Shop OBEX P1 Docs P2 Docs Learn Events
Mystery Parts! — Parallax Forums

Mystery Parts!

Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi)Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi) Posts: 23,514
edited 2010-05-31 16:25 in General Discussion
'Been doing some long-overdue shop cleaning and came across a couple parts I can't identify:

attachment.php?attachmentid=70602

The item on the left is a two-terminal device on some sort of composite substrate. It appears to be reactive, since a resistance measurement took some time to settle from infinity to around 9 megohms. My initial guess was some sort of UHF strip antenna. 'Can't imagine where it might have come from, though.

The second item might be a masked text-to-speech ROM that went with an CTS256-AL2 phonemic speech synthesizer chip (which I have). But I can't find any info about it. BTW, the penciled "112" is not my handwriting, so must have been there when I got the chip.

Thanks!
-Phil

Update: Actually, my CTS256-AL2 is the text-to-code converter for the SPO256-AL2 speech chip. So the RCA chip that's pictured above must be something else entirely.

Post Edited (Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi)) : 5/25/2010 12:10:31 AM GMT

Comments

  • W9GFOW9GFO Posts: 4,010
    edited 2010-05-24 23:56
    The thing on the left *looks* like a model railroad rail connector.

    Rich H

    ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
    The Simple Servo Tester, a kit from Gadget Gangster.
  • Jay B. HarlowJay B. Harlow Posts: 79
    edited 2010-05-25 12:45
    W9GFO said...
    The thing on the left *looks* like a model railroad rail connector.

    Rich H

    Yes, now that you mention it,·I see a model railroad rail connector also. Although it appears to have something inside it?

    I wonder what the side (45 degress from the top) & end views look like.

    Jay
    ·
  • Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi)Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi) Posts: 23,514
    edited 2010-05-25 15:57
    No, I can assure you, it's not a model railroad connector. (I don't have a model railroad.) At 9 Mohms, it wouldn't be a very effective one. smile.gif

    -Phil
  • ercoerco Posts: 20,261
    edited 2010-05-25 17:24
    I like the whole "can you name this" activity. I say we start a new thread where people post pictures of giveaway items, and whoever can identify them wins them for the cost of shipping.

    Now where's that pic of my ex-wife...?

    ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
    ·"If you build it, they will come."
  • T ChapT Chap Posts: 4,249
    edited 2010-05-25 18:36
    I wonder if the ruler used in the photo has any increased value due to the misprinted 4 and 9 numbers. I forget what the term is for the market for flawed items that make them rare and valuable.
  • W9GFOW9GFO Posts: 4,010
    edited 2010-05-25 19:21
    I think that may be a clear plastic ruler with a beveled edge that is refracting the numbers.

    Rich H

    ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
    The Simple Servo Tester, a kit from Gadget Gangster.
  • Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi)Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi) Posts: 23,514
    edited 2010-05-25 19:31
    "I think that may be a clear plastic ruler with a beveled edge that is refracting the numbers."

    Correct.
  • TumblerTumbler Posts: 323
    edited 2010-05-25 20:07
    I think the left item is a top view of erco's ex-wife wedding ring [noparse]:)[/noparse]
  • KPRKPR Posts: 189
    edited 2010-05-25 20:54
    The thingy on the left looks like the conductive rubber standoff for an lcd display..

    ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
    I always have someone watching my back.
  • Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi)Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi) Posts: 23,514
    edited 2010-05-25 21:50
    Nope, it's rigid. It's got surface-mount connectors on each end. The black stripe in the photo looks like it's printed on or deposited somehow. The substrate is fiberglass or some other composite material.

    I shouldn't be using the present tense anymore, though, as it accidentally got swept into the dustbin. :-( I'm still thinking it was an antenna of some sort.

    -Phil
  • John R.John R. Posts: 1,376
    edited 2010-05-26 01:30
    Even though you talked about taking a while to settle down, could it have been the "coil" part of a variable resistor, where the wiper was more of a "tune and set and forget" thing on the circuit board?

    ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
    John R.
    Click here to see my Nomad Build Log
  • Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi)Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi) Posts: 23,514
    edited 2010-05-26 01:56
    No, there was no coil, just a printed or deposited strip between the terminals of something black. And the ends were definitely designed for SMT soldering.

    -Phil
  • John R.John R. Posts: 1,376
    edited 2010-05-26 03:31
    I was thinking more that the film deposited was the resistance, and the part shown would indeed be surface mounted.

    Then a wiper (think formed metal contact) would be adjusted, then locked in place.

    If you probe one end, and slide the other probe over the deposited strip, does the resistance change? (I know, a little late to find out now...)

    ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
    John R.
    Click here to see my Nomad Build Log
  • legoman132legoman132 Posts: 87
    edited 2010-05-29 04:20
    Could you do some more experiments with the thing on the left? (resistance, capacitance, etc. versus light, temperature, etc.). That might help some if it responds to an outside stimulus
  • Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi)Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi) Posts: 23,514
    edited 2010-05-29 05:10
    The thing on the left didn't survive the cleanup and is gone for good, I'm afraid -- on its way to a distant landfill.

    -Phil
  • TubularTubular Posts: 4,745
    edited 2010-05-29 06:48
    Hmmm, I think it was a memristor, cleverly manufactured by browser when you weren't looking
  • Tracy AllenTracy Allen Posts: 6,667
    edited 2010-05-29 17:52
    Could it (now departed) have been a humidity element for a radiosonde?

    ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
    Tracy Allen
    www.emesystems.com
  • BrowserBrowser Posts: 84
    edited 2010-05-29 19:44
    Tubular,

    Yes, it was a memristor! I worked nights on it for years. (And Phil wonders why I sleep all day!) It was a vision of endless shrimp treats and Fancy Feast that drove me, instead of that dry stuff Phil gives me. Then those so-and-sos at HP Labs got there ahead of me. 'Seems like everything I doo gets scooped!

    -Browser
  • hover1hover1 Posts: 1,929
    edited 2010-05-29 19:57
    And you probably could have moved out of that Priority Shipping box into something a little more cozy!
    Jim
    Browser said...
    Tubular,

    Yes, it was a memristor! I worked nights on it for years. (And Phil wonders why I sleep all day!) It was a vision of endless shrimp treats and Fancy Feast that drove me, instead of that dry stuff Phil gives me. Then those so-and-sos at HP Labs got there ahead of me. 'Seems like everything I doo gets scooped!

    -Browser
  • Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi)Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi) Posts: 23,514
    edited 2010-05-30 03:21
    How'd Browser get a forum account? Cripes! Now I'm in trouble with the moderators. (Maybe they won't notice, since it's a holiday weekend.)

    Anyway, Tracey, I'd be more than disappointed to lose it if what you suggest is true. But I can't recall ever needing or obtaining such a sensor. (Nor can I recall needing a mini UHF antenna, for that matter.) Browser's assertions notwithstanding, I really am mystified.

    -Phil
  • Chris SavageChris Savage Parallax Engineering Posts: 14,406
    edited 2010-05-30 06:28
    Phil...I saw the message...but I found myself turning my head sideways until I forgot what I saw. Oh well, at least I sit here with a grin on my face. That has to mean something.

    ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
    Chris Savage

    Parallax Engineering
    ·
  • TubularTubular Posts: 4,745
    edited 2010-05-31 00:37
    Browser, welcome to the forums, nice of you to grace us with your presence. I think you'll find it purr-fect here, provided you adequately decouple your rails, don't deviate from 45 degree pcb tracks, and never ever mention x*os.

    Unfortunately multiple accounts are against the rules. Since you're probably "the boss", and will probably put your paw down, we're really going to miss Phil and all his valuable contributions around here...

    And we can't wait for your first obex contribution, I believe its based on a "cat's whisker"...

    tubular


    (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cat's-whisker_detector)

    Browser said...
    Tubular,

    Yes, it was a memristor! I worked nights on it for years. (And Phil wonders why I sleep all day!) It was a vision of endless shrimp treats and Fancy Feast that drove me, instead of that dry stuff Phil gives me. Then those so-and-sos at HP Labs got there ahead of me. 'Seems like everything I doo gets scooped!

    -Browser
  • MicrocontrolledMicrocontrolled Posts: 2,461
    edited 2010-05-31 02:18
    @Tubular: "I think you'll find it purr-fect here, provided you adequately decouple your rails, don't deviate from 45 degree pcb tracks, and never ever mention x*os."
    LOL!!!! That is so funny!!! And so true!!
    However, you forgot:
    -Always use sockets for your Propeller. (Assuming that Browser owns one)
    -Always include demos. (for that Cat's whisker object)
    -And NEVER, I repeat, NEVER mention ANY form of AI!!!!

    ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
    Check out my new website!!

    Use the Propeller icon!! Propeller.gif

    Follow me on Twitter! Search "Microcontrolled"
  • 4538745387 Posts: 1
    edited 2010-05-31 15:12
    There was a series of coulometers which indicated charge passing through the device
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury_coulometer

    Used for such things as elapsed time
    Curtis http://www.alternativefuelsequipment.com/curtis/pdf/Coulometers.pdf

    and battery state of charge. You may have had the bare device. Did it have a tiny gap at one end?
  • Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi)Phil Pilgrim (PhiPi) Posts: 23,514
    edited 2010-05-31 16:06
    No, there was no gap. The ends were identical.

    -Phil
  • davejamesdavejames Posts: 4,047
    edited 2010-05-31 16:25
    @45387 - THANK YOU!

    I'd seen these little tiny thingums on PC boards at Intel in 1974. I new they were used to indicate "on-time" but had no idea how they worked. I'd actually forgot about them. Thirty-six years later, now I know.

    DJ

    ▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Sign In or Register to comment.