
I have this older soviet microscopy cold light/fibre optics source “ОБ” for MБС-10 microscopes. In order to increase the life of the 12V 75W halogen lamp inside I wanted a slow start circuit that first limits the current through the bulb such that the latter can preheat a bit before it goes over to full power. To accomplish this I built a simple NE555 timer circuit that switches a relay that bridges out a 2R7 power resistor that limits the current through the bulb.
230V Phase Angle Control Dimmer
Arduino Traffic Light Controller

Fairly simple traffic light controller I built the other day. It consists of 5x relays switched using a ULN2803 darlington array with free wheeling diodes from an Arduino. Two digital inputs are also available to hook buttons up. 12V/DC power is supplied using a 230V/AC PCB SMPS module.
Not too much to say about it really.
Teufelsburg (Saarland)
Château du Falkenstein
Dresden May 2023
Quick Repair: Tempophot

I got this old camera photometer a while back and it wasn’t working, so I figured let’s see what’s wrong with it. Turns out the photocoll just wasn’t making good contact, I rotated it slightly ~45° and the meter started working again.
The fotocell is dated 26. March 1935.
Links Tempophot - Antique and Vintage Cameras Tempophot T-4
Zoo Saarbrücken May 2023
7W Linear LED Driver
Hund FLQ75 Repairs

Circuitry Overview The circuit is super simple, there is a motor run capacitor for the AC fan which is connected to a separate tap on the transformer and insulated from the rest of the circuitry. A small triac dimmer on the secondary 12V AC side using a MAC223 triac and another 3 pin TO-92 device which I think is either another triac or a SCR two film capacitors and a couple potentiometers. Haven’t bothered to reverse engineer the exact circuit, as the PCB can’t be removed without desoldering all the wires which I did not want to bother with at this time.





