Miniature Hour Meter
Miniature Hour Meter
(OP)
We have just released a new product that has a component on it that we expect will be consumable and burn out after a period of time. It's a nichrome wire that we are controlling by phase angle firing a 120VAC supply to it.
For warranty purposes, my sales department has asked me to find a miniature device that we could wire into the circuit to monitor how long the device has been run. Ideally, any device would be about the size of a thumb and be able to be wired in series with the nichrome wire.
Unlike most hourmeter applications, I don't care about digit size, being able to read in direct sunlight, etc. For this application, it's all about the size!
Thanks in advance.
For warranty purposes, my sales department has asked me to find a miniature device that we could wire into the circuit to monitor how long the device has been run. Ideally, any device would be about the size of a thumb and be able to be wired in series with the nichrome wire.
Unlike most hourmeter applications, I don't care about digit size, being able to read in direct sunlight, etc. For this application, it's all about the size!
Thanks in advance.





RE: Miniature Hour Meter
These days, a tiny uC with non-volitile memory might be the cheapest solution. Obviously you'd monitor the control signal, not the AC.
RE: Miniature Hour Meter
http://eolsurplus.com/images/UnknownHourMeter.jpg
RE: Miniature Hour Meter
RE: Miniature Hour Meter
Gunnar Englund
www.gke.org
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100 % recycled posting: Electrons, ideas, finger-tips have been used over and over again...
RE: Miniature Hour Meter
Used to be popular monitoring the stylus life of phonograph turntables.
Typically used to read several thousand hours. They operate off of low voltage DC, so you'd wire it in parallel to your heating element, with an appropriate diode to convert to DC and circuit to limit the voltage to something like 5 volts, or whatever the MMCM wants.
Obviously, they have mercury in them, so may be on some banned list. Perhaps there's an equivalent made of some safer alloy.
RE: Miniature Hour Meter
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"If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I'd spend six sharpening my axe." -- Abraham Lincoln
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