The universal trigger interface (The little box)

Wail said:
Excellent (y) :clap:

Can I ask, what do you mean by "Options"? Are these features possible for future upgrades, or currently available as an optional extra, and if so, what does it entail to have them built-in (mostly interested in the three ... Real Time Clock; Water Drop Dispensers
; and Battery Operation)?
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The real time clock module will cost me about £10 with a battery but I didn't want to increase the cost to everyone when lots of people wouldn't want it. With that in mind it will just plug in either here before I send it out or later.

The battery operation I am still not sure about yet

Water drop dispenser - this is a device designed to drop drips of water at a specific rate. It is NOT part of the actual device. I used a syringe to create the demo one but John has some piece of chemistry equipment which just makes life easier. I will update people when John gives me the price.

When I was at Maplin today I found that they sell a really good Peli case copy which is £20! I am toying with the idea of supplying the device fitted into the peli case which will keep it safe and give storage for the leads. This will also be an option. What I am trying to do is taylor the device for people although there will be a core bit of kit that everyone will get.
 
cowasaki said:
The real time clock module will cost me about £10 with a battery but I didn't want to increase the cost to everyone when lots of people wouldn't want it.
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o_O Is that a preassembled board? I just ordered the bits for an RTC to add to an Arduino project and it was less than 4 quid for the components (DS1307, 32.768KHZ watch crystal, 3 resistors and a battery).

Does the microprocessor you're using support i2c devices?

Edit : oh, and about 50p for a battery holder
 
Kaouthia said:
o_O Is that a preassembled board? I just ordered the bits for an RTC to add to an Arduino project and it was less than 4 quid for the components (DS1307, 32.768KHZ watch crystal, 3 resistors and a battery).

Does the microprocessor you're using support i2c devices?

Edit : oh, and about 50p for a battery holder
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I am looking at several options. If I can get it down to that level then I might well include it with all of them. At the moment I am thinking aloud and people do realise that that is the case. Things like the RTC are further from the forefront at the moment. I have ordered parts from all over the world and the chinese parts could still take a couple of weeks. At the moment the biggest problem is that I don't have a remote yet. I will have to use a load of push buttons or a sky remote!
 
cowasaki said:
I will have to use a load of push buttons or a sky remote!
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Yeah, user input is a pain in the arse. I ended up using a PS2 controller on the Arduino - 16 buttons and 2 analogue joysticks (only uses 4 Digital I/O pins).

Lots of coding to get things working just right, but makes life so much easier.
 
Kaouthia said:
Yeah, user input is a pain in the arse. I ended up using a PS2 controller on the Arduino - 16 buttons and 2 analogue joysticks (only uses 4 Digital I/O pins).

Lots of coding to get things working just right, but makes life so much easier.
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A simple 20 button IR remote control plus 3 hard wired buttons on the box is plenty to get done what we need but the only remote I could find at a reasonable price and repeatable was only available from china/hong kong. I'll use a spare remote I have lying around the house and just change the codes when the real ones arrive.
 
cowasaki said:
A simple 20 button IR remote control plus 3 hard wired buttons on the box is plenty to get done what we need
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Sounds like a plan. I went with the PS2 controller as I'll eventually tie it into a moco slider with pan/tilt head, so the 2 analogue joysticks are pretty much essential (and otherwise expensive in both cost and technical/coding overhead).
 
Right the plan was to spend two days working on the project but it didn't quite work out like that with other things that needed doing :)

Anyway the analogue version is still working plus:

  • I have worked out the ports and the pin-outs for the ports
  • I have received the programmable chips etc and one of the LED graphical displays.
  • I have written the code to display the main menu and the cursor can be controlled by a remote control to select the relevant option.

The to do list involves making a 25 way D socket to 25 pin connector then making the 25 way D plugs to each trigger type.
Making the IO connections to the other stuff like flash/camera etc.

I have decided to add a PS2 socket to the box (or maybe an AT keyboard socket - 5 pin DIN) in order to plug in the external keypad. That way anyone can just plug in a numerical keypad without having to buy a special one. It also means that people can buy PS2 extension leads etc etc. I will keep a few of these to add as options if people want.
 
cowasaki said:
I have decided to add a PS2 socket to the box (or maybe an AT keyboard socket - 5 pin DIN) in order to plug in the external keypad.
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You've said it will have a USB socket for firmware updates; Would it be feasible to have a second one for keyboards?
PS/2 does seem to be on the way out, and AT-DIN is very hard to find, especially for things like a numeric keypads.

Just my £0.02...
 
Tori_T said:
You've said it will have a USB socket for firmware updates; Would it be feasible to have a second one for keyboards?
PS/2 does seem to be on the way out, and AT-DIN is very hard to find, especially for things like a numeric keypads.

Just my £0.02...
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The keypad is a little extra for a few people that might need it. Making the device work with a whole host of different USB keyboards would be a lot more difficult (and hence more expensive) than making it work with a PS2/AT keypad. AT and PS2 keyboards are identical other than then plug so using an AT socket and a 50p adapter to PS2 would be possible. I will probably use a PS2 socket though. Other than the time, wires and a socket this is a no cost addition. The reality is that most people would have no need for it anyway.

Just looked on ebay and you can get one for under £8 from Hong Kong including postage:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/PS-2-Numeric-...Trackballs&hash=item1c1876e513#ht_4842wt_1007

I've just bought one of these to try. Everyone else seems to be charging a bit more though.
 
Another step....

The main board processing, real time clock, IR receiver and display are now fully connected up and working!

I now need to write the menu systems and input routines plus add the PS2 connectivity.

Once these are done I need to interface the trigger parts of my existing circuit with the new board (connect 3 wires :)) and then the output board (connect more wires).

Then the ports need sorting plus the separate triggers etc.

I will keep you all up to date
 
Calzor Suzay said:
I'm really interested in one of these as well, where do I pre order? :)
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When I have a fully working intelligent version (the simple version works but I want one that does everything!) then I will have to check re CE and manufacturing time/cost. Once I have these I will know the price and lead time. I am aiming for the price stated but I don't want to ruin it by skimping. They will all have the remote control and PS2 interface for example.

I actually have a device working now that displays the menu system and allows you to to through the menus, makes selections and adjust the delay times etc. I still need to finish that part though but once it is done it will interface with sections of the original design.......
 
Let's see some pics of the prototype :)
 
It'll be ready when it's ready is what you're saying :) We'll all have to wait in the meantime but keep up the excellent work, I'm intrigued by what the final product will be able to do :)

One question though the 'triggers', will they be off the shelf items or will you sell them as well?
 
Kaouthia said:
Let's see some pics of the prototype :)
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Soon, it keeps being ripped apart and re-built. At the moment I have just wired up a 25 way D socket to round pins so I can take off any of the connections to breadboard. I am just building the beam breaker trigger lead with it's box. Hopefully show you all something early next week.
 
Well here we go:

John is out of hospital and popped round for a visit which was great :)

I have 4 prototypes:

A) - Analogue version on breadboard.
B) - Analogue version on stripboard.
C) - Digital version on combination of breadboard and point to point
D) - Digital version built into case complete with ALL ports properly wired up and effectively heading towards being a fully working version that could be sold like that BUT made using point to point board with ports hand soldered etc.

Right well versions A & B are getting no further time...

Version C

This is the version that I am writing the software on. This is fully working (hardware wise) other than no inputs or outputs. This is so that I can write the menu system etc.

Version D

This is one which I am assembling at the moment. I will give you some pictures shortly. Hopefully it will catch up with version C in the next few days and will effectively overtake it as it has the complete input and output sections.

Latest news:

PS2 keyboard - This is FULLY implemented and working (Wail will be pleased :))
Real time clock - Now fully integrated and part of the basic setup.
Buzzer - Added a tiny little piezo buzzer which will make a sound when the trigger goes (it will be possible to turn this off).
Ports - LOW power ports have been implemented as 2.5mm stereo jacks X 2 whilst HIGH power ports have been implemented as 6.35mm mono jacks X2. (The prototype has an RF602 style 3 pin socket which I would love to add but I cannot find these for sale anywhere and got my one from some broken ones I got off FITP)

Addition of an internal and (to be added - external) ports for radio remote receive..... This basically allows you to use the universal trigger as a giant wein safe and effectively use a standard RF602/3 or similar to fire your 1970s 250V flash unit.

HIGH power ports can be used as further low power ports but clearly not vice versa.....

ALL output ports are protected by SOCKETED optical isolators.

Both John and myself have been thinking up lots of new uses for the device.
 
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Darren, Completely missed this tread can you just give me a quick summary to what its all about is it something you are developing for John Cgeezer, and whats it all for, theres so many pages to read
 
Just Dave said:
Darren, Completely missed this tread can you just give me a quick summary to what its all about is it something you are developing for John Cgeezer, and whats it all for, theres so many pages to read
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Dave,

John has been geeing me up to build this for ages. It is a vastly more powerful version of the USB camera interface I built a few years ago!

Basically it is a stand alone computer (about as powerful as an Atari ST :)) with input by a IR remote and/or PS2 keyboard. Complete with LCD screen built in.

It is a device that will fire a combination of camera(s), flash(es) and remote(s) following a number of stimuli these are:

TIME (time lapse)
RADIO REMOTE
Trigger button on device.
IR remote control (included)

PLUS......

a number of special leads which do

sound/vibration trigger (exploding balloons, dropped vases etc)
water droplets
beam broken (animals etc)
PIR (animals etc)
NEW - radio micro PIR (bird box etc!)
pressure pads
laser beam breaker (possible licence issues though)
 
Had a great day with Darren today, I admit to nodding in agreement to everything that he said whether I understood it or not. But it's great to see it all coming together and Darren has put masses of his time and money into this and I can only hope that he gets his investment back.

I'm convinced he will as this is going to blow what is commercially available today right out of the water ;) I can't wait to give it a try.

:clap:
 
Just Dave said:
Is it going to be expensive sounds like I may need to re-mortgage the house :LOL:
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I was aiming for £139 ! The spec and design is rather fluid at the moment. I will TRY my utmost to keep it at that price.

IF the price ends up higher than this but the build price is low enough to sell them at the £139 then I will try my utmost to let anyone who has said they will have one on this thread get them at the initial price. :)

I am going through the menu system at the moment and using this PS2 keypad is great :)
 
cowasaki said:
<snip>

Latest news:

PS2 keyboard - This is FULLY implemented and working (Wail will be pleased :))

<snip>
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Very pleased indeed (y)


cowasaki said:
Dave,

John has been geeing me up to build this for ages. It is a vastly more powerful version of the USB camera interface I built a few years ago!

Basically it is a stand alone computer (about as powerful as an Atari ST :)) with input by a IR remote and/or PS2 keyboard. Complete with LCD screen built in.

It is a device that will fire a combination of camera(s), flash(es) and remote(s) following a number of stimuli these are:

TIME (time lapse)
RADIO REMOTE
Trigger button on device.
IR remote control (included)

PLUS......

a number of special leads which do

sound/vibration trigger (exploding balloons, dropped vases etc)
water droplets
beam broken (animals etc)
PIR (animals etc)
NEW - radio micro PIR (bird box etc!)
pressure pads
laser beam breaker (possible licence issues though)
Click to expand...

That's a very nice summary of what it's all about; can't wait to see the final one in action.

Questions, if I may: -

- what sort of pre-launch anger-testing are you going to be conducting to ensure that all bits are operating as expected?

- in the event that a bug is discovered, after it being sold, how easy is it to install a fix?



CGeezer said:
Had a great day with Darren today, I admit to nodding in agreement to everything that he said whether I understood it or not. But it's great to see it all coming together and Darren has put masses of his time and money into this and I can only hope that he gets his investment back.

I'm convinced he will as this is going to blow what is commercially available today right out of the water ;) I can't wait to give it a try.

:clap:
Click to expand...

Glad to hear you're up and about :).


cowasaki said:
I was aiming for £139 ! The spec and design is rather fluid at the moment. I will TRY my utmost to keep it at that price.

IF the price ends up higher than this but the build price is low enough to sell them at the £139 then I will try my utmost to let anyone who has said they will have one on this thread get them at the initial price. :)

I am going through the menu system at the moment and using this PS2 keypad is great :)
Click to expand...

I'm not going to tell you how to run a business model; you've demonstrated that all too well on numerous occasions. All I'll say is that I am so looking forward to seeing this going into full productions.

I'd love to see the list of example of uses for this matched with some photos of how well it does actually work; although, I think that's a bit too early at this stage :shrug:



And finally, a BIG thank you :)
 
OUCH !!


I've just come home from hospital after sticking a knife through my finger to the bone! :crying: I now have a left ring finger as big as my middle and index finger combined to which the nerves had been severed so the end of it is numb. Snap off blade knives are not really designed for cutting holes into squares in 2mm plastic :bang: ..... (I was just about to give John a ring to come round but I was finishing off cutting the USB hole on the prototype).

But on a plus point the menu system is now working with no bugs and I've managed to fix the input system so you can all type in the timers/numbers etc. I've made a start on the output sections too. The fully operational prototype was being built further when I had the accident!

Wail - The USB port on the device will have two uses. The first use is that it will power the device EXCEPT for the relay section. IF you are using the HIGH power outputs you need to plug in the external power supply. IF you are using the camera and low power section (ie normal studio lights, triggers, modern digital age flashes) then the USB port will be enough so long as it is powered. This allows use of car to USB adapters too. Oh and the software inside the unit is updatable! I will be adding extra features etc as time goes on which people can simply add. Most of the important connections go through to the outside world via the 25 way adapter so there are no doubt lots of other things which people will want that can be added.

Oh and I am adding the ability to learn up to maybe 4 or 5 IR codes which can be used to fire cameras with IR triggers......
 
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Does anyone know where I can get sticky backed plastic in black with other colours printed on it?
 
cowasaki said:
Snap off blade knives are not really designed for cutting holes into squares in 2mm plastic :bang:
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Sounds like they are ideal for cutting flesh though :bonk:

Hope it heals well soon...

Sounds like you're getting there with the project though - well done :)
 
cowasaki said:
Snap off blade knives are not really designed for cutting holes into squares in 2mm plastic :bang:
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Yeah, that's where my Dremel came in handy when building mine. ;)
 
cowasaki said:
Does anyone know where I can get sticky backed plastic in black with other colours printed on it?
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I think you'll have to get white vinyl printed with all the colours that you need. A lot of sign makers have the equipment to do this.
 
Kaouthia said:
Yeah, that's where my Dremel came in handy when building mine. ;)
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I have a dremel AND yesterday I bought a dremel router but it came with no router bits! I drilled the square with lots of small holes and was connecting them together.
 
Right, I've decided to add 2 X low power trigger ports which will be 2 x mono 3.5mm jacks. This will leave the original 2 x 2.5mm jacks for two independently controllable camera ports...

So 2 cameras + 2 LP flash + 2 HP flash now instead of 2 mixed camera/LP ports + 2 HP ports.
 
As I couldn't do anything else I have been doing a major push on the software.

The menu system is coming along.....

You can set the camera delay and duration, flash delay and duration, repeat delay and number of repeats.

You can then set up which camera ports to fire ie 1,2 or both
With the flash you can set which LP and HP ports to fire PLUS the IR output

This effectively allows you to control 3 camera and 4 flashes in any combination....

I could allow more but then everyone is paying for opto couples etc that they will never use.

I need modify the timer input to be a date/time input then I can use that to set the real time clock using the device and also use these routines to get the time lapse photography routine working.......

I would expect a fully working complete prototype by the end of the month at which point I can start working out prices of components etc........
 
this is an amazing project - not something I would use I don't think - but some seriously cool R&D for what people want, and non-brand specific as well
 
Well the elves have been busy and my Christmas present has just arrived :)

One Uni-T UTD4102C 100MHz Digital Storage Scope arrived today complete with a pair of current to voltage convertors, 16 channel logic analyser addon, DMM built in, DMM probes, Scope probes etc etc :)

Unfortunately the software is in Chinese as is the menu system!!!! I can't speak Chinese so I can't change the menu to English!! Waiting the supplier's reply :bonk:

photo.JPG


Now to find a swop for my Hitachi V-212 20MHz oscilloscope for a digital bench PSU or something else I need :)

Oh and I am doing a fully battery powered hand held portable version of the universal trigger :)
 
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Woohoo, found the manual on t'internet and now it's in English :)
 
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