Boston Linux Meeting Wednesday, October 20, 2010 Hardware Hacking: Atomic Clock Building

[Bruce Labitt]

  On 10/14/2010 8:39 PM, Ric Werme wrote:
>> From: Bruce Labitt<bruce.labitt at myfairpoint.net>
>>     On 10/13/2010 9:25 AM, Jerry Feldman wrote:
> [apologies for confused attributions.  Death to HTML Email.]
>
>> According to the announcement:
>> "Using the lowest amount of custom hardware and pouring Perl and Shell
>> Script over everything as the glue binding it all, we create a
>> minimalistic device delivering a perfectly tuned network time source:
>> your very own stratum-1 ntp server, turning a pocket-sized Sheevaplug
>> device into your personal atomic clock."
>> and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NTP_server#Clock_strata
>> snipped for your convenience:
>> Stratum 0
>> These are devices such as atomic (caesium, rubidium) clocks, GPS clocks or
>> other radio clocks. Stratum-0 devices are traditionally not attached to the
>> network; instead they are locally connected to computers (e.g., via an RS-232
>> connection using a Pulse per second signal).
>> Stratum 1
>> These are computers attached to Stratum 0 devices. Normally they act as
>> servers for timing requests from Stratum 2 servers via NTP. These computers
>> are also referred to as time servers.
>> I would think this implies the Sheevaplug is connected to a Stratum-0 source.
>> What was the source that Federico used?  Anyone know?
> So instead of building an atomic clock, it's really an exercise in RS-232 or
> parallel port wiring?
>
> All the hype and none of the clock?
>
> My sister is a marine biologist.  I talked to her on the phone yesterday,
> but that didn't make me a marine biologist.
>
>    -Ric Werme
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>
>
I went to the BLU site hoping to find more.  At least a clue 
on the clock.  But a talk on rs232 comms...  (All of the 
hype and none of the clock?)  I hope it is a lot more 
interesting than that!

However, a direct connect to a WWV receiver technically can 
be a stratum-1 time server.

Is it one of the chip scale atomic clocks?  That would be neat.

-Bruce