CHAPTER 1 1.0 INTRODUCTION Time has become a relevant part of our lives.

We live by time because it governs everything we do especially when we do it. Like the time of a football match, the time we write an exam, the time we attend an interview e.t.c In the quest to knowing the exact time, clocks and watches have become very important in our lives. We previously had the mechanical clocks which were a little inaccurate but we now have a new family of clocks that rely not only on electric current but they also rely on a current passing through a quartz crystal which produces regular waves which can be made to show time either in figures as in a digital clock or the usual clock face with the hour and minute hand. The essence and objective of this project is to detect the lapses or shortcomings of some oother designs of digital clocks and hence improve on them by incorporating the most current and advanced form of digital technology to achieve a very good result.

1.1 PROBLEM BACKGROUND Some clocks which have existed in the past have some lapses and shortcomings, hence the objective of this project is to ensure that this identified lapses are worked on and improved on. 1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM There are other problems which hopefully will be addressed on during the course of the project. These problems are identified and enumerated below. ACCURACY: Most of the clocks being produced are not accurate or precise in the sense that they either gain more time or loose time. Sometimes, these problems are as a result of the counters used or as a result of the way the integrated circuits were programmed. In the case of analogue clocks, it could be caused by the wearing out of some mechanical gears. POOR VISIBILITY: Most of the time, the display unit of clocks are not legible enough. This could be as a result of the type of display used. The seven segment displays will not legible enough if the power consumption is high. The LCD, analogue displays e.t.c are used in most designs and they are not legible when viewed from a far distance. Some of them are even affected by high temperatures such as the LCDs. GENERATION OF CLOCK PULSE: the generation of clock pulse of one cycle per second (1 hertz) is at times an issue. Most times, the pulse generated fluctuates as a result of instability from the source. The source could either be an AC power supply or the oscillator used in the operation in the clock pulse. IV.PARALLAX ERROR: This is usually a deflector error that is synonymous with analogue as they are read based on the angular pposition of the hour and minute hand of the clock. DURABIILITY: Most of the clocks are not durable especially if they are used externally. This is due to ambient conditions such as rainfall, snowetc.

1.3 AIMS AND OBJECTIVES The project helps to accomplish the following enumerated objectives: TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT: It makes room for an improvement in technology as one tries to improve on previous inventions. EDUCATIONAL PURPOSE : During the course of the project so many new things are being learnt such as programming micro-controllers and this could be applies in other fields. APPLICATION WITH OTHER ELECTRONICS: The end product of his project which is the digital clock could be programmed to perform other functions by incorporating it into other electronic systems. TRANSLATION OF THEORETICAL KNOWLEDGE: This project grants one the opportunity to prove the facts of science by translating and applying basic theoretical knowledge which ha been gained over the years.

1.4 SCOPE AND LIMITATION It is hoped that by the end of this project, the following will be improved on in terms of digital clocks: 1. DURABILITY 2. PRECISION AND ACCURACY 3. LEGIBILITY AND AESTHETIC And before all these can be possible some methods were applied which are explained below: The circuitry of this digital clock is simplified and not as complex as the ones previously constructed by others. This feature makes it easier for troubleshooting and repairs. Also using a PCB (Printed Circuit Board) further simplifies the circuit unlike the commonly used vero board The cost implication of the project is fair enough an the selection of components is based on quality not quantity. They are selected in-order to aid durability unlike the previously manufactured clocks which were made in inferior quality. Selections of the micro-controller and PCB board were strictly based on specification. The use of a micro-controller made construction very easy, although programming was required but this reduced the complexity of the project unlike previous works which made use of several logic gates to achieve its purpose.

The time consumed to produce such a clock was minimal hence this made it suitable for mass production and commercial purposes.