How to fix broken branches on artificial christmas tree
My dumb cat SAT in my tree and broke it!!!! | The DIS Disney Discussion Forums
Lisa loves Pooh
DIS Veteran
- #1
We have a pre-lit hinge artificial tree. This is this particular cats first Christmas (looking to possibly be his last GRRRRRR!!!).
He sat in my tree and made himself at home. He's not very big, but his weight was enough that whatever held the branches in place are now bent down and now I have tree-limbs dangling as ornaments.
We have 5 cats and this is a first ever "incident" with a tree and a kitty.
Can my tree be fixed?
(p.s. Anyone want a cat for Christmas? )
jennyl772003
Married on Castaway Cay
- #2
I really have no help for you, but I thought you might enjoy this
http://www.fluffytails.ca/christmas.asp
it was posted last year, and it might make you feel a bit better.
Planogirl
I feel the nerd in me stirring
- #3
Cats! Mine has been giving me some excitement too.
Can the tree be bent back? I hope that it's not ruined.
Lisa loves Pooh
DIS Veteran
- #4
I hope not either--looks like the hinge setting was bent down. I will have to give it a more careful look tomorrow. Hubby is home this weekend, so he can engineer something I am sure. A friend suggested ties or something.
Anyone for a gift exchange...I have a cat and a jello mold to share .
luvflorida
DIS Veteran
- #5
Lisa loves Pooh said:
Anyone for a gift exchange.
..I have a cat and a jello mold to share .
Click to expand...
I'll exchange one deranged squirrel and a bunch of annoying relatives for your cat and jello mold.
horseshowmom
DIS Veteran
- #6
jennyl772003 said:
I really have no help for you, but I thought you might enjoy this
http://www.fluffytails.ca/christmas.asp
it was posted last year, and it might make you feel a bit better.
Click to expand...
Cute, cute, cute!
Many years ago I had to have emergency surgery right after Christmas (the tree was still up). We had a kitten who was about 6 months old (she's 15 1/2 now). I was in the hospital for a week, and DH was with me most of the time. He went home once a day to check on the animals. Doc (the kitten) stayed in the house. While DH was gone, she totally dismantled our Christmas tree. It was laying flat in the floor with everything removed from the branches. I guess she got bored...
coliebird
<font color=red>I HAVE to sleep with socks on!<br>
- #7
My cat did this on his first Christmas.
I found him sleeping on one of the branches. He was only about 8 months old at the time and weighed next to nothing so there was no damage, but it really was cute He's been amusing me for almost 13 years now.
Hope your tree can be fixed.
EltonJohn
<font color=6600CC>DIS Veteran<br><font color=CC00
- #8
Lisa loves Pooh said:
We have a pre-lit hinge artificial tree.
This is this particular cats first Christmas (looking to possibly be his last GRRRRRR!!!).
He sat in my tree and made himself at home. He's not very big, but his weight was enough that whatever held the branches in place are now bent down and now I have tree-limbs dangling as ornaments.
Click to expand...
Sorry, but I must laugh
That's funny.
Moral of the story? Keep an eye on your critters!
chrissyk
<font color=deeppink> It will be great to have a b
- #9
Lisa loves Pooh said:
We have a pre-lit hinge artificial tree.
This is this particular cats first Christmas (looking to possibly be his last GRRRRRR!!!).
He sat in my tree and made himself at home. He's not very big, but his weight was enough that whatever held the branches in place are now bent down and now I have tree-limbs dangling as ornaments.
We have 5 cats and this is a first ever "incident" with a tree and a kitty.
Can my tree be fixed?
(p.s. Anyone want a cat for Christmas? )
Click to expand...
This would be exactly why we put our tree up right before Xmas and take it down right after We've taken to just decorating the outside of the house, thanks to the "redecorating" that our cats partake of if we dare to decorate the inside of the house
I hope that your tree is fixable. If not, my cats have selflessly volunteered to come over and finish the job if your cat is not up to the task
icebrat001
<font color=teal>Foot flusher<br><font color=orang
- #10
Aww, I'm sorry about your tree.
Simba's Mom
<font color=green>everything went to "H*** in a ha
- #11
Please tell me if you can fix your tree. Our cat weighs 18 pounds and loves to sit in the tree (it's also a hinged prelit tree). This year I've got a big spray bottle filled with water. Whenever I see him, I yell and spray him with the water. So far it's working, but I do have to leave the house periodically. Now you've got me very worried about the possible demise of our tree.
Lisa loves Pooh
DIS Veteran
- #12
Well it isn't that broken--it just has a HUGE HUGE bald spot where all the branches are dangling like pretty bushy ornaments.
I did finally plug it in--and the lights still work.
Stitchfans
Tres Charming
- #13
jennyl772003 said:
I really have no help for you, but I thought you might enjoy this
http://www.fluffytails.ca/christmas.asp
it was posted last year, and it might make you feel a bit better.
Click to expand...
That was great!! Thanks I really needed a good laugh after such a rough day at work and then having to drive home in nasty weather
Fake Christmas Tree Tips - Fix Your Fake Christmas Tree
Every item on this page was hand-picked by a House Beautiful editor.
We may earn commission on some of the items you choose to buy.
It can be taller, fuller, and even snow-covered.
By Lauren Smith McDonough
Sometimes fake trees are just more practical: They won't die on you or (even worse) shed spiky pine needles on your carpet — ouch. But if you're thinking your faux pine is so pathetic it makes you feel like a Scrooge during the holidays, try some of these genius tips to give it new life.
3 Little Greenwoods
1 of 10
Make It Fuller With Traditional Pine Garland ...
Use an extra string of artificial pine garland and wrap it around your tree — it'll blend seamlessly into the branches and conceal any bare spots that make your festive tree look lackluster.
[link href="http://www.3littlegreenwoods.com/holidays-seasonal-decorating/christmas/my-trick-for-making-a-fake-tree-look-fabulous/" target="_blank" 0="data-tracking-id="recirc-text-link"" link_updater_label="external"]See more at 3 Little Greenwoods »
Fake It Frugal
2 of 10
.
.. Or With Pine Picks to Fill in Holes
This blogger bought a $20 fake tree, then added pine picks from the Dollar Store to fill in the holes. Behold: A full and festive decoration.
See more at Fake It Frugal »
Epbot
3 of 10
Fake Some Snow With a Little Spackling
All you need to make your tree look like it was just brought in from a snow storm is lightweight spackling and a stiff paint brush. Dilute the paste with a bit of water, then brush the top of the branches.
See more at Epbot »
Urban Outfitters
4 of 10
Use a Tree Stump to Add a Realistic Touch
One of the biggest giveaways your tree is fake? That unsightly metal base. But if you bring a stump inside your home, drill a hole in it, then insert the metal into the crevice, you'll get that rustic vibe you crave.
See more at Urban Outfitters Blog »
A Designer at Home's Boho Abode
5 of 10
Hang Reflective Ornaments for Some TLC and Festivity
Anything that mirrors the branches or bounces light around the room helps give the appearance of a fuller tree, as proven by this blogger.
Excuse us as we pick out only the shiniest of ornaments this year.
See more at A Designer at Home's Boho Abode »
Sawdust 2 Stitches
6 of 10
Cinch Ribbons in Place to Add Body
Instead of "mummifying" your tree and laying ribbon on branches like a "dead fish," as this blogger puts it, she uses the wire tree branches to cinch and hold it in place. Giving the red garland more body makes the tree look fuller, too.
See more at Sawdust 2 Stitches »
Tottums
7 of 10
Add Serious Height With a Few Paint Cans
This trick is as simple as placing a few paint cans (in this case four) under the trunk of your tree, then draping the skirt over it to conceal your hack. Ta-da!
[link href="http://www.tottums.com/home-life/make-your-christmas-tree-look-bigger#_a5y_p=1098113" target="_blank" 0="data-tracking-id="recirc-text-link"" link_updater_label="external"]See more at Tottums »
In My Own Style
8 of 10
DIY a Basket to Hide Your Metal Base
If you want to hide your fake metal base, use wire cutters to cut the bottom out of a basket and remove the handle, then place your tree stand inside and you're all set.
See more at In My Own Style »
Jennifer Decorates
9 of 10
Hide Sparse Spots With Festive Bows
Loop bows are full of body, which is why they are essential when filling in spots that are sparse on your tree. Hang them in any spot that would otherwise reveal your fake tree status.
See more at Jennifer Decorates »
Amazon
10 of 10
Make It Smell Like Delightful Balsam
One of the biggest allures of having a real tree is the smell. But you can easily recreate the scent by hanging a balsam oil diffuser or a cedar-scented ornaments on your fake tree!
10 Best Christmas Light Ideas for Small Spaces
Lauren Smith McDonough Senior Editor Lauren is a senior editor at Hearst.
Ways of attaching branches in artificial Christmas trees to the trunk
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Goods
Do it yourself. City Christmas tree / Sudo Null IT News
Prepare a Christmas tree in the summer .
.. something like this you can remake a well-known saying.
Using the example of creating illumination for a rotating Christmas tree, I will show that it is not difficult, and after reading the article, any electronic engineer will be able to blink a large or small Christmas tree in his city, as well as make a beautiful New Year's ball. The article presents the stages of implementation of several New Year's projects, schemes and programs for the operation of devices, tells about various pitfalls. Any scale - from space to a point.
I hope that the article will help novice electronic engineers not to be afraid, take into account the accumulated experience and create their own interesting lighting solutions that people will like.
Motherland, Happy New Year!
It all started a long time ago, when there were real fir trees, and incandescent lamps.
According to tradition, every new year the main New Year tree is set up in the cities.
If it is easy to cope with a small spruce in an apartment, then it is difficult, troublesome and expensive to deal with huge spruces in the squares.
Wealthier cities use heavy equipment and police escorts to deliver a big, fluffy tree from any forest, or organize a Christmas tree to fly through the air using a helicopter.
But one day a crisis and a transitional moment came - there is no way without a Christmas tree, but there is not enough money.
In addition to financial reasons, there were other reasons:
- "concern" about the environment;
- it is not easy to find a fluffy beauty in the nearest district;
- it is difficult to ensure transportation to the city center without damage;
- problems in the ideal fixing of illumination;
- uneven transparency and distortion when displaying lighting effects.
Living spruces began to disappear from the New Year's squares and tree substitutes appeared, which, logically, should reduce the price of the New Year's holiday, but it is very difficult to believe that this is so.
Lyrical digression - Christmas tree in childhood.
Decorating a Christmas tree with illumination has been instilled in me since childhood. My father flew as a flight radio operator in a helicopter, and always made a beautiful New Year's holiday in the distant 60-70s. Garlands were assembled from 26 or 13.5 volt light bulbs, insulated with a PVC tube, the balloon was covered with several layers of zaponlak. Flasher on the RES-22 relay, if memory serves. That sound of clicking contacts will forever be remembered. The highest chic is the production of a rotating Christmas tree with illumination. Aircraft electric motor with gearbox, carbon brushes. And it was the same as a child.
The spiral has made another turn, and it's time for me to take care of the Christmas trees.
On one of the New Year holidays, there was a transitional moment between real spruce and a substitute. They brought a Christmas tree from the forest, in which almost all the lower branches were broken.
After installation, it became clear that something terrible had happened. But the craftsmen found a way out: they attached pipe sections to the trunk, and small Christmas trees or branches were inserted into them.
The next year, the whole tree was already hedgehog-like: a dead trunk - a pipe with tubes welded along the length, into which small live spruces were inserted to form a crown.
A more advanced modern ersatz Christmas tree is a frame covered with spruce branches, on which various light-dynamic emitters are placed.
Depending on the wealth of the city, the structures differ in size and type of installed lighting. Prototype competitions can be seen on the search engine “pictures of a Christmas tree in the square”.
I suppose that the further evolution of city Christmas trees will lead to the fact that only a blinking cone will remain from the former greatness, for which there will no longer be a need to make large and heavy structures. The cone can be formed with inclined laser beams, and with the help of projectors and a small artificial fog, any fantasy can be projected onto it.
Already in the era of the last real Christmas trees, the idea appeared to leave the Christmas tree as it is, and mount the illumination on cables and stretch marks that form a cone around the spruce. Using this technology, any pole can already be turned into the center of a holiday by dropping several cables from the top point in a circle and covering them with fabric. To project the light from the lamps onto the matter from the outside or from the inside. If pipes or a slender house are used instead of a pole, then cables with lamps are enough.
In principle, the idea materialized in a different form - the project "Magic Ball" with a diameter of 3 meters. In it, the Christmas tree is the central element, and the circle is filled with multi-colored light bulbs, symbolizing that the whole Earth revolves and revolves around the Christmas tree on New Year's Eve.
The structure is installed on the roof of the building, and every year it flashes its lights. Automation "Magic ball" is a clone of one of the blocks of the central tree of the city.
The magic ball can be easily repeated: the program of work and the effects embedded in it.
All photos - both of the ball and everything related to the New Year's project, are in the album “Zelenodolsk. City Christmas Tree 2006”. The ball project can be used in different designs - but this is not the ball that was mentioned at the beginning of the article, it will be later. Only use lamps with a bulb painted inside, they give a beautiful rich color. Tsaponlak in our time no longer rolls. Particularly impressive on this ball are the overflows of colors that resemble an iridescent gem. In this case, the transparency of the design was beneficial.
Several times they were involved in the creation of New Year's flashing lights on city trees, at first small and real ones, where one block is enough, and then ...
As is customary with the city administration, they start searching for a person or company that will ensure the blinking of the installed light bulbs in the last days of November or even in early December.
Delivery of the object is usually from 15 to 25 December. Therefore, if there are no developments, then it is almost impossible to have time to do something, if these are not ready-made purchased blocks.
This time, a very interesting and grandiose task was received. Almost the same as what my father did in my childhood, only many times higher and more powerful. There is no time for reflection: on December 1, the task was received, on December 25 everything needs to be launched. Therefore, a day was spent on a preliminary sketch and cost calculation, on December 2 they shook hands and a New Year's nightmare began to spin ...
Thoughts that haunted until the very launch of the Christmas tree: if I have time - I don’t have time, it will work - it won’t work, how will all this work at such huge powers and in conditions of strong interference, will the effects be beautiful?
Now you already understand that even spaceships sometimes fall, but then throughout the whole work there was a huge responsibility and experience for the result of the work.
I had no idea what would happen if any unit failed.
The architect of this Christmas tree was an interesting person and came up with a design that allows you to create many beautiful effects with a variety of lighting fixtures. In addition, all lamps were real incandescent lamps, which gave a beautiful, bright and warm light in the literal and figurative sense. Not like modern LED Christmas trees that shine beautifully, but it’s dark under them.
The total power of lighting fixtures that need to be automated on the Christmas tree and the square was approaching 70 kilowatts. Never had to work with such power.
Structurally, the Christmas tree was a structure with an initial height of 24 or 27 meters - several tiers of 3 meters each. But due to various problems in the manufacture, transportation and installation, the number of tiers decreased, and finally the height became 21 meters. Five tiers (the top one is slightly higher than the rest), a 2-meter crown and top bulbs, as well as 3 meters of elevation above the ground.
But even with a shortened design, there were often problems finding a lift to service the upper tiers. I can imagine how difficult the installation of Christmas trees in 2013 in Kazan - 41 meters or in Yekaterinburg - 46 meters, but they were motionless.
The main feature of our Christmas tree is that it rotated!
To do this, the axis of the Christmas tree is installed on a mechanism that sets the multi-ton structure in motion.
The drive was located in the dungeon, where the company was a goat-type heater, it was always dry and warm with it.
The rotating tree was powered by a pair of current leads located on both sides of the copper bus. From the bus, the three-phase voltage rose to the first tier, where there was an input shield and three automation units that controlled the lighting fixtures on the Christmas tree.
A bearing was mounted in the upper part of the tree axle, the outer race of which was fixed with cables and held the structure in a vertical position.
Above the bearing, the axis of rotation continued and a top in the form of a hedgehog from numerous light bulbs was installed on it. Judging by the fact that the lamps of the ball were blinking, the axis in the upper part is made of a pipe.
Structurally, 8 ribs and gutters are made along the entire height of the Christmas tree. Powerful searchlights were placed at the bottom of each gutter, which “pierced” it almost to the top of its head. The gutters pasted over with a mirror film were also illuminated by directional mirror lamps.
Four-channel running lights lamps from pre-assembled blanks are mounted on each rib.
Huge colored stars with internal illumination are scattered all over the height of the spruce. Some of them were two-tiered and, accordingly, two-channel, where a small illuminated star was located on top of the same illuminated large star.
In addition, on the square, around the spruce, free-standing metal structures about five meters high were installed - pillars with pipes bent at the top, in the common people - palm trees.
The crown of each palm tree was connected to the crown of the main spruce by a three-channel cable with lamps, the same cable through all the crowns encircled the perimeter of the square. We called all these lamps among themselves rays. There should have been 12 tall palm trees around the main spruce, but some of them were not installed, and the pediment of the house of culture was used instead.
This is how the upper part of the palm tree looks like
There were no drawings on lighting engineering. To understand the scale of automation and understand how many light sources are installed, I had to draw the location of all lighting equipment in my favorite CorelDraw:
- Christmas tree, side and top view;
- rays on the square.
Verbal descriptions are always difficult, so I drew everything that could be useful for understanding the work. I tried to maintain the project documentation in the proper form, but it is difficult to keep track of all the changes, so something may differ slightly from what was actually installed.
The main Christmas tree is a huge work of many people. The final result depends on the contribution of each person, and a hitch at any stage can lead to sad consequences.
Everyone works on the Christmas tree - administration workers, architects, artists, schoolchildren. Numerous creative teams are preparing, since the Christmas tree is also an occasion to gather for a festive concert, where there is often a real fireworks display. For the good cause of celebrating the New Year, large working groups are involved, usually free of charge, that is, for nothing.
The master plans for the constructions on the square were held by the developers of the holiday - the main city architects and artists. They always knew what and where to put, so that it was beautiful and according to Feng Shui.
The designer of the frame of the main Christmas tree and lighting equipment was a visiting architect. According to rumors, every year he launched a new version of the Christmas tree design in his city and now he got to us.
I got the creation of control blocks for all this power - the development of electrical circuits, the purchase of components, the assembly of blocks and their installation at the facility, writing the script and programming microcontrollers. Now, seeing such a volume of work, I would not agree for any gingerbread, but then ... Looking ahead, I will say that the developer of the Christmas tree was satisfied with the result, and even presented a book of his poems with a dedicatory inscription. Apparently, he was talented in many areas, as he often talked about medicine, pyramids in the country and a lot of interesting things from different areas.
The frame of the Christmas tree was made at a large factory that produces ships. They did it so well that the multi-ton structure could be rotated by hand, walking around the stage and holding on to the lower tier ...
Electricity: lamps and wires, calculated, purchased and installed the city electrical network. If now the enterprise has been divided into several independent organizations, where it is difficult to understand who is responsible for what, then everything was in the hands of one director, which is very convenient.
These are people with excellent knowledge and experience, as well as specialized high-altitude equipment. I had to work especially closely with one very competent engineer at the stage of calculations, load distribution and installation.
Figures for the Christmas tree were made at an art school. Even the chief artist of the city was wielding scissors with might and main, making another masterpiece from reflective paper.
Someone was assembling the stage, the road builders brought mountains of snow for the ice slides, firefighters were running around with hoses - they were rehearsing actions in emergency situations. There was enough work for everyone.
Lighting equipment from duralight on the MAF - small architectural forms (then I heard this term for the first time) was mounted by emerging advertising companies.
Development of electrical circuit.
On the main Christmas tree, in order to evenly distribute power over the three phases of the supply voltage and eliminate phase imbalance, I decided to make three blocks (one for each phase) with 32 control channels (96 channels in total).
It was necessary not to make a mistake with the correct definition of the number of channels, since the customer's violent fantasies went off scale and constantly changed.
Wiring diagram for connecting blocks and channel distribution of the main tree.
Selected a PIC18F452 controller in a DIP package that was mounted on a socket. There was no laptop then, and how to work with it in the cold? Spare controllers help, which, in case of an error, allow you to return the working version to its place.
The power element is a triac. If in previous designs I used TS122-25-12, then for a huge number of channels something more modern was required. I used BTB24-800BW with MOC3023 optocoupler control. The controller does not draw such a number of optocouplers, so I had to add the ULN2803A. Two controller outputs are used for the communication line with the master controller, one for the phase start clock signal for phase brightness control. There are no two outputs for quartz, so I used an external SG531PC generator.
Channel switches and at the same time short circuit protection are S231 circuit breakers for a current of 10 amperes. The input machine had a rating of 63 amperes. Even with speed class C, the automata saved the triacs from damage several times during startup after mounting the garlands - a huge number of connections when connecting lamps are difficult to make without errors. The result was a simple electrical circuit and a simple one-sided printed circuit board. The advantages of developing and writing programs by one person - you set the signet the way you want.
In addition to the Christmas tree, there were 12 more blocks to control the beams and contour on the square. Each block has three channels, for a total of 36 channels.
I drew an electrical diagram, a printed circuit board describing the principle of adjustment and a wiring diagram for connection.
When the power is connected, these 12 blocks on the poles are also “scattered” over the three phases.
Procurement of components.
Before buying, you should always think: what and how much to take. It is impossible to make a mistake both in type and in quantity, any oversight, in addition to monetary losses, can lead to fatal consequences - there is no time for correction.
I don’t know how it is now, but earlier, in the new year, something unimaginable was happening on the lighting and flashing lights market, so anyone who wants to have time to do everything needs to start work in the summer.
In those years, I had to visit the nearest city to buy radio elements, and more than once - order / pay, then pick it up. Running takes a lot of precious time.
Now, with the purchase of radio components, it has become much easier and more convenient: ordering via the Internet is brought directly to your home or to the nearest post office. Therefore, before buying, it is necessary to draw up a clear and final list of parts with the possibility of replacement with analogues and a small stock of key elements.
Another of the problems of a radio amateur is the case. Many do it on their own, but it is not always possible to achieve a decent look. Therefore, I decided not to save on the body and ordered industrial boxes for the Christmas tree: RH552 cabinets with IP65 protection, in which all the equipment is comfortably located. The box was gorgeous, it had a thick plate for mounting, which, after a little refinement (insulation with ceramic bushings from the case), served as a radiator for the triacs.
I developed the printed circuit board before purchasing the case and planned to place the triacs around the board. But in boxing it was not possible to do this and the triacs had to be placed away from the board. A simple plywood fixture helped to install the wires inside the block, making the bundles twin brothers.
Delivery of triacs was on the verge of all admissible terms, but I was lucky that year.
Scenario and program.
In addition to hardware, the main part of the work in microcontroller devices is occupied by writing programs that actually “revive” this hardware.
And the program needs a scenario for the operation of the equipment, or, in our opinion, an operation algorithm.
Before starting work, I assumed that I would go to the developer of the Christmas tree, he would write what and when should be turned on, I would transfer this to the microcontroller, and then it was a matter of technology. For this conversation, he drew the layout of lighting equipment.
But everything turned out to be worse ...
Attempts to ask and understand the control algorithm led to the fact that only one thing became clear - writing the script was given into my hands. At first I did not fully understand this point. There was even a balancing act on the verge of breaking up relations, but short time frames and responsibility reconciled the parties.
I had to become a screenwriter-programmer for a while.
Writing a script is extra time, fantasies and sometimes mistakes in choosing effects. You can spend a lot of time writing a complex effect, but it looks so-so.
It is difficult to foresee this on the layout, everything is revealed only on the Christmas tree, which is not yet ready. And it will be ready on the day when it is necessary to hand over the work.
As a result, I threw all sorts of fantasies, based on such thoughts:
- the Christmas tree was an impressive rotating structure, and the effects should be smooth, solemn, without sharp jerks;
- the Christmas tree rotated, so the duration of each effect must be chosen so that viewers located at any point can see the effect in full;
- the design is opaque, and the viewer is at one point, so you can duplicate the effects on the other half of the Christmas tree;
- show all the variety of existing lighting equipment and demonstrate the effects that highlight emitters in a favorable light;
- it is desirable that a large number of elements be turned on at the same time, since light light causes positive emotions;
- use alternating speed of change of effects and direction of movement;
- effects should be understandable and not leave the audience indifferent.
Sometimes it got to the point that the developer, realizing that the deadlines were really very short, said: “Make it so that only something blinks at all.”
But the possibilities of lighting technology are very diverse, so I wanted to squeeze the maximum possible. There was a dangerous game between "getting anything done at all" and "getting pretty effects." There was not enough time to write the program, but we managed to make not only a simple lamp switching, but also the effects of a smooth change in brightness, as well as color flow.
I will note the moment of turning on the Christmas tree. To increase the service life of the lamps and prevent their failure in frost, the filament was smoothly heated when power was applied, which is not done even in most indoor lamps. The trouble-free operation of the lamps showed the correctness of such a decision, and now the first effect is always a smooth increase in brightness.
While the components were missing, it was necessary to debug the program first on a three-channel layout,
and only then on a large Christmas tree simulator, which was a set of lamps with a power of 40 W, with enough to fully load all the channels of one of the three blocks.
Lamps were a source of bunnies, light and heat. It is impossible to leave them on for a long time, and as soon as the smell of burnt cardboard appeared, turn it off and write a program. To reduce the impact of pulsed light on the eyes, a sheet of paper had to be used, covering the lamps with it. But all the same, debugging strongly sits down eyesight.
It is difficult to use a lower lamp power, since there is a parameter - the triac holding current.
When writing programs, the problem of overheating of the voltage stabilizer at 5 volts was revealed (it was installed without a radiator). It was possible to solve it by a sharp decrease in the current consumed, giving out voltage to the control optocouplers not constantly, but only for a moment, sufficient to turn on the triac.
First, the program was written for one block, then for the second and third. The idea of what a simulator lamp looks like on a real Christmas tree develops a rich imagination.
The day began at five or six in the morning and ended with the appearance of galleys in the eyes, when the bunnies no longer disappeared after the unit was turned off. So that squirrels do not appear along with the bunnies, he went to bed.
Taste and color…
It's hard to predict which effects will look good and appeal to the majority of viewers, and which won't.
Various overflows looked beautiful: inside the bunk stars and between different elements.
Flickering is interesting - when all channels flash for a fraction of a second at random. For the “randomness” task, I wrote the number of each channel on a piece of paper, threw it into a hat, stirred it, and pulled it out in turn, writing down the order in the work program.
People liked the “starfall” - the stars rush down with acceleration, and when they fall, the spotlights at the bottom of the Christmas tree flash and the lighting of the gutters turns on, simulating an explosion.
There was also a reverse effect called "fireworks".
The stars flew up, the ball flashed, simulating an explosion, and then the flickering began, reminiscent of fireworks. Unfortunately, it was not possible to catch the moment when there was a real fireworks display with twinkling and the “fireworks” effect on the square in front of the Christmas tree.
Also interesting was the breathing of the Christmas tree, when the brightness gradually increases and then decreases, increasing the rate of increase / decrease with each period.
And of course, the classic, running lights, but complemented by overflow, when the light smoothly “streams” through its channel.
Assembly.
There was more than work on making blocks and writing programs, so he rarely appeared on the Christmas tree. I came to the installation, and there they changed something in the lighting structures, and they didn’t tell me. Naturally, all script work loses its meaning. To a fair remark to the city architect - why didn’t they say? A dissatisfied answer followed - we are mounting here in the cold all day long, and you are sitting there in the warmth!
In an artificial city tree, automation is installed inside in order to reduce the length of the conductors.
Therefore, often the favorite question on the phone: “Where are you?” I had to answer: "In the Christmas tree." This is how the panorama of the insides of the first tier looks like.
Electrical installation in the cold, that's another story. Usually they wait for the weakening of frosts, then this will not work here. The Christmas tree should have been burning yesterday, but the frost is not weakening. If you can install a spotlight inside the spruce that both shines and warms (garland assemblers always warmed their hands and electrical tape on it), then there is nothing on the poles with rays. The catalytic heating pad saves. I still have left from the service, and I always regretted that I didn’t buy two then - so that in each mitten. When connecting numerous wires from garlands to the blocks, a special stripping helped to expose the ends of the wires. Electricians did not have this in their arsenal, but I bought it for installation work - it saves a lot of time and nerves.
I gave it to installers - in the cold it is an excellent help instead of a knife and wire cutters, you can work without taking off your gloves.
Since the board with the controller is built into the top of the box, when you open it, it is not visible and everyone asked, what controls the lamps? Only automatic protection devices were visible, occupying almost the entire building.
Even the chief designer of the Christmas tree was surprised. So far, he has launched many different designs, but he has never seen such a compact unit with such capabilities. He said that huge control cabinets were installed on previous Christmas trees (apparently, these are simple garland switches with relays or starters, as he admired the effects of a smooth change in brightness and color flow). For me, these blocks seemed huge after numerous rearrangements and editing.
Probably, here lies one of the answers to the question - why was the order so late? Making a simple garland switch is really easier and faster.
Christmas tree inside.
Each tier of the Christmas tree has a wooden floor with a hatch through which you can travel almost to the very top.
Unfortunately, due to lack of time, it was not possible to go upstairs, but the first tier is a permanent habitat for the installation and debugging of the program.
On the first tier, you can clearly see the gutters.
Ribs covered with spruce branches
Ladder leading up
And of course three control boxes entangled with numerous cables. Judging by the width of the block, which was 500 mm, the spruce trunk at the base was made of DN 325 pipe.
The pre-launch went according to plan. Some lamps did not work due to defects in the sockets and connections. Sometimes, when screwing in, they confused the order of the colors of the lamps, which is immediately noticeable with various effects - the albino always stands out. The shortcomings were quickly eliminated with the help of a lift.
There were no comments on the operation of the automation units on the Christmas tree, however, I managed to do some magic with the effects.
And here comes New Year's Eve. Citizens gathered in the square around the Christmas tree. All participants of the work also arrived at the solemn event. The most crucial moment is coming.
The mayor's speech, the command to turn on ... Everything is fine - spinning, flashing! A great weight off one's mind. The participants sighed with joy and went home to finally relax and celebrate a magical holiday.
Disadvantages, where without them.
Among the shortcomings of the design of the Christmas tree and flashing lights, the following can be noted.
- Drive belts for rotation were non-separable and were laid before the installation of the Christmas tree. They were still tearing up. There was a small margin, but after another belt broke, they tried not to twist the Christmas tree and many people did not even know that it was rotating.
The drive belt can also be broken by turning the tree by hand on the lower tier. To prevent this from happening, and for many other reasons, there was always an uncle (then) a policeman nearby. In the future, it is necessary to make the drive collapsible and chain.
- No need to chase the number of effects - just do a little, but so that they are AH!
- There was no synchronization between the garlands on the Christmas tree and the rays on the square. The result is a mix of effects. In my opinion, it's better to just turn on the rays on the square, and do the effects on the Christmas tree. But the customer wanted everything to flash around. Moreover, in the process of work, several big stars migrated from the Christmas tree to the facade of the nearest building, and some people from the administration had the idea to connect them to the management, to which they had to answer quietly and briefly - ENOUGH! As a result, the stars just burned. In the future, for synchronization, you can use the radio channel, as the controller on the Christmas tree rotates.
- Sudden change in light emitting elements and their number. If the Christmas tree somehow managed to correct the program of work, then the news that more than half of the 12 planned beams will not be installed on the square came as a shock to me. Few people were convinced by the arguments that at the same time everything collapses in the lighting design. The result was what happened, there was no way to fix it.
Video about the work of the Christmas tree was not very high quality (it was a long time ago, night, frost, dynamic mode), it is not focused enough and does not convey the color saturation, but you can get a general idea of the work done. In reality, everything looked much cooler and more majestic.
At the time of filming, the rotation of the Christmas tree is disabled - the problem of the belts.
I already wrote about the sudden disappearance of many rays surrounding the Christmas tree, therefore, when watching a video, it’s better not to pay attention to the rays at all, since the program was conceived to work in full force, but the result was torn and torn fragments that spoil the overall impression of the work.
Look at the Christmas tree and the effects (by the way, now I would remove some of them). In general terms, the effects are described here.
An unexpected end.
As always, after such a holiday, a lot of ideas for improving work, new effects, and circuitry appear. But ... the lack of payment from the city administration made further cooperation useless.
So people imperceptibly become sponsors and begin to engage in city charity. Maybe even put on the list of honorary citizens?
Officials justify their bad deed by the fact that there is no written contract. But at that time there was simply no time to deal with a contract: either a contract or work, so I believed the words of people in high positions. The words of the officials turned out to be zilch. In fact, the reason lies, most likely, in something else. Breaking off relations with the previous contractor, the customer, represented by the administration, has the jackpot from the next order. There was no rollback option on my end, and they had to look for other performers.
According to rumors, the next year the cost of illuminating the Christmas tree was huge. And although many elements were replaced (including control units), the illumination, according to people, looked primitive.
And in memory of those events, there was a book of poems by the designer of the Christmas tree.
Conclusions.
In order for the work to be done with high quality, and the result to please everyone, preparations for the New Year on city Christmas trees must begin in the summer, and even better - after the New Year.
A huge number of people and equipment work on the Christmas tree. To organize their effective work, it is necessary to have a clear work plan and strict adherence to all deadlines.
When working, there are many problems, inconsistencies, changes, which are sometimes not even reported. For their prompt solution, it is necessary to have a list of those responsible for each area of work and notify them in a timely manner of any changes.
Before agreeing to the execution of an order, be sure to calculate the entire scope of work in order to understand whether it is realistic to complete it within the allotted time? Health is more expensive.
Despite the prestige and interest of any work, it should begin after the signing of the contract. This is especially true of the city administration, whose employees "ate the dog" on the deception of the performers. It was these actions that formed their good financial situation on the one hand, but low trust and negative attitude of the residents on the other.
When working on a Christmas tree, be sure to follow safety precautions and installation rules, otherwise, it will turn out like in Aktau, Karaganda, Bishkek or Sakhalin.
Continued work.
I abandoned flashing lights for a long time, but in recent years I have slowly continued to introduce ideas, although it is believed that flashing lights are the initial stage in the development of an electronics engineer.
For programmers - “Hello, word”, for electronics engineers - “blink an LED”.
Back in the era of city Christmas trees, he came up with different lighting solutions. For example, a ball that changes its color. Inside the white matte ball are three multi-colored lamps, which are controlled by a microcontroller.
I did it, it works well - those who wish can repeat the design: a circuit and a printed circuit board, effects, a program of work. Such balls: many small ones or several large ones, you can hang on the Christmas tree, and this will be quite a sufficient decoration. The ball can be put on the New Year's table.
I didn’t record a video of the ball’s operation in those years, but now the emitters are outside and the video looks like this.
This design option can be used to illuminate the windows of office buildings at night, which are covered with white blinds and act as a screen. Looks impressive.
Currently, similar LED lamps have been released (all the filling is hidden in the base) and lamps controlled up to the Internet, but large balls are easier to make yourself.
Instead of lamps in a ball, you can use an RGB LED strip.
On the theme of “flashing LED” you can make a lot of interesting designs, everything is limited only by imagination.
For example, my first article on Habré is “Time Lamp” (also a New Year’s design), where you can show the time within the city by blinking the LED. Just in this watch, an RGB LED strip is used. The continuation of the work was a miniature desktop version - "Cube" and projects on a space scale, where the lamp can be placed on the Moon (the most long-range clock),
a spaceship, or in the form of a searchlight, which is visible tens of kilometers from the city.
You can make an original wrist watch that shows the time as a dot. It will be the smallest dot clock in the world, as nothing less can be done.
The Christmas tree came up with an idea to flash a star or the top of its head when a call comes from a cell phone. Then the audience (children, of course) would be able to participate in the blinking process themselves.
