6 ms·
> Before quartz oscillators Some systems still use grid frequency for timekeeping. If you own a mechanical rotary timeswitch, it's got a synchronous motor spi
by michaelt 3y ago
> Before quartz oscillators
Some systems still use grid frequency for timekeeping.
If you own a mechanical rotary timeswitch, it's got a synchronous motor spinning 50 or 60 times a second, then a series of gears, gearing it down to 1 rotation per day.
- isoprophlex 3y agoYeah. Some years back there was a structural underfreq event for a couple of weeks on the European grid. My microwave phased out of time by several minutes, and then phased back. Was fun to observe. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/mar/08/european-clocks-lose-six-minutes-dispute-power-electricity-grid https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/mar/08/european-clock...
- cesarb 3y agoInterestingly, my country (Brazil) doesn't seem to regulate the grid frequency for use as a time reference, at least as far as I could find. So if this happened here, and if the microwave used the grid frequency for its clock, the clock would stay wrong.
- throwaway173738 3y agoA switch such as would be present in an older clothes dryer or washing machine. The newer ones use electronically controlled relays but I could see the designers skipping the quartz oscillator because the time difference comes out in the wash.
- tnorthcutt 3y agocomes out in the wash Very, very well done