Re: Wireless ON/OFF for Tesla Coils- anyone done it?

To: "'Tesla List'" <tesla-at-poodle.pupman-dot-com>
Subject: Re: Wireless ON/OFF for Tesla Coils- anyone done it?
From: Tesla List <tesla-at-stic-dot-net>
Date: Wed, 5 Nov 1997 16:35:16 -0600
Approved: tesla-at-stic-dot-net

From: 	Julian Green[SMTP:julian-at-kbss.bt.co.uk]
Sent: 	Wednesday, November 05, 1997 12:19 PM
To: 	tesla-at-pupman-dot-com
Subject: 	Re: Wireless ON/OFF for Tesla Coils- anyone done it?

> Obviously, something that lives on a TC is going to require a lot of EMI
> shielding! I'd recommend putting the receiver in its own metal box (Pomona
> cases can be had that have good EMI gasketing) with a bonded copper-screen
> window for the IR port. The receiver and decoder (you'll need a
> microcontroller, explained below) need to run off of their own battery
> supply. I'd recommend coupling the actual TC control signals out of the
> receiver enclosure through a fiber optic cable.

Why not use a water level/pressure activated switch from a washing machine?
These switches are sensative to two pressures that relate to two water levels
(economy wash and full load).

I saw these being used by the guys doing lightening reaserch where they were
firing rockets into thunder clouds trailing a length of fine wire.

A length of plastic tube between the launch site and control room provided 
excelent insulation.   To fire the rockets the opperator blew down the tube, which
closed the switch and fired the rocket.

Couldn't a simmilar thing be done for a TC.  I would avoid using solid state stuff
when working with a tesla coil as its likely to get fried.  

Julian Green