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[on:]

Hey Guys,

Okay, I'm a n00b, I'll put that out there right now.  I'm just wondering if I have something that needs 3 different functions: 1 Static light, and 2 separate blinking lights, is it POSSIBLE to have all of these run off of ONE IR signal or multiple IR signals?

Any suggestions...oh, and I want the IR transmitter to fit something like the Arduino nano...is that feasible?

[Reply #1 on:]

If you mean that you want to have some lights connected to your Arduino, and use an IR signal to command the Arduino to turn them on and off and blink them, that seems feasible (but will require you to provide something to send the IR signal, and find or write code to enable the Arduino to decode the IR signal it receives). If you mean something else, you need to clarify that.

I don't know what you mean by having the IR transmitter 'fit' the Arduino Nano.

[Reply #2 on:]

IR signals are sent as coded sequences, much like Morse code is.  Here is one of the tutorials on IR codes: http://www.righto.com/2009/08/multi-protocol-infrared-remote-library.html

Now, whether or not the various IR libraries have been ported to the nano, I don't know.  I know in some of them, due to trying to handle all of the different remote controls out in the world, take quite a bit of memory space, which might be problematical for the AVR's with limited memory.  The library I linked to uses the PWM interrupt, which may be different on the nano (or you might want to use PWM on your own).

I haven't looked in detail at the libraries, but it is possible that the Arduino is locked up while it is waiting for the next command.  That may be a problem for your blinking lights.

If you only had 2 buttons you were interested in, Sparkfun sells a programmable IR receiver that is a separate chip, and it raises one of two pins, depending on the button pressed.  It has a learning function, so you can record two different key sequences.  I just ordered it, so I don't have any experience with it.  https://www.sparkfun.com/products/8753

Now, the company that makes the SIS-2 also makes a SIS-7C chip which supports 7 different buttons, which sounds like it might be more useful to you.  Here is a link to their order page: http://www.simerec.com/order.html

[Reply #3 on:]

Hi, a lot of IR How-To here: http://arduino-info.wikispaces.com/IR-RemoteControl

The "Transmitter" is just an IR LED connected to Arduino with a series resistor (typically 150 ohms). That's IF you want the Arduino to be the remote transmitter, sending to another Arduino which has the IR receiver.

Is that what you want to do??

[Reply #4 on:]

Essentially I need the following:

A controller that, when power to one device is activated, that will send a signal -via IR- to another controller that will light up a series of LEDs.

Here's the extra question:
If 2 devices are activated, is it possible to send 2 different IR signals using 1 IR LED?  If not, would it possible to use the same RECEIVER to run a code to make 1 device's LED indicators to light and stay on AND another's LED indicators to blink.

I know the static and blinking lights are all code, but can it work?

[Reply #5 on:]

Consider your TV remote control.  It only has one light for signalling (*), and it has 10-30 different buttons on the remote. and different modes (TV, VCR, DVD, cable), and of those modes, it has support for hundreds of different devices.  So it might be able to send out hundreds or thousands of different signals.  Your TV may only recognize 10 signals, and your DVD 10 different signals.  If you send out a TV signal, the DVD will just ignore the signals, waiting for the signals it knows about.

So yes, in your remote device, you would listen for IR signals.  If you get the first signal you start the code to turn on the LED.  If you get it again, you turn off the LED.  If you get the second signal, you start the sequence to blink the second LED.  Now, just using the IR receiver hooked directly to the Arduino will be somewhat tricky coding, since you want to blink the light and wait for an IR sequence.  It can be done, but the normal IR libraries assume you can wait for a new command.

The SIS-2 and SIS-7c chips makes it simpler in that it moves off of the Arduino, the task of recognizing the IR sequence, and you just read a pin to see whether a particular sequence was sent.  To my mind, that simplifies the programming.  But it is possible to do it without the chips.

* Some remotes actually have two lights, one that is that is focused on a small pinpoint to get the most distance, and a second that is dispersed so it can cover a wider area, but not as far.  However, since both lights are sending the same signal, they count as one light.