Crestron "smart house" technology for layout control

[John]

In JMRI,  you can use tablets to control the whole layout, run your train through a throttle, and in one case, Bob Bucklew is doing something what you describe with JMRI through it's web interface .. here is an example of some of the stuff that can be done ..

http://www.quaker-valley.com/CTC/Tablet.html

[mark dance]

In JMRI,  you can use tablets to control the whole layout, run your train through a throttle, and in one case, Bob Bucklew is doing something what you describe with JMRI through it's web interface .. here is an example of some of the stuff that can be done ..

http://www.quaker-valley.com/CTC/Tablet.html

Wow. Now that is cool.

Md

[C855B]

And there you go. Incredible. Exciting, actually. Wow.

[conrail98]

At the Valley Forge RPM last year, Bob gave a demo on this exact feature. One, it's only on Android right now but essentially, you can set it up that each "CP" has singles. These can be either real masts or drawn in to the "panel". Basically, using JMRI, you can set the indicators at each one of these and they are reflected on the picture John shows above. It's a way to signal an older railroad (or one where it's cost prohibitive for real signals) without affecting anything current on the layout,

Phil

[jagged ben]

Ok, I'll pass. 

So let me turn it around and tell you what I'd like to have for TBC, and you tell me if jmri can support it.  The staging yard(s) are distributed around the layout room and trains will be shuffling around between them during sessions.  I'd like a single operator to be able to manage them conveniently with a single portable device.  I'm picturing a wi-fi tablet that has the capability to serve as a throttle (using WiThrottle or Engine Driver), has the capability to display track occupancy on a (virtual) track diagram (should be doable with Panel Pro, I believe), and lets me assign routes with virtual buttons on a touch screen track diagram (I'm thinking something like this must be possible, but I don't recall seeing it done with jmri).  This would give me complete control of the yards in a single device.      Go with jmri?

Go with JMRI.

You may also want to investigate CATS, which I heard about recently and don't yet know much about.  It is being used by that other guy with a Tehachapi thread on TRW.

[GaryHinshaw]

I have definitely been looking at CATS jb.  My short-term interest (as I have spent the last several weeks hunched in and around the Vortex...) is in the use of tablets for convenient portable control of the distributed staging yards.

Nice link John, thanks for that!

Geez what kinda trains are you guyz running that take so much to make them move 

[eric220]

I'm playing around with the idea of using JMRI's web output and a series of cheap tablets mounted to the layout for local control. This has the advantage of being infinitely customizable, for both input and feedback. Here's the quick'n'dirty proof of concept that replicates the nearby signals.



Not as elegant as the Quaker Valley example, but I was able to set this up and make it work in about 10 minutes.

[John]

Go with JMRI.

You may also want to investigate CATS, which I heard about recently and don't yet know much about.  It is being used by that other guy with a Tehachapi thread on TRW.

I'm setting up a panel in CATS for next week's ops session .. It has a good CTC implementation, which once you get it running, is pretty good .. 

[John]

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