I've been hacking away at getting the CMRI Emulation working on the Launchpad. When it comes to a standalone unit, it is currently working like a champ. Getting multiple Launchpads to talk on the same serial bus has been quite unsuccessful thus far.

During the warm summer months, I've been amiss with keeping up with my Model Railroading hobby. But, with the beautiful weather we've had this year, I'm sure most will understand my choosing to be outside.

Somehow I missed the announcement, but Ring Engineering has released a second generation of their RailPro product line: Locomotive Module (LM), Handheld Controller (HC) and Power Supply (PWR). I have been trying to keep my eye on this product line for a few years now, and this comes as exciting news.

And that's a wrap. Well, almost. I need to bump up the amplification on the headlights and decal the model, but other than that, it is finished! The entire point of the exercise was a proof of concept on an accurate modern emergency vehicle lightbar, and boy oh boy did I learn a lot along the way. I'll list those things after the video.

Okay ladies and gents, here's a Chasing Light project using a single Shift Register (74HC595) and a TI Launchpad. (I'm currently following a line of research using the Shift Registers, but there is an easier way to do this with just a Launchpad alone.) It can be easily adapted for many uses. Examples include, but not limited to:

The lightbar project work continues! All the proper ohm value SMD resistors *finally* arrived in the mail, and a few short evening work sessions later, the resistors are in place, dud LED light modules replaced and leads carefully soldered in... we have an operational Lightbar!

Well, the last lightbar was a technical success that met with an unfortunate fate when it shifted inside it's resin cast. Really, it is a shame because I was very happy with it. But with every failure comes knowledge and lessons learned, so I am moving on without too much angst.