dropControllerV3 User Guide
dropControllerV3 User Guide v1.2 (PDF 2.4MB)
dropControllerV3 Kit
dropControllerV3 Kit: Assembly Guide v1.2 (PDF 2.08MB)
dropControllerV3 Kit: Contents (PDF 0.2MB)
dropControllerV3 HEX File
If you are not familiar with the Arduino IDE or you simply do not want to install it you can use the HEX file to update the dropController. The HEX file is a pre-compiled firmware that is ready to upload.
dropControllerV3 2019_V3_005_003 HEX file.
The Download includes everything you need to upload the new firmware. The Arduino IDE is not required.
See the Updating the Firmware page for details on how to upload a new firmware.
dropControllerV3 Arduino Sketch
The sketch requires the digitalIOPerformance library, see below.
dropControllerV3 Arduino Sketch 2019_V3_005_003.
dropControllerV3 Arduino Sketch 2019_V3_005_002.
dropControllerV3 Arduino Sketch 2019_V3_005_001.
dropControllerV3 Arduino Sketch 2019_V3_003.
Changes:
| 2019_V3_005_03 | Bug fix. Double quotes causing havoc. | |
| 2019_V3_005_02 | Very minor changes. Tidied some comments, moved some code. | |
| 2019_V3_005_01 | Added Flash Trigger 3 Bug fix: FT2 and FT3 flags |
|
| 2019_V3_003 | Added !Serial for Leonardo & Micro Changed the non-connected blink rate |
|
| 2019_V3_002 | Corrected the pins used for the Bluetooth module | |
| 2019_V3_001 | New version release |
dropControllerV2 Arduino Sketch
The sketch requires the digitalIOPerformance library, see below.
dropControllerV2 Arduino Sketch 2019_V2_001. For use on the version 2 device.
See the Updating the Firmware page for details on how to upload a new firmware.
Libraries
The Arduino sketches requires the digitalIOPerformance library. This is actually outdated but still works with all 328 based Arduinos like the Nano. I have tried in Arduino IDE 1.6.3 and 1.8.5 and the sketch compiles fine. The library does not work with newer non 328P based Arduinos such as the Arduino Micro & Leonardo which are based on the ATmega32U4 chip.
Arduinos are fairly slow at switching pins on an off and digitalIOPerformance speeds things up by cutting out a lot of unnecessary functions the Arduino normal performs. It only works on older Arduinos though. On Arduinos that it does not support the code defaults to the regular Arduino way. In practice I am not sure this makes a difference when using solenoid valves.
Android App
The new Android app is available on the Play Store here. You can also download the apk file directly from the below links. Apps are compatible with dropControllerV3 and V2.
dropController Android app version 2019_006_001
dropController Android app version 2019_005_002
dropController Android app version 2019_005_001
dropController Android app version 2019_001_003
dropController Android app version 2019_001_001
The app was created in app inventor 2 and the aia file is included in the donwload. Be warned, the app is at the upper limit of what app inventor can do and your browser will be extremely sluggish when editing.
Changes:
| 2019_006_01 | Changed loop mode delay to seconds. | |
| 2019_005_02 | Bug fix: Flash Trigger 3 command | |
| 2019_005_01 | Bug fix: Flash Trigger 3 | |
| 2019_001_003 | Added flash trigger 3 Added a drop data graph. This adds a visual representation of the drop times. Minor bug fix. |
|
| 2019_001_001 | Adapted the version 3 app. Initial release. |
Windows Program
dropController Windows App version 2020_001_001
dropController Windows App version 2019_006_001
dropController Windows App version 2019_005_001
dropController Windows App version 2019_004
The Windows program does not need to be installed and is run directly from a folder. It requires the .net framework, minimum version 4.0, available at Microsoft .net 4.0 download page and will run on Windows XP SP2 and above.
Changes:
| 2020_001_001 | Fixed delta values not showing correctly in the Loop Page. | |
| 2019_006_001 | Change loop mode timer to seconds. Added a forum link to the menu. |
|
| 2019_005_001 | Added flash trigger 3. Minor bug fix. |
Windows Program Source Files
dropController Windows App version 2020_001_001 source files (11.1MB).
dropController Windows App version 2019_006_001 source files (11.1MB).
dropController Windows App version 2019_005_001 source files (11.9MB).
dropController Windows App version 2019_004_001 source files
The Windows app was written in Visual Basic 2013 and maintained in VS2017 and now VS2019 Visual Studio Community IDE.
Visual Studio 2019 Community is free to use for students, open source contributors and small development teams and it is available for download at https://www.visualstudio.com/downloads/. The download is just the installer which will download the main program from the internet.