I'm wondering if it is possible to control a smoke machine connected to an arduino or a raspberry pi via a webpage or an ethernet cable and what the best way is to do so. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
The answer is probably yes either will do the job.
It will be easier to make web pages on the Pi but they can also be done on the Arduino.
Control will be easier on the Arduino but can also be done on the Pi.
The reason I gave a qualified 'yes' is that you did not specify what the interface to the smoke machine is, or what you want to do with it. If you provide links to the smoke machine, particularly technical information on any interfaces it has, along with a description on what you want to do via the webpages, you will get better feedback.
A $4 WiFi ESP8266 based Arduino (WeMos, etc.) could do all of that.
Leo..
Yes, look into the WeMOS or NodeMCU boards.
One of the examples that come with them is an LED controlled over a web page (hosted on the device itself, a simple button for ON and OFF). Use that, replace the LED with your smoke machine switch, and you're done.
thanks for the ideas. I'll try that.
ardly:
The answer is probably yes either will do the job.It will be easier to make web pages on the Pi but they can also be done on the Arduino.
Control will be easier on the Arduino but can also be done on the Pi.The reason I gave a qualified 'yes' is that you did not specify what the interface to the smoke machine is, or what you want to do with it. If you provide links to the smoke machine, particularly technical information on any interfaces it has, along with a description on what you want to do via the webpages, you will get better feedback.
The smoke machine can be controlled through dmx or remote or regular ac current. The goal is that a web page sends a signal to the smoke machine to run for a few seconds and then turn it off again.
Small modification of the LED on/off code will do this.
No idea on DMX interfacing.
AC power can be switched quite straightforwardly using a relay.
ItsDavid2:
The smoke machine can be controlled through dmx or remote or regular ac current. The goal is that a web page sends a signal to the smoke machine to run for a few seconds and then turn it off again.
Switching the AC power to the smoke machine on and off could be done but it sounds incredibly crude and would it really work? When turned on does the machine come up in the correct state and does it require a 'warm-up' period?
If the machine can be controlled through a remote then that would be the simplest way to go and could it could be done from an Arduino with a simple webpage for user interaction.
DMX interfaces are used for controlling light shows involving perhaps hundreds of devices. DMX shields are available for both the Arduino and the PI. DMX offers the ability of going much further than just simple on/off control as you could integrate and synchronise the machine with other devices. If you intend going the DMX route then the PI might be the better choice as it would be more suited to become a DMX master console.