JMRI supports five NCE layout connections:
A very small number of early (pre-2002) NCE Power Pro (PowerHouse) command stations have an "optional analog control circuit". (If you don't recall special ordering this, you probably don't need to read the rest of this paragraph!) In these, pins 5, 6, and 9 are used with an analog voltage as a separate throttle. If you have one of these command stations, a normal 9-pin serial cable will not work! You'll need to make a custom cable that just connects the "send data", "receive data" and "ground" pins. See your NCE manual for details.
If you use a NCE USB to talk to the PowerHouse series of command stations over the cab bus, it will only support the throttle functions and not the rest of the command station features.
The sensor number can be found by using the following formula:
Sensor ID = (AIU Cab Address - 1) * 16 + (Pin Number On AIU) -1
For example: The AIU cab address is set to 50 and one of the BD20s is connected to pin 2. Therefore the Sensor ID would be:
Sensor ID = (50 - 1) * 16 + (2) -1
Sensor ID = 785
In the hardware address field of the Add Sensor window you can enter in the AIU cab address followed by the pin number separated by a semicolon. So for a sensor on AIU cab address 50, pin 2 you would enter the following: 50:2
When you add an item to one of the tables, many times you only have to fill in the numbers
to have JMRI construct the complete system name.
Here's a summary, split up for outputs (eg. Turnouts) and inputs (eg. Sensors):
| In/Out | Entry | Meaning | makes System Name | Mask | Equivalent | Minimum | Maximum |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| i | 4:3 | AIU Cab 4, pin 3 | NS50 | cab: 1; pin: 1 | cab: 63; pin: 14 | ||
| i | 50 | AIU Cab 4, pin 3 | NS50 | cab: 1; pin: 1 | cab: 63; pin: 14 | ||
| o | 16 | Output (Turnout) 16 | NT16 | 1 | 2044 |
The NCE Power Pro command station uses an "EPROM" to contain it's software. NCE has made several of these available to it's users. JMRI has been updated to work with these as they come out. To determine which ROM version you have, go to the 'setup command station' menu on the ProCab. The first screen will show you the EPROM version currently installed.
If you wish to use MONITORING for Turnout feedback, you must upgrade your Command Station to the Mar 1 2007A EPROM or newer. (For more information on turnout feedback, please see the feedback documentation page) The release in the first half of 2007 had a problem with odd turnout status. Every other odd accessory shared the same status bit. JMRI checks the revision number at startup, and will send a warning to the console window if it finds the early 2007 EPROM. If you're not sure if you have the latest, you can perform a simple test. First normal accessory 1 and 5 using the "Select Accy" button on your ProCab. Then using the "Select Accy" button, change accessory 1 to REV. Then check accessory 5, and if NOW = REV for accessory 5, you have the earlier revision with the known problem. If you have the early 2007 EPROM and wish to use MONITORING for feedback, contact NCE for an EPROM upgrade.
This section discusses JMRI's support for connecting to the NCE Power Pro and PowerHouse via the serial cable connector on their front panel.
For reliable operation, we recommend that you disable "AIU broadcast", and set the baud rate to 9,600. These are the normal defaults for NCE. Both of these parameters can be found in your NCE user's manual under "Setup Command Station".
(There's also a general page on the use of serial-network adapters, also known as terminal servers)
For reliable operation, we recommend that you disable "AIU broadcast", and set the baud rate to 9,600. These are the normal defaults for NCE. Both of these parameters can be found in your NCE user's manual under "Setup Command Station".
The NCE USB Interface can be connected to all NCE systems, Power Cab, SB3 (SmartBooster), SB5, Twin or Power Pro. You must select the correct system from the preference menu for reliable operation.
To connect your computer using a NCE USB Interface, you will need in addition to the USB
Adapter, a USB A to USB B cable to connect the Adapter to your computer and a Throttle cable
to connect the adapter to your NCE system. The Throttle cable may be another of the 'coily
cords' that came with another hardware throttle or the PowerCab system.
It is important to use a straight through RJ11 cable and not a crossover like some phone
cables. Look at the end connectors to make sure that the colors are in the same order. You
can use a RJ12 cable with six conductors in place of the RJ11 because it's only the four
center conductors that are used, but it must also be a straight through cable.
NOTE: If using a PowerCab, you must have firmware version 1.28c or later installed on
that.
The connection order is also important:
The NCE USB Interface doesn't support all of the current JMRI features and functions. Some of the restrictions are based on the type of system the USB Adapter is connected to. The USB version 6.* can't get information from AIUs, so they can't be used to get feedback from the layout. The USB 7.* version when connected to a system with the 1.65 or higher firmware (PowerCab, SB5, Twin) the AIU cards can be used, but with restricted cab numbers as in the system manual. The turnout feedback mode MONITORING isn't available when using a USB, and the Clock functions found in tools are also not available. The USB when connected to a Power Pro system doesn't support any type of loco programming, and when connected to a SB3 only operation mode (no program track) is available for loco programming. Most functions and features that are not supported by the NCE USB Interface are disabled or grayed out in the JMRI program.
USB Adapter Limitation Summary
This is the next generation of large layout command stations. The first is the PH5 and was released late in 2023. Internally the command station is new and uses a completely different memory map from the older NCE serial systems. The CS03 was released around May 2024 and is a functional replacement for the CS02.
When the connection to your NCE is okay and your NCE system is powered up, after starting PanelPro you should see the following JMRI Startup screen:
If your are using JMRI v 2.1.2 or newer and the screen looks like the above, congratulations; you are up and running. The startup screen for DecoderPro is similar to PanelPro's.
If you have the following control panel with the words "NCE: ERROR SERIAL USING COMx" in the right center of the panel:
you have a problem that needs your attention. The following is a list of potential issues
that might help you resolve your problem:
JMRI provides connection information via the system console. You can find the system console under the main menu header "Help" then "System Console...". Below is an image of the console window when the program is operating normally. Note that the window size has been adjusted so we can read it a bit more easily.
If you're having problems, the console window can look like the one below:
To help you better understand what might be happening and to possibly resolve your problem we'll explain some of the warning and error messages displayed in the above console window.
The very first messages are information message labeled "INFO". The first message occurs at time "0" which can be found at the left side of the message. The next "INFO" message states where this log file is stored. The next info provides the version of JMRI and JAVA that you are using. And the last info message provides the communication port that you've selected in preferences, along with the baud rate or the speed of your connection.
The first warning message states that there was a timeout to message "AA". During startup, JMRI checks to see if your Preferences match those in the NCE command station. Message "AA" requests the EPROM revision of the command station. The response is normally three characters, something like "6.2.1". A timeout means that JMRI asked for something and the command station didn't respond. When the connection is correct and the system is powered up, you should not see any timeout messages.
The next warning message states that because there was a timeout, the program didn't get the information requested from the command station. The next messages continue as the program tries every 10 seconds to read the EPROM revision by issuing the "AA" command. You can try and trouble shoot your connections knowing that every 10 seconds JMRI will retest to see if you've fixed the problem.
Whenever JMRI detects a problem with the connection or NCE command station, it will request the EPROM revision to see if the connection and command station is still operational. So if you see timeouts and "AA" commands you have either poor or failed connection, or a powered down or failed command station.
You can confirm that you've selected the correct port and that your cable is okay by connecting the male connector pins 2 and 3 with a small jumper wire. Doing this will loop the message "AA" back to JMRI via the Receive line. The console messages should change and look like the ones in the following image:
When JMRI is connected to a layout via this system, an NCE menu is shown:
If you are having problems, you should try the JMRI users group to contact other JMRI users that can help you out.