Looking for low-cost ignition analysis 'scope

[Patrick C. Mancuso]

John T Stein wrote:
>  ferguson at srcing.login.qc.ca (Lloyd Ferguson) wrote:
> > signals from the engine are so slow at idle that the scope does not have
> > enough persistance to keep the display on the screen.  When I did this
> > (about 10 years ago) I used a Tek 465 100Mhz scope maybe a lesser scope
> > would be better but I doubt it because the signal is pretty slow (600 RPM =
> > 10 RPS /2 = 5 triggers per second).
...
> A number of firms; e.g. Keithly, MetraByte, National Instruments make 
> relatively inexpensive analog I/O cards for the PC. They usually 
> come with the necessary "c" and/or BASIC drivers.  This would seem to 
> be a very flexible solution to getting the date into the computer in 
> a form ready for analysis
> 
> John.  

Another possibility: I saw in a Radio Shack (awright, laugh) flyer a few
weeks ago an ad for a DVM with an RS232 interface.  I just glanced
at the ad, but for $129 you got the DVM, a 9-pin RS232 cable to connect
to it, and some windows software to go with it.  Judging by the picture
in the ad, it looked to be able to display a 'persistent' trace.  Heck,
their datastream can't be that tough, write your own display routines if
the supplied software won't do it for you.  Instant storage scope.

Anyone know the specs on these DVMs (what the data rate is, how
fast they react to input changes, who really makes them, etc...)??

Pat Mancuso
--
patman at ctron.com, mancuso at bluefin.net -- '64 Nova SS -- Stratham, NH
"Space is curved.  That or my car pulls to the left."