Hi everyone,
I just released the V0.6 of The Lego Train Project which delivers the ultimate goal I set to myself: build a fully automated driving system for lego trains.
First you can watch this 3 minutes video to understand the high-level concept and see it in action:
Download V0.6 here: https://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?/forums/topic/169318-automation-control-all-your-powered-up-power-function-sbrick-devices-with-a-single-software/&page=1
#1 Map out your section
The first thing that you need to do is to define your Sections.
Typically you need to define a new section everytime you have a Switch.
Here is what I did on this simplified version of my layout:
#2 Report your sections to the software. Note this is a one time setup!
Note about Switches:
- I use a very simple system with a motor like this one to motorize my switches
You need to define that a Motor is a Switch for it to show up in the Switch drop-downs.
Note about Sensors:
- In this scenario I only use WeDo 2.0 distance detectors. They are easy to buy and cheaper than the Boost Color-Distance detector.
Note: WeDo 2.0 & Boost Sensor should show up automatically. SBrick Sensor have to be defined manually.
# 3 Define Train's Paths
Once your network is setup, you need to create the different scenarios your trains will take!
#4 Some Important Verifications Before Starting:
- Make sure each Train is attached to the section it is physically at. This is the only way for us to know constantly where is a train. A wrong section on start will break the automation.
- Select a path which contains the section where this train is. Otherwise the automation won't start.
#5 Enjoy!
And that's all Folks!
Hope you enjoy it. It was an incredible challenge to put it together and I hope it will be used beyond my own layout :)
Cheers!
Vincent.