February 3, 2017 Arduino MEGA Signal Controller

by Tyler

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Posted on 12-10-2020 02:35 AM

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February 3, 2017 arduino mega signal controller the arduino's are fascinating creatures!  this post is about using an arduino mega 2560 as a signal controller. The mega has 54 i/o ports and 16 analog input ports. My arduino sketch will drive 16 led 3 color signal heads using 48 outputs. The 16 analog inputs will handle the outputs from 16 occupancy detectors or block controls.

AC Power - O Scale

Our store is organized by scale. You can also use the search box to enter item numbers or descriptions to quickly find what you need. If you need replacement parts, please visit our parts department. Be sure to visit our rerailed section for warehouse finds and great deals on unboxed merchandise.

Part number: awbat2 * whole number only the new cvp battery pack offers 55% more power capacity yet is the same size as our original 4400mah battery. Rated at 6. 8ah of capacity, the new battery can power the average usa-trains 2-motor diesel locomotive for more than 3 hours.

This thing is heavy, which is good, it doesn't slide around the desk, this is because it is built of metal. Apart from the horn switch everything feels really well made and substantial. It worked straight away with run8 and once i downloaded and installed a driver it also worked with ts2020. Not all train sims are compatible though. All the right levers and switches are there, which is good. The reason i have marked it down (and so have many others) is that the most important lever on it, the combined throttle/brake lever, is in dire need of a re-design. There is a lot of slack in the mechanism, you can pull it back to full throttle after calibrating, fine, then to reduce the throttle slightly, you have to move the throttle at least half way back to zero, then move it very slowly until it starts to respond, the last third or less of the travel goes from full to zero. If you need a bit more power, again, you need to move the lever a long way before there is any response, then the last little bit of travel has all the throttle change in it. This is not a calibration issue, it is a mechanical problem with the design of the device. The lever is in the middle of the raildriver, the potentiometer that measures the value is at one end of the device, there is a thin plastic rod tying the two together. The rod may flex slightly, it isn't a tight fit in the potentiometer and the pot. Is slightly loose mechanically. Moving the lever from full brake to full throttle only moves the pot a small amount, so the smallest bit of slack in the system has a large effect. This one lever and the problem spoils what should be a really high quality product. The rest of it is excellent.

The base station consists of an arduino uno (or arduino mega) and an arduino motor shield, and that's the only hardware needed (with the exception of an 18v ac or similar power pack). All of the code for the arduino is written in c++ using the arduino open-source ide, hence i named my home-brew system dcc++ (pun intended).

DCC Power and Control

Esu50310 cabcontrol wireless dcc system with wifi throttle, 7a, set with power supply 110v-240va, usa, output 15-21v.

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