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MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference

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MegaPoints Controllers
System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference
Revision 1
System2
Solenoid Driver
User Reference
by MegaPoints Controllers
A four channel solenoid motor driver for traditional solenoid point motors with integrated
Capacitive Discharge Unit (CDU), intelligent motor firing and feedback.
Includes support for both Wi-Fi and CAN network operation, additionally JMRI and native
modes via MQTT.
User Reference and Guide
Revision 1
JULY 2024
Status: Draft
© MegaPoints Controllers 2024
Email:
info@megapointscontrollers.com
megapointscontrollers.co.uk
Page 1

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Summary of Contents for MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver

  • Page 1 MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference by MegaPoints Controllers A four channel solenoid motor driver for traditional solenoid point motors with integrated Capacitive Discharge Unit (CDU), intelligent motor firing and feedback. Includes support for both Wi-Fi and CAN network operation, additionally JMRI and native modes via MQTT.

  • Page 2: Table Of Contents

    MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 Table of contents What is System2 Air? ..........................3 How to use this document ........................4 System2 Solenoid motor driver ......................4 Introduction ............................4 Intelligent operation ..........................5 Power and Charging ........................5 Motor Activation ..........................

  • Page 3: What Is System2 Air

    MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 What is System2 Air? System2 is our new generation of model railway accessory bus products that feature our V-Port protocol (virtual port) and can address up to 60,000 devices. You can scale an installation from a single Servo-8 Controller (8 V-ports) right up to a huge layout as your needs grow.

  • Page 4: How To Use This Document

    Your results may vary. Avoid touching The System2 Solenoid Driver has the following features: components or the circuit printed on the bottom of  Common 12 Volt power supply to all other System2 the board.

  • Page 5: Intelligent Operation

    MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 Intelligent operation Power and Charging When the solenoid driver board is powered, a charge pump converts the 12V supply to 19- 20V, storing the charge in the reservoir capacitor for future use.

  • Page 6: Additional Requirements

    MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 Additional Requirements You may also need:  12 Volt DC regulated power supply. 1 Amp minimum  Network cable (twisted pair). Telephone cable Alarm cable Such as CW1109B/Y supplied by CPC/Farnell. See website for cable links. Non twisted pair cable is OK for testing purposes, not for installation.

  • Page 7: First Use

    MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 First use WARNING: Ensure this board is kept in a well ventilated area. Do not affix within a sealed on unventilated enclosure. Ensure the rear of the circuit board does not come into contact with any conductive material.
  • Page 8 MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 Label Colour Purpose Yellow Flashing once per Second: normal run mode. Twice per second: hotspot active. Green On indicates board has 12 volt power. On = charged. State of reservoir capacitor.
  • Page 9 MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 Each solenoid motor has three wires or terminals connecting to it. Ensure the centre terminal always goes to the connector centre terminal. NOTE: There is always power present on the centre terminals. Do not connect or handle the board when the reservoir capacitor is charged or the RED (CHG) light is on.

  • Page 10: Network Cabling

    MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 Network cabling You can fit the termination jumpers to the first and last board on your network if not already fitted (see above two diagrams). See the above diagram for network cabling. All cables should be a twisted pair signal cable. Fit any termination jumpers (supplied as part of a starter kit) to the boards at the ends of the network for a maximum of two jumpers per network.

  • Page 11: Getting Your First Board On Your Local Wi-Fi Network

    MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 Getting your first board on your local Wi-Fi network There’s a dedicated YouTube video demonstrating this. Follow this link to view: https://youtu.be/G3ajZazycP4. It will probably be easier than going through the following text.

  • Page 12: Admin Interface

    MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1  Press the reboot button when ready and access the device via your usual network using the IP address obtained previously. Refer to the website for how to videos and full documentation (megapointscontrollers.com/system2).
  • Page 13 MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1  A location description field. Use this to enter meaningful information such as baseboard number, IE: “B12C7 Tunnel entrance”.  Motor vPorts for control and feedback.  Reverse to reverse the operation of the motor. Cycle several times to sync the system after changing.

  • Page 14: Board Location

    MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1  The last item is a status log (light yellow background). This provides a real time status such as up to date software, or boards joining the network, whether you saved (or should) save your changes etc.
  • Page 15 MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 Automatic range: The automatic range for the CAN ID is 1 – 9999. If a duplicate is detected and Auto CAN ID is enabled either this or the other board with a duplicate ID will seek out a vacant CAN ID and update its configuration.
  • Page 16 MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 With Auto CAN ID enabled the message is slightly different (see below): The CAN ID was automatically changed to an unused ID. When the board is rebooted or the web page refreshed the CAN ID field will update to the new value.

  • Page 17: Wi-Fi Credential Sharing

    MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 Wi-Fi credential sharing You may recall the procedure to connect the first board to your Wi-Fi network using your phone or tablet to connect to the boards local hotspot? You’ll be pleased to know that you don’t ever have to go through this again.

  • Page 18: Actions

    MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 To revoke Wi-Fi access for all connected boards click the “Revoke WiFi Credentials” (1) button (see below): You will observe in the Status Log revocation messages. Each board will restart and show an IP address of “0.0.0.0”...

  • Page 19: Reset To Defaults

    MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 Reset to defaults This will reset most of the board values to defaults. Observe the message in the Status Log (2). You have reset to defaults and the default values are live, however will revert back to previous settings upon a reboot unless specifically saved.

  • Page 20: Save Changes

    MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 Save Changes As suggested by the description, this will save all uncommitted changes to non-volatile memory and be retained after reboots. After saving you’ll see the confirmation message (2) in the Status Log below.

  • Page 21: Erase Wifi Credentials

    MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 Erase WiFi Credentials Erasing the WiFi Credentials will remove the Wi-Fi details and reboot the board you are connected to. This action applies to the board you are connected to only. Other networked boards are unaffected.
  • Page 22 MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 You can see the release dates and what’s in each release. If you select to update you’ll get all the changes right up to the latest version. The update is not mandatory. Installation is up to you.

  • Page 23: Reboot

    MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 Below is an example log displayed during the software update process: Update initiated. Beginning firmware update. Two downloads will be processed. Onboard LED will flash erratically indicating data transfer. The update will take between 4-8 minutes to complete.

  • Page 24: Reload Page

    MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 Reload Page This option reloads the web page and resets the Status Log area. Useful for clearing garbage from the log and confirming you are connected to the board. Documentation Clicking the Documentation link will open a new window in your browser and take you to the product page for the board you clicked from.
  • Page 25 MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 D 0-7 Data field of the packed (D0 – D7). V-Port Decoded V-Port the message is intended for. The Network Monitor will only display packets created by remote boards. It will not display packets that are locally transmitted.
  • Page 26 MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 We are also presented with the IP address of the board (2), so clicking on the blue IP address takes us to the Servo-8 management portal. The Servo-8 port configuration is reported as: The V-Port (1) is 1 meaning channel S1 (servo 1) is listening for this address (V-Port).

  • Page 27: Status Area

    MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 Relay R1 is configured for events on V-Port 321 and ill trigger when the Servo-8 is halfway. This can be freely changed to respond to the same ports as the push button or any other device. It can also provide feedback data of its own, however setting the Feedback V-Port to “0”...

  • Page 28: Board Type (1)

    MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 Board Type (1) This tells you what the board is. In this case a servo-8. SW Rev (2) The current software version loaded. Templates (3) Displays the current version of loaded templates. Normally this will match the software version above.

  • Page 29: Contacting Us

    MegaPoints Controllers System2 Solenoid Driver User Reference Revision 1 Contacting us Web: megapointscontrollers.co.uk Email: info@megapointscontrollers.com All parts ©MegaPoints Controllers 2023 If you have any product improvement suggestions we’d be very pleased to hear from you. NOTE: We operate on a policy of continuous improvement. Colours, specifications and even the placement of components may vary from time to time.

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