I think it’s either a piezo or capacitance type bt blindly probing combinations of pins looking for tiny signals that r probly just the change of ImpedanceI. Any help is. appreciated
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Oh did you give me an exciting puzzle for the evening.
I’m pretty sure that’s a Pirani sensor - it would connect to an indicator, and the pins should only fit one way. Here is a link to a switch/transmitter guide (assuming all their 912 series sensors are pinned in a similar manner).
If that doesn’t get you where you are going - just call them, they are an active company and would probably love to sell you a new indicator or transmitter to fix your issue. I have great success just reaching out to the manufacturer of my equipment asking for technical documents. Some of them are available on their website - I could not find your specific model number… but they have extensive catalogs available as well.
Hope this helps your quest.
Good luck.
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Yes funny story about that, I’ve also had decent luck with manufacturers regarding legacy tech. so how was the first thing I did when I got the sense of years ago now. I was on the phone with them for about 45 minutes and it seemed like it was going well and like they were gonna give me full data sheet and everything. But from my research I already realized that it’s model number was specifically left out of their catolgue and other support and promotional material (ie skipped and jumped over) and at some point the nice lady pit me on hold and abruptly after almost an hour or being helpful and friendly she came back on the line and said something I think about it being made for a specific client, that she couldn’t tell me anything and goodbye click. Literally hung up on me lol. I’ve ran into a practise that might be related before. One time I had a hascal pnumatic gas booster pump with a model number that was almost a common model but not. And the tech at Haskell said the only difference was one l mounting bracket in a different location and that companies when order parts will deliberately make a stupid small change to have the part have a special and unique model number.
And yes it’s pins r in a classic radio tube configuration that I believe is called octal and it is keyed so can only be put 1 orientation. Don’t parani sensors use the small leakage current of high voltage that increases when exposed to higher levels of vacuun? Don’t pirani and penning sensors both essentially do that just in different ways. Even ion guages r in that family aren’t they technically?
Yes - that is essentially how it is designed to work. The voltage changes based on the temperature of the heated wire inside the sensor body. Slightly different mechanics and usage.
I’m pretty sure the one you have is also a Pirani - because all of the ones from that company that have 912 in their model number.
Let us know how your project is proceeding. 
Isn’t that how thermocouple vacuum gauges work? Or is that what ur saying cause Thermo couple based vacuum sensor r the most common?
I should have mentioned there is a reason I think it’s piezo or capacitive not thermocouple or parani. When u look into the sensor tube is quite different then a thermalcouple ok one which u can normally see the little wires that make up the heater and junction this one has a very obvious diaphragm like plate at the end of a seamingly blind hole.
Yes that’s how they are supposed to work.
Sorry I thought you were asking for the wiring diagram on this - and that you would be able to confirm it if you had the pin configuration. So I pointed to their troubleshooting tool, which has the pin configurations for both styles of their gauges.
Here is a link to their vacuum gauge operating manual - which you may already have, for basic transducer model. Its for their generic connection to their indicator. It has two different kinds of pin configurations depending on how it is keyed.
Here is a link to their pirani operating manual - which you may also already have. This is specific to the model of device I thought you showed in your video.
The one you show in your video has a different style of pin which is seen on Pirani sensors. Although I agree that the inside does not look like I expect.
Your’s does not appear to have a flange or anything - for the other styles they make.
I don’t even know what you are trying to use it for - whatever your application I’m sure they would be happy to sell you something that will do the job, even if they cannot give you the specifics because that one was custom ordered.
If it has some kind of diaphragm inside, is it possible that this is for really low vacuum and its some kind of protective baffle with the wires just on the other side of diaphragm?
Sorry I cannot be more helpful. Sure hope that these help or that the company tells you how to fix your sensor.
Good luck with your adventure. <3
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yes it is possible. i realized that even tho it looks like a blind hole its possible there’s a way around that part thats visible.
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need more help finding manuals and software lol
if u feel up to it
I’m feeling up to it. If I could get photos of the name plates, that would be super helpful. For some reason these photos came through a bit fuzzy.
No prob I’ll post more pics asap
Boy don’t we have an adventure on our hands. I’ve reached out to my peers at Perkin Elmer (who purchased Packard) to see if they have anything. I haven’t seen one of these in a while. <3
Is that what you are using this for?
There is similar one of these on sale on E-bay just now for like $200 - and it comes with a manual. It doesn’t mention software - but you never know.
A little more research shows that some of the instruments made at the same time from Packard used the Optiquant software package for analysis and stats. There’s a sister software for acquisition. I don’t know that it works.
Let us see if Perkin Elmer will assist. Have you already reached out to them about this? It looks like they sell the supporting kits and stuff as well.
I found that there’s an inter-brand hplc integration software package called Chamaeleon that list it as supported. It also list the Hitachi 6000 intelligent hplc pump and the spectroflow 783 that I have so I’m thinking that might be a good thing to get. Honestly I was hoping to just control it with a micro controller. I reverse engineered the whole circuit on the inside hoping to find something with no luck without the specific digital protocol and commands there’s nothing to do
Hello, I wanted to know if there was any response to the software, I have the spectrophotometer, but I can’t get the application. Can you still get it?
Hello, I wanted to know if there was any response to the software, I have the spectrophotometer, but I can’t get the application. Can you still get it?
Have you already looked for Chameleon?
I didn’t get any software package from PE - but they did say yes they are supporting these systems. I don’t have one myself - so there is no way for me to send serial numbers, model specifics, or even test out software.
So I’d reach out to PE and ask for the supporting systems. Its only been… three years since I first talked to them. Maybe nothing has changed. 