Preston Meyer Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 Servo dogs have 6 "Digital Inputs". Do they control 6 different things? And / or how do they get programmed?? I haven't seen anything that really talks about how to use them or why there are 6 of them, including the "user manual" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randy Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 Preston,I use a separate Servodog controller to operate an animated snowman and snowwoman...They each have several servos that are used to control their movement, and the Servodog controller operates those servos...A servo has a scale of operation or travel, such as 1400 - 2000 counts and that corresponds to LOR 0 to 100%... I do the initial programming using the Trackskull software to get the movement I want, and then import it into the LOR sequence editor to play with a little and then fine tune... Does that help answer your question? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Preston Meyer Posted August 26, 2015 Author Share Posted August 26, 2015 Thanks for the answer. I have been using my servo dogs for 3 axis head movements, vocalizations, & body (arms, & hands) movements for my Haunted House props for some time. The question still is what are the 6 input channels used for? I know that you can trigger an animation sequence downloaded to the servo dog but why are there 6 of them? Seems that there is something missing in the documentation relating to their possible uses. (like triggering more than one sequence? or turning on/off specific outputs? Anybody have any input??? (pun intended) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EmmienLightFan Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 I think they are for digital inputs, not just analoug ones like the InputPUP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k6ccc Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 All I use my two ServoDogs for is inputs, so I should be able to answer your question. I use several interactive sequences in my year round landscape lighting plus another trigger to start the show. My landscape lighting mostly uses 16 channel DC controllers and although each one has two input ports, only one is supported and that only for use with stand alone sequences. Therefore, the ServoDog was the only board that would provide the inputs I needed. At this time I am using four inputs for interactive triggers and one to start my show. I will be adding another one when I complete some concrete work in the yard, and if I can figure out a good way to do a show shutdown based on a trigger, I will do that too. In case you are wondering why I bought ServoDogs for the inputs only instead of InputPups, that one is easy - the InputPup had not been introduced yet. I did buy two InputPups this spring and replaced one of my ServoDogs, and when the weather is cooler I will replace the other one (it's in my attic where the daytime temperatures are over 130 degrees). I found out the hard way that you can't read the inputs on an Enhanced LOR network which was part of why I bought them. Ended up having to run a second network out to the front yard as a result of that. BTW, the inputs on both the ServoDog and InputPup are the same. In both cases you get either an on or off, not an analog reading. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denny Posted August 27, 2015 Share Posted August 27, 2015 Hoping LOR will take a hard look at their documentation now that the new version of LOR has been released. I, too, have had a servo dog for several years; it's still in the box. I tried to figure it out on a couple occasions and just gave up. Asked last year if LOR had plans to review their manuals and was told after the release of LOR 4, so hope that still holds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k6ccc Posted August 27, 2015 Share Posted August 27, 2015 I can't help you with servo control as I've never used a ServoDog for that purpose, but if it's help for using the inputs, that I should be able to help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Preston Meyer Posted August 27, 2015 Author Share Posted August 27, 2015 I agree on the documentation. I even sent in a help ticket about the erratic operation of the utility.What I'm still missing is how do you get an "input" trigger signal to start another action or output. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k6ccc Posted August 27, 2015 Share Posted August 27, 2015 The only part that the ServoDog cares about is reading the input - and therefore, that is all that is addressed in the ServoDog manual. After that it's up to the show computer, and how you configure your show. To test that, use the Hardware Utility with the checkmark next to Test Mode for Test Inputs. You should be able to see the input status change for the input as you short various inputs to ground. Inputs can be be triggered by either by a short from the input to ground or by a lack of a short (depending on how you configure it - done from the Config section of the Hardware Utility). After you have mastered seeing an input change state using the hardware utility, you need to tell the Show editor what to do with the inputs. In my case, I use an input trigger to start my evening show. That is set on the Options tab in the show editor. Check the box for "Show starts on a trigger", then set the Network, Unit ID, and Input Number that is connected to whatever you want to start the show. In my case I have a light sensor that starts the show when it gets dark. I also use interactive triggers to start certain sequences within my show. Specifically I have lights on my front porch steps. These lights are triggered when someone either opens the front door or approaches the steps from the driveway or the future walkway. I'm not going to try to explain interactive groups - read the manual sections on the interactive tab of the Show Editor and in particular the section on interactive groups. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Preston Meyer Posted August 27, 2015 Author Share Posted August 27, 2015 Great!! the interactive group thing is apparently where I am missing the boat. Been around since before "license levels" but never checked that part of the manual!!!!! Thanks again, may get back to you if it's not getting through my synapses still. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k6ccc Posted August 27, 2015 Share Posted August 27, 2015 Read that part a couple times and it should make sense. Getting your head around the different types of interactive groups can take a bit. For what I'm doing, the jukebox type works perfect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jstorms Posted August 31, 2015 Share Posted August 31, 2015 I recently bought a servo dog and found this near the front of the documentation.Sooo that would mean the documentation hasn't been updated in a minimum of 5 years? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k6ccc Posted August 31, 2015 Share Posted August 31, 2015 The firmware has not been updated in years either. I note with some humor that if you buy a ServoDog, it has firmware firmware version 1.03, but if you go to the LOR website looking for firmware updates, the latest is 1.02. Been that way for several years. I even turned in a help desk report about that a couple years ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dennis Laff Posted September 1, 2015 Share Posted September 1, 2015 Well you can't teach and old dog new tricks anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jstorms Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 Documentation was good enough do get it working, although I think I went backwards thru to doc. Made sure to use my multimeter to make sure voltage was what I thought it should be at various points. I almost cut the connector off a servo until I realized it fit almost just right on the servo block. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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