BruControl: Brewery control & automation software

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Ozarks_Mountain_Brew said:
on th rtd this is what keeps coming up for me am i right?

MAX31865

https://www.adafruit.com/product/33...Nh3BoV2DgvFGZQWESnf-G_VkAf8W6nSYprBoCzkjw_wcB
Click to expand...

I used 4 of these.. they are working well. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Arduino-MAX...813391?hash=item4d50119d0f:g:aoQAAOSw-0xYR9X3

these work as well.. http://www.ebay.com/itm/17238797769...49&var=471216740806&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT I bought one of these to wire it in but a resister is all thats needed.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/262732761967?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT



As far as the relay boards, I've tried a few now with my two control panels and this one is my favorite. http://www.ebay.com/itm/16-Channel-...543482?hash=item3389ff527a:g:eHwAAMXQ855Rw7uH

The reason being is I can feed it 12v and it actually regulates it down to 5v to power anything else I need 5v for so im not running everything off the regulator in the MEGA. The relay coil power is completely independent of the MEGA as well (I feed both this board and my MEGA 12v so the output signal to the relay board is 5v instead of the 3.3v it would be if I was just powering the Mega wih the USB or 5v. and of course the relay board is "active high trigger" which works well with the software although Brundog is actually updating the software to work with either active low or high boards.
 
OK, after some initial review of piecing together the boards necessary, a lot more research and some guides would actually be very useful! But I know getting the software out there, and documented is much more important!
 
TenaCJed said:
OK, after some initial review of piecing together the boards necessary, a lot more research and some guides would actually be very useful! But I know getting the software out there, and documented is much more important!
Click to expand...

I felt the same way when going from pids and analog switches to brucontrol and an arduino.. I believe the manual for Brucontrol does go over the hardware although since its opensource there are variations from different suppliers.


If it helps...

I have built 2 panels now and I didnt use a shield for either although it might have made things more convenient. I just used the following besides what I posted above (again everyones needs/wants might be different and I reused the rtd and stc probes I already had plus added the 1 wire just because I wanted to see how well it worked and I needed one more temp probe to control my chiller reserve tank temps.)

This to control the speed of my DC24v pumps (not useful unless you have dc pumps or motors you want to control)
http://www.ebay.com/itm/2Pcs-IRF520...erry-pi-New-/221516832245?hash=item33936e9df5

I bought these to keep them cool
http://www.ebay.com/itm/10pcs-TO-22...FET-New-3YE-/272401709571?hash=item3f6c683a03

These to connect the devices to my arduino.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/40PCS-Dupon...o-extension-/281674937470?hash=item419522747e

The arduino of course..
http://www.ebay.com/itm/MEGA-2560-R...for-Arduino-/221774825267?hash=item33a2cf4733

I used one of these for my BK and HLT http://www.ebay.com/itm/Dual-Solid-...dom-D2440DE-/300957098426?hash=item461270e1ba
obviously there are better choices but this was easy to wire with the dupont cables and works well.
(I'm currently using an old fotek clone SSR I had laying around for my rims.)

The rest was your standard contcators and a few 22mm indicators as well as a emergency estop switch and a volt/amp watt meter and other stuff you would use on any panel analog or microcontroller/software based.
 
ok no a big issue but I had the app open on my pc while still using it and switching back and fourth, the main issue i think is I have a 720p monitor and the post buttons were hiding under the main bar, I think I read something about this in the manual but I went to change the settings to hide the bar and the courser turned to resize arrows and wouldn't let me select anything, eventually it timed out after a bit and was able to hit ctr alt del and get out of it to use my pc
 
Thanks to the mods for working with me to get this thread back online. Good people doing the right thing for the forum.

FYI I posted a video on the website discussing some of the basic differences in the types of micro-controller interfaces and how to set one up. It is under Build... Videos.
 
Great to see this thread back online! :D

Any plans for a Mac and/or iOS version or support for Raspberry Pi?
 
BrunDog said:
Thanks to the mods for working with me to get this thread back online. Good people doing the right thing for the forum.

FYI I posted a video on the website discussing some of the basic differences in the types of micro-controller interfaces and how to set one up. It is under Build... Videos.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the video, it helped me understand a little more about the different devices. Look forward to some more on adding additional items to the MEGA!
 
brewApprentice said:
Great to see this thread back online! :D

Any plans for a Mac and/or iOS version or support for Raspberry Pi?
Click to expand...


Our original project scope included a plan to compile to run on RPI hardware. As we developed we realized some of the underpinnings would not run under Mono.Net so the path to run under Linux was blocked as far as I know. I know Windows has its challenges but I believe in terms or reliability, it's much better suited to automation control than RPI. BC is meant to be a platform which runs all the time, so a Windows install makes sense from that perspective, but we understand less expensive or other hardware is preferential to many. We hope the upcoming web server inclusion will make it accessible to more hardwares like tablets etc.

As far as native Mac I would have to research it. Thanks for the inquiry!
 
BrunDog said:
As far as native Mac I would have to research it. Thanks for the inquiry!
Click to expand...


Sweet! This would be my only hold up long term since it'd be ideal to just plug in my laptop whenever I brew (without having to dual boot)![emoji482]
 
What type of switch are you looking for? I see basic stainless floats on Amazon for less than $10. Duckbill types a few $ more. These require a hole in your vessel.

I previously used capacitive sight glass sensors on both my MT and BK. They are great in that they can be moved up and down the sight glass, so are adjustable, but they are certainly more expensive. I am going to sell these, but they will be more than above, are 24V NPN sensors so need some integration depending on your controller, and you need a sight glass.

Alternatively, analog pressure sensors are inexpensive on the sensor side ($15) but you only need one per vessel and need a controller which can read them. A simple analog switch could do the trick. You could mount them separately but you could also tee one into your vessel output as long as you turn the flow off when reading it. Anyway, multiple options!
 
Last edited by a moderator:
another issue Ill be facing when I come to it is when I try to make my automated system just like i have it now with 5 - 3 way valves, 1 L and 4 T

page01.jpg
 
I buy valves direct from a MFG in China - very good quality but not stoopid cheap. About 45 for 2-way, 55 for 3-way. Full port, stainless, with indicators and overrides. Consistent quality and delivery performance in my (limited) experience.
 
Just finished watching your video.

Very well done and shows off BruControl's capabilities in an understandable fashion.

Learned something new again - Fermcap - never heard of it before.

You use a pressure sensor for measuring liquid volume? Is that really accurate? If you had it to do over again, would you forego the sight glass and rely on the electronics?
 
RoatanBill said:
Just finished watching your video.

Very well done and shows off BruControl's capabilities in an understandable fashion.

Learned something new again - Fermcap - never heard of it before.

You use a pressure sensor for measuring liquid volume? Is that really accurate? If you had it to do over again, would you forego the sight glass and rely on the electronics?
Click to expand...

Thank you. Yes, "Fermcap S"... breaks surface tension to prevent bubbles during boil... cheap insurance and no negative impact to beer.

Yes, I use hydrostatic pressure sensors for measuring liquid volume. A liquid column produces pressure commensurate with its height. Knowing the vessel's diameter, you can calculate the volume from there. The sensors are inexpensive, output an analog voltage, and are easy to integrate into a control system which reads analog voltages. See my build thread for the MLT (https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showpost.php?p=7706889&postcount=221) and BK (https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showpost.php?p=7961332&postcount=255) sensor mount methods. Alternatively, you prevent drilling more holes in your kettle by using stainless "straw" down into your vessel, but you need to remove the liquid that climbs up it, which will be significant with temperature drops, so an air bubbler is used to prevent that. This is a sound method but requires a little extra hardware. See https://brewtroller.com/pages/volume-measurement for a good overview of that technique.

Using pressure sensors is very accurate (repeatable) one calibrated. Certainly more than required for our needs! If I were to do it again, I would NOT add sight glasses to either the MLT or the BK, though I would want to have a backup, like etched numbers or a measuring stick for quick calibrations or cross-checks in case the electronics go wonky.
 
canmorebrewguy said:
Great video! What are you using for a flow sensor?
Cheers,
CBG
Click to expand...

I almost hate to admit it... but this guy: https://www.adafruit.com/product/828

You can get this model in ebay easily also. Best $10 bucks I have ever spent! The thing has been through a bunch of brews and subsequent cleanings with PBW, yet keeps ticking! It's not crazy accurate, but it is repeatable once calibrated!

While on the topic, here is how you do it in BruControl. I measured the number of pulses it puts out when a quart flows through it, which is about 355. For total flow, you therefore enter 1/355 = 0.0028169 as a Linear Multiplier calibration for the Counter's Total value to get the total in quarts. For the rate (which outputs rate per second), you enter 60/355 = 0.169014 to get quarts per minute (since there are 60 seconds in a minute).

Calibration.png
 
There has been some great information on this thread so far!!! I really want to get this going now, but will have a to wait a bit though.

Quick question on brucontrol, does it save logs to be reviewed later? If it does, how are they viewed? Or maybe even an end summary. Just thinking it would be nice to look back at a brew to identify possible issues like slow or fast flow for RIMS, temperature issues, etc. I have not reviewed the latest video yet that goes through the brew day, so maybe that mentions it.

Keep up the good work, the software and your support for the hardware items has been great!
 
Thanks! Yes, any enabled device will record data each time it is received. The data is stored in comma delimited files and is used to feed graphs. This way you can display a historical graph or change the time span anytime and have it populated. Data is kept for 30 days.

I imagine that data could be imported into another tool and used how you wish.
 
Brundog,

As I plan out my design changes, I'd like to replace my BCS-460 because of the limited I/O. I found this board (which is based on the Arduino MEGA chip): http://www.digital-loggers.com/plc.html

I like the look of this - it has six 6 amp relays, buit in wifi, and more than enough I/O; at $89, it's cheaper than buying a MEGA, Wifi shield, relay board, power supply, etc. More importantly, it takes up less real estate in the panel.

Any way to verify if BruControl will be able to work with this? It's not in the list of supported interfaces in the manual, but the MEGA is.

Thanks!
 
BrunDog said:
No link. PM me with your email and I will forward the spec sheets I have.

No minimums but shipping is expensive if you only buy a couple. I will be ordering a few more so if interested, we can combine.
Click to expand...

I do not know if you plan on eventually also selling hardware items, but if you do I know I would be interested once I am ready to start putting everything together. If not there have been some great links already put out there in this thread, and some others that I have been following. The valves are one thing though that I have not seen links for yet.
 
Wizard_of_Frobozz said:
Brundog,

As I plan out my design changes, I'd like to replace my BCS-460 because of the limited I/O. I found this board (which is based on the Arduino MEGA chip): http://www.digital-loggers.com/plc.html

I like the look of this - it has six 6 amp relays, buit in wifi, and more than enough I/O; at $89, it's cheaper than buying a MEGA, Wifi shield, relay board, power supply, etc. More importantly, it takes up less real estate in the panel.

Any way to verify if BruControl will be able to work with this? It's not in the list of supported interfaces in the manual, but the MEGA is.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Hi WoF,

I saw that unit a while ago... amazing inexpensive for the hardware it includes. I considered picking one up to play with it. I am fairly confident I could get most of the hardware to work. The main processor and I/O will work already. On the native MEGA, the I/O pins are multi-purpose, and in BruControl we give you the ability to pick what you want that pin to be (e.g. digital input, output, PWM output, counter input). On this unit, most I/O is purposely defined. For example, the digital inputs are routed through opto-isolators, so those pins would be inputs only. No biggie - that is why the Interface Wiring Maps exist - to tell you what possible I/O can be used on each pin.

I would have to figure out the Wi-Fi. It is ESP8266, which is currently supported, but I haven't done one where the MEGA is the main processor and the ESP is serving as WiFi only - they seem to be connected via the MEGA's serial line, so I don't know without rolling some sleeves up. The LCD/touchscreen is a no-go. I did some work with the IL9341 and graphic LCDs and found them to be way too slow, even for regular text (like on the order of 1/2+ second per update). You can't have a PID loop interrupted during an LCD update! BruControl currently supports regular character LCDs via an I2C interface (https://www.adafruit.com/product/292). I suppose I could cook you a custom firmware to support the LCD, but I won't take responsibility for performance issues.

Do you know if these are "in stock"? If you twist my arm hard enough, I might get one.
 
:tank:
TenaCJed said:
I do not know if you plan on eventually also selling hardware items, but if you do I know I would be interested once I am ready to start putting everything together. If not there have been some great links already put out there in this thread, and some others that I have been following. The valves are one thing though that I have not seen links for yet.
Click to expand...

I am trying to stay out of the hardware game! That said, my next project is to put up some more detailed "shopping lists" and how-to's. I realize we need to tell you what works and where you can get it.

I have created some PC boards to facilitate connecting hardware, such as a thermistor filter/divider board, which will allow thermistors (like those used with BCS or STC1000) to be wired in. I have an RTD platform in the works too. In my video, you can see my handmade thermistor board. I have a legit 4-pack, which @augiedoggy is using, and I am waiting for some 6-pack boards to arrive.
 
BrunDog said:
Hi WoF,



I saw that unit a while ago... amazing inexpensive for the hardware it includes. I considered picking one up to play with it. I am fairly confident I could get most of the hardware to work. The main processor and I/O will work already. On the native MEGA, the I/O pins are multi-purpose, and in BruControl we give you the ability to pick what you want that pin to be (e.g. digital input, output, PWM output, counter input). On this unit, most I/O is purposely defined. For example, the digital inputs are routed through opto-isolators, so those pins would be inputs only. No biggie - that is why the Interface Wiring Maps exist - to tell you what possible I/O can be used on each pin.



I would have to figure out the Wi-Fi. It is ESP8266, which is currently supported, but I haven't done one where the MEGA is the main processor and the ESP is serving as WiFi only - they seem to be connected via the MEGA's serial line, so I don't know without rolling some sleeves up. The LCD/touchscreen is a no-go. I did some work with the IL9341 and graphic LCDs and found them to be way too slow, even for regular text (like on the order of 1/2+ second per update). You can't have a PID loop interrupted during an LCD update! BruControl currently supports regular character LCDs via an I2C interface (https://www.adafruit.com/product/292). I suppose I could cook you a custom firmware to support the LCD, but I won't take responsibility for performance issues.



Do you know if these are "in stock"? If you twist my arm hard enough, I might get one.
Click to expand...


Thanks!

The LCD isn't a deal breaker for me - after all, BruControl would be my HMI. The only purpose I could come up with on the display would be to show fermentation chamber temperature locally so you don't have to boot up the computer to quickly check. Not a big deal (especially if you get phone and tablet capability someday[emoji3])

Not sure on "in stock" but the website does say they are shipping now. They also offer a 15 day free trial.

I need to get my new brew room with 50 amp service built before I'm going to upgrade the panel, so it will be a while before I'm ready to pull the trigger on this.

Thanks for the support. This is really changing my attitude about switching to Arduino. I didn't want to take the time to learn all the coding details.
 
OK, cool we can give it a go at some point.

Arduino and other similar micro-controllers are perfect for brew controllers, but they are one-trick ponies in terms of flexbility. That's why we made BC... to leverage their strengths but take away the programming overhead and provide much more flexibility.
 
BrunDog said:
:tank:

I am trying to stay out of the hardware game! That said, my next project is to put up some more detailed "shopping lists" and how-to's. I realize we need to tell you what works and where you can get it.

I have created some PC boards to facilitate connecting hardware, such as a thermistor filter/divider board, which will allow thermistors (like those used with BCS or STC1000) to be wired in. I have an RTD platform in the works too. In my video, you can see my handmade thermistor board. I have a legit 4-pack, which @augiedoggy is using, and I am waiting for some 6-pack boards to arrive.
Click to expand...


Understand completely about not wanting to get too much into the hardware side, there is a lot! augiedoggy and yourself have been providing a lot of good information and links to get different things. I am a researchaholic, spend way more time than I should but I like to have a good understanding before taking things on. Money and research are part of the reasons why it will probably be a couple of months before I am ready to move. I look forward to shopping lists and how-to's.

I watched the first video that goes through the software and really like the interface, so I am really looking forward to getting to the point to use this. Initial setup will be for RIMS, but love the idea of the capability to add-on to the brewing process, but also additional features like fermentation chambers, kegerator, etc.
 

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