#garfield Logs

Jun 16 2025

07:56 AM rue_mohr: the factory I know here used mercury contactors, just on a controller with a really long pulse time.
08:11 AM rue_mohr: but its got a temp controller...
08:11 AM rue_mohr: yea, that all looks ok
08:25 AM rifraf: yep, i don't think this is a profile controller either
08:26 AM rifraf: nut all that can be added, having a solid oven is the best start, no way i could make even a smaller one for the price if we consider time
08:27 AM rue_mohr: 2400w dosn't matter, the insulation quality does
08:27 AM rifraf: this should evenm melt aluminium, he reckons it will get to about 1000C
08:27 AM rifraf: very well insulated as you can see
08:27 AM rue_mohr: yep
08:27 AM rue_mohr: looks descent
08:27 AM rifraf: and even the door has an element
08:27 AM rifraf: with a funnt huge limit switch
08:28 AM rue_mohr: the controllers that factory used were expensive, I should see if I can find them for you
08:29 AM rifraf: even a nice slide out tray below to catch stuff that melts out
08:29 AM rue_mohr: tho, honestly, the arduino based toaster oven controllers should work fine on that
08:29 AM rifraf: the guy leaves AU tomnorrow, but back in 6 weeks if i have issues
08:30 AM rifraf: man he had some stuff in the shed, lots of CNC lathes everything
08:30 AM rifraf: and he makes bicycle frames
08:31 AM rue_mohr: need to go wire a hospital for 8 hrs, see ya later
08:31 AM rifraf: had a beautiful old chuck i might have to get, keyless like the one on my watchmaker lathe, 4"
08:31 AM rifraf: all the best, hope you are ok
08:31 AM rifraf: oh work
08:31 AM rifraf: cya
12:51 PM aandrew: man I love the cJSON library. such a great implementation for a JSON parser without a lot of overhead
12:51 PM aandrew: it can even us custom memory allocators
04:44 PM aandrew: https://www.reddit.com/r/functionalprint/comments/1lcrsvl/injection_mould_for_custom_silicone_gaskets/
04:44 PM aandrew: that's some nice gaskets
04:45 PM Tom_L: rpi5 is nice compared to rpi4
05:00 PM rifraf: https://desire3d.com/images/public/kiln/wiring1.jpg https://desire3d.com/images/public/kiln/wiring2.jpg
05:04 PM aandrew: I haven't played with an rpi5 yet
05:06 PM rifraf: have not found entry point for main power lead yet, thermocouple to pins 15 & 16 on PID controller, blue wire to the cut blue wire on carpet in second image i reckon (to the simmerstat), and red and white as well looking at the connectors
05:06 PM rifraf: have a good day people
06:55 PM rue_mohr: wait link me the cjson
06:56 PM rue_mohr: rifraf, EASY!
07:23 PM aandrew: rue_mohr: https://github.com/DaveGamble/cJSON
07:23 PM aandrew: I bought a cheap laser measuring tape ($20) - it's just a module with a micro talking over a UART
07:24 PM Tom_L: how accurate is it?
07:24 PM aandrew: I've managed to decipher most of the protocol in the last 30m or so, it's really simple. in fact the biggest problem was that it defaults to measuring from the "bottom" of the unit instead of the "top" where it actually does the measuring and that was throwing off the correlation between what the screen showed and what the serial port showed
07:24 PM aandrew: accurate enough for what I need it for
07:25 PM aandrew: I'll buy a couple more
07:25 PM aandrew: the micro handles the buttons and the display, the module itself only concerns itself with the laser and measuring
07:26 PM Tom_L: you still in ca or did you go back to ca?
07:26 PM Tom_L: :)
07:26 PM aandrew: $0003260130& turns the laser on, $00022123& seems to trigger a measurement. The module doesn't respond to laser on, but always replies immediately $00023335& to a "take a measurement" command
07:27 PM Tom_L: hmm i didn't realize you were reverse engineering it
07:27 PM aandrew: then it sends back $000621xxxxxxxxxx& where those x's are literally what is on the display, in meters down to the nearest mm
07:27 PM aandrew: how accurate that is remains to be seen, I'm just eyeballing it for now
07:28 PM aandrew: I guess the module itself is handling temperature compensation and so on because there's really no other messaging
07:28 PM aandrew: it does send/respond to a command when I hit the power button when it's already on but no idea what for
07:28 PM aandrew: I'm in Canada for the next 6 weeks
07:29 PM Tom_L: riot avoidance
07:29 PM aandrew: son is back here for the rest of high school, getting just too damn crazy in the states and I don't want to take the chance of ICE picking him up even if he's released immediately
07:29 PM aandrew: actually my trip was impeccably timed. My luck is NEVER that good
07:29 PM Tom_L: heh
07:34 PM aandrew: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0DN5XTZYH - cheap and easy to use.
07:35 PM aandrew: you can even hit the serial port without taking it apart, it has little holes between the batteries for 3.3V, GND, TXD and RXD
08:17 PM aandrew: wow
08:17 PM aandrew: that was almost too easy
08:18 PM aandrew: wired up to an arduino, have the target 80mm from the output, it's spitting out $00023335&$0003263766&$00023335&$0006210000063568&
08:18 PM aandrew: $00023335& are the ACKs
08:18 PM aandrew: no idea what $0003263766& is
08:19 PM aandrew: $0006210000063568& is 000621 = measurement, 00000635 is 0.635m (635mm) and I'm guessing 66 is the checksum
08:19 PM aandrew: that's an old value though
08:19 PM aandrew: with the target 80mm away I'm getting $0006210000008613& whcih is 86mm
08:20 PM aandrew: and yeah those last two are a checksum
08:20 PM aandrew: $0006210000008714&
08:20 PM aandrew: $0006210000008613&
08:21 PM aandrew: $0006210000008815&
08:40 PM aandrew: I can't believe how easy that was
10:19 PM rue_mohr: aandrew, welcome back to safety
10:20 PM rue_mohr: aandrew, could you gather those notes and post something?
10:21 PM rue_mohr: I got a multifunction printer that does scan to pdf
10:21 PM rue_mohr: df
10:21 PM rue_mohr: er
10:22 PM rue_mohr: I got a multifunction printer that does scan to usb
10:22 PM rue_mohr: now I can scan my whole schematics book
10:22 PM rue_mohr: in less than years
10:24 PM Tom_L: heh
10:24 PM Tom_L: scan to usb? where does it go?
10:25 PM rue_mohr: aha, the laser measure cant be purchased from my location
10:25 PM rue_mohr: you stick in a usb stick
10:25 PM rue_mohr: it SLOWLY saves the scan to it
10:26 PM Tom_L: i'm quite impressed with this rpi5
10:26 PM rue_mohr: and makes a document about as large as you would expect from a embedded tiff
10:26 PM rue_mohr: ok
10:26 PM Tom_L: boots in 10 sec
10:26 PM rue_mohr: how long you had a 5?
10:26 PM Tom_L: a day
10:26 PM rue_mohr: hah, ok
10:27 PM rue_mohr: ok I got to bed now Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
10:27 PM rue_mohr: (have to wake up early tomoroow
10:27 PM rue_mohr: )
10:27 PM Tom_L: me too
10:27 PM Tom_L: later
10:27 PM rue_mohr: super stoked I can scan my whole circuits book before I die of old age
10:28 PM Tom_L: yer a pup
10:29 PM rue_mohr: I do create the schematics at a particular rate ya know
10:29 PM rue_mohr: I'v maxed out the 3" 3 ring
10:30 PM rue_mohr: I literally have to start breaking it into volumes