[Version 2 Release] RaspberryPints - Digital Taplist Solution

[day_trippr]

I think for most dispensing systems it makes a lot of sense to locate the meters as close to the QDs as possible, as that puts nearly all of the potential thermal differential effects beyond the meter.

Good call.

Cheers!

 

[ratsathome]

Is there away to choose metric in V.2

 

[mcangeli]

Is there away to choose metric in V.2

No.

 

[winovino]

I seem to recall someone saying a higher Ma charger would be required when using the meters but cant seem to locate the post. Does anyone have any info on this? I'm running 4 taps and a motion sensor.

 

[mcangeli]

I seem to recall someone saying a higher Ma charger would be required when using the meters but cant seem to locate the post. Does anyone have any info on this? I'm running 4 taps and a motion sensor.

You should be ok with a 1A charger (a standard iphone charger works great).

 

[mcangeli]

For those who are running V2 WITHOUT flowmeters, if you want, replace the admin/includes/models/taps.php file with the following code:

<?php
class Tap  
{  
	private $_id;  
	private $_beerId;  
	private $_kegId;
	private $_tapNumber;
	private $_pinId;
	private $_og; 
	private $_fg;  
	private $_srm;  
	private $_ibu;  
	private $_startAmount; 
	private $_currentAmount; 
	private $_active;
	private $_createdDate; 
	private $_modifiedDate; 

	public function __construct(){}

	public function get_id(){ return $this->_id; }
	public function set_id($_id){ $this->_id = $_id; }

	public function get_beerId(){ return $this->_beerId; }
	public function set_beerId($_beerId){ $this->_beerId = $_beerId; }

	public function get_kegId(){ return $this->_kegId; }
	public function set_kegId($_kegId){ $this->_kegId = $_kegId; }

	public function get_tapNumber(){ return $this->_tapNumber; }
	public function set_tapNumber($_tapNumber){ $this->_tapNumber = $_tapNumber; }
	
	public function get_pinId() { return $this->_pinId; }
	public function set_pinId($_pinId){ $this->_pinId = $_pinId; }
	
	public function get_og(){ return $this->_og; } 
	public function set_og($_og){ $this->_og = $_og; }
	
	public function get_fg(){ return $this->_fg; }
	public function set_fg($_fg){ $this->_fg = $_fg;}

	public function get_srm(){ return $this->_srm; }
	public function set_srm($_srm){ $this->_srm = $_srm; }

	public function get_ibu(){ return $this->_ibu; }
	public function set_ibu($_ibu){ $this->_ibu = $_ibu; }

	public function get_startAmount(){ return $this->_startAmount; }
	public function set_startAmount($_startAmount){ $this->_startAmount = $_startAmount; }
	
	public function get_currentAmount(){ return $this->_currentAmount; }
	public function set_currentAmount($_currentAmount){ $this->_currentAmount = $_currentAmount; }
	
	public function get_active(){ return $this->_active; }
	public function set_active($_active){ $this->_active = $_active; }
	
	public function get_createdDate(){ return $this->_createdDate; }
	public function set_createdDate($_createdDate){ $this->_createdDate = $_createdDate; }
	
	public function get_modifiedDate(){ return $this->_modifiedDate; }
	public function set_modifiedDate($_modifiedDate){ $this->_modifiedDate = $_modifiedDate; }
	
	public function setFromArray($postArr)  
	{  	
		if( isset($postArr['id']) )
			$this->set_id($postArr['id']);
		else
			$this->set_id(null);
			
		if( isset($postArr['beerId']) )
			$this->set_beerId($postArr['beerId']);
		else
			$this->set_beerId(null);
			
		if( isset($postArr['kegId']) )
			$this->set_kegId($postArr['kegId']);
		else
			$this->set_kegId(null);
			
		if( isset($postArr['tapNumber']) )
			$this->set_tapNumber($postArr['tapNumber']);
		else
			$this->set_tapNumber(null);
			
		if( isset($postArr['pinId']) )
			$this->set_pinId($postArr['pinId']);
		else
			$this->set_pinId('0');
			
		if( isset($postArr['og']) )
			$this->set_og($postArr['og']);
		else if( isset($postArr['ogAct']) )
			$this->set_og($postArr['ogAct']);
		else if( isset($postArr['ogEst']) )
			$this->set_og($postArr['ogEst']);
		else
			$this->set_og(null);
			
		if( isset($postArr['fg']) )
			$this->set_fg($postArr['fg']);
		else if( isset($postArr['fgAct']) )
			$this->set_fg($postArr['fgAct']);
		else if( isset($postArr['fgEst']) )
			$this->set_fg($postArr['fgEst']);
		else
			$this->set_fg(null);
			
		if( isset($postArr['srm']) )
			$this->set_srm($postArr['srm']);
		else if( isset($postArr['srmAct']) )
			$this->set_srm($postArr['srmAct']);
		else if( isset($postArr['srmEst']) )
			$this->set_srm($postArr['srmEst']);
		else
			$this->set_srm(null);
			
		if( isset($postArr['ibu']) )
			$this->set_ibu($postArr['ibu']);
		else if( isset($postArr['ibuAct']) )
			$this->set_ibu($postArr['ibuAct']);
		else if( isset($postArr['ibuEst']) )
			$this->set_ibu($postArr['ibuEst']);
		else
			$this->set_ibu(null);
				
		if( isset($postArr['startAmount']) )
			$this->set_startAmount($postArr['startAmount']);
		else
			$this->set_startAmount(null);
				
		if( isset($postArr['currentAmount']) )
			$this->set_currentAmount($postArr['currentAmount']);
		else
			$this->set_currentAmount(null);
		
		if( isset($postArr['active']) )
			$this->set_active($postArr['active']);
		else
			$this->set_active(false);
		
		if( isset($postArr['createdDate']) )
			$this->set_createdDate($postArr['createdDate']);
		else
			$this->set_createdDate(null);
			
		if( isset($postArr['modifiedDate']) )
			$this->set_modifiedDate($postArr['modifiedDate']);
		else
			$this->set_modifiedDate(null);
	}  
}

This corrects the issue with not being able to tap a new keg if you do not set the pin's for the flowmeters.

 

[day_trippr]

Well, the spec says the current draw is 12 – 36 mA per meter, so four of them worst-case would be around 144mA. The PIR sensor draws a max of 65mA, so the max you're pulling combined is around 210mA. You'd have to work out the math in accordance with your power distribution scheme to see if that puts you close to capacity.

fwiw, I found a 10 watt 5V wall wart with twin USB receptacles to power the RPi and AlaMode on my keezer (along with five temperature probes, six flow meters, and the PIR sensor). I'm sure the receptacles are wired in common so the system has 2A to share, which should be plenty...

Cheers!

 

[day_trippr]

For those who are running V2 WITHOUT flowmeters, if you want, replace the admin/includes/models/taps.php file with the following code:[...]

Would replacing that file on a metered system cause issues?

Cheers!

 

[ratsathome]

No.

Now I'm really

 

[day_trippr]

Now I'm really

The authors decided to release V2 to support the flow meters that many of us were....anxiously....hoping for rather than hold off until the myriad of desired features were coded...

Cheers!

 

[mcangeli]

Would replacing that file on a metered system cause issues?

Cheers!

No.

 

[day_trippr]

No.

Excellent!

Now, about that new index.php
Are there co-requisites?

Cheers!

 

[mcangeli]

Now I'm really

The ability to choose metric was built in to the frame worked version of the code.

Which was working ok without the flow meters.

It required a lot of database changes and other changes to the code to make it work correctly.

In order to get the flow meters working we scrapped the frame worked code (which made customization harder to do anyways) which pushed the database changes and other code changes back.

We felt as a group, that the flow meters were more important.

 

[mcangeli]

Excellent!

Now, about that new index.php
Are there co-requisites?

Cheers!

No. The new index.php can go right in without any other changes.

 

[andrewmalizia]

From what I've read... The power capabilities on the Pi are pretty limited, especially if you are running with a wifi dongle or anything else. I'd suggest another power supply to the Alamode if you think you are having troubles due to power.

From the Alamode site (WyoLum Blog):
Flexible power. Can be powered directly from the Pi, standalone with a battery or wall-wart, or USB power. This is important if your shield takes more power than the Pi can provide or if you want to undock it for standalone operation.

For those who are running V2 WITHOUT flowmeters, if you want, replace the admin/includes/models/taps.php file with the following code:

REMOVED

This corrects the issue with not being able to tap a new keg if you do not set the pin's for the flowmeters.

Thanks! I'll be temporarily using this code until I get an alamode. Working on my brewstand arduino sensors right now.

 

[billybryson54]

Welp, test #2 failed too...new meter placement seemed to make no difference

Keezers current temp is 36 degrees, undisturbed since last night. Ugh....well I guess tomorrow I'll try moving the flowmeters closer to my kegs, maybe a foot off of them like Glacious suggested.

I swear, all this flowmeter "testing" is gonna put me on the liver donation list REALLY quick...




Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[day_trippr]

[...]I swear, all this flowmeter "testing" is gonna put me on the liver donation list REALLY quick...

LOL! Seriously, when I was getting my system running for the first time I was hanging on for dear life by 9PM with plenty of test pours to go

Cheers!

 

[day_trippr]

mcangeli is my hero! He has the tap-a-partial-keg thing working so when you set up 'Pints for the first time you can set up your keg actual volumes and 'Pints will adjust the keg images to match and then the flow meter data will take over from there.

I set up a bunch of different starting volumes on my tapped kegs, the kegs get all colorful 'n' stuff, and the remaining volumes track the pours. How cool is this!

Cheers!

 

[mcangeli]

We're in the process of gathering up screenshots of everyone's Rpints installs to create a gallery... if you've done something out of the ordinary with your rpints install or you just want to share, please email [email protected]

include the screenshot you want and a short description of what you have going on...

 

[HOPtuary]

day_trippr Have you got everything on your system completely up and running?

 

[day_trippr]

day_trippr Have you got everything on your system completely up and running?

In a "physically cobbled together" fashion, yes, the full enchilada is up and running. All six faucets are pouring and registering correctly using the latest RaspberryPints code. A few code modules have been updated since the V2.0 release thanks to mcangeli, they're all playing nicely together and the full functionality of the V2.0 release has been realized.

It's a wonderful thing!

I just need to find the time to make the physical side permanent. Right now wires are everywhere, the Rpi/Alamode are blue-taped to my keezer lid, and the tap list display monitor is perched on top of my tower. Once the last of the hops have been harvested I should be able to get to all that...

Cheers!

 

[HOPtuary]

In a "physically cobbled together" fashion, yes, the full enchilada is up and running. All six faucets are pouring and registering correctly using the latest RaspberryPints code. A few code modules have been updated since the V2.0 release thanks to mcangeli, they're all playing nicely together and the full functionality of the V2.0 release has been realized.

It's a wonderful thing!

I just need to find the time to make the physical side permanent. Right now wires are everywhere, the Rpi/Alamode are blue-taped to my keezer lid, and the tap list display monitor is perched on top of my tower. Once the last of the hops have been harvested I should be able to get to all that...

Cheers!

Very nice!! Im hoping to get it all done this weekend and not pour thru a 1/4 keg of beer haha Thanks for all the hard work from you and the Pints team.

 

[mcangeli]

Very nice!! Im hoping to get it all done this weekend and not pour thru a 1/4 keg of beer haha Thanks for all the hard work from you and the Pints team.

If you have a spare keg, fill it with water and run that for testing...

Fortunately, I have a spare keg at the moment which I hope to rectify soon with a brew day.

 

[HOPtuary]

If you have a spare keg, fill it with water and run that for testing...

Fortunately, I have a spare keg at the moment which I hope to rectify soon with a brew day.

Just filled my spare one last night with a Russian Imperial Stout ive had conditioning for 8 months. Look like im going to have to drink lots of my session ipa clone tomorrow night. Either that or im going to make that DIY beer line cleaner tool that was posted somewhere on here. Wish i hadnt sold that spare of mine.

 

[day_trippr]

Just filled my spare one last night with a Russian Imperial Stout ive had conditioning for 8 months. Look like im going to have to drink lots of my session ipa clone tomorrow night. Either that or im going to make that DIY beer line cleaner tool that was posted somewhere on here. Wish i hadnt sold that spare of mine.

I used my DIY cleaner on and off through the protracted debugging. But there were times I was too lazy to use it and just drank more tests...

Cheers!

 

[HOPtuary]

I used my DIY cleaner on and off through the protracted debugging. But there were times I was too lazy to use it and just drank more tests...

Cheers!

Good thing we all love beer

 

[EGeekBMe]

This is minor and not sure if anyone has mentioned it yet but on "Step 2: Operating System Installation W/Flow Meters" of the BYO page, the link to "SD Association downloads" actually goes to "http://www.raspberrypi.org/downloads" and not "https://www.sdcard.org/downloads/formatter_4".

 

[day_trippr]

So as I'm sitting here winding down with a hefty pour of the blackest stout you can imagine (don't fear the Black Patent! ) it occurred to me that one of my concerns a few months back with the IR sensor used in the Swissflow SF800 meter was whether it could meter liquid coal.

Well, it works just fine...whether poured with straight CO2 or nitro...

Cheers!

 

[mcangeli]

So as I'm sitting here winding down with a hefty pour of the blackest stout you can imagine (don't fear the Black Patent! ) it occurred to me that one of my concerns a few months back with the IR sensor used in the Swissflow SF800 meter was whether it could meter liquid coal.

Well, it works just fine...whether poured with straight CO2 or nitro...

Cheers!

Yea, it does wonderfully with my black IPA or my chocolate stout (which looks like chocolate milk when it pours)

 

[rabeb25]

So I have mine up and running and here are some pictures and things I learned along the way...
my alamode does not like pin 11, it gives me crazy pour data (like 50-70oz at a time)
You must stop the flowmon script if you want to upload or make any changes via the arduino ide. sudo /etc/init.d/flowmon stop.. make sure you restart it after the upload. That burned hours troubleshooting a avr stk 500 error.
If you have a brewpi setup on the pi as well, unplug it(usb to the uno) when trying to upload to the alamode. It will show you having more serial ports, and will default to the uno board, making it really easy to flash over your brewpi...ask me how I know.
I am far from a whiz at this so it took me some trial and error. The instructions are not spot on in a few areas so you have to be ready for some Google fu.

Here is my setup, its not very pretty but it works and its modular and easily moved around, which proved priceless for all the troubleshooting I did.

Started with some dupont cables and cut them, soldering the end to a length of cat5(about 15ft).

Alamode End:

Alamode:

Sensor End:

Sensors:

 

[raysmithtx]

This is a sort of stream of consciousness post...

Now all of my taps are registering phantom pours. Some by the hundreds of ounces overnight. Yesterday I switched out two of my flow meters with 2 brand new ones (not refurbished) and reduced the pressure to 9psi. Those registered phantom pours overnight too.

I reduced the pressure from 12-13 to 9psi as suggested on a previous post. After that, I noticed that the beer lines have visible CO2 bubbles in them now and I'm guessing that it's from an imbalance between the keg pressures and the CO2 regulator. I have purged the kegs a few times to try to get everything at 9psi throughout the entire system. I will keep testing once all the 'air' is out of the lines.

Has anyone tested what happens if the flowmeters turn slightly in reverse? I'm wondering if the pressure from the kegs was greater than the CO2 regulator and maybe the meters got a little backwards motion. Since all of my kegs were at 12-13psi and the regulator was at 9psi maybe the pressure difference created the phantom pours. That would explain why all 6 of my taps registered phantom pours overnight. I may take Rpi out and test that theory if I can't find an easier way to test.

I added a few more fans in the top of my kegerator to move the air around a little better but I don't think the foam is from stratification.

My flowmeters are located 3 feet from the kegs and I have another 9 feet of Bevflex tubing after that for a total of about 12' lines.

I believe the phantom pours and the foam issues are related but I can't be absolutely sure.

I'm open to some suggestions for how to chase this problem and any help would be appreciated.

 

[rabeb25]

What pins are you using? For my setup, when I was using pin 11, I had funky stuff as well. I switched to pins 5-9, and my system was the same today as when i left it last night.

 

[HOPtuary]

rabeb25 where do you guys find the shrink wrap for the wires?

 

[rabeb25]

rabeb25 where do you guys find the shrink wrap for the wires?

I had it around from other projects. I got it from amazon though, its 3m brand the small is 1/8" bigger is 1/4"

 

[billybryson54]

What pins are you using? For my setup, when I was using pin 11, I had funky stuff as well. I switched to pins 5-9, and my system was the same today as when i left it last night.

Well this may explain the issues I'm having too. I've purchased 40 more feet of line, and I'm running an 18 inch length from the QD to the meter (old line) then another 10 feet of new line from the meter to the tap. My keezer was shutoff last night so I can't test of that solves my foam problem till tonight, but my 4th tap isn't registering anything, not even with the python flow-monitor.py test. I thought maybe I got a bad meter. I checked my wiring and the settings on the Alamode, and it's all good. I'm hooked to pins 8,9,10 and 11 and 11 didn't want to read, but I tried 12 and that didn't work either. I'm gonna try other pins tonight.

For what it's worth, this meter came with a black wire, not a red. Wiring should be exactly the same, right?


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[HOPtuary]

I had it around from other projects. I got it from amazon though, its 3m brand the small is 1/8" bigger is 1/4"

Thanks

 

[rabeb25]

Well this may explain the issues I'm having too. I've purchased 40 more feet of line, and I'm running an 18 inch length from the QD to the meter (old line) then another 10 feet of new line from the meter to the tap. My keezer was shutoff last night so I can't test of that solves my foam problem till tonight, but my 4th tap isn't registering anything, not even with the python flow-monitor.py test. I thought maybe I got a bad meter. I checked my wiring and the settings on the Alamode, and it's all good. I'm hooked to pins 8,9,10 and 11 and 11 didn't want to read, but I tried 12 and that didn't work either. I'm gonna try other pins tonight.

For what it's worth, this meter came with a black wire, not a red. Wiring should be exactly the same, right?


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

I have a mixture of red and black on my flows as well. I hooked them up the same. If you look at the 11 pin it has another abbreviation on it(on the alamode), that was my aha moment to try a new pin.

 

[mcangeli]

This is a sort of stream of consciousness post...

Now all of my taps are registering phantom pours. Some by the hundreds of ounces overnight. Yesterday I switched out two of my flow meters with 2 brand new ones (not refurbished) and reduced the pressure to 9psi. Those registered phantom pours overnight too.

I reduced the pressure from 12-13 to 9psi as suggested on a previous post. After that, I noticed that the beer lines have visible CO2 bubbles in them now and I'm guessing that it's from an imbalance between the keg pressures and the CO2 regulator. I have purged the kegs a few times to try to get everything at 9psi throughout the entire system. I will keep testing once all the 'air' is out of the lines.

Has anyone tested what happens if the flowmeters turn slightly in reverse? I'm wondering if the pressure from the kegs was greater than the CO2 regulator and maybe the meters got a little backwards motion. Since all of my kegs were at 12-13psi and the regulator was at 9psi maybe the pressure difference created the phantom pours. That would explain why all 6 of my taps registered phantom pours overnight. I may take Rpi out and test that theory if I can't find an easier way to test.

I added a few more fans in the top of my kegerator to move the air around a little better but I don't think the foam is from stratification.

My flowmeters are located 3 feet from the kegs and I have another 9 feet of Bevflex tubing after that for a total of about 12' lines.

I believe the phantom pours and the foam issues are related but I can't be absolutely sure.

I'm open to some suggestions for how to chase this problem and any help would be appreciated.

I've experienced that myself as well in the past. However, once things leveled out over a time it vanished. I also lowered the psi on my co2 to about 6 (which helped with the foam) and re seated all of the barbed connectors which seemed to help as well.

If there is any chance of air getting in to the lines, it can cause the phantom pours.

I'm checking in to options on how to eliminate or reduce these.

 

[GilSwillBasementBrews]

I've experienced that myself as well in the past. However, once things leveled out over a time it vanished. I also lowered the psi on my co2 to about 6 (which helped with the foam) and re seated all of the barbed connectors which seemed to help as well.



If there is any chance of air getting in to the lines, it can cause the phantom pours.



I'm checking in to options on how to eliminate or reduce these.

Maybe a tee barb with a length of capped line. With the tee facing vertically in line before the meter that way air traveling down the line would filter up it. But then you would need some sort of bleeder to drain the accumulated air out if the line.
Just spit balling here thought I'd throw my two cents in for what they're worth


Sent from somewhere to someone

 

[winovino]

i have a new problem. one of my lines was inconsistent with its readings, ex: sometimes worked fine, sometimes missed entire glass full pours.

I decided to try that meter on a different pin, so i powered down, swapped pins, powered back up and opened the arduino ide, edited the file, made sure alamode was selected, double checked the radio box in serial was ticked, and tried to upload.

i receive this error now evey time i try to upload the sketch:

avrdude: stk500_recv(): programmer is not responding

I have 4 taps hooked up and so far have not been able to get even one to register pour accurately. I either get ghost pours, no pours, or it takes hours for the screen to represent the correct number of pours.

Exacts of my system are: pints set up to display 5 taps (one comming soon, with an unused pin assigned to it since i have to assign one for pints to display it)
4 taps assigned to pins 8-11
pin 11 seems to give me the most trouble, measuring ghost pours all the time, pin 9 seems to not want to recognize pours about half the time, and pins 8 and 10 seem to work most of the time.
i dont have the battery installed in the alamode, i dont know if this makes a difference.
my soldering is nice and clean and my jumpers are all snug and connected
i did a clean install when installing.

I really cant figure out why i'm having so many different problems