Two new and one existing System2 products will share the same code when they are released.
in32 is a 32 port System2 input board that you can use for connecting sensors, buttons or switches in to the System2 network.
out32 is a System2 32 port LED driver board that drives LED pairs. Use where LED density is high such as in mimic panels for points indicating or displaying the output of block detectors.
The Panel Controller will via a software update share the same code. Unifying the code reduces the support effort and should make for a more consistent feel. The board type is set at code compile time and each of the product types will be able to update independently of the others.
So a Panel Controller has 16 inputs (switch ports) and 116 outputs (LED pairs).
Therefore two Panel Controllers are functionally equivalent to one in32 and one out32.
Which configuration should you use? Whatever is most convenient. You can mix and match freely across your System2 network.
An obvious use case is where you have a station or fiddle yard approach and want to measure occupancy and points position. The high density makes the case for an in32.
A mimic panel displaying block occupancy in addition to the usual points positions is an ideal use case for both an in32 and an out32.
The push to make switch type has changed. We no longer store state information sending an “I’m pressed” network message instead. The state is actually stored on the device being controlled, say a stall motor or servo driver. These will inform the network of the state on start. You can also manually resync with a new “Start of day” button type on the Panel Controllers and in32 boards.
As the state information has been removed from the push to make button type JMAR has an issue as it expects the turnout to be in the states “THROWN” or “CLEAR” and this is not possible.
If you are using switches as inputs to JMRI stick to latching toggle switches, these work fine.
The native MQTT mode works fine with all button types.
Were currently in the final throws of development and testing, so you can expect the release of these boards within the next month.
More details and videos when the products launch.
