Got a question I am sure someone here can answer. I was about to embark on a project of building a curvetracer (from an old PE mag) and sat down with my Oscope to see how I would hook it up. Can't figure it out. How to you hook up one channel for the X axis and the other for the Y axis? I think I am working with a pretty standard scope, dual trace with various options, but haven't got a clue as to how to do this. Anyone have any ideas or advice?
"Dave" wrote in news:bt2hdu$ snipped-for-privacy@library1.airnews.net:
rotate Time/div knob to the end with the X/Y marking,and IIRC,use Ch1 for X input,and Ch2 for Y input.The front panel should indicate the proper channels and time/div position for X/Y mode.
Well hell. I checked the s/div knob and it does NOT have such a position at either end. It goes from .5S/div (channel a only) to .5 uS/div, and that's it. There are two sets of buttons labeled Vert and Horiz, with buttons for either channel in each group, but they don't seem to do anything like X/Y for Ch 1 or Ch 2. Any other ideas?
"Dave" wrote in news:bt2lvm$ snipped-for-privacy@library1.airnews.net:
Well,I guess you'll have to find a service manual or operators manual and see what they have to say.It might be some combination of vertical mode buttons to enable XY input mode.
Not that I can determine. I guess, like Jim Y said, I need to find an operator's manual. Or maybe I can talk to Tektronix customer support. Maybe they can SELL me an operator's manual. I am sure that this scope will to it, I just can't figure out how. Lots of projects in mind for when I figure it out...
Hallelujah (or something like that) I think I figured it out! That group of buttons grouped under "vert"? They are not all radio buttons! There is a line saying "XY" going from Ch 1 to Ch 2! You are supposed to push them BOTH in AT ONCE! Now I really do feel stupid. :) Why did I not see that before? How could I have missed it? (It's as plain as the egg on my face.) I was thinking about what Walter H. said in his post, and sat down to study the matter a bit more. There it was.
Maybe tomorrow I can pick up a few components and build a really simple curve tracer to try it out with. I'll let you know how it goes.
I really do appreciate the help both of you gave me. Without typing it out and thinking about the responses I got, I never would have seen it.
You hit the nail on the head, Walter. That group of buttons was where the secret lay. There is a line going from Ch 1 to Ch 2 saying "XY", and when you press them both in at once the display mode changes. Thank you.
I was thinking about your question and had come to the decision that there had to be more there than I perceived. Sat down to look at it with a more determined eye, and saw that line. Pressed both buttons in at once and the display mode changed. As I said in my other post to Jim Yanik, Hallelujah! (Or whatever is appropriate.)
Thank you, Walter, for that pointed question. In thinking about it more, I found the answer. Tomorrow I hope to purchase a few components and build a very simple curve tracer to test this theory out. I will let you know how it turns out.
Okay, pushing in both buttons at once does set it up for X-Y trace. One other thing is now becoming obvious to me though, and that is that the person who wrote the article I've been following from the October '97 issue of Electronics Now was full of crap. All that circuit does is give me a 60 Hz sine wave, which fits in nicely with the 60 Hz hum that my unshielded test probes produce. Now I am trying to figure out what schematic they
*meant* to draw. The article contains some nice pictures of trace patterns for various devices, so maybe I'll be able to figure it out. Or maybe I'll try to build a real curve tracer. I haven't decided yet. Still, my original question, of how to get my 2335 set up for X/Y trace, is now answered. I now remember seeing that button label and knowing what it meant, but that was at least ten years ago. If you don't use it you lose it. Hopefully I haven't lost it all.
Thanks for the help. Without tossing the question out and trying to answer the questions I got back there's no telling how long I would have gone before noticing the obvious.
"Dave" wrote in news:bt85q9$ snipped-for-privacy@library1.airnews.net:
Were you trying to duplicate one of those Huntron-tracker devices? I've seen schematics for a similar device using a 6.3V filament transformer.
A real semiconductor curve tracer has a step generator for base/gate drive,and TEK used a half-sine 120hz pulsed DC collector drive in their
575,576,and 577 curve tracers. Heathkit used to have a curve tracer kit to be used with a scope,too.Maybe someone can scan their Heathkit manual for you.
Would there be a market for a small,inexpensive curve tracer for hobbyist/bench tech use these days?
What I am working with is the schematic for something simply called a component tester, that uses a 12v secondary to provide a signal which is applied to a bipolar device, like a zener diode, the result of which is traced on the screen of an Oscope in X/Y mode. Not really a curve tracer, I now know, but that's what the traces various components gave reminded me of. The schematic, which is not drawn correctly for the traces given and text provided, basically gives you a horizontal trace of the voltage across the device under test and a vertical trace of the current through that same device (with the help of a resistor in series with the device.) A zener diode would thus give a trace somewhat like a backwards Z. Capacitors give an oval which varies in size and angle with the value of the device under test, and a resistor gives a 45 degree angle of one length or another. Open test probes are supposed to give a horizontal line and shorted test probes a verticle line. At least that's what the article says.
I *think* I have figured out how to arrange things so it works that way, or at least a step closer. Problem is most of my components are still packed away, and the only source of new ones is across town by bus. I could order from digikey, or someone like that, but right now all I need is a couple of resistors. Doubt if they would be willing to process a
ElectronDepot website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here.
All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.