Automated Dust Collection

Arduino and exit(0)
I tried to point out a potential problem. The program flow may not be as desired if the exit (whatever it is supposed to do) is ignored. I'm done.

You make a good point, unfortunately you are not speaking with the creator of the program so it is landing on partially deaf ears.

On another note, I don't think I have ever used exit.

As for me helping fix it. I can, later. It is becoming a larger issue. Perhaps the OP can contact the author for direct assistance?

I attempted to contact the original author a couple of months ago. He hasnt replied. The only way to contact him is by twitter.
This is probably he only project I will do with the arduino.
I wouldnt mind paying someone to rewrite the code or what ever is necessary to make this work. Can you point me in the direction of someone who can do that?

First try replacing the exit statements with break statements. The intent seems to be to break out of the for loop at those points. Worth a try.

for(int i=0;i<NUMBER_OF_TOOLS;i++)
{
 if( checkForAmperageChange(i))
 {
   activeTool = i;
   break;
 }
 if( i!=0)
  {
   if(checkForAmperageChange(0))
   {
     activeTool = 0;
     break;
   }
 }

I tried that, didnt work

Then how about following the suggestion from quite a few posts ago to post the output you see on the Serial monitor (between CODE tags!) around the time you switch on the tool. That could be quite helpful in trying to follow what's happening in that code.

How do I do that?

Just copy/paste from the Serial monitor.

I have to hit the scroll box to stop scrolling, then hit 'crtl a' to select then 'ctrl c' to copy


Miter Saw: 0.07 Amps RMS
Table Saw: 4.02 Amps RMS
Miter Saw: 0.07 Amps RMS
Band Saw: 4.24 Amps RMS
Miter Saw: 0.07 Amps RMS
openGate 0
openGate 1
closeGate 2
openGate 3
closeGate 4
closeGate 5
turnOnDustCollection

Miter Saw: 0.07 Amps RMS
Table Saw: 3.83 Amps RMS
Miter Saw: 0.07 Amps RMS
Band Saw: 4.05 Amps RMS
Miter Saw: 0.07 Amps RMS

Miter Saw: 5.43 Amps RMS
Table Saw: 4.19 Amps RMS
Miter Saw: 5.40 Amps RMS
Band Saw: 4.62 Amps RMS
Miter Saw: 5.36 Amps RMS

Miter Saw: 5.36 Amps RMS
Table Saw: 4.37 Amps RMS
Miter Saw: 5.36 Amps RMS
Band Saw: 4.11 Amps RMS
Miter Saw: 5.36 Amps RMS

Miter Saw: 5.36 Amps RMS
Table Saw: 4.38 Amps RMS
Miter Saw: 5.36 Amps RMS
Band Saw: 4.15 Amps RMS

it isnt sending a signal to the relay to turn the dust collector on.

Is this still the issue?

I wired up a test circuit on my Uno and ran the code from post #6. I used a LED on pin 11 to watch the dust collector relay output. When one of the analog inputs goes high the LED does turn on and then LED turns off, after a delay, when the input is brought low. So, the code seems to be working. If the relay is not turning on it is looking like a hardware problem.

Ok. Stupid question. Does the led go on pin 11 and ground

I connected a led to pin 11 and ground. The led came on as soon as I connected it

Are all of the analog inputs that you are using at near 0V? If any are floating (or high) that could turn on the LED.

@gladewater2016, any chance of posting pictures of your setup?

I added a picture of my setup.

Why no power for the Arduino? They don't tend to work well without.

woops. Power now

sorry. uploaded wrong pic

The analog inputs A2 and A3 are floating so may be reading high enough to be mistaken for a tool on condition, Ground the unused analog inputs and try your code.