Hello all.... a very low tech question (maybe refreshing? or interesting at least!) Pics below!
BACKGROUND:
I have a 1800's style US Weather Bureau mechanical wind-vane device, with a later style (1950's - 60's?) indicator-light panel. When I got them, no wires connected the two together. There must have been a tube type answer before, but if I can fit the "new" interface in the existing light box, which has room at the corners (the lights are in a circle), I'll use any solution.
DESCRIPTION
Simple enough: the wind-vane contact device is heavy brass by Julien P. Friez (Balt.) in the style of a music-box; there are 4 output terminals and a ground terminal. The 4 raised areas on a spool close 1 or 2 of the 4 brass contact outputs when the spool rotates. The elevated sections overlap so that when the wind is between N and E say, both N and E contacts close.
The display panel is by MC Stewart (Boston), and has N, E, S, W, and NE, SE, NW, SW, and "V" lamps (I assume the V means voltage). with on/off switch inline with a common ground to all 8 lamps, and each lamp has it's own a wire going to the center post. However, I can't tell what type of lamps these are, DC I assume. They're like auto-side light types: small, glass is same witdth as the base, with fairly bright blue insulator keeping the two terminals apart. It is a modern screw-in lamp. Has "46" stamped in black on the base, but nothing else. 2.7 ohms across the terminals.
IN SHORT:
Soooo... I have a "simple" 4-input to a 8-output application question!
MY BACKGROUND: (!) I have a background in Computer Science, with electronics. I can put together any circuit, but being unpracticed, I'm embarrassed to say I can't get anywhere past a crude and voluminous "and" gate solution, and don't even remember if I can put voltages through that AND-gate solution anyway without burning the place down.
I did draw up a truth table, but I can't remember what to do with it since I don't have a single binary output...
N, E, S, W, Condition
0 0 0 0, <NA>
0 0 0 1, W
0 0 1 0, S
0 0 1 1, SW
0 1 0 0, E
0 1 0 1, <NA>
0 1 1 0, SE
0 1 1 1, <NA>
1 0 0 0, N
1 0 0 1, NW
1 0 1 0, <NA>
1 0 1 1, <NA>
1 1 0 0, NE
1 1 0 1, <NA>
1 1 1 0, <NA>
1 1 1 1, <NA>
Now the pitch! Where do I go from here? How much voltage am I likely to use (and DC?); Is there some kind of a 4 bit D-to-A converter I need? The current likely went through the contacts (they are burnt/worn like it would over time), but I assume with an elegant solution, the current in wires going from the contact switches into the display light box can be separated from the current that lights the bulbs. (for fire safety)
Thank you so much in advance for being here to answer questions like this!!!! I appreciate any help anyone can give me!
Jason
BACKGROUND:
I have a 1800's style US Weather Bureau mechanical wind-vane device, with a later style (1950's - 60's?) indicator-light panel. When I got them, no wires connected the two together. There must have been a tube type answer before, but if I can fit the "new" interface in the existing light box, which has room at the corners (the lights are in a circle), I'll use any solution.
DESCRIPTION
Simple enough: the wind-vane contact device is heavy brass by Julien P. Friez (Balt.) in the style of a music-box; there are 4 output terminals and a ground terminal. The 4 raised areas on a spool close 1 or 2 of the 4 brass contact outputs when the spool rotates. The elevated sections overlap so that when the wind is between N and E say, both N and E contacts close.
The display panel is by MC Stewart (Boston), and has N, E, S, W, and NE, SE, NW, SW, and "V" lamps (I assume the V means voltage). with on/off switch inline with a common ground to all 8 lamps, and each lamp has it's own a wire going to the center post. However, I can't tell what type of lamps these are, DC I assume. They're like auto-side light types: small, glass is same witdth as the base, with fairly bright blue insulator keeping the two terminals apart. It is a modern screw-in lamp. Has "46" stamped in black on the base, but nothing else. 2.7 ohms across the terminals.
IN SHORT:
Soooo... I have a "simple" 4-input to a 8-output application question!
MY BACKGROUND: (!) I have a background in Computer Science, with electronics. I can put together any circuit, but being unpracticed, I'm embarrassed to say I can't get anywhere past a crude and voluminous "and" gate solution, and don't even remember if I can put voltages through that AND-gate solution anyway without burning the place down.
I did draw up a truth table, but I can't remember what to do with it since I don't have a single binary output...
N, E, S, W, Condition
0 0 0 0, <NA>
0 0 0 1, W
0 0 1 0, S
0 0 1 1, SW
0 1 0 0, E
0 1 0 1, <NA>
0 1 1 0, SE
0 1 1 1, <NA>
1 0 0 0, N
1 0 0 1, NW
1 0 1 0, <NA>
1 0 1 1, <NA>
1 1 0 0, NE
1 1 0 1, <NA>
1 1 1 0, <NA>
1 1 1 1, <NA>
Now the pitch! Where do I go from here? How much voltage am I likely to use (and DC?); Is there some kind of a 4 bit D-to-A converter I need? The current likely went through the contacts (they are burnt/worn like it would over time), but I assume with an elegant solution, the current in wires going from the contact switches into the display light box can be separated from the current that lights the bulbs. (for fire safety)
Thank you so much in advance for being here to answer questions like this!!!! I appreciate any help anyone can give me!
Jason
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