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The Aristo Doodle Bug gets RCS battery R/C & Phoenix sound

Electronics Power and Sound
#1

A very good customer has decided to add an AristoCraft Doodle Bug to his roster. Naturally it will have battery R/C and Phoenix sound. Here is how I did it.

First up I drilled holes in the floor for a Phoenix oval speaker. Then I mounted two 7.2 volt 2,500 mah Sub C NiCd packs on the side wall. I used spacers to hold them proud enough so that the two cargo doors could still be opened and closed to gain access to the charge jack and ON-OFF switch etc. Next up was to install a sheet of styrene glued to the speaker magnet and a vertical upright to stabilise it.

The two part RCS BTL-3rA ESC and Spektrum AR500 RX plugged in upside down were stuck to the styrene sheet with silicone roof and gutter sealant. The ON-OFF switch/fuse assembly was glued to the floor at the R/H door. The Phoenix sound was also glued to the floor towards the front of the compartment.

I had to fabricate a small styrene frame to hold the Phoenix programming jack and volume control. This was mounted just inside the L/H door. Screw terminals made wiring up a simple job. The ON-OFF switch is readily accessible.

As are the Phoenix components on the other side.

The most difficult wiring was adding a reversing light at the back of the pass compartment.

All that was then needed was to put the ends back and the roof on. Easier said than done, but practice made perfect after the two or three times I had to do it because I had forgotten to plug in the headlight and then forgot to place the sliding doors in the grooves. Like all AC 2 axle locos this runs superbly. They do get somethings right y’know. Range is not a problem thanks to the 2.4 GHz R/C.

#2

Nice clean looking install Tony. The post title is a bit odd though :slight_smile:

#3
TonyWalsham said:
Range is not a problem thanks to the 2.4 GHz R/C.
Man, one could drive it from 5 blocks down the road :D Neat idea having switches behind baggage doors.
#4

so what is for sale?

#5

Um err !!!

I have no idea how that happened.

Perhaps Bob would kindly change the title to read as follows;

The Aristo Doodle Bug gets RCS battery R/C & Phoenix sound.

#6

With a mere motion of my hand…

#7

Thanks Bob.

#8

(http://www.beltrol-rc.com/Pics/Installations/Doodle-Bug/4.ON-OFF-switch.jpg)

Tony…in the picture above, the on/off switch, charging jack and terminals strips are obvious, but what do the other components on the circuit card accomplish…filtering, rectifying, voltage drop? I’m new to this and trying to understand function. Thanks Howard Maculsay

#9

Hello Howard. The LED indicates the system is ON. The three orange “things” are 1 amp POLYSWITCH fuses for 3 amp system protection. Another pic:

(http://www.beltrol-rc.com/store/image/Accessories/Installation%20kits/BIK-TC-2.jpg)

Instructions on how to use it: http://www.beltrol-rc.com/PDF/Acessories/Installation-kits/BIK-TC2-3.pdf

#10

Tony which Phoenix system have you used? Is it totally automatic or do you have the ability to blow the whistle and sound the bell at your will?

#11

Ric.

It is the P8.
Engine revs are controlled by the ESC ouput voltage like all dismals.

I left the directional horn toots when starting as automatic, but the other sounds can be played.
The RCS speed controller has four sound triggers so it can be set up to use four of the five sounds available on the P8.

#12
TonyWalsham said:
Ric.

It is the P8.
Engine revs are controlled by the ESC ouput voltage like all dismals.

I left the directional horn toots when starting as automatic, but the other sounds can be played.
The RCS speed controller has four sound triggers so it can be set up to use four of the five sounds available on the P8.


Tony…do you think it’ll work with the Phoenix Model 96/97 BigSound board??

Howard

#13

The current RCS speed controller will definitely work with all Phoenix sound systems.
Exactly how it would be wired I am not sure but it will not need any extra motor “noise” supression.
I am not sure how many sound triggers the 96/97 Phoenix pcb has.

#14
TonyWalsham said:
The current RCS speed controller will definitely work with all Phoenix sound systems. Exactly how it would be wired I am not sure but it will not need any extra motor "noise" supression. I am not sure how many sound triggers the 96/97 Phoenix pcb has.
Tony; According to the Phoenix BigSound 97 installation guide, the sound board has 4 triggers... 1. Chuff trigger, 2. Crossing whistle trigger, 3. Bell trigger, and 4. Doppler trigger.

I’m seriuosly considering your RCS speed contoller, since I already own Spektrum DX6 and have extra receivers.

#15

There will be two ways of using the Phoenix sound.

  1. You leave it as it was designed to be used and it reads the motor driver output. This will probably mean using relays to trigger the sound and the sound will go off after the programmed delay when the motor(s) stop.
  2. You eliminate the Phoenix battery and power the sound with the traction batteries. This permits the sound to stay on when idling and eliminates the relays for triggers. The triggers are simply wired to the correct terminals.

The RCS system will work just fine with regular Spektrum DX6 as long as the pin spacing on the servo terminals is the normal 1/10" and not the wider spacing found on the newer Spektrum RX’s such as the AR6110 series. They work the same but the AR6110 will not plug in upside down on the decoder part of the ESC.

#16
TonyWalsham said:
There will be two ways of using the Phoenix sound. 1. You leave it as it was designed to be used and it reads the motor driver output. This will probably mean using relays to trigger the sound and the sound will go off after the programmed delay when the motor(s) stop. 2. You eliminate the Phoenix battery and power the sound with the traction batteries. This permits the sound to stay on when idling and eliminates the relays for triggers. The triggers are simply wired to the correct terminals.

The RCS system will work just fine with regular Spektrum DX6 as long as the pin spacing on the servo terminals is the normal 1/10" and not the wider spacing found on the newer Spektrum RX’s such as the AR6110 series. They work the same but the AR6110 will not plug in upside down on the decoder part of the ESC.


Well, lucky me…the RXs I have are the Spektrum AR6000 series and they do measure 1/10" spacing.