Theramax Theremin

This is a working Theremax Theremin. Here's a pic with the top off.

Tube Tester

This is a tube tester. More specifically, it's an EICO model 625. It hasn't been tested as of yet, but it looks to be in good working condition. This will definatly help to test the bucket of tubes lying around.

Senocore ss137

This is a picture of the Senocore ss137. It is essentially a TV tester. With the throwaway culture of modern life, we've got more TV's than time to spend time fixing them, but I'm sure that a use will be found for this piece of equipment or its components.

Electrosurgical Generator: Cameron Miller 255

Here's a weird one:

This is a picture of a Cameron-Miller 255, an electrosurgical generator. It is used for different kinds of surgery, including cutting and cauterization. It accomplishes this by heating up the tissue between the electrodes with current, in the range of 0-100 watts. It's pretty easy to tell that this was made a while back because it is constructed from more modern ones, but the label was removed and a quick search reveals no results.

There might be some useful parts inside which could be reused, but I think it is best left off until someone figures out a use for it. Any ideas?

Webster Chicago Wire Recorder

This is a Webster Chicago wire recorder. It was manufactured sometime between 1945 and 1955.
Wire recorders store audio by magnetizing a fine wire and storing it on a reel for playback. The wire moves by the heads at about 24 inches per second.
This wire recorder was manufactured under license from the Armour Research Foundation.
We haven't got around to turning it on yet, and we are considering encoding data into audio and eventually using a wire recorder to store pictures and other data.

UPS's, MOSFETS, PWM and more!

This post will discuss an idea related to the circuitry inside UPS's and a possible application. Now I don't take credit for this idea, I am posting it here to get input on whether you/readers think it is feasible, or have any suggestions on its implementation.This is a picture of the circuit board of a UPS. There are many dead UPS's lying around the ACCRC.
This is a closeup of a bunch of the heatsink, which cools off a group of mosfets wired in parallel, the main current shifter. Each one of these mosfets, an irf3710, is capable of dissipating 50 watts. (according to the irf3710 datasheet) So together, they can supply 1000 watts, easily enough for a powerful motor.

The idea is to take these mosfets, and use them as the basis for a scalable high-wattage motor controller. When I was building a robot (more on that in a later post), the hardest part of the initial hardware design was getting a motor controller circuit which could put out suitable current to drive the motors. Motor controllers are expensive, and the lack of them is the main restricting factor of a lot of the electric vehicle/robot work that goes on here. Anyways, the mosfets would be wired in parallel, allowing for scalability. They would take input from a computer or a microcontroller which puts out PWM, like the arduino board, or the circuit based off a parallel port, as described at http://lukecole.name/parallelport_pwm_driver.php.

Combined with easy pwm circuitry, these mosfet arrays will make it a heck of a lot easier and cheaper to conduct robotic and electric vehicle research. Any questions/suggestions?

8-Track Stereo

An 8-Track player stereo system. It can also play AM and FM radio. It hasn't been tested, but appears to be in fine condition. As seen below, it can fold out, and is very portable.

Digital Trainer

This is a rather unusual item. It is a logic trainer k-80, a piece of hardware designed to train people in digital electronics. It has a breadboard, various buttons to control the clock, and places to plug in wires to connect the various components and circuits within. Seems like a good way to learn basic digital electronics.

WWII Oscilloscope

This is a WWII era oscilloscope in its carrying case. It is from the US Navy, and has a manual.

Above: out of its case
The manual.

Oscilloscopes

A shelf of oscilloscopes have been gathering some serious dust. One or two of them are Heathkits. There's a couple old TV's, a vectorscope, and a multimeter or two (including a simpson), as well. Here's another close-up pic of a couple oscilloscopes: