Hardware hacker. Selected reprints — volume III

157 Pages·1989·2.138 MB·English

by  Don Lancaster

Hardware Hacker III
Don Lancaster’s
Hardware Hacker
Selected reprints — volume III
Radio-Electronics series (January 1990 - December 1991)
Copyright c. 1989 by Don Lancaster and Synergetics
Box 809, Thatcher, AZ 85552 [phone]
Book-on-demand self-published using the Apple IIe computer, a duplex LaserJet
and the PostScript language. All graphics were done in their entirety by ProDOS AppleWriter 2.1.

i
Hardware Hacker III

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Hardware Hacker III
Introduction
W
elcome to the third volume in our ongoing series of my Hardware Hacker
reprints from Radio Electronics magazine. Who have recently renamed themselves
Electronics Now. This volume includes the January 1990 through December 1991
columns.
As before, I do use the term "hacker" in its original context, namely anyone who is
genuinely interested in pushing all the limits of software and hardware and is
willing to do so in a fully cooperative, low cost and sharing network environment.
I’ve tried to expand the topics beyond the strict boundaries of traditional
electronics. Going into the science and math subjects many of you have asked for
over our voice helpline. And even looking at controversial pseudoscience and "free
energy" topics.
My goal in flirting with the "not even wrong" pseudoscience and perpetual motion
stuff is to pile it up on center stage and shine a bright light on it. To get you to
conclude that "Yup, that sure is a big pile all right." Very little of this can withstand
critical inquiry.
Some of the more popular subjects in this volume include fractals, chaos science,
alternate energy, electronic levels, magnetic refrigeration, vortex coolers, video
compression, wavelets, caller id, data curve fitting, and GPS navigation. Plus
dozens more.
Preprints and reprints of most of my columns are also available electronically via
GEnie1PSRT, presented in Hacker Data Format. For GEnie access, have your
modem dial [phone]. Just as soon as you verify your software connect, enter
an HHH. After the prompt, enter JOINGENIE. When you are asked for your
keycode, enter DMD524.
I continue to offer my no-charge voice helpline at [phone], and offer free
referrals from our Synergetics Consultant’s Network. I’ve also got a free and newly
expanded Hardware Hacker Inside Secrets and catalog waiting for you when you
call or write. You can also grab this as SYNCAT1.PS off GEnie PSRT, or else
request one through my Internet address of [email protected].
The Electronics Now subscription number is [phone].
ii i
Hardware Hacker III
About the Author
A
s he said in his classic Incredible Secret Money Machine II, Don Lancaster
writes books. And quests tinajas.
Microcomputer pioneer and guru Don Lancaster is the author of 28 books, 2 videos,
and countless articles. These include his TTL Cookbook and CMOS Cookbook
internationally published million seller classics. Don is considered by some to be
the father of the personal computer, for his early ground-breaking work with hacker
digital electronics and low cost video terminal displays. He is considered by others
to be the patron saint of the Walter Mitties of the World. And by yet others as the…
Uh, I guess we better skip that one.
Don is the Hardware Hacker in Electronics Now [phone], runs his Resource
Bin in Nuts & Volts [phone], and is the Blatant Opportunist in Midnight
Engineering [phone]. Don is also the sysop for GEnie PSRT, a leading
Hardware hacking, PostScript, laser publishing, and money machine on-line
resource. His Ask the Guru columns continue to be published electronically on
PSRT. For fast GEnie modem access, dial [phone]. Then HHH followed by
JOINGENIE and DMD524.
Don is also the head honcho of Synergetics, a new-age design and consulting firm
that specializes in computer applications, laser printing, PostScript development
work, electronic prototypes, Book-on-demand publishing, technical writing, and
innovative software design. His avocations include firefighting, cave exploration,
bicycling, and, of course, tinaja questing.
Don maintains a no-charge voice helpline at [phone]. He does welcome your
calls and letters. The best calling times are 8-5 weekdays, Mountain Standard Time.
Referrals to Don’s Synergetics Consultant’s Network are available through this
F
same number.
iv
Hardware Hacker III
Table of Contents
PostScript fractal fern Electronic tune chips
Unusual cooling ideas Unusual book resources
Chaos science resources Ten speed blender control
Thermoelectric modules Power fundamentals
Superintelligent machines A hacker interchange standard
Dew sensing circuits Huffman codes
Direct toner pc update video line drivers
Midnight Engineering Run length encoding
Hacker cold fusion kits New compaction chips
Alarm & security resources Amaterur radio astronomy
LVDT position detectors Pertual motion
Treasure finding circuitry Audio log voltmeter
Switchable analog inverter Independent research
Synchronous demodulators The Magnetocaloric effect
Desktop accessories contest Refrigeration breakthrough
Organic vapor detectors Using SAW devices
Low melting point alloys Designing active filter
Ultraviolet flame detector Digital signal processing
Alternatie energy resources Switched capacitor filters
Five band equalizer circuit Unique digital thermometer
Hall effect resources Using vortex coolers
Shape memory alloys Polyphase generators
Cycolor printing secrets Walking ring counters
Low noise amplification Magnetic refrigeration
Unusual mechanical stuff Electronic trade journals
Electronic levels Discrete cosine transforms
Low cost memory Digital sinewave generator
New form of matter More on video compression
Cases and enclosures Santa Claus machine update
LaserWriter tech info Audiovisual switcher circuit
more . . .

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Hardware Hacker III

Audio level meters Electric power research info
A cold fusion update Focused X-ray breakthrough
Alternates to patenting C-60 and the new Buckyballs
Understanding decibels Getting telephone information
Wholesale surplus sources Caller number delivery secrets
Low cost visible lasers Driving inductive loads
Electric motor resources More on phone caller ID
Induction motor controls Bakerizing and laminating
New wavelet math theory Alternators as stepper motors
dual digital potentiometer Programmable logic resources
Machine shop resources Curve fitting fuzzy data
Infrared people detection Tesla Coils and resources
Elegant simplicity contest Meeting FCC regulations
Liquid crystal battery tester Flashlight battery supplies
Exploiting paradigm shifts Thoughts on E field machines
Reloading toner cartridges SMPTE video time codes
New electronic phone book Electronic dog tag contest
More Santa Claus machines Case & enclosure resources
Secret laser printer manuals Solar energy breakthrough?
VHF & microwave resources Photovoltaic panel bargains
Electronic tuning diodes Fractals & chaos update
Two unusual newsletters Standards resource info
Parametric amplification More on FM stereo chips
Association book resources Home energy monitoring
Preventing modem dropouts Current transformer ideas
Power electronic resources Effective shielding ideas
Video crosshatch generator Computer monitor basics
More wavelet breakthroughs VGA adaptor for Mac LC
Secrets of video compression Recurrent flyback sweeps
Understanding transformation GPS navigation resources

vi
Don Lancaster’s
PostScript fractal fern
Hardware Hacker Unusual cooling ideas
Chaos science resources
Thermoelectric modules
Superintelligent machines
January, 1990
Let us start off with some new $20-30 range.
Thermoelectric Coolers
update info for our previous Solid state cooling modules use the
columns. The 38.4 Kilohertz There sure appears to be a lot of Peltier effect. Figure two shows you
crystal needed for the stereo hacker interest in the thermoelectric details. What you do is start off with
broadcaster is available for around $3 cooling devices, so let us have at it. bismuth telluride or some other semi-
from Statek, who stock quite a wide We’ll start off with the bottom line – conductor. Then you cut it up into
variety of small and cheap low freq- Besides their very high costs, these blocks while heavily p doping some
uency crystals. devices are pretty much useless, since of them and n doping others.
Because 38.4 kHz is now a standard they are so incredibly and horribly When a current is applied in the
modem value, it might end up a better inefficient. They are only workable proper direction, the electron carriers
choice than the usual 38.0 kHz stereo for very specialized and arcane appli- in the n material and the hole carriers
multiplex frequency, and should work cations where nothing else will do. in the p material will "drag" thermal
out just about as good. Probably your Thermo coolers will work only when energy along with their motions. In
best way to assemble this project, you go to ridiculous extremes on in- both cases, the towed heat travels
though, is to go to one of the kits sulation and heatsink efficiency, and downward, creating a hot side and a
offered in the classified section. then only are capable of pumping tiny cold side.
UPDATE: Improved circuits can be amounts of heat. The amount of heat you can move
found in Hardware Hacker #52. And, to further shatter some hacker depends highly upon the temperature
One interesting use for this chip is dreams, no way will they make ice in differential you have to maintain. As
to measure the torque on a rotating the real world. figure three shows us, this particular
shaft. A $1.50 part can easily replace At any rate, a thermoelectric mod- device can provide a 60 degree C dif-
a $1100 telemetry system, at a lower ule is a solid state cooling device. All ference between the hot and cold side
power and smaller size. you do is input a dc current, and heat provided you pump zero heat through
Two additional sources for heavy moves through the TE device, cooling it. On the other hand, if you do keep
water (deuterium) are that Canadian one side and heating the other. both sides at the same temperature,
Atomic Energy Commission and their Figure one shows you a typical de- you can pump up to 22 watts of heat
Isotech reps here in the US. Price is in vice. This one’s the Cambion model through the device.
the forty cents per gram range. But do 801-2007. A similar component is also In most uses, of course, you will
note that heavy water weights twice now available through Melcor. This both want to cool something off and
as much as regular water, or roughly module measures about two inches transfer heat, so you must use the
two grams per cubic centimeter. square and can move up to 22 watts of middle of the curve. For instance, you
A key cold fusion paper appears on heat when powered by a 12 volt car could pump eight watts of heat with a
pages 301-308 of Volume 261 of the battery at 7 amps. Cost new is in the 40 degree centigrade drop. To put this
Journal of Electroanalytical Chemis-
try. The EPRI Journal (the Electric
Power Research Institute) for August
89 also has some interesting info.
A few of you callers on our hacker
helpline have suggested faking those
high priced linear actuators that we
looked at two columns back. To do
this, select an ordinary stepper and
couple it to a piece of threaded rod by
using shrink tubing. Then add two
nuts and some sort of a platform to
make up a traveling slider.
Various tricks could eliminate any
backlash, and you should be able to
replace a $57 list price actuator with a
surplus $2 stepper this way.
As per usual, all of our names and
numbers have been gathered together
into the ending appendix. Fig. 1 – THERMOELECTRIC COOLING modules are fairly cheap and easy to
We seem to have a mixed bag for apply, but they are so inefficient that they are pretty much useless for any
this month… higher-power heat pumping.
25.1
Hardware Hacker
0.001 inch over its entire area. It must
then get carefully covered with a thin
layer of thermal grease. Obviously,
those portions of a module not con-
tacting the heatsink can not deliver
Electron carriers in N Hole carriers in the P any useful cooling.
material "tow" heat material "tow" heat
energy downward cold energy downward The real killer to most TM module
applications lies in the thermal drop
between the heatsink and the ambient
N P temperature. For higher power uses, a
(+) (-) fan or water cooling is essential.
For instance, a very large plain old
heatsink will have at best a 1 degree C
hot
per watt temperature rise above the
ambient. Say you want to pump the 8
watts at a 40 degree centigrade drop.
The heatsink will have to sink these 8
Fig. 2 – A THERMOELECTRIC MODULE consists of blocks of bismuth watts, plus an additional 32 watts or
telluride that have been alternately n- and p-doped. The blocks are placed so of the input power for a total of 40
electrically in series and thermally in parallel. When a DC current is applied, watts. At 1 degree C per watt heatsink
electrons in the n material and holes in the p material will tow heat along with rise, the heatsink will warm up to 40
themselves. Heat is thus pumped from cold to hot. degrees C above your ambient room
temperature.
in perspective, this module could, in two decades. Worse yet, all of these And you’ve done nothing but break
theory, make a very small ice cube in modules are horribly inefficient. In a even! The cooling module has a 40
around one hour. Assuming you’ve typical use, you’d have to input five degree drop across it. Your heatsink
got ideal conditions. watts of input power to provide just has a 40 degree rise across it. And the
The trouble is that conditions are one watt of cooling. Mechanical air net cooling is zero. You have nothing
never ideal for TE modules. There are conditioners are almost fifty times at all to show for all your effort.
a number of nasty gotchas which will more efficient than this! Worse yet, One more time. In this previous
gang up on you when you try to use you have to apply this extra heat to example, your final cooling is zero,
them in the real world. exactly where you do not want it. because the hot side of the heatsink
Thermoelectric modules are rather The heatsink you connect the hot rises just as much above ambient as
expensive, mostly because they have side of the module to must be absol- the amount of temperature drop you
not been improved one iota in the last utely flat, and be machined to within are trying to achieve! And a a one de-
gree per watt heatsink is a darn good
one. And large, too.
So, an extremely low thermal drop
from heatsink to a room ambient is
absolutely essential. Also essential is
an incredible quantity of insulation
20 around whatever you are cooling, for
any net heat flux into your area being
cooled will only make matters much
HEAT
worse than they already are.
PUMPED
IN WATTS 10 The modules can get reversed by
reversing the current. Because of the
inefficiency, the heating mode is five
times more effective than the cooling
mode. Watch this detail.
0 One side effect of this inefficiency
0 20 40 60 is that you must run the modules off
of a nearly pure direct current. The
TEMPERATURE DIFFERENCE least amount of power supply ripple
IN DEGREES C. will dramatically chop your cooling
ability, since the ripple troughs will
heat five times better than the ripple
Fig. 3 – THE AMOUNT OF HEAT PUMPED by a thermoelectric module peaks will cool your load.
depends on the temperature drop you require. Note that the heat transferred A car battery is often your best
at the maximum temperature differential is zero. Note also that the heat choice to power your TE modules.
differential is with respect to the hot end of your heat sink, and not to ambient. You might temporarily demonstrate a
25.2
January, 1990
module simply by holding a module across the room for a power source. The leading manufacturer of vortex
between your thumb and finger and At least the extra heat isn’t generated cooling nozzles seems to be Vortec.
then connecting up the module to a at precisely the wrong place, as is the Besides offering bunches of free data
single aklaline "D" cell. Do not use case with TE modules. and free cassette tapes on vortex
the "D" cell for more than a very few It turns out that rapidly moving air cooling, they also have a number of
seconds at a time. accepts heat from slowly moving air. other unsual nozzles that can do such
What good are TE modules? You Thermodynamics and all. So, if you things as air amplification.
definitely can’t buy a 4 x 8 foot panel build a suitable vortex nozzle device Another source is Exair.
of these and use them to air condition having one inlet for shop air and two As a third approach to effective
your house. But they are lots of fun to outlets, you can arrange things so that cooling, dry ice machines are amaz-
play with. These are a sure-fire topic cold air comes out one end and hot air ingly low cost and simple. Edmund
for a winning science fair project or out the other. With zero moving parts. Scientific is one source. All you do is
student paper. Besides that, though, Believe it or not, you can get as cold connect the machine to an also cheap
thermoelectrics are limited to those as the -40 degrees Farenheit dry ice carbon dioxide tank from your local
specialized and low load uses where temperatures, or else you can trade gas supplier and turn it on. Slightly
nothing else can do the job. Important off flow rates to get maximum heat over half the gas expands and boils
uses include coolers for infrared de- pumping at lower differentials. off, while the rest of it will cool and
tectors, dew point humidity sensors, One obvious use for these is as solidify into one solid block. Presto.
chillers for microscope stages, and needle coolers for industrial sewing Instant cold.
for thermal management control in machines. Any heat-caused needle Naturally, you do this only in a
satellites. breakage can be almost completely highly vented area while you are
I have often wondered why these eliminated by using a vortex nozzle. wearing safety glasses. You also will
do not get used in satellite receiver
front ends. I guess the answer is that
the gain of the input amplifier drops
faster with temperature than the noise
figure improves.
Both Cambion and Melcor do have
lots of interesting tech literature on
thermoelectrics, so you might want to
contact them both for more info.
Other Coolers
There’s three other approaches to
unusual cooling techniques that are
hacker hackable. You just might want
to pick up on these instead.
First, Japanese air conditioners are
ridiculously better than the American
ones, and have been for the past few
years. It seems that all the American
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I guess you would call this second Fig. 4 – A SERPENSKI TRIANGLE STRANGE ATTRACTOR done by using
device a solid state cooler, although PostScript. While you can enter this into most any word processor on any
you will need a large air compressor computer, a printer that accepts PostScript is needed for your final output.
25.3