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MITTENTITEL |
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Programmin connector on a D143 car decoder..
Connector extended
Just like christmas, chain of lights.
Rearlights. The green stuff is no fungus from outer space, but a modelling compound.
It looks like I could use a smaller resitor for the rear lights.
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When ever I look ito the D143 details it feels like: "it would have been easy to do more, this could have been so good, the red pen was running havoc". especially when you consider that it is essentially a D132 system in a different package. AOn the other side this offers the opportuity to modify the system so it will reaches the standard one expected. So my first project was modding a car, so it came up to D132 standard. The simple way would be to replace the D143 decoder by a D132 decoder, but thats for ... life is difficult if you have to be politial correct. No matter what, that's the reason why I went the hard way and modifed a D143 decoder.
For a full featured D132 car I would have to add programming of brake level, maximum speed and maximum fuel level. The D143 hardware has no brake, so there is no sense in setting a brake level. I do not use the other functions and the D143 redbox does not supportthem, so I did not implement them. But they can be implemented with ease and the processor has enough power and memory left to accomodate these. With the exception of the lights all changes are software only. So the main part of the mod is reprogramming of the car decoder. I used C to rewrite the complete decoder software. The code is neither too large nor too slow, so there is no need for Assembler up to now. Connecting a programming device is simple, as there are 5 contacts just for this purpose on the PCB. Being a "Developmentcar" that will pe reprogrammed frequently, I soldered a connector on. I used a connector with some addtional pins, so that I can use the connector for the lights as well. To decribe the application would be too long and so we turn to the lights. Ínstalling the lights is not very difficult. The front lights consist of 4 smd leds which I inserted into the for holes in the front of the car. The rear lights are rectangular leds fittedt into slits I cut into the rear of the car. I fixed the leds wit a modelling compound called "green stuff". Front- and rearlights are in different electric loops, because the rearlights have two brightness levels and must work as brakelight even when the main lights are switched off. In each loop the leds form a chain. The power from the track is decupled with an diode and a resistor limits the current, so that the leds will not burn out. The rear/brake light consist only of 2 leds, so there is a Zener diode neede, so that it can be switchen on and off by ther processor. That was the plan. Soldered, programmed and build and voila, a car as it should have been from the start. A last look under the hood.
Puzzle picture: What's wrong ? Right, the connector is flipped, the diode has to be on the right side. |
