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[Note: a more rigorous calibration approach for dealing with non-linear servos can be found here.]

Clocks abound with all kinds of off-beat styles.  Here's a clock that appeals to geeks (and also works well for stealth clock watching) .

A Geeky Stealth Clock - The Time is about 4:20

The clock is patterned after an analog voltmeter.  The meter pointer indicates the time on a meter scale marked in hours, with quarter divisions indicated.  The pointer, driven by a servo motor, starts at 12 o'clock on the left, ending at 12 o'clock on the right.  The meter pointer travels slowly to the right, indicating the current time.  At 12 o'clock, the pointer rapidly transverses from right to left, restarting the process.

Graham has a great explanation of servos in the Proton section.  Servos have been a mainstay in RC (radio control) cars and planes and more recently in robotics.  Turns out they are pretty simple to use.  Servos can be used in two ways; the traditional way (used here) is to turn through about 180 degrees to a known position to operate a control surface, or to turn a wheel for steering.  Servos can also be modified for continuous rotation, perhaps for driving a robot.  When modified for continuous rotation, the speed and direction is easy to control, but the position of the servo can't be determined.

To build the clock, finding a suitable enclosure is the first step.  The servo is about 1.25" tall, so some depth is needed.  A deep picture frame might be a good option.  I found a wood box used for a smoked salmon gift at the thrift store for this clock.  Once the enclosure is selected, making the meter scale is the next step.  I used a drawing program to create the scale.  Depending on the enclosure, an arc of 90 degrees or 120 degrees works well.  I divided the scale into 12 major increments for hours, with 4 minor increments showing quarter hours.  I sized my drawing to fit on an 8" x 10" sheet, then printed it at a photo kiosk to get a nice glossy face.  After trimming, I attached it to the enclosure with spray mount adhesive. A sample meter face for a 120 degree arc is here. A 90 degree face is here.

In this application, I used a standard type 4310 Futaba servo, which was about $10 at the local hobby store.  The smallest min-servo would be suitable for this application as there is no force being transmitted. The pointer is a piece of carbon fiber rod also from the hobby store, although a piece of piano wire would work as well.  The rod is attached to a servo arm (instead of the supplied disk) using some heat shrink tubing.  A red piece of heat shrink was added for the pointer.  The servo was mounted to the back of the enclosure panel using double-faced tape.  Position the hole for the servo carefully at the center of the arc to ensure accuracy.

The picture below shows the enclosure.  The back side is used as the meter face.

The Enclosure

Graham's servo description covers the basics nicely.  Swordfish doesn't have a specific servo module, but pulsing an output pin high and low with delay commands is fine for this application.  The "on" time of the servo over a 20,000 usec period controls the angle of rotation.  A 1,500 usec pulse width results in mid-scale rotation.  Something around 1,000 usec reaches the extreme rotation to one side, about 2,000 usec is the maximum rotation in the other direction.  It is important not to drive the servo too far - it has mechanical stops and something will break if driven too far.

The "calibration" step is about the most difficult part of the project.  Write a simple program to pulse the output pin at 1,500 ms. Position the pointer on the servo to indicate approximately 6 o'clock at this position.  The servo arm is splined so get it as close as possible but pointing at exactly 6 o'clock isn't required.

Next, pulse the servo at 2,000 usec to determine the end point position.  In my case, the servo is made for counterclockwise rotation, so the "maximum" position is near the left end of of the scale.  Adjust the pulse width until the pointer lines up exactly with the 12 o'clock position.  Since this is a one-time operation, I just "brute forced" it and reloaded the program several times to determine the value.  Repeat the process for the other end point.  This scaling controls how well the pointer actually corresponds to the time, so get it as close as possible.  Depending on the linearity of the servo, this may be all that's required for calibration.  See the note on linearity below.

Time-keeping is based on Warren Schroeder's methods on the Swordfish web page, counting clock cycles.  I modified Warren's fourth method in the following program.  Modifications were made to use a 20 MHz crystal instead of 8 MHz as used in the example.  To achieve decent accuracy, an external crystal must be used; a PIC's internal oscillator will not be accurate enough for good time keeping.  For increased accuracy, a real time clock chip could be used. The current time is updated once each second, which is overkill for this project.  The servo resolution is approximately 1 minute using the DelayMS() command.  The servo position is updated each second through a simple procedure.  Since nothing else is happening in this program, no interrupts are needed to control the servo.

There are 42,300 seconds in 12 hours.  Seconds are counted from zero starting at 12:00 until 42,300 is reached, when the counter is reset to zero.  The fraction of seconds for 12 hours (current count / 43,200) is multiplied by the meter span to determine position.  Note that integer math is used here and this fraction is less than 1, so it equates to zero in integer terms - the multiplication by meter span must be done before the division.  This is totally unclear.

To power the clock, a 5 volt power supply was salvaged from a cell phone.  The servo draws around 10 mA continuously, and peaks at about 100 mA during the brief period the servo is returning from one side to the other.

A Note About Linearity

My prototype tests were done using a meter arc with 90 degree span.  The results achieved by calibrating the two end points were very good and the clock could be read with good accuracy.  For the enclosure shown, I expanded the meter arc to 120 degrees.  Turns out the servo is slightly non-linear over this range to the point that time readings were too far off.  I made measurements at quarter-hour increments, comparing what looked right visually to calculated values.  The results, shown below, aren't far off but it's enough to throw the results off.  I used a simple scheme to linearize the data using a CASE SELCT command.

The Circuit

The clock runs on a PIC18F1320 (which I happened to have), hand-assembled on a pref board.  A picture of the board and a schematic are shown below.  Most PIC 18F series will work for this circuit - a proto-board with an 18F452 was used for code development, The two buttons are for setting the time.  Because the servo has its own internal electronics, it has 3 connections for control signal, power and ground.  No high-current drivers are needed by the circuit.

PIC18F1320 on Perfboard

The black 6 conductor wire at the upper right is from the PICKit 2 programmer.  The 3 conductor wire is the servo cable.  The power supply isn't hooked up yet - power is supplied by the PICKit2.

The Schematic

The Assembled Clock

Program Listing

{
***********************************************************************
*  Name    : Servo_Clock.bas                                          *
*  Author  : Jon Chandler                                             *
*  Notice  : Copyright (c) 2010 Jon Chandler                          *
*          : All Rights Reserved                                      *
*  Date    : 1/4/2010                                                 *
*  Version : 1.0                                                      *
*  Notes   : Servo-driven geeky clock with Real Time Clock            *
*          : fucntions based on Warren Schroeder's methods            *
*          : using PR2 Free Running Timer                             *
* http://www.sfcompiler.co.uk/wiki/pmwiki.php?n=SwordfishUser.SoftRTC *
*                                                                     *
* Presented to: http://digital-diy.com/  by Jon Chandler              *
*                                                                     *
* Timekeeping depends on a 20 MHz crystal                             *
***********************************************************************
}
 
Device = 18F1320
'Clock = 8
 Clock = 20
Include "utils.bas"
 
Include ("utils.bas")
 
 
Dim Set_Fast As PORTB.0  'push buttons for setting time
 Dim Set_Slow As PORTB.1
 
Dim Servo As PORTB.4
 
 
{
   For One Second Update:
 
   8MHz Fosc = 2MHz internal clock = 0.5us per cycle (timer count)
   Use 16-bit Timer1, No Prescaler
   Set CCPR1 = 50000; Timer1 resets on match every 50000 counts = 25000us
   Each Timer1 reset requires 1 cycle compensation... so set CCPR1 = 49999
   40 interrupts x 25000us each = 1 second
}
 
{
   For One Second Update: 20 MHz
 
   20MHz Fosc = 5MHz internal clock = 0.2us per cycle (timer count)
   Use 16-bit Timer1, No Prescaler
   Set CCPR1 = 50000; Timer1 resets on match every 50000 counts = 10000us
   Each Timer1 reset requires 1 cycle compensation... so set CCPR1 = 49999
   100 interrupts x 10000us each = 1 second
}
 
 
Dim C1 As Word Absolute $0FBE             ' CCPR1L + CCPR1H
 Dim Int_Counter As LongWord             
Dim update As Boolean
Dim secs,mins,hrs As LongWord
Dim Posit As Word
 
Interrupt RTC()
   Dec(Int_Counter)
   If Int_Counter = 0 Then            
      Int_Counter = 100                    ' each interrupt = 10000us x 100 int's = 1 second
       update = true                      
   End If
   PIR1.2 = 0                             ' clear CCP1 interrupt flag  
End Interrupt
 
Sub Clock24()
 Dim clk As String
    Inc(secs)
    If secs =  43200 Then                     ' check each tally for rollover
       secs = 0
 
    End If
    update = false 
 
   Posit = 2029  - secs*(2029-950)/43200
 
   'Note: For the servo used, maxium rotation was counter-clockwise.  A time
   'of 2039 usec corresponds to the zero position.  A time of 950 usec corresponds
   'to the maximum position.  This must be determined by experimentation for each
   'servo used.
   '43,200 = number of seconds in 12 hours.
 
   'linearize output - Note: this may not be needed and depends on the sefvo used
 
   Select Posit
 
        Case > 2010
            Posit = Posit  
 
        Case > 1960
            Posit = Posit - 7  
 
        Case > 1870
            Posit = Posit -12  
 
        Case > 1660
            Posit = Posit -18 
 
        Case > 1560 
            Posit = Posit -12 
 
        Case > 1500
            Posit = Posit -9  
 
        Case > 1180
            Posit = Posit -6 
 
        Case > 0
            Posit = Posit -4 
 
     End Select   
 
End Sub
 
Sub Initialize() 'timekeeping routine
   ADCON1 = 15
   secs = 0
   mins = 0
   hrs = 0
   Int_Counter = 100
   update = false
   INTCON = 192                           ' enable GIE & PEIE
   T1CON = 0                              ' no prescaler timer OFF
   TMR1H = 0                              ' clear TMR1
   TMR1L = 0
   CCP1CON = 11                           ' enable special trigger event
   C1 = 49999                             ' set match value
   PIE1.2 = 1                             ' enable CCP1 interrupt
   PIR1.2 = 0                             ' clear CCP1 interrupt flag
   T1CON.0 = 1                            ' Timer1 ON
   Enable(RTC)                            ' enable jump to RTC ISR
End Sub
 
Sub settime()
    Clock24
 
    End Sub
 
 
     Posit = 0
 
 
   Initialize
 
      secs = 0 'initialize to 12:00.
 
 
   SetAllDigital
 
   While 1=1
 
 
 
    If update = true Then
         Clock24                          ' update 24H Clock output
    End If
 
    High(PORTB.4)          'create servo pulse corresponding to position and
    DelayUS(Posit)         'repeatedly send approximately every 200 milliseconds
    Low (PORTB.4)
    DelayUS(20000-Posit)
 
    'clock set procedure
    If Set_Fast = 0 Then   'increment seconds at 10x and free run
        secs = secs +9
        update = true
    EndIf
 
    If set_slow = 0 Then    'free run - i.e., don't wait for timer interrupt
        update = true
    EndIf
 
   Wend
 

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Comments (15)

• 2010-01-04 01:09:56 | Jon Chandler

  I posted an article on a clock for all of us geeks, based on a servo. Enjoy.

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• 2010-01-04 20:26:26 | Graham

  Innovative project Jon - Creative way to put servo’s to work!

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• 2010-01-04 12:31:29 | MrDEB

  And I thought I have seen every imaginable clock. This is a unique idea to say the least.

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• 2010-02-12 09:37:36 | Graham

  EDIT: would appear that image support within comments has been broken in a recent update - the download link is still completely functional though.

  Well done Jon, you've got me making one of these already!

  Thanks for sharing the clock faces - will make life a lot easier for those making one their own geek clocks. I was looking for a slightly different style to the clock face, and after an hour or two of *re-learning* my image editing software I had something that appeared half decent.

  It's a high resolution 120 degree clock face dial (8081x5001 pixels) which would suit a very large clock face should the need arise. It can be easily down scaled in most image editing programs to suit smaller clocks (simply downscale the size of the image - various ways of doing this in different programs).
  

  Download here http://digital-diy.com/file-browser/doc_download/37-120d egreeclockface.html
  I've still got the project files and can make changes of any type if required.

  PS - There is a 5 degree 'comfort' factor on either end of the scale, physically making it exactly 110 Degrees

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• 2010-01-05 09:52:54 | Harold

  5 stars, thanks!

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• 2010-01-05 13:27:37 | Jon Chandler

  Very nice clock face Graham - I like it. It adds just a touch of flair to my plain face.

  
  Jon

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• 2010-01-05 21:57:29 | Jon Chandler

  I'm looking forward to seeing other implementations of this idea! I this you guys can take the basic idea and make it really special.

  One thought I've had is to make a pair of "sideways" meters, like a VU meter setup, with hours on the left and minutes on the right.

  Jon
  

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• 2010-01-09 16:27:37 | ravi  - project

  A Clock for Geeks

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• 2010-01-12 14:41:49 | andyo

  Love this. Definitely going to have a go at building one of my own.

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• 2010-01-16 16:01:50 | Jon Chandler

  Woohoo...it's official. I'm a geek! The clock got posted on Hack-a-Day!

  http://hackad ay.com/2010/01/16/volt-meter-clock/

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• 2010-01-16 16:47:19 | brett_cgb  - Non-linearity

  I suspect the non-linearity you've noticed may be due to the center of gravity (CG) of the needle not matching with the center of rotation.

  The CG of the needle is where the needle balances if you were to balance it on your finger. This is the point where the needle should be attached to the servo, and reduces the torque the needle applies to the servo. A counter balance can move the CG towards the center of rotation, but increases the overall weight/mass of the pointer (not a problem here).

  Not that the servo can't handle the torque and weight, but there is always some mechanical slop in the physical system. A minor improvement would be to include a light spring on the servo shaft to apply a light, consistent torque (same direction, almost constant force) to reduce slop to zero in one direction (don't care about the other direction).

  After that, you're left with gear cogging - can't do much about that. This would be a cyclic error across the range of motion.

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• 2010-01-16 17:24:43 | Jon Chandler

  Actually, the non-linearity was noticed and calibrated with the clock laying flat, so no gravity at play there. Setting it upright made no difference in position. With a 90 degree sweep, the non-linearity was not noticeable. It's only with the 120 degree sweep where the needle would be on the wrong side of a given mark.

  I believe the particular servo I used is spec'd for a 90 degree swing. It will actually swing more than 180 degrees, but the accuracy isn't as good.

  Jon

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• 2010-01-21 00:08:57 | RJ  - AWESOME.

  if anyone comes up with a pre-programmed PIC for this please let me know, I dont have the technology to program one of these and would LOVE to make this clock.
  

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• 2010-01-21 07:05:46 | Jon Chandler

  The software needs some customization to go with a particular servo. Even if no linearization is needed, the end points would need adjusting for a given servo. When the "throw-away PIC" boards come, I could possibly a servo and a board with a programmed PIC on it.....

  On the other hand, the free version of Swordfish should be able to handle this program, and a PICKit 2 programmer is only $35, so this might be a good excuse to start programming on your own.

  I recently got some micro servos from Hobbypartz.com for less than $3 which should work great for this.

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• 2010-01-30 08:52:19 | Jon Chandler

  I've been working on a better way to calibrate the servo for both the end points and to correct any non-linearities a given servo might have. With the first clock, I used the brute force approach to find the end points and modified/reloaded the program to find the exact points. For determining the linearity, I printed values to an LCD on my development board while in the "fast set" mode.

  An easier method, and also a nice method to set the clock, is to use a pot to fed one of the analog input pins while printing values to the serial port. Dial the pot the correct position and print the pulse width to either the hardware or software UART. The PICKit 2 is handy for getting this data to the PC. The same method could also be used to set the time. Turn the pot to make the hand line up with the correct time and press a switch to load it.

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