My FULL-ON electric build thread

[TheFlyingBeer]

The LCD key/switch breakout panel is working like a champ during my bench testing. This board breaks out 5 ports for the HLT, MLT, BK, Pump 1, and Pump 2 LCD keys. It also provides connections for the switches and dials for those same items. A 12VDC to 24VDC step up converter (blue board) provides power to turn the contactor on in the power control box. This 24V output is controlled by the black relay to the right which requires the following to be turned on:
1. All element/pump control switches are in Off position to initially energize (my safe start feature)
2. The emergency stop is not activated.

The red LED next to the relay shows that it is on. I tested both the conditions above and it works perfectly. The three other red LEDs at the bottom middle of the board indicate that it has proper +3.3V, +5V, and +12VDC supplies.

Next I have to make cables to connect between this board and the other 4 LCD keys and then wire up the switches and dials.

 

[TheFlyingBeer]

Quick update. The LCD keys are fully functional using a native control GUI, I will be working to implement a control program in my own code soon.

The camera has a hard time seeing the text in each switch, oh well.

Wiring up the switches and dials are next.

 

[DannyD]

The LCD key/switch breakout panel is working like a champ during my bench testing. This board breaks out 5 ports for the HLT, MLT, BK, Pump 1, and Pump 2 LCD keys. It also provides connections for the switches and dials for those same items. A 12VDC to 24VDC step up converter (blue board) provides power to turn the contactor on in the power control box. This 24V output is controlled by the black relay to the right which requires the following to be turned on:
1. All element/pump control switches are in Off position to initially energize (my safe start feature)
2. The emergency stop is not activated.

The red LED next to the relay shows that it is on. I tested both the conditions above and it works perfectly. The three other red LEDs at the bottom middle of the board indicate that it has proper +3.3V, +5V, and +12VDC supplies.

Next I have to make cables to connect between this board and the other 4 LCD keys and then wire up the switches and dials.

Nice to see I am not the only one with beer caps all over my work bench

 

[illin8]

Quick update. The LCD keys are fully functional using a native control GUI, I will be working to implement a control program in my own code soon.

The camera has a hard time seeing the text in each switch, oh well.

Wiring up the switches and dials are next.

SICK build!!!:rockin:

 

[Chriso]

Um. Your "breakout" board. Is that custom screened? Or an off the shelf product?

It's not every day I see a circuit board with "RDWHAHB" on it. That is so awesome I might wet myself.

 

[TheFlyingBeer]

Um. Your "breakout" board. Is that custom screened? Or an off the shelf product?

It's not every day I see a circuit board with "RDWHAHB" on it. That is so awesome I might wet myself.

It is a board that I custom designed, the RDWHAHB and flying bottle logo are my little signatures on it. There should be some details earlier in this thread. Glad you enjoy.

 

[Chriso]

Well it's awesome, so good on you. I didn't see the logo at first, thanks for pointing it out. Yeah I confess, I skipped a couple posts in the middle of the thread, Wanted to get towards the real money shots. I'll catch up soon. Thanks for the reply. Happy brewin' to ya!

 

[everty2007]

Just found this thread and all i can say is fricken awesome! Nice work, when its all done you should post a video brewing a batch with it. very nice cheers!

 

[TheFlyingBeer]

Just found this thread and all i can say is fricken awesome! Nice work, when its all done you should post a video brewing a batch with it. very nice cheers!

I will definitely make some videos once it is actually functional.

It has been a very busy month and not as much has been accomplished on this project as I would like. I am done wiring up the control panel for all of the functions needed to begin basic brewing.

My main focus for the last week or so has been code for the main microcontroller. So far I have routines to read all of the temperature sensors, turn on solenoid valves, and output PWM for the heating elements. Once I wrap a few more items into the code I will be brewing a few extract beers to replenish my stocks before the remaining items are coded and I can start AG.

No pictures for this updated but I will be sure to show some for the next.

 

[hatfieldenator]

Wow, this thing is awesome! Nice work!

 

[TheFlyingBeer]

I promised pictures but there isn't a whole lot of physical items to show just yet.

A significant amount of progress has been made on both the microcontroller and LabVIEW code:

• Any number of DS18B20 sensors can be read, there are 8 1-wire channels which could each support a maximum 255 sensors... don't think I will run out of capacity soon. Currently I have four wired in for testing. Each sensor is polled once a second and the results are sent to the LabVIEW controller for handling/display.
• All of the switches and manual dials on the front panel are read into the microcontroller and then a status message is sent to LV.
• PWM outputs for the HLT, HEX, and BK SSRs are functioning properly.
• Serial comms and error handling between the micro and labview works well.

The control panel is completely wired for my initial uses, everything checks out great so far. The power panel is nearly finished, just need to wire up a few neon 240V indicators for each element output.

• The safe-start feature works perfectly! The 240V contactor in the power control module can only be enabled when all element/pump switches are set to off and the emergency stop button is released. Once started it is only disabled by turning off the control panel or hitting the e-stop.
• The front panel alarm physically works, just need to determine where in the process to use it.
• All connections between the control panel and the power panel are working correctly.

The RO/DI system plumbing is 95% complete, the 4 remaining fittings should arrive by Wednesday. A couple extra parts needed for the solenoid valve control should also come this week.

I ordered some ingredients for a couple extract brews and a partial mash to get me started on this new control panel. From there I will move into AG once my pumps and the remainder of the system is completed. Hopefully I will be producing beer again by next week, I haven't brewed for almost a year now .

 

[allclene]

Nice job! I just read thru the hole thread and have to say I like the concept. Have you thaught of using a plc to control this masterpiece or are you happy with your processor interface? I know labview interfaces with plc's nicely. I've done it before an am working on my own automated rig using an allen bradley and labview.

 

[aquenne]

Hey had a question about your digital temp sensors..

i bought the same ones, and im looking to hook them up to a NI myDAQ (http://www.studica.com/ca/en/National-Instruments-students-ni-labview-mydaq/ni-mydaq/781327-01.html) and using its digital in's
and finally using labview to provide an analog input for an SSR.

Im treading new ground with this. Not an electrical guy, this is for a mechatronics class. Do you see any pitfalls? Should i go analog with the sensors? (thermistors). I beleive I would need a wheatstone bridge to then convert the resistance to voltage.

 

[TheFlyingBeer]

Have you thaught of using a plc to control this masterpiece or are you happy with your processor interface? I know labview interfaces with plc's nicely. .

The originally concept for this was to be entirely controlled by a microcontroller, then came the feature creep. I think PLC(s) would be a fine replacement but they wouldn't give me the exact flexibility I have with the mcu approach. Much of the reasoning behind building all of this custom equipment was to learn how to build it, that is a big part of the fun of this hobby for me.

Hey had a question about your digital temp sensors..

i bought the same ones, and im looking to hook them up to a NI myDAQ (http://www.studica.com/ca/en/National-Instruments-students-ni-labview-mydaq/ni-mydaq/781327-01.html) and using its digital in's
and finally using labview to provide an analog input for an SSR.

Im treading new ground with this. Not an electrical guy, this is for a mechatronics class. Do you see any pitfalls? Should i go analog with the sensors? (thermistors). I beleive I would need a wheatstone bridge to then convert the resistance to voltage.

Without knowing anything about that NI myDAQ I will offer a couple words of caution. The 1-wire protocol used for the DS12B20's requires microsecond resolution timing to implement in software, this may be difficult using LV and that DAQ. On my first iteration I performed all of the 1-wire routines by bit-banging in SW and it used way too many processor cycles. My design now uses a DS2482-800 I2C to 1-Wire bridge which has greatly simplified the code and eased the burden of the processor. You may want to look into a standalone 1-wire converter or use a different sensor for your project... There are several sensors that output a voltage reference relative to the temperature, the DAQ should read that just fine, no wheatstone bridge required.


As far as a project update goes, I finished up the water supply lines and drains last night. The only thing left for the plumbing is to finish the solenoid valve wiring.

Tonight I soldered the DC relays for the solenoid valve controls onto the embedded processor board. I also wrote some test code to cycle them off and on. I just need to wire up connects to the external outputs and implement the controls in LabVIEW. Might be ready to perform a plumbing test by Sunday.

 

[allclene]

Hey had a question about your digital temp sensors..

i bought the same ones, and im looking to hook them up to a NI myDAQ (http://www.studica.com/ca/en/National-Instruments-students-ni-labview-mydaq/ni-mydaq/781327-01.html) and using its digital in's
and finally using labview to provide an analog input for an SSR.

Im treading new ground with this. Not an electrical guy, this is for a mechatronics class. Do you see any pitfalls? Should i go analog with the sensors? (thermistors). I beleive I would need a wheatstone bridge to then convert the resistance to voltage.

your daq should work just fine for this type of application. However, you might want to check to see if your daq will accept a 2 wire thermocouple directly to the daq analog input (I don't know what daq you have). if it has that capability, labview will see this fast enough and be pretty accurate. i have done this at work before and it works good enough for acceptance testing.

 

[allclene]

coudles FB on your logic for using the mc instead of a plc. You gotta love a good challenge!

 

[WhtHawk]

Extremely impressive! Your LabVIEW synoptic display is beautiful; I hope to build one of my own some day. I look forward to your continued updates.

 

[goingmad]

Awesome! I'm sorry to have found your build history just today, but I'm very impressed from the pro attitude you've put into this build from the very first day. Your control panel makes me speechless!

subscribed!

gm

 

[ScubaSteve]

Very nice. I've seen a LOT of brewery builds, and this one has to be at the top of the list. Not only are you using a very advanced system of controls, you're one of a very few who have used peristaltic pumps. Great work

 

[TheFlyingBeer]

Very nice. I've seen a LOT of brewery builds, and this one has to be at the top of the list. Not only are you using a very advanced system of controls, you're one of a very few who have used peristaltic pumps. Great work

Thanks!

I decided to sneak in a test extract batch tonight (NB White House Honey Ale) to put the equipment through its paces before Sandy shuts this coast down. It has been over a year since I brewed last, first time since Oct 18th 2011.

For this brew I have my RO/DI system fully functional including touchscreen control of the solenoid valves. The control panel to power panel connection is also fully functional. I made a quick and dirty interface for the pump which lets me set the RPMs manually. At about 60RPM the pump was moving a good amount of sanitizer through my filter and chiller:

The stepper motor noise is a bit annoying but overall I am pleased with the end result. I shot a brief video of the pump in action, it will be posted in the next couple of days.

15 minutes left of the boil right now.

 

[BadNewsBrewery]

Your setup is amazing! Are you accepting spectators? I'm apparently not too far from you, unless we all wash away from Sandy!
-Kevin

 

[StainlessBrewing]

Very nice!

 

[annoyingrob]

The stepper motor noise is a bit annoying but overall I am pleased with the end result.

Half-step it. Hell, 16th step it. you'll quiet it down a fair bit.

 

[TheFlyingBeer]

Can't believe it has been over a month since my last post, work is taking priority right now

Half-step it. Hell, 16th step it. you'll quiet it down a fair bit.

I half step currently. There is a trade-off between microstepping and torque, especially at higher RPMs. Now that the control software is becoming stable I will try a few different microstepping options to see what produces adequate torque while making the motor quiet and smooth.

I purchased a Chugger SS pump to use for CIP and sanitizing. It is mounted under the bottom shelf of my stand:

When I ran out of kegged beer I completely tore apart my keezer down to every washer fitting. Cleaned it all and reassembled and then pressure tested. Made a keg of Rootbeer and tonight I am kegging a Honey Ale.

The brewing room was a bit disorganized so I bought some sliding drawers to sort out all the various parts:

Very satisfied with the results, no longer will I be digging through boxes to find the right item during brewing.

While trying to expand the functionality of the system I found a couple of HW errors on one of my PCBs. Turns out the board house I outsourced to had difficulty with my close signal lines. A couple of the lines were shorted together. Didn't take too much to fix the HW issues. I have also been working on the LabVIEW SW portion of the brewery. The brewery controller can now tell if a temperature sensor has been disconnected, temperature values will hold for 10 seconds before becoming disabled. The solenoid valve controls are also almost compete.

I have the week of Christmas off and my goal is to brew 3-4 batches to catch up. I also intend to keep working on the software.

 

[Brewer Gerard]

Just wondering FB, do you have a way of automating your strike volume, if your hlt is not being filled by the pumps the tachs on the steppers won't be able to estimate this for you

 

[runs4beer]

Just wondering FB, do you have a way of automating your strike volume, if your hlt is not being filled by the pumps the tachs on the steppers won't be able to estimate this for you

Not FB but I have contemplated the use of digital scales under the all 3 vessels to calculate liquid volumes. Would this type of input work with Lab View (I believe that's the platform you're using)? If so I would think it would be very precise way to set strike volumes, track boil off rates and fine tune the sparge. Thoughts?

 

[emjay]

Not FB but I have contemplated the use of digital scales under the all 3 vessels to calculate liquid volumes. Would this type of input work with Lab View (I believe that's the platform you're using)? If so I would think it would be very precise way to set strike volumes, track boil off rates and fine tune the sparge. Thoughts?

To use mass to calculate volumes, you're going to need the specific gravity of the liquid at any given moment in order to account for differences in density.

 

[TheFlyingBeer]

I will eventually have a way of metering the strike volume, actually two ways. The plumbing plan has strike water leaving the HLT and traveling through the HEX coil in the HERMS tank before hitting the top of the grains. The peristaltic pumps might prove accurate enough to measure strike volume.

I also have a backup in the works. Check out the ultrasonic liquid level sensor I picked up a couple years ago from eBay. Eventually I found three in total, one for the HLT, MLT, and BK. The HEX tank has a simple float switch for level control. My control board is built to accept the 4-20mA current loop sensors. All that is left is some cabling, mounting, and calibration.

 

[Tiber_Brew]

Great work!

 

[aquenne]

Just wondering, any updates?