Here's my sequence:
A. 16 AC (120v, ~ 130 watts each) rope lights are flashing (12 on-4 off, but consider them 4 groups of 4, so 3 on-1 off). This is the "no group" setting.
B. Manual button press to kick the rest off.
C. A Cowlacious sound board starts (and plays to end of entire sequence).
D. All rope lights go out.
E. Fogger starts, runs for a few seconds, then stops.
F. DC "police" light flashes.
G. After a time (duration to be determined later), go back to A.
I'm not concerned about the programming at this point (in fact, I'm more comfortable with that part), more on the hardware requirements. I think I'm at least close with the following:
1 each Prop-1
2 each RC-4 (two rope lights per relay due to amp load?)
8 each SSR
Serial cable
USB-to-serial adapter
3 each extension cables (1 to each RC-4, 1 to the sound board)
1 each 12v power supply (will that cover everything, including the rope lights?)
What am I missing? I can follow a recipe very well, but am not savvy enough to figure out the hardware on my own.
I am reconsidering the sequence because it seems like the controller aspect would be challenging and pricey. We had a similar sequence last year, but it wasn't nearly as sophisticated as it could be with the right controller(s). I'm trying to upgrade/polish it, plus the PLC board was salvage (it's old and huge) and I don't have access to reprogram it.
Thanks.
Jeff
You'll save a little money and get a Prop-1 Trainer if you get a Prop-1 Starter Kit instead of buying the individual parts.
1) Prop-1 Starter Kit (Prop-1, Prop-1 Trainer, Power supply, Serial Cable)
2) RC-4 (each comes with 14" extension)
8) Crydom relay
1) USB-to-Serial Adapter
1) USB cable
1) Prop-1/RC-4 Mounting Kit (mount your RC-4s to this)
The RC-4s can handle 300+ watts per channel so you're fine with the rope lights. The RC-4s get their DC power from the Prop-1 so there is no need for any other supplies. The terminals on the RC-4 act like switches: you bring your AC hot into one terminal and it gets switched out the other (see the RC-4 docs for details).
I don't know which Cowlacious board you're using but you won't want to switch it from the TTL header -- use one of the OUTx terminals. We have a Cowlacious section in the Audio forum that will be helpful.
The nice thing about having a simple programmable controller is that you can update it at any time and, unlike with PLC vendors, we'll help you with the code.
Thanks for the quick reply. Your excellent customer service reputation is why I'm here in the first place.
I'm going to have to crunch the numbers to make sure I can swing the hardware cost. I know it's a great investment and will definitely work for my application, but those dollars have to come from somewhere.
Assuming it works out, I'm sure I'll be back when I get to the programming side.
Thanks again!