Serge NOEL
155 lines
8.9 KiB
Plaintext
155 lines
8.9 KiB
Plaintext
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<title>Using DecoderPro</title><!--#include virtual="/help/en/parts/Style.shtml" -->
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<h1>DecoderPro® Programming Modes</h1>
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<h2>Service Mode Programmer</h2>
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<div class="dp-right">
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<p><a href="index.shtml#Setting%20up">Back to Index</a>
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</p>
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</div>
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<hr>
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<strong>Service Mode (programming track) Programmer</strong> - Select to program the
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locomotive on the dedicated programming track. (Probably because the Locomotive has to be
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taken to the servicing track to be programmed). Not all command stations support a dedicated
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programming track, and some brands will shut down the mainline power when in programming mode
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(not pleasant when you have an ops session in progress.
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<blockquote>
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<p><strong>Reading your Decoder On the programming track:</strong><br>
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<br>
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To obtain information from the decoder on the programming track we rely on the ability of
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the decoder to respond to a query, what is known as <strong>Readback.</strong> Most
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decoders cannot talk to send information back to the command station. They just respond to
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instructions, so special instructions were developed which allow the Command Station to
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determine the contents of the decoder's memories<br>
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<br>
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Basically the decoder is asked a wholeseries of questions and when the answer is "yes" it
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turns on the motor for only a very brief time. The command station notices the current
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being drawn and stops asking questions, since it got the <strong><em>yes</em></strong>
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answer to the last question. This can take a bit of time since the command station must ask
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all possible values waiting for the <strong><em>yes</em></strong> response. You can observe
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the process by looking down at the bottom line of all the panes (the status bar) where the
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word <strong><em>idle</em></strong> is normally shown when the programmer is inactive. When
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DecoderPro is working it will show you what events are being performed. Sometimes you can
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see the loco jump a bit as the decoder pulses the motor for "yes". The computer folks call
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this an ack (for acknowledgement). When the Command Station sends the decoder data that is
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in agreement with what is in the CV of the decoder, the decoder will send an ack. If the
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ack is never received the Command Station tells DecoderPro that the Decoder did not
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respond.<br>
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<br>
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<strong>Writing to Decoder on the programming track:</strong><br>
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<br>
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The CV data is written to ANY and ALL decoders on the programming track. When the write has
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been successful the decoder will acknowledge (ack) to the Digital Command Station (DCS.) If
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the ack is not seen by the DCS it says the decoder did not respond. (error code 308 in
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JMRI)</p>
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<p>Click on <strong>Service Mode (programming track) Programmer</strong> and the Service
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Mode Programmer (Programming Track) Setup window opens</p>
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<div class="dp-center">
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<img style="width: 518px; height: 452px;" alt="service mode set up" src=
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"images/Set_Up.png"><br>
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</div>
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<p>The first item at the top of the service mode programmer pane is a selection for the
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mode used to program your decoders. This is a legacy to the olden times and rather
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technical, but fortunately DecoderPro has matured to the point that it is quite good at
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selecting the best mode for you. It uses the selection of command station from your
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Preferences selections, combined with the decoder manufacturer and type selections (which
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we'll get to real soon now). Just accept what's there as a good start. And, fear not, for
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each pane in the programmer has a button which can be used to change programming mode if
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you have a problem. For further details on programming mode <a href=
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"Basic_Mode.shtml"><strong>click here</strong></a>.</p>
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<p>Now let's determine the type of decoder that's installed in the locomotive that you
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would like to program.</p>
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<p>The decoder identification is entered by using the selections in the middle of the
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page.</p>
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<p>Since we want to know what type of decoder is in the locomotive, we can either look up
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what was listed when it was entered in the roster stored in this computer, or we can ask it
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what it's manufacturer and firmware version are. The first is method is
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<strong>IDENT,</strong> and the other is <strong>READ TYPE.</strong> You can use one or the
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other, but they are mutually exclusive.</p>
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<p><strong>IDENT</strong> is used to identify a locomotive that is already stored in your
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computer's roster file. You can use the drop down arrow to display a listing of locomotives
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in your roster, and then select the desired locomotive from the list. An alternative is to
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be lazy and click the <strong>IDENT</strong> button. The program will then query the
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locomotive to get it's address which is linked to the roster entry. The DecoderPro roster
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entry includes the decoder type used when it programmed the locomotive. If it gets a valid
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address, but there is no roster entry with that address, then you will get an error
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message.</p>
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<p><strong>READ TYPE</strong> is the other method located in the center of the page. If you
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click on <strong>Read Type From Decoder</strong> button, the system will query the decoder
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to get the manufacturer and firmware version number. From this information it will
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highlight all the decoders which are known to match. There may be several, usually with
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differences in the physical shape and size to fit in a particular locomotive's shell, or a
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few more "bells and whistles". When confronted with a large selection, you can either
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remove the shell to try to read information printed on the decoder itself, or just select
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one of the ones with the fewest letters in the model number. (Letters are often used to
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separate the shape differences which have no bearing on the electronic functions of the
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decoder.) Just be aware that some functions that DecoderPro allows you to program may not
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be fully operable.</p>
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<p>As noted above, these methods will work only with command stations which are capable of
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reading back the contents of CV's, and the process does take some time. Many lower end
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and/or older systems and decoders do not provide readback capability. If the command
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station cannot read CV's from the programming track, you will have to select the decoder
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manually by using the large selection box in the middle of the page. With it you can select
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the manufacturer, family and specific model of the decoder. This manual method may be the
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best and fastest way if you know for sure "What's in there".</p>
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<p>If you have a decoder that doesn't appear in the listing, you may want to check to be
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sure that you are using the most up to date version of DecoderPro, because manufacturers
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are adding models almost faster than the team can enter the new decoder definitions into
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the files. You can choose a manufacturer's version which is as close as you can find, or if
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you're only interested in basic programming functions, use the NMRA decoder which is a
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generic file of the CV's contained in their standards.</p>
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<p>The last item on this pane is the Programmer Format entry. It is preset by your
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Preferences entry, but you can select other programmers using the drop down arrow.</p>
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<p>Once you have selected a decoder, or DecoderPro has done it for you, the <strong>Open
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Programmer</strong> button will become activated and you'll be able to move on with Service
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Mode Programming.</p>
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<p>When you are on the <strong>Setup Pane</strong> and click on the <strong>Open
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Programmer</strong> button, the selected Programmer window will open. All programmers,
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Basic, Comprehensive and Advanced, open to the Roster Entry pane.</p>
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</blockquote>
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<div class="dp-right">
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<p><a href="index.shtml#Setting%20up">Back to Index</a>
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</p>
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