FC E-Nail by JCat

[JCat]

Is there a complete parts list available I may have missed it

Not a complete parts list, but the primary components used are discussed on the GitHub page. You could use a variety of components, the main things are:
- Omron E5CC-QX2ASM-802
- Raspberry Pi Zero
- 128x64 I2C OLED Display
- Rotary Encoder
- Toggle Button
- RS-485 to UART interface board
- Misc. parts ... ie. connectors for power, XLR, fuse, resistors for LED's and toggle buttons, etc.

 

[JCat]

Just reaching out here ... if anyone wants to make some cases ... that would help get the first batch of test units out ...

 

[Hogni]

Hi @JCat, after being absent for a long time it's nice to see this great project is still alive!

Am I right that you intend to control this unit just by an app, no display?

I'd like to get one implanted in the enclosure of an old Powerstat

 

[ensabbahnur]

Hi @JCat, after being absent for a long time it's nice to see this great project is still alive!

Am I right that you intend to control this unit just by an app, no display?

Looking at the BOM, id say a solid no as there are actually 2 displays and at least 1 button other then power.

 

[Hogni]

*oops!* I missed that, thanks! But TWO displays? I only can see one display in the BOM
Anyway, there is a display planned.

 

[ensabbahnur]

*oops!* I missed that, thanks! But TWO displays? I only can see one display in the BOM
Anyway, there is a display planned.

I was counting the E5CCs built in display also. The temps would be on that and the "smart" features like uptemps, globs n profile stuff would be on the smaller OLED, even though you could easily just mount the Omron inside your case and never look at that display if you wanted, although IMO, the E5CC display is gorgeous as far as LCDs go

 

[Hogni]

Now I got it

 

[JCat]

Thanks @ensabbahnur ... you saved me the explanation And yes you are correct--2 displays including the E5CC.

 

[Vaped2Space]

In the dual units does 1 raspberry pi run both e5cc's or does it take 2? I could see a much bigger push in demand with units being able to run scripts for rosin presses. I wish I had the ability to help with cases to help see this move along. Really great work so far.

 

[JCat]

In the dual units does 1 raspberry pi run both e5cc's or does it take 2? I could see a much bigger push in demand with units being able to run scripts for rosin presses. I wish I had the ability to help with cases to help see this move along. Really great work so far.

There is no dual unit right now. If I ever have the time and motivation, then I may adapt the software to handle 2 E5CC's for dual, and yes it would only require a single Pi.

 

[Warmaniac_209]

i want to know, if you still plan on selling kit for DIY, a complete unit wouldnt be fun for me, i want to build it, but to be frank the raspberry pi environment is unfamiliar to me, too many options, all the hard wiring and omron related shit i can handle all day long, but the rest.... its still chinese for me. and this way, you spoke of app, you could ship that in a USB key with it, if possible of course... I would be verrryyy interested, and dont worry i aint gonna forget to thank you in canadian dollar ! the enclosure is not important to me i already got a few PC powersupply that gonna be perfect for this application, it already got the socket and the switch on the back i only need to cut the 45mmx45mm hole for the PID, the hole for the small screen, witch i dont know the size, and a few holes for the dials and buttons + the socket for the coil, got a fan in bonus to cool the SSR ! just gonna plug it on the 5v of the raspberry and this thing gonna last 3 lifetime ! omron might not be the prettyest controller, but they get things done like no other, and they are made to run ! industrial design FTW !

Edit : and i would be definetly be interested in support for the dual omron PID unit ! my ultimate goal is to have 2 such dual PID unit, for a rosin press, with your stepping it would be friggin DOPE, extract every squish of goodness of the nug ! and dual PID is the way to go for rosin press.

 

[Warmaniac_209]

and i was wondering, your controller is a omron e5cc-qx2asm-802 ? if so, you can probably see the amp rating given by the CT input if you connect it, it would be nice to be able to see your wattage in real time at the coil at a given time, i'm pretty sure that it comunicate it via RS-485, would it be very difficult retrive and display the info via the lcd screen ? the CT input is the pin 16-17 on the PID controller, it require a special device, (E54-CT1) a CT, but allow the monitoring in real time of the amperage passed through it, very handy to plot graph Hex-nail style, but where not there, but just to know that the option is there is pretty cool i think, maybe something worth investigating

 

[Hogni]

Hey @JCat , silence for more than one year. Any news? Project still alive?

 

[JCat]

I’m actually considering getting back to this soon.

1st is a software rewrite and packaging to clean that side of things up, then I might make a small # available. (Likely 2 or 3 only to start)

Been busy with other projects that generate actual real revenue

 

[Hogni]

Pal, thanks for the update. Hope you are fine.

 

[Fkn0wned]

I'll definitely be keeping my eyes on this still as well .

 

[JCat]

So I’ve been hard at work on a full rewrite. As well as solidifying the hardware plans and layout.

updates coming within the week with previews of the unit.

I’m planning on having 2 units for sale, hand assembled, in the next month or so.

And I gotta’ say, I’m SO happy with the rewrite. Added all the missing features I wanted and stabilized the platform and eliminated any bugs and made it easier to extend and add features.

All features will be available from both the app as well as the on board user interface.

I’m just finishing up the last of the editors for the script engine, but all else I believe is complete.

some of the features:
- preset/quickset temperaturss
- create/edit/save profiles with auto-tuning
- all settings accessible and modifiable from UI or mobile app (except maybe writing scripts which might be limited to the app ...
- access over home network or Internet
- easy to connect to wifi or in absence of a connection, it advertises itself as a hotspot you can connect to to control it.

 

[strech]

Following.

Looks like a great controller.

 

[JCat]

Once I finish the last of the software updates (likely today or tomorrow), and finish the new hardware assembly in the nice new aluminum enclosures, I will setup a Zoom meeting where I will demo the unit for those interested.

Right now all of the new components that make up the "smart" part of the e-nail are sitting outside the old controller for development purposes

The new aluminum enclosures (black) are quite a bit smaller than my 1/4" Baltic birch assembly ... should be a really slick looking unit when done, in as small of a form factor as possible given the internals (not much bigger than a standard e-nail controller, but not the nice tiny form factor of the MaxVapor)

I'm a real believer in the Omron 2-PID algorithm though, it's a wonderful piece of engineering and so far, in my experience, outperforms all other PID algorithms out there. That's why I like this design that leverages a controller that is already solid and adds all the "extras" ... so all the features (including safety ones), come with the controller.

Here's the white paper on the Omron 2-PID algorithm for those interested: https://assets.omron.eu/downloads/publication/en/v2/2-pid_white_paper_en.pdf

Here's a snapshot of the unit in development

(and the one component in that picture being replaced is the little audio board ... putting in a better Class D amp board w/ a separate speaker for the final build ... should yield better sound w/ a 3W amp and 2-3W speaker vs this 0.25-0.5W speaker I've been using)

The final assembly will have clean wiring with wires just long enough and properly terminated ... think I'm planning on running all components into a single 40pin header that plugs into the board (nice and clean! the way I like it! this mess is driving me nuts!)

 

[JCat]

Here's a picture of the new case coming along:

 

[MonkeyTime]

I love this project!

 

[JCat]

So ... some good news today; I've gotten confirmation that I will be able to get small batches of units certified (ie. electrical). I can do it in batches of 5 for $250 (so $50 per unit). This is much more reasonable then $10k initial plus another $5k+ / year to maintain certification of a facility and a model.

Much more suited to small manufacturing and one of the big hold-ups to launching this.

There are a few things that have come together so I will be selling units early next year (maybe 2 in Dec. or early Jan):

1. I'm 99% complete a full rewrite of the software to add all the critical missing features, stabilize the platform, and eliminate any known bugs (or just "buggy" behaviour)

2. I've finally decided on some enclosures (I just finished cutting the length of my first unit to size on the table saw, and the initial plates I cut out last night)

3. I've ordered a small desktop CNC router to enable easy cutting out of the face and rear plates. (here this coming week?)

4. I may have 2 units going out in December or early January (first come first serve, although I will give 1st dibs to those that have already indicated they wanted one in the past)

5. I've figured out how to get them electrically certified for resale.

Here's a couple pics from tonight after drilling and tapping all the mounts in the base and mounting all the boards.

And the wiring job on the rotary encoder will be better on all units but mine I accidentally ordered the wrong optical encoder from the series for this one, so the pins were super close together, such that I had no pins are connectors for it; so I miraculously managed to trace solder some solid core wire onto them and encased them in shrink wrap so I could get use of it while I waited for the others! (exact same unit apart from this though ... so from a usability perspective, the same ... )

 

[strech]

Get one in my hands!

How can one get on the list?

 

[Fkn0wned]

Nice updates and information sounds exciting!

I'll be an early adopter as well possibly posted my interest on page 2 post #49, if not on wave one maybe one of the next batch but still am interested and the only other controller I have is the Max Vapor unit I believe these two can play nice.

Still following for updates none the less!

A little side question for the select few who are early adopters if any issues come up or anything of the sort will there be some sort of protection and or replacement system in place if any major changes occur in between units?
(not really expecting much here as it's buyers choice to opt in)

I know this isn't a "big scale" operation or anything of the sort just curious as to how "set" or final the first testing units would be compared to potentially a "fuller" release I guess you can say for a small scale personally made device.

 

[JCat]

I've been using the unit since 2018 ... and it is unbelievably stable and relatively bug free .. the few bugs in it, I have invested an enormous amount of time in the rewrite eliminating. The first usable version (which I used for ~2 years), was a prototype (and looked it from fit/finish), and I wasn't ready to ship any units until I did a full rewrite in order to package it properly, account for updates, easy user setup, etc.

The last thing I need is a support nightmare, so anything I ship has to be rock solid! (this isn't the only product I have out in the field ... and far from the only software I have! Software is really my thing, but hardware as needed

You will get software and feature updates as they come, and I don't see the hardware platform changing significantly, if at all at this point (apart from improving build process or potential change of some components due to lack of availability or price)

The changes moving forward from this point, I think will be of a software nature, and not hardware for quite a while, so those will download automatically to your unit as they are available.

I will of course support the units I sell, but I think most will be pretty pleased with how well it works and how few issues there are!

If I do ever take this to a larger scale, and get a PCB manufactured with all the components on board (audio amp, RS-485), I'll offer some sort of upgrade path offered at my cost or less.


Here's a picture of the final hand assembled unit (the next run will have the face place and rear plate cutout using a CNC router)--can't be spending the hours I spent on this case getting everything just right! Also ... need to get a knob for the rotary encoder ... somehow don't have ANY knobs that fit ...

The first # of units will be very time consuming to build, however, they should get faster as time goes, and I can batch steps together (a large amount of time on this unit was spent on the layout and cutting wires to just the right length, then re-tinning the ends w/ solder and re-crimping pins and ends on! Very time consuming! ... however, if I knew all the sizes in advance, I could prebuild them, and drastically cut back on assembly time. Right now, I'm sure it will take a few hours a unit.