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-   -   Retired Launch Controller (http://www.oldrocketforum.com/showthread.php?t=17888)

tbzep 05-01-2019 09:29 PM

Retired Launch Controller
 
1 Attachment(s)
I've tried, but I can't get my classic controller working anymore. It has been flaky and had some dead digits on the 8 segment LED displays. I touched up the soldering on them and got all the segments to work, but the system was still flaky, sometimes turning on with odd number segments lit up, and occasionally firing on power up if the leads had continuity. I could usually cycle the power and get it to work correctly. It counted down and fired correctly on several test runs. Then for some reason it started hitting the relay as soon as I hit the start button. I've looked for any contamination on the components and the runs on the board. I've re-seated all the chips. It got wonky about 20 years ago and I replaced all the socketed parts like the 555 IC's and such. I may try that one more time. I'm no electrician, much less an electrical engineer. I can read simple schematics, so I can slowly verify everything is wired correctly on the I/O board, but that's about it.

It was designed and built for me by my cousin. He needed a project in one of his electrical engineering classes so I was only out the cost of surplus Radio Shack parts (his dad owned one for a while). He went on to work on EF-111's and who knows what else at Warner Robbins AFB. Sadly, I haven't seen him in nearly 40 years. He and his brother introduced me to model rocketry.

Shreadvector 05-02-2019 10:05 AM

Have you tried talking to it?


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h73PsFKtIck




Quote:
Originally Posted by tbzep
I've tried, but I can't get my classic controller working anymore. It has been flaky and had some dead digits on the 8 segment LED displays. I touched up the soldering on them and got all the segments to work, but the system was still flaky, sometimes turning on with odd number segments lit up, and occasionally firing on power up if the leads had continuity. I could usually cycle the power and get it to work correctly. It counted down and fired correctly on several test runs. Then for some reason it started hitting the relay as soon as I hit the start button. I've looked for any contamination on the components and the runs on the board. I've re-seated all the chips. It got wonky about 20 years ago and I replaced all the socketed parts like the 555 IC's and such. I may try that one more time. I'm no electrician, much less an electrical engineer. I can read simple schematics, so I can slowly verify everything is wired correctly on the I/O board, but that's about it.

It was designed and built for me by my cousin. He needed a project in one of his electrical engineering classes so I was only out the cost of surplus Radio Shack parts (his dad owned one for a while). He went on to work on EF-111's and who knows what else at Warner Robbins AFB. Sadly, I haven't seen him in nearly 40 years. He and his brother introduced me to model rocketry.

tbzep 05-02-2019 10:18 AM

Quote:
Originally Posted by Shreadvector
Have you tried talking to it?


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h73PsFKtIck

Yes, but it was more like this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xaVgRj2e5_s


.

matthew 05-02-2019 04:14 PM

If there are any electrolytic capacitors in there, I'd replace them as a first step.

teflonrocketry1 05-02-2019 08:27 PM

Quote:
Originally Posted by matthew
If there are any electrolytic capacitors in there, I'd replace them as a first step.


I second that motion! Electrolytic capacitors are prone to degrade over time. I once got an email from an electrolytic capacitor manufacturer stating that they had neglected put a stabilizer in the paste they use inside the capacitors they were manufacturing for years; visit the capacitor plague at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capacitor_plague . On the computer mother boards I have repaired when the electrolytic capacitors around the RAM chips start to fail the computer starts to behave oddly, similar as described.

tbzep 05-02-2019 09:08 PM

None are leaking or swelled like I used to see with bad motherboard capacitors. I may try to resurrect it when I finally get some time off to fool with it. I'll see about replacing caps at that point.

I put a straight 2.2v to the old LED's and they were much brighter than with the board supplied power. I will need to look into the onboard voltages if I end up trying to get it going again. I could see them in bright indirect light when it was new. They are very dim now.

ghrocketman 05-02-2019 09:55 PM

+1 more to replacing all the electrolytic caps whether they "look" bad or not.

kapton 05-03-2019 11:54 AM

Quote:
Originally Posted by tbzep
I put a straight 2.2v to the old LED's and they were much brighter than with the board supplied power.


LED's are current driven devices, not voltage driven. You need to drive them from a constant current (or pseudo-CC) source. Typically that means using a resistor in series with the LED.

Driving directly from a voltage source can easily result in excessive current draw and destruction of the LED.

ghrocketman 05-03-2019 01:04 PM

Absolutely. Directly driving an LED w/o a series resistor will result in blown said LED quickly.

tbzep 05-03-2019 06:58 PM

I used a power supply that I can dial in current and voltage. Current was turned down, but I don't recall what it was reading.

Newbomb Turk 05-06-2019 07:57 PM

That's a beautiful piece of work by your cousin, Zep.

tbzep 05-06-2019 09:32 PM

Quote:
Originally Posted by Newbomb Turk
That's a beautiful piece of work by your cousin, Zep.

Thanks. He had a much fancier version for himself. I wish I had some pics of it. His pad had hold down clamps for clusters. It sensed when continuity was broken on all igniters and it released the model. I believe his umbilical tower had some functions as well.

tbzep 05-29-2019 12:19 AM

Good news. I've got it working again. The boards are laid out on my workbench and I'm not done with it yet, but it's getting there. I replaced all but one of the electrolytic caps. I needed a 22uF 35v but I only had some 16v and 25v. Got a few ordered, but in the mean time, it's working with that old cap.

I replaced a dead LED and the new one is WAY brighter than the rest. I'll replace them all while I'm at it. Good thing I got a bag of 100!

tbzep 05-30-2019 12:21 AM

Got all the LED's replaced. The countdown timer is about 13% too fast. I've got it set at a minute and it takes about 52 seconds. It uses a 25k ohm variable trimmer resistor tied in with the 555 chip. I vaguely remember Eddie telling me that it ran slightly fast and was adjusted out as far as it would go. I don't know if it's a little faster now or if it's about the same as it has always been, considering it's been probably 10 years since I've used it.

I've learned a considerable amount about electronics making the repairs and I've got pretty good at soldering small components. The controller will be ready for July 20, but I don't know if I'll have a Saturn V ready to go.

Woops, I see one of the LED mounting clips is pushed up. Fixed.

Video
http://sendvid.com/0a9hbjc0


ghrocketman 05-30-2019 12:38 AM

Very Nice !
Now get that Saturn V ready.


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