Winchester Railway Modellers

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CHAIRMAN'S CHATTER

Chairman's Chatter is compiled quarterly by our Chairman John Shaw. John summarizes the latest developments in the club covering general news, exhibition reports, developments in the clubs layouts, and any other notices. To view a Chairman's Chatter simply click the relevant link, or scroll down for the latest edition. The current year, and previous year, chairmans chatter's are available by foillowing these links. Previous years Chairmans Chatter are available in the archive.
Feb 14	Jul 14	Oct 14
Jan 15	Apr 15	Jul 15	Oct 15
Jan 16
April 2016 I thought it was another successful dinner and it was good to see so many members attending. The winners of the trophies are displayed on the notice board. OO Gauge Matters Track Laying The tracks linking the main Romsey running lines to the fiddle yard connections have been completed. In the fiddle yard, adjacent to the Romsey lines, a short length of track will be added to connect to a loco "lifting section".. Wiring Point and continuity testing continues on the scenic section and is now almost complete. Some minor issues were discovered including insufficient throw on two of the yard points that were resolved using a thicker operating wire. Redbrige Control System The following is a summary of a detailed description of the control system. The majority of control functions on Redbridge are controlled by Arduino microprocessor boards all of which are linked by a communication bus called I2C (Inter-Integrated Circuit). Physically the communication bus is the pairs of green and blue wires we have been stringing to each baseboard. In the fiddle yard control panel (as yet unbuilt) there will be a bus master which basically coordinates the communication between all the other Arduino systems. It will also interpret the button pushes etc. on the fiddle yard control panel into instructions to the Arduinos under the fiddle yard boards to drive the servos which physically move the point settings. On the scenic side of the layout there will be an Arduino slave in the Wharf control panel which will control access to the reception roads in the yard. There will also be other Arduinos under the scenic boards that will control signals. The use of Arduino boards allows the reduction of the number of wires needed between boards and control panels especially as there are many points and signals. It also allows smart route setting logic in the fiddle yard control panel which can be modified/amended by simply reprogramming the Arduino rather than having to change wiring etc. The result is expected to provide “future proofing” It will also provide the ability to add future train detection and/or integration with other automation systems. EM gauge Matters Testing and adjustment of all the cassettes is taking longer than expected. We have committed Mawgan Porth to the New Milton Show on 23/24th July. Helpers/operators will be welcomed - if you can come please let us know. O gauge Matters Slow progress has been made with track now ballasted and some of the wiring completed. The complication is that up to 7 controllers can have access to Canal Junction and we want to be able to choose DCC control when required. The logic is designed and is awaiting checking. PCBs will be etched to cut down on wire connections. Other Business We continue to have layouts invited to shows, so if you want to get involved, please put the dates in your diary NOW.
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