My Neptune Apex web interface compatible DIY reef controller

[geekengineer]

ok looking at it I can do that that with the outlet programming it as far as I can tell but your just saying about further dimming ok.. I get it now.

Thanks.

[geekengineer]

Any updates lately.. I getting ready to start working on a board bases on current design. I have to expect it will change but I need something just to get things working but is there going to be a new design coming out sooonish or is it going to be a while yet?

[d0ughb0y]

it will be a while before the new version will be done. I'm waiting for the LED controller PCB to arrive (maybe another week), and if they are good, I will submit the new controller pcb order, which will take another month. Then it will be all programming work. I will probably complete and release both at the same time.

[geekengineer]

cool thanks much for the update. I decided to start anyhow but I wanted to get an idea if I was going to wish I had waited but probably not going to be worth it at this point. I look forward to seeing how it looks. Are you planning on publishing the design files or anything or selling bare boards etc?

[geekengineer]

OK so is there a way to control the outlet LED based on particular time you want for it to turn on and a time for it to turn off? It seems like it is just arbitrarily based on when you set it up and how long it will cycle like all the other outlets? Or am I not understanding how it works. So far it isn't doing what I thought I would expect.

[Foggman]

OK so is there a way to control the outlet LED based on particular time you want for it to turn on and a time for it to turn off? It seems like it is just arbitrarily based on when you set it up and how long it will cycle like all the other outlets? Or am I not understanding how it works. So far it isn't doing what I thought I would expect.

yes you would set up as follows, if you want them on at 10am and off at 10pm for example, you would have initial off time 10(off for 10 hrs past midnight) ontime 12(amount of time outlet is on, off time 2(hours left in 24 hr cycle) set mode to auto and make sure inverse cycle is off

[geekengineer]

Thanks a lot Froggman it now makes more sense that way I just can't seem to get it to turn off when I would expect. So maybe I need to wait for a new day for it to start a new cycle correctly? I also try rebooting the thing I been power cycling it a lot so maybe its lost it's marbles at some point.

[shiftline]

When I try to compile i get the following error:

In file included from Chauvet16.ino:23:0:
config.h:122: error: 'NEGATIVE' was not declared in this scope
#define LCD_POLARITY NEGATIVE
^
Chauvet16.ino:34:95: note: in expansion of macro 'LCD_POLARITY'



Any ideas why?

[geekengineer]

I would check the install notes again and make sure you got the all the libraries you needed. That is my best guess is your missing one of them.

[geekengineer]

Ok so now I figured out what was wrong why it still wasn't making totall sense. I forgot to adjust the timezone correctly. (doh)

Which leads to a different problem. Is there a way to download changes to the firmware through curl interface remotely? My computer is like far away and that presents a different problem.

[shiftline]

Hmm I deleted all the libraries from programfiles/arduiono/ and re-downloaded/modified the ones in my sketchbook folder

In Arduino\Chauvet16\config.h around line 122 there is a line
#define LCD_POLARITY NEGATIVE

I went thought the
Arduino\libraries\LiquidCrystal\src\LiquidCrystal.cpp
Arduino\libraries\LiquidCrystal\src\LiquidCrystal.h

Arduino\libraries\LiquidCrystal_I2C\LiquidCrystal_I2C.h
Arduino\libraries\LiquidCrystal_I2C\LiquidCrystal_I2C.cpp

and there is no reference to LCD_POLARITY

[geekengineer]

Hmm yeah I not sure it been working for me ok.. Do you have these libraries?

#include LiquidCrystal_SR.h
#include LiquidCrystal_SR2W.h
#include LiquidCrystal_SR3W.h

[Foggman]

Hmm I deleted all the libraries from programfiles/arduiono/ and re-downloaded/modified the ones in my sketchbook folder

In Arduino\Chauvet16\config.h around line 122 there is a line
#define LCD_POLARITY NEGATIVE

I went thought the
Arduino\libraries\LiquidCrystal\src\LiquidCrystal.cpp
Arduino\libraries\LiquidCrystal\src\LiquidCrystal.h

Arduino\libraries\LiquidCrystal_I2C\LiquidCrystal_I2C.h
Arduino\libraries\LiquidCrystal_I2C\LiquidCrystal_I2C.cpp

and there is no reference to LCD_POLARITY

this depends on what I2C LCD setting you use, either 1 or 2 depending on the I2C backpack you have on your LCD

[Foggman]

Ok so now I figured out what was wrong why it still wasn't making totall sense. I forgot to adjust the timezone correctly. (doh)

Which leads to a different problem. Is there a way to download changes to the firmware through curl interface remotely? My computer is like far away and that presents a different problem.

i dont know how to use the curl but i think that is how you can make changes, i just bring my laptop to my controller everytime i make a change or you can just adjust the time on your outlets to compensate for the timezone

[geekengineer]

i dont know how to use the curl but i think that is how you can make changes, i just bring my laptop to my controller everytime i make a change or you can just adjust the time on your outlets to compensate for the timezone

yeah I was afraid of that I was being lazy didn't want to have to setup the whole build environment again on a laptop.. :(

I was lucky in finding a set of a** long USB cables and seemed to work ok to program it. I wasn't sure if the cables be too long but lucky it worked. :)

[shiftline]

Hmm yeah I not sure it been working for me ok.. Do you have these libraries?



#include LiquidCrystal_SR.h

#include LiquidCrystal_SR2W.h

#include LiquidCrystal_SR3W.h



Yes all 3 of those exist in Arduino\libraries\LiquidCrystal\



If try changing NEGATIVE to POSITIVE i essentially get the same error



In file included from Chauvet16.ino:23:0:

config.h:122: error: 'POSITIVE' was not declared in this scope

#define LCD_POLARITY POSITIVE

This is the screen I'm using
http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/11/29/120e548fbf2161b1644480262a657c59.jpg
http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/11/29/821808bc829116aa8fe6e76ea9278271.jpg

However the compiler shouldn't care which screen I have .. Should only care if the code is correct

[geekengineer]

That is weird I using a "positive" screen as well and it compiles fine for me.. You got the right aurdino platform selected? Maybe your still missing a library that isn't obvious?

[geekengineer]

hunting it down I did find this in LCD.h so maybe your missing this file/library somehow.

/*!
@typedef
@abstract Define backlight control polarity
@discussion Backlight control polarity. @see setBacklightPin.
*/
typedef enum { POSITIVE, NEGATIVE } t_backlighPol;

[shiftline]

So that does exist within the LCD.h file.
I tried adding an include for that file directly but didnt work. also deleted the liquidcrystal library and re-added via the zip file.. still the same issues.

[shiftline]

Woooo it worked! Thank you to geekengineer for your help!

I ended up deleting all of my ardino folders/projects/libraries (renamed for future use) and started fresh. I loaded a known working version from another member. i then had to individual re-zip each library and add it back to the sketch via arduino > sketch> library > add .zip and add each one individually.. after this it finally compiled!


now my next battle: I have a static IP, I can ping it, index file is on Sd card, port is set to 80 yet nothing loads in the web browser.

On the lcd scren boot it says:
Webserver up
Temp init failed.

[geekengineer]

I don't know why but i had to use port 8000 not port 80. Try that.

Glad you got it working finally!!

[shiftline]

I don't know why but i had to use port 8000 not port 80. Try that.

Glad you got it working finally!!


Worked like a charm!

I'm excited to finally get this thing going! :)

Where did you order your PH sensor from?
Has anyone tried one of these China kits (http://www.aliexpress.com/item/Free-shipping-Solution-PH-valuo-Temperature-detector-sensor-module-for-arduino-best-quality/32334479070.html?spm=2114.01020208.3.1.zuZFgN&ws_ab_test=searchweb201556_2_79_78_77_80,searchweb201644_5,searchweb201560_6)
Or should i stick to the pricier atlas kit?
I would also like to implement a salinity probe later

for the 1-wire type stuff SDA/SCL.. do you just wire all your goods in parallel?

[geekengineer]

I used the Atlas because the code was written around that, but I assume if your industrious you could write it around whatever module you like, but Atlas probably be the simplest.

1-wire I just used the one temp sensor I could only get one to work on the bus.

For the 2 wire I2C bus I usually wire it up in parallel but I wire it up as daisy chain sort of deal so each device caries on the bus as it goes.

[shiftline]

Can i use any PH probe? (do i just need the atlas stamp?)

[chucklez]

Can i use any PH probe? (do i just need the atlas stamp?)
Correct. Any will do, but quality of the probe may vary

[shiftline]

Correct. Any will do, but quality of the probe may vary

Perfect Thanks. the Atlas PH Kit on amazon doesnt ship to canada..however the stamp it self does.. so it will atleast get me started :)

[geekengineer]

Can i use any PH probe? (do i just need the atlas stamp?)

You will also need a BNC connector for the Atlas. Not sure if you know so just want to mention.

[shiftline]

You will also need a BNC connector for the Atlas. Not sure if you know so just want to mention.

is the BNC connector board specific to atlas or will any work?

[geekengineer]

is the BNC connector board specific to atlas or will any work?

As long as you keep the wire connections short you can use whatever BNC connector you want, but probably the right angle one is the best since it keeps the leads short and close together. They do sell that bread board adapter thing too if you like.

[shiftline]

I emaild Atlast Scientific to see if they can re-post there stuff back on amazon.ca .. hopefully it showes up soon! I just disabled the PH for now so i can setup the rest of it.

In other good news i ordered a Chauvet SR8 case off ebay as it seems like an excellent place to hold it all :)

Got the SR04 working ish (readings seems a little off.. )but then again imtesting it sitting ontop of my coffee cup down a few cm.. so not ideal!

So skipping PH for now.. Has anyone tried to find a way to interface the feed-mode with a reeflink? May be able to parce the code or string from wireshark?

http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/11/30/ce1d0268e40314d2e877511d5dff4657.jpg

[geekengineer]

yeah for now I decided to put it separate out of the relay box. I assume there is enough room to do what dohboy did on his. He is supposedly going to work on a version with a teansy cpu but who knows when that will be done maybe a few months. I sort of want to see how that looks before I do a final version.

If your interested you can check out my build thread I have some pictures of my controller build there.

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2535599&page=3

[d0ughb0y]

shiftline, if you got the chauvet sr8, you may want to hold off punching holes in the case, as I plan to change the connectors to use mini-usb instead of audio jacks (not sure yet how well it will work). The new chauvet board will have the same footprint as a mega, but will be self contained, so it will be lower profile (no shield on top). I wish I had more time to work on this to finish this sooner. Anyways, I got the LED controller pcbs, and will solder the parts and test it. If it all works, I will be submitting the new chauvet controller board pcb order. So that will take another month.

[shiftline]

shiftline, if you got the chauvet sr8, you may want to hold off punching holes in the case, as I plan to change the connectors to use mini-usb instead of audio jacks (not sure yet how well it will work). The new chauvet board will have the same footprint as a mega, but will be self contained, so it will be lower profile (no shield on top). I wish I had more time to work on this to finish this sooner. Anyways, I got the LED controller pcbs, and will solder the parts and test it. If it all works, I will be submitting the new chauvet controller board pcb order. So that will take another month.


I did order some 4 pol 3.5mm jacks and ends to use as connectors but ill hold off for drilling for now just incase :). It will be atleast a week before iget the SR8 off ebay anyways. Should i used the built in chevet relays or usethe aftermarket board? I also have a set of solid state relays but they were not really working for testing..light came one but didnt have conductivity..maybe they need to be under load?

I'm not going to do the LED bit as i have radion XR15's .. which i can control with the ecotoechlive app... would be cool to find a way to interface it.. one of my goals is to find a way to implement feed mode from the chauvet app.

I ordered 2 temp probes last night.. and will hopefully order a PH/ORP probe today (assuming i can ship it to a US address).. may add conductivity eventually if i can find them at a good price.

With the board your making is it essential a DIY arduino that's all in one with Ethernet and what not? I tried the wifi shield but couldn't get it to work.. may need to just use a wireless bridge later.

[shiftline]

A bit of a side observation... On my Mega the voltage regulator gets very hot when 12V is plugged in.. when using USB it does not seem to have enough amps to run properly.. The lcd screen dims with each relay i switch on.. after turning on 4-5 relays the rest will not click only the LED lights up.. I may try powering it all using a LM7805 to feed power directly to the 5V arduino pins and bypass the on-board regulator.. hopefully this will resolve it.


How much space do you have inside of the SR-8? would a mega with 3 shields high fit?

[shiftline]

So I made a new add on board with the lm7805 5v regulator powering the board and the the attached deceives directly. However the relays are still having issues. Once I turn more than 3-4 on the rest will light up but by don't click over. Seems like the arduino still isn't putting out enough power... (Or grounding properly for the 0v?)
I tried 2 different relay boards with the same results
http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/12/01/1e2ac805db1d50d32173b7a8a71f9b02.jpg
http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/12/01/2cd5214aed127391ef00dd7a3296458e.jpg
If I manually touch a ground wire to any of the off relays once the 5 are on it still only lights up rather than clicking on. Seems very strange

[geekengineer]

Are you powering the relay coils off the arduino board? I wouldn't do that if that is the case I would power the relay coils off a separate 5V supply.

[Foggman]

A bit of a side observation... On my Mega the voltage regulator gets very hot when 12V is plugged in.. when using USB it does not seem to have enough amps to run properly.. The lcd screen dims with each relay i switch on.. after turning on 4-5 relays the rest will not click only the LED lights up.. I may try powering it all using a LM7805 to feed power directly to the 5V arduino pins and bypass the on-board regulator.. hopefully this will resolve it.


How much space do you have inside of the SR-8? would a mega with 3 shields high fit?

the problem with your relays is that you have to use an external power supply to power them as they use to much current i had the same issue untill i made that change

[shiftline]

I added a new 5V power supply on the top board. that 5V regulator is connected to the 2 rows of pins across the top board which powers all the devices as well as the arduino. So it should be powered form there not the arduino. (although they are all connected)... I figured this would fix the issue but no dice.... I can tray a 100% serperatre power source and see what happens


On a side note.. ill prob get the atlas PH probe.. Do you guys have/find value in the ORP or conductivity probes?

[geekengineer]

I don't have the ORP or conductivity probes yet. I was thinking about building my own conductivity probe or circuit but then again not sure yet. I guess you can get a good estimate of salentity from conductivity probe but I not sure what ORP buys you.

I still try a completely separate supply I just can't fathom what else be going on. Otherwise you must have something weird going on that's drawing a lot of current.

Maybe check to see how much current is being drawn from each digital wire when you turn on a relay? Shouldn't be much more than maybe 20-30mA I would think enough for an LED.

[shiftline]

For conductivity probe.. i wonder if one could hack one of those cheap 10$ tds meters to work with arduino..
Orp - Still not 100% sure if its useful enough or worth the investment (heck still on the fence for PH)

So far nothing has a huge draw
Not sure about the network shield but:
Each relay 2.15mA (x8.)
Sr04 6mA
Lcd. 2.75-6mA

[geekengineer]

So far nothing has a huge draw
Not sure about the network shield but:
Each relay 2.15mA (x8.)
Sr04 6mA
Lcd. 2.75mA

Ok what about the relay coils then how much current are those using? did you try making those totally separate supply? I would power the relay coils with your LM7805 and use the USB power for your arudinio for instance. maybe it's still drawing too much power for everything. Maybe check and make sure you don't have a wrong connection on your jumpers??

I don't know I know that network shield does get fairly hot so it probably uses a fair amount of power too. I haven't had it dim out on me like you have, but then again I wasn't using the 5V relay board. I used the relays in the SR-8 powered with separate 12V supply and driving with that darlinton buffer (forget PN) .

But I assume others have done what your trying without issues. :(

[shiftline]

So each coil takes 30-40ma each

No relays on 1.6 > 46 > 80 > 100 > 130 > 150 > 175 > 200mA

next test
12V1A USB into Arduino and my 12V2A into my 5v reg addon. Both feeding in power

Relays seems to work, however my 5V reg is extremely hot.. so defiantly power related some where.. Ill see if i can find a 6V adapater to try.. but it almost seems like i need to feed power to both the arduino and the add on board.. should be able to share the 5v line.. as i have in the past on another project.

[geekengineer]

So each coil takes 30-40ma each

No relays on 1.6 > 46 > 80 > 100 > 130 > 150 > 175 > 200mA

next test
12V1A USB into Arduino and my 12V2A into my 5v reg addon. Both feeding in power

Relays seems to work, however my 5V reg is extremely hot.. so defiantly power related some where.. Ill see if i can find a 6V adapater to try.. but it almost seems like i need to feed power to both the arduino and the add on board.. should be able to share the 5v line.. as i have in the past on another project.

hmm so how much is the total current usage does that seem to add up right? I don't know if you got something partially shorted someplace? maybe one of your pins is shorting something like dependent on what the IO level is driving etc.. I'm not sure I guess its hard to tell without being there to an extent.. :(

[shiftline]

I plugged it all into a killawatt meter 5V2A plug into the arduino board
No Relays on 0.03A
All Relays on 0.05A (only six clicked on.. last too was just the LED)


Partial short.. is possible and may explain... Ill take things off one at a time and see if anything fixes it

[geekengineer]

I plugged it all into a killawatt meter 5V2A plug into the arduino board
No Relays on 0.03A
All Relays on 0.05A (only six clicked on.. last too was just the LED)


Partial short.. is possible and may explain... Ill take things off one at a time and see if anything fixes it

I take it you can't measure the DC current coming from your supply? The AC sort of more complicated to tell what it is since its going to depend on efficiency of the supply etc.

[shiftline]

Okay measuring amps powering everything board via my 5V voltage regulator add on.

All relays off: 223 mA
5 realys that click: 436mA
All relays on: 536 mA (only 5 clicked on)


Inject to arduino and top 5v Rail via same power source

All Relays off: 296mA
All relays on: 792mA (all relays clicked and worked)

So it works if inject 5V to both the arduino barrel plug AND the 5V/Ground rail that connect to the 5v/ground pins on the arduino.

So maybe the arduino has a current limit that it's regulator provides to the 5v pins? Orr a limit comming in from the 5v pin to the rest of it?
http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/12/01/dc64d3e11b18c44755cc74db100364eb.jpg
Another oddity. Or if I apply power to the board and prior to the 5v reg I get the relay issue. If I apply it directly to the 5v rail the. All the relays work. Maybe I have a bad 5v reg..?


Update: Victory! Bypassing the 5V reg using a 5V2A power-supply and powering the 5V/Ground pins directly seemed to fix the problem. Everything appears to be working properly.

[geekengineer]

well at nearly 800mA you would be really pushing that LM7805 to the edge especially if there is much of a voltage differential on it. My guess is it was probably thermally current limiting. Maybe you were even hitting the thermal current limit on the regulator on the Arudinio board.

Why your using that much current I'm not sure I know enough about the whole setup to understand. Maybe that network board is really using that much extra current. When I have some spare cycles I have to see if I can tell how much current mine is using.

[shiftline]

Is there any issues powering the board directly off the 5v pins? Seems to be working well this way. Is there anything in the arduino board that be be damages or potentially overloaded? From my understanding it should be fine.. :)
Thanks again for the tips!

[shiftline]

I got my auto feeder working today but using a pin to turn on a relay and "push" the auto feed button. I added the code to this at the end of the feed if statement in the apex.ino file. Now it triggeres anytime anything is pushed including the cancel button.

Where is the code specific to each feed mode? Or is that part of the nested if statement in apex.ino

I would like to have two feed modes, one that just turns off pumps for x# of time. and the second that turns pumps off and activates feeder. (For mysis vs dry food )

[geekengineer]

Is there any issues powering the board directly off the 5v pins? Seems to be working well this way. Is there anything in the arduino board that be be damages or potentially overloaded? From my understanding it should be fine.. :)
Thanks again for the tips!


Yeah I assume its not a problem if it hasn't fried already, but I don't know why your drawing so much current that your having this issue. So far I haven't run into the running out of juice issue. Maybe it has always been marginal I don't know. :hmm4: I would still be on the lookout for something that might be wrong that drawing a lot more current than it should be.

[geekengineer]

I got my auto feeder working today but using a pin to turn on a relay and "push" the auto feed button. I added the code to this at the end of the feed if statement in the apex.ino file. Now it triggeres anytime anything is pushed including the cancel button.

Where is the code specific to each feed mode? Or is that part of the nested if statement in apex.ino

I would like to have two feed modes, one that just turns off pumps for x# of time. and the second that turns pumps off and activates feeder. (For mysis vs dry food )

As for the feeder code I haven't dove into the feeder code yet. :( Hoping someone else will volunteer information. I still working on ATO hardware lol. I also I want to add an emergency return pump shut off sensor.

Then I got issue with my PH sensor I going to have to isolate the power cause I got a ground loop issue.. So I have to add another circuit in between the board and the PH stamp. :(

[shiftline]

Okay.. I figured it out.. If anyone else would like to go this route.. I used Pin38 to trigger a relay and the relay to push the button.

In Apex.ino around line 327 look for

} else if ((idx=getparamidx("FeedCycle",params_))!=-1) {
if ((idx=getparamidx("FeedSel",params_))!= -1) {
int fmode = atoi(params_[idx+1]);


Then add in this code

//Turn on Feeder for Feedmode B
if(fmode==1){
pinMode(38, OUTPUT);
digitalWrite(38, LOW);
delay(1000);
digitalWrite(38, HIGH);
}


Worked like a charm and only turns on in Mode B.. which is perfect. Mode B feeds dry food.. Mode C just turns off pumps and will allow me to feed frozen.! woo

now how to rename the feed modes.
in Index.html there is this code

button onClick="setFeed(0);" value="Feed A" id="feed1"
button onClick="setFeed(1);" value="Feed B" id="feed2"
button onClick="setFeed(2);" value="Feed C" id="feed3"
button onClick="setFeed(3);" value="Feed D" id="feed4"
button onClick="setFeed(4);" value="Feed Cancel" id="feedcancel"

However I tried changing the Vales= for Feed B/C and the change does not show up on my phone.. Does it pull this from anywhere else or some strange caching issue?

[geekengineer]

very cool.

I haven't tried it from my phone yet so I don't know..

[shiftline]

Before I reinvent the wheel has anyone else tried using these soil moisture sensors for leak detection ?
http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/12/03/5b6ad29ef81b73ff6ace4c4d9d239cdf.jpg

[geekengineer]

I assume that would work OK but probably only for a very large leak maybe not for a small one. I was thinking if I have some time later here of taking two wires and sheathing them with something water permeable. Then twisting them together. That way if water leaks along a larger area you can detect it. They sell wire like that but want a lot of $$$ for it. Be nice if you could DYI something that be close enough.

[shiftline]

The zapper wire for horse field fences would likely work well but I don't know if anywhere sells it in small quantitie.. Backup plan :)

My other goal is finding a way to enable feed mode on my mp10/mp40 pumps There is a reef angel RF add on that I can prob get to work with this...however I'm not sure if it will still work with reef link as all I want arduino to do is kick off feed mode.

Another question. Is there a quick easy way to disable the Jeabo pumps from the screen (like you can comment out temp/ph) or are they all hard coded in there?

[geekengineer]

wouldn't know on that.. hopefully someone else chime in :worried:

[geekengineer]

Anyone run into an issue where you can access the controller setup from local network but not from remote location like over internet? I wonder if its a bug cause maybe taking to long to respond? I get an unable to connect to apex error. Or is that intentional?

[chucklez]

Need to make sure default gateway is set in your config. I'd start checking there.

[geekengineer]

I not sure if this changes what your thinking but I can access most other things just not the one menu. So that is what is weird. So it isn't like not totally working.

[shiftline]

Do you have the right ports forwarded? On mine i VPN from my phone to my home router then use it as if I was local. Works well and no chance of anyone external accessing it.


On a side note.. Is the Macros/actions documented some where or is it more of a play with it and figure it out kind of thing :)

[geekengineer]

yeah I do and I can get access to everything but the controller setup via the remote network. I can get access to everything on the local network.

Uggg.. I didn't really want to go through all that VPN stuff is the password not enough. :headwalls:

[Foggman]

yeah I do and I can get access to everything but the controller setup via the remote network. I can get access to everything on the local network.

Uggg.. I didn't really want to go through all that VPN stuff is the password not enough. :headwalls:

you are using your IP address followed by :8000 correct? eg: 28.302.32.73:8000

[geekengineer]

yeah.. I am using that port. I am only forwarding that port on my router.

[geekengineer]

I not sure if I am being clear but I can access everything but when I go to "logs and setup" and then click on "Controller Setup". This is what I am talking about in the menu system. I can get to that menu on the local network but not on internet. It spins for a while and I get an error on the internet but I can get to all the other menus just fine.

[d0ughb0y]

Another question. Is there a quick easy way to disable the Jeabo pumps from the screen (like you can comment out temp/ph) or are they all hard coded in there?

There is no quick way. You have to edit the javascript code in index.html.

wouldn't know on that.. hopefully someone else chime in :worried:

You are probably getting an error.
Try it from a computer/laptop. Use firefox with firebug debugger turned on (chrome and IE has similar addons). Then access the controller page. The debugger will show you everything that got sent and received. I suspect accessing that particular setup page is probably running into an error.

[shiftline]

Thanks for the updates! and for the great project.. Its an excellent base to build off of :)

For all the probes did you use atlas scientific for all of yours? Did you actually implement them or just add the code? (does just the Stamp matter and you can use any probe?)

Thanks!
Deven

[d0ughb0y]

Has anyone tried to find a way to interface the feed-mode with a reeflink? May be able to parce the code or string from wireshark?


Can reeflink be accessed via any web browser?
if so, you can capture request and response using firefox and firebug.
if anyone can do that and send me the logs, I can look into it and maybe add this feature.


For all the probes did you use atlas scientific for all of yours? Did you actually implement them or just add the code? (does just the Stamp matter and you can use any probe?)


I initially tried diy but run into too many issues. So I just use atlas stamps. Its a little pricey, but it just works. You really only need ph stamp, so it's not too bad. You can use any ph probe with it.

[geekengineer]

You are probably getting an error.
Try it from a computer/laptop. Use firefox with firebug debugger turned on (chrome and IE has similar addons). Then access the controller page. The debugger will show you everything that got sent and received. I suspect accessing that particular setup page is probably running into an error.

Yeah its just weird I don't get the issue when I connect locally I was wondering if that was on purpose or something.

[Guy1980]

Is there an issue with the dosers calibration that you know of? Calibrating dosers 0&1 works perfectly but when pressing + to start the calibration on 2&3 it starts the dosers but doesn't stop, just keeps pumping. All are running on the same uln chip

[d0ughb0y]

there was a doser bug that was fixed. I can't remember exactly what the problem was, but I think it is what you described.
see this link
https://github.com/d0ughb0y/Chauvet16/commits/master

[Guy1980]

Thanks, I will check this tonight as I thought I had used a fresh new copy of the code

[Guy1980]

there was a doser bug that was fixed. I can't remember exactly what the problem was, but I think it is what you described.
see this link
https://github.com/d0ughb0y/Chauvet16/commits/master
I have checked and I am using the latest version with all those changes already in there. Dosing circuit works when manually applying 5v to the uln chip so not sure what else it could be?

[shiftline]

So my add on board is a little tall. I had to bend the pins/connectors on top over to fit if but works for now. Maybe add a side mount one later instead
http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/12/13/5d979d625b5dc08b2e9198c3b0989ad8.jpg
http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/12/13/18cc4f9c7b342f8c0113dc43ed891f2a.jpg

[geekengineer]

very cool setup.. Looks great and simple.

I probably going to go that route eventually putting it all in the relay box if I can. I'm sort of waiting to see what the next version of the design is going to look like. etc.

[shiftline]

So ironically I ended up picking up a used apex (with PH,ORP and conductive for not much more than it would have cost me to buy all three probes from atlas ). However I still feel far to deep and committed to this project so I'm going to build it anyways!

[geekengineer]

So ironically I ended up picking up a used apex (with PH,ORP and conductive for not much more than it would have cost me to buy all three probes from atlas ). However I still feel far to deep and committed to this project so I'm going to build it anyways!

Oh.. lol thats too bad. Wonder if anyone sells used Atlas stamps but I haven't seen many. lol Maybe we should build atlas clones. :)

[shiftline]

You should! Sadly the atlas stuff gets pricey (at least once you get it to Canada and get stuck with duty)

Plus the apex deal was too good to pass up as it even came with an extra brand new conductivity probe (future auto water changes!)

[Foggman]

Oh.. lol thats too bad. Wonder if anyone sells used Atlas stamps but I haven't seen many. lol Maybe we should build atlas clones. :)

if someone can find a schematic i can make up some prototype boards to see if i can get it working

[shiftline]

Not that I fully understand it yet..but I have an oscilloscope and a logic analyzer!

[shiftline]

I ordered a ton of theses to build my leak detector circuit (10 with grid on bottom and 10 with grid on top) :) my tank will be so safe!
http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/12/14/74ba4c6bb75a10b3ee7e5e5f4aaef316.jpg

[geekengineer]

if someone can find a schematic i can make up some prototype boards to see if i can get it working

Well if I have time here at some point I could dig into something. I don't think we have to do the exact same circuit as atlas, but the main thing would be to program a micro controller that would accept and respond to the same commands as an atlas or at least the ones that are used in this project. The guts of say the PH measurement or whatever circuit could be anything we choose.

[geekengineer]

I ordered a ton of theses to build my leak detector circuit (10 with grid on bottom and 10 with grid on top) :) my tank will be so safe!
http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/12/14/74ba4c6bb75a10b3ee7e5e5f4aaef316.jpg

Cool, that one look like they will pick up better than the other one you showed me a while back.

[geekengineer]

ok d0ughb0y if you hopefully reading this.

So I did the firebug thing and finally got it so I could get it to act like I was remote connection through my work VPN so I could get it to fail. So I am getting an parser error in the code on line 2855 in status.json. Maybe it isn't retrying enough times? Every once in a while it does seem to work.

EDIT I guess that is line technically line 2855 in index.html but it said something about status.json for what that is worth.

[chucklez]

Oh.. lol thats too bad. Wonder if anyone sells used Atlas stamps but I haven't seen many. lol Maybe we should build atlas clones. :)

At 1 time when I was still doing my build I seen someone of ebay selling complete Atlas conductivity kits for ~$100. Stamp and probe. Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you look at it), I never pulled the trigger.

[geekengineer]

At 1 time when I was still doing my build I seen someone of ebay selling complete Atlas conductivity kits for ~$100. Stamp and probe. Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you look at it), I never pulled the trigger.

unfortunately there is never enough of them around when you need one. :)

[Foggman]

Well if I have time here at some point I could dig into something. I don't think we have to do the exact same circuit as atlas, but the main thing would be to program a micro controller that would accept and respond to the same commands as an atlas or at least the ones that are used in this project. The guts of say the PH measurement or whatever circuit could be anything we choose.

i did a quick google search to see if i could find the schematic for the atlas stamps or something similar but i couldnt. i dont know enough about circuits to make one from scratch, but give me a schematic and i can get a board together for testing just as quick as i can get the parts

[geekengineer]

i did a quick google search to see if i could find the schematic for the atlas stamps or something similar but i couldnt. i dont know enough about circuits to make one from scratch, but give me a schematic and i can get a board together for testing just as quick as i can get the parts

Would you be willing to make something to test out? I could put something together fairly easily I just don't know how well it work of course. :)

EDIT I just want to make sure you understand that this isn't something that may be something I personally tested.

[geekengineer]

https://www.sparkyswidgets.com/portfolio-item/ph-probe-interface/

Some good background but need a circuit that runs on one rail I think I have something in my head but want to see if I find something similar out there.

[geekengineer]

Ok this is what I was thinking of and this is a fairly simple circuit. However the parts might not be ideal for you if you want through hole. In this data sheet below there is a PH circuit in there that I bet is roughly close to what Atlas uses. I presume they either don't use the precision resistor or they use a surface mount version. They may likely do the temperature compensation in software.

http://cds.linear.com/docs/en/datasheet/60789fa.pdf

I was looking at one of the old atlas PH circuits I have and they use this op-amp instead. It does have a through hole DIP version if that be preferable.

http://www.ti.com/lit/ds/symlink/tlc2262.pdf

The new one I can't figure out what it is since it has SMT markings but it is a very tiny part and would have to be baked on likely anyhow.

if you need a better package option for a voltage reference than the LCT part I can look around and find one but it does look like it has a through hole version for that one.

Would we you rather have surface mount eventually?

So the other piece would be the processor to use? ideally it would be a very small one that has a, ADC, serial, and I2C interface. I use TI MSP430 because that is what I just got into, but there are other options. I think Atlas uses a Microchip PIC which I am not familiar with how to use them.

[Foggman]

im not good at reading data sheets, what one on the sparkywidgets page were you looking at i think there is a couple schematics on there i can do through hole or surface mount. for the most part if i can make it on eagle than i can etch a board for it. i did make one PH board when i first started this build but i never used it because it wouldnt work the coding so i scratched it

[Foggman]

not sure if this one is any good or if there is enough info there none of it really makes to much since to me https://bitknitting.wordpress.com/category/ph/

[geekengineer]

Sorry I was busy tonight and didn't get on till late.. :)

Ok actually This did have a link in there to a newer version sparky put out there that is more what I be looking for. I would start out with just PH and we go from there lol. My thinking would be start out with that. Someone else has a good EC circuit already going in different thread. So you think we should start up a different thread for this project? BTW

https://github.com/SparkysWidgets/MinipHHW

So This schematic is for using the aurdinio to do the PH calculations and just reading it over the I2C bus. Think that would work? It would require code changes is the issue.

[geekengineer]

Actually you can buy the board for $18 so is it worth making one at that price? lol

https://www.sparkyswidgets.com/product/miniph/#prettyPhoto

If you go to the root page he has other projects as well for EC etc.

https://github.com/SparkysWidgets

[Foggman]

Wow that is the first time I have seen an i2c ph on that site, I wonder how hard it would be to adjust the coding to work because the price is a lot better than the atlas stamp, I might have to get one and play around with it

[d0ughb0y]

I have checked and I am using the latest version with all those changes already in there. Dosing circuit works when manually applying 5v to the uln chip so not sure what else it could be?

did you change MAXDOSERS to 4 in config.h?

[d0ughb0y]

ok d0ughb0y if you hopefully reading this.

So I did the firebug thing and finally got it so I could get it to act like I was remote connection through my work VPN so I could get it to fail. So I am getting an parser error in the code on line 2855 in status.json. Maybe it isn't retrying enough times? Every once in a while it does seem to work.

EDIT I guess that is line technically line 2855 in index.html but it said something about status.json for what that is worth.

line 2855 is console.log command. In firebug, one of the tabs there is console, and you can print out debug messages there using console.log command. What do you see in the console window? did you get a parse error or connect error alert?

[d0ughb0y]

chauvet project started out using sparky's ph circuit. It only has the analog out before and that caused a lot of problems. I think the current ph circuit has improved quite a lot with the i2c interface, but the board is almost always on backorder. You can try to build it yourself, but I think your total cost will be way more than buying it for $18, but then again, it is usually not available.

think of it this way, atlas is $38, sparky is $18, for $20 difference, you don't have to write new code.

[geekengineer]

line 2855 is console.log command. In firebug, one of the tabs there is console, and you can print out debug messages there using console.log command. What do you see in the console window? did you get a parse error or connect error alert?

parse error is what it was.

[geekengineer]

chauvet project started out using sparky's ph circuit. It only has the analog out before and that caused a lot of problems. I think the current ph circuit has improved quite a lot with the i2c interface, but the board is almost always on back-order. You can try to build it yourself, but I think your total cost will be way more than buying it for $18, but then again, it is usually not available.

think of it this way, atlas is $38, sparky is $18, for $20 difference, you don't have to write new code.

Sort of remember feeling like I got raped on shipping so by the time I was done it was like almost $50 just for a PH circuit. (Maybe I'm just spoiled on Amizon prime. lol) But yeah. Could do something cheaper than sparky he did overdo a bit I think compared to what Atlas does and it has a processor. But yeah it be easier to add a small CPU to the mix and then you wouldn't have to do the processing of the PH/ORP/EC values etc. Then the plus is it is it would be transparent to your code.

EDIT: Other thing I don't like about then is I don't like dealing with companies that don't give me a tracking number and I have no idea when they ship out. As far as I know I never get any information from Atlas. Which I don't know if that Sparky guy is any better which is likely the case for all I know.

[geekengineer]

lol sorry if that came across cranky. It would be nice if there was a cheaper option whether its worth the bother it just depends on the person and situation I suppose.. I know the person from Canada was saying has to pay duty so it gets more expensive also I don't know how much so of course.

I did find out the older PH circuit from Atlas uses a negative voltage generator so its a different sort of circuit than I thought. I not sure what they are using on the new one since the parts are much harder to decode.

[Foggman]

i did a quick rundown of the more expensive parts and i think it would be about $10 to build it. even if it was $20 to build it i still might build it cause thats part of the fun of it. now the coding...... geek engineer how are you with coding, i know doughboy is busy with the other upgrades to the controller, im sure i could do it i just need to look it over more to see exactly how the sparky code would differ from atlas code.

[geekengineer]

i did a quick rundown of the more expensive parts and i think it would be about $10 to build it. even if it was $20 to build it i still might build it cause thats part of the fun of it. now the coding...... geek engineer how are you with coding, i know doughboy is busy with the other upgrades to the controller, im sure i could do it i just need to look it over more to see exactly how the sparky code would differ from atlas code.

Would you be interested in trying other circuits potentially? I had some ideas but they would be prototypes of course. If I have some time I may just try it I going on vacation away from home so I don't know if I be able to do it for a while. :(

I am so so on coding some of it is I am a bit rusty and some of it is just trying to modify code you didn't write can be a confusing. I would probably understand how to do the math part I not sure how complex it is to do the calibration but in theory its just a linear interpolation to my understanding. As far as temperature compensation I have to dig into that some more to understand if that is a concern or not.

Just out of curiosity were do you usually get your parts digikey or mouser etc?

[m1k3]

Just to jump in on your conversation here, have you looked at the reef angel schematics? It shows their PH circuitry on the main board, and if you're interested the circuitry for the salinity module too. All the eagle files are here http://reefangel.com/download.aspx . I would be interested in collaborating on this as well. Did someone say they can etch PCBs?

[m1k3]

Dont know if anyone has seen this, but was searching amazon for BNC connectors and a PH kit popped up in the results, includes probe and board ~30. Googled the store and they have salinity and ORP too. I am most interested in getting salinity added to my controller. There salinity kit includes the board and probe for $70 and its ATC. Anyway if you're interested in checking them out you can find them here:
http://www.dfrobot.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=36_68

[geekengineer]

They did it a bit differently and with more parts than what I was thinking but probably less noisy this way but this is one of two ways I was thinking of going about it. So would this be cheaper PH circuit overall? I haven't looked at the EC circuit yet. Don't know if we need too powerful of an Atmel processor but maybe even bolting on a cheap nano clone would suffice, but they are a bit tricky to setup. duno.

[m1k3]

They did it a bit differently and with more parts than what I was thinking but probably less noisy this way but this is one of two ways I was thinking of going about it. So would this be cheaper PH circuit overall? I haven't looked at the EC circuit yet. Don't know if we need too powerful of an Atmel processor but maybe even bolting on a cheap nano clone would suffice, but they are a bit tricky to setup. duno.

Are you talking about RA's PH circuit? That whole schematic is their mainboard, it is a custom arduino board. You only need what it going into pin 19 of the Atmega8. Not much to it, couple op amps, a few caps and several resistors.

[geekengineer]

Are you talking about RA's PH circuit? That whole schematic is their mainboard, it is a custom arduino board. You only need what it going into pin 19 of the Atmega8. Not much to it, couple op amps, a few caps and several resistors.

Didn't see your second post there at the time. I meant the reef angel board.

The DA board isn't in stock it seems, but I dont' know I like the op-amps the picked better but they amped up the input quite a bit to be able to filter the input. So you have to muck around adjusting the gain and I rather not have to do that. I think the reef angel circuit would be less hassle so far out of what I have seen. But maybe make something like the DR board but stick a small processor in front of it to do the ADC part and processing? or either do the I2C ADC like sparky? hmm too many choices lol.

[XahmedXsa]

hello

can anyone help me to Calibrate my ph

the reading is not correct 4.1 3.90 and so

i try many time same result
i change my ph probe and i get same reading

i have pH Circuit 5.0v with probe from atlas
#define _PH //comment out if no ph probe or ph stamp
#define MAXPH 1 //number of ph stamps
#if !defined(_PH)
#define MAXPH 0
#endif
#define _PH1_NAME "pH"
#define _PH1_EZO false
#define _PH1_SERIAL Serial1 //you can select serial or i2c but not both
//#define _PH1_I2C 99 //default address is 99

#define _PH2_NAME "CalRX"
#define _PH2_EZO true
//#define _PH2_SERIAL Serial2 //you can select serial or i2c but not both
#define _PH2_I2C 99 //make sure i2c address is unique

#define PHALERT {{7.6}}
//uncomment the next line you have Atlas Orp sensor and make sure the addr has the right serial port
//#define _ORP

[Foggman]

Would you be interested in trying other circuits potentially? I had some ideas but they would be prototypes of course. If I have some time I may just try it I going on vacation away from home so I don't know if I be able to do it for a while. :(

I am so so on coding some of it is I am a bit rusty and some of it is just trying to modify code you didn't write can be a confusing. I would probably understand how to do the math part I not sure how complex it is to do the calibration but in theory its just a linear interpolation to my understanding. As far as temperature compensation I have to dig into that some more to understand if that is a concern or not.

Just out of curiosity were do you usually get your parts digikey or mouser etc?
i usually get my parts from from tayda if i can if they dont have what i want then i go where ever has the best price

[Foggman]

Just to jump in on your conversation here, have you looked at the reef angel schematics? It shows their PH circuitry on the main board, and if you're interested the circuitry for the salinity module too. All the eagle files are here http://reefangel.com/download.aspx . I would be interested in collaborating on this as well. Did someone say they can etch PCBs?

i can etch double layer pcbs

[geekengineer]

the reef angel salinity circuit looks funny but I guess this stuff works? I just haven't seen one that uses a opto-isolator before and it does some funny cross through with the osculation signal.

[geekengineer]

hello

can anyone help me to Calibrate my ph

the reading is not correct 4.1 3.90 and so

i try many time same result
i change my ph probe and i get same reading

i have pH Circuit 5.0v with probe from atlas

hmm don't know what happening there are you sure you didn't contaminate your solution or something? or maybe something weird with your setup. Did you make sure your leads to your PH BNC are as short as possible i.e. not on some long set of wires for instance. It could be you have a bad atlas :( im not sure.

[Foggman]

hello

can anyone help me to Calibrate my ph

the reading is not correct 4.1 3.90 and so

i try many time same result
i change my ph probe and i get same reading

i have pH Circuit 5.0v with probe from atlas

I had a simular problem, it ended up being stray voltage in the tank, it would calibrate just fine then when i put it in the sump i would get weird readings. one day i was messing with it and put my hand in the sump and noticed the reading was correct, removed my hand and it went weird again , i couldnt find the sorce of the stray voltage so i just put in a ground probe. this could be your problem but also maybe not

[XahmedXsa]

when i put my hand same reading
when i put in coupe of water it is reading 7.8
when i return back to my sump it is reading 3.99

:deadhorse1:

[geekengineer]

when i put my hand same reading
when i put in coupe of water it is reading 7.8
when i return back to my sump it is reading 3.99

:deadhorse1:

lol well I not sure what to tell you so I thought what you were reading was from calibration fluids that was about .1 off? You wouldn't have some weird voltage offset on your ground maybe. I did have a problem with mine where I had it reading wrong because of ground loop in my tank from pumps in the tank. I had to put a isolated power supply on the PH circuit. Do you have a picture of your circuit setup by chance?

It could be you just got a bad stamp. :( Maybe try to use the stamp by itself first without anything else. Maybe get and use a USB to TTL serial cable and bread board to take everything else out of the equation first. That is what I did first to make sure the stamp was working before using it.

[XahmedXsa]

for the ph 7 , 4.00 and 10.00
when i want to Calibrate
should they in 25 temp or its will read the temp from the apex
and how i can isolated power supply on the PH circuit
thanks

[d0ughb0y]

Sort of remember feeling like I got raped on shipping so by the time I was done it was like almost $50 just for a PH circuit. (Maybe I'm just spoiled on Amizon prime. lol) But yeah. Could do something cheaper than sparky he did overdo a bit I think compared to what Atlas does and it has a processor. But yeah it be easier to add a small CPU to the mix and then you wouldn't have to do the processing of the PH/ORP/EC values etc. Then the plus is it is it would be transparent to your code.

EDIT: Other thing I don't like about then is I don't like dealing with companies that don't give me a tracking number and I have no idea when they ship out. As far as I know I never get any information from Atlas. Which I don't know if that Sparky guy is any better which is likely the case for all I know.


you can buy the ezo ph stamp on amazon prime for $38 shipped.

http://www.amazon.com/Atlas-Scientific-CIRCUIT-FOR-ARDUINO/dp/B00641R1PQ

[geekengineer]

you can buy the ezo ph stamp on amazon prime for $38 shipped.

http://www.amazon.com/Atlas-Scientific-CIRCUIT-FOR-ARDUINO/dp/B00641R1PQ

They were out of stock when I was looking.. :headwally: I didn't realize it was amizon prime item tho. :(

[geekengineer]

so I having a lot of aborts and timeouts. I think its of ruddy internet I have at my current location. Needless to say the reef controller doesn't seem to be handling this very well.. Don't know if I can do much about it or not? :(

[d0ughb0y]

you can extend timeout in code.
If you are getting timeout getting logs, your log file may be getting really large due to too much logging and is taking more than the timeout time to complete the transfer.

you can determine what is causing all the problems from firefox firebug debugger.

[geekengineer]

OK is there a way to update that remotely with say curl? not sure if I want to try that or not. :worried:

This is the sort of stuff I'm seeing on firebug. Not not totally sure how to interpret firebug. hopefully you can see this pic ok.

http://i.imgur.com/vaW07cLh.png

[geekengineer]

Ooohhh OK.. I see you can change it in the gear box window I thought that was just for the webcam only. that makes it better..

Thanks.

Geek.

[m1k3]

when i put my hand same reading
when i put in coupe of water it is reading 7.8
when i return back to my sump it is reading 3.99

:deadhorse1:

Have you tried reading the value with everything else off or unplugged?

[XahmedXsa]

Have you tried reading the value with everything else off or unplugged?

unplugged ph probe reading 7.00

thanks

[m1k3]

unplugged ph probe reading 7.00

thanks

Now plug everything back in one at a time to see what's juicing your tank.

[geekengineer]

Here is the power isolator circuit if you find out that is your problem and need it. I just made my own with the individual parts. Sometimes you just can't get rid of the noise I had two pumps that were causing problems. My understanding is it can sometimes just be due to natural capacitive coupling in the motor with the water or just a ground loop current. In the long run if you have plan to run an EC circuit you will probably need it anyways.

https://www.atlas-scientific.com/product_pages/circuits/pwr-iso.html

[m1k3]

Here is the power isolator circuit if you find out that is your problem and need it. I just made my own with the individual parts. Sometimes you just can't get rid of the noise I had two pumps that were causing problems. My understanding is it can sometimes just be due to natural capacitive coupling in the motor with the water or just a ground loop current. In the long run if you have plan to run an EC circuit you will probably need it anyways.

https://www.atlas-scientific.com/product_pages/circuits/pwr-iso.html
Wow! A schematic on that one. It lows my mind how proud they are of their stuff. That's like 50 cents worth of parts that they are charging $33 for...

[geekengineer]

Wow! A schematic on that one. It lows my mind how proud they are of their stuff. That's like 50 cents worth of parts that they are charging $33 for...

The parts are a bit more than 50 cents at least where I got the parts for mine. Maybe $4-$6 in volume, but yeah they are still making a boat load none the less. It pays to make your own on that one, but I guess it depends on if you know enough of what your doing too.

This is the "adapter" I made it just plugs in between the pin connections.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showpost.php?p=24183919&postcount=106

[m1k3]

Nice, where did you get the board? I used to have a cat that looked a lot like yours. It had a broken tail though that made a nearly 90 deg bend...

[geekengineer]

Nice, where did you get the board? I used to have a cat that looked a lot like yours. It had a broken tail though that made a nearly 90 deg bend...

It was one I made it was all a DYI home made board. Yeah I thought I throw my cat in there. lol I don't have much else for totally cool corals or fish to show off yet. :)

[Foggman]

what do you use for the green trace covering on your boards? i etch my own boards but dont do anything to cover the traces mostly because i havent found anything that is cheap enough to make it worth it to me

[geekengineer]

well I can't say if it "cheap" or not but this is what I been using. I usually been doing this just for boards I intend to bake since if you don't the boards will turn yellow otherwise lol. I have used the paint on stuff but its more messy and you have to use saran wrap in-between the mask which is tricky also.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/161590781049

[d0ughb0y]

what do you use for the green trace covering on your boards? i etch my own boards but dont do anything to cover the traces mostly because i havent found anything that is cheap enough to make it worth it to me

you can try this type

http://www.ebay.com/itm/5ml-Green-PCB-UV-Curable-Solder-Mask-Repairing-Paint-brand-new-/221974006181?hash=item33aeae89a5:g:6isAAMXQ5G9TlU2j

[geekengineer]

you can try this type

http://www.ebay.com/itm/5ml-Green-PCB-UV-Curable-Solder-Mask-Repairing-Paint-brand-new-/221974006181?hash=item33aeae89a5:g:6isAAMXQ5G9TlU2j

Yeah that is the stuff that they forget to mention to you it sticks to just about anything except saran wrap. lol Have you tried it before maybe they got better formulations? I been wishing there was a laser printable plastic that wouldn't stick to the stuff cause it's easier in some ways don't have to do as many steps.

[XahmedXsa]

i'm trying to return atlas ph to original factory settings and Calibrate again by simple code
this is the code

//This code was written to be easy to understand.
//Code efficiency was not considered.
//Modify this code as you see fit.
//This code will output data to the Arduino serial monitor.
//Type commands into the Arduino serial monitor to control the pH circuit.
//This code was written in the Arduino 1.6.5 IDE
//An Arduino Mega was used to test this code.


String inputstring = ""; //a string to hold incoming data from the PC
String sensorstring = ""; //a string to hold the data from the Atlas Scientific product
boolean input_string_complete = false; //have we received all the data from the PC
boolean sensor_string_complete = false; //have we received all the data from the Atlas Scientific product
float pH; //used to hold a floating point number that is the pH


void setup() { //set up the hardware
Serial.begin(9600); //set baud rate for the hardware serial port_0 to 9600
Serial3.begin(9600); //set baud rate for software serial port_3 to 9600
inputstring.reserve(10); //set aside some bytes for receiving data from the PC
sensorstring.reserve(30); //set aside some bytes for receiving data from Atlas Scientific product
}

void serialEvent() { //if the hardware serial port_0 receives a char
inputstring = Serial.readStringUntil(13); //read the string until we see a <CR>
input_string_complete = true; //set the flag used to tell if we have received a completed string from the PC
}


void serialEvent3() { //if the hardware serial port_3 receives a char
sensorstring = Serial3.readStringUntil(13); //read the string until we see a <CR>
sensor_string_complete = true; //set the flag used to tell if we have received a completed string from the PC
}


void loop() { //here we go...


if (input_string_complete == true) { //if a string from the PC has been received in its entirety
Serial3.print(inputstring); //send that string to the Atlas Scientific product
Serial3.print('\r'); //add a <CR> to the end of the string
inputstring = ""; //clear the string
input_string_complete = false; //reset the flag used to tell if we have received a completed string from the PC
}


if (sensor_string_complete == true) { //if a string from the Atlas Scientific product has been received in its entirety
Serial.println(sensorstring); //send that string to the PC's serial monitor
if (isdigit(sensorstring[0])) { //if the first character in the string is a digit
pH = sensorstring.toFloat(); //convert the string to a floating point number so it can be evaluated by the Arduino
if (pH >= 7.0) { //if the pH is greater than or equal to 7.0
Serial.println("high"); //print "high" this is demonstrating that the Arduino is evaluating the pH as a number and not as a string
}
if (pH <= 6.99) { //if the pH is less than or equal to 6.99
Serial.println("low"); //print "low" this is demonstrating that the Arduino is evaluating the pH as a number and not as a string
}
}
}
sensorstring = ""; //clear the string:
sensor_string_complete = false; //reset the flag used to tell if we have received a completed string from the Atlas Scientific product
}


I have some problems Ph Circuit not working and no led green
I notes my ph probe little cloudy

http://store1.up-00.com/2015-12/145105763831711.jpg

[geekengineer]

I guess I double check your power connections make sure they aren't backwards. Hopefully it doesn't die if they were backwards at one point. :(

I usually use something like this cable so I can just use a serial terminal to debug the thing instead of having to write code. My two cents. So far I been lucky not to get a pirate usb to serial chip. :/

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008AGDTA4?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_search_detailpage

[XahmedXsa]

when i put ph atlas in my Neptune apex it's working
but i can not Calibrate ph -1 after few hours
i want to reset Ph Circuit and calibrate ( alone )
after that i will return back to my apex

thanks

[geekengineer]

maybe try swapping TX/RX I know sometimes what they are suppose hooked up to isn't odvous..

[Foggman]

well I can't say if it "cheap" or not but this is what I been using. I usually been doing this just for boards I intend to bake since if you don't the boards will turn yellow otherwise lol. I have used the paint on stuff but its more messy and you have to use saran wrap in-between the mask which is tricky also.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/161590781049

ya thats to much work for what i use the boards for. I use liquid tin so the copper doesnt corrode and turn green.

[geekengineer]

yeah I do tin plating if I'm not intending to IR solder the board. I'm sure at some point if your making enough of them it pays to just have them fab'ed. I can't do things like plated through holes very easy. I've tried but its a lot of work. lol

[XahmedXsa]

good day
please anyone help me
i have atlas ph not working (no green light blink ) with simple code and it's working with my neptune apex
i use same wire and same location for ph circuit
i'm trying to return atlas ph to original factory settings and calibration again by simple code

http://store1.up-00.com/2015-12/145123016216872.jpg


http://store1.up-00.com/2015-12/145123016112821.jpg (http://www.up-00.com/)

thanks

[geekengineer]

I'm not sure what to tell you I did it in different way to ensure I was talking to the device right using a USB to serial cable. You go two things to debug your code and weather you got it hooked up correctly. This makes it very hard to narrow down what your problem is. If you can maybe try using the first serial port instead of using serial port 3 cause I've never tried to use it. Also do you know for sure what baud rate you had it setup for. If you don't have that right you won't be able to talk. Maybe try different baud rates etc.

[d0ughb0y]

good day
please anyone help me
i have atlas ph not working (no green light blink ) with simple code and it's working with my neptune apex
i use same wire and same location for ph circuit
i'm trying to return atlas ph to original factory settings and calibration again by simple code


thanks

I'm not sure what you mean. I think you mean if the ph stamp is connected to the controller circuit (since I see the ethernet shield), then it works, but connected stand alone it does not work?

The led on the stamp can be turned on/off with a command. if the stamp is working on one setup, it should work for any setup.

[karimwassef]

How do you test robustness? How can you trust that your controller isn't susceptible to getting corrupted data or getting its code jumbled up?

I have a commercial controller and that happened to me. I'm going DIY but I need to start with a robust base.

Can redundancy be used? Two processors and two network boards? Etc...

[d0ughb0y]

How do you test robustness? How can you trust that your controller isn't susceptible to getting corrupted data or getting its code jumbled up?

I have a commercial controller and that happened to me. I'm going DIY but I need to start with a robust base.

Can redundancy be used? Two processors and two network boards? Etc...

if you keep your design really simple, then that is a big step.

people want all bells and whistles and that makes the hardware and software more complicated and it is harder to test or know what can go wrong.

[geekengineer]

ok, once you identified one query that is having problem (truncated), you can determine the complete url for that query, then submit that using curl or a browser and see if it gets truncated or not.

ok so what I notice is there is a lag in-between the whole packet. So I get part of the packet then maybe a noticeable pause then the rest. Doesn't always do this as well so that makes sense. So for some reason something isn't quite waiting long enough for the rest of the packet to come in before it says the thing is bad maybe at times. I don't totally understand how it works.

[geekengineer]

if you keep your design really simple, then that is a big step.

people want all bells and whistles and that makes the hardware and software more complicated and it is harder to test or know what can go wrong.

I would agree with you that simpler means less things to go wrong. Unfortunately I think I had the internet shield hang on me? I'm not sure what happened but all of a sudden I could not talk to the controller remotely. That is sort of a bummer. I had to have someone come and power cycle the thing to get it back. That and the issues I been having with connectivity l say its been a bit frustrating lately.

I guess it was mentioned on a different thread that the internet shield chip is prone to hanging and susceptible to EMI ever hear of this?

That being said it hasn't ever stop doing the rest of it's basic tasks other than a ATO pump that went bad which wasn't of course the controllers fault. At least from the logs I could tell something wasn't right.

[karimwassef]

That's why I was asking if a backup shield or maybe a self-check so that if it gets stuck, it cycles or resets back into a healthy state?

[d0ughb0y]

That's why I was asking if a backup shield or maybe a self-check so that if it gets stuck, it cycles or resets back into a healthy state?

the current code checks for network connectivity. I can't remember the interval, but I know it checks at 20 minutes past midnight. It will reinitialize ethernet library if it detects network issue.

[d0ughb0y]

ok so what I notice is there is a lag in-between the whole packet. So I get part of the packet then maybe a noticeable pause then the rest. Doesn't always do this as well so that makes sense. So for some reason something isn't quite waiting long enough for the rest of the packet to come in before it says the thing is bad maybe at times. I don't totally understand how it works.

If you want, I can check if you email me your external url and login.

[geekengineer]

when I get home and have a a way of changing the password I will try to work something out.

[dudedudedude]

did you wire up all the hardware like in the connection diagram?

You must have temp and ph probe connected in order for the program to run.

in init sensors, you can see if the sensor initialization fails, it stops the program. So in case you did not get a temp or the atlas stamp and ph probe yet, you must comment out the corresponding code here, and temporarily change getTemp() and getph() to return a hard coded value like 79.0 and 8.0.


void initSensors() {
if (initTemp()) {
p(F("Temp OK. "));
logMessage(F("Temp sensor initialized."));
} else {
beepFail();
p(F("Temp Init failed"));
logMessage(F("Temp Init failed"));
for(;;);
}
if (initPH()) {
p(F("pH OK. "));
logMessage(F("pH sensor initialized."));
} else {
beepFail();
p(F("pH Init failed "));
logMessage(F("pH Init failed"));
for(;;);
}
}

I suggest testing the web page last until you complete the hardware. you can still load you test sketches to test each piece of the hardware (relays, temp sensor, atlas ph stamp, etc). You can find test sketches by doing google search or just write your own.

The web page is really of very limited use if you do not have the sensors.

I dont have the stamps yet but would like to run this with just the tempreture sensor. You gave the above instructions in the beggining of the thread but I know the code has signifcantly changed since then. What exact changes are needed for me to run the current code with just a tempreture sensor? Thanks in advance.

[shiftline]

Should work as is. I thinking can just comment out the ph sensor line at the top the config file

[d0ughb0y]

I dont have the stamps yet but would like to run this with just the tempreture sensor. You gave the above instructions in the beggining of the thread but I know the code has signifcantly changed since then. What exact changes are needed for me to run the current code with just a tempreture sensor? Thanks in advance.

comment out the ph section as described in prev message and change the getph to return a hard coded value. If you want to change the web page display to not show ph at all, you need to modify the html and javacript.

[dudedudedude]

comment out the ph section as described in prev message and change the getph to return a hard coded value. If you want to change the web page display to not show ph at all, you need to modify the html and javacript.

So I commented out the pH but can not find "getph" anywhere in the script. Also exactly what would i hard code in?

Sean

[d0ughb0y]

So I commented out the pH but can not find "getph" anywhere in the script. Also exactly what would i hard code in?

Sean

what happens if you just comment out #define _PH in config.h?

[dudedudedude]

what happens if you just comment out #define _PH in config.h?

It works in that I get to the home page and I can go into sub pages and change things, however the GUI crashes when I try to click back and I have to reload the home page every time. I was thinking this may be caused by not making the pH change. Also nothing shows up for the PWM FAN control. I will post a video of what I am talking about later.

Thanks,
Sean

[Jaka]

It works in that I get to the home page and I can go into sub pages and change things, however the GUI crashes when I try to click back and I have to reload the home page every time.

Do not work in Chrome and Explorer.
It works normal in FireFox!

[d0ughb0y]

I think it is a browser issue. I know the "back" used to work for all browsers. I have not tried to fix this yet.
I think the jquery version is not compatible with the latest chrome, explorer and safari.
I can't just use the latest jquery since it is not 100% compatible.
I'll see if I can find a way to get this to work again for all browsers.

[dudedudedude]

I think it is a browser issue. I know the "back" used to work for all browsers. I have not tried to fix this yet.
I think the jquery version is not compatible with the latest chrome, explorer and safari.
I can't just use the latest jquery since it is not 100% compatible.
I'll see if I can find a way to get this to work again for all browsers.

Using firefox did the trick.

I have another problem now. I was able to load the sketch problem free for the past few weeks. Now all of the sudden I am getting these errors. I reinstalled arduino 1.65 and the libraries but can't get rid of these errors when I go to compile.

Arduino: 1.6.5 (Mac OS X), Board: "Arduino/Genuino Mega or Mega 2560, ATmega2560 (Mega 2560)"

Chauvet16.ino: In function 'void setup()':
Chauvet16:137: error: 'initSensors' was not declared in this scope
Chauvet16.ino: In function 'void loop()':
Chauvet16:282: error: 'updateTemp' was not declared in this scope
Apex.ino: In function 'boolean apex_status_handler(TinyWebServer&)':
Apex:116: error: 'getTemp' was not declared in this scope
Apex.ino: In function 'boolean apex_status_json_handler(TinyWebServer&)':
Apex:370: error: 'getTemp' was not declared in this scope
Network.ino: In function 'void sendEmail()':
Network:289: error: 'getTemp' was not declared in this scope
Outlets.ino: In function 'void outletHandlerB()':
Outlets:172: error: 'checkTempISR' was not declared in this scope
Outlets:173: error: 'checkAlarm' was not declared in this scope
Utils.ino: In function 'boolean psensors()':
Utils:247: error: 'getTemp' was not declared in this scope
Utils.ino: In function 'void logSensors()':
Utils:477: error: 'getTemp' was not declared in this scope
Utils.ino: In function 'void logAlarm()':
Utils:538: error: 'getTemp' was not declared in this scope
'initSensors' was not declared in this scope

[dudedudedude]

Figured it out my problem and figured I would post so others avoid it. Seems that the Arduino software (1.65) auto updated some of the libraries with out my knowledge. Fresh instal solved everything.

Using firefox did the trick.

I have another problem now. I was able to load the sketch problem free for the past few weeks. Now all of the sudden I am getting these errors. I reinstalled arduino 1.65 and the libraries but can't get rid of these errors when I go to compile.

Arduino: 1.6.5 (Mac OS X), Board: "Arduino/Genuino Mega or Mega 2560, ATmega2560 (Mega 2560)"

Chauvet16.ino: In function 'void setup()':
Chauvet16:137: error: 'initSensors' was not declared in this scope
Chauvet16.ino: In function 'void loop()':
Chauvet16:282: error: 'updateTemp' was not declared in this scope
Apex.ino: In function 'boolean apex_status_handler(TinyWebServer&)':
Apex:116: error: 'getTemp' was not declared in this scope
Apex.ino: In function 'boolean apex_status_json_handler(TinyWebServer&)':
Apex:370: error: 'getTemp' was not declared in this scope
Network.ino: In function 'void sendEmail()':
Network:289: error: 'getTemp' was not declared in this scope
Outlets.ino: In function 'void outletHandlerB()':
Outlets:172: error: 'checkTempISR' was not declared in this scope
Outlets:173: error: 'checkAlarm' was not declared in this scope
Utils.ino: In function 'boolean psensors()':
Utils:247: error: 'getTemp' was not declared in this scope
Utils.ino: In function 'void logSensors()':
Utils:477: error: 'getTemp' was not declared in this scope
Utils.ino: In function 'void logAlarm()':
Utils:538: error: 'getTemp' was not declared in this scope
'initSensors' was not declared in this scope

[d0ughb0y]

I got the two $9 computer boards (+$5 shipping) I ordered from kickstarter. one works and one is bad. I think it will be a while before this product becomes truly usable. There is hardly any documentation on how to program for it, plus the build quality issues. I think it will be worth looking into again once the board hw and sw becomes stable.

I started working on the new led board, but having problems accessing the wifi module. I surface mounted the esp module so it is harder to troubleshoot.

[geekengineer]

Hopefully you will figure it out.. I been too lazy lately to do much more. I want to work on some things when I get motivated again. I don't have too much trouble with things with the internet I am at currently using closer to home. That problem I was having was weird but I'm too lazy to much with my controller to debug it.

[Guy1980]

Yes, it's set to 4 but still having trouble with 3rd and 4th dosers. Once they start, they don't stop.

Having an issue with fans as well. I have it setup with 1 fan testing at the moment and if I click manual and use the slider, the fan is controlled perfectly, but if I click auto, no matter how hot the temp probe gets, the fan does not come on?
did you change MAXDOSERS to 4 in config.h?

[teslo]

Yes, it's set to 4 but still having trouble with 3rd and 4th dosers. Once they start, they don't stop.


As you could read here:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showpost.php?p=23573805&postcount=1781

I have same problems.

But then d0ughb0y post a fix for this problem which solve this bug:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showpost.php?p=23623738&postcount=1793

For fans I don't know as I am not yet using them!

[Guy1980]

As you could read here:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showpost.php?p=23573805&postcount=1781

I have same problems.

But then d0ughb0y post a fix for this problem which solve this bug:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showpost.php?p=23623738&postcount=1793

For fans I don't know as I am not yet using them!
You are right. I didn't even look if I'm honest at that as I thought it had been updated in the latest version. Looking at git hub now, it's still missing the calibration settings that you posted. Thank you [emoji2]

Now I just need to figure out the problem I am having with the fan not coming on.

[Guy1980]

Upon further testing, it works perfectly if the code is set to Fahrenheit, but if set to celcius, the fan doesn't seem to come on auto mode. Not sure if it's waiting for the temp to reach the Fahrenheit setting if that makes sense?

[Guy1980]

@d0ughb0y any idea why the pwm fan may not be coming on auto mode when set to celcius?

I have noticed when set to celcius, on the Web interface everything is displayed in celcius apart from where you set the trigger temps in config, that's still in Fahrenheit

[dudedudedude]

I have read through the entire thread and can't seem to find an answer. I am trying to use the PWM fan function with ambient temperature controlling PWN Fan 1.

I have made the following code change in PWMFan.ino, yet the fan doesn't show up

// PWM Power Tachometer
// ----------- ------ --------------
//pwmfan0 D5 PE3 OC3A A2 PF2 A8 PK0 PCINT16
pwmfan1 D2 PE4 OC3B A3 PF3 A9 PK1 PCINT17
//pwmfan2 D3 PE5 OC3C A4 PF4 A14 PK6 PCINT22

I know the circuit is working because I can drive the PWM input successfully using the fade arduino example.

Is there any other code that I need to change?

Thanks,
Sean

[Guy1980]

To get mine working, I didn't comment out anything like above, but you need to make sure you have changed the define max pwm fans to how many fans you are running ( //#define _PWMFAN

#define MAXPWMFANS 3 //maximum 3) in config

and have the correct temp sensor address in the code ( #define TEMPDEF) also in config then the fan should appear and can then be configured.

[shiftline]

Can you please clarify on the auto programming out the outlets. There is an

off time.
On time
off time.

Why two offs?
And I'm assuming it's in 24h right?

[d0ughb0y]

@d0ughb0y any idea why the pwm fan may not be coming on auto mode when set to celcius?

I have noticed when set to celcius, on the Web interface everything is displayed in celcius apart from where you set the trigger temps in config, that's still in Fahrenheit

I'll check this weekend. I think it should not matter if you use C or F, as it merely compares actual reading with a value.

Can you please clarify on the auto programming out the outlets. There is an

off time.
On time
off time.

Why two offs?
And I'm assuming it's in 24h right?


That concept of 2 off times came from Neptune controllers and is just exactly as it says. The purpose of splitting the off time is so you can offset 2 similar devices ON time.

say you have 2 powerheads and you want to be ON for 2 minutes and OFF for 2 minutes but you want them to be offset by 1 minutes.

So for powerhead 1, you define something like

OFF 1 ON 2 OFF 1

for powerhead 2

OFF 0 ON 2 OFF 2

[Guy1980]

I'll check this weekend. I think it should not matter if you use C or F, as it merely compares actual reading with a value.

Thank you. When set to celcius everything displays correct except for the config page where you specify bottom and top values which stays in Fahrenheit. Apart from that, all seems to be working well so far.

[shiftline]

That concept of 2 off times came from Neptune controllers and is just exactly as it says. The purpose of splitting the off time is so you can offset 2 similar devices ON time.



say you have 2 powerheads and you want to be ON for 2 minutes and OFF for 2 minutes but you want them to be offset by 1 minutes.



So for powerhead 1, you define something like



OFF 1 ON 2 OFF 1



for powerhead 2



OFF 0 ON 2 OFF 2


Makes sense for power heads. Now does it matter which two I use if I hair want a standard on/off to control a light?

Would set the first off to 0? Ex for 1pm-9pm

Off 00:00:00
On. 13:00:00
Off 21:00:00
?

[d0ughb0y]

Makes sense for power heads. Now does it matter which two I use if I hair want a standard on/off to control a light?

Would set the first off to 0? Ex for 1pm-9pm

Off 00:00:00
On. 13:00:00
Off 21:00:00
?

note the time is elapsed time, not clock time.

if you want it on at 1pm and off at 9pm, that's 8 hours elapsed time. so you set it to

off 13:00:00
on 08:00:00
off 03:00:00

It tells you the cycle time, which is the sum of the 3 elapsed time. And cycle always starts at midnight.

so if your cycle time is 24 hours, then you have 1 cycle a day.
If your cycle time is 3 hours, then it will cycle 8 times over 24 hours.
This allows you to actually create schedules that works say every other day or even once a week.

The difference with my implementation over Neptune's is the start time is always the same time (predictable), whereas on Neptune controller, the cycle starts when you hit ok.

Lets say you setup the 3 hour cycle, and it is currently 12:05pm. Your outlet timing will be 5 minutes into the 5th cycle. But on Neptune controller, your cycle starts at 12:05pm, and makes your timing all weird and starts at 5 minutes past the hour. This is how it worked in Neptune Aquacontrollers previous to Apex. Not sure if this is still the case with Apex.

[shiftline]

It all makes sense now!! Thank you for clarifying

[d0ughb0y]

Thank you. When set to celcius everything displays correct except for the config page where you specify bottom and top values which stays in Fahrenheit. Apart from that, all seems to be working well so far.

you need to edit the html file. search for word _fantemplow and _fantemphigh.

you will see the rangeslider range value is set to 70 to 100. That is the temp range in Fahrenheit. Just change the values to Celsius range you want the fan to operate.

The fan turns completely off if it is 1 degree below the low temp value. And will turn on once it is = to temp value and ramp up in speed according to your max temp setting.

[d0ughb0y]

to fix the blank page issue when you transition a page back and get a blank page on chrome or safari, edit the html file, search for the word transition and replace slide to slidefade. Apparently, slide transition does not work with safari and chrome, but any other transition works fine. You can change it to whatever transition type you want.

go to this page and test out the different transition types. you will see slide does not work on chrome.

https://demos.jquerymobile.com/1.2.0/docs/pages/page-transitions.html

[cjmdh]

Just an FYI to anyone new to this. Download version 1.6.5 of Arduino. It will not compile on 1.6.7. Didn't try 1.6.6.

[d0ughb0y]

I read the release notes, and I see Wire and SD libraries were updated in 1.6.6 and compiler was updated in 1.6.7.

do you remember the error you got in 1.6.7?

There is really nothing in the newer version that is needed by the code, so for now, just use 1.6.5. That is the version I am currently using.

[cjmdh]

Here is a text file as the list was long.

[d0ughb0y]

There seems to be a lot of problems reported with 1.6.7 in arduino forum and 1.6.5 seems to be the latest stable version.
I think the errors are due to using a different compiler in 1.6.7.

[cjmdh]

Thank you btw for all of the work that you put into this project and then sharing it with us!

[d0ughb0y]

I started working on my LED board again this weekend. Last December when I worked on it, I could not get the esp-12 module to respond. I did not change anything, except perhaps reseat the teensy board into the socket. So this may just be a case of loose connection. I got most of the basic functions (temp, fan control, LED pwm, SD, network, RTC, etc.) to work and working on file handler code for webduino webserver. Download of large file works, but still working on upload of large file. I want this to work like the current chauvet code that you can upload new files using curl. Once I'm done with file handler, I can start working on the html/javascript code.

[d0ughb0y]

just saw this

http://fishtankprojects.com/diy-aquarium-projects/arduino-or-raspberrypi-reef-tank-controller.html

the led board software is coming along fine. I have most of base code done and can start the web interface this weekend. I'm going to try to keep the design simple so I can get this out of the way and move on to chauvet controller version 2.0.

[XahmedXsa]

hi doughby

what the requirement for version 2.0

thanks

[d0ughb0y]

I will reuse a lot of hardware and software from led project.
it will use teensy 3.2 board and esp-12 wifi and I will get custom pcb so everything is packed into 100mm x 50mm board (about the size of an arduino mega).
functions would be essentially similar as before, outlets, ultrasonic ATO, doser, fan, pwm pump, probes.

[d0ughb0y]

DST bug fix.

I noticed on recent DST time change, I can see in controller log the time got updated, but on the web page, it still shows the incorrect time. Turns out the autoDST function did not update the tz variable. This explains why after rebooting the controller, the display becomes correct.

The function should look like this

void autoDST(time_t t) {
if (IsDST(t)==isDst) return;
isDst = !isDst;
if (isDst) {
RTC.set(t+SECS_PER_HOUR);
tz = STDTZOFFSET+1;
} else {
RTC.set(t-SECS_PER_HOUR);
tz = STDTZOFFSET;
}
setTime(RTC.get());
logMessage(F("Auto adjusted DST time."));
char buf[20];
logMessage(F("Current time is "),getdatestring(now(),buf));
}


I'll update github with this change.

[d0ughb0y]

on led controller software, I'm still working on the webpage framework. I added code to use WebSocket protocol and works nicely, so now webpage update is really real time. Check out www.websocket.org (http://www.websocket.org) if you are curious about this protocol (it is built in to all web browsers). This will be useful in displaying fan rpm, and display of light schedule simulation where time is fast forwarded 20x. I'm also using the latest jquery version, which supports the more modern looking sliding menu that is pretty much the standard user interface for mobile apps.

I still need to work on getting the esp8266 to run in Access Point mode, so it works like a wifi router. This will solve the current problem of not able to access the controller if there is no power or no internet service and the controller (and your tank) is on backup power. The esp8266 is quite stable so far with constant heavy use. I'm using firmware 1.5.2.

[dudedudedude]

To get mine working, I didn't comment out anything like above, but you need to make sure you have changed the define max pwm fans to how many fans you are running ( //#define _PWMFAN

#define MAXPWMFANS 3 //maximum 3) in config

and have the correct temp sensor address in the code ( #define TEMPDEF) also in config then the fan should appear and can then be configured.

Thanks for the advise, that worked to get the FAN working. However, I am having one interesting issue. If I let it run on the set points provided in the sketch it will go on at the low point at low RPM and gradually increase to the MAX duty cycle at the high set point. However, if I manually change the set points through wifi (web server) it is not behaving correctly.

For example, if I change any settings and the temp is below the low set point, once the low set point is triggered the FAN stays at the low duty cycle despite going above the high set point.

Alternatively, if the starting temp is above the high set point when changes are made the high duty cycle is started but never decreases until turning off once 1 degree below the low set point. Essentially the ramp doesn't work once changes are made via the webwerver.

Any advise would be much appreciated
Sean

[d0ughb0y]

when you say

if I manually change the set points

do you mean you change the low temp and high temp values in controller setup page?
make sure you click the save button after setting the value and you hear the confirmation beep on the controler.

I reviewed the pwmfan code and did not find anything that looked like it will cause the issue you described. If you can email me screenshots and a bit more detail, I can look into it further.

[XahmedXsa]

hi doughby

when you will Issued the version 2.0

thanks

[d0ughb0y]

I just got done with my taxes. With that out of the way, I can resume working on led controller software. I have yet to test the ACS712 current sensor, once I verify the circuit works (hopefully this weekend), I will order the chauvet v2 controller pcb, which will take a month to arrive. That will give me some time to continue on the led controller software, which will have a good amount of code that will be reused on the chauvet v2.

[cslamar]

d0ughb0y, did you ever make any headway using the Teensy for the LED controller? I ask mainly cause I was planning on doing a similar build and was curious abbot your experience. Thanks!
--Chris

[d0ughb0y]

the circuit itself is final. I have ordered 2 rounds of pcb and do not plan to make any further changes. I have test code for individual parts of the controller so I know they work. the final software with all the interface is really the hard part of the project and is what I am currently working on.

I spent a lot of time developing the circuit/code to get the esp8266 wifi to work at max baud rate, which I think is essential in getting a decent response time in the web interface.

Let me know if there is anything specific you need to know.

BTW, the only thing of concern in making this a DIY is the soldering of pin headers to the bottom pads of the teensy. It may require a bit of fine soldering skills and is possible to damage the teensy if not done properly (say if pad is heated too much). I will try to write instructions on how to do this. It's should not really be too difficult to do, and I don't think any special tool is required, only a soldering iron.

[XahmedXsa]

where we can order the chauvet v2 controller pcb ?


thanks

[d0ughb0y]

I will order the pcb soon. I don't want to rush it like I did with the led controller pcb and ending up with a mistake and I had to order again.

[cslamar]

D0ughb0y, how easy was the integration between the Ternsy and the ESP8266, and how stable has it been? (Sorry if this is off topic but RC won't let me PM you until I have 10 posts).

[d0ughb0y]

D0ughb0y, how easy was the integration between the Ternsy and the ESP8266, and how stable has it been? (Sorry if this is off topic but RC won't let me PM you until I have 10 posts).


The reason I had to change the led controller circuit and reordered new pcb is because I changed the esp8266 interface to teensy 3.2. I also changed from using esp-01 to esp-12 since esp-01 does not have RTS/CTS pins available. I also got a bunch of esp-03 only to find out they don't have RTS/CTS pins as well.

I won't say it is easy. I first wrote an esp8266 library (using esp AT commands) from scratch, then found out at speed of 115200, a very basic web page containing some javascript takes more than 30 seconds to load, which is too long. So I ended up writing a new Teensy 3.2 serial library that uses hardware handshake and it now loads in split second at 4.6 megabaud. I was a bit surprised to find out that 100% of tons of esp8266 code out there that use AT commands run at 115200 baud.

The serial1.c file was incorporated into teensyduino as an alternate serial1 driver. rename the file to serial1.c to use it.

https://github.com/PaulStoffregen/cores/blob/master/teensy3/serial1_doughboy.txt

For some reason, pjrc chose a "software" based implementation to hardware handshake. I tested that version on my led controller program and it failed miserably right off the bat. The true hardware based hardware handshake works 100% of the time and is stable.

I originally planned to make the libraries generic, but currently, it is specific to teensy 3.x and will work with teensy 3.x only. and it works with a slightly customized version of webduino.

I recently added websocket (http://www.websocket.org/)support to the webduino library that I plan to use in the controller web app.

It also supports running the esp8266 in both Access Point mode and Station mode simultaneously, so you can connect to the controller even if your wifi router goes down.

The only thing I wish the esp8266 AT commands support is SSL connection. The latest firmware claims it supports SSL in AT commands, but it does not work. I think espressif could hire a lot better firmware developers than what they have right now.

It may be too much trouble to make the libraries generic now, so I may just package and release them as teensy 3.x libraries.

[cslamar]

D0ughb0y, thank you SO much for the info! Looking forward to seeing more as the project progresses. Time for a Teensy and ESP order :)

[d0ughb0y]

Is there need for more than 8 outlets?

The reason I ask is I found an issue with the latest chauvet v2 circuit, and it will greatly simplify the board if it only has 8 outlets instead of 16.

The circuit drives the outlet relays via I2C expander to 16 lines, but 4 of which are shared with 4 dosers. (So you either have 16 outlets and 0 dosers or 12 outlets and 4 dosers or some combination in between).
But now, I found that I need to drive Jebao pumps using 5V pwm, so I could use the second ULN2803 for 4 dosers and 4 jebao PWM and the first ULN for the 8 outlets.

I could probably pack in a 3rd ULN to handle the dosers and pwm and have full 16 outlets. So that is what I am trying to decide.

If this was for my own use, I do not need more than 8 outlets. Jebao pumps can be plugged in to a regular (non controlled) outlet, so that will free up controlled outlet spots. Dosers are 12v so they don't need outlet.

If I go with 8 outlets, it is still possible to expand since I break out the I2C signals so adding another 8 or 16 should not be a problem, it just won't be built in to the board.

The outlets I use are for return pump, heater, fan, skimmer, ATO pump, extra pump at bottom of overflow. 6 total.

[d0ughb0y]

come to think of it, there is not enough digital lines to have 16 outlets plus 4 dosers. The 4 dosers really have to share lines with the outlets. So I think I'll just leave it at 16 outlets with 4 shared with dosers, and add another chip to handle the 4 lines to jebao pumps.

If you only use 2 dosers, then you have 14 outlets, which I think is plenty. Or if you use all 4 (like in triton method dosing), then you have 12 outlets available.

[teslo]

Have you seen this:
http://www.wifimcu.com/

In this case all code could be written on one controller including 11 PWM GPIO etc.

And this module is already availabile for 11us$ as:

http://www.banggood.com/EMW3165-WiFiMCU-Wireless-WiFi-Development-Board-Using-Lua-p-1007187.html

[d0ughb0y]

I have not looked at that, but I tried the $9 computer chip that runs linux and for that one, I think it is too new and unstable and learning curve is steep. The main reason I still went for arduino based board is to use the stable webserver and sd card libraries. I took a quick look at the the webserver library of wifimcu and it is quite basic and probably needs a lot more work to support what I need to do.

I'm still deciding on the number of outlets. I might settle for 8 and connect directly to the 8 channel relay board (no ULN chip in between), and just use I2C to expand more outlets if needed. I want to keep the base controller basic, simple and stable.

[Moomin1967]

Is there need for more than 8 outlets?

The reason I ask is I found an issue with the latest chauvet v2 circuit, and it will greatly simplify the board if it only has 8 outlets instead of 16.

The circuit drives the outlet relays via I2C expander to 16 lines, but 4 of which are shared with 4 dosers. (So you either have 16 outlets and 0 dosers or 12 outlets and 4 dosers or some combination in between).
But now, I found that I need to drive Jebao pumps using 5V pwm, so I could use the second ULN2803 for 4 dosers and 4 jebao PWM and the first ULN for the 8 outlets.

I could probably pack in a 3rd ULN to handle the dosers and pwm and have full 16 outlets. So that is what I am trying to decide.

If this was for my own use, I do not need more than 8 outlets. Jebao pumps can be plugged in to a regular (non controlled) outlet, so that will free up controlled outlet spots. Dosers are 12v so they don't need outlet.

If I go with 8 outlets, it is still possible to expand since I break out the I2C signals so adding another 8 or 16 should not be a problem, it just won't be built in to the board.

The outlets I use are for return pump, heater, fan, skimmer, ATO pump, extra pump at bottom of overflow. 6 total.

Hi D0ughb0y,

Perhaps a backup heater, and perhaps be able to configure a duty and backup return pump. I see these as critical for tank survival if away for a few days.

M

[d0ughb0y]

I went back to 16 outlets and 4 doser configuration. having problem with routing. I'm already using 6 mil trace with 6 mil clearance and so far can't route 100%.

has anyone tried to use the pwm pump feature to control jebao dc return pump?
did it work?

the pwm pump feature was originally created for jebao wp and rw pumps. I never tested it on the dc return pumps.

just curious if it works as is.

curious also if it will work with cross wave pump. I've read different descriptions about this. But considering the wireless controller can control wp,rw and the cross flow pump, I am assuming it will work on the cross flow pump as well. does the cross flow pump rotate in reverse direction or does it rotate only in one direction and only the speed is variable?

[SorsCode]

d0ughb0y -

I used the pwm on my Jebao Return DC Pumps, without an issue. Worked great.

I use PWM 0 & 1 on my Power Heads and PWM 2 for my Return.

[d0ughb0y]

thanks for the confirmation.

back to led controller. It has 6 channels for LDD and 2 0-10v channels. I added the 0-10 upon someone's request and the whole time I was thinking there might be limited use for it. It turns out it would be perfect for use on kessils since they use 2 0-10v channels. If more 0-10v channels are needed, I figure I can make a small board the size of the LDD driver containing the op amp circuit and plugs in to the LDD socket and then have the 0-10v output. The current web enabled controller solution to kessil costs like $200 and supports 3 pairs of 0-10v signals. But I think most kessil users only use a pair.

I need to wrap up the chauvet v2 pcb routing so I can have the pcb made and get back to working on software for the led controller.

[sepulvd]

Very interested in building my own. What would you recommend if all am really trying to do is be able shut off my lights and heater in a overheat situation and run a ato


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[karimwassef]

What's the ear way to get started? Is there a simple step by step sticky for the latest iteration?

[d0ughb0y]

Very interested in building my own. What would you recommend if all am really trying to do is be able shut off my lights and heater in a overheat situation and run a ato


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

You can get ideas from existing code and circuit from my and other similar projects and build your own. You can always get help here or in arduino forum.

What's the ear way to get started? Is there a simple step by step sticky for the latest iteration?

I will make a webpage when I have enough info.

For starters, you can get a teensy 3.2 and be familiar with it. It uses arduino ide so learning curve is not so steep, but since it uses ARM processor, there are differences in how things work. I suppose it is similar to arduino due, but in a really small footprint. Teensy requires installing teensyduino. it is a go between program between arduino ide and the teensy board. It took me a while to get used to the fact that teensy board has no reset button and you have to power cycle it to reset.

I forgot to mention, buy your teensy here for $17 shipped.
http://store.oshpark.com/products/teensy-3-1

[karimwassef]

Thanks. What's the advantage of Teensy vs. Arduino? I use an Arduino Mega but don't have near the functionality you've vested in this setup.

[d0ughb0y]

I chose to use teensy mainly for the small footprint. The whole circuit with everything is the size of a mega footprint. The ARM processor used in teensy does not have as many IO pins as the one used in Due, so I have to use an IO expander.

[d0ughb0y]

d0ughb0y -

I used the pwm on my Jebao Return DC Pumps, without an issue. Worked great.

I use PWM 0 & 1 on my Power Heads and PWM 2 for my Return.

I am reading now that DCT and DCS return pump control is different from DC pump. That it uses 50hz PWM and control betweeen 500 and 2500us (sort of like servo motor pwm control). This should not be a problem as the pwm waveform is fully controllable in software. I also read the crossflow and gyre control signal is the same, not sure what timing will make it reverse rotation. I might get a DCT pump to replace my return, but still debating if I need a crossflow or not. If the pwm signal is different, I might need to revise my circuit, unless rw and wp pumps can operate at 50 hz pwm, then I don't think I need to change the circuit. The current program use 490hz pwm for jebao pump control.

[karimwassef]

I have two DCT 15000 pumps and haven't figured out how to control them with my Apex. Are you saying that it's possible to generate a PWM signal to control the speed instead of a signal voltage like the DC?

[d0ughb0y]

You cannot control DCT and DCS pumps with Apex.
For DC series pumps, and WP and RW pumps, you can feed 5v 488hz pwm directly. The pump will see it like an analog 0-5v signal.

I just tested using 50hz pwm on WP pump and it does not work as well as at 488hz. So I have to get a DCT and possibly a gyre to reverse engineer. So I have to make more revisions to the controller circuit. Not sure yet if I'll keep 4 488hz pwm and add 2 50hz pwm, or make it 4 pwm only, and run either 50hz or 488 hz. 50hz will still work for older jebao pumps, but it does not spin as fast. I am guessing if I add the resistor-capacitor low pass filter, it will spin faster. I will test it, and if it does, I'll make the pwm run at 50hz.

[SorsCode]

I am controlling my DCT6000 with your setup.

[d0ughb0y]

Does the speed control looks like it is working correctly?
When I do a search, I see a lot of postings here, on fish street and on neptune forum saying the DCT pumps are not controllable by Apex anymore.
I think I even found a post (which I cannot find anymore) that describes the control signal as a servo pwm signal and not an analog 0-5v signal.

And from fish street, the DCT/DCS electronics is changed from original DC series pump, since DC series pump leaks electricity into the aquarium.

Is the DCT pump you have the one that comes with the 10 speed controller?
If it does control it, then that is good news. That means a PWM signal controls it, but not an analog 0-5v signal.

[SorsCode]

Speed controls for the DCT6000 work fine. My DC6000 died, and I just bought a DCT6000, and swapped it out. Only thing I noticed, was the DCT6000 was pushing more water at the same setting, so I lowered it from 80% to 75% (Your application percentage). I could run it from 0-100 with no issues.

Yes it came with 10 Speeds.

FYI - I just sold my take over the weekend, but I did run the DCT6000 for almost a year.

[d0ughb0y]

sorry to hear that. are you completely out of the hobby?

the only thing keeping me in are the diy projects. :)

anyway, I think I can modify the circuit, so there are 4 PWM for pump control. and either 4 dosers, or 2 doser + 2 50hz PWM (jumper selectable). But before I make the change, I need to get a hold of a maxspect gyre or jebao crossflow. I want this controller to be able to control a gyre, but I'm not quite ready to buy one yet. Maybe I'll contact Coralvue to see if I can get some technical info.

[karimwassef]

So since I have an Apex, an Arduino Mega, and a DCT 15000...

I can read in the Apex VDM signal and change the 0-10V to a PWM signal based on it (like LEDs).

What do I need to deliver as a PWM signal (through the third pin, other than the +24VDC and GND), to control the speed?

Frequency, voltage level, duty cycle to speed, min duty cycle...?

[d0ughb0y]

you can just use the default arduino 488z 8 bit pwm.
Min is 50%, so values between 128 and 255. You may be able to go as low as 20%, but it varies from pump to pump. I think the jecod controllers lowest setting is about 50% duty cycle.

[SorsCode]

D0ughb0y -

I'm getting out for a short period of time. Last summer, my house was hit by lightning while I was on vacation. I had no one able to go monitor the tank, and I just left the state when the storm hit. So when I came home, everyone was alive, but not happy. I moved everyone to a QT tank, because the controller was burned up, along with everything else (Surge was in use, but it took the most damage). So I purchased everything that needed replaced, and stuff. I was unable to ever get the systems chemistry stable after that. I was fighting everything under the sun. So I finally made the decision to take a break.

I'm also moving in three weeks to Missouri. So it was good timing. Once I get settled in, I'll look at getting another tank. Right now, a break will be nice. I still keep up on this thread (obviously), and will continue to run your controller. I will also help out, any questions that I can answer, when asked.

I've been building a ton of home automatition stuff, and integrated your controllers calls, and data, into my main hub, so I was able to control even my tank from my Raspberry Pi Central Management Console. Was really nice.

[Shaunibob]

This is absolutely amazing. Sadly I've only been messing with an arduino for about a week and know nothing about it. Wish me luck

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

[d0ughb0y]

This is absolutely amazing. Sadly I've only been messing with an arduino for about a week and know nothing about it. Wish me luck

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk



If you are a little handy, you should be able to build this. Everyone including me started from zero knowledge of arduino.

[karimwassef]

you can just use the default arduino 488z 8 bit pwm.
Min is 50%, so values between 128 and 255. You may be able to go as low as 20%, but it varies from pump to pump. I think the jecod controllers lowest setting is about 50% duty cycle.

I thought the frequency needs to sync up with the pump's design configuration to match the angular momentum with each pulse, otherwise, the pump might lack pressure or flow? I would also expect the pump to create some kickback in induced voltage (due to the coil and magnet inductance) compared to a semiconductor load like LEDs. It might not hurt the arduino with isolation, but it could punish the power supply? Doesn't that require special treatment?

The controller also seems to measure the resulting current and goes into shutdown/hiccup mode if the impeller is stuck.

This is not based on experience/measurement. It's just piecing together the requirements from stepper motors, and the little bit I remember about torque/speed of different impellers.

Has anyone just put sense lines on the controller pins and run them to an oscilloscope while the pump is running?

Capturing the startup/steady/slowdown/shutoff waveforms for the ten speed settings would be awesome. Any chance someone's working on that? :bounce3: :twitch:

[d0ughb0y]

I thought the frequency needs to sync up with the pump's design configuration to match the angular momentum with each pulse, otherwise, the pump might lack pressure or flow? I would also expect the pump to create some kickback in induced voltage (due to the coil and magnet inductance) compared to a semiconductor load like LEDs. It might not hurt the arduino with isolation, but it could punish the power supply? Doesn't that require special treatment?



The controller also seems to measure the resulting current and goes into shutdown/hiccup mode if the impeller is stuck.



This is not based on experience/measurement. It's just piecing together the requirements from stepper motors, and the little bit I remember about torque/speed of different impellers.



Has anyone just put sense lines on the controller pins and run them to an oscilloscope while the pump is running?



Capturing the startup/steady/slowdown/shutoff waveforms for the ten speed settings would be awesome. Any chance someone's working on that? :bounce3: :twitch:



Yes, I measured the jebao controller waveform using oscilloscope and logic analyzer so the waveform generated by this controller is 100% clone of the jebao controller. So it performs exactly as the original controller unlike using apex and the converter where I see comments saying it runs slower than the stock controller.

Btw, the pwm line is not affected by the motor fly back current.

I had asked in my local forum to borrow a gyre or jebao cp-40 so I can reverse engineer them but got no response. I also got no response yet from coralvue requesting for info.

[karimwassef]

Ok! I need to start from scratch (still need that sticky :) ), so until then, I'll have to mimic your output with my Arduino using signals from my Apex. Could you point me to the section of this thread that shows the section I should use (code, circuit, etc...) to do this?

[d0ughb0y]

I don't think you can drive it from apex signal. I know in original neptune aquacontroller, you can only change the value once per minute, and perhaps that changed to once per second in apex. The jebao time minimum is 110ms (when you turn the dial all the way counter clockwise). There are quite a lot of limitations with the Apex controller.

You can find the source in pwmpumps.ino. It has bare metal AVR code, but not that hard to follow if you read the ATmega2560 datasheet. The circuit is to just connect the arduino pwm pin directly to the pwm input of the pump.

[d0ughb0y]

One new addition to the v2 of the controller I plan to add is support for optical liquid level sensor like this one.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/331615870709

I'm just going to make the same 4 pins used for ultrasonic sensor work for the optical sensor (so you choose either ultrasonic or optical in config.h). It can be used as continuous water level sensor (like how much water is left in your top off reservoir), or as replacement to float switch for top off.

I just ordered one so I can see how well it works. If it works well, I will use that as the default and will use it as my top off reservoir water level sensor. The only issue I see is teensy analog input max is 3.3v (it can handle 5v, but anything above 3.3 will just read as 3.3).

[theatrus]

I just ordered one so I can see how well it works. If it works well, I will use that as the default and will use it as my top off reservoir water level sensor. The only issue I see is teensy analog input max is 3.3v (it can handle 5v, but anything above 3.3 will just read as 3.3).



Nothing two resistors and a follower opamp won't fix :)

[karimwassef]

I'm only using the apex to initiate a change - no different than changing the intensity level of LEDs. The Arduino takes that signal and generates the PWM. I'm only using the Apex as a communications hub. All the fast work is done with the Mega.

[d0ughb0y]

I managed to get the controller board completely routed on eagle.
just waiting to test the circuit on the optical level sensor before I order the boards.
currently, it supports 16 outlets, 2 float ATO switches, 1 ultrasonic or optical level sensor (if it works), 6 pwm for controlling pumps, 2 of which can be converted to 12v dosing pump control, 2 dosing pumps (can be 4), one or more temp probes, one feeder, two pwm controlled fans, one serial interface to atlas sensor, and one or more I2C atlas sensors and runs wifi. it also has ACS712 current sensor input, but not sure how reliable this is. the plan is to monitor current (and derived power) usage.

My test code to MCP23017 IO expander runs I2C at 1mhz clock. I have not tested if the atlas stamps can handle 1mhz I2C, but worst case, I know it works at 400khz.

Currently, there is no support for gyre pumps, since I don't have access to one for testing. But 2 of the 6 pwm lines can be run at a different frequency, in case that is what's needed to support gyre pumps.

sorscode, does the dct pump start up by ramping up with the stock controller? I can try to do the same. Also, dct pump advertises it will shut down when run dry. Is this feature built in to the pump or the controller? I don't know if you have actually tried running the pump dry to test it.

------
go sharks
go warriors

[Krazie4Acans]

The DCT pumps DO ramp up on start. The run dry feature is in the pump. To reset it if it runs dry you have to unplug the pump from the controller for a few seconds and then connect it back up.

[d0ughb0y]

thanks.

say if you set H1 (continuous flow) to 100%, how many seconds does it take to ramp up to 100% from time it is plugged in?

BTW, I also read that if you unplug the controller, and plug it back in, it does not remember the last setting and will run at 100%?

I think perhaps if the pump is somehow powered by 24v and pwm line is open, it will run at 100%.
I have added the appropriate pullup/pulldown so pwm line is 0 on startup to prevent running at 100%.

[Krazie4Acans]

5-10 seconds depending on what the max speed is (the ramp is a constant rate) the higher the max the longer it takes to reach it.

[d0ughb0y]

thanks.

I think 1 second per 10% is a good guess.
The lowest setting on the controller is 50 maybe 60% of max flow, so I think 5 seconds to ramp to lowest setting makes sense.

I know on WP pump controller, the lowest setting is 50% duty cycle. Although the pump does not really start spinning until at least 20% duty cycle.

[karimwassef]

Can you post the source code for the DCT and WP when you can?

[karimwassef]

Is it possible to detect current so if the pump has been dry (turned itself off), that you wait X minutes with no power, then turn it back up again?

This would also work in case the pump is unplugged, then replugged.

[d0ughb0y]

Can you post the source code for the DCT and WP when you can?

source is on github, file is pwmpumps.ino

Is it possible to detect current so if the pump has been dry (turned itself off), that you wait X minutes with no power, then turn it back up again?

This would also work in case the pump is unplugged, then replugged.

you probably need to add sensors for that.

just an idea. if I get the acs712 current sensor to work, it can be used to detect if a device is ON or not by momentarily turning it on/off and detect the current change. This will probably work only on higher power device like a heater, maybe a return pump.

[karimwassef]

Agree on the sensor. Actually, individual power monitoring on outlets is a key value that is sorely lacking in the Apex. Having my pump showing "on" but not knowing that its pulling zero current is a disaster.

I'm using a simple cheap shunt ($5) and low pass filter (RC) on the DC to my LEDs to get a measure of current flow. Can you do the same?

[d0ughb0y]

I thought Apex has current monitoring.

[theatrus]

I thought Apex has current monitoring.



Only for the entire power bar. It's also current only - would be great to have true power as well as VA.

There are some relatively inexpensive single phase true power with energy accumulator chips, but you need to tap the voltage and use a shunt (and all the safety related design that needs).

[karimwassef]

The point is outlet specific current and voltage (power is nice but I like the higher resolution). Since most of my loads are low voltage DC (48V down to 12V), a DC current signal serves most of my needs. AC can complicate things with dangerous voltage levels and power factor - ever try running an Apex off generator power? That 105A reading per energy bar will throw you for a loop.

Personally, my backup is turning into a 24V battery wall (a-la-Tesla but at 24V with deep cycle/discharge marine sealed batteries) so DC voltage and current monitoring is more valuable. AC sensing can be confined to power good/power down.

[theatrus]

The point is outlet specific current and voltage (power is nice but I like the higher resolution). Since most of my loads are low voltage DC (48V down to 12V), a DC current signal serves most of my needs. AC can complicate things with dangerous voltage levels and power factor - ever try running an Apex off generator power? That 105A reading per energy bar will throw you for a loop.

Personally, my backup is turning into a 24V battery wall (a-la-Tesla but at 24V with deep cycle/discharge marine sealed batteries) so DC voltage and current monitoring is more valuable. AC sensing can be confined to power good/power down.



The Apex power bar current monitor is not very good - I get the wildly oscillating current readings as well. My tank equipment is largely SMPS these days (lights, DC pumps, etc) so the noise must be coupling into something.

[karimwassef]

The DC loads should actually be cleaner and quieter? I guess it depends on the SMPS. I'm using server power supplies that have PFC (~1KW) built in. They also have decent EMI (most meet Class B). They generate my bus voltage and then I can buck or boost. The wild voltages come from having to run generator power into my Apex.

I wanted to convert an EB8 into DC (in and out), but that got a freezing cold reception at the Neptune forums...

[shiftline]

The optical sensors work well. I use them for my ATO

Speaking of Jabeo. Has anyone played with the Cp-40 gyre style pumps? Are they controlled via the same control scheme as the RW or is it a different beast?

I ordered one last night and am curious how I can get arduino or apex to control it

[d0ughb0y]

The optical sensors work well. I use them for my ATO

Speaking of Jabeo. Has anyone played with the Cp-40 gyre style pumps? Are they controlled via the same control scheme as the RW or is it a different beast?

I ordered one last night and am curious how I can get arduino or apex to control it

The optical sensor I ordered should arrive this week. I configured the 2 arduino pins to work with either ultrasonic or infrared for user to select. The optical sensor seems a bit overpriced at $15, when you can get ultrasonic for $0.99 so I left that as an option.

If I have a cp-40 to reverse engineer, I can include that feature in the controller. I was going to buy one but decided to defer it, perhaps until the price drops below $100. I had asked in my local forum to borrow one but nobody offered. I think only 1% of reefers are interested in DIY.

[theatrus]

If I have a cp-40 to reverse engineer, I can include that feature in the controller. I was going to buy one but decided to defer it, perhaps until the price drops below $100. I had asked in my local forum to borrow one but nobody offered. I think only 1% of reefers are interested in DIY.

Always wondered if there is interest in a Wiki or a similar site with tear-downs and reverse engineering of various reef products. Its been in the back of my head for awhile, just haven't committed to anything (besides a speculative domain registration). This is especially useful for equipment that doesn't play well with other systems or is cheap enough that people would want to tinker with it. I know what you're saying - the 1% is also subdivided into a further 1% that is comfortable doing (and understanding) the type of stuff you're working on :)