deseperatelly need help on B Stamp driving relays and solenoids for show in NY.
Hi everyone,
I desesperately need help. This is the thing; I’m having big trouble with a piece I’m exhibiting in a show in New York. The piece is titled "Water traces" and on it the optically enlarged image of a drop of ink projected against the ceiling of the gallery generates in real time, via electronic sensors and actuators, lineal drawings in a thin layer of sand. The sand is spread on a 50-inch diameter slab of walnut that slowly rotates at one revolution per minute.
I’m having problems with the basic stamp that controls the ink dripping cycle. The controller is connected using relays to a halogen lamp, a small solenoid (for the ink), a water pump, a big motor, and to a big water valve.
This last one is giving me a so much headache, the valve comprises a big solenoid that works with 110v ac and once in a while, when closes create a electricity spike that in the beginning makes the basic stamp to reset automatically. So I decided to put diodes between the BS and the relays so the electricity doesn’t kick back, but it didn’t work.
So I thought that may be the water valve solenoid takes so much electricity so fast (in addition to the rest of the devices) that makes the ac/dc transformer that power the BS to lose juice and restart it again, since all the devices were connected to the same power strip. So I power the BS from a 9v battery but didn’t work.
Finally I decided to use a Darlington array chip to bust the basic stamp power, because I figure out that may be the problem was that connecting the relays directly to the basic stamps was to much to ask when I was turning two or more relays at once, plus I had the diode protection from the chip.
And although now the BS is not resetting anymore what is happening is that when the relay that power the water valve solenoid should go on, the basic stamp goes in a endless loop turning the relay on and off really fast, like freezing in that line of code.
The only thing I can think about is that I’m putting 14v dc through the Darlington to run the 5v dc relays. But I don’t see how could this affect the BS. Or that the big water valve 110v ac solenoid is not grounded.
Again, I’m kind of desesperate because this has been going on for three weeks already and I run out of ideas.
Any idea?
Thanks a lot guys.
Fede
Ps: you can check my work at www.federicomuelas.com or the piece I’m having problems with at www.ps122gallery.org
I desesperately need help. This is the thing; I’m having big trouble with a piece I’m exhibiting in a show in New York. The piece is titled "Water traces" and on it the optically enlarged image of a drop of ink projected against the ceiling of the gallery generates in real time, via electronic sensors and actuators, lineal drawings in a thin layer of sand. The sand is spread on a 50-inch diameter slab of walnut that slowly rotates at one revolution per minute.
I’m having problems with the basic stamp that controls the ink dripping cycle. The controller is connected using relays to a halogen lamp, a small solenoid (for the ink), a water pump, a big motor, and to a big water valve.
This last one is giving me a so much headache, the valve comprises a big solenoid that works with 110v ac and once in a while, when closes create a electricity spike that in the beginning makes the basic stamp to reset automatically. So I decided to put diodes between the BS and the relays so the electricity doesn’t kick back, but it didn’t work.
So I thought that may be the water valve solenoid takes so much electricity so fast (in addition to the rest of the devices) that makes the ac/dc transformer that power the BS to lose juice and restart it again, since all the devices were connected to the same power strip. So I power the BS from a 9v battery but didn’t work.
Finally I decided to use a Darlington array chip to bust the basic stamp power, because I figure out that may be the problem was that connecting the relays directly to the basic stamps was to much to ask when I was turning two or more relays at once, plus I had the diode protection from the chip.
And although now the BS is not resetting anymore what is happening is that when the relay that power the water valve solenoid should go on, the basic stamp goes in a endless loop turning the relay on and off really fast, like freezing in that line of code.
The only thing I can think about is that I’m putting 14v dc through the Darlington to run the 5v dc relays. But I don’t see how could this affect the BS. Or that the big water valve 110v ac solenoid is not grounded.
Again, I’m kind of desesperate because this has been going on for three weeks already and I run out of ideas.
Any idea?
Thanks a lot guys.
Fede
Ps: you can check my work at www.federicomuelas.com or the piece I’m having problems with at www.ps122gallery.org
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Chris Savage
Parallax Tech Support
csavage@parallax.com