4 layers134 × 33 mm
2 layers134 × 33 mm
Nixie clock tubes
anders-bzn/nixie-clock1Rasberry Pi nixie clock with six digits and NTP sync
- Size
- 134 × 33 mm
- Copper layers
- 2
- Thickness
- 1.6 mm
- Parts
- 23
- Nets
- 80
- Pads
- 158
- Tracks, vias
- 433, 53
- Pours
- 1
- Routed
- Yes
- KiCad
- KiCad 8.0 (file 20240108)
- Created
- 24 Jun 2025
- Updated
- 24 Jun 2025
Overview
Nixie clock tubes is an open-source printed circuit board by anders-bzn, from the anders-bzn/nixie-clock repository on GitHub. It is a 2-layer board of 134 × 33 mm with 23 parts on 80 nets, routed with 433 tracks and 53 vias.
Its parts include 7 connectors and 6 resistors. It belongs with the lEDs and displays boards of this library.
README
README.mdAbout the Nixie Clock
This is a clock powered by a Raspberry Pi Zero W. It fetches current time by NTP and must be connected to a WiFi network to display the time.
The time is displayed on six IN-14 nixie tubes driven by six 74141. No multiplexing! The intensity can be adjusted by PWM.
PCB's
There are in total five PCB's in this project. All boards are drawn with KiCad 8.0.
Board nixie-bottom
Bottom lid, no electrical function.
Board nixie-clock
The main board, it hold gpio-expanders and driver IC's for the tubes. It also connects to the PSU board, Raspberry Pi and the nixie tube board.
Board nixie-clock-psu
Power supply board, creates 5V DC and 170V DC from 12V DC. The 170V is created by a step up converter built using a MAX1771 IC. The 5V is created by a integrated switched regulator.
Board nixie-clock-tubes
Upper board on which all tubes are mounted.
Board nixie-top
Top lid, no electrical function.
Software
The clocks software is written in Python. It's just a simple poll loop that set the new time on gpio's on the gpio-expanders every time the second changes. It's started as a systemd service at boot time.
To install the software on the Raspberry Pi, copy the ./sw folder to the Raspberry Pi and install the software by:
$ sudo ./clock-setup.sh
$ sudo rebootNOTE: ./sw/timesyncd.conf is an example.
Parts
23| Qty | Value | Footprint | References |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | 2k2 | Resistor_SMD:R_1206_3216Metric | R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6 |
| 6 | Conn_02x05_Odd_Even | Connector_PinSocket_2.00mm:PinSocket_2x05_P2.00mm_Vertical | J1, J2, J3, J4, J5, J6 |
| 6 | ~ | anders:IN-14 | N1, N2, N3, N4, N5, N6 |
| 4 | MountingHole_Pad | MountingHole:MountingHole_2.7mm_M2.5_DIN965_Pad | H1, H2, H3, H4 |
| 1 | Conn_02x02_Odd_Even | Connector_PinSocket_2.00mm:PinSocket_2x02_P2.00mm_Vertical | J7 |
Questions
How big is the Nixie clock tubes PCB?
It measures 134 × 33 mm and has 2 copper layers, 1.6 mm thick.
What parts does the Nixie clock tubes use?
23 parts. The full list of its parts is on this page, with links to each part's symbol and footprint where PCBKit's library has them.
Where can I download the Nixie clock tubes KiCad files?
From the anders-bzn/nixie-clock repository on GitHub, at the commit this page was made from: the board is nixie-clock-tubes/nixie-clock-tubes.kicad_pcb and its schematic nixie-bottom/nixie-bottom.kicad_sch. PCBKit opens the board in the browser, with nothing to install.
Can I use the Nixie clock tubes design in my own project?
Its repository states no licence, so its author keeps all rights: ask anders-bzn before reusing the design.
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