Uploaded October 2018 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
rkan2 asked, "How fast can the photoelectric switch switch? Could you make a video just moving your hand very fast between it? Thanks!"
The fastest I was able to record the Seco-Larm Reflective Photoelectric Beam Sensor switching was 16 times a second. Unfortunately the timestamp on Google Sheets cannot keep pace with the rapid keystroke entries. The automated script takes about 1/4 of a second to write the hours, minutes, seconds, and milliseconds. The spreadsheet can handle a couple of quick entries at the same time, but when too many switches pile up, the online script starts to skip cells, and output errors. I still think this system makes for a good solo lap timer and for racing against the clock, but it is only reliable for recording one moving thing at a time.
rkan2 asked, "How fast can the photoelectric switch switch? Could you make a video just moving your hand very fast between it? Thanks!"
The fastest I was able to record the Seco-Larm Reflective Photoelectric Beam Sensor switching was 16 times a second. Unfortunately the timestamp on Google Sheets cannot keep pace with the rapid keystroke entries. The automated script takes about 1/4 of a second to write the hours, minutes, seconds, and milliseconds. The spreadsheet can handle a couple of quick entries at the same time, but when too many switches pile up, the online script starts to skip cells, and output errors. I still think this system makes for a good solo lap timer and for racing against the clock, but it is only reliable for recording one moving thing at a time.
