Lighting Control

Alex: That's a good question. What type of control are you looking for? Do you just want a way to turn certain groups of lights on and off or do you want a microprocessor to do timing or random on/off operations? The list of options is large.

Hi Leo,

I am leaning towards the microprocessor. I was hoping to have a some random light effects but also some routines.  Many buildings including the attached tipple I wired for multiple lighting effects.  Fully Operating mode, night mode, full lit, etc...  I started making a rudimentary light board but it got pretty messy pretty quick.

Thanks,

Alex

@TACOROG posted:

... I started making a rudimentary light board but it got pretty messy pretty quick.

Not sure how many independent/discrete/distinct outputs you want to control, but it's hard to resist these buffer modules for less than $1 per channel. Unlike relays which are fine for on/off control, you can drive these with an R-Pi or Arduino digital output using PWM for dimming (day/night).

Alex: Here are some of the possibilities that I have seen through this forum and elsewhere.

You should take a look at the Woodland Scenics Just Plug lighting systems, if you're looking for an off the shelf solution. Looks a bit pricey to me but maybe you've got money to burn.

But if you're a do-it-yourself type, and you're familiar with components and soldering, breadboards, proto-boards, Dupont connectors and the like, then you've got room to maneuver.

I don't have experience with an iPad or Raspberry Pi but have played around with the use of the Arduino microprocessors for track side signaling. See this link. With some extra components, you can drive individual LEDs with things like cascading shift registers 74AC164 or 74HC595. And I recently ran across the use of the Arduino working with the TLC5940 (there are videos on YouTube about this for LEDs).

It all depends on your comfort level and tenacity.

Alex: Having read your original post again, I see that you already have a bunch of Woodland Scenic lights in your setup. And I believe that these offer brightness control with individual potentiometers. Do they do anything else?