Alt-BEAM Archive

Message #11156



To: beam@sgiblab.sgi.com
From: "Mike Kulesza" mikekulesza@hotmail.com
Date: Wed, 01 Mar 2000 01:24:04 GMT
Subject: [alt-beam] Si vs. Sunceram


This is a follow up on the previous message.

Someone mentioned about a .45V cell @ 1000 mA (1 A). I said that if you
break in 10, and connect in series, you'll get 100 mA @ 4.5V - could drive a
walker in theory. NOW:

I only saw those small cells at radio shack, that give 300 mA @ .55V. Break
that into say..... hmmm.... 8 pieces, connect in series, and you get 37.5 mA
@ 4.4 V. Thats seems ALOT better than any sunceram. And the overall size is
smaller too. And also better looking. Now I use suncerams myself, and know
that they are nice. But why do the silicon cells apparently "suck"? Here, in
theory they're way better than sunceram. So are suncerams really better in
practice, but worse in theory? hmmmmm....
______________________________________________________



11157 Tue, 29 Feb 2000 20:37:54 +1900 [alt-beam] which 1381 trigger beam@sgiblab.sgi.com walkau i was going to order some 1381s but i was sort of confused as to which
"flavour".

i have got solar cells that put out ~5v.

i was looking at getting the 1381J (2.7v). does it really matter that
the solar cell has a higher rating? is it just that the 1381 will
trigger when it reaches the 2.7v mark?

help.

many thanks

niels walkau



11158 Wed, 1 Mar 2000 12:45:47 +1100 (EST) [alt-beam] Re: mini walker beam@sgiblab.sgi.com Ben Hitchcock Hi,

> What
> would be best? I thought of an SE type system with a timed trigger. Is
> there a way to create an SE that triggers different pulse outputs in
> chain? I'll play with circuits. That's what we're here for anyway. New designs!

How about using a shift register? Attach the SE to an enable pin on your
motor driver (74xx240) and also to the clock pin on the shift register.
You'll also need to attach the fourth (or is it fifth?) pin of the shift
register to the data in
pin, and somehow start a pulse when there aren't any in the stream...
you'd need four diodes (one from each gate on the shift register) a
resistor and an inverter to create a pulse if none existed in the chain.

Maybe a shift register isn't such a good idea after all... 2 IC's instead
of one... Perhaps ye olde microcore could be adapted to do it.

Good luck!

Hmm maybe the bot won't be able to steer using this setup. no matter, it
will look pretty cool.

Ben



11159 Tue, 29 Feb 2000 19:39:38 -0500 Re: shack caps
> i've seen some solar panels from the shack, don't put out much voltage,
but i
> was thinkin of buyin a couple and puttin in a series, do any of you guys
know
> about these, and how good they work, i found them in the very back of a
> shelf, they were kinda hidden away, not a match for a sunceram, but would
it
> be wortha try?
>
> -Spencer
>

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