HOW TO "TER. COMPUTER MODEL@ comer ® LAMODEL, | CONTROLLERS Tony Potter CONTENTS About this book 39 Programnotes Electronics and soldering 40 Computer Electronic components connections Control centre 41 Shopping list Power controller 42 Construction tips and Switch sensors templates Light sensors 47° Circuit diagrams More model controller 48 Index and useful Programs information Model controllers designed by Chris Oxlade and Tony Potter Programs by Chris Oxlade Designed by Tony Potter Illustrated by Jeremy Gower and Jeremy Banks. Additional illustrations by Chris Lyon, Sue Walliker and Simon Roulstone. Technical consultants: John Hawkins and Colin Motteram.About this book This book shows you how to build simple electronic circuits so you can control model trains and cars, like those shown here, with one of these computers: Commodore 64, VIC 20, BBC Model B and Spectrum.* There are three electronic circuits to make and each enables you to do different things. With the power controller circuit you can switch a model’s electric power on and off with your computer. The switch sensor circuit enables the computer to detect the position ofa model as it touches a trackside switch. ‘The light sensor is similar, but works without, touching the model. The computer programs in this book make the circuits work in different ways. There is also a special board to build, called the control centre, to connect the circuits to your computer. arr god B The circuits work with any kind of slot, or slotless, racing cars, trucks or motorcycles, Key to projects > | ‘Switch sensor GS gee Ssnener 58) ae Find the model controllers you wantto build by looking fora coloured triangle on the corners of the pages. This bridge holds two light sensors. y Tomake the circuits you need to solder electronic components toa special board. There are step-by-step instructions showing how to solder with lots of tips on electroni *Youneed to buy a circuit for the Spectrum see page 41.yA Computer control ( A Sethe Computers control models and other machines in two ways. T PD andirackside They send messages, called output, to motors to switch building them on and off. They also receive messages, called input, from sensors, which tell the computer what the machine is doing, The input and output messages are sent via a circuit, often called an interface. These can be separate fromthe computer, or built in. The circuits in this book are interface circuits and they connect to one of the computer's sockets, called an input/output port. ‘The picture below shows how computer control works with an imaginary robot dog. Its computer is programmed to wagits tail ten times. Nd 1 Anoutputmessagefrom ZBT—\ teilsensor thecomputertellsthe \ circuit to switch on thetail 677 i motor. - al ‘Computer 2 Thetailsensorsendsone 3. Aftercounting ten wags, input message tothe the computer tells the tail computerforevery wagit motor circuit to switch off, You can use any gauge oftrainrunningon elect tacks: . Thistrainis Oneoftheswitch passingaswitch sensorsis inside this trackside li Electronic components and sold iro LiElectronics and soldering The circuits in this book are made by soldering electronic components in the holes ofa special board, called Veroboard. Itis very important to solder accurately, or your circuits may not work. Practise soldering before you begin using spare components. About electronics Electronics is about controlling electricity with devices called components to create a certain effect—those ina radio change radio waves into amplified sound, for instance. Components soldered together are called circuits. There are lots of components to do different jobs, and their effect depends on how they are arranged in acirouit. This side is called athe plainside. Spots show where wires joined. cH: HA. chin lamp called the Direction ofcurrent low| +! Baltery~ trackside. Circuitsarebuiltonaboard —Thepictureaboveshowsa Symbols are used tomake called Veroboard.Thishas battery-powered circuit, drawings, called circuit rows of holes linked by designed tomakealightflash diagrams, of how coppertracks. You push onandoff.Currentalways components ina circuitare componentsthroughthe flows from thepositivetothe _ connected. This isthe holesandsolderthemtothe negative battery terminal, via _ diagram for the circuit tracks.Current flowsalong — thecomponents. This causes beside it. Find out howto the tracks and isrouted themtobehaveinacertain identify componentsand around thecircuitbyeither way—tomakethelampflash _ theirsymbols overthe page. breakingtracks orlinking _inthiscircuit,forexample. __Thereare diagrams forthe them with wire. circuits in this book on page 47 | Soldering Bit Soldering Soldering is a way of joining metal withanother Folder metal, called solder, which meltsat alow temperature, You usea soldering iron to heat the metals to be joined until they are hot enough to melt the solder. This flows between them and makesa joint which can i X i MAX) wi i KX a \ Ni AN Ni KAN) iN) X \ x " XY \\ KK i Ky y Kh i i fi: XX Ki N\ ‘ ‘ ¢: conduct electricity. / These are the thing youneed for soldering,How to solder components Push the component's legs through holes in Plugin the soldering iron, let the bit heat up ide of the Veroboard. Turn theboard and wipe iton.a damp sponge to remove old \the legsslightly to preventthe _ solder. Touch the bit with solder so adrop falling out before you solder it. clings to it. This is called “wetting” the bit. Touchthebitononesideofa —_ blobofsolderflowsroundthe Holdthe board away from legand the solderon theother, _ leg, Let the joint cooland you, pressing the leg gently closetothetrack.Holdthem | makesure it looks shiny. with your finger. Trim itclose thereforaboutasecond untila Re-heat dull lookingjoints. _to the track with wire cutters. Stripping and tinning Stroke wit ‘Twisted UPMAPES a i oe Adjust wire strippers. Remove solder accidentally To strip wire, remove 15mm with the bit and solder until joining tracks. Runthehotbit — (#")of plasticfromeachend __ lightly coated. This iscalled alongthegroovebetweenthe —_using wirestrippers. Twistthe “‘tinning’” and makes good joined tracks asshownabove. barestrandsandstrokethem electrical connections.Electronic components ‘These pages show how to ‘Check with your supplier tose identify the different types of which legis nearest the mark. components and explains how they work. The symbols used to represent them in circuit diagrams are shown alongside the components. Don’t worry if components you buy look different, as makes vary. amountofelectricity called a charge. This is released by the action of othercomponents ina ‘Flateideotene circuit. Charge is Striperound diode shows shows whichis fae tiiradtamniqnoiatade direction to place tin circuit. thenegativeles. (written “F) ornanofarads Diodes are like one-way streets for electricity, allowing (nF) for tiny amounts. current to flow in only one direction. LEDs (LightEmitting Capacitors have an arrow Diodes) glow like tiny lamps when current goesthrough ormarktoshow whichway | | them. The pictures above show how to identify their legs, to place them ina circuit. The relay pinsin this book are numbered like this. Relays This cut-away picture shows the insides of arelay—a special kind of switch activated by an electromagnet. ‘The coil in the centre becomes magnetic when current is passed through it. This attracts the springy arm above, shows which pinis switchingitfromonecontact which. toanother. The arm flicks back tothe first contact only when the electromagnet is switched off. Current reaches the coil and contacts through legs, or pins, under the relay. There are many types of relay, some with more than one switch inside. See page 41 to see which youneedDon'tclean transistor or chip. Resistors ‘These components cut down theamount of current passing through them, by resisting the flow of electricity. Some resistors do this bya fixed amount and others are adjustable L Coloured stripes round fixed resistors tell how strong their resistance is. This is measured in ohms (written Q or KO for 1,000 ohms). The chart below shows how to read the code. The first and second stripes give the first two digits in the number of ohms, and the third shows how many noughts toadd. istdigit(thisoneis2) Light dependent resistors nd digit (this oneis6) Uslnatielisncee ‘No. ofzeros (this has 4) eee ‘Accuracy stripe When you buy components the legs are often dirty, making it difficult to solder them and get agood electrical connection. Itis a good idea to lightly clean the legs with sandpaper. Potentiometei ‘Twist shaft i] Gireuit symbollike — Theresistance of LDRsvaries Turningthe shaft ofa F fis from low when light i justs i ightentersthe potentiometer adjusts its ogt “window” ontop, tohigh resistance. You connect 30 J AAA — whenless light fallsonthem. —_wiresto tags on its base. 555 timer chip This isa cut-away picture ofa timer chip. A chip is atiny flake of a substancecalled silicon, with hundreds or thousands of microscopic Chip legs are circuits etched into its numbered surface. There are many fom shove, starting differenttypes. This isavery ( foundanth simple one which sendsout clockwise. pulses of electricity to other components inacircuit fora certain length of time. The chip itself is the tiny red spot in the centre.Control centre ‘These pages explainhowtomakeawooden _ 6 voltbattery. board, called the control centre, on which ‘There is a template on page 43 which you you can assemble the circuits you make. need to photocopy twice. Use one copy to ‘The control centre has sets of plastic make the control centre and keep the other connector blocks (sometimes called to help make all the circuits. terminal blocks). One is for connecting to your computer and the others are for wiring-up to your model layout and toa Make the control centreevenif youmake only one circuit. Where the circuits go Light sensor ; igh = There is room on the control centre for two light sensor circuits. Put the first you make at the top end of the There aretwo control centre. strips of balsa wood for the circuits to sit on. The power controller circuit goesat this end of thecontrol centre, with the switch sensor circuit in the middle. puter connector Allthe connectorblocks on this side of the The large connector block above is control centre are for connecting wires to for your computer. The small your model layout. oneis fora 6 voltbattery. Finished control centre This picture shows how the control centre looks when finished. The circuits are connected to the computer, sensors and model powersupply. Turn to page 40 tosee how toconnectthe Power controller control centre to your computer. You need only do this once, regardless of how many circuits you make. Youcouldmake abox for your finished control centre.Making the control centre 6mm(%4') thick. Copies of template (page 43) E3790, Comecor blocks eM seontuion ar (stick shape) Gluea copy of the control Cutround the template witha centretemplatetoawooden _saw. Then sand the edges with board up to6mm thick (4) apiece of sandpaper wrapped using clear glue. round a block. leif youwantto miss out this step. The light sensor circuits use potentiometers, Cut three connector blocks with a craft knife screwed or glued to the board. Ifyoudecideto _sothat you have one with 10 pairs of holes, one screw them tothe board, drill through the with 5, one with 9 and three with 2 pairs. Then hole positions printed on the template. glue them where marked on the template. Cuttwo220mm (9¥%4"}lengths Gluethe pieces of sparalong Cut four 15mm (54") lengths of of 6mm square balsaspar.Use the edges of the circuit cork with a knife. Glue one acraftknifetocuthalfway _positionsonthetemplatesas __ piece under each corner of the through both sides. shown here. control centre to make feet.10 Power controller The power controller circuit enables you to control the movement of trains and cars with your computer. You can find out how it works with both kinds of models on these pages. Follow the yellow page flashes to make and use it. This is what it does: 1_ Switches power on and offto the track. 2 Reverses the power to makea train go backwards or forwards. TOOL 1 Switches power on and offto either car on the track. This works for both slot and slotless cars. Programs There are programs on pages 16-17 to use with the power controller, and on 36-39 to use with the power controller and the sensors. ‘These let you do things such as challenge the computer to. amotor race, ormake your trains run automatically. Follow the instructions very carefully when makingthe power controller oryoucould damage your computer. About the controller Model trains and cars are powered by electricity from devices called transformers (or power suppliers). These convert the strong mains voltage which is very dangerous, into low voltage power which is safe to use with models. The picture on the right shows how thin wires connect between the transformer and track. Electricity flows from the positive terminal of the transformer, through onerail, and back to the or power supplier Positive rail ‘The power f is . controller works negative terminal via ae the motor and otherrail. forearstoo. ‘The control centre is, connected tothe ‘computer's input ‘output port, ‘Transformer orpower supplier. Wires tocomputer The power controller works by interrupting the flow of electricity between the model’s transformer and the track. The picture above shows the transformer connected to the tracks, via the powercontroller circuit. (With cars the transformer is connected to theirhand controllers too.) There are three electronic switches inthe circuit. These are controlled by computer to switch the model's power on and off. With trains, they also reverse the Battery Inpuoutput port flow of electricity to make the train run backwards,How the switches work ‘The three electronic switches in the circuit are see page 6 to find out how they work). The diagrams below show how the called rela: ‘Transformer Relay Forwards Negative Backwards computer makes the switches (represented by arrows in rectangles) inside the relays work, to control the movement of trains and cars, There are two contacts inside each relay. All the switches normally face the same way, allowing current to flow through the contacts and switches as shown above. The train goes forwards, as current flows from positive to negative. When the computer instructs relays 2 and 3 to switch overto the other contact (but not relay 1), the current is reversed on thetracks. This makes the train motor go in the opposite direction, causing the train to run backwards. Relay 1 controls the flow of current to the other tworelays. Ifthe computer instructs it to switch to its other contact, it breaks the flow of currentand stops the train. No power reaches relays 2 and 3 orthe track. Cars Power supplier Only two relays are used to control the supply of electricity to the hand controllers. Usually, the switches touch the same contact, allowing power to both cars at the same time. Ifthe computer instructs the switch in relay 1 totouch the other contact, power to the red car is cut off. Both cars can be turned off by changing both relaysat the same time re12 Making the power controller These pages explain how to make the power controller circuit. Follow the instructions carefully, as one tiny mistake could stop the circuit from working. Read page 5 first if you are not sure how to solder. It's a good idea to practise first before you begin. In the holes listed Cuta piece of Veroboard 28 tracks wide by 30 witha pin. Turn t holes long, by scoring it with a craft knifeand then breaking it. Glue acopy of the power controller template to the plainside ‘See page 48 to find out how to identify relay pins before you begin. 2K20 and 6Ke0 Relays as your hand to break the tracks. 8 _[¥20 G8_[D26| /H20]E26 120 [K26 (020/126. P20 [526 x20 [T26) Check tracks ‘are cut through. above, pierce the template fhe board over, hold it upto the light and mark the track under the holes. Cut the track with a drill bit. SESS PinNoslt (3 jas fo "Transistor Sets IRelay1 [D2alE2a|i2a|D27)E27|127|| emitter [115 (ores SSeS iRelay2 [Kzallz24|P24|K27/L.27|P27]| [Base ——|J16 Ris [Diode 2, Relay 3 [S2a[T2a]Xzalsz7|T27]x27] [Collector [Ks Sis ‘S20 1120) Bend the legs of two diodes. Solder them in the holes above, with the striped end in the hole marked in yellow. Put the legs of two transistors in the holes above so they just poke through the track. Then solder them in place. Push the pins of three relays through the holes shown above. Then carefully solder the pins to the track.2K200 resistors are redred/ red. Make sure you loop the wires 6KA0 resistors are red/grey/blue. between the correct pairs of holes. fesistors SNS zs eT 1zIbIz FAGIRS Atria E66 L816. [A19/Q19) ASRS leewi2a z A1z/f33] [p22ik22 Clean the legs of two 2K20 and two 6K8Q. Cut seven pieces of wire about 100mm (4") resistors with sandpaper, orscrapethem with —_ long. Strip and tin both ends. Loop each wire acraft knife. Push the resistor legsthroughthe _ between the holes shown and solder them to holes shown and solder them to the track. thetracks. 9 Check Check that no tracks are joined with solder. Re-heat dull or loose looking joints. — — Make ure you trim all thee Cut 14 wires, 150mm (6") long. Strip and tin pelt ics cutters whan Yo: the ends and solder oneend of each wire into eee en the holes shown. “Hook-up” wires connect the circuit to the control centre. — 10 Control Centre 11 Connecting up (D30—10 | E30=11 130— 12 K30—13 ILa0—14 'S30=16 730-17 | Stickthe circuit board tothe Screw the wires into the control centre template as a balsa strips on the control connectorblocksateitherend guide to see where the wires centre with glue, thesameway ofthecircuitasshown.Use go. Check each wire is in the round as shown above. the lines printed on the correct hole when you finish. 1314 Here you can find out Power controller connections howto connect the power controller to a railway or car layout. Don't worry if the wires for your model do not look like those illustrated here, as different makes vary. Read the model manual or ask someone to help, if you are not sure how to identify any of the wires shown on these pages. DO NOT touch the transformer* mains wire. DO NOT plug the transformer into the mains until you have finished and checked your circuit connections, ‘Transformer The power controller goes between the wires connecting the transformer to the track. Follow steps 1-6 in the yellow boxes, very carefully. Strands strands ae Cut the wires used toconnect the transformer to the track with wire cutters. DONOT CUT THE MAINS LEAD. 18) 15 Strip a short length of plastic off the wires. Twist the strands together. See page 5 to seehow Push the wires into the control centre connector block holes shown. Tighten each screw todo this. withasmall w driver. 4 150mm (6") Read the orange box opposite oe Cut three pieces of wire 150mm (6") long. Strip 15mm (%" of plastic from the ends and twist the strands together. Loop the wires cut in step 4, between the control centre connector block holes shown above. Tighten the screws. Connect the transformer wires to the track as usual. Your track connector may not look like the one above. “May also be called a power supplier, power pack or other name in your model instruction book.‘The power controller connects between one of the two wires from each hand controller. Your hand controller may not Jook like those shown here. Push the new wires into the control centre connector block holes as shown. Tighten each screw with a screwdriver Cut one wire from each hand controller with wire cutters and strip a short length of plastic from the cutends. LER Connect the transformer and track wires in the usual way. DONOT plugin yet-seethe orange box below, Cut four 2m long (6") wires and strip the ends. Join one wire toeach cut hand-controller wire by twisting them together. Use a length of connector block if you wantto reconnect yourmodel’s wires after using the power controller. Do not plug your powersupplier into the mains yet. Get someone else to check your wiringand read how toconnect your computer on page 40 first.16 Power programs There are three programs on these pages touse with the power controller. Two are for cars and one for trains. Here is what to do before you begin: 1 Read the program notes on page 39. 2. Testthe program, using the notes on page 39 which tell you how to doit. 3 Choose which power controller program you want to run and type itinto your computer. 4 Turn back to page 39 and typein the extra lineslisted in boxes A and B. Make sure you type in the program labelled for your computer. Test programs Type this test program for your computer before using the power controller. The program checks to make sure the relaysin the circuit are working. Type RUN, then RETURN and then type the numbers in this chart. After each number therelays shown in the chart should make aclicking noise, Check your connections, soldering and battery if this does not happen. Result doublerelays arethose | closest together on the circuit). elaysoff(no clicks) relay on, double relaysoff mberto Nu typein 10 POKE 54579, 192 10 POKE 37138,192 20 PRINT “TYPE NUMBERY 20 PRINT “TYPE KUMBER™ 30 INPUT SPOKE 56577,1 30 INPUT X2POKE 37136,1 40 6070 20 40 g0r0 20 BBC Spectrum* 10 786628192 10 PRINT "TYPE NUMBER 20 PRINT "TYPE NUMBER 20 either POKE port nuaber, TO INPUT Xa ?HFEGO=E X or QUT port nuaber i 40 6010 20 30 s0T0 10 “Spectrum: The output port number and POKE or OUT commancls you uss depend onthe interlace oubuy. OE Race the compute! Cars on layout start line, Setup your ‘computer, contral centre and model layout. uw) PF This program lets you challenge your computer toa race, using two cars—one for you and one for the computer. The computer's car starts first, then your power comes on later. See how many times you can lap the computer's car before the computer switches off the power. First find out which is the computer's car, ike thi Place both cars on the track. Type in the program, type RUN and then RETURN. Squeeze both hand controller triggers. The car that starts first is the 4 - J computer's. While the program Elasticband isrunning, put anelasticband round the trigger of the computer's car to make it go at an even speed. Experiment to find the best speed. If theelastic band is too tight, the car may come off the track on bends. When the program stops, type RUN and then RETURN to re-start it. The computer will ask you to put both cars on the start line, ready to begin your race. 10 etgue aonseosue 3010 20 LET SP S8UB 2500 Power off 30 clear sereen 4 PRINTPRINT “PREPARE CARSY 50 PRINT °THEN PRESS AETURN™ 0 eur as Powerto 70 LET sepa) 6058 2600 ‘computer's car. 0 sus 140 90 FOR Jat To TaetT 1 Delay before 100 PRINT PRINT "YU Hiv POMER'= player starts. HO LET S=P(1)6P (261818 2400 Powerto 120 ans 160 player's car Teor Length oftime 5 24H race lasts. 150 PRINT +" RACE OVER «TOP L Power offto 10 9 GND #L00 41000 both cars. 170 TURN Spectrum: {60 LET TINT 03100 Change 1000 i Tame 160 iF thera to long ee tan stort 1000 Now type the lines in boxes A and B on page 39.ar Autotrain With this program you can instruct your train to make itrun automatically. Itwill go forwards or backwards a specified Type your instructions, called data, in line 150 of the program. If there is not enough space, add.as many extra linesas you like, numbered 160, 170, 180 andso on. Here's an example of a data line: 150 DATA *F*, 1000, "S*,500,"B™, 1000,"#* “B" makes the train go forwards “B" makes the train go backwardsand “§" makes itstop. The numbers move or stop the train fora certain time. The higher the number, the longer the train will travel orstop. distance or stop for a certain length of time. — Set up your computer, layout and control centre like this. Experiment with the numbers, as they will make the train go different distances according to the computer and the model. Build up a complex sequence of movements by typing lots of data lines. Always puta ‘“*”’at the end of the last data line. This tells the computer that there are no more instructions. Type RUN and then RETURN for the computer to carry out yourinstructions. Grand Prix q' This program isa race for two players with nerves of steel. The computer will randomly switch off both players’ power during the race. To get it back youmust work out the multiplication or division sum that appears on the TV screen and type the answer on the computer keyboard. Ifthe answer is wrong, your powerstays switched off. Challenge a friend to arace over 20 laps and see who wins. Place both cars on the start line and type the program into your computer. Type RUNand RETURN . The power will come on to both hand controllers straight away for you tostart yourrace. VO LET We HLONTLET St 20 GOP 2en-o0U8 00 50 eT SF 1)-12/: 8088 2470 Power onto iF eeiABI both cars. 40 PINT “ean PR Random time 40 Fis) Tx and &——— before question. 100 LET NeFNR(2: LET SP=PCS-AL Computer 140 Susu 2600 switches off 120 PRINT PRINT “QUESTION FORY chosen driver's 130 PRINT °ORVER power. 10 FAINT PRINT 180 LET aTeF¥R2) 180 1F 1 THEN 60suB 200 170 1 T=2 THEN S0SuB 240 10 LET S9=Pi4)+P(2); 60508 2600 90 5070 59 10 80SUB 2800:60SUB 3000 20 LET $P=0:605U8 2600 Power off 30 clear screen meade 40 READ X$ instructions. 50 IF XS="#* THEN LET SP=0:60SUB 2600:STOP 40 IF AS=*5* THEN LET SP=0 70 IF X$=*F* THEN LET SP=P(2}—— Forwards 80 IF XS=*B" THEN LET SP=P(1)4P(2)— Backwards 90 READ T Reads time(T) 100 B08uB 2600 instruction 110 PRINT TAB(S) 9189" *yT i 120 FOR Ti 10 T gies 130 NEIT 1 Pauses 140 6070 40 150 DATA *F*,1000,*S",500,"B", 1000, #* jag oatafor Now type thelines inboxes A and B on page 39. 240 TNPUT As TF ACM THEN 00 240 250 RETURN 24D LET ReFWR6)L:LET eeNRGG) 210 LET Lette 28D PRINT "HOW LONG ILL IT TaKE™ 2790 PRIAT *FOR YOUR 1; "WH" TeMH® ‘HO PRINT "TO ENPTY IF IT LEMS a *jR 30 PRINT "aN HOUR 320 INPUT THIF TOM THEN 60TO 520, 30 TUR Spectrum: 40 DEF £¥ R(K)SINTGNDSEH) hange the 200 in line 80 to & migher usher if the compoter asks oo aany questions Now type the lines in boxes A and Bon page39. 17Switch sensors ‘The switch sensors are home-made switches which sit beside the track to detect when a train or car goes past. You can see one ofthemin the cut-away drawing below. : There are programs to use the switches for testing your driving skill, locating a train, simulating fuel consumption in a car, challenging : another driver to a duel and marshalling your trains in a shunting yard. Follow thered page flashes to make the circuitand up to four switches, and a set of trackside buildings to disguise them. How the switches work LEDs There are two electrical parts to each switch —anail soldered toa length of wire anda drawing pin soldered to another wire. Electric current flows from the circuit LEE TT. down one wire, throughthe = [-— drawing pin and nail, and = back along the other. Cars or trains colliding with the barrier cause a piece of thread to lift the nail and break the flow of current. An LED in the circuit lights up when a switch opens so you can see that it works. | Switches used as sensors are called contact sensors because =< '| aphysicalactionisneededto gia———iam show | make them work.Thistypeof jj] pets teen of sensorcanbelinkedtoa es flow. computer, or used for things like burglar alarms and automatic machines. You couldusetheswitch inthis 4 book as acomputerized burglaralarm ona door or window by writing your own program to use with it.Trackside buildings ‘There are three different scales of trackside buildings tomake to disguise the switches, They also insulate them from accidental short circuits caused by their d ae ; electrical partstouchingyour fuhutage® —rXeauge = buldingforcars. model's live track. trains. trains. Railway switch sensors disguising the switches instead of using the buildings. Where you decide to position the switches depends on the programs you use, So read page 26 before deciding what to do. The picture below shows some ideas for positioning the switches on a railway layout Italso gives some alternative ways of Computer Switch, beside track, movement of the barrier is not obstructed by branches. The switch below is positioned insidea tunnel. Make sure you cangetatitifyou decide to do this. Hide the switch wires under the base board by drilling small holes besideeach switch, then feeding the wires through them. able aa20 How to make the switches These pages show how to make the trackside switches from balsa wood. The computer programs in this book are fortwo to four switches, s0 itis a good idea to lookat the programs first to decide how many to make. The instructions here describe how to make one switch. Repeatall the steps for each switch you make. There are some construction tips on page 42 if you arenot sure about using balsa. Cut out copies of templates A-Gon page 44. Glue them to 6mm (¥") balsa sheet and cut round them witha craft knife. 2 Hold drill upright. Home-made clamp Drill2mm (%e")holesthrough Glue parts A, B, CandD parts Aand D where printed on _togetheras shown by the thetemplates. Starttheholes _glueing positions pr.nted on the witha pencil point foraccuracy. templates. For N gauge trains, . | 2mm (“%6") drill bit 4 along 75mm (3") i 5mm (14) here i Z- 4 Cuta75mm (3"}length of6mm Thenround the corners with (V4") balsa spar to use fora sandpaper. Thread a 150mm barrier. Drillasmall hole about (6") lengthof cotton through the 5mm (‘44’) from the squareend. hole and tie a knot. Only glue this piece forN ‘gaugetrains. Glueall three pieces for HO trainsorcars. Glue all the parts in the positions shown by the red glue part E where shown by the arrow. For HO gaugeand for cars, glue parts E, F andG inastackas shown. TEE: Pusha pin through the square end of the balsa, Stick the pin in the centre of part E (forN gauge) or G (for HO and trains),Length of wireneeded. | Large nail Drawingpin idpaper, then iststrands Cutand strip the ends of two wires, to reach from the control centre to where you want to put the switch. Saw the end offa large steel nail to make it 55mm (2) long. A large nail is needed for its weight Twist one wire round then: near the end, and the other round the point of adrawing pin. Solderthem in place. Push the drawing pin into part Bwhere printed onthe template. Then thread the nail and drawing pin wires through ‘There are many kinds of switches, from complex electronic devices to simple home-made ones like those in this book. They all work by interrupting the flow of electricity ina circuit. Loop nail wire here. g the holes shown in part A. Make sure the nail wire loops as shown, so that the nail head rests easily on the drawing pin. Adjust the length of cotton under the drawing pin so that the nail lifts as the barrier moves. The barrier must move Drawing pin Thread the cotton through hole AorB, under the nail. Trap the thread witha drawing pin pushed into part A. Check the barrier by moving it like this. freely. Ifnot, wiggle the pin holding it in place. Press the drawing pin in firmly when the adjustment is correct. 21Making the switch sensor circuit This page explains how the switch sensor circuit works. You can find out opposite how to make the circuit and connect itto the control centre. The circuit is designed to work with up to four switches and is quite simple and cheap to build. Itis best to make the complete circuit even if you decide to make only two switches, as itis easier to do this than add to the circuit later if you make more switches. How the circuit works The circuitcontainsfoursets computer's low voltage power ofthesamecomponents—one supply (5 volts). This has two set for each switch you pins, oneat +5 voltsand the connect to it.Each hasanLED _ otherat 0 volts, called which lightsupsoyoucan ground (GND forshort). The Ths conipater check to see if the circuit circuit works by makingoneof ( program" knows’'a works properly whenaswitch the computer's input pins train or carhas hit opens. Instead of usinga receive eithera high or low fare nbarieeleg battery to powerthe circuit, it voltage according to whethera Poa is connected directly to the switch is open orclosed.* Switch closed Electricity flows from +5 volts becauseiit is easier forthe to ground. Italways takes current to go to ground via the the path of least resistance. switch, instead of to the input The LED does not light upand pin and LED. the input pin voltage is low = Switch sensor Switch open Current flows through the also lights up the LED because resistorsand the LED because __ the current has to go throughit. this time it cannot go via the switch back to ground. This makes the input pin high and faa Switch sensor Direction of current 22 *Page 40 shows the input pins for your computer.‘See page 42 to find out Negative leg how to position the templatecorrectly. Cutapiece of Veroboard 19 Cutoutacopyoftheswitch Solder four LEDs between the tracks wideby 30holeslong. _sensortemplateon page 43. __holes shown above. The holes Scorebetweenholes witha Glueittotheplainsideofthe _forthenegative leg aremarked craftknifeand snap theboard. Veroboard. inred. Solder the correct resistorsfor have brown/black/red stripes. Strip and tin the ends of 11 yourcomputerintotheholes Use 2K2Qresistors, withthree hook-up wires about 150mm shown above. Use 1KQ red stripes, for other (6") long and solder them in resistors for the C64. These computers. the holes marked above. Use the lines printed on the template asa guide to see where the wires go. Astswitch, Glue the circuit with glueto position. Then connect the Put one wire from each switch the balsa wood strips on the hook-up wires between the into control centre connector control centre. The circuit and connector block block hole 5. The other over'the original template holes as shown. wire goes intotheholeshown. 2324 Switch disguises , Here you can find out how to make and customize the trackside disguises. There is alsoatestto do to check your switches work before trying them with your computer. Some tipsare given, too, on positioning the switches so they work best with either trains or cars. Testing the switches 4athswitch 3rd switch 2nd switch Ast switch 6 volt battery Test the switches before using them with your computer. Strip the ends of two wires and connect them between the computer connector block holes anda 6 volt battery as shown above. Use the same battery as the power controller if you have made one. You can see if the switches work by moving theirbarriers and watching to see ifanLED lights up, in the order shown. Check all your soldering and wiring if the test does not work, Making a building 1 Cut out copies of the set of templates on pages 44-46 for your model. There are three sizes—N and HO gauge for trains, and a pitstop building for cars. Details, like windows and bricks, are already printed on the templates. Glue them to ‘Templates glued to bal: sheets of balsa, according to the thickness printed on the template. Cut round the templates with a craft knife, and then. lightly sand the edges. 2 Glueall the parts together in the order shown on the left. The railway buildings look like this, but the pitstop buildinghasa flatroof made from one part. Glue the parts with the templates on the inside if you wantto paint yourown details on the .Make sure the ermoves freely own alittle if in't get it to fit properly.Customizing ideas The pictures in this box give some tips on how to make the buildings fit into thestyle of your layout, You could alsoadapt existing buildings to fit the switches, or design your own] Painting Use coloured pencils or watercolour paints to colour in the details printed on the templates. Be careful not to get the paper too wet or it will buckle and spoil the look of the building, Paint the bare edges of the balsa to match the rest of the building Create your own details by adding extra parts like chimneys and sheds. Positioning the switches These pictures show how best to adjust the switches to suit your model. The program pages show where to position them. Trains £ Position the switch where you want it on the layout. Slide a train along the tracks to make sure ithits the switch about two-thirds of the way ‘the barrier. Thenstick the switch down with Plasticine, or double-sided tape. Donotreversea train while it touches the barrier, Place the switch beside a level part of either the inside or outside track. Slidea car past the barrier to make sure the car will move it. If not, adjust the height of the switch by putting something underneath it. You may need to glue theswitch toa piece of card, trapped under the track. Improve the look of the barrier by painting stripes to make itstand out, or camouflage colours to blend in with your layout. Make pitstop buildings more convincing by cutting out trade names from colour magazines to use as stickers. Leani wheels and spare parts against the building looks good too.Switch programs ‘The programs here are for trains and cars, to. use with up to four switches. Here is whatto do before you begin: 1 Read the program notes on page 39. 2. Testthe switch sensors, using the program here and notes on page 39 which tell you how to doit. 3 Choose which switch sensor program you want to run and type itinto your computer. 4 Turnback to page 39 and type in the extra lines listed in boxes A and B. Make sure you type in the program labelled for your computer. Va Put the switches on the outside track corners with slot cars — avoid swinging out and hitting them with your Switches Cars gothis way ee Place switches neither side ofthe track with slotless Switches layouts. Avoid Slotless cars hitting M . barriers by switches work best changing lanes. atanangle like this: wo ‘This program tests your skill at negotiating bends with slot cars, or steering with slotless cars. You position up to four switches on or around the track as shown inthe diagrams, and try to avoid hittingthe switch barriers. You get penalty points for hittinga switch. The more switches you hit, the more points the computer scores against you. Points are scored all the time while your car is touchinga barrier, so it's bestto drive as fast as possible. This game is for one driverat atime. Challenge a friend to see who scores the lowest points overten laps. Typethe program into your computer, then type RUN and RETURN when you are ready. 10 GOSUB 2800:GOSUB 3000 Switch 20 Le SPP P(2) 0818 2400 Switches power 30 clear screen 40 PRINT:PRINT “MAKE SURE ALL SENSORS" 50 PRINT "ARE OFF THEN PRESS RETURN Nop — go, 60 INPUT IS Ae Sore when sensors 70 BOSUB 2000:LET nef? are off. BO cluar scree 90 PRINT:PRINT *.SKILFULL DRIVING." | 5. on ei 100 LET AeI:LET Yo5:LET Aée*POINTS :+ | SeTeen display 110 gosuB 2400 —————— 120 LET PeOGLET Y=5:LET He10 Waitsfora 130 BOSUB 2000: IF F=¥R THEN GOTO 13>—sensorto Peace! Increase polnts 50 LET Ab=STRS(P):GOSUB 2400 PeSeninisies 140 60T0 150 comeon. Now type the lines in boxes A and B on page 39. “Spectrum: The output port number and POKE or OUT commands you use depend on the interface you buy.a Train finder With this program you can locate a trainon the track by looking at your TV screen. Switches placed around the trackare represented by a spot on the screen, which lights up each time a train passes aswitch. The steps below show how to use the program. Placea switch anywhere you likearound the track. It’s a good idea to put themat particular places, like stations, tunnels, points and signals. [T Zz Tange gare 1Vsereen eisraley Drawing of Swichby oe ee Draw a diagram of your track layout, using afelt pen on tracing paper, large enough to cover your screen. Draw spots toshow where the switches are. Then tape the tracing paper over the screen, 3_ Type the program below into your computer. Change the number in line 10 according to the number of switches you use, up toa maximum of four. Then type RUNand RETURN. 10 LET No. of sensors 20 GOSUB 2800:6DSUB 3000:60SUB 130 ‘30 LET SP=P(2):60SUB 2600 40 clear screen ‘30 FOR I=1 TO NS 60 LET 'GOSUB 2200 Switch power 70 LET As0(1:LET Ye¥iL) Print spotif 80 IF TF=0 THEN LET As=*> sensor on, 90 1F TEI THEN LET AS=* * Printspaceif 100 s0sue 2400 mensie ott 110 NEXT 1 120 GOTO 50 150 DIM K(4)eDIN Ye4) 4140 FOR 11 TO NS 150 READ X11),9417 Pras 180 NEXT 1 ordinates of 170 DATA 3,3,20,3,20,10,3,10 sensors. 180 RETURN Now type the lines in boxes A and Bon p: [@_ Upto foursmall spots will appearon the screen, according to the number you type in line 10. By changing thenumbers inline 170 you can move them around the screen so they appear under theswitch marks on your tracing paper. 170 DATA 3,3,20,3,20,10,3,10 Neptex tri, Numbers for 2nd switch Numbers for 3rd switch Numbers for 4th swite! Each pair of numbers is the co-ordinate for one switch spot on the screen. The first number in each pair moves the spot horizontally and the second moves it vertically, one screen character at atime. Experiment with the numbers until you get the spots where you want them. Your model's es someinterferenceonthe TV screen. See page 48 for some tips on reducing the problem. 27Light sensors Therearetwo lightcircuitstomake,anda _your fastest speed according to the scale of bridge to hold the parts which go besidethe your model and control trains from a signal track. These tell the computer whenatrain —_box. or car goes past them. You can see what all Each circuit detects one car or train. Look the partslook like below,andfindouthow _ atthe programs to decide whether to make they work opposite. one or two. Follow the blue or grey corner The computer programs enable you to flashes to make the circuits and bridge. use the light sensors to start a race, work out Find outhow touse this bridge with cars Motor SS company trade Pp Contre) apices or trains on page 33. fromm oO cag ONY Cutaway drawing showing the sensors inside thebridge. 5 . The sensor is a Because slotless cars change tracks, you paper tube with a light need to identify the cars so that each LDR dependent resistor (LDR) inside. detects only one car. Tape white card to When a train or car goes past, it casts a one side of a car and dark to the other. Put shadow over the end of the tube, which cuts | theeard onthe opposite side of thesecond down the light reaching the LDR, altering its | Gar. See page 33 toadjust the LDRs. 28 resistance. This is detected by the computer.How the circuit works These are potentiometers adjust the [LDRs' sensitivity tolight See page 33. eee EEE ae tow) EEE Grounft EEE ‘Computer circuit and LDR, back to ground and to the input pin. ‘The circuit normally sends about ¥2 volt to the input pin, output port. Currenttravels which the programs in this from +5 volts,throughthe _book detect as a 0 in binary code. ‘The computer program “knows” a model The LDR is connected via the circuit to the +5 voltand ground pins and an input pin inthe computer's input/ has passed a sensor when it detects +5 volts on an input pin. tte . aes f | =) EE Timerchip Computer Shadows from trains or cars lowerthe LDRresistance, making the circuit send about 3% volts to the input pin. This happens so quickly that the program would not have time to detect any change. A timer chip in the circuit increases the time the pin voltage is high, giving the program long enough to detect it asa1 in binary code. Non-contact sensors Light sensors are called non-contact sensors because they donot have to touch anything to work. ‘There are many types of non-contact sensors— video cameras for instance. By connecting them to computers with special interfaces, they give machines a limited sense of “sight”. This is called machine vision. liding the sensor on railway layouts <2 — Herearesome ideas for other waysto disguise the light sensor on arailway layout, if you prefernot to use the bridge. Cutahole ina platform or railway building. Slide the tube in and conceal the LDR wires under the baseboard. Hide the tube amongst trees or bushes. Conceal the wires by drillinga small hole inthe baseboard to pass them through. Cuta hole in the baseboard under the track. Position the LDR without its tube so itpoints up under trains.30 Making the light sensor and circuit ‘These instructions explain 355 timer chip Things youneed how to make one light Achay agate sensorand circuit. You need Tine to repeat the steps to make 7 (a eet two circuits and Oo LDR pe ee potentiometers. Steps 10 pore TKO resistors and 11 show how to connect

} —, theconroleente Follow &-= bcm G9 <—S steps 1-3 very carefully. Do not switch on until you have checked alltheconnections, Toconnectyourcomputerto (Insulation Displacement ” the control centre you need: Connector) and lead. oryoumay damage your FortheC64/VIC20:anedge For the Spectrum: an input/ computer. Spectrum users: H F tesonpagediabout, connector, withribbon cable output interface with ribbon seenotesonpage4l avout — soidered to its pins. cable soldered to it (see the interface youneed to buy. “ yorthe BBC:an D.C. plug shoppinglist). 2 C64/vIC20 2 BBC ModelB hae 2 Spectrum Push the interface circuit into the expansion port. The /O port pins are The input/output port pinsare Read the interface maker's identified as shown in the identified as shown in the instructions carefully and diagram above. Push theedge diagram above. Push the.D.C. identify the input and output connector intothel/O port. _ plug, with lead already lines shown in the chart Youneed to solder ¥am(18") attached, into the socket below. Following the maker's of 10-way ribbon cable to marked “User port”. Askyour instructions, connect Yam those tagsontheconnector supplier which wiresinthe _(18")of 10-wayribbon cableto correspondingtothese port _lead match those in the these lines. You may need to pins:2.N.CDEFHJ.KL. diagram solder the wires to the interface. 3. Identify the wires in your computer's plug, then connect them to the control centre computer block as shown below. Be very careful — muddled wires may damage C64/VIC20 BBCB User UO pin numbers(asshown instep 2). Spectrum User port pin numbers (as shown instep 2). Interface output and inputpin numbers (see instructions).Shopping list Modeliler’s materials Most of these parts are available from model making shops. Control centre 5mm (14) thick plywood or hardboard, 170mm x 230mm (6% x9") ‘6mm (¥6") square spar (stick shape) x 750mm (30’) long, This leaves enough over for the switch sensors. 2.corks (optional) ‘Switch sensors (for each switch}: ‘6mm (¥4") thick balsa sheet x 70mm (244°) wide x 60mm (2¥4" long 2drawing pins (thumbtacks) 1 steel nail over 75mm (3") long 1 map or dressmaker’s pin Cotton thread Foreach trackside hut: 3mm (¥4" thick balsa sheet x 75mm (247) wide x 300mm (12") long (may needless dependingon scale used). 1'/emnm (%") thick balsa sheet 75mm (3°) wide x 150mm (6") long (orless) Light sensor bridge (for each bridge side): ‘3mm (¥4") thick balsa sheet x 90mm (2") wide x Yam (18°) long 1¥%mm (%s") thick balsa sheet 45mm (1%"} wide x 1m (39")ong Dark coloured paper 75mm (3") x 200mm (8") (enough for twotubes) Odds and ends Fine-grade sandpaper Paintbrush Undercoat Toolkit These are the tools youneed tomake the model Gloss orenamel ps Turps substitute 2tubes clear glue or cement Roll ofinsulating tape Plasticineor Blu-tack Workboard Roll ofsticky tape Electronic components Buy components froma components. shop or by mail order (addresses on page 48). Askin your TV repair shop tofind yournearest supplier. Ask for equivalent types of components if they don’t have those listed here. Key to quantities youneed: CC= control centre, PC = power controller, SS = switch sensor, LS = light sensor (buy double quantities fortwo sensors) Veroboard: Ask for0.1 inch size. PC 28 tracks x 30 holes, $S 19 tracks x 30 holes, LS 19 tracks x 30 holes (one for each circuit). Relays: PC3 sub-miniature single- pole changeover relays, coil voltage 5V ac. or 6V dc. (seenotes on page 48) ‘Transistors: Ask for BC 108 or BG 107.PCX2,18 x1 Electrolytic capacitor: 555 timer chip and socks standard or low power Resistors: Ask for ¥4-¥ watt with 5%-10% tolerance. PC2K20 x 2, 6K8N Xx 2, $$ 2K20 x 4, LS 1KOx 2,100K9 x 1,330.01 ‘Craft knife x Paintbrush 2mm (%s0" dill bit smin(i) aril ‘Small screwdriver SY, Wire strippers, ‘Hand. LEDs: Ask for standard type. 8S x 4, LS x1 (each circuit) LDR:LS 1 x ORP 12 Wire: Thin “bell” or “hook-up” wire x 5m. You may need more depending on model size. Donot use mains cableas itis too thick. Battery: 1 6V.ITIS VERY DANGEROUS TOUSECAROR MOTORCYCLE BATTERIES Connector (or terminal) blocks: 3 x 100r 12 pairs of holes (cuttosizeto fit control centre) Computer connectors BBC: 20-way D.C. (Insulation Displacement Connector) connectorand cable €64/VIC20:0.156 inch pitch female edge connector with 24 pins (two rows of twelve). Also buy Yam (18") of 10-way ribbon cable. Spectrum: Buy a parallel input! ‘output interface board. Look for advertisements in computer ‘magazines or write to one of the companies on page 48. Use either INand OUT or PEEK and POKE commands forthe programs, dependingon the make of interface you buy. Most makes have 8 input ‘and 8 output lines. Use output lines 6and? and input ines 0-5 ‘See page 48 for mail order, addresses. om (1 Coach alts, 4142 Construction tips and templates To be successful you need to make all the model controller parts as accurately as you can. There are templates printed on the next few pages which help youto do this. This page shows how to use the Cutting balsa Cut balsa with a sharp craft knife. Use a metal ruleasa guide anda piece of hardboard or plywood to work on. Hold the knife firmly. Stand to one side Hardboard or plywood templates and also gives and cut towards yourself some construction tips. butaway from yourbody. Templates | ‘Templates are patterns which you use to make the model controllers. Those on pages 44-47 are used forall the parts made from sheets of balsa wood. The one on page 43 is used for the control centre and circuits. Photocopier Photocopy template pages of this book, using the photocopier ina copy shop, Templates Carefully cutround each template with scissors. Make sure you cut just outside the Glue each template to balsa using balsa cement. The balsa size to use is printed Control centre template post office or library. template edge. by the template. Circuit templates Arrows show where crosses and holes line up. Verobeard Photocopy the template on page 43 twice. Use one for the control centre and one forthe circuits. Cut round the circuit template you need from the second copy. Glue the template to the Veroboard, making sure that all the crosses on the template lineup with the holes in the Veroboard.a + Computer connector block ‘6 volt battery *SV@ND A 8 c¢ 0 & F 6 H nve +e CONTROL CENTRE Glue templates fo plainside of Yeroboard Verotaard trmcke ‘nor mat = hook-up wires u CDEFGATS RLMN ‘ABCDEFGHIT REMAN VARYZab SSTANawN GR Sase Tense SRusisara N[ Switch 2 @|switcns | Switen 4 o ie i ' iLi Ca LCC IC TC. CIC 5 sc I. Coat wsjeq (.9v4) por ot ¢ Y ut os ‘| a 2, wt ie o haet eol|Ne 4.2, £ i i & vo u c Roy LL A r tH ct UAC s Er CH | RAE Uj IF H . 2 H!NEnd 3mm (10°) balsa N End 3mm (10°) bisa i i Pitstop back Simm (Uo") Balser NiFront Sram (ier balan) Back Snim eral 45 Fstop Front Sum OO) Bala stop moor Iame ("76") balanPitstop end Smm(/6") balsa Bridge top Fronk 3mm (re }balsa Bridge centre 3mm (to") balsa Bridge side Smm (te) balsa Pitstop end [3mm (18!) balsa Bridge top 3mm (1s) balsa 46Cut out this slot Bridge back 3mm Ce) balsa Cut out this sit Circuit diagrams The diagram on the right shows the circuit forthe power controller. The diagram on theright shows the circuit for the light sensor. ‘The diagram on theright shows the circuit forthe switch sensor. This is repeated four times in the actual circuit. Bridge front 3mm (’e") balsa 4748 information light dependent resistors (LDRs),7 lightemitting diodes (LEDs), 6 Index and useful bit (of solderingiron), 4 capacitors, 6 light sensors, 2,28-28 chips,7 ‘circuit, 30-31 circuit, ‘connections, 32-33 forlight sonsor, 30-31 forpowercontrolle forswitch sensor, circuit diagrams.4,47 programs, 34-35 mainselectricity, 14 circuit symbols, 6-7 ohms,7 components, 6-7 connections, pitstop building, 24,25 Tor power controller, 14-15, 40, plainside,4 for light sensors, 32-83, 40 potentiomotors,7 forswitch sensors, 23, 10 powercontroller, 2,10-11 contact sensors, 18 chreult, 12-13 control centre, 7-8 connections, 14-15 programs, 16-17 power pack, 14 power supplier, 10,14 programs, for power controller, 16-17, for light sensors, 34-35 29 forswitch sensors, 26-27 diodes, 6 electromagnet. 6 input/output port, 3, 10,40 interta Relay notes Interference 1 Put pins of relay over ° | vou may find that dirty tracks or your this guide. Itwill not fit model's motors will cause interference on ireuituniesstheyline [2* __] } YourV. Thismay switch thelight sensors lupwith the dots 2 | emwhennot wanted. {fthishappens, this iswhat todo: 2Turn relay on its back Use numbers shown to 1 Wrap aluminium cooking oil around the identify pins. LDRwites, from the paper tubeto the control centte, 3 Youmay geta circuit diagram like this to identify relay pins. Use the numbers shown here. This diagram isa "pin 2 Twistthe foil attheend nearest the ‘control centre and serew itintothe connectorblock hole 2 forthe first sensor and4forthesecond. view” which means you Coil must identify the pins with beinthis | 3 Tape the foil-covered wires down tothe them facing you. position | model baseboard or floor. Do not et the foil touch the model's live track or you Itis very important touse the correcttype | (OS emnage your computer of relays for the power circuit. Thereare several makers of the same typeand they ‘umber the pins differently. Number your ppinsas shown above as these are used in thecircuit instructions, Listed below are ‘manufacturers’ type numbers. Fujitsu FBR211 seriestype BorE RS Components number 348-510 First published in 1984 by Usborne Publishing Ltd, 20 Garrick Street, London WC2E, 9B}, England. Copyright ©1984 Usborne PublishingLtd ‘Thename Usborne and device = are Trade Marks of Usborne Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in any form orby any means mechanical, electronic, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher. relays, 6,11 repairing wires, 15 resistors,7 slotless cars, 28,33 soldering, 4,5 stripping wire, switches, 11, 18 switch sensors, 2, 18-19 circuit, 22-23 how to make, 20-21 programs, 26-27 inerchip, 7,29 tinning, 8 trackside, 4 trackside buildings, 19,24, 25, trains, gaugeof, 3,19 transformer, 8, 10,14 transistors, 6 Veroboard, 4 wetting soldering ron bit), 5 Useful addresses Relays ‘Tempatron Ld.,6 Portman Road, Battle Farm Fstate,ReadingRG3 1JQ England. Fujitsu Component Europe B.V,Rijakade 198, 1382.GS Weosp, The Netherlands. Fujitsu America Ine. 918 Sherwood Drive, Lake Bulf,Ilinois 60084, USA. Fujitsu Limited, 6-1 Marunouchi 2-chome, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100, Japan. Electronic components Maplin Electronic Supplies Ltd., P.O. Box 3, Rayleigh, Essex SS68LR, England. Spectrum Interface Glanmire Electronics, Meenane, Watergrasshill, Co. Cork, Eire. William Stuart Systems Ltd., Quarley Down, Cholderton, Salisbury, Wiltshire, ‘SPQODZ, England.USBORNE ELECTRONIC WORKSHOP This new series is an exciting practical introduction to controlling things with computers. With clearly illustrated step-by-step instructions, these books make computer-control fun to find out about. Computer-Controlled Robots shows how to make a robot to connect to your computer. The book includes a computer program to make the robot move about, pick things up and even “look” where it is going. There is an electronic circuit to build, background information on the world of robots, and plenty of practical tips on robot building. Computer Model Controllers shows how to make simple electronic circuits to control amodel railway or car layout with a home computer. There are lots of exciting programs which enable you to check your fastest speed, count laps, start races electronically and stop at stations, all under the control of your computer. ISBN O-8b020-817-b TIMI 7808601208174 ISBN 086020 817 6 £2.95