500 Lumen - AAA Flashlight (photos) - Work In Progress - Part 2

[SuLyMaN]

Yo man...Did you test the lumens output? I mean is it pulling out 500 lumens as you first wanted it to? What will be the lumens output on AAA?

[Cataract]

I'm still

Now I need to run my fat ass around the block a few times to shed the extra weight...

Does the lockout work? Is there a timeout from complete lockout between each sensor reads towards the first mode, so it wouldn't turn on if we rotate the ring too slowly?

[the_guy_with_no_name]

Yo man...Did you test the lumens output? I mean is it pulling out 500 lumens as you first wanted it to? What will be the lumens output on AAA?

Not yet 500lm. Currently we are still currently drawing 1.2A in Mode 4 with li-ion's.
This will be beefed up to 1.4A in the production version.

With an energizer, the power draw attempts 1.4A (@1.2-1.5V) and then quickly jumps down to 700mA after about 1.5 seconds.
I need to double check my charts but I that looks like its on spec.
Should be doing about 100lumens with an alkaline on mode 3, and 200lumens on mode 4.

I'm still

Now I need to run my fat ass around the block a few times to shed the extra weight...

Does the lockout work? Is there a timeout from complete lockout between each sensor reads towards the first mode, so it wouldn't turn on if we rotate the ring too slowly?

ELO,
Yes. It seems to be the default (1.5 turns) after power is off for more than a few seconds.

Timeout, Yes as well.
From memory, I think its 1.5~2 seconds. Need to double check but I tried turning slowly and I managed 3 full turns without hitting mode 1.
Then a quick turn, and I got straight to mode 1.

The low-voltage indicator, is also kind of funky right now. Seems intentional, but not sure if its intuitive enough.
I will have to upload a video....

tgwnn

[Got Lumens?]

The low-voltage indicator, is also kind of funky right now. Seems intentional, but not sure if its intuitive enough.
I will have to upload a video....
tgwnn

Yes please. An uploaded video

[the_guy_with_no_name]

Yes please. An uploaded video

Ok, video's are uploaded...
let me work out how to embed them.
A few moments please.

tgwnn

[the_guy_with_no_name]

Ok here goes....
Enjoy


Below: Video 1 - Mode Switching

Going from Off (ELO) through modes 1-4, with an alakaline (1.5V) battery.


At mode 4, the Torpedo determines the power output is too low and starts flashing in funky mode. A quick turn, and it settles on mode 3.
When the battery is fresh, it should just auto adjust into mode 3, with no flashing,
though its a fine line between determining low battery and just voltage sag.








Below: Video 2 - Alkaline 1.5V with a FenixE01 as a benchmark

Going from Off through modes 1-4, with an alakaline (1.5V) battery,
along side the Fenix E01, to try and give you something to compare against.


At mode 4, the Torpedo determines the power output is too low and starts flashing in funky mode. A quick turn, and it settles on mode 3.
When the battery is fresh, it should just auto adjust into mode 3, with no flashing,
though its a fine line between determining low battery and just voltage sag.









Below: Video 3 - Li-Ion IMR 3.7V with a FenixE01 as a benchmark

Going from Off through modes 1-4, with a Li-Ion IMR (3.7V) battery,
along side the Fenix E01, to try and give you something to compare against.


tgwnn

p.s. Its real

[smokelaw1]

For a number of reasons, I can't be online much right now. I spent 5 minutes on personal email, 10 on business, then I HAD to come and check on my favorite thread. New proto! Awesome. Great progress! Amazing. More Simpsons quotes! I am a happy man.
Tgwnn...keep up the great work. We are all excited for you (probably almost as excited as we are for the light!!!) Well, no , probably not THAT Excited, but pretty darned excited! It must feel good to be starting in on the end game.

[the_guy_with_no_name]

For a number of reasons, I can't be online much right now. I spent 5 minutes on personal email, 10 on business, then I HAD to come and check on my favorite thread. New proto! Awesome. Great progress! Amazing. More Simpsons quotes! I am a happy man.
Tgwnn...keep up the great work. We are all excited for you (probably almost as excited as we are for the light!!!) Well, no , probably not THAT Excited, but pretty darned excited! It must feel good to be starting in on the end game.

Hi smokelaw,

Thanks for checking in.
Exciting times for sure!!

And our posts probably crossed each other during the upload but whalla...
some videos for your viewing pleasure.

There is a whole load of testing....
all the different batteries,
all the different modes
thermal test, low battery test,
funky test whatever that is
and some other things.

In between just being generally crazy,
I'm very much happily crazy right now trying to get through this speedily so we can work out any kinks,
and get into production mode, so you may all enjoy the fruits of OUR labor.

tgwnn

[smokelaw1]

Man am I glad I stayed logged in for a few minutes and came back to this thread!!!! Wow!

[Packleader]

Oh, I'm all over this thread like a cheap suit.

[the_guy_with_no_name]

Man am I glad I stayed logged in for a few minutes and came back to this thread!!!! Wow!

Me glad you glad too and thanks!

Oh, I'm all over this thread like a cheap suit.

Welcome to the party Packleader.
We are just getting started

tgwnn

[Got Lumens?]

Thanks Guy!!!!
Pretty awsome seeing it is almost there.
Question, Am I seeing that the control ring is turning backwards? Rotation of the control ring with bezel pointed away is clockwise for off and counterclockwise for on? No biggy eitherway for me.
Thank You for posting those, Totally Awsome.
GL

[Cataract]

Cool! Nice beam profile!

I like the timeout on the ELO. No need to worry about burning a hole in your pocket with the torpedo!

Seems to work right with the IMR's, but I'll wait for the test results before I throw my hat in the air. Hell, I'll throw it once just for seeing the working proto in action.



P.S: can I have that popcorn when you're finished with it?

[the_guy_with_no_name]

Thanks Guy!!!!
Pretty awsome seeing it is almost there.
Question, Am I seeing that the control ring is turning backwards? Rotation of the control ring with bezel pointed away is clockwise for off and counterclockwise for on? No biggy eitherway for me.
Thank You for posting those, Totally Awsome.
GL

Hi GL,

Thanks very much.
Right now, the selector ring will work either way.
Just start turning in one direction, and keep turning.
Then turn in the opposite direction till you reach off.

clockwise or anti-clockwise.

For now, the only downside is cycling,
meaning after your reach mode 4, if you keep turning, you get to off, then mode 1 again.
That poses a problem if you are in a hurry and overturn.

Still testing and checking to see what seems best,
but I think the original idea/spec should work well.

Not decided on what makes sense either (clockwise or anti-clockwise).
If you hold the ring with left hand and turn the body clockwise,
that feels very natural.
But then if you are using just one hand, you would need to turn the ring anti-clockwise,
which seems un-natural.

Some more testing to do....

tgwnn

[the_guy_with_no_name]

Cool! Nice beam profile!

I like the timeout on the ELO. No need to worry about burning a hole in your pocket with the torpedo!

Seems to work right with the IMR's, but I'll wait for the test results before I throw my hat in the air. Hell, I'll throw it once just for seeing the working proto in action.

P.S: can I have that popcorn when you're finished with it?

Thanks Cataract
Yes, you can have the popcorn...
That was my makeshift Tri-(phone)-pod.

Im guessing the alkaline must be lowish in power (need to pull out the multimeter to confirm),
because when it was fresh, Torpedo stepped down to mode 3 after about 1.5 sec on mode 4, with no flash or funkiness.

For now, I'm thinking a quick double flash, then auto-step down to next lowest mode,
that should take care of voltage sag, and low battery warning.

I must admit, I did enjoy just watching the mesmerizing (3 power mode), beacon mode it seemed to be in.
Just left it tail standing.

The Torpedo has as much decision making intelligence as,
well at least a mosquito.

tgwnn

[Bigmac_79]

Thanks a ton for those videos, I'm sure seeing that will make a lot of people happy! Congratulations to you, it looks like things are starting to shape up well!

[the_guy_with_no_name]

Thanks a ton for those videos, I'm sure seeing that will make a lot of people happy! Congratulations to you, it looks like things are starting to shape up well!

Thanks for the continued support
Definitely a step closer.

tgwnn

[AlphaZen]

Congrats on the progress! In the last video, I was waiting for the popcorn to start popping with how BRIGHT it is.

[Diablo_331]

I see that only the finest popcorn will do ehh? After watching the video I had to eat some.

[Got Lumens?]

Hi Guy,
stepped out for a bit. What you got going on there is awsome. From Off or ELO position, you can have the stepping start from either a counterclockwise or clockwise rotation, That's amazing. That will be adaptable to matter how you hold the light, and lefties as well . That is sweet.
GL

[DBCstm]

Holy Bat Beacon, Batman! You're really getting it done Guy, some serious output there! Been buying new camera's and equipment, practicing my "buy it now" prowess!

Well Done!

[the_guy_with_no_name]

Congrats on the progress! In the last video, I was waiting for the popcorn to start popping with how BRIGHT it is.

Thanks AlphaZen,
No risk of popping with thermal-step-down

I see that only the finest popcorn will do ehh? After watching the video I had to eat some.

I can only imagine how much popcorn it has taken to get this far

Hi Guy,
stepped out for a bit. What you got going on there is awsome. From Off or ELO position, you can have the stepping start from either a counterclockwise or clockwise rotation, That's amazing. That will be adaptable to matter how you hold the light, and lefties as well . That is sweet.
GL

Hi GL,
Its cool but not sure if we can keep bi-directional and remove the cycling (mode 3 => mode4 => off).
Will do some more tests and check.
If there are any opinions, please let me know.

Holy Bat Beacon, Batman! You're really getting it done Guy, some serious output there! Been buying new camera's and equipment, practicing my "buy it now" prowess!
Well Done!

Hi DBC,
Thanks, and yes, finally its coming together.
I've almost achieved my first goal of a working Torpedo (just a few more tweaks).
It is possible after all

I've finished summarizing (I think) all the issues.
Will plan on snapping some more photos and work on finishing the update.

tgwnn

[the_guy_with_no_name]

Temperature Check...

I'll see if I can do a video with a temperature probe & multimeter
to show the thermal step down in action.

tgwnn

[Helmut.G]

Hi GL,
Its cool but not sure if we can keep bi-directional and remove the cycling (mode 3 => mode4 => off).
Will do some more tests and check.

If this is done with a programmable microcontroller I imagine it would take a skilled programmer about 5 minutes to remove the jumping while keeping bi-directionality.

[easilyled]

Mr. No Name - thanks for the detailed email update and great pictures.
Are black HA and bare aluminum are going to be the only finish options? I love the look of the bare aluminum, but am concerned it will oxidize. Will polishing keep the finish intact?
As romteb said, as much as we all want to get our hands on your amazing little lights, please take your time and get everything just right. Happy New Year.

I have had many bare aluminium lights and have held on to them for many years. I still have one of the first bare aluminium Raw lights ever made in the good old days when things were running smoothly.

I have never had any problems with any of these lights in terms of oxidation, problematic threads or any other criticism that is levelled at them.
I think there must be some misconceptions about bare Aluminium because in practice, all my bare Al lights have stood the test of time with hardly any maintenance required.

I also love the look of bare Al and have requested one or two of these from twgnn in his earlier threads. For some reason, I don't seem to be receiving the emails anymore though.

[the_guy_with_no_name]

If this is done with a programmable microcontroller I imagine it would take a skilled programmer about 5 minutes to remove the jumping while keeping bi-directionality.

Hi Helmut,

Thanks for the feedback.
By the cycling, I'm referring to after reaching mode 4, if you keep turning, there should be no change in modes.
Currently, if you keep turning, beyond mode 4, you get back to "Off". Not sure if that's what you meant by the jumping, but if yes, we are on the same page

In theory, I agree that it's doable but might depend on the chip & circuit config because we need to store both the current mode, and the direction the turns happened in. I will let you know but any feedback/advice is always welcomed.

I have had many bare aluminium lights and have held on to them for many years. I still have one of the first bare aluminium Raw lights ever made in the good old days when things were running smoothly.

I have never had any problems with any of these lights in terms of oxidation, problematic threads or any other criticism that is levelled at them.
I think there must be some misconceptions about bare Aluminium because in practice, all my bare Al lights have stood the test of time with hardly any maintenance required.

I also love the look of bare Al and have requested one or two of these from twgnn in his earlier threads. For some reason, I don't seem to be receiving the emails anymore though.

Hi easilyled,

Thanks for posting that.
The Graphite Black version is a definite.
Raw Alum is an easy to do option of course.
And I'm also "thinking" of a limited edition run in Ti, but my main concern with the Ti is the poor heat transfer compared to Alum.

About not receiving emails, that would be my fault,
I have not sent any recently, whilst I was waiting for the working proto to arrive.
I have been working on the update and hope to get it out soon.

tgwnn

p.s. Just got a few NiMh's, charging at the moment, though I did a quick test with a low-charged one and mode 4 was accessible.

[fnj]

I have a couple of Orb Raws which are bare aluminum alloy. They started out beautiful, bright and shiny, but oxidized to a stable dull finish, perhaps in part because I put them away for several years and they were not handled regularly. I'm not going to attempt polishing them. They are perfectly functional. I should note that I do live within a half mile of the seacoast. My outdoor rooftop TV antenna did self destruct and shed rotted pieces on the ground, but nothing like that happened to the lights indoors. IMHO the result is not particularly attractive, but does not look shabby, dirty, or corroded. Just a dull unreflective dullish grey-silverish color.

[JulianP]

Hi easilyled,

Thanks for posting that.
The Graphite Black version is a definite.
Raw Alum is an easy to do option of course.
And I'm also "thinking" of a limited edition run in Ti, but my main concern with the Ti is the poor heat transfer compared to Alum.

tgwnn

Tgwnn, have you thought of a copper body like the limited edition AAA Maratac? Heat transfer would be better than other metals, and it would look great. Many CPF members would still love to get their hands on the Cu AAA Maratac, now relegated to legendary status.

[Cataract]

Anyone has experience on how copper ages when hooked to a set of keys? It could be a nice keychain option to black, although bare alum. would definitely do the trick for that purpose...

Guy:
Are you still considering neutral / High CRI emitter options? If so, any chance you might include some of those in the first few batches?

[FsTop]

Add another request for bare aluminum. I think that alu looks excellent after a couple of years of pocket wear - it resembles tarnished silver.