Basic Stamp

[Ray-NM]

Hi everyone.
I have been reading about using a basic stamp microcontroller for sensing.
has anyone here really looked into this as a method for extracting usable data from a PI? I did a search on the forum and only found 1 thread that mentions 1 in passing. I would think that a little programing and coupled the the Hammerhead board we might be able to get a more sensitive detector.
What prompted this was the new ML gp4000. It seems to be a much better detector now from the reports I have been reading. I am assuming that they are using a/d converters to a microprocessor to produce a much better PI.
Thanks
Ray-NM

[goldfinder]

Stamp vs PIC uC

The stamp itself tends to be a little show unless you can run it with a 50 Mhz clock. This is because the Stamp runs in basic so there is high level language overhead whereas using a PIC microcontroller with machine language is plenty fast enough to drive PI MDs and do signal processing. I don't know if the PIC has been used for VLF type MDs or others.

If you use a PIC with the Analog to Digital converter (A2D) signal processing can also be done on the output of the coil or the PI comparator opamp.

Goldfinder

[Carl-NC]

PICs are used in quite a few Tesoro machines. DFX and XLT use Motorola microcontrollers. Minelab VLFs, some Fishers, Bounty Hunters also use a uC, don't remember which ones. Some Garretts use real DSP chips.

- Carl

[bugwhiskers]

Hi Ray-NM,

Motorola (Freescale) have a range of micro's that are somewhere between a DSP and a microcontroller that are well worth a look for PIMD type applications.

Have a peek at:
www.freescale.com/files/dsp/doc/data_sheet/MC56F8323.pdf

regards
bugwhiskers

[Ray-NM]

Thanks for the info

I am doing a little reading now from all of the information you all have given me. If I come up with anything that works I will post it here.
RayNM

[Les]

Old Bounty Hunter ads say Zilog brand microprocessors. Z86 I believe.... Same family the old TRS-80 used. oops, gave away my age....