I have my Mega 2560.  A screw shield and Ethernet 1 and 4 RTD ampliphers on the way.

I still need the RTD Board and Software.  I plan to put together over the next month.  I am thinking of how I could integrate this with my BCS as this provides more Outs, Dins and  Temp Probes.  I found needed a few more than the BCS has to offer, but from what I can figure Out so far it that the physical difference is More Probes but at the expense of DINs and Outs if you use all the available probes.  Please approve my topic as I need some guidance as I am in the dark.

Hi! Apologies for the delay... the forum didn’t report your request sitting in queue... and we have moderation enabled to prevent... err reduce spam. 

I’ll reply shortly. I need a few mins to respond to your questions in detail. 

As far as the Arduino or other interface microcontroller is concerned - no worries... you don't need to program it or anything - we handle the firmware for you.

A conversion from a BCS is fairly straightforward as can easily use the thermistors you have, which you figured out already. With a MEGA or mulitple interface microcontrollers, you can have essentially unlimited I/O. A single MEGA can handle up to 16 thermistor inputs (because that is how many analog inputs it contains).

6 RTD's is an issue as we only support 4 in the firmware. We could support more, but these I/O get locked to the RTD's, so we didn't want to take away I/O from other users. Once fix is to use two MEGA's, though I know this isn't ideal.

Ports 200 - 209 are for 1-wire sensors, not thermistors (again - these use Analog inputs).

You don't *need* any boards if you want to handle the wiring yourself. Our boards make it easier. For example, the thermistor filter boards are simple voltage dividers with capacitors to reduce electrical noise. These aren't needed but do make wiring much more plug and play. The RTD amplifier platforms are also just to make your wiring easier. The Analog Amplifer is just if you want to control analog devices like proportional valves. Again, not critical but will convert a PWM output to an amplified analog output. These boards do not mount on the screw shield - they mount separately.

I would suggest as big an electrical enclosure as you can fit. If you are looking to automate further, you can never have enough space.

In terms of I/O... please see the Interface Wiring Maps - they should let you know what I/O is available in any given configuration.

I ordered some pre -built hardware from Brucontrol along with a licence.    I know this is a Windows based platform and only one computer.  Can I move the licence to a different computer if needed.  I am likely to buy a devoted computer to this.   Is most of the Processing done on the Audrino and the Windows is just the front end?  In my present BCS configuration, I have used Javascript to create some screens for Temps and Timer display on a separate computer. 

I decided to go ahead and purchase the pre-built hardware as the task of soldering the pieces together is daunting for me.  I thought they would be more assembled than they were.  You would also need a good electronic iron to build a shield.  

Yes, you can move it by emailing us anytime. 

The processing is split - time critical functions like duty cycle are handled autonomously on the interface and the instructions for devices, elements, and script commands are handled on the computer. 

Thank you for the order! Feel free to ping us here or directly anytime. 

Must you have your computer connected to the internet for Brucontrol to work or only when installing?   I am reaching the limit of my router for attached devices.   I am thinking of a seperate non internet router from my brewery and only connect as needed.

No, a computer does not need to stay connected. Duty cycles, Hysteresis, and PID devices will continue to function, outputs will hold their states, counters will continue to count, etc. as long as you choose not to disable enabled devices upon exit.

That said, scripts will not continue to run, and data will not continue to be logged.

That said, not sure how you could reach a router limit... if wired, you can add a switch for just a few dollars, and if wireless there should be no limit. 

Theoretically you cou have 254 connections.   In General the limit should be less than 45.   Unfortunately my isp, frontier limits it to 20.   Each item including a wired connection and any additional switches count in the total.    So with iPhones, iPads, switches, smart home items et al, I already have to disable devices to get another one on line.   When I have too many, it will connect to the network but not the internet.   The gateway/router on the device defaults to some strange ip and not the correct one.    It is very frustrating.  It is somewhat of a common problem with FIOS when I search for a solution on the internet. 

Theoretically you cou have 254 connections.   In General the limit should be less than 45.   Unfortunately my isp, frontier limits it to 20.   Each item including a wired connection and any additional switches count in the total.    So with iPhones, iPads, switches, smart home items et al, I already have to disable devices to get another one on line.   When I have too many, it will connect to the network but not the internet.   The gateway/router on the device defaults to some strange ip and not the correct one.    It is very frustrating.  It is somewhat of a common problem with FIOS when I search for a solution on the internet. 

Theoretically you cou have 254 connections.   In General the limit should be less than 45.   Unfortunately my isp, frontier limits it to 20.   Each item including a wired connection and any additional switches count in the total.    So with iPhones, iPads, switches, smart home items et al, I already have to disable devices to get another one on line.   When I have too many, it will connect to the network but not the internet.   The gateway/router on the device defaults to some strange ip and not the correct one.    It is very frustrating.  It is somewhat of a common problem with FIOS when I search for a solution on the internet. 

Wow, that’s totally unreasonable. How would they know behind the router though? I suppose if it’s their router but a normal one should blind the external network from the internal one. 

I am planning on hooking two mega 2560 together immediately when I get my ordered built Mega from Brucontrol here.  I have a Mega 2560 and screw shield already.  Do I put the firmware on that mega as well?  I di not see in the documentation on hooking up more than one.

Yes. If you acquired an interface yourself, you will need to install the firmware into it before connecting it to BC.

Yes. If you acquired an interface yourself, you will need to install the firmware into it before connecting it to BC.