The Electric Christmas Tree

This was the first electronic Christmas display I made.  I used 3/8 inch plywood on a 14 foot tall pyramid-like frame of 2 by 4 lumber.  Since I was on a acreage, this was easy to put up and store every winter, but after dragging it around to a couple other locations in the Province and struggling to find  a place for it, I retired it in 1994.

I driied about 300 holes in the plywood and installed 10 watt bulbs in the shape of a Spruce Tree in the holes.  The back of the display had all the wiring, and there was LOTS of it!   Forty-eight separate digital signals from 3 circuit boards lit the lights in various patterns and various colors.  All wiring was #16 gauge and the cables that connected the "tree" to the electronics were 14 conductor #16 cables, terminated at both end with high grade military-style connectors.

I built the  6809-based computer, interface board with PIAs and the 3 triac boards.  I wrote the program in assembly language.