Login
Shoutbox
You must login to post a message.
renatoa
07/26/2024 3:49 PM
Bill grubbe and Jk, 
allenb
07/26/2024 5:15 AM
Spiderkw Welcome to HRO!
renatoa
07/24/2024 8:31 AM
ramiroflores and John123,
?
?renatoa
07/21/2024 1:18 AM
, Luisloborenatoa
07/19/2024 11:28 AM
Koepea,
Forum Threads
Newest Threads
Background Roast Iss...Skywalker roaster mods
Hello from Arkansas
TC4ESP
Green coffee reviews
Hottest Threads
| Skywalker roaster... | [374] |
| TC4ESP | [115] |
| War on Farmers by... | [47] |
| Adventures in flu... | [26] |
| Hello! (soon) Roa... | [17] |
In Memory Of Ginny
Donations
Latest Donations
dmccallum - 10.00
JackH - 25.00
snwcmpr - 10.00
Anonymous - 2.00
Anonymous - 5.00
dmccallum - 10.00
JackH - 25.00
snwcmpr - 10.00
Anonymous - 2.00
Anonymous - 5.00
Users Online
Guests Online: 4
Members Online: 0
Total Members: 8,393
Newest Member: Bill grubbe
Members Online: 0
Total Members: 8,393
Newest Member: Bill grubbe
View Thread
Who is here? 1 guest(s)
 TC4+ Arduino coffee roaster shield (TC4-compatible)
|
|
| czeffy66 |
Posted on 03/16/2021 8:10 AM
|
 Newbie  Posts: 7 Joined: March 01, 2021 |
Quote renatoa wrote: You need a variable frequency converter. Known also as VFD (Variable Frequency Drive) I wasn't aware of that. THX. |
|
|
|
| ACEMBL |
Posted on 03/20/2021 3:05 PM
|
|
Newbie Posts: 28 Joined: February 04, 2020 |
I made exactly the same mistake, purchased a single phase blower and thought I could control it with a dimmer. Schoolboy error on my part. Because it?s single phase you will need a special single to single phase VFD, ATO make one - I?m sure others are available. The majority of VFDs are single phase input but control three phase motors. I?m mid learning curve at the moment  |
|
|
|
| renatoa |
Posted on 03/20/2021 3:25 PM
|
|
Administrator  Posts: 3104 Joined: September 30, 2016 |
Or, better go on the paved way... universal motors, as those used in most vac blowers, much easier to control with dimmers or TC4 PAC. |
|
|
|
| PrehistoricPerk |
Posted on 03/24/2021 11:30 AM
|
|
Newbie Posts: 5 Joined: March 24, 2021 |
Wanted to share my SR540 TC4+ conversion. I'll create a separate thread as well.  |
|
|
|
| jordo_99 |
Posted on 01/02/2022 10:55 AM
|
|
Newbie Posts: 5 Joined: September 27, 2020 |
EDIT: I think I figured it out on my own just by digging through old posts (honestly didn't take that long)...assuming @timbarnes got his board working, I can just copy what he did: https://homeroast...post_74502 I ordered a TC4+ kit (shows v5 on the back) a few weeks ago and have a quick question on soldering the through-hole components. I believe I have everything in the right places except for the capacitors...which each have 3 holes to choose from but only 2 wires. I can't tell which capacitor goes into which set of holes and which 2 of the 3 holes should be used. (picture is having issues getting attached) 
jordo_99 attached the following image:
Edited by jordo_99 on 01/02/2022 12:28 PM |
|
|
|
| timbarnes |
Posted on 01/02/2022 8:57 PM
|
|
Newbie Posts: 38 Joined: October 25, 2021 |
Because capacitor sizes vary a lot, it's quite common to provide multiple holes. You will usually be able to tell which ones are wired together, and you pick any one of those for one side. The only other issue is to observe polarity, as these are electrolytic capacitors and need to be placed in the correct orientation so they don't explode  . |
|
|
|
| jordo_99 |
Posted on 01/08/2022 10:21 PM
|
|
Newbie Posts: 5 Joined: September 27, 2020 |
I got my roaster all wired up and everything is reading and controllable in Artisan but I'm running into a bit of an issue with the fan and heater controls. ...if the heater is running at all the minimum fan is 50%. I'm able to lower the fan duty to 30% and 40% via buttons I've made but it automatically bumps it back up to 50% within a second or two. This minimum duty cycle of 50% for the fan is making is very difficult for me to roast since the ET maxes out around 250-300F. I had run into this issue previously when roasting manually but had worked around it by choking the fan intake a bit...I would really prefer not to do that anymore as it's hard on the motor and just seems unnecessary since software is causing the issue here. I'll keep digging around but has anyone run into this before? ...I guess at the end of the day I can always just remove control over the heater and run it at 100% power and control temps only via the fan--I'm just thinking that may make it harder to make fine adjustments to temperature when relying on a PID and background profile. EDIT: I'm using the recommended PWM board if that matters at all: https://www.amazo...B06Y1DT1WP Edited by jordo_99 on 01/08/2022 10:30 PM |
|
|
|
| mg512 |
Posted on 01/09/2022 2:59 AM
|
 1/4 Pounder  Posts: 189 Joined: March 04, 2018 |
Quote jordo_99 wrote: I got my roaster all wired up and everything is reading and controllable in Artisan but I'm running into a bit of an issue with the fan and heater controls. ...if the heater is running at all the minimum fan is 50%. I'm able to lower the fan duty to 30% and 40% via buttons I've made but it automatically bumps it back up to 50% within a second or two. This minimum duty cycle of 50% for the fan is making is very difficult for me to roast since the ET maxes out around 250-300F. I had run into this issue previously when roasting manually but had worked around it by choking the fan intake a bit...I would really prefer not to do that anymore as it's hard on the motor and just seems unnecessary since software is causing the issue here. I'll keep digging around but has anyone run into this before? ...I guess at the end of the day I can always just remove control over the heater and run it at 100% power and control temps only via the fan--I'm just thinking that may make it harder to make fine adjustments to temperature when relying on a PID and background profile. EDIT: I'm using the recommended PWM board if that matters at all: https://www.amazo...B06Y1DT1WP Heya, I think I already replied to you via email on this, but for anyone else running into this: This is something I enabled in the pre-configured Arduino controllers I make available on Tindie and my website, as a very basic safety feature. To disable it, just re-flash the aArtisan or aArtisanQ_PID version and configuration of your choice. Or shoot me an email and I can walk you through changing the 50% to some other value (it's also mentioned somewhere in the manual I think). |
|
|
|
| renatoa |
Posted on 01/09/2022 3:18 AM
|
|
Administrator Posts: 3104 Joined: September 30, 2016 |
Also, if with 50% you have too much lift, then there is a design issue in your setup, imo. Overpowered fan I mean. Sure, is too late to change something, but if you arrive with the fan in the 25% realm, then you could have bad surprises of wild speed variations, that also translates into hot air changes, uncontrollable. On a recent chinese SR clone I modded recently the working range of fan through a roast was 60-70%, as an example. |
|
|
|
| mg512 |
Posted on 01/09/2022 5:08 AM
|
|
1/4 Pounder Posts: 189 Joined: March 04, 2018 |
Quote renatoa wrote: Also, if with 50% you have too much lift, then there is a design issue in your setup, imo. Overpowered fan I mean. Sure, is too late to change something, but if you arrive with the fan in the 25% realm, then you could have bad surprises of wild speed variations, that also translates into hot air changes, uncontrollable. On a recent chinese SR clone I modded recently the working range of fan through a roast was 60-70%, as an example. That's also a good point! With a DC fan I would just recommend using a slightly lower voltage PSU, with an AC fan there isn't anything that easy of course. You could add more beans! |
|
|
|
| FriendlyFire |
Posted on 02/16/2022 1:41 AM
|
|
Newbie Posts: 9 Joined: February 16, 2022 |
Hello Friends, I am eager to join your ranks and I need your help. I am following the instructions on Instructables - https://www.instr...e-Roaster/ - which are good but don't say HOW to load the github Artisan onto the Uno. I have assembled the components necessary to make the DIY fluid-bed roaster and am having trouble figuring out how to load the Arduino software. I am facile with using the Arduino IDE interface and loading things from the various board definitions but I've never tried to load something from github onto an Uno. I've searched the internet but I must be using an incorrect search strategy because I've come up empty. Thanks for helping me out! Also, any advice you have on the construction and use of this cool project would be much appreciated. I like the idea I've seen of people using heat guns and various metal air-handling pipes to create a more industrial home roaster. That said, I'm looking for a win and then I'll let the fires of ambition drive future insanity. :-)
Edited by renatoa on 02/18/2022 4:42 AM |
|
|
|
| renatoa |
Posted on 02/16/2022 2:44 AM
|
|
Administrator Posts: 3104 Joined: September 30, 2016 |
The "official" setup and support thread is here: https://homeroast...ad_id=5393 |
|
|
|
| FriendlyFire |
Posted on 02/17/2022 1:59 AM
|
|
Newbie Posts: 9 Joined: February 16, 2022 |
Thank you renatoa. I'll have a look. I appreciate the help! |
|
|
|
| FriendlyFire |
Posted on 02/21/2022 7:16 PM
|
|
Newbie Posts: 9 Joined: February 16, 2022 |
Quote I did view the video but I'm encountering multiple hiccups installing the software on Arduino. Here are my questions/issues: 1) when I download the zip file, there's a ton of redundancy - how do I identify the latest version to use? 2) no matter what version I pick, I keep getting compiling errors on Arduino that files are missing, the latest of which is WProgram.h, which is nowhere to be found in the unzipped material. 3) I'm not seeing a start-to-finish set of instructions that addresses these types of Arduino install issues. Is there was you know about? Thank you again. I owe you a coffee when this is all done. :-)
FriendlyFire attached the following image:
|
|
|
|
| renatoa |
Posted on 02/22/2022 1:18 AM
|
|
Administrator Posts: 3104 Joined: September 30, 2016 |
1) They are called versions, not redundancy. The complete history is here: https://github.co...n_PID/tags ... with the last and most recent being 6.7 There is a 6.8 also, but not posted in the official repository, can be downloaded from here: https://www.homer...post_72952 2) If you get messages about WProgram.h which indeed shouldn't exist... this means it tries to compile for an antique pre 1.0 version, instead current 1.8 version, so I suspect your environment is unable to detect Arduino version, which could point to an install issue. So, is your Arduino proper installed? and able to compile something else than aArtisan ? 3) is hard to address issues that never raised so far to anyone... For this are forums, and questions, and the knowledge base that build on answers. An alternative would be to ask someone to build a binary for you, and you do only the loading, even on a computer without Arduino installed. This is how I am doing with my projects, for fellows that are using computer for Internet only. Edited by renatoa on 02/22/2022 1:54 AM |
|
|
|
| FriendlyFire |
Posted on 02/22/2022 2:56 PM
|
|
Newbie Posts: 9 Joined: February 16, 2022 |
Quote renatoa wrote: 1) They are called versions, not redundancy. The complete history is here: https://github.co...n_PID/tags ... with the last and most recent being 6.7 There is a 6.8 also, but not posted in the official repository, can be downloaded from here: https://www.homer...post_72952 2) If you get messages about WProgram.h which indeed shouldn't exist... this means it tries to compile for an antique pre 1.0 version, instead current 1.8 version, so I suspect your environment is unable to detect Arduino version, which could point to an install issue. So, is your Arduino proper installed? and able to compile something else than aArtisan ? 3) is hard to address issues that never raised so far to anyone... For this are forums, and questions, and the knowledge base that build on answers. An alternative would be to ask someone to build a binary for you, and you do only the loading, even on a computer without Arduino installed. This is how I am doing with my projects, for fellows that are using computer for Internet only. Thank you for your help! I loaded and compiled it without errors! In my experience with Github, using it primarily for software installed through the Mac terminal but, at times, directly from the green CODE download button, the authors usually keep the latest version of their software at the green download CODE button, not zip all previous versions for download. To my way of thinking, it makes little sense to have everyone download earlier versions of software they won't use - even Homebrew has changed the way it upgrades to avoid using extra bandwidth. So, when I saw the various versions, I took what appeared to be the latest and proceeded from there, though admittedly there was a snarl of imbedded zip files, readmes, etc. In a project like this where there are numerous variables not the least of which is things like DC vs AC blower motor, Mac vs Windows, two versions of the TC4 board, aArtisan vs aArtisanQ_PID, etc., throwing all previous versions into the code button seems ill advised and, in my experience, not the way people typically distribute their software. Just for my sanity, am I wrong in assuming that the data contained at the green CODE button is typically ONLY the current code and not a compilation of everything the programmer has done up to that point? I chose 6.7 since you mentioned 6.8 wasn't posted on the official repository, which makes me wonder if it's ready for prime time. If you feel it's the best choice currently, please let me know. Thanks again for taking time to point me in the right direction. |
|
|
|
| iPa |
Posted on 02/23/2022 2:41 AM
|
|
Newbie Posts: 44 Joined: December 22, 2021 |
I use the 6.8 from github, localized here: https://github.co...tisanQ_PID There is a version history in the file aArtisanQ_PID.ino Some bug fix for PID function ! 20211215 Bug fix in PID;P;x command // Bug fix for MAX_OT2 limit check in OT2 command Edited by renatoa on 02/24/2022 3:13 AM |
|
|
|
| renatoa |
Posted on 02/23/2022 3:22 AM
|
|
Administrator Posts: 3104 Joined: September 30, 2016 |
The green button approach works for simple projects maybe, where a repository hosts a single application. Not the case for TC4, which means multiple projects, for various boards, developed over 10 years by various people. My routine is to download zip even for simplest projects, open/unpack the archive, and check the code before loading anything. Too many variables to assume what works on developer platform would work on mine without any change. Edited by renatoa on 02/24/2022 3:14 AM |
|
|
|
| jake415 |
Posted on 03/09/2022 2:24 AM
|
|
Newbie Posts: 26 Joined: January 18, 2022 |
Quote renatoa wrote: Also, if with 50% you have too much lift, then there is a design issue in your setup, imo. Overpowered fan I mean. Sure, is too late to change something, but if you arrive with the fan in the 25% realm, then you could have bad surprises of wild speed variations, that also translates into hot air changes, uncontrollable. On a recent chinese SR clone I modded recently the working range of fan through a roast was 60-70%, as an example. Hi Renatoa, Could you explain why wild speed variations occur when PAC is used for limiting the power to low percentages? Just curious because I have an overpowered fan and am seeing this behavior |
|
|
|
| renatoa |
Posted on 03/09/2022 4:19 AM
|
|
Administrator Posts: 3104 Joined: September 30, 2016 |
There are two factors involved, electronics and electro-mechanical. Electronic factors that make the speed unreliable at low duty cycle are related to how PAC works... the ZC detection is not a safe process, there is a lot of noise around the moment when sine wave pass through zero, so this moment is not detected reliable, could vary in time. My custom fork of ICC code includes a filtering of false ZC pulses, because on my mains I get a lot of false triggering of ZC, after the very first pulse... recorded between 4 and 8 phantom ZC pulses coming in the same millisecond. Electro-mechanical reasons are related to how the motor works... basically what we call speed variation, done using PAC, is a controlled braking by under-powering the motor... as you can see from the diagram at link below, around 20% of speed there is a torque minimum where you risk to stall. https://www.resea...-curve.pbm ~~~ Edited by renatoa on 03/09/2022 1:25 PM |
|
|
|
| renatoa |
Posted on 05/17/2022 10:58 AM
|
|
Administrator Posts: 3104 Joined: September 30, 2016 |
Just noticed that all the links in the TC4+ documentation from Tindie are pointing to the older forum address, thus broken. More exactly, instead: https://forum.homeroasters.org/forum/... ... should be... https://homeroasters.org/forum/... When fixed, would make this board great again :D Edited by renatoa on 05/18/2022 1:46 PM |
|
|
|
| mg512 |
Posted on 05/18/2022 1:38 PM
|
|
1/4 Pounder Posts: 189 Joined: March 04, 2018 |
Quote renatoa wrote: Just noticed that all the links in the TC4+ documentation from Tindie are pointing to the older forum address, thus broken. More exactly, instead: https://forum.homeroasters.org/forum/... ... should be... https://homeroasters.org/forum/... If fixed, would be make this board great again  Oh, thank you for catching that! Should be fixed now. BT modules and displays are back in stock now too. |
|
|
|
| Jump to Forum: |
Powered by PHP-Fusion Copyright © 2024 PHP-Fusion Inc
Released as free software without warranties under GNU Affero GPL v3
Designed with ♥ by NetriXHosted by skpacman