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Is there a new 2.04 FW Doc? The information on the site seems to only address 2.03 and references options such as DHCP and Static IP that do not exist in 2.04??
DHCP and Static IP have always been available in all firmwares. Note that Static IP will not show up unless if you turn DHCP option off. This is explained in the online user manual.
Im pretty frustrated as out of the box the main unit had a bad channel, no output on channel #2,
All units have been tested before shipping. If you believe there is a defective station on the unit, please send an email to [email protected] to arrange for an exchange.
Which type of Hunter rain sensor do you have? Can you post the model number? I think it has to do with either the way this particular sensor works, or there may be a loose connection somewhere.
If it’s a simple normally closed sensor, when it detects rain the two wires on the rain sensor should remain open-circuit. You can use a multimeter to verify this. Normally open sensors are the reverse way. If the multimeter shows that it connects and disconnects and repeats like that, then the sensor will not work with OpenSprinkler.
Given you are running firmware 2.0.7, I think it’s probably the watchdog timer resetting the self-test. I am pretty sure the watchdog timer is enabled before self-test. This should be fairly easy to fix. Will post an update soon. In the meantime, I suggest that you use the Run-Once program or manual mode for testing purpose. As mentioned in another thread, the self-test is very rudimentary and is mainly used internally by us for testing zone functions.
rederikus gave a pretty clear explanation.
The short answer is that 1000mA and 1500mA transformers should work fine, as long as the voltage is rated 24V AC (or anywhere between 22V to 29V AC).
It’s a common misconception that higher current rating will damage the circuit — the current rating only indicates the maximum output current (i.e. how much current the transformer is capable of delivering while maintaining the rated voltage). The actual current depends on how much the circuit needs.
As a quick summary: the OSPi kit provides the 5V power circuitry, shift register and solenoid drivers, RTC, ADC, relay, enclosure and terminal blocks. For software development, an RPi is all you need. But the extra hardware is necessary to control actual sprinkler valves.
For comparisons among the different OS versions, please check this summary by Doug:
viewtopic.php?f=8&t=703You are right, the self-test ignores master valve setting. To be honest, it’s mainly for us internally to test the circuit and make sure all zones function. You are recommended to use the Run-Once Program, or manual mode for testing valves. These both observe the master valve setting.
The fully assembled OS are covered under 90-day warranty. Please send an email to [email protected] to arrange for a replacement.
The station delay is in units of seconds. But it’s pretty easy to modify one line of code to change it to units of minutes. Specifically, in ospi.py, around line 151:
accumulate_time += gv.sd # add station delay
just change that to
accumulate_time += gv.sd * 60 # add station delay
I think this is the only change you need to do.About master on adjust time — currently it only supports a positive value. Technically it’s because the the master valve is associated with other stations, so it’s scheduled after other stations have been scheduled. Therefore, it can’t ‘go back in time’ and turn on before other stations are turned on. There are ways to work around it though. Here is one possibility: in ospi.py, around line 135, the function
def schedule_stations(stations)
this is where stations are scheduled (i.e. stations that should turn on are assigned a start time and stop time). You can push the start and stop time by 180 (3 minutes), and that will cause the master valve to be on 3 minutes before any other station turns on. I haven’t tried this myself so I don’t know if there are other changes you need to make. But the idea should work.The stereo plug valve unfortunately do not work with OSBee. That valve has two coils and three pins. The control mechanism is different from the two wire type (my blog post documents how to control it). I think this type has been discontinued — only Orbit made it, all others use the two wire type.
For OSPi 1.2, the cable is likely to be the problem. I suggest using a multimeter to check the pin-to-pin connection on each wire of the 8-pin cable.
7.5kW, 10HP? That’s a beefy pump. The Orbit one clearly doesn’t work. You may have to search ‘pump start relay 10HP’ and see the available options.
@rjalex: your understanding is correct.
The algorithm first checks if the current time is between start time and end time (inclusive). If so, it then checks if the current time minus start time is a multiple of interval time (i.e. if (current time – start time) / interval is an integer, 0 included). If so, the program is scheduled to run.
Because 1.3u does not have a built-in fuse, one simple way to add a fuse is to connect it in series on the COM wire. So COM terminal -> fuse -> COM wire.
Regarding ‘an indicator that a station is not working’ — a shorted solenoid can be easily detected electrically (or at least manually by measuring the coil resistance). But there might be mechanical issues like solenoid getting stuck etc. Ultimately if there is a soil moisture sensor, that can tell you if the plant is getting the water it needed.
Because OS (using latest firmware) and OSPi both support logging now, the lastrun can probably be removed. But I agree that it’s a nicer presentation to show the last run time for each zone. OSPi with interval program 2.x actually already does this and presents a nice visual view of the station runs.
One possibility is to create a separate file (e.g. weather.txt) and log the changes in rain sensor status. This should be pretty easy to do. Will try to push this to the next firmware update.
I took a quick look at the datasheet and looks like the pump runs on either 230V or 380V. It can’t be directly connected to OpenSprinkler as a station (because each station only outputs 24V AC). Instead, you will need a pump start relay. If you are in the US, you can buy a pump start relay on Amazon or local home improvement stores. For example, this seems to work well:
http://www.amazon.com/Orbit-57009-Sprinkler-System-Horsepower/dp/B000I19I5E
Do make sure to check the horse-power ratings.Sorry to hear that. Two reasons I can think of, that may cause the transformers to be damaged, are either surge / over-voltage, or there is a persistent shorting somewhere. The latter is probably more likely, given that you have 4 transformers damaged. One thing I suggest you to check is whether there may be a shorted or semi-shorted solenoid somewhere. You can use a multimeter to measure the resistance of each sprinkler solenoid (the simplest way, without taking down the wirings, is to measure the resistance from COM to each individual station wire). Normal 24V AC solenoids should have about 30 to 50 ohm resistance. If the resistance is too low (like below 10ohm), you should replace that solenoid.
The on/off adjust are normally left as zero (the default values). You are right that these parameters can be used to fine tune water pressure / reducing hammering problems. I frankly don’t know what are the rule-of-thumb values. I think (I am not an expert on this topic 🙂 controllers that do not provide this as an option just use zero.
Make sure you update your iPhone app because the logging feature in the app is added fairly recently (I think). When you open the app, there should be a ‘logging’ button at the app homepage.
If you type in http://x.x.x.x/16234.txt in a browser and gets a access denied message, that means no log file has been created for that day. You can always check the content of the SD card by inserting it into your computer. In any case, the logging data is supposed to be accessed through the app.
If your router is not Internet connected, you should turn off the NTP sync option. Once this option is off, you can also manually set a time if it doesn’t already have the correct time. These can be done using the web interface.
Alternatively, if your router can function as NTP sync server, you can change the NTP ip on the controller to use your router’s ip. The NTP ip can only be changed on the controller (by pressing and holding B3 while powering up).
Ah, glad to hear you’ve fixed it. Sorry, there are too many versions that I can’t keep my own head clear about them :). I checked the PCB of 1.3u and you are right: on this version you need to solder a wire from the Rain Sensor pin to A1 — this was left as an option so if you don’t need rain sensor you have one extra analog pin to do something else. Anyways, thanks for figuring it out on your own.
Well I can’t think of any obvious reason. All OSPi boards have been tested using real sprinkler solenoids and verified to function correctly. I suggest you send an email to [email protected] to arrange for an exchange so we can check that’s going on with the board.
Hmm, this is puzzling, especially since you have successfully updated the firmware once before. I can’t think of any obvious reason. The message you encountered means the operating system cannot detect the USBasp device. If you have access to another computer you may want to try it on another computer. Also, I am wondering if this has to do with USB 3.0 (I doubt that, because I have a fairly recent Macbook Air and I can successfully upgrade firmware using it).
