A disaster with my Digitrax Zephyr Express meant I had to ship it to the factory in December for repairs with no firm return date. 😬
What should I do? Build a DCC-EX Command Station? I had the parts1. This had been my intent all along. But at the time, I lacked confidence, punted, and bought the Digitrax. An opportunity to correct a mistake?
The command station is built around an ESP32 WROOM Arduino UNO compatible board with built-in WiFi
I followed DCC-EX's instructions. They're thorough. And include workarounds to the bugs on the Espduino board. Everything came together as intended. Then I uploaded the software using EX-Installer.2 Easy-peasy.
The motor driver shield with 2x 1-1.5 A channels to drive main and programming tracks. Workarounds are visible from pins bent out from the side and jumper wires in the headers.
The combination of the 2 boards is smaller than my mouse. The cables are the power and track connections.
Once the command station was assembled, I fired up Engine Driver3, a mobile phone app, to serve as throttle and user interface. And before you could say Casey Jones, I was wirelessly running trains and switching turnouts with a repurposed 2015 cellphone! Cool!!!
Engine Driver fired up on my 10 year old Samsung.
The main throttle page showing my two locos selected from the DCC-EX loco roster.
Another cool thing about the DCC-EX Command Station is its EXRAIL train automation scripting. It's built-in and straightforward. The video below shows a first attempt. Train automation is one of my model train Holy Grails. So I guess there is a silver lining to bricking the Digitrax. Thanks for reading.
Everything about building the command station - board recommendations, DCC-EX software, documentation, its functionality and capability, the throttle software, etc. - worked like a champ. Thank you DCC-EX and Engine Driver teams for really excellent products!
Details
Automation. Great Northern #7 is dispatched. It's pulling a Great Northern red caboose. It makes a bit more than a circuit, huffing, whistling, and belling, afterwhich New York Central #1906 sets off in pursuit, hauling some cut lumber. After a few circuits, NYC #1906 catches its prey and retires. GN #7 carries on for another lap finishing roughly adjacent to its companion. There are no sensors (yet). The two locos were crudely speed characterized with the automation script relying on that data for timing.
Layout. Kato Unitrack. One double crossover and two power routing #6 turnouts switched by a track signaled and powered Digitrax DS74.
Throttle. Engine Driver connected via home internet and the WiThrottle server built into the DCC-EX Command Station. It controls the locos, the turnouts, and initiating routes and automation.
Trains. Both locos are Bachmann ALCO 2-6-0's made circa 2013 and are supposed to represent prototypes from roughly1898 and 1923. NYC #1906 is NOS with a simple 2 function (speed and headlamp) DCC factory decoder installed. GN #7 was purchased used and the previous owner installed an aftermarket ESU LokSound 5 Sound and DCC decoder. Both rolling stock are used MicroTrains cars.
NY Central #1906 steaming down the mainline I have two #6 turnouts and a double crossover in my first layout. I thought the #6 turnouts we're non-power routing based on my reading. But the first attempt layout proved that wrong. With a power routing turnout, the track in the direction of the turnout's setting is powered, and in the other branch, non-powered. When the turnout is toggled, power is moved to the other branch, and the previously powered branch is now non-powered. I learned this multiple ways. First, I thought my dual loop layout could be powered by a single piece of terminal track powering the entire layout. The layout is small, so I thought that would be good enough. However, the power routing turnouts and crossover break current in the non-powered direction. So, initially only one of my loops worked. Second, the initial layout had a second spur leading off the first. But without a power connection on that spur, it would always be dead. Third, attempting to r...
I think a lot of you thought I had lost my mind when I mentioned I was interested in model trains. Perhaps. But it's been a great stress reliever. Here's status. One can spend a bundle on model trains. So, I've tried to pace myself and be judicious. Since we don't have a lot of room, I've selected N scale, half of HO size and 2nd most popular scale behind HO. I've only spent half a bundle. : / I'm going to try and keep the train to an era from the 1880s to the 1940s. Pretty wide range, but it's hard to find everything at a reasonable price in one narrow era. I've also decided to go digital. I'm interested in control more than scenery. The model train digital control standard is called DCC. It's much different than the DC my dad and I played around with in the '60s. It's very cool, allowing levels of control that weren't possible earlier. While I bought a DCC starter set, I hope to build my own. I've purchased track from...
My sister, Annie, asked what was up with trains? Here's some status. I love my current layout. It has two loops. A siding. An inner loop with a crossing, or, essentially, a figure 8 within a loop. The 2 loops are interconnected by a double crossover. It has an elevated section that crosses the lower in two places, with the longer via a trestle bridge. All this goodness on a 30" x 60" Ikea desk that cranks up and down. My command station supports wireless and I typically run trains from my phone or, as shown in the pic, from a tablet using Engine Driver. Both locos' throttles and all 6 turnout controls are displayed on one screen without toggling. There can be a lot of action with this layout. It's easy to run two trains. In the same direction, chasing each other. Or in opposite directions - on the two loops, inner and outer. The train on the inner loop can simply traverse the loop or can visit the station wh...
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