Quote:
Originally Posted by NiHaoMike
For such low frequencies, you can simply breadboard the circuit to test it. There's not much to go wrong with a simple buffered PWM output and buffered low pass filter anyways.
For the network interface, maybe it would be easier to just put in a "TTL" level (unbuffered) UART header to hook up to something like an OpenWRT router to handle the actual network interfacing....
We can put in the hardware first and worry about the software later. We can also add WiFi capability with a CC3000 module. You can simply leave the spot blank if you're not going to use it. It's common practice in hardware engineering to provision in as many features as the space and time allow. Also use the highest end processor that is compatible with the footprint during development, then downgrade for going into production. (For a one off, just keep the high end processor as its cost - a few dollars - is practically nothing as far as the total system cost is concerned.)
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I agree with this approach. If you want to control or read from this device, do it with one of these ways:
- UART/standard serial protocol
- USB (using arduino as a COM PORT, not a host)
- digital or analog pin (basic functionality)
- 1-wire interface (using a digital pin)
The main focus of this project is to make a unit that will perform the same functionality as your basic residential heat pump with digital thermostat or slave control. That being said, we can devise transparency and flexibility into this unit so developers who want exquisite functionality can take snapshots or xrays of the system to suit their requirements. We can include some registers or tables to monitor short-term and long-term data values and to provide a common location to read and write hardware states and maybe some error codes.
I am not opposed to adding extra modules to the controller. As long as the module is generic and widely available for cheap (like the CC3000 module), and will not interfere with the (basic) core operation of the controller, have at it. Start a thread, build a shield or module, make it work, include code that we can call from the basic module. If it proves worthy, we can include extra firmware to account for this device (if necessary) into the main sketch.
I realize there are a lot of tech savvy ecorenovators with a wide variety of specific skill sets that we will need help from to pull this project off. But this main module needs to be basic, cheap, and easy to assemble without expert skills. It needs to go together like duplo blocks. A lego block version would be too complex for some. The Technic or NXT/Mindstorm line version would definitely need to be an add-on shield or module.
As for downsizing the module, an arduino pro mini or pro micro 5 Volt module would have the same compatibility as a uno R3, without the shield pinout configuration. Getting much cheaper or smaller, we lose the USB port.