Blog reader “Dmitri” has sent pictures of a very unique and interesting modification he performed on his recently acquired Fluke 8060A. The LCD was ruined, so he has fashioned a replacement using green SMD LEDs arranged to form 7-segment numerals, with light dissipating film and protective acrylic from a broken iPhone. The mask was cut with a German desktop milling machine. The new display board was connected to the processor sub-board with the same kind of teflon-insulated wire used to connect the LEDs and ballast resistors.
The green LEDs operate on very low current, allowing them to be driven directly from the processor without adding extra driver circuitry. Dmitri reports an average segment current of about 10uA, and the entire unit still only draws 2.3mA from the 9V battery with an all-zero display in VDC mode, 3.8mA in VAC mode.
Thanks, Dmitri!
This repair / mod job is stunning, it must have taken an incredible amount of effort to accomplish. It almost looks like it came from the factory that way and it probably would to someone that did not know any better.
What is the normal current draw for one of these meters with the stock LCD?
Exactly the same 2.28mA in 20VDC mode, as ModemHead checked and told me on my request while we discussed this issue. So my custom made LED display gives exactly the same result as the LCD one, and this fact can justify the use of LED displays in manufacturing of displays designed to operate at very low temperatures, which would be impossible with LCD displays. Modern green LEDs are fantastic in terms of power efficiency. Human eye high sensitivity to green light also plays the role. NB: I used red SMD LED for low batt indication and, as you can see on the photo, it is somewhat “less bright” compared with green ones.
Hello Dimitri, Modemhead, you have done a very nice job with these displays, and here is one of the very few places on the internet about these nice mods which brings back to life old, reliable equipment , I think I have a problem that looks the same.
I am restoring an Air Conditioning machine (Snap-On SUN MRC334), from ’97, problem is that it has a cracked LCD and without it I cannot use it and I can’t find anywhere this old LCD. At first I thought that the LCD is simple like in your Fluke multimeter but when analysed there are other symbols (like lbs/kg; auto; etc) and I think I cannot use a 8888 simple display.
The display driver is one piece of PCF8577CP, any idea would be appreciated , have a nice day guys!
I love this mod! It looks great. Could you please share the wiring diagram? I’d like to attempt it with an 8060a/aa that has a bad LCD.
Awesome idea! I may try the same to restore my Weston 6000 meter with a bum LCD
Good luck, Igor! The key is to check the amplitude of output impulses at LCD display contacts, with repect to “LCD ground wire”. If they are close to 3 V, everything should be all right: at ultra low currents, ultra-bright green LED’s voltage drop is close to 2.1 V, so the 12 k ballast resistors worked fine in my case with 8060A, with its “25% on, 75% off” 3V impulse pattern. I used my Tektronix digital oscilloscope to check everything, before going ahead with design and implementation.
Nice Job man.
Really nice Satellit 210/Transistor 6001 that you use as a prop:-)
I’ve several of these specific Satellites and am always amazed at the sweet sound and sensitivity of them.
Nice job again on the Fluke…
regards,
Nick
All credit goes to Dmitri, I just published the pictures! And I agree, it is a nice job.
Hi Dmitri,
What kind of LED’s are this? i never heard of LED’s with fwd current less than 1 mA.
can you tell us more details about these green SMD LED with average 20uA used?
Thanks and Regards.
Hi Guys, My 8060A LCD if fading fast but at 80+ I have not got the know how to repair/replace it! any ideas where I can send it to get repaired?
email: hmccomb@btinternet.com.
Thanks & Best Regards (STAY SAFE)
Deceo conseguir el prosesador de fluke 8060a