FREE DVD

e for EEDTS Pro
Windows 98SE/ME or XP, a minimum of 256 MB RAM
and at least a 1 GHz processor. Users with larger displays
(e.g. 1600 x 1200 pixels) will now be able to
clearly view very large track layouts.
Improvements
Apart from several interesting additions, many sections of
the program have been enhanced. The result should satisfy
the needs of most digital railway modellers.
Existing designs made with EP (an abbreviation of EEDTS
Pro) 1.2 can be loaded using EP 2.0, although the program
lines need to be removed.
The capabilities of the faster controller with version 1.2 of
the firmware really come to the fore when used with
EP 2.0. As yet there is no need for an updated controller.
It makes sense to wait with adapting the controller until
the new Märklin System has been released and all of its
features are known.
The EEDTS Pro control software can be used to ‘draw’ a
track layout onto the screen using a range of symbols.
This set of symbols is sufficient to create even the most
complex track layouts on the screen.
This control screen looks very similar to the control panels
that are in use in the railways. Even so, this program lets
you design, correct and maintain layouts with ease.
Apart from the on-screen control of turnouts and signals,
it is also possible to control up to 240 trains, define block
sections and program the running of the trains
(Figure 1).
Main menu
There are six options on the main menu of the program:
1. Build control panel
The first step is to create the track layout by dragging a
range of building block symbols onto the screen.
There are building blocks for straight and curved tracks,
turnouts and signals and for detector buttons.
Detector buttons are rectangular symbols that are
included in the track layout and which show the train
address, but they can also act as the start or end point of
a block section.
A new feature in version 2.0 is the support for 3 types of
turntable, with 8, 12 or 16 track connections (Figure 2).
These turntables are usually controlled in one of 3 ways:
• Time related control.
• Control via an EP decoder with feedback.
• Märklin turntable decoder.
2. Decoder addresses
In this step the (decoder) addresses for the active components
(turnouts, signals) and the (decoder) addresses for
the train (address) detector modules are defined.
Version 2.0 also has the facility to read the status of reed
switches. This will be particularly useful to those of you
who have an outdoor track in the garden. A block segment
can then be defined by reed switches at the beginning and
end, which are activated by a permanent magnet.
3. Block sections
From this menu option you can define block sections.
You have to choose two detector buttons, which are at
the ends of the block section and click on them with the
mouse. When you click on everything between these two
buttons, you’ve made your block section. The status of the
turnouts and signals that are in this section block can be
changed by clicking on them.
In version 2.0 it is possible to get the software to generate
a block section automatically. After clicking on a start
and end point the software will attempt to find a route
between these two points. When you are adding block
sections this can save a lot of time.
The maximum length of block sections has been
increased from 25 to 35 elements in version 2.0.
4. Soft controllers
From this menu option the train decoders can be programmed
and a matching symbol can be chosen for the
direction dependent function.
From here you can choose between the new and old
Motorola format. If you select the new format then you
can control 4 extra functions, as well as the direction
dependent function.
The software can program up to 240 controllers. Since it
would take up a lot of screen space to show 240 con-
Figure 1.
The new version of
EEDTS Pro offers plenty
of room for large track
layouts.
Figure 2.
Three types of
turntable are
supported.
10/2006 - elektor electronics 65