Transformer Board

[tconley]

Just a thought the transformer board Wayne J came up with for the renard seems like such a good idea. Is there anyone who would think it would be a good addon to one of the coop purchases? Assuming someone wants to take

[Wayne J]

I have redone the board. This is the new one....

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y122/MERC460/xmas/th_rs2.jpg (http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y122/MERC460/xmas/rs2.jpg)
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y122/MERC460/xmas/th_rs1.jpg (http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y122/MERC460/xmas/rs1.jpg)

[BillAd]

Wayne,

I've lost track of the discussion threads for the zero crossing requirments. Can you provide a schematic for the board pictured? Thanks.

Bill

[Wayne J]

Wayne,

I've lost track of the discussion threads for the zero crossing requirments. Can you provide a schematic for the board pictured? Thanks.

Bill

Phil has covered it very well in the Wiki. Here's the page.

http://christmasinshirley.com/wiki/index.php?title=Renard_Connection_Instructions#Tra nsformer_Board

[jcoll549]

Does this provide all the power required of just the ZC? Can I get a parts list? Will this work with renard 64?

Jeff

[Wayne J]

I edited my post above to link to the Wiki page "Renard Connection Instructions" .

[jcoll549]

Thank you

[Wayne J]

Originally, this board was made to be used with the 8 channel Renard. Now with the different Renard units and the 595 conversion in the works, this board will now also evolve. It will be able serve several purposes, depending on which dimming method is being used. The object is to have this one unit to meet those needs. I'll update as things progress. :D


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[wjohn]

Originally, this board was made to be used with the 8 channel Renard. Now with the different Renard units and the 595 conversion in the works, this board will now also evolve. It will be able serve several purposes, depending on which dimming method is being used. The object is to have this one unit to meet those needs. I'll update as things progress. :D


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Wayne, Great Idea,

John.

[Wayne J]

Wayne, Great Idea,

John.


Phil is the master mind behind this, I am only a humble side kick. :lol:

[Wayne J]

We have made some more progress on the transformer board. I etched the last revised board this week, and sent it to Phil for testing. One of the changes made was the option of 240v input.

I will update as things progress.

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[BillAd]

Wayne,

I am ready to build a power supply to test some of the proto boards. The board that I would prefer to build at this time will be to supply power and zero cross only, not RS232 conversion or support for 220 volts. Are you able to update the Wiki with the latest circuit and parts list so that I can understand where you are going, and tailor the design where appropriate? Thanks.

Bill

[Wayne J]

Bill, the wiki does not have the new circuit yet, as it is untested at this point. It is Phil's design and he feels confident with it. Testing is underway. He did post the schematic to it the other day. I may etch a couple more if people want to test them before a coop is made. Here it is...

[P. Short]

I've been distracted with other things...although I did solder up most of the board, and the transformer fits.

--

Phil

[BillAd]

Wayne,

Thanks for the pdf. :wink:

Bill

[Wayne J]

More progress has been made with the design. The latest design discussed was tested by Phil and works great. As I was working on a BOM, we found that Mouser does not sell the LDO Regulator as a single unit, only lots of 2000. :shock: So, Phil again tweaked the schematic and added another 1N5819 and changed the value of one of the caps. This now allows for the use of a standard regulator which is more readily available and cheaper.
I am currently working on the BOM.

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[P. Short]

The board actually has two or three different uses.

First, it can supply the unfiltered DC that the Renard boards like to see for zero-crossing (and for power, in the case of the Renard8 and Renard16 boards). There are typically three connectors involved here - 110VAC input, DB9/RJ45 serial input, and RJ45 output (with zero-crossing signal, serial data, and maybe power) to the Renards.

Second, it can do a connector change from the DB-9 of the serial port to the RJ45 for the serial data (if you want the first link to still be RS232).

Third, it can do the RS232-RS485 conversion if you need a long distance between the PC and the first Renard. This involves adding some optional components (regulator, RS232 receiver chip, and RS485 transmitter chip).

--

Phil

[Wayne J]

I am going to etch three of these boards this week and send them out to for testing. All I need is three people to do this.
I have one already accounted for, so two more people is needed. I would like to know what Renard boards you have and how you will have them setup. I will then choose who to send them too. Configuration will determine who to send them to. You just have to buy and install the parts needed, I will supply the BOM with Mouser part#'s.

Ren-T board testers.....

1: tconley
2: LRNeener

[Wayne J]

I want to try and get an idea of how many boards is going to be needed, so I can get an idea of pricing before I do this board coop. I have made the trace file available in the Renard forum, so if you can etch at home, you can make your own. The home etch version is the same as the bought one, so there is no difference between the two.

So, who will want/need Ren-T boards?

[bonuts]

I will need at least one, probably two. Thanks Wayne.

[Jeff Millard]

I need two Wayne,
Jeff

[Dan Ross]

I'll get 2 if the price is right.

[Wayne J]

I'll get 2 if the price is right.

They are small boards, they should be cheap, if we can get the quanity up a little bit.

[Dan Ross]

Ok then put me down for two.

[Wayne J]

Ok then put me down for two.

No commitments right now, just getting interest. I will start a 'coop' thread for it when time comes. :wink:

[grages]

Wayne,

Do you need one of these boards per Ren 64 or will it handle several?

Shawn

[Wayne J]

1 Ren-T for multiple Renard 64's with PWM firmware and status LEDs installed, but you need to get the 5 volts from another source. It is only providing the ZC

1 Ren-T per 2 Renard 64's with the non-PWM firmware with or without status LEDs and no need for an alternate power supply.

[Wayne J]

but Phil needs to confirm those numbers

[Macrosill]

But how many Ren-C's per Ren-T ???????

[P. Short]

The Ren-C uses the Ren-T just for zero-crossing and (possibly) RS232-RS485 conversion, not for power (that comes from the Grinch/595 board). Right now I can't give you a good number on the number of Ren-C boards that one Ren-T can support, but it is quite large.

--

Phil

[Macrosill]

So I should be okay with 1 Ren-T connected to 2 Ren-Cs then. I will have the capacity of 368 channels and they will break down like this.

Serial port 1 will have 2 Renard 24s, Franks design which will then chain out to a Ren-T and 1 Ren-C. 112 channels

Serial port 2 will have 1 Ren-T chained to 2 Ren-Cs. 128 channels

Serial port 3 will have 1 Ren-T chained to 2 Ren-Cs. 128 channels

I am breaking it up this way because I will be running a 50ms refresh rate at 57600 baud, thus the port capacities are only 143 channels/port according to the chart on Wiki (http://christmasinshirley.com/wiki/index.php?title=Renard)

Does eveything seem okay in my grand scheme?

[P. Short]

Yes, that seems fine.

--

Phil

[grages]

1 Ren-T for multiple Renard 64's with PWM firmware and status LEDs installed, but you need to get the 5 volts from another source. It is only providing the ZC

1 Ren-T per 2 Renard 64's with the non-PWM firmware with or without status LEDs and no need for an alternate power supply.

Thanks Wayne,

For my 2 Ren 64's i will only need to do one Ren-T and I need to decide if I want to program the pics with the pwm code or not.

Still have lots to learn, thanks

Shawn

[RavingLunatic]

Wayne,

For your planning purposes, I would be in for 4 Ren-T boards and possibly 2 more if the price is reasonable.

RL

[wingrunr]

I'd be in for 1 Ren-T board. Thanks!

[wingrunr]

Any way to get the .pcb file for the Renard-T board?

[Wayne J]

Any way to get the .pcb file for the Renard-T board?


http://www.christmasinshirley.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=477

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