homebrew powerfunction remote

[SuperCow]

I few months ago I made a own power functions remote.

The power functions protocol is open sources, so with my newly gained micro controller knowledge I made my own controller.

Its almost the same in functionality as the normal remote, only mine can do pwm (like the train controller I have 16 steps)

Only the difference between the train controller is, when the signal is lost it stops, like the normal controller.

I used a rc remote from a crashed helicopter

I added 3 buttons, 2 for reverse, and 1 for channel selection

And I removed the antenna and added a IR-led

I used a ATMEGA 168 micro controller to read the knobs & switches and translate it to Lego protocol and send it out with the ir led.

The programming language is based on the arduino project.

The lego power functions library for the arduino I have made available:

source code

new link sourcecode

Edited November 22, 2011 by SuperCow

[trf199]

Cool! Presumably you can control 4 channels at once?

[Parax]

Nice idea...

what controls have you got? (looks like 3 channels on two sticks?) how do you map that to the four Lego dual channels? just a select switch for each channel? of fixed?

I wonder how tricky it would be to just reprogram an IR remote from those cheap toy IR heli's

P.

[SuperCow]

The black knob left under is for channel selection, I can select 1 channel at the time.

The left stick can do up and down(speed)(x)

The right stick can go both ways (x,y)

I have it programmed so, if I use the bulldozer 8275, I use only the x, up and down, like the original remote.

And for steering i can use the right stick for left, right