Picbuster,
Love it...wow... thank you.
I can do the circuits (have breadboards, protoboards, solder station etc) Have done fair amount of circuitry - Vregs, ICs, sensors, and understand your drawing about 90%. Just not familiar with PICs. Would really like to do this, but would need more help from you answering questions. Is that OK w/you?
I can provide more hardware detail. I ordered the solenoid air valves and need to test them. I think the 250ma spec on them is low. My bet is they are going to spike at least double that.
Seems this approach will require 3 separate pic outputs - heater (mosfet), air solenoid (> 250ma, probably need mosfet?), and LED flash.
Question - 6mm sq wire in your drawing - that's 10AWG. Sounds big? Have been running 12VDC 10A thru 16AWG (2 sec burst, max L= 1m.) no problem.
Thanks again. The ability to program specific heater/air/LED flash to optimize appearance is fantastic.

//--------------------
no problem. Try to read some info about programming in C.
I will make a setup allowing you to play around with it.
not to worry about progging You can program this chip at least 100.000 times ( see spec's).
i am busy now but in the next days I will produce some sw

 

//--------------------
no problem. Try to read some info about programming in C.
I will make a setup allowing you to play around with it.
not to worry about progging You can program this chip at least 100.000 times ( see spec's).
i am busy now but in the next days I will produce some sw

 

Pic - you have a lot of faith in a real old guy. Back in 1977 (yeah, last century) I was writing some simple Basic (recorded prog's on cassette tapes!) and Fortran (punch cards!). But I'm lucky to remember even the names...ha.
So, can I get some virtual design stuff online - like set up a virtual circuit and then run sw on it? Or is there some arduino kit ot pic kit I can get to develop this app?
I'll start on C now.
Thanks.

edit - just downloaded a C compiler and started into tutorials.
will look for pic prog tutorials
need to do - detail hardware and layout, then physical schematic

 

Hi Danl,

Not to worry I left university at 1971 so I must be older and more rotten.
Same problems PDP11, IBM 370 APL basic, fortran, unnumbered punch card well you know
drop your unnumbered punch cards and you’re in the well known creek.
Where things better in the past? No No No.
Well some things where better while young and beautiful the ladies……

However; change the file main.txt into main.c
And fight your way true it’s content

 

....And fight your way true it’s content

Pic - started the fight....file opened perfectly! Thanks.
See attached - I added notes in the file. The cut/paste/autofill functions in CODE:BLOCK work great.
Big question - maybe I'm going too fast ahead - to get 3 x 9 =27 separate outputs from the chip, do I use a 18F6520 chip (52 I/O and C programmable)? Each of 9 guns needs an output for Canon_n, Air_n, and LED_n. I wrote the lines - don't laugh too hard if its all wrong.
Reason for above is that the heat must go on and needs just a fraction of a second to generate heat/fog inside chamber. Then air comes on and takes just another fraction of a second to start moving the fog out the barrel. As the fog just starts out the barrel, the short LED flash needs to occur. Then a bit later, heat and air go off.
Next I'll try to understand all the other code stuff. Ha..great fun actually.

 

The leds: temporally just for testing and parallel on outputs.
I could not read from your drawing that air was needed.
However; what is relation between canon and air? ( timing).
Please make a simple drawing wanted outputs and their relation.
Will solve that problem.

 

The leds: temporally just for testing and parallel on outputs.
I could not read from your drawing that air was needed.
However; what is relation between canon and air? ( timing).
Please make a simple drawing wanted outputs and their relation.
Will solve that problem.

Ah yes , the whole effect involves three outputs: a heater to vaporize "smoke", air flow to push the vapor in a burst out of the barrel, and an LED flash at the very beginning of the smoke burst.
See the attached timeline and devices to be activated. Also see the program ver.2 attachment in my last post. I attempted to write the code for activating all three devices with the proper sequencing and time ranges as variables.
Best,
Dan

 

I like define the following; (please correct me when wrong)
You have 9 units
One unit has tree states
1: canon
2: air
3: led
It is one or two or three. Events never occur at the same time.
Units will never active at the same time.
If this is true then you might consider two 4-16 decoders like 74Hc4514 allowing one cpu byte to control 31 outputs.
Number canon 1-9, air 10-18 and led 19-28.
The byte value for unit[n];
Canon[n] or air[n+9] or led[n+18]
so putting byte value=10 you have the first air

Procedure:
Canon[n]=On, Delay, Canon[n]=Off.
Delay?
Air[n+9]=On, Delay, Air[n+9]=Off
Delay?
led [n+18]=On, Delay, led[n+18]=Off. (repeat for flashing)
Delay?
now you can use still this cheap processor connected to RC register.
If however the led remain u should add an other 4-16 decoder to serve the leds only
When not true we have to select another processor with 27+3= 30 i/o lines.

 

Forgot to ask: how are you creating electronic schematics?
I am using Kicad and very happy with it.

 

I like define the following; (please correct me when wrong)
You have 9 units yes
One unit has tree states yes
1: canon
2: air
3: led
It is one or two or three. Events never occur at the same time. No. The canon heat, air and LED events overlap. Look at the timeline I sent and the overlapping "ON" states. The time ranges are shown.
Units will never active at the same time.True. Canon 1 must finish before Canon 2 starts, etc.
If this is true then you might consider two 4-16 decoders like 74Hc4514 allowing one cpu byte to control 31 outputs.
Number canon 1-9, air 10-18 and led 19-28.
The byte value for unit[n];
Canon[n] or air[n+9] or led[n+18]
so putting byte value=10 you have the first air

Procedure:
See the code I wrote (in attachment) showing the time sequence of canon heat, air and flash.
And see the timeline attachment in my last post.
Canon[n]=On, Delay, Canon[n]=Off. Should be: Canon On
Delay? Short Delay
Air[n+9]=On, Delay, Air[n+9]=Off Air On
Delay? Very Short Delay
led [n+18]=On, Delay, led[n+18]=Off. (repeat for flashing) LED On, very short delay, LED Off
Delay? Delay
Canon Off
Air Off
now you can use still this cheap processor connected to RC register. Cost is cheap, so not a critical factor to me.
If however the led remain u should add an other 4-16 decoder to serve the leds only
When not true we have to select another processor with 27+3= 30 i/o lines.
After this project, I will want to add 9 more outputs to the PIC foe some other functions, so I would like to get a 52 I/O chip

See the answers to your questions in red above.
Look at the attachments below to see the event sequence in a timeline and also the program I wrote showing that sequence.

 

Forgot to ask: how are you creating electronic schematics?
I am using Kicad and very happy with it.

I don't do many schematics. I use Corel for all my drawing.

 

See the answers to your questions in red above.
Look at the attachments below to see the event sequence in a timeline and also the program I wrote showing that sequence.

I use the pic18f8722. It has 80 pins enough to drive fets and read inputs. But other boards and or cpu's will do the job as well.

 

You might consider using some 74HC595 ICs instead; serial data thru, 8 parallel lines out.

 

Thank you all. The responses are much appreciated. But as I look at the complexity of actually assembling all this on a board - hi amp traces, 30+ board connectors, multitude of component options, etc etc, I realize that the best bet is to farm out the project.
Having the board built by someone who is expert at all this. Again, thank you.

 

hi danl,
I can make the schematic for free (in kicad and pdf. ( I have currently no time for routing, to busy with specials for demanding customers).
program: you must be capable to do so.
Try to get some help from the forum.

 

hi danl,
I can make the schematic for free (in kicad and pdf. ( I have currently no time for routing, to busy with specials for demanding customers).
program: you must be capable to do so.
Try to get some help from the forum.

Pic,,
Thank you.
I did find someone who has a board design that will do the job. Bottom line, it would be near impossible for me to make a compact board with so many components.

 

You might consider using some 74HC595 ICs instead; serial data thru, 8 parallel lines out.

I was experimenting to learn it without micro but i can't.
But 74hc164 i have used it bit easier.