oorail

Obviously someone didn't look at the code! The track module is more like a "track connected decoder", the controller part is handled via the API. The track module is basically a much more powerful and programmable decoder (try comparing specs on the ESP32 to a DCC decoder). The track module is taking pure 12VDC and controlling it via PWM, the resolution on controlling that signal is 10-bit, so you can literately go between 0-1023, tuning that along with the frequency to the specific motor for improved speed control. This isn't even the full capability of the ESP32, we could crank the resolution up to 15-bit that would enable even finer control of the PWM. This will only be further improved with support of better motor drivers too. The processing capabilities of the ESP32 are far superior to a DCC coder. With DDC you are controlling the speed before power hits the track. With DCC you are converting an AC-like signal and doing the PWM control of the motor on the DCC chip in the loco. With DDC its literately custom PWM (speed supply) -> track -> motor. With DCC its AC-signal -> track -> DCC decoder -> process DCC signal -> convert AC-DC -> motor. There are no extra connections with DDC, its power -> track -> motor. The difference is merely the DDC control is already done when the power hits the track, rather than it needing to be converted in the loco. With DDC, you have a constant 12VDC supplied to the track, its just manipulated via PWM. Unlike existing PWM controllers, the frequency isn't fixed, so you can tune the frequency and resolution, as well as the start/stop/speed-steps via profile, to optimize it for specific locomotives. This is similar to using CVs for DCC, but more advanced as its in a nice data structure and not limited in length! So if you look at this block: struct oorail_pwm_t { unsigned int ENA; /* enable pin */ unsigned int IN1; /* input 1 or 3 */ unsigned int IN2; /* input 2 or 4 */ unsigned int mfreq; /* pwm frequency suggested 28kHz which is 28000 */ unsigned int mres; /* bit resolution */ unsigned int mchan; /* pwm channel */ }; This is the data structure for controlling the PWM with the L298N board, so a couple of things to factor in, the L298N board is an older module, you can get much better response out of some of the more modern motor driver ICs (chips). Support for those is coming up in the next few releases. This initial release was more to get people started with the idea. The above structure has two values which are important, the mfreq, which is the PWM frequency, and mres which is the resolution of the PWM. It is the resolution that enables you to have finer control over the motor.

There are a couple of boards available now that are smaller than the Wemos D1 (ESP8266), there used to be a company in the Netherlands that made a module smaller than a DCC decoder. Not sure about Amazon UK, but they do show up from time to time on Amazon (US). You can also check Alibaba Express, but you might want to hold off on that until the whole coronavirus thing calms down. The ESP8266 does have a low power mode, but you are correct the energy consumption for a battery will make even a good quality LiPo battery last only a couple of hours.

First how-to video on DIN rail and power supply options:

As I mentioned in my previous comment, as the project hits different milestones, it will interest different groups of people. GitHub isn't just for programmers, it provides access to things like issue tracking, release builds (so you can download the zip vs having to use git) and so on. Looking at the number of tracked issues in JMRI, I'm going with railway modellers don't seem to have a problem using it. Ah so I think you are confusing open source, programming and commercial products? This is an open source project, which means the code is available to you if you want it under an open source license, it this case GPLv3. However you don't need any programming skills to use it. Give it a couple of releases and you won't even need to use the Arduino IDE to load the code onto the modules. To use this project you have to be able to: Operate a screwdriver Operate wire strippers Capable of putting a wire into the hole in a breadboard Matching numbers/letters Downloading files from the Internet Editing a file to type in your WiFi user/pass info Clicking some buttons Following instructions Use a web browser You don't even need any soldering skills. So I think most people can pull off the above. You definitely don't need any competency with programming. In fact the point of the project is that you gain from my pretty decent competency with programming.. I'm not concerned about target markets and this isn't a product, its an open source project. I think you'll find that people will look for functionality and cost. If they can follow some instructions, buy some stuff of Amazon and save a few hundred pounds, they will go for it if that few hundred pounds is valuable to them. You also have to factor in the "cool" factor, when people see a feature or module that is available and their existing system can't do that, thats a milestone when they gain interest. This is more about meeting a demand (what I need for the two layouts I have) that isn't there on the market today and me just being nice and sharing it You gave a pretty good example with Megapoints, plus Ian above gave a similar example with his CAN interface / bus. CAN is primarily used in automotive applications, so your car has one or more CAN buses. For model railways though its completely unnecessary, adds a ton of wiring and pretty much obsoleted by leveraging WiFi or WiFi-Mesh / IP / TCP or UDP stacks on top of IoT type solutions such as the ESP32. Not only that, everything moves from hardware to software, so updates are easier and the capabilities of the system are much more advanced that traditional solutions. It is a bit like DCC, it was a good option at the time, but that time was a couple of decades ago now, and things have moved on. I've also discovered over the past 8 or so years of running a model railway youtube channel that free information (youtube) and free / low cost options tend to be a very strong motivator for people to learn! Battery powered radio control is interesting, you might want to check out the smaller ESP32 modules like (I think its WEMO). I looked into a number of battery options when developing the PoC for a Digital DC decoder. I actually managed to stuff a WEMO ESP32 module, LiPo battery and a charging circuit into a Hornby Class 66, and charge it from the track. Its totally impractical though, but an interesting project. I ultimately came up with a better solution that does the "radio" control, well assuming you could WiFi as "radio" without needing the battery. FYI. I think the TLE5206 is being end-of-lifed by Infineon have a look at https://www.mouser.com/PCN/Infineon_cPD_231_19_update.pdf

Thanks for your feedback Robin. You seem to have missed the instructions that are listed on the oorail site: https://github.com/oorail/oorail-system/blob/master/README.md You can find the current capabilities in the release notes: https://github.com/oorail/oorail-system/blob/master/docs/release-notes/2020/Release-Notes-1.0.0.md The code on the track module (which you can check out on GitHub) provides a web API that allows you to interact with the software to control and obtain information from the module. This is not intended to be the end-user interface but an API for other software / modules (that are in progress) to interact with, that will provide the end-user interface. Yes, you are quite correct the L298 H-bridge is an older type module, you are also correct in that its very cheap. Worse case scenario in a short-circuit situation, you may end up damaging the L298N board. However, last month for example, we had several modules running for about 9-10 hours continuously a night with a variety of different locomotives, without any issues. The L298N is a good starter module for people to learn on, should they want to. In terms of supporting other modules, I am currently cleaning up the code for L293D modules, so support for these will end up in 1.1.0 on March 3rd. Currently testing proof of concept code with DRV8833 and L9110S modules. I also have a couple of other more specialized modules from a few "drone" part suppliers coming in this month, so I'll be testing those out in terms of viability. The goal with the track module is to support as many different options as possible. If you check out the code you will see there is initial support for optional features: /* #define OORAIL_FEATURE_WIFI_LED 1 #define OORAIL_FEATURE_ASYNC_WEB 1 */ You would uncomment the features you want to enable. The reason this support is in there is to make the ESP32 (which like most system on a chip solutions has limited resources) as feature-rich as possible while protecting the resources. So for example, you most likely wouldn't drive L298N and L293D modules off the same ESP32, so when there are multiple modules supported, you will enable/disable the ones you need in the code. I will probably leave them all enabled until the ESP32 starts to get close to running out of resources. Another thing you'll notice is that the initial release doesn't have asynchronous web support, this was done on purpose so users can learn about the system without running into issues sending conflicting commands to the module. The next release will add support for asynchronous web support, and some improved reporting. I definitely agree that there will be some individuals who would prefer to spend more money to install and go without putting any real effort in. I think this goes for a lot of different aspects of model railways though, you have individuals who prefer to spend rather than learn modeling skills, and thats totally their choice. The nice thing about model railways as a hobby is there are always new ways and new options, for example a lot of people don't like woodworking or are just bad at it, which is where there is increasing demand for laser cut baseboards. You just have to look at the folks buying z21 and ECoS systems, sometimes both. You also have to factor in though that not everyone has such deep pockets, and many are more than happy to learn when shown. Which is one of the reasons I started the project (aside from needing the code for my own layout), the project isn't just about making the software available each month, its also about the videos on the YouTube channel that will be pushed out as I release code. Its probably not going to be picked up by someone who just wants to buy, drop and go, but there are a lot of people out there who would like to learn this stuff, and this is a means for them to do so. The nice thing about this project is that its licensed under GPLv3, and the project is setup so that commercial dual-licensing is also a possibility. I have over two decades of professional programming experience incorporating open source solutions, so I definitely know there is market there for taking a project such as this, adding your own parts to it and making it available as a more expensive drop in solution to cater for those who want that option. You also have to factor in that this is an early stage project, I understand that many people will most likely opt to buy a HM 6000 and be quite happy with it. However, I also know that there are individuals who will look at this project as it progresses, we will hit different milestones that will interest different people. The first stage of the project is functionality, that is where we are now, adding modules, extending support, adding more modules, getting feedback from people as they watch demo videos each month. As that is built up, adding support to make the system less of a computer project and more of an end-user solution will get added. To give you an idea, this weekend aside from messing with L293D module support, I grabbed the latest version of Raspbian Lite, which is the Linux platform for the Raspberry Pi. The reason I did this, was to start the packaging and release work for the layout controller. The layout controller is the computer system that will ultimately interact with things like the track module via the API. User (tablet/phone/computer/digital knob) -> layout controller <-> various modules on your layout The layout controller is really important because it makes the whole system easier to build, for example, you just need to plug together a raspberry pi, download the pre-built image (that I'm currently working on) to an SD card, plug the SD card into the raspberry pi and point your browser/phone/mobile device at it. The controller also enables us to do things like over the air updates to the ESP32 modules, and probably automated deployment of module sketches to the ESP32 modules. We are also not limiting the project to ESP32, we have prototype code for adding support for ESP8266 and Arduino. Unlike something like the Hornby HM 6000/6010 or Megapoints products that are developed behind the scenes, this is being developed as an open source project, you can follow along with the progress, provide input if you'd like and jump in when the project hits a milestone where you go, wow I really like that I want to give it a try. For some people that was last week with 1.0.0, others it might be 3, 6 or 12 months from now, for others its probably never. However for that last group, the way the project is licensed, opens up possibilities for model shops, on-line retailers or even manufacturers to commercially license the solution and offer it. Another interesting thing to consider is that we'll be offering downloadable STL files for printing enclosures etc, so ultimately if you watch the videos that are coming, follow the project, you'll be able to build your own commercial-quality system in a few months. It'll be interesting to see how many younger people this might bring into model railways as a hobby coming from the computer side of things. Anyway I've rambled enough, this is another option thats there for people to take if they so wish.. so enjoy! btw. I get the impression you might be more of the target audience for the initial release

Good evening... I recently started an open source project called Digital DC (DDC) which is a modular system for computerized train control using a web based API (HTTP). The project is functional enough that I released a copy under GPLv3 as Open Source, you can find it over at GitHub at https://github.com/oorail/oorail-system There is an article detailing the system a little more at https://oorail.co.uk/digital-dc/ and you can watch a demo of the system over at YouTube: Let me know what you think, its early days yet, so a few things to keep in mind: 1. This works but its a 1.0 release 2. The HTTP interface for the track module is *NOT* the end user interface 3. There is an open source app under development that will interact with the HTTP API 4. This is for people to have a look at, get involved if they are interested etc. There will be a month main release on the first Tuesday of every month. Thanks

What brand of PLA are you using? I typically print at 205 - 210 C and about 60 C on the bed. I would recommend getting the latest version of Cura, I believe its 4.4.0 from Ultimaker's website. It likely has a lot of improvements over what you are using. Are you sure your bed is level? Head over to YouTube and search for 'Filament Friday'. The guy has an Ender 3 leveling video on his channel that shows how to level the bed, and provides an STL file (prints a bunch of squares). Use that and make sure the first player is going down properly. Basically as it prints the square run your finger over the print and it shouldn't come off. This is a great test to figure out if your bed surface is warped too. I have a Creality CR-10 S5 that is 500x500mm, prints fine in the center but the outer edges don't adhere right. I ended up having to put material between the bed and the glass around the edge to adjust it. If you're lucky, the bed is likely just not level. If you're unlucky, the bed could be warped. You could try printing without heating the bed, PLA doesn't need heat. If your bed is glass, you'll need to put some painters tape across the surface for it to adhere. The problem you are having is with your first layer. Another option might be to try printing with a raft.

I model in OO scale, but I thought I would do some experiments to see if I could easily print some of my OO scale designed 3D models in other scales, and how to go about that easily. I had some pretty good results, so I put together an article that details the math and a video showing the time-lapse which you can find at https://oorail.co.uk/one-model-many-scales/ The formula to use is: (original scale / new scale) * 100 So to convert a OO scale model to HO scale, you would use 76.2/87 * 100 = 87.586%. You then drop this percentage into the scaling option in your favorite slicer, and you now have converted the print to your scale. Obviously the quality of the CAD model will determine your mileage with it, but I was able to use the speed restriction sign designed for OO scale in O scale and all the way down to N scale on a Creality Ender 5 printer with Hatchbox PLA. Thought this might be of interest especially for folks who can't find something in their desired scale.

Its a Bachmann Jinty (weathered) pulling a conflat wagon with the GoPro Hero 4 session blue tacked to it!

Here is 12 minutes of the APT-E during its running in session on my layout, features GoPro Hero4 Session chase shots of both PC-1 and PC-2. If you don't have a spare 12 minutes, then you'll at least want to check things out around 08:00 as there are some interesting shots of the tilt system in action! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHWJ_CamyLk Now that its here I can actually go finish the scenery without worrying about the APT-E clearances! Enjoy!

Here is the latest shipment information direct from Sandra at Locomotion: a) DCC Sound version - if you have paid in full then your model is on its way to you, this includes all overseas customers, you should start to see these being delivered from today. b) Most of the overseas customers who ordered trailing cars should receive those at the same time, there are a few though that will follow on... c) DCC Ready versions - if you have paid in full then you should receive your model by the end of NEXT week, this includes overseas customers. It looks like they are expecting all the paid in full customers, regardless of location to have received their model by the end of next week, so if you haven't received yours by Tuesday April 26th, you might want to drop locomotion an email and verify the status of your order. Sandra mentioned that they were running into courier restrictions due to the weight of the models, so they can only ship out so many per day. Many thanks to Sandra for taking the time to provide this information this morning! So hopefully this information will keep everyone who hasn't received theirs relatively calm for at least another week or so!

Actually I'm from the UK, just happen to be living in the USA... don't worry I don't think Trump will get very far... if he does though you might want to stock up on Iodine tablets

All I'm saying is that a few tweaks to their e-commerce system, the hard working folks at Locomotion would have a lot less work load and customers would know exactly what the status of their order is. They can take that feedback and do what they want with it. I've made the comment and I'm done talking about it.

Not do everything manually... Simply integrating the ordering system that they have into the API that UPS offers would allow them to hit a single button and produce not just the shipping labels but also the customs documentation for international orders. Most ecommerce systems do this out of the box, very likely theirs just hasn't been setup properly. Even if it didn't support it, integrating with the UPS is very easy for any competent software engineer, maybe two hours of work at the most. Its something that you'd pay for once and have a lot less work for not just one set of models but all models you ship out in the future. From what I've heard it sounds like the small staff at Locomotion are being worked to the bone doing things manually that could be easily fixed with a bit of automation. All the data is there in their ordering system, its just not being used effectively.. Which is why its a bit frustrating to be honest..

I think you missed my point. Locomotion Models are partners in this first effort by Rapido Trains in the UK market. So you would think they would have made sure the resources were there to provide a good customer experience. I'm not aiming at any targets, I'm just raising a valid point so that maybe Rapido Trains and Locomotion Models can fix the problem the next time around.

Yes I understand that, but Rapid Trains are a business entering a new market so you would think they would have come up with a better solution for logistics to make a good impression. I never said that I wouldn't order from them again, I certainly however won't rush out in the first 48 hours to put down the order/deposit either though. I'll definitely order the prototype HST, but I'll go into it knowing there is no advantage to putting the order in early..

A better business practice would be to ship the international orders first, especially if they have a few extra days lead time, that would have them arrive at the same time as those in the UK and would keep all the customers happy. If the business practice is going to be ship international orders last, then there is no real incentive for international customers to put down a deposit or pre-pay for future models until the very end right? Although it sounds like the next time Locomotion do this, they might want to enlist the help of a local model railway club or something, have a few dozen folks come in and help box / package, then give them a private tour of the NRM or something.. or a discount on their models..

How do you upgrade and get the correct sounds?

Does anyone know if they are shipping these internationally via UPS as well? I've had mine ordered since 25/06/2014, so at this point not too worried about an extra week or two if its coming by UPS... Are they shipping international orders last? I saw someone post that earlier, so just wondered and I know the folks at Locomotion are really busy so don't really want to bug them! Thanks