Help required in wiring a four position rotary switch.

[Trainshed Terry]

Help required for a wiring diagram for  a four position rotary switch for the following signal.

 

 

I would like to use a 4 position rotary switch for the above signal  so that I can reduce the number of rotary switches that are required on the panel.

 

The feather will be worked by a separate switch.

 

The switch position that I would like to have is as follows

 

*P2.       Red (both signals) 

P3.        Single yellow

P4.        Green

P1.**     Green on secondary signal.

                   

The 3 aspect signal will be for the following routes.

 

Loco  shed to platform 1 Down main

Loco shed to platform  2 with feather indication to down fast/main

 

The secondary secondary is for route that takes you from loco shed to platform  4.** or carriage sidings via platform 4.

 

Position 2. on the switch is the one that I would like to use to display the red aspect of both signals, but I would like to be able to maintain the red aspect on the secondary signal when the main signal is cleared to a proceed aspect

 

*And when the secondary signal is cleared to a proceed aspect, I would if possible like for the red aspect to be showing on the main signal.

Also advise required on what value should the diodes should be.

I hope that you can understand what I am trying to achieve.

 

Terry

 

 

[Brian]

Hi

 

Think this covers what you're after?

 

I'm assuming the aspects are all LEDs and they are common Cathode wired.

 

5 diodes are used in my drawing and they are all 1N4001 or 1N4002

[Trainshed Terry]

Thank you and yes all signals are indeed LED.

 

Hi

 

Think this covers what you're after?

 

I'm assuming the aspects are all LEDs and they are common Cathode wired.

 

5 diodes are used in my drawing and they are all 1N4001 or 1N4002

[DCB]

The diagram above is not going to work very well  with LEDs, introducing the 1N400 diodes is going to cause the light intensity to vary unless you balance them with additional 1N400 diodes and individual resistors to fine tune the brightness of the different coloured LEDs.I find green LEDs need less resistance than reds for similar brightness, with yellow somewhere between.

 

Most readily available 4 way switches are 3 pole 4 way and it would be a lot easier to use a 3 pole 4 way wired as above except the subsidiary is on a separate pole wired 1 to green 2/3/4 to red and the main wired 1/2 to red 3 yellow 4 green.      See diagram attached

 

[Trainshed Terry]

The diagram above is not going to work very well  with LEDs, introducing the 1N400 diodes is going to cause the light intensity to vary unless you balance them with additional 1N400 diodes and individual resistors to fine tune the brightness of the different coloured LEDs.I find green LEDs need less resistance than reds for similar brightness, with yellow somewhere between.

 

Most readily available 4 way switches are 3 pole 4 way and it would be a lot easier to use a 3 pole 4 way wired as above except the subsidiary is on a separate pole wired 1 to green 2/3/4 to red and the main wired 1/2 to red 3 yellow 4 green.     

 

Thanks for confusing the issue. I believe that the wiring digram above will suffice for know.

 

But I have taken on board about the brightness of LED they can different in brightness, the diodes that I have ordered are 1n4002. 

[Gordon H]

If the diodes do cause brightness variation due to different voltage drops, you could change them for a Schottky type such as BAT43, which have a lower forward voltage drop: http://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/rectifier-schottky-diodes/2513025/

With its 1A rating, the 1N400x range is a bit of an overkill anyway for using with LEDs. The 1N4148 would be a more conventional choice of diode for LED levels of current.

[Trainshed Terry]

With reference to the to the LEDs that have been mentioned Are these the ones that have been recommended.

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/252451142158 

 

Terry

[Dagworth]

I'm very curious as to where this signal would be fitted on your layout. Such a signal would not exist in real life. It is a combination of two completely different types of junction signal. Either the feather OR the two separate main aspect heads, never both.

 

Andi

[DCB]

Hi

 

Think this covers what you're after?

 

I'm assuming the aspects are all LEDs and they are common Cathode wired.

 

5 diodes are used in my drawing and they are all 1N4001 or 1N4002

 

Just wondering if you have actually wired a signal like this, and if so were the brightness of the individual aspects anything like equal?   I have to use extra resistors on the reds compared to green on my two aspect signals.

[dhjgreen]

All my Eckon signals share a common resistor, and they look fine to me

[Brian]

You could remove the Cathode series resistors and add various value resistors into the Anode feed wires. But I seriously doubt you'll ever notice any difference!

I have some eighteen Eckon LED signals all fed from regulated 12v DC power supply and all are via one common Cathode series resistor (1K0) per signal head (expect four aspects which have two resistors) and all aspects look fine!

[Crosland]

Just wondering if you have actually wired a signal like this, and if so were the brightness of the individual aspects anything like equal?   I have to use extra resistors on the reds compared to green on my two aspect signals.

 

Given your previously stated preference for driving LEDs direct from a voltage source with no resistor, were you using any resistors at all on the green?

[SHMD]

Red and Green LEDs do give differing brightness levels when biased with the same current limiting resister from the same supply.

 

However, you will only ever be notice this if you light both LEDs, (on the same signal), at the same time - and this never happens!

Even adjacent signals, (showing red and green aspects), will not really be noticeable.

 

 

Kev.

[DCB]

Given your previously stated preference for driving LEDs direct from a voltage source with no resistor, were you using any resistors at all on the green?

Yes. The 3mm LEDs inserted into old wiring connectors I use for budget signals need series resistors when in circuit with orange LEDs used for building illumination. Without resistors on a 3.2 I think volt Game boy power pack  the red was far too bright relative to the green so I added resistors  until the intensity of both became roughly equal.  

The wiring diagram above might work depending on diodes and supply voltage which lets face it is not going to be 12 volts from a model railway transformer  but usually voltage drop is 0.6 volts per diode in my experience, though other figures are mentioned, which is more than the difference in the specified Vf between the LEDs as in Green and red from the same manufacturer /range. However it is the right way round as the red is much brighter than green at the same Vf.

[Trainshed Terry]

I'm very curious as to where this signal would be fitted on your layout. Such a signal would not exist in real life. It is a combination of two completely different types of junction signal. Either the feather OR the two separate main aspect heads, never both.

 

Andi

 

There is a very long back story to this signal.

 

But the short version is that the layout is not my but a friend of mine and what he says goes.

 

Terry.  

[Crosland]

. Without resistors on a 3.2 I think volt Game boy power pack  the red was far too bright 

 

That's a learning opportunity