PHASER
METAL DETECTOR
BY THE PROF
THE SOUND OF XNORING
The Prof s experimental design irons out the ground effect, but
can t quite grind out the iron effect! Using very low frequencies
(for a metal detector) it uses small phase shifts in the search
signal to trace useful objects. www.250.org.ua
Producing a new metal detector design for the home constructor is not an easy task these days. There have been a large number
of metal detector projects published in the last fifteen to twenty years, making it much easier to come up with a revamped circuit
than one of a totally new type. I will not claim that this detector relies on a totally new system as it works on a principle that has
certainly been known for many years. On the other hand, I have not seen a previously published design of this type. The basic
requirements for this project were as follows:
1. It should not be of a standard (BFO, IB, or PI) type.
2. It should be free from the ground effect without using any special shielding. The ground effect is one that results in an
indication being produced by certain types of detector even when no metal is present in the ground.To combat this effect either
the search coil must be suitably shielded, or the coil must be kept a fixed distance above the ground.
3. Construction of the search coil should be non-critical, and any electronic setting up should be simple and straightforward.
4. The unit should be easy to use, having a method of indication that is very obvious even for someone without a good sense of
pitch (many designs indicate the presence of metal by giving a small change in the pitch of an audio tone).
5. It should have a level of performance at least as good as most simple BFO and IB designs.
PHASED OUT
When looking at the available options, the only kind of detector which seemed likely to fit these requirements was the very low
frequency (VLF) phase detector type. This operates by detecting small phase changes in the signal in the search coil when metal is
brought near to the coil. Very low frequency in metal detector terms generally means a frequency at the upper end of the audio
spectrum, with something around 17KHz being quite typical. The point of using relatively low operating frequencies in metal
detectors is that it avoids problems with the ground effect.
Practical experiments with VLF phase detector circuits proved quite encouraging. and the final design is quite simple but
effective. In terms of performance it falls some way short of a kit-built IB unit that I have, but it can be built for what I would
estimate at little more than a tenth of the price of this commercial unit. The higher sensitivity of ultra-sensitive detectors is often
unusable anyway, due to problems with small amounts of iron or other metals in the soil giving a sort of pseudo-ground effect.
The performance of the unit is quite good for such a simple design. It will detect a 20p coin at a maximum range of about 60 to
80 millimetres. Larger pieces of metal can be detected at longer ranges, with a 50p coin being detectable at about 100 to 150
millimetres. Large chunks of metal can be detected at a maximum range of around 500 millimetres. This is better than most BFO
designs, but is perhaps a little inferior to some simple IB circuits. This design is more simple than an IB design though, and in
particular, the search coil does not need to be made very accurately. In this respect the unit is even less critical than a BFO design.
Sensitivity is certainly high enough to provide good results. Note that the quoted sensitivities were obtained from in-air tests.
Performance in practice depends on the characteristics of the soil, and the exact orientation of many objects seems to significantly
affect how well (or otherwise) they are detected.
The block diagram of Fig. 1 shows the arrangement used in this detector. The search coil is actually a twin type, and is really a
form of transformer. An audio oscillator drives the primary winding by way of a buffer amplifier. The purpose of the buffer is to
ensure that metal close to the search coil does not pull the oscillator and affect the phasing of its output signal. It is not to
produce a high drive current in the search coil, which only requires a very low drive level. A (more or less) squarewave signal is
produced by the oscillator.
The output from the secondary winding is fed to a high gain amplifier and then to a trigger circuit. This gives a roughly
squarewave signal at logic compatible signal levels. A form of mixer circuit processes the output of the audio oscillator and the
output of the trigger circuit. This mixer is actually a 2 input xnor gate. XOR and xnor gates are probably the least used types, and
Page 1
some readers may not be familiar with their operation. An ordinary nor gate has an output which goes low if either input 1 OR
input 2 is taken high. The output also goes low if both input 1 AND input 2 are taken high. An xnor gate differs from a nor type
only in that taking both inputs high does not take the output low. An xnor gate therefore provides what could reasonably be
regarded as the true nor action.
What we require in this application is a
mixer circuit that converts phase lag into a
proportional output voltage, because the
output from the secondary winding slightly
lags the input signal, but if metal is brought
near the search coil the phase lag increases
and decreases for ferrous and non-ferrous
metals respectively. XOR and xnor gates
may not seem to be of much use as phase
detectors, but they can in fact operate very
well in this mode. The waveforms in Fig. 2
help to explain the way in which this type of
detector operates. Here we are assuming that
an xor gate is used.
The top set of three waveforms are those
obtained with the two input signals perfectly
in-phase. Both inputs of the gate are low,
then they are both high, then low again, and
so on. A state is never reached where the
inputs are at opposite states, and so the
output goes continuously low. In the middle
set of waveforms the second input lags the
first one by about 45 degrees. The two inputs
are now at opposite states twice on each
cycle, although only briefly. The output is
high for about 25% of the time, giving an
average output voltage of around one quarter
of the supply voltage. In the bottom set of
waveforms the phase lag has been increased
to 90 degrees. This lengthens the periods
during which the input signals are at opposite
states, and gives longer output pulses, still
with two per input cycle. The average output
voltage is increased to about 50% of the
supply voltage. By taking the two input
signals 180 degrees out of phase the two
signals would always be at opposite states, and the output would go permanently high. An xnor gate is effectively an xor type
with its output inverted. Results using an xnor gate are therefore essentially the same, but the output is of the opposite logic state.
By smoothing the output pulses to obtain a reasonably ripple-free output equal to the average output potential, the required
phase lag to voltage conversion is obtained. However, the phase changes produced by even quite large pieces of metal very close
to the search coil are quite small. At most they seem to be just a few degrees, and small target objects more than a few millimetres
from the search coil produce a phase shift of only a fraction of a degree. A high gain dc amplifier is therefore needed in order to
produce a reasonably strong output signal to drive the subsequent stages. There is quite a large phase lag under stand-by
conditions, giving a strong quiescent output voltage from the unit. A variable bias circuit in the dc amplifier enables this quiescent
output voltage to be nulled.
The output stages of the unit are used to produce an audio tone that rises or falls in volume when metal is detected. Even people
who have a good sense of pitch generally find a change in volume much more noticeable than a change in pitch. The output from
the dc amplifier could be used to drive a panel meter if this method of indication is preferred. However, in my experience it is
necessary to concentrate on control of the search head, making any form of visual indicator difficult to use properly.
A tone at a frequency of a few hundred Hertz is obtained by feeding the output of the audio oscillator stage through a frequency
divider circuit. This drives a chopper circuit which produces an audio output signal having a peak to peak amplitude equal to the
Page 2
output voltage from the dc amplifier. This signal is fed to a buffer stage which drives the output socket. A crystal earphone and
most types of headphone are suitable for use with this project.
CIRCUIT OPERATION
The full circuit diagram for the Phaser metal detector appears in Fig. 3. The audio oscillator is a humble 555 astable circuit. A
low power version of the 555 (the TLC555CP) is used in the IC1 position in order to reduce the current consumption and extend
the battery life. The operating frequency of the circuit is roughly 16KHz. The primary of the search coil (T1) is driven via an
emitter follower buffer stage based on TR1. R3 limits the drive current to just a few milliamps. Both the primary and secondary
windings of T1 are fitted with parallel tuning capacitors, and these seem to be essential if reasonable sensitivity is to be
achieved. IC2 amplifies the output of the secondary winding, and the high gain of this amplifier gives a severely clipped output
signal. VR1 is adjusted to give an output waveform having a suitable mark-space ratio.
This signal is processed by IC3a which is a cmos xnor gate which functions here as a simple inverter stage. IC3b is the xnor
gate which functions as the phase detector and it is fed from the outputs of IC1 and IC3a. Its output is smoothed to a reasonably
low ripple dc signal by the single pole lowpass filter comprised of R6 and C6. IC4 acts as the basis of the dc amplifier, and this
has a voltage gain of around 300 to 400 times. I cut down the voltage gain from its original level as I preferred lower drift to
increased sensitivity. If you prefer higher sensitivity, then R7 can be made higher in value and (or) R8 can be replaced with a
shorting link. Remember though, that the increased gain will result in any drift being amplified by a larger amount, and more
frequent readjustment will be needed in order to keep the circuit adjusted for optimum sensitivity. Also, accurate adjustment of
the bias controls becomes more difficult. These controls are VR2 ( fine ) and VR3 ( coarse ). C7 provides additional filtering
which provides a very low ripple dc output signal.
The frequency divider is a cmos 4040BE 12-stage binary type (lC5). In this circuit only five stages are used. This gives a divide
by 32 action, and an output frequency of about 500Hz. This signal is used to drive common emitter switching transistor TR2,
which chops the output of IC4. VR4 is the collector load for TR2, and this acts as the volume control. TR3 is an emitter follower
output stage.
A very stable supply in the range 9 to 15 volts is required. A single 9 volt battery is unsuitable as it would provide totally
inadequate stability. Instead, two 9 volt batteries wired in series are used to provide a basic 18 volt supply, and monolithic voltage
generator IC6 then provides a well stabilised 12 volt output from this. R14 reduces the dissipation in IC6 slightly, so that it
operates slightly cooler and gives a more stable output The current consumption of the circuit is about 17 milliamps. This can be
provided by two high power PP3 size batteries or rechargeable PP3 size nickel-cadmium batteries. If the unit is likely to receive a
Page 3
great deal of use it would probably be better to opt for higher capacity batteries, such as two sets of six HP7 size cells in plastic
holders.
CIRCUIT BOARD
Fig. 4 shows the component layout for the printed circuit board. IC1 to IC5 are all mos types and consequently require the
normal mos anti-static handling precaution to be observed. Note that IC1 has the opposite orientation to ICs 2, 3, and 4. Three link
wires are required, and these can be made from 22 swg tinned copper wire (or trimmings from resistor leadout wires). The
capacitors are all miniature printed circuit (vertical) mounting types. It could be difficult to use capacitors having the wron g
physical characteristics, especially in the case of the polyester capacitors which should have 7.5 millimetre leadspacing. Be
careful to fit the electrolytic capacitors with the correct polarity. At this stage of the proceedings only fit single-sided pins to the
board at the points where connections to off-board components will eventually be made. Once fitted, generously tin the pins with
solder.
The unit will fit into a case having dimensions of about 150 by 80 by 50 millimetres, but this assumes that two PP3 size
batteries will be used as the power source. If you opt for larger batteries such as a number of HP7 size cells a substantially larger
case will be required. The case will eventually be fixed vertically on the stem of the unit. The controls and output socket are
mounted on what becomes the lower section of the removable front panel. This leaves sufficient space for the batteries in the top
section of the case. The component panel is mounted on the rear panel of the case using M3 or 6BA fixings, including some extra
nuts or short spacers to hold it slightly clear of the rear panel. Note though, that printed circuit board can not be finally fitted in
place until the case has been mounted on the stem of the unit.
All the point-to-point style wiring is quite straightforward and should not give any great difficulties. Fig. 5 in conjunction with
Fig. 4 shows the interconnections between the three potentiometers, the output socket, and the circuit board. SK1 is a 3.5
millimetre jack socket on the prototype. I use the unit with a crystal earphone, or Walkman type headphones having their
original (stereo) plug replaced with an ordinary mono type. The latter, with the two earphones wired in series, seem to give better
volume and better results than a crystal earphone, and are probably worth the extra cost. Of course, rather than fit a different plug
to the phones you might prefer to fit a stereo 3.5 millimetre jack in the SK1 position, but sockets of this type can be difficult to
obtain. The unit seems to work with most types of headphone, incidentally. For low and medium impedance types it is best to use
series connection, but for high impedance headphones parallel connection will probably be better. A low impedance magnetic
earphone is unlikely to give satisfactory results.
MECHANICAL CONSTRUCTION
Mechanically, construction of the detector is non-critical. You can opt for a fairly basic method of construction (as I did), or
adopt more advanced techniques to give a more professional finish. Results using the unit will be exactly the same either way, and
it is only the quality of finish that will be different. The method of construction suggested here is a basic one that anyone who is
Page 4
reasonably practical should be able to tackle without any real difficulty. It uses inexpensive and readily obtainable parts. It is up to
you whether you follow this method of construction or try something a bit more difficult. If you do try out some ideas of your
own there are a few points to bear in mind.
Unlike some types of metal locator, with a VLF phase detector a certain amount of metal within or near the search head is quite
acceptable. The electronics can be adjusted to null this metal, and there is no obvious loss of sensitivity even with quite large
amounts of metal close to the search coil. It is therefore quite in order to have a metal stem fixed to the search head by a metal
bracket. It might even be acceptable to have the search head constructed from metal, but I have not tried this and cannot guarantee
that it will provide satisfactory results. Physical balance is important as the unit will be difficult to use for long periods if it is top
or bottom heavy. It is possible to produce a very neat search head using fibreglass, but as I know from previous experience, this
can result in a very bottom heavy and unwieldly finished unit. If you use a heavy-weight material for the search head use as little
of it as possible! The handle should be as close to the centre of balance as possible.
The method of construction I adopted is as
outlined in Fig. 6. The stem is a piece of
wooden dowel about 20 to 25 millimetres in
diameter and around 1.2 to 1.3 metres long.
Suitable dowels are readily available as
replacement broom handles! The bottom end
of the stem is angled at about 55 degrees to
the search head, and it must be cut at the
appropriate angle. The search head is made
from thin hardboard or particle board. The
material I used was thin particle board with a
white plastic veneer on both surfaces. Apart
from giving a neat finish the veneer also
helps to make the unit weatherproof. The
search head is really just an outside bobbin
on which T1 is wound. Two pieces of the
board about 200 by 150 millimetres form the
top and bottom cheeks, while one or two
pieces about 140 by 100 millimetres form the
middle section of the bobbin. It is advisable
to trim off the corners of the larger pieces
and then round them off using a sander. This
gives a neater appearance and avoids having
sharp corners which can tend to get tangled
in the undergrowth when searching overgrown ground. The three or four pieces of the bobbin are held together by a good quality
adhesive such as an epoxy resin type. Drill three or four small holes (about 1.6 millimetres in diameter) well towards the front of
the top panel. These are where the leads of the connecting cable will pass through the top panel. The search head is fastened to the
stem using a woodscrew and some epoxy resin adhesive.
The case is fixed at the top end of the stem using three small woodscrews. The case must protrude slightly beyond the end of
the stem, or the stem will get in the way and make it impossible to fit one of the circuit board s mounting screws in place. Having
the case as high up on the stem as possible is a good idea anyway. It gives a better balance and keeps the case clear of the handle
section of the stem (the section just beneath the case). An entrance hole for the cable which connects T1 to the circuit board is
required in the bottom panel of the case, and a grommet should be fitted into this hole.
Twin individually screened cable is the obvious type to use for these interconnections. I found that twin overall screened cable
was also perfectly suitable, with the outer braiding carrying the earth connections for both windings of T1. T1 consists of 100
turns of 36 swg enamelled copper wire for the primary winding, with 25 turns of the same wire laid on top of this to act as the
secondary winding. The windings do not need to be particularly neat, but try to wind them quite tightly. Any turns left popping
around could cause spurious indications from the unit. Prepare the ends of the screened cable s leads so that they can be passed
through the holes in the top panel of the search head and connected to TI. At this stage it is probably best to leave these
connections bare, but once the unit has been tested and is fully working it would be advisable to use some fibreglass filler paste or
epoxy adhesive to cover them over and protect them. A cable grip secures the cable to the top of the search head, and some tape
can be used to cover over the cable and produce a neat finish.
Some bands of insulation tape are used to fix the cable to the front edge of the stem. If you have a suitable tool for the purpose
it would be a good idea to make a groove for the cable in the front edge of the stem. About half a dozen bands are sufficient to
hold the cable in place. I used a couple of layers of tape over practically the entire stem in order to give a neat finish and a degree
Page 5
of weather-proofing. I used white tape for most of the stem, with black for the
COMPONENTS
handle section. To finish off the unit, thread the twin screened cable through
RESISTORS
the hole in the case and connect it to the printed circuit board, and paint or
R1,R8 4k7 (2 off)
varnish around the edges of the search head so that the hardboard or particle
R2 33k
board is sealed against moisture absorption.
R3 2k2
R4 390
ADJUSTMENT AND USE
R5 22k
If you have access to an oscilloscope, VR1 can be adjusted so that the
R6 10k
output from IC3b is reasonably symmetrical pairs of pulses. In the absence of
R7 3M3
suitable test equipment it is just a matter of trying VR1 at various settings in
R9 47k
an attempt to find one that gives good results. Fortunately, adjustment of this
R10,R13 3k3 (2 off)
preset seems to be far from critical, and any roughly central setting seems to
R11 1k8
give satisfactory results.
R12 100k
R14 100R
When using the unit, set VR2 at a roughly central setting, and turn the
R15 330k
control knob of VR3 fully counter clockwise. With the volume control well
All resistors 1/4 watt 5% carbon film
advanced, adjust the control knob of VR3 slowly in a clockwise direction until
a loud tone is heard from the headphones. Then adjust VR2 to reduce the
POTENTIOMETERS
volume of the tone so that it is quite quiet but still clearly audible. Placing the
VR1 22k sub-min hor preset
search coil close to a metal object should result in the tune increasing or
VR2 1M lin carbon
decreasing in volume. Conventionally, the detector should be set up so that the
VR3 10k lin carbon
tone increases in volume for non-ferrous metals, and decreases in volume for
VR4 47k log carbon
ferrous types. This is the action that will be obtained if you have the windings
of T1 connected in-phase. I preferred to have items or interest (which mostly
CAPACITORS
means non-ferrous metals) produce a drop in volume, as I found a small drop
C1,C11 100µF 25v radial elect (2off)
in volume to be much more apparent than a small increase. I therefore wired
C2 1n polyester (7.5mm pitch)
the windings of T1 out-of-phase (ie, one start lead earthed and one used as
C3 33n polyester (7.5mm pitch)
the non-earthy lead). You might like to try out the unit one way, and then
C4,C6 1µF 63v radial elect (2 off)
reverse the connections to one winding of T1 so that you can try it out the
C5 22n polyester (7.5mm pitch)
other way, to see which system you find easiest to use.
C7 15n polyester (7.5mm pitch)
As a point of interest, I found that ferrite rods and pieces of iron had the
C8 100µF 10v radial elect
opposite effect to most other metals, but steel (which I would have thought
C9,C10 100n ceramic (2 off)
counted as a ferrous metal) usually did not. Note that for optimum sensitivity
you must keep VR2 adjusted so that the tone from the earphones is fairly quiet
SEMICONDUCTORS
under stand-by conditions. The unit inevitably drifts slightly, and VR2 will
IC1 TLC555CP
accordingly need to be periodically trimmed in order to keep the unit at
IC2,IC4 CA3140E (2 off)
optimum sensitivity. Eventually you will find that very frequent adjustment of
IC3 4077BE
VR2 and VR3 is required, and this indicates that the batteries are nearing
IC5 4040BE
exhaustion. There seems to be no problem at all with the ground effect. If an
IC6 µA78L12 (12v 100mA
area of ground always gives a small indication from the unit, this indicates
pos reg)
that the soil has a significant metal content This phenomenon is not as rare as
TR1,TR2,TR3 BC547 (3 off)
you might think, and can occasionally make an effective search very difficult.
MISCELLANEOUS
FINALLY B1,B2 9 volt (high power PP3
size, 2 off)
There are a few final points that it is worth mentioning. I believe that
S1 spst sub-min toggle
licenses are no longer needed for metal detectors. To be legally usable in the
SK1 3.5mm jack
UK they must fall within certain restrictions, but to the best of my knowledge
T1 36 swg enamelled copper
this design falls comfortably within all these restrictions. Constructors outside
wire (see text)
the UK should ascertain that the unit can be used legally in their country, and
should obtain any necessary permit prior to constructing and using the unit.
Plastic case about 150 x 80 x 50mm, printed
You should obtain permission before searching any land that you do not own.
circuit board, control knob (3 off), 8-pin dil ic
Any sites of historic interest are out-of-bounds to treasure hunters. If you
holder (3 off), 14-pin dil ic holder, 16 pin dil ic
should find something that is likely to be of significant historic interest you
holder, battery connector (2 off), twin screened
should take it to your local museum and give them full details of where it was
lead, insulation tape, wooden dowel,
found. Try to leave places you search as unspoiled as possible. Fill in any
hardboard, cable grip, fixing screws, etc (see
holes you dig, and generally disturb the soil as little as possible.
text).
Page 6
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