News, Updates and Other Minutiae
August 2019
Website outage - I made some hosting changes and there was a minor hiccup. Hopefully everything is now back to normal but please let me know if anything is missing.
The start of a new project added in the Homebrew category. Specifically, a Frequency Dependant Switch. Measures the incoming frequency and switches 1 of 8 outputs on. Software for this project uploaded.
June 2019
Added another project for the AD9850 DDS modules. A Simple DDS sweeper in the Homebrew section. This is an absolutely basic, no frills project using a 12F1840 to sweep a DDS module between a range of frequencies. Plenty of scope for you to improve on the software and add extra features.
Privacy Policy uploaded. It may be viewed at the Privacy Policy link in the footer.
Custom code/webhost costs
I have, for quite a while, provided modified versions of the code for my projects free of charge. However, the cost of webhosting for this site has tripled in the last few of years and shows no signs of getting any cheaper.
As of October 2017, I will be asking for a donation in exchange for providing custom modified code for my projects to help keep this site available.
GPDR and all that stuff
In accordance with various bits of legislation around the world, either currently in force, about to come into force or proposed, you will now find that annoying "We use cookies" notice at the top of this website. Please note that the ONLY cookies currently used on this site are for that pop-up (see https://cookieconsent.insites.com/) and Google Analytics. The full Privacy Policy is available at the Privacy Policy link in the footer at the bottom of the page. (If you don't know what GPDR is, Google it. Real scary shit for ANYBODY with a web presence.)
Model Railway Electronic Project - Welding simulator - Under construction - Dec 2017
All the Model Railway Electronic Project web pages are a work in progress at the moment, so they may ramble a bit or be a bit disorganised while I refine the various pages. Most of these projects were done quite some years ago without much documentation, so I'm in the process of documenting them, which may take a little while. In the mean time, what I have is being put up here. I designed this project as I was not satisfied with what was available at the time, most welding simulators had one flashing white light and not much else. Today, there appears to be more (albeit expensive) options available, but still none that I could find that simulated the red glow of a hot weld. So what does it do? Well, obviously, it simulates the flashes seen when an arc welder is used by flashing both white and blue LED's. But it also gradually illuminates a red LED to simulate the glowing red area of the weld and when the "welding" finishes, it slowly fades. A couple of other functions I added for the control of this project are: 1: An On/Off control line so it can be controlled by other devices such as DCC modules. 2: Either random periods between when the "welder" activates or the ability to preset a regular delay between activations.
I have designed a 'Universal' pcb that can be used for several different projects (that is why the 'Not fitted' references in the schematic above), but have not yet made one to make sure there are no problems with it. In the meantime, below is a preview of the pcb.
To do: Expand this webpage with more info. When I can find a HO figure of a welder that doesn't cost an arm and seven legs, make a small diorama and video it to show how it operates. More as I think of it.
