Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D. | Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D.
Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D.| Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D.
Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D.| Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D.
The core of a train simulator setup could be considered its throttle and brake. Having lugged a combined throttle/brake from a real UK Class 365 passenger train home, I reverse-engineered how it worked, then figured out how to interface it with Train Simulator.| Project Blog on Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D.
The core of a train simulator setup could be considered its throttle and brake. Having lugged a combined throttle/brake from a real UK Class 365 passenger train home, I reverse-engineered how it worked, then figured out how to interface it with Train Simulator.| Project Blog on Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D.
The core of a train simulator setup could be considered its throttle and brake, the control or controls that make a train go and stop. In previous blog posts, I detailed my exploration of building my own controller from scratch, but a fortuitous eBay listing provided me a real Power/Brake Controller (PBC) from a UK Class 365 train. Here’s how I got it home and reassembled.| Project Blog on Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D.
As the different pieces of my Train Simulator controller come together, a bite-sized first task of building the physical dashboard is the door controls placed at each side of the cab. Here, I detail the process of prototyping the door control panel from a Class 80x out of cardboard and the authentic buttons used in the real train, then laser-cutting refined prototypes I can use with my existing setup| Project Blog on Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D.
As I add more instruments to my realistic physical dashboard for Train Simulator, I have prioritized a speedometer, one of the most vital tools a driver/engineer uses to safely operate a train. After purchasing working, ATP-enabled speedometers, I set about determining how to build controller hardware and software to use the ATP features and the analog needle with Train Simulator to continue to enhance the realism.| Project Blog on Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D.
I’m building a physical cab dashboard to control Train Simulator, replicating the controls present in UK trains such as the Class 80x. One of the important safety systems is the Driver’s Reminder Appliance (DRA) that helps the driver avoid passing a red signal. I added a realistic DRA button to my Train Simulator dashboard, and here’s how.| Project Blog on Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D.
I’m building a physical cab dashboard to control Train Simulator, and to tie it all together as robustly as possible, I am use CAN. This protocol is designed to rapidly share small updates around a network in an electrically noise environment, and in a previous post, I detailed my first CAN controller designs. Here, I show the maturation of the CAN controller to solve bugs and make it useful for any control or instrument I add.| Project Blog on Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D.
In my ongoing quest to build a physical cab dashboard to control Train Simulator, an important set of components are the gauges that tell me what’s going on with the train. I already showed off the internals of an AWS sunflower and early experiments with a speedometer. In this post, I show how I turned a real, air-driven air pressure gauge into an electronic, CAN-bus-connected version for Train Simulator.| Project Blog on Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D.
I’m building a physical cab dashboard to control Train Simulator, from master controller to an AWS sunflower to a speedometer, and everything in between. The engineer or hobbyist interested in getting this project ready expediently would probably find their favorite microcontroller, figure out how to interface enough GPIO pins to it (maybe an Arduino Mega?), and connect all their hardware to that microcontroller. Not me. Ever dedicated to over diligently engineering my projects, I decided t...| Project Blog on Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D.
Train Simulator has for many years given me an easy, accessible outlet for my love of trains, including operating trains. Its realism leaves something to be desired, and I’m now building my own physical controller for Train Simulator, resembling the dashboard of a Class 80x passenger EMU from the UK. The preceding sections of this blog introduced experimenting with a speedometer and AWS acknowledgment pluinger, experimenting with the starwheel at the heart of a DIY master controller, and de...| Project Blog on Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D.
In my first post about the Train Simulator Controller project, I introduced the Automated Warning System (AWS) on most of the UK trains that I drive in Train Simulator. This safety system is designed to warn drivers of restricting (non-green) signals, often because there’s a train ahead, a switch that is aligned against the train, or a speed restriction. The system includes magnets between the rails, coils underneath each train, and in the cab, a warning buzzer/horn (and sometimes a bell), ...| Project Blog on Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D.
I have long played Train Simulator, and have wanted something a bit more realistic to control the game. The first part of this log discussed my plans and motivations, and detailed the first steps along the journey: experimenting with connecting a speedometer and AWS acknowledgement plunger to the game. The core of controlling any train is making it go and stop, so naturally that was the next component to which I turned my attention.| Project Blog on Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D.
Can AI run on a calculator? Machine learning and computer vision algorithms can certainly be run on a calculator albeit slowly: I ported a convolutional neural network (CNN) to a TI-84 Plus CE, making it capable of using “AI” to identify handwritten digits. As an added challenge, I implemented this in a single three-day train ride, including solving several interesting systems problems and making the code equally useable on a computer.| Christopher Mitchell, Ph.D.
