HP-IL ATC-00010 Relay Actuator revisted

[TASP]

Sylvain Cote posted in another thread I (mysteriously) cannot reply to:


HP-IL ATC-0010 Relay Actuator
Product : ATC-0010 Relay Actuator
Company : AirTerm Corporation
Device ID : HP82166A
Accessory ID : 64
Description : The device closes or opens relays based on the data byte received
Pictures : https://flic.kr/s/aHskfRxa6j
Relay: MIDTEX / 296-11B200 / 12V DC / 5A

Setup #1 : HP-41CX + HP-82160A (HP-IL)


And I would very much like to extend my sincere appreciation for this information, particularly the photo spread, excellent !!! What a fun little gizmo. I might have thought internally there would be an intact 82166, but it looks like they have used it's chipset on their proprietary board and included the handy LED indicators, AC operation, and some modest relays. I'm assuming the 8 fuses are each 5 amp rated and are to protect the relay contacts from excessive current draw.

I wonder what Air Therm intended the interface to be used for? It appears to be useful on many levels, but what did the manufacturer have in mind ??

[Sylvain Cote]

There had been a lot of questions on this device over time and no definitive answer was provided.
So, when I was able to buy one, I did. After two hours of exploration I was able to completely understand this simple device.
To my knowledge, the AirTherm Corporation is/was a HVAC company. So I assume the unit was use to control HVAC 12v equipment.
But your guest is as good as mine.
Best regards,
Sylvain

[TASP]

An HP41 with the ability to trip 12VDC relays with 5 amp contacts is an HP41 that can do anything.

Slowly, of course.

[Ángel Martin]

(11-24-2015 06:12 AM)TASP Wrote:  An HP41 with the ability to trip 12VDC relays with 5 amp contacts is an HP41 that can do anything.

Slowly, of course.

Not the CL

[Sylvain Cote]

(11-24-2015 08:30 PM)Ángel Martin Wrote:  

(11-24-2015 06:12 AM)TASP Wrote:  Slowly, of course.

Not the CL

Absolutely! and here is the proof ...

Slow -> 41CX + 7470A
Fast -> 41CL + 7470A

Sylvain

[TASP]

Wow.

Mine came in the mail. Haven't powered it up yet, but popped the top half off (it wasn't on correctly in the first place) and inside is clean and nice. The relays are different, NEC units, but presumably very similar in ratings.

My first impressions are:

The build of the thing is a little quirky. The PCB extends out past the back insert to support the connector blocks. Also, the connector blocks are under the overhang of the top half of the case, so a direct shot at tightening the terminals with a screwdriver isn't really possible with the geometry. Easy enough to take the lid off though to put the wires in (2 screws). But there is an ergonomic problem with the back of the device with that connection/housing combo.

Mine also has a green on/off switch (not black) and it has a brown power cord (not white) with a separately attached 2 prong (nonpolarized) plug in (not molded on).

My impression is (drawing on my years working in various factories in production, product development and admin) that someone at Air Therm was a pretty serious HP41 user (probably an engineer in designing their products) and he probably bread boarded a prototype of the ATC-0010 (around an 82166?) for use testing items Air Therm was making at the time. He garnered some management attention, and they were impressed with his gadget, and realized just how useful a 'friendly-ized' version of the 82166 could be, and not seeing a similar device in the HP catalog, or any other 3rd party making something similar, they gave the go ahead to produce a commercial version of his prototype.

Kinda looks like they muffed the marketing campaign, if I am sniffing out where they were going with it, however. Doesn't look like anyone here has seen an EduCALC advert for one, and there seems to be very little familiarity of this device extant, even now. If the HP41 community didn't know about it, they weren't going to buy it.

Having the pictures Sylvain posted was neat to compare to mine. The little differences (switch, cord, relays) suggest a story. This gadget was not produced in large numbers, I haven't found a serial # tag on mine either. I'd say Air Therm used 'in house' resources to make the device, if they had sourced it to a third party for a production run of 10,000, I think we would be looking at a different gadget.

It's also BIG. I'm used to the compact nature of the HP products, the amount of empty space inside the housing was quite a surprise. The device was sized to housing that was easily available.

It sure would be fun to track down the Air Therm engineer behind this and see how close I got here.

[4ster]

Tasp,

Was this the one on Ebay recently? I was planning to check out the bidding at the end and bid myself if it was still reasonably priced. But I snoozed. I'm glad that I didn't end up in an bidding war with you, you probably would have won and I would only have made your final cost higher.

If you use this for a project, I would be interested in hearing a report on it.