I have a question for those that have and use a PowerMaster Bridge. Some background, I'm building a near ceiling shelf loop in my bedroom, with plans to run it through most of the house as time goes on. I want to be able to run any type of locomotive conventionally. This means I have to use the older PowerMasters because if I use the new ones, TMCC/Legacy locomotives would see the command signal and not run in conventional mode if I used Legacy PowerMasters as they require a command base, and I don't want to tie my command base up for this as it's for the future layout in the back room. I have a couple Cab-1 remotes and found 3 PowerMasters new online, so this is so far panning out as planned.
Now, I have seen several push button controls for trains and other wireless control/automation things happening. This has lead to to start thinking, yes a dangerous thing. What if instead of keeping track of a Cab-1 remote I could put buttons on the wall in the room to control things, but how do I get a signal to the PowerMasters?
Okay, time for the question. The PowerMaster Bridge connects to the Cab-2 base via the serial port. I know you can connect the Cab-1/2 base's serial port to a computer and issue command that way. Can I connect the Bridge to a computer via the serial port and issue commands to the PowerMasters that way? The complete though is in each room I could connect a button panel to a micro computer like the Raspberry Pi, and then that to the Bridge. Now I can use the buttons to control track voltage when in the room, and when running trains between rooms I can use the Cab-1 to follow the train.
So, has anyone sent commands to the Bridge via direct connection to a computer, or does it have to go through a command base first?
