So, at this point I can’t find a reputable seller for the novelty store traffic light, I have no idea how to power three individual light bulbs from a 5VDC device, and the project was shelved due to technical difficulties with the USB Interface board.
Basically, the project was totally finished.
My work had asked me to install some new cubic scanners, these fancy devices that measure height, width, depth and weight and transfer the information to a PC. Our software is configured to read the input from the devices and automatically assign the information when new gear is scanned into the warehouse. Unfortunately, these fancy new devices connect through an old school RS232 serial cable which, of course, did not come with the scanner. I hate ordering anything through the Marine Corp. It takes weeks to get anything, and you have to justify everything. I decided it would be easier to stop at the electronics store on my way home and pick one up for a couple of dollars (or couple of hundred Yen).
Whenever I go to the electronics store I’m compelled to stop by “kits” section. I’ve always been attracted to electronic kits. It’s something of an addiction. As a child I would carry around those old Heathkit (Zenith at that time) catalogs and fantasize about building my own computer. Alas, it was never to be. My parents would never pony up the dough for something like that and by the time I got my own job I discovered why they were so reluctant to part with the money.
Anyways, I’m looking through the kits. Which are all written in Japanese. When this kit caught my eye:
The kit itself was only the top board pictured. The other board was part of a separate kit. I didn’t need to understand Japanese to figure out what this kit was for. It would allow me to control up to four light bulbs (100W was clear on the package) using the same DC signal that would drive an LED. I’m no electrical engineer, but I did recall a certain USB interface board that had four LEDs built in.
And just like that, my USB controlled stoplight was back on track.
