Zoo Keeper / Qix high score save options

[isucamper]

I answered my own question on how to check a diode:

Put your multimeter on Ohms and set it to the smallest resistance. Check for continuity through the diode. Swap the probes to the opposite side of the diode and check again. You should be getting continuity through one way of the diode but not the other. Make sure it is going on the direction you want it to!

Another good learning experience for me. One kinda weird thing: The voltage across the battery is measuring at 2.94 V, but through the battery AND diode it's only 2.62. I guess I wouldn't expect there to be that much loss. Oh well. I guess that means the battery will die sooner. Hopefully it will still last a few years.

 

[mattosborn]

Another good learning experience for me. One kinda weird thing: The voltage across the battery is measuring at 2.94 V, but through the battery AND diode it's only 2.62. I guess I wouldn't expect there to be that much loss. Oh well. I guess that means the battery will die sooner. Hopefully it will still last a few years.

A typical silicon rectifier diode will have a forward voltage around 0.4V or higher. The best choice here would be a Schottky diode (like a 1N5817) which would have a lower forward voltage... probably under 0.2V at such a low current.

 

[mhkohne]

<snip>
Any chance its ever going to fail on me? How can I tell if it's doing its job?

You've already learned how to test the diode, but for future reference, diodes, when they fail, almost always fail open (that is, they stop conducting altogether). They don't tend to fail, however, so it's not likely to be a problem. And even if it does fail shorted, the only thing that will be damaged is the lithium battery.

I don't recommend running enough wire to put the battery behind the coin door - keep it on the back door somewhere. Yea, you'll have to open the back to change it, but you only have to do that once a year, and all the extra wire means more to go wrong.

 

[Riptor]

You've already learned how to test the diode, but for future reference, diodes, when they fail, almost always fail open (that is, they stop conducting altogether). They don't tend to fail, however, so it's not likely to be a problem. And even if it does fail shorted, the only thing that will be damaged is the lithium battery.

I don't recommend running enough wire to put the battery behind the coin door - keep it on the back door somewhere. Yea, you'll have to open the back to change it, but you only have to do that once a year, and all the extra wire means more to go wrong.

Lithium batterys can catch on fire if charged. If you want to see if the diode is doing its job you can remove the battery and meter the battery contacts with the game on. If you show voltage there is a problem.

 

[isucamper]

thanks for the inputs, guys