FakeGPS
ESP8266-timeserver for Nixie-clocks from PV Electronics
https://github.com/xSnowHeadx/FakeGPS
README file
SnowHead Mar 2022
Introduction
The company PV Electronics from UK sells nice Nixie-clocks:
Unfortunately these clocks have only a crystal for time accuracy and no DST-automatic. To get the exact time you can buy a NTP-client from the same company for $40 or you make one by yourself for $2 and with better features.
Function
The FakeGPS requests the UTC-Time from the WorldTime-API over WiFi and Internet and generates a GPRMC-Message in the GPS-Format NMEA-0183 as required from the Clock. So there normally are no firmware-modifications necessary to adapt the timezone and DST because they will be investigated out of the public IP of the request. For special cases (f.e. the use of a foreign proxy server) the timezone can be selected manually by replacing "ip" with the wished timezone in WTAClient.cpp.
This converter generates a timestamp in local time considering the DST-state. So the clock can be set on a UTC-difference of 0 and don't need any configuration or switching for DST on the clock.
On first usage or if the module can't connect to the local WiFi-network it starts as accesspoint named "FakeGPS-AP" with no password. Connect to this AP and configure the SSID and Key of your local network as described here. Then the module will connect to your network, act as GPS-Time-Server and keep the access-data for the next start.
Hardware
- Like the original we use a ESP8266 NodeMCU.
- For the connection to the clock we only need one addtional part, a 3.5mm Stereo-plug with cable like from old headphones.
The serial signal comes from Pin TXD1 (GPIO2, D4) of the NodeMCU with 9600 baud. Connect the audioplug to 5V, GND and Signal as described in the assembly instructions of the clock and configure the timereceiver of the clock for GPS-Format and 9600 Baud.
Software
Because the NodeMCU is Arduino-compatible it can be programmed with any IDE for Arduino. Beside the Code-file propagated here there are some Standard-Arduino-libraries an some special libraries necessary and must be imported and activated how described in the used IDE.
Standard libraries
- DNSServer
- Wire
Special libraries
- from ESP8266-core
- ESP8266
- ESP8266WebServer
- ESP8266WiFi
- WiFiManager
- ArduinoJson