oster@lapis.berkeley.edu.UUCP (02/07/87)
DAK sells a 256 channel computer controlled dimmer for system for $25.00 Altyhough the source is not available, the protocol to talk to their controller box is given in the manual, and it is very simple. (It accepts 6-12 byte packets over an rs232 serial port at 600 buad.) $25.00, what is the catch? Well, 1.) you have to buy a $10.00 controller box for each device you want to control. (A standard X-10 controller box such as Radio Shack and Whole Earth Access carry.) 2.) you can't control the dimmers' dim rate. Slow fades are not possible with this system. You can't even program them, because the firmware in their dimmer controller brings the dimmer through 100% to recalibrate it on each transition. 3.) Each dimmer only has 16 values of dimness. For theatre work you probably need more. For home use none of the above points are serious detriments. I have one, its fun and addicting! I've put every light in my apartment on a controller box and most of my appliances. When you buy the box, you specify what brand of home computer you want software and an interface cable for. The controller box has its own processor and clock, and you program it via a simple interface from your home machine. The box has a memory for 128 events, where an event is (a command, a list of devices to do it to, a time, and a periodicity (once, every day, every tuesday...)) Once you've programmed it, you can disconnect it from your computer and it will still follow its script. You can also use the box directly as an interface to the dimmers, i.e. have your home computer generate the commands and have the box just execute them immediately. You can get about one command per second through the interface. The box has battery back-up to keep its program and clock setting during power failures. The box has 8 off/on switches for fast manual control of 8 devices. The IBM version of the software uses text lists of mnemonically named dimmers and off/on switches. IBM owners can write a program to query the clock to get the actual time at IBM boot time. The Mac version of the software has a desk accessory component that is similar to the IBM application program, but also includes a cute program where you are encouraged to draw a picture of your space with MacPaint, then decorate it with icons representing your appliances. You click on these pictures of your appliances, and then click on a picture of a dimmer to manipulate your stuff. The X-10 people also sell manual controllers for $10.00 (an 8 channel controller) and $25.00 (a 16 channel controller) DAK Industires Inc. 8200 Remmet Ave. Canoga Park, Ca. 91304-4182 The Macintosh/X10 Computer Interface part#19695 $19.90 + $1.19 (California Sales Tax) + $4.00 postage and handling = $25.09 the price for the IBM is the same, I just don't have the DAK part #. Their curstomer service pohone number is 1-800-423-2866 and their technical information number is 1-800-272-3200 (6 a.m. - 5 p.m. Pacific time.) One of my back burner plans is to use it and my MacNifty audio digitizer, and write a statistical pattern classification routine so that I can voice command my apartment. (Now to make it run as a background task so I can leave it running all the time.) (Now to figure out how to get more serial ports, if I'm using up the only two the Mac has.) --- David Phillip Oster -- "The goal of Computer Science is to Arpa: oster@lapis.berkeley.edu -- build something that will last at Uucp: ucbvax!ucblapis!oster -- least until we've finished building it."
krs@amdahl.UUCP (02/10/87)
In article <2465@jade.BERKELEY.EDU> oster@lapis.berkeley.edu.UUCP (David Phillip Oster) writes: >DAK sells ... > >Well, >1.) you have to buy a $10.00 controller box for each device you want to >control. (A standard X-10 controller box such as Radio Shack and Whole >Earth Access carry.) >2.) you can't control the dimmers' dim rate. Slow fades are not possible >with this system. You can't even program them, because the firmware in >their dimmer controller brings the dimmer through 100% to recalibrate it >on each transition. >3.) Each dimmer only has 16 values of dimness. For theatre work you >probably need more. Yeah, X-10 is *out* for theatre lighting control. Call for a dim-down and each light to be dimmed sweeps up to full and then down to your setting. Blackouts and instant-on work, but not on other than a bump. All units must be on the same transformer, too, or the signals are lost. As far as I know, the X-10 units which can handle *power* don't dim. There are systems for the PC and for the Apple ][ which were designed especially for theatre lighting, tho'. The lighting trade-rags carry ads and articles. -- Kris Stephens, | (408-746-6047) | {whatever}!amdahl!krs Amdahl Corporation | | -or- krs@amdahl.amdahl.com [The opinions expressed above are mine, solely, and do not ] [necessarily reflect the opinions or policies of Amdahl Corp. ]