23 Jul
2015
23 Jul
'15
11 a.m.
I proposed it, and was willing to build
microcontroller-based boards
and write firmware, but IIRC it was decided that there was too little
benefit.
That seems odd, considering the lengths you guys took on the caps, and
the whole museum mentality of keeping things "safe" for the artifacts.
Microcontrollers and such probably are too complex - simple
over-voltage* and over-current circuits to trip the EPO (or whatever
DEC called it when the line was cut) would suffice, and give some of
the more delicate components a fighting chance of survival.
* I once talked to a power supply guy about over-voltage sensors and
the like, and he said that over-voltage conditions (like a power
supply freaking out and giving TTL 8 Volts or something) due to
component failures are exceedingly rare. When it does happen, it is
almost always due to human error - mis-installing sense lines,
cranking a trimmer too far, setting line voltage improperly, and so
forth.
--
Will