Who Says Time Can't Fly?

If you have an old clock laying around and nothing to do with it, then this is perfect for you. With just a clock, some tools, and some Arduino parts, you can make a very unusual clock. It looks pretty normal on the outside, but it has a secret inside. It can go faster than an hour a minute! If you want to find out how to make time fly, read on!

• Clock (with plenty of space inside)
• Hot glue gun
• Wires
• Arduino Uno
• 28byj-48 Stepper
• A small wood piece and something to cut it

You will need to get everything in the list and set it aside. Make sure there are no batteries in the clock. Then, get a screwdriver and take the back off the clock. Make sure there is plenty of space for the Arduino and motor.

You connect pin in1 to 8, in2 to 9, in3 to 10, and in4 to 11. Then you power it by an external 5v source. It is pretty straight forward, but make sure you power the motor by a separate power source than the Arduino. If you don’t it can be bad for the Arduino.

The code works good, but it may need a little tweaking. I had to change the steps per revolution slightly because of the clock mechanism. To adjust the speed, you times 0.0166666666667 by the speed you want, because 0.0166666666667 is normal speed. Though, if the speed is below one, the motor will not turn. So if you times it by 60, it will go an hour a minute, and so on. The code is partially from Last Minute Engineers.com

Code:

#include <Stepper.h>

const int stepsPerRevolution = 2038;

Stepper myStepper = Stepper(stepsPerRevolution, 8, 10, 9, 11);

void setup() {

}

void loop() {

 myStepper.setSpeed(1);

 myStepper.step(stepsPerRevolution);

} 

//Thanks to https://lastminuteengineers.com/28byj48-stepper-motor-arduino-tutorial/ for some of the code

I glued in the tip of the motor with hot glue to the wheel on the back of the clock for changing the time. I then took the piece of wood, and cut it into 2 small pieces. I then glued them to the sides of the motor for supports.

You next need to start putting in the components inside the clock, and gluing them down. I used a usb battery pack to power everything. It would be helpful to have a clock without a clear front like mine so you can’t see everything inside, but it worked fine.

You most likely will have to tweak the values in the code, but once it works right, it is really cool. I have not tested it for long periods of time, but it has worked well so far. It is quite a sight when you see a clock going way faster than usual. It is a fairly simple project that can make an old clock a lot more interesting. That’s how you can make time fly.