geoff

Ray, Ian, a further question, and I feel foolish asking this, but for example if I start the stepper test how do I stop it? I cannot find any command which stops it or presumably any other test I might be able to run. Thanks. Geoff

Hello Ray and Ian, I have just started to move onto the next step and immediately I have run into a snag. The program for testing out the Hall effect switch arrangement will not upload.I would appreciate your further assistance as I am definitely hanging onto the life raft now! I have attached a screen shot of the arduino programme report. Thanks Geoff

ETCS, European Train control System, part of ERTMS, European Rail Traffic Management System, ATO, no definition found. IEP, Intercity Express Programme, not a train at all. MML, Midland Main Line ceased to exist years ago as a train operation company running trains into LSP, London St. Pancras, EMT, East Midlands Trains currently operate those services. Sometimes I find it quite difficult to follow what on earth we are on about because there are so many acronyms, abbreviations or other short forms of language used, or perhaps I am just getting too old and grumpy to survive in the modern communication environment. sorry I missed out Tfl and DFT IIRC. TTFN Geoff

Hello Ian, I am pleased you have success with your motor/gearbox combo. I take it that the motor you used initially was different from the one Ray used in the original project. Do you think that had any bearing on the performance? I have the same Mercury motor which Ray used. My magnet has arrived but yesterday I twisted my knee so grovelling around under the layout is not advisable until it has recovered. Geoff

The only road overbridges near Kettering I can think of which have not been addressed are Station Road, Burton Latimer and a farm occupation bridge between Isham and the former Finedon station site. There are bridges near Wellingborough which have not yet been addressed, Finedon Road and Bush bridge near Harrowden Junction. Other than that there is Cottingham Road bridge immediately north of Corby Station, virtually on the platform end. Other bridges are on the main line such as Pipewell Road Rushton. There is bridge work ongoing on the Manton line but it involves the under bridge near Geddington station and there is still some work being done on the Oakley viaduct, but on the outside from a hydraulic platform. There is a scheduled road closure in Northampton Road, Kettering for strengthening and repair work on the rail over bridge there which will cause untold chaos to the already overloaded road system in the town! Geoff Strengthening and repair work on Bridge GSM1-7 Newton Road Bridge Newton Road, Great Oakley, Corby.

Will do Ray. I need to sort out the motor mounting before I can progress much further as my turntable is already installed in my layout. Geoff

Hello Ray, Ian Jeffery has been assisting by email and spotted that I had the 1k and 10k resistors transposed. I have swapped them round and it seems to work now. Thank you for your help and as I said to Ian, don't go away there is a long way to go yet for me. I have to wait now for the magnet which is on back order, probably stuck somewhere like the north pole. Geoff

Hello Ian, I was using a Digitrax DCS50 Zephyr with a direct connection from its track output. I also tried with my DT 402 throttle just in case the Zephyr wasn't sending any packets for some reason. That is a very kind offer to make a DCC interface board but my Arduino is a Uno. Will that make a significant difference? It would be good to compare my effort with one which works. I originally built mine by copying the arrangement shown in Ray's two photographs but when I checked it against the circuit diagram which Ray had posted earlier in the thread it didn't seem to match up so I reworked it to match the diagram. This is really new territory for me so I am almost flying blind and it is all helped by working on a Mac when all the worked examples illustrated are for Windows machines! Thank you . Geoff

Me again Ray, Although I have attempted to build the DCC interface I would be just as happy with a simple switch to operate the turntable. Of course to have both facilities would give me flexibility when I am operating by myself. Is there simple way to incorporate a simple switch into the system? Geoff

Hello Ray, After a challenging morning I managed to get things working as far as the stepper test which worked, and kept on working ad infinitum! Where is the stop button! I stopped the whole system and then re-booted and moved on to the DCC interface test which sadly failed dismally with not a single packet being recorded. I have attached a screen shot and a photo of my set up. The DCC board is built from the diagram you posted. I have checked and double checked it but maybe I have missed or misunderstood something. I made an assumption, not always wise, that pin 1 on the opto-isolator was under the dimple, top left corner of the isolator in the photo pointing towards the motor. The unconnected white wire comes from the reset connection on my board. Should I connect it to the motor shield? I couldn't see one on your board. I am out of my depth now! Geoff

Ray, I have followed the steps shown in the video linked below. While there were some slight differences in areas, such as which Arduino is in use, mine came up as Arduino Uno Genuine, and the port was labelled differently but when I 'uploaded' the BLINK sketch the Arduino responded. However there is no device shown in the "Finder" menu as there would be with a memory stick. I now have the motor but still need to get the diode to build the DCC module and wait for the magnet which is on back order. Thank goodness for the web as I was completely flummoxed when I looked at the motor shield and wondered how on earth it connects to the Arduino, but I have found the information. Geoff (stumbling along.)

That is a good question Ray. It all appeared to be working when I ran BLINK but when I wanted to disconnect I could not find a symbol for it in the list own the side of the screen as you would for example with a memory stick. I had stretched the " little grey cells" considerably to get the downloads so I may have missed something. I will have another play tomorrow. I can't get much further until the motor arrives, it is in the post, and I wander down to Maplins to get the diode to build the DCC board. Geoff

Well Ray, whilst waiting for the motor to arrive I thought I had better try to get to grips with the software. I downloaded the Arduino IDE and the adafruit motor shield software and then really had a tussle to get the DCC Libraries but I think I have them all now and, I think the Arduino is working ok, well at least the led is blinking as it is supposed to after the BLINK test. I took loads of screen shots which may help other Mac users who are not conversant with this type of work. Geoff

Ray, How very interesting! I too have a Windows laptop for my layout. I needed it for my Lokprogrammer and a very old program called Wagonflow which I use to build freight train manifests and display my timetable. Normally that laptop is not connected to the internet but to a discreet router for running Wi-throttle on JMRI. I want to use my MacBook for the Arduino as I can more easily move it to where the turntable is situated. I will try to let you know how I get on or alternatively I will be shouting for help! Thank you again for your help. Geoff

Thank you Ray. Almost all the parts are gathered now, I just have to figure out the software side. I am a Mac user so I might have to scratch my head a bit to get the downloads sorted and working. Thank you for your help. Geoff

Ditching the sound system because the speed control is not as you want it seems a bit drastic. I stand to be corrected but I think the capacitor is part of the sound system not a keep alive. If you use decoder pro why not take a close look at the speed table settings. Three step or twenty eight? Geoff

Thank you Ray for such a fast response. I will look into getting hold of the components. Thanks again. Geoff

As promised I have crawled inside my Class 56 and checked that I did in fact include a resistor in each circuit to the tail lights. As far as I can tell the tail lights were originally connected to pads 'LED 2 ' and 'LED4'. You will need to solder two new wires to the decoder socket, not the decoder, and then connect each of these via the resistor to the wire from the tail lights after you have disconnected it from the main board. I can't remember what value resistor I used and I can never work it out from the colour bands so I usually check with a multi meter. 1k is a good starting point as a rule. Geoff

I have a Hornby Sound fitted 56 and it was quite easy to separate the rear lights from the circuit board I seem to recall. I am fairly sure they are connected at the corners of the circuit board and it is just a case of disconnecting the wire from the board and extending it back to the 21 pin socket and connecting to the appropriate solder pads and then reprogramming the decoder. You will find it easier to reprogram the decoder if you have a Lokprogrammer but Decoderpro will also do it. I just need to check whether I had to install resistors in the links to limit the current flow to the leds. I will try to get a look inside the loco later. Geoff

Nick, You will almost certainly have to rewire the loco to connect the rear lights to a separate function on the decoder. The only other option will be if the model is fitted with a selector switch under the tank. Geoff

One of the less welcome results of the electrification of the line to Corby is the erection of security fencing along the line. The guy supervising the contractors reckoned they had a year's work to complete the fencing. I will not be able to carry my steps on my bike! Geoff IMG_4323 by Geoffrey Robinson, on Flickr Fortress England marches on alongside the Manton Line at the Glendon Iron Coy's Bridge. IMG_4327 by Geoffrey Robinson, on Flickr IMG_4326 by Geoffrey Robinson, on Flickr The 12:01 departure from Kettering for Corby rounds the curve from Glendon South before passing under the Glendon Iron Coy's Bridge. 222022 is providing the service. IMG_4332 by Geoffrey Robinson, on Flickr 222022 having enjoyed a brief rest at Corby heads back to St Pancras with the 12:16 departure from Corby. Meanwhile the barricades continue.

CV 5 and CV6 are the max and mid speed step settings respectively, they are nothing to do with the BEMF. You use those two cvs to set the top speed and mid speed of your locomotive. They, along with cv2, form the basic speed curve, cv2 being the start voltage. The Loksound v4 has a complicated speed curve arrangement and I strongly advise you to join the Loksound Yahoo group where you can get some really informed assistance from some very talented guys. Where about in the UK are you Jonathan? Geoff

Jonathan, the quote below is taken from a posting made today on the Loksound Yahoo group. There are others supporting that approach. "I get it about "if it ain't broke - don't fix it". Having said that I've actually tested Auto Tune and found that doing it more than just once results in different values for the BEMF CVs. My method is to "keep doing it until the loco runs correctly". Seems to work. Just for me? I think others report the same thing. I can say that I have not found that the loco gets "incrementally better" each time you Auto Tune it - it seems to "bounce around" rather than hone in on the target. ===> But I have -ALWAYS- been able to get the loco running perfectly using Auto Tune. (Just not always the 1st time.) And I consider the Auto Tune to be sheer magic and an amazing tool that I rely upon. Heavily." Geoff