WiFi Support for RTC

This Page last updated on .

Downloads

The Next Step - Connecting directly from RTC program to the WIU/WTIU

Running Setup in the RTC Program

	After you start the program, press the [Setup │▼] button. You will see this window.  To enable the RTC WiFi interface, click on the WTIU WiFi [X] Enable check box. RTC will attempt to find all of the WTIU on  your network.  If it works, you will see all of the WTIU in the list box along with their IP addresses and Ports. If that doesn't happen, continue on, otherwise continue with Active TIU selection in the next section.
	If no WTIU appear, check that the smartphone app can access the WTIU. If the app can access the WTIU, click on the Host IP Address tab.
	Click on the downarrow "v" on the dropdown box. RTC will have already tried to find the correct Host IP address.
	If your computer only has one Host IP address, RTC will select it automatically. If there are several, choose the Host IP connected to the network that your WTIU is on. If no Host IP addresses appear, presss the [Scan] button. In this example, my computer is connected to one network. RTC will pick that one automatically. Once you select a Host IP address, RTC will remember your selection.
	In the dropdown, the correct Host IP address has been chosen.
	Then click on the TIU/WTIU Ports tab. Here we are going to pick the WTIU to use. First you need to enable the WTIU WiFi if it is not already enabled. Check on the WTIU WiFi [X]Enable checkbox. If you don't see any WTIU listed, press the [Scan] button.
	All of the available WTIU will show up in the list box. The WTIU identifies itself as "mthdcs-XXXX" where the "XXXX" is a four digit hex number. The ".local" just indicates that it is my local WiFi network. If all of your WTIU don't appear, press the [Scan] button again. (For you techy types, this is side effect of the mDNS Ethernet protocol used to find the WTIU's. Even with the cell phone App, all WTIU's may not be found without repeatedly scanning for them.) You don't have to select anything here. In the next section, you will set the active TIU. When you are done, press [Hide & Save].

The “Select Active TIU” menu from the Setup window

For both Radio COM mode and WTIU WiFi mode, you must tell RTC which TIU numbers are to be used. Press the [Setup │▼] button then press the [Select Active TIU] button. Turn on the TIU numbers to be used by RTC. At least one TIU must be selected.

You can also access this menu from the dropdown arrow on the [Setup │▼] button.

   <--- Showing TIU 4 selected as the active TIU.

In WTIU WiFi mode, the program will display an error message if all of the selected TIU are not found.

In Radio COM mode, this check is not done.

Starting RTC

In WiFi mode, RTC will report an error if a selected WTIU is not found when you press the [Connect] button.

At the main RTC window, you should see the red WiFi indicator and the red WTIU indicator. This means you are not connected via WiFi yet. The TIU spinner is not used at this point but you should select the Active TIU you are using so you get the correct color indication. Press the [Connect] button.

Now the WiFi and WTIU indicators both turn green followed by the TIU and AIU spinners turning green. This indicates that RTC is connected and ready to go. Press the [Read │▼] button to fill the Engine List with all of the engines on your layout, then select an engine and press the [Startup] button. You can learn about the RTC program on this web page: http://www.silogic.com/trains/RTC_Running.html Videos to show you how to get started are here: http://www.silogic.com/trains/RTC_Running.html#get Download the program from here (but V5.0.0 may not be there yet). Email me if you want to beta test it. http://www.silogic.com/trains/RTC_Running.html#RTC_Download

What good is the TIU Spinner now that the [Read │▼] button associates the engine with its TIU number automatically?

The TIU Spinner is the box under the [Setup │▼] button on the RTC main window. You can set a TIU number from 1 to 5.

Since each engine has its TIU number assigned by the [Read │▼] command, the value in the TIU spinner is only used for a few operations.

1. If the TIU number in the Spinner corresponds to the TIU that you are connected to, the spinner, along with the AIU spinner, will light up green.

TIU number 4 shows green as it is the active TIU and is connected --->

2. The TIU spinner (along with the AIU spinner) is used when you open a AIU Control window. AIU window shown below was opened by pressing the [AIU Control │▼] button on the main window above.

3. The TIU spinner is used by some of the debugging and testing commands when the main RTC window is opened up in Debug mode.

Other Changes

Change #1 Handling of Engine Database

In the older versions, RTC could handle 100 engines for each TIU (for a total of 500 engines). The WTIU cannot do this – it handles a total of 97 engines for the entire layout. (Note that the number is 97, not 98, 99, or 100 due to the format of the layout interrogation command – which might be an error in the original TIU software.)

RTC versions v1 to v4 had 5 “EngineDataX.ini” files – now there is one “EngineData.ini” file which holds the information for the 97 engines along with a new piece of information, the TIU number they are associated with. Other than the addition of the TIU number, the format of this file is the same as the older version.

With these changes the [Read │▼] button on the main RTC windows becomes very important. Now, every engine carries along the TIU number where the [Read │▼] button last discovered it. This value defaults to zero so if you try to control an engine before it is discovered, RTC will display an error message. Since the TIU number associated with an Engine is important, the TIU number is displayed along with the engine name in the Engine List and in the Popout Engine List. The TIU number associated with the head engine of a lashup is displayed along with the lashup name in the Lashup List and in the Popout Lashup List.

Once connected, the TIU Spinner shows green and the [Read │▼] button can be pushed.
When the read is complete, the engine list is filled with all found engines on all active TIU.

The Lashup List will show the TIU associated with the head engine of the lashup.
All engines in a lashup must be on the same TIU (unless running in Super TIU mode).

Change #2 All Engine Operation

When you start All Engine Operation, only active engines participate.

In WTIU WiFi mode, RTC effectively sets all TIU into Super TIU mode so all engines on the layout will respond. In Radio COM mode, All Engine Operation works with one TIU only as selected by the TIU Spinner.

Change #3 AIU operation

On an AIU window, if you turn on the “ALL” switch and press an action button, that button will affect all Accessories or all Switches on all AIU on all TIU. This mimics the operation of the App.

The older versions of RTC would affect only the accessories and switches on the TIU displayed. I previously changed it from that to affect only accessories and switches on the one AIU displayed. With help from one of the beta testers, I’ve changed RTC to function more like the App.

The “ALL” switch is reset to off after the action is complete to prevent double action.

You can use the [Make It So] button to set all accessories and all switches on this AIU to the State shown on the grid.

Change #4 Super TIU Mode Menu

You can now access this menu from the dropdown arrow on the [Setup │▼] button as well as the button on the Setup Window.

Change #5 Watchdog Signal Support

I. Generating a watchdog signal manually from the RTC menus using a separate power switch for the siding

II. Generating a watchdog signal from AIU Controls window letting the RTC program control power to the siding

III. Generating a watchdog signal programmatically using the RTC Control Language to control power to the siding

--[[
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Remote Train Control Program for Windows

© Copyright 2025 by Mark DiVecchio

	This file is part of Remote Train Control.

	Remote Train Control is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
	it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by
	the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or
	(at your option) any later version.

	Remote Train Control is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
	but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
	MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
	GNU General Public License for more details.

	You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
	along with Remote Train Control.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.

 Home Page : http://www.silogic.com/trains/RTC_Running.html
---------------------------------------------------------------------------]]
-- Semicolons are not required in Lua code
title = "Watchdog"
require([[defines]]);
require([[functions]]);

--[[
When using this module, all variables (including functions!) must be declared through 
a regular assignment (even assigning nil will do) in a strict scope before being used 
anywhere or assigned to inside a nested scope.
https://github.com/lua-stdlib/strict
]]
local _ENV = require 'std.strict' (_G)	-- strict.lua will detect undeclared global variables
local _;

local MyEngineNo, MyTIUNo;
title = "Watchdog Test"
local iChan, iAIU;
iChan = 8;
iAIU = 1;
--	
-- Note that there is no loop() function in this sketch
-- All actions are initiated by the buttons
--
--[[---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------]]
function setup(Engine, TIU)
	MyEngineNo = Engine;
	MyTIUNo = TIU; 
	--
	print(string.format("setup(): Debug level %d", Debug())); 
		
	print("setup : TIU " .. MyTIUNo .. " Engine " .. MyEngineNo .. " Debug " .. Debug());
	assert((MyTIUNo >= 1 and MyTIUNo <= 5),"TIU Number out of range");	
	print("setup : AIU " .. iAIU .. " Channel " .. iChan);
	
	return true;		-- false=setup failed, true=setup succeeded
	end

--[[---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------]]
function cleanup()
	-- this function is called once when the user presses the [STOP] button or the Stop() function is called
	print("cleanup : TIU " .. MyTIUNo .. " Engine " .. MyEngineNo .. " Debug " .. Debug());		
	local iResult = OffButton();
	return iResult;		-- false=cleanup failed, true=cleanup succeeded
	end
--[[---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------]]
function OnButton()
	print("Track Power On : " .. GetAccName(iChan, iAIU, MyTIUNo));
	-- energize track
	if (Siding(ON, iChan, iAIU, MyTIUNo) == nil) then
		print("Siding Power On failed");
		return false;
		end;
	return true;
end
Function01Name, Function01Label = OnButton, "Track Power On";
--[[---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------]]

function OffButton()
	print("Track Power Off : " .. GetAccName(iChan, iAIU, MyTIUNo));
	-- deenergize track
	if (Siding(OFF, iChan, iAIU, MyTIUNo) == nil) then
		print ("Siding Power Off failed");
		return false;
		end;
	return true;
end
Function02Name, Function02Label = OffButton, "Track Power Off";
--[[---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------]]
function WatchdogButton()
	print("Watchdog : TIU #" .. MyTIUNo);
	-- Send Watchdog signal
	if (Watchdog(MyTIUNo) == nil) then
		print("Watchdog failed");
		return false;
		end;
	return true;
end
Function03Name, Function03Label = WatchdogButton, "Watchdog";
--[[---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------]]

WIU/WTIU Packet

WiFi based RFID Detectors (You can skip the rest of this page if you don't use the RFID Detectors)

 The ESP8266

My Ideas

Ported the RTCNFCIRQ sketch to the ESP8266 - RTCNFCWiFi

Again I have to thank Mike Hewett for reminding me of wirewrap. My original test bed connections were done with what is call "Dupont" wires. These are nothing more than wires with push on connectors on each end. Nice and easy to use but prone to coming loose. Good for prototyping. Mike showed me some of his work using wirewrap. When I started in the computer design business in 1970, wirewrap was still common and acceptable even for production work. Look here : National Advanced Systems. Mike used a hand wirewrap tool but I had a couple of very old Gardner-Denver wirewrap guns. I dug them out and replaced the long dead rechargable battery with 2 D cells and I was off. I used the small green proto board from MPJA.com as a base.

Cost:

ESP8266                                     $5.00
Tag Reader from Elechouse        $34.50 (as of Feb 2024)  If you buy 10, they are $29.00 each.

https://www.elechouse.com/product/pn532-nfc-rfid-module-w-external-antenna-updated-version/

The ESP8266 has enough pins to control two tag readers. I have 13 tag readers on my layout controled by 8 ESP8266.

Signal Name	ESP8266 Pin	Elechouse PN532 RFID Module #0 Pin	Elechouse PN532 RFID Module #1 Pin
VDD/VCC	3V	VDD/VCC	VDD/VCC
GND	G	GND	GND
MOSI	D7	MOSI	MOSI
MISO	D6	MISO	MISO
S Clock	D5	SCL	SCL
IRQ #0	D2	IRQ	--
SS #0	D0	SS	--
IRQ #1	D3	--	IRQ
SS #1	D1	--	SS

        .\esptool.exe  --baud 115200 --port COM3  write_flash --flash_mode qio 0x00000 RTCNFCWiFi.ino.nodemcu.bin

        .\python3\3.7.2-post1\python3 -I .\espota.py -i 192.168.1.114 --auth=esp8266 -f .\RTCNFCWiFi.ino.nodemcu.bin 

RTC RFID Tag Detection Configuration

	After you download the RTCNFCWiFi program into the ESP8266, it will start an Access Point. If you look on your phone, you will see the new WiFi AP listed as RTCRFID. Tounch on that AP to connect to it.
	The phone should connect up and you should see the RTCRFID AP "connected without internet".
	Then startup a web browser such as Firefox or Chrome. Enter this IP address into the Address Bar:  192.168.4.1 . Press GO. You should see this screen which lists all of the accessible routers in the area. Here is were we enter the information that the RTCNFCWiFi program needs to communicate with your computer via the WiFi Router. Enter: The SSID of your router The WiFi password of your router The detector number of this device The number of tag readers connected to this device. Then click on [Setup RFID WiFi].
	You should see this screen indicating that the device is rebooting and will connect up the WiFi Router.

---

WiFi based RFID Detectors on my Layout

I have 8 Detectors with 13 Tag Readers on my layout. I've hidden the 8 Detectors inside of buildings - mostly Plasticville but one 3D printed shed. The readers are mounted under my 3-rail tubular track using black double sided foam tape.

In some of these photos, you can see LED's lit up. The tag reader itself has a red power led and the ESP8266 has a blue led under control of the sketch running. My RTCRFIDWiFi sketch blinks the blue led on each tag detection. You can see these LED through the windows.

All of these ESP8266 NodeMCU devices have Over-the-Air (OTA) programming enabled. With OTA, I can update the sketch running in the device over WiFi directly from the computer running the Arduino IDE. I described how to do that a little furthur back on this web page. Sure better than my previous wired scheme where I had to walk around my layout with my notebook computer and a USB cable, plugging into each ESP8266 one at a time to reload a sketch.

Detector 1 with 1 Tag Reader Attached (I had to make little signs so I could remember which detector was which.) Plasticville Log Cabin

Detector 2 with 2 Tag Readers Attached Plasticville Hobo Shack

Detector 3 with 1 Tag Reader Attached 3D printed Servo Shed - a "Make" on Thingiverse: https://www.thingiverse.com/make:1065442

Detector 4 with 2 Tag Readers Attached Plasticville Manufacturing Company

Detector 5 with 2 Tag Readers Attached Plasticville Signal Tower

Detector 6 with 2 Tag Readers attached is inside a tunnel so a photo of it would be all black!

Detector 9 with 1 Tag Reader Attached Plasticville Cape Cod House

Detector 10 with 2 Tag Readers Attached Plasticville Grocery Store

---

Updated Programs

Tag Programmer        This is the program to run on your PC used to program tags. Requires an ESP8266 and PN532 programmed with the latest RTCNFCWiFi sketch. I've updated this program to use these WiFi connected Tag Detectors. If you need this program now, email me. I'll have it posted here soon.

---