Original Controller
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THE CL9 CORE REMOTE
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Seimens Controller
Courtesy of Jackie |
If you have one of the CORE UC-100 remote controls manufactured
by CL9 (A Steve
Wozniak company - More Here scroll to bottom), and if you wondered if it would ever work again,
you might be in luck. There must several thousand of these floating
around.
The last large application I heard about was the operation
for some type of medical equipment (update April '07: Siemens X-ray/C-scan controller - [thanks Jackie]). If you know more, please let
me know. It's a very powerful remote if you can get past the
"engineer-state-of-mind". |
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PIC-100 Controller |
GE Medical Controller |
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PIC-100 Controller
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GE Medical Controller
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Images courtesy of Jerry Kullman |
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| Added 2021: |
| Letter to new CORE owners describing factory default devices. |
| Programming notes on downloading new firmware and hidden switch operations. |
| (SW1 = Enables RAM modification. SW2 = disables Lithium battery) |
The Celadon
company later took over the CORE in 1991 and renamed it the PIC-100
after CL9 closed its doors in 1988. It marketed
the PIC-100 until it probably met up with advances in remote technology.
Do
you even want to bring it back to life?
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This
is a highly capable remote. The keypad (16 keys) is
a "page" and there are 255 pages.
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Any
key on any page can be programmed to point to any other
key on any other page.
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Therefore,
any key can become a macro for multiple operations -
A first back then!
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The
keys are generic and have no labels (TV, VCR, etc.)
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The
display only exists for the key programming and does
not include any icons for TV, VCR, etc.
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The
battery contacts tend to break down and need re-bending
or replacing.
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If
the firmware is lost, the unit
needs to be reprogrammed from an RS-232 interface with
boot-loading software.
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Figure 1- CORE LCD Segments
Below
is all the documentation needed for reprogramming
the unit. Also included is the serial interface manual with schematics
and software files.
INTERNAL
BATTERY
If the unit has been sitting idle for a long period time (dead
AAA batteries) and you see only garbage on the display or the
unit doesn't operate, the first item required is probably a new
internal lithium battery. Although the unit was exceptional for
its day, a major flaw with the unit was allowing the firmware
to be lost if this battery ever lost power (no flash memory back
then!). I don't think the designers ever thought the unit would
be idle for long periods of time with the user-replaceable batteries
going low.
This battery is available at Digi-Key
and must be soldered to the PCB. You must take the unit apart
and unsolder the old battery, then solder in the new one.
| Digi-Key Part Number |
P192-ND |
| Manufacturer Part
Number |
BR1225-1VC |
| Description |
BATTERY LITH 12.5MM
COIN W/LEGS |
Once
you have replaced the lithium battery, you are ready to reprogram
the micro controller. It should be noted that the front panel
cover should be removed very carefully until you know just how
easy it is when its done right (very slightly pull up on it as you slide it over the 'bump'). Also, verify the hidden switches
(documented in the manual), are set correctly.
You will have to build the serial interface unit (very simple
if you are electronics oriented), and program it from a PC-DOS
computer.
SERIAL
INTERFACE UNIT
The CS-232
module replaces the main IR transmitter module (which easily snaps
off) temporarily while programming or operating the unit remotely.
Get the serial interface manual
and read it carefully. Build the serial interface circuit
then download the programs required to reload the OS. Once you
have the serial unit, the whole process takes less than 15 minutes.
KEY
FILES
Also included, is a program that allows you to save and restore
the IR key
code information. Highly recommended on this unit since it
can be fairly easy to lose the memory. This makes it a snap to
restore it.
SOFTWARE
All of the programs are available
in ZIP format:
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CORE Dump Interpreter - this program reads the memory image written
by UPLOAD or OUPLOAD and provides a formatted dump of the
information. It is provided for experimentation only.
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Image courtesy of Jerry Kullman
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OLD UPLOAD - this program uploads CORE key definitions to
a file using the old CORE-TEST (b-reset) protocol.
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DOWNLOAD this program downloads CORE key definitions from a file
using the CSUI protocol.
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UPLOAD - this program uploads CORE key definitions to a file using
the CSUI protocol.
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CORE LOADER - this program reloads the CORE operating system
from a file.
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CORE 4.1 OS modules for loading with CORELOAD.
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CORE 4.8 OS modules for loading with CORELOAD.
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CORE 5.9 OS modules for loading with CORELOAD.
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Factory default key definitions for CORE.
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This program will allow sending keys via software using the RS-232
interface.
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This program is provided for CORE users who wish to have more ability
to modify captured Infrared codes. Included is a description
of the structure of Infrared codes as Well as how CORE stores
these codes. This program is formatted for the IBM-PC and
compatibles. It should be noted that the program contained
on this disk was written by a CORE user.
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PDF of new features in OS version 4.
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PIC-200 Utility - Windows program for editing CORE/PIC
(courtesy of David Pride)
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Here is the overview of available documentation:
