. It has PWM A&B, but also direction control which was the thing I needed and so many other H-bridge controllers didn’t have. Any TB6122 controller breakout board should work for you.

I have the schematic and code for this in my Radiation King radio project:

Zap's Fallout Radiation King Radio

How about a new rendering. ----------------------- I may not end up modifying the original Philco radio. The front of it is curved in such a away that getting the faceplate to fit perfectly will be very difficult. I would also have to color match the insert panel and I am not confident that...

www.therpf.com

(My side project are sort of ways to work out some of the Pip-Boy systems)

Once I hear back from Simco, I'll get the board from adafruit. I'll need to use my additional GPIO extender, but I expected that anyways. I already have a place for it on the electronics caddy.

 

[bbroerman]

I noticed you had small screws on either side of the rad gauge and radio gauge. For the radio, you used pins inside and it looked like they were threaded for the screws. What did you use for these? Do you lave a link for these pins and screws? I don't see them in the BOM on the released plans. For the radio gauge on mine, I'm probably going to do the same thing... attach the pins for the gauge itself with screws to the body, and the back of the gauge, same with the pins for the gears. I'm guessing on the inside you used the retaining rings to keep them in place?

 

[zapwizard]

The brass screws are just decorative. The pins are somewhat functional in aligning the gauge. No retaining rings, just a stack of parts between the PCB and front panel.

If your CAD software supports it during import, each part should have the McMaster part number with the name.
However, the small screws are McMaster: 92453A074, and the pins are: 91585A233

 

[bbroerman]

SO, I got the potentiometers today. I like the detent strength on them, and am moving to use them vs. the ball plunger. I have 22 of them that I need to get rid of, I doubt I'll ever need them. Let me know if you or anyone else wants some.

 

[redhood616]

any advice on running this on raspbian bookworm or bullseye? i keep getting error messages

 

[zapwizard]

One of my discord members added some instructions to the git page on installing it along with the requirements. He said he had it working on the latest Pi OS. Otherwise, I haven't worked on this in a while and really have to hammer at it myself.

 

[bbroerman]

Did you have any issues with noise on the power supply from the Simco MAC and the controller? If so, what did you do to mitigate?

 

[zapwizard]

No I haven't had any back noise issues with the Simco mac. Most any switching power supply (which a motor controller is) can add noise. To deal with switching noise you can first try changing the switching frequency, I used 42KHz to prevent being able to hear the motor whine, and then used a good deal of capacitance to provide the amperage needed. Finally a filter setup at the switching frequency could be added to keep the noise from propagating to other electronics.

 

[bbroerman]

No I haven't had any back noise issues with the Simco mac. Most any switching power supply (which a motor controller is) can add noise. To deal with switching noise you can first try changing the switching frequency, I used 42KHz to prevent being able to hear the motor whine, and then used a good deal of capacitance to provide the amperage needed. Finally a filter setup at the switching frequency could be added to keep the noise from propagating to other electronics.

Did you have to set up another power supply, or did the 5v supply to the Pi work? Do you know of any tutorials for driving the Simco MAC with the TB6112? Everything I've seen so far talks about eithe plain DC motors, or steppers. Looking at the MAC, it doesn't fit into either of these categories. The only things I can find would peg it at 90 or 180 degrees only, and nothing in-between.

 

[bbroerman]

Also, I was watching your video on the RadiationKing radio, and it looked like you were using this I2C enabled motor controller for the SimCo Mac: SparkFun I2C motor Controller

Do you have any instructions on how to use this? Can you get a full range of motion from it? What are the power requirements? Is this better than what I was seeing with the Adafruit TB6112 breakout board? From what it looks like in your video, this would very much seem to be what I need for the radiation gauge...

 

[zapwizard]

I used a 5V supply, but you do need at least 2A for the Pi and screen.

The TB6112 can set the MAC to any angle smoothly, it took a while to figure out the code.
I have published code for driving the Simco MAC as part of my Radiation King Radio project. (See the Pico code files) I haven’t integrated that into the Pip-Boy yet.
The MAC takes very little power, around 10 to 15mA to hold its position.

The SparkFun controller has two issues: The firmware is closed source, you can’t use the actual circuit in another project.
It didn’t have the direction control that was needed to keep the needle form lagging at 0,90,180 and 270 degrees.

The Adafruit TB6112 board is what I am using.

 

[bbroerman]

I used a 5V supply, but you do need at least 2A for the Pi and screen.

The TB6112 can set the MAC to any angle smoothly, it took a while to figure out the code.
I have published code for driving the Simco MAC as part of my Radiation King Radio project. (See the Pico code files) I haven’t integrated that into the Pip-Boy yet.
The MAC takes very little power, around 10 to 15mA to hold its position.

The SparkFun controller has two issues: The firmware is closed source, you can’t use the actual circuit in another project.
It didn’t have the direction control that was needed to keep the needle form lagging at 0,90,180 and 270 degrees.

The Adafruit TB6112 board is what I am using.

Yeah, I was looking at that. Looks like you were using 6 GPIO lines, with 2 of them being set up for PWM... I'm going to be using the I2C GPIO extender for these lines, and doing the coding in C++ since I'm using an Arduino instead of the Pi. The Arduino I am using has a decent built-in TfT driver (I can get 12 fps at 480x480), but between that and the SDIO card breakout, there were no GPIO lines available, just the I2C connection, so everything's I2C connected... the GPIOs for sound, the ADC for the pots, and the rotary encoder board... I'll start digging in detail in your Python code early next week to get a better feel for the details.

 

[bbroerman]

Ok, so Simco won't sell their MAC motors less than 10 at a time. (I only need 1 and don't want to spend $180 to have a bunch of them sitting around collecting dust) Do you know anyone who would sell just one or two?

 

[zapwizard]

I have a few of them, but I am using them in three different projects. There are other larger air core motors on the market, they can be found on eBay.

 

[bbroerman]

Which type / size of tape measure did you decide on for the take-up reel? I think that's the next item I'm going to go get.
Oh, if you want a couple of the rotor PCBs, I have extras. They have the notches in the side, as in the STL you had in github.

 

[zapwizard]

I didn’t use a scavenged tape, it wasn’t strong enough. I bought rolls spring steel from McMaster. But even then I don’t consider the design done. I have two different thicknesses to try out. To bend the end of the spring steel over, you have to heat it up to a red hot or it will snap.

 

[bbroerman]

Quick question... I'm trying to use the same Cree LEDs you had on your pipboy (at least in the BOM) and I'm wondering how you're powering them... I have 3 in parallel, with a resistor in series to them to control current... Kind of how I control regular LEDs. When hooked directly up to the 5V USB plug, they look great. When running from the 4.7 power out pin of the Arduino, I can barely tell that they're on. I'm kind of thinking, looking at the datasheet (and it's been a looong time since I did electronics regularly) that they may be actually trying to drop 6v instead of 0.7v like regular LEDs? How do we drive these?

 

[zapwizard]

Quick question... I'm trying to use the same Cree LEDs you had on your pipboy (at least in the BOM) and I'm wondering how you're powering them... I have 3 in parallel, with a resistor in series to them to control current... Kind of how I control regular LEDs. When hooked directly up to the 5V USB plug, they look great. When running from the 4.7 power out pin of the Arduino, I can barely tell that they're on. I'm kind of thinking, looking at the datasheet (and it's been a looong time since I did electronics regularly) that they may be actually trying to drop 6v instead of 0.7v like regular LEDs? How do we drive these?

What is the CREE LED part number? I have 3V Wurth Elektronik LEDs on my Google Sheets BOM for doing the backlighting on the gauges. The plan was to use a NeoPixel LED driver to control them.

 

[bbroerman]

Oh, did I get the wrong part? I got it from the excel spreadsheet checked in to github when i downloaded everything... I'll have to go get an up-to- date copy send see... A 3v led would be much better! Are you driving them with exactly 3.0v (I guess through a voltage divider or a voltage regulator?) or were you letting the 3.3v from the logic drive them?

The part I got, which was what I thought was the closest they had to what I thought I needed is JK2835BWT-W-U30EB0000-N0000001, which is a warm white 6v surface mount.