Andrew Pringle FORWARD OVERHEAD FOR PROSIM = v1.1
Aug. 2013
Please read the notes below to familiarise yourself with connection and operation
NOTES on BBI-32 & Inputs Remember You Need Direct Input Checked In Prosim
There are 3 cards fitted to this forward overhead panel. They are termed 1, 2 & 3. Card 1
is fitted in the lower part of the panel, just above the Anti Coll/Wing Light Switches. Card 2
is the lower card in the stacked set. And finally card 3 is the top card of the stack.
NOTES On PHIDGETS CARDS Remember You Need Phidgets Support Checked In Prosim
You will need to download and install the PHIDGETS Drivers from
http://www.phidgets.com/docs/Operating_System_Support
Make sure that they are configured to start with Windows at Boot Up. In the software,
check the card is set to deliver 2.75v at 20mA which I think is the default anyway.
PHIDGETS OUTPUTS are numbered 0 to 63 (not 1 to 64) = Total 64 Outputs per card
Intensity of LED Output for each colour can be set in the PROSIM configuration menu.
Card 1 is the Lower of the 2 cards in the stack and 2 is the upper one.
Green LED’s will need to be set at a high output while Blue being very efficient will need to be
set at a lower setting. You can set the High and Low Settings in the PROSIM Config Menu
page also for ‘in transit’ & ‘do not agree’ situations.
NOTES On Trailing Wires
There are two sets of coiled trailing wires coming off the forward Overhead. These are:
1.
There is a Red & Black set of wires coming off the overhead. These are the 5v
supply for the displays and the POLOLU card. This supply can be accessed from a PC
Power Supply Unit. The RED wire is connected to 5vdc and the BLACK wire is
connected to the GND. Where a resistor is required to protect the LED or Display,
this has been placed ‘in-line’ and the supply wires can safely be attached to 5vdc.
Please see the wiring diagram near the end of the document.
2.
There is a set of 3 wires being Red, Black and Yellow coming off the panel. These
are connected to the 100Kohm potentiometers in the Panel Dimmer Control in the
Centre Pillar. These can be connected to an inexpensive Dimmer that you can find
on ebay or any online marketplace to control the illumination of any backlighting.
WIRING STANDARDS
Both the BBI-32 cards and the PHIDGETS LED64 cards work on a common connection
regime.
On the BBI-32, the Common is the Ground (or GND) and the PHIDGET cards
share a common Anode (+) across the board to all LED outputs.
BBI-32 switches are wired in Groups of several switches sharing a common GND connection.
This common GND is wired in BLUE. Individual switch wire colours are listed in the button
index below.
On the PHIDGET cards, as the Common is the Anode and again as the LED’s are wired in
groups they share a Common, this wire is RED. The cathode (-) to any LED is coloured the
same as the recipient LED e.g. Blue wire to blue LED, Green wire to green LED etc.
NOTES On Connecting Cards To USB
Please remember that the longest you may have a USB A to B connecting lead is 5 Metres.
The longer the lead, the less reliable it becomes. DO NOT use USB Extension leads. If you
have to use long leads, I have found it much better and reliable to use USB Repeater Cables.
You may connect the Bodnar Cards to a GOOD QUALITY USB Powered Hub because they are
a simple (either On or Off) input.
However, I have found from experience that LED64ADV
cards do not like powered hubs.
Usually we never have enough USB 2.0 inputs on the back of our PC, so we resort to all sorts
of ‘trickery’ to get all the add-ons hooked up. There is nothing quite as good as a direct
input to the PC.
Make sure that you use HIGH QUALITY connection leads otherwise you
will have issues with USB Boards ‘dropping off’ which will cause them not to work and also
may cause Prosim to shut and restart.
NOTES On Button Inputs
Switch Operation In PROSIM PROSIM allows you to just connect inputs for assigned
functions on any switch. That is if a switch is a simple ON/OFF like the fuel pumps or anti
ice, you only need to assign one action for that switch. So if PROSIM does not see that
switch in the assigned position, it will default to the other position. That is for example, if
you have assigned a switch to ON, if PROSIM sees that switch in the ON position, it will turn
the software switch ON. If it does not see that switch in the ON position, it will default to the
OFF state.
On multi position switches like the Starters or Pack switches, one position can
be left un-connected. Then if PROSIM does not see the switch in any of the assigned
positions, it will default to the un-connected (or default) position.
Battery Switch This is a DPST switch, that is it is two switches in one housing. One side
controls the software Battery Switch via the BBI-32 and the other side breaks the GND
connection to the displays and status LED to emulate a cold and dark cockpit.
Landing Lights Only Right FIXED Switch is connected. Assign this switch to all 4 software
Landing Light inputs in PROSIM.
Position/Strobe Light Switch Because this switch is a DPDT switch, it is difficult to have
FSUIPC or Prosim see it as two separate switches. That is because both switches operate at
the same time and the program is going to register the first switch it sees. So it may be
necessary to remove the connection from the board for the Strobe (Button 8 on Card 1) and
assign the Position Lights first. This switch is closed on both the ‘Steady’ positions so it will
turn on the Position Lights in either position.
Then it will be necessary to remove the connection for the Position Light switch (Button 7)
reconnect the wire for the strobe switch (8) and assign it before finally reconnecting the
Position Lights switch wire to input 7.
Alternate Flaps The Alternate Flaps Switch is isolated from the switch input by the Red
Guarded Switch. In order to have the Alternate Flaps switch seen by the input card, the Red
Guarded Switch will need to be opened and moved to it’s second position.
Assign in FSUIPC as follows…….. Up - In Buttons and Switches/FS Control, assign to Flaps Up.
Down, in FSUIPC as above, assign to Flaps Increment.
Recirc Fans Both the Recirc Fans switches have been wired in parallel. That is by
switching either one of them on, the same button is seen. It also means both have to be
switched off for the Recirc fans to turn off. Assign to either of the Recirc Fans and it will also
allow you to add an audio file for effect in Prosim Audio. I have an audio file if you don’t.
BBI-32 Card 1 = Inputs
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
Outflow valve closed = Black
Outflow valve open = Black
Pressurisation Altn = Purple
Pressurisation manual = Purple
Attendant = Purple
Ground Call = Orange
Position lights on = Red * See Note Re: Position/Strobe
Strobe on = Yellow * See Note Re: Position/Strobe
Alt Horn Cutout = Red
Bleed 1 On = Red
APU Bleed On = Yellow
Isolation valve open = Grey
Isolation valve closed = White
Pack 2 Off = Red
Pack 2 High = Yellow
Trip Reset = Red
Bleed 2 On = White
Wing Lights Grey
Anti Coll lights = Pink
Logo light = Purple
Starter 2 Gnd = White
Starter 2 Cont = Grey
Starter 2 Flt = Red
Ign L = Red
Ign R = Black
Starter 1 Gnd = Orange
Starter 1 Cont = Yellow
Starter 1 Flt = Brown
Apu start = Grey
Apu start switch off = White
Taxi lights = Brown
Landing lights = Pink * See Note On Landing Lights
BBI-32 Card 2 = Inputs
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
APU Gen 1 Off = Pink
APU Gen 1 On = Purple
APU Gen 2 On = Green
APU Gen 2 Off = Red
Eng Gen 2 On = White
Eng Gen 2 Off = Grey
Bus Transfer On = Red
Ground Power Off = White
Ground Power On = Black
Alt Flaps Up = White * see note on Alternate Flaps Switch
Alt Flaps Down = Black * see note on Alternate Flaps Switch
Flt Control B On = Purple
Flt Control A On = Yellow
Spoiler A On = Orange
Yaw Damper On = Grey
Spoiler B On = White
Eng Gen 1 On = Black
Eng Gen 1 Off = Yellow
Crossfeed Open = Purple
Centre (R) Fuel Pump On = Pink
Centre (L) Fuel Pump On = Orange
Left Aft Fuel Pump On = Brown
Left Fwd Fuel Pump On = Green
Right Aft Fuel Pump On = Black
Right Fwd Fuel Pump On = White
Flt Control A Standby Rudder = Red
Flt Control B Standby Rudder = Green
Eng 2 Anti Ice On = Purple
Eng 1 Anti Ice On = Orange
Wing Anti Ice On = Brown
Probe Heat B On = White
Probe Heat A On = Orange
BBI-32 Card 3 = Inputs
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
Battery On = Red
Drive 2 Disconnected = Red
Standby Power Auto = White
Standby Power Battery = Brown
Drive 1 Disconnected = Orange
Recirc Fans = Green * See Note
Overheat Test = White
Trim Air On = Orange
FMC Both On 1 = Yellow
FMC Both On 2 = Green
VHF NAV Both On 2 = Red
VHF NAV Both On 1 = Black
Eng 1 Hydraulics On = Pink
Elec 2 Hydraulics On = Purple
Elec 1 Hydraulics On = White
Eng 2 Hydraulics On = Black
Left Pack Off = Orange
Left Pack High = Brown
Left Side Window Heat On = Green
Left Front Window Heat On = Red
Window Heat Overheat Test = Black
Window Heat Pwr Test = Yellow
Right Front Window Heat On = White
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
Right Side Window Heat On = Brown
Emergency Exit Lights On = Orange
Emergency Exit Lights Off = Orange
Seatbelts Off = Red
Seatbelts On = Red
No Smoke Off = Yellow
No Smoke On = Yellow
Equip Cooling (Supply/Exhaust) = White
Equip Cooling (Supply/Exhaust) = White
PHIDGETS LED64ADV Card 1 Serial No. 336268 = Outputs
0.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
46.
Right Side Window Heat
Left Front Window Heat
Right Front Window Heat
Left Side Window Heat
Left Pack
Right Pack
Right Bleed Trip Off
Left Wing Body Overheat
Right Wing Body Overheat
Left Bleed Trip Off
Pressurisation Manual
Pressurisation Alternate
Auto Fail
Off Scheduled Descent
Left Overwing Door
Aft Cargo
Equip Door
Forward Cargo
Aft Service Door
Aft Entry Door
Forward Service Door
Right Overwing Door
Forward Entry Door
Air Stairs
Left Ram Door Full Open
Right Ram Door Full Open
Cowl Anti Ice R
Dual Bleed
Left Front O/Heat
Right Side O/Heat
Left Side O/Heat
Right Front O/Heat
Ground Power Available
Standby Hydraulics Lo Press
Standby Rudder On
Standby Hydraulics Lo Quantity
Flight Control A Lo Press
Flight Control B Lo Press
APU Gen Off Bus
Left Source Off
Eng Gen 1 Off Bus
Left Transfer Bus Off
Auto Slat Fail
Mach Trim Fail
Yaw Damper
Speed Trim Fail
Feel Diff Pressure
47.
48.
49.
50.
51.
52.
53.
54.
55.
56.
57.
58.
59.
60.
61.
62.
63.
Spare – Tails left on card. Just in case you have to do a ‘Running Repair’
APU Fault
APU over Speed
APU Lo Oil Press
APU Maint
Disconnect 2 (Drive)
Standby Power Off
Disconnect 1 (Drive)
Intentionally Not Used
Right Source Off
Eng Gen 2 Off Bus
Right Transfer Bus Off
Elec
Bat Discharge
Equip Cooling Exhaust Off
Equip Cooling Supply Off
Emergency Exit Not Armed
PHIDGETS LED64ADV Card 2 Serial No. 336428 = Outputs
0.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Attendant Call
TR Unit
Smoke
Right Spar Valve Closed
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Spare
Elec 2 Hydraulic Overheat
Eng 2 Hydraulic Lo Press
Eng 1 Hydraulic Lo Press
Elec 2 Hydraulic Lo Press
Elec 1 Hydraulic Lo Press
Elec 1 Hydraulic Overheat
Right Filter Bypass
Left Filter Bypass
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
46.
47.
48.
49.
50.
51.
52.
53.
54.
55.
56.
57.
58.
59.
60.
61.
62.
63.
Crossfeed Open
Eng 2 Anti Ice Cowl Valve Open
Eng 1 Anti Ice Cowl Valve Open
Right Wing Anti Ice Valve Open
Left Wing Anti Ice Valve Open
Eng 1 Cowl Anti Ice
Intentionally Not Used – Suspect Output
Left Eng Valve Closed
Left Spar Valve Closed
Right Engine Valve Closed
Left Aft Fuel Lo Press
Centre Left Fuel Lo Press
Right Aft Fuel Lo Press
Centre Right Fuel Lo Press
Left Fwd Fuel Lo Press
Fwd Right Fuel Lo Press
Right Alpha Vane
F/O Pitot
Aux Pitot
Temp Probe
Right Elev Pitot
Left Elev Pitot
Left Alpha Vane
Captain Pitot
*** Spare Outputs can be used for any indicator contained in the Prosim Indicators Config
Page at some time in the future. If you want to use them remotely, I would recommend
using Rainbow Ribbon Cable and IDC connectors so you can quickly connect/disconnect.
They are available in all sorts of sizes 10, 16, 20, 30, 40, 60 etc.
Use the Reds as your ‘common’ and the remaining colours for individual LED’s.
POLOLU Card Serial No. 00061420 Remember You Need Pololu Support Checked In Prosim
Users Guide = http://www.pololu.com/docs/0J40
Pin Connections = http://www.pololu.com/docs/0J40/1.a
Product Page = http://www.pololu.com/catalog/product/1350
WATCH THE VIDEO
GND connections are Common across the board. The Board itself can be powered by the
USB Bus or from a separate supply at Vin. If running from the USB Bus, a separate supply
must be connected to power the servos as shown. I have elected to power the complete
board from the outside supply by adding a ‘bridge’ from the 5v supply to the V In pin because
there will be a large power requirement from the USB Bus to drive all the attached devices.
Your APU EGT Gauge is connected to Channel 0 as indicated.
The POLOLU Card needs to be powered up BEFORE you start Prosim or the PC. Please see
the Wiring Diagram towards the end of the document.
To drive the card, the Maestro Control Centre (which includes the drivers) must be
downloaded and installed. You can get this from the POLOLU Website here
http://www.pololu.com/docs/0J40/3.a along with the instructions for installing.
The Control Centre is used to set the rotational range of the Servo and the properties of each
Servo channel only. It is not necessary to run this software once that is done, it writes the
values to the card which I have done here.
This is how I have your APU gauge set up on my test rig PC.
If the drivers have installed correctly, the card is connected and being seen by your PC, it will
show in the ‘Connected to’ box.
In the status page, just make sure that channel 0 is checked as enabled. Refer the manual.
Now go to the Channel Settings Page (1). You may type a name in the box for channel 0 as
I have (2). Make sure that the mode is set to Servo (3). On this card, you cannot alter the
rate setting, it is fixed based on how many servos are connected.
Now the next two columns (4 & 5) set the range of your servo’s rotation. I found that the
values 752 for minimum and 2512 for maximum gave me the range I needed to cover the arc
of movement that was required to cover the EGT range. PLEASE BE CAREFUL HERE if
you change these values as you may drive the servo up against the end stops which
eventually will damage the servo. Please bear in mind that a servo only has a rotational arc
of about 180 degrees. Your gauge is ‘geared’ to translate that 180 degrees into a larger arc.
Then you can set the position values in Prosim.
You can ‘fine tune’ the gauge needle position at 0 by gently moving the needle on it’s hub.
It’s a ‘floating needle’, that is it is only held gently. When you are happy that the gauge is
right, press the face glass into place.
If all has gone to plan, when you run Prosim, you should see all 6 devices contained in the
Overhead showing in the I/O Modules on the left side of the start page. Then it’s onto the
assignments. I have successfully set up and run your panel here.
This is the part that causes most people grief. Pay special attention when assigning and
you will not end up with ‘Dodgy Things’ happening.
YOU WILL NEED…..
An ATX PC Power Supply to give you 5v for the
displays and the POLOLU Card and (possibly) 12v for
the backlighting.
1. Any Red wire and any Black wire coming
from the Power Supply will give you 5vdc.
2. Any Yellow wire and any Black wire coming
from the Power Supply will give you 12vdc.
3. Joining the Green Wire coming from the PSU to
any Black will start the PSU.
<- Cheap LED Dimmer (search LED Dimmer on ebay)
CONNECTING THE PSU.
Connect any Red wire coming from the PSU to the Red trailing wire coming off the overhead.
Connect any Black wire coming from the PSU to the Black trailing wire coming off the overhead.
If you look at the diagram below, you will notice that the POLOLU Card is directly connected to
the supply. This is because it needs to be ‘powered up’ before you start the PC & Prosim,
otherwise the system will not know it’s there and will not register it as a device on bootup.
You will also see that the Displays and the voice recorder status LED have the GND line
switched . This allows the battery switch not only to control the software Battery Switch, but
as it is a DPST switch, the second side can turn off the Displays and LED to synchronise with
the software power.
CONNECTING THE DIMMER
The Input for the supply voltage is clearly marked on the Green Terminal Block as is the Output
to your Backlighting LED strips.
Inside the dimmer is a circuit board that sends pulses to your LED’s. The length of the pulses
dictates how bright or dim the LED’s illuminate. The length of these pulses is controlled by the
Rotary Potentiometer situated in the top of the case. From that pot there are 3 wires
connecting it to the circuit board, usually by a ribbon cable. What you need to do is unsolder
the wires where they are connected to the pot and join the three wires coming from the control
in the centre pillar of your overhead. YOU MUST pay special attention to these connections
making sure that the two outside wires coming from the pot in the Overhead (Red & Black)
connect to the two outside wires on the ribbon cable and that the centre wire coming from the
overhead pot (Yellow) connects to the centre wire going to the circuit board.
If your dimmer works back to front, swap the Red & Black wires around.
ITEMS NOT CONNECTED
Electric Meter Display Switches as the Meter Display is Dummy
Wiper Switches – Non Functional In PROSIM
Land Alt & Flight Alt Encoders as the Displays are Dummy
Galley Power Switch – Has no relevance in PROSIM.
Zone Temp Controls/LEDs – Not Simulated In PROSIM
Wheel Well Light Switch – Not Simulated In Models
Navigation & Display Controls. Not fully functional in PROSIM.
Only the VHF Nav and FMC switches are connected to allow
simulation of failed units.
Air Temp – No relevance & Non Functional In PROSIM