So, you have all the bits and pieces from the what you need section? Brilliant, now we can start on the first step in using your PC to control electrical appliances via USB. All the images link to full size images.
Contents
| 1. Circuit diagram and overview | 2. Wiring up the circuit |
| 3. Connecting to the PC | 4. BeeStep software and Sequencing |
Circuit diagram and overview [Contents]
Fig 1 This is going to be a very simple circuit consisting of a 9V battery connected up to a small 3 to 6V bulb.
Fig 2 The addition of the Mini-Bee board allows us to control the circuit by changing the state of number of switches from on to off and visa versa. We can do this for any length of time. For this example, we’re just going to switch the lamp on for 20 seconds, then switch it off again. Fig 1 shows the circuit diagram of the board and terminals; Fig 2 shows a close-up of the actual board.
Wiring up the circuit [Contents]
Fig 3 Now we’re ready to wire up the circuit. Take the bulb and screw it into the holder. Connect the battery up to the battery clip. Locate the ground terminal on the Mini-Bee board (see Fig 1) and connect this to the battery negative (-) terminal, this should be the black wire on the battery clip. Use a flathead screwdriver to clamp the wire in place.
Fig 4 Connect the positive (+) terminal from the battery up to either of the bulb holder terminals, this should be the red wire on the battery clip. Use a philips screwdriver to clamp it in place. Now the final step, wire up the remaining bulb terminal to terminal 14 on the Mini-Bee (you can use any terminal but for this example I’ll stick with 14). Make sure you clamp the wires in both terminals (Fig 3). Fig 4 shows how the completed setup should look like.
Connecting to the PC [Contents]
Fig 5 Connect the A end of the USB cable up to a spare USB port on the PC (Fig 5). It’s best to use a port on the PC or a powered USB hub.
Fig 6 Connect the B end of the USB cable up to the Mini-Bee board (Fig 6). You shouldn’t need to install any drivers here, as it uses the default Windows Human Interface Device drivers. I’ve tested this on both XP and Vista with no problems. If the Mini-Bee has been successfully installed then you will head a two tone confirmation sound. The standard sound you hear when you insert a USB device in Windows.
BeeStep software and Sequencing [Contents]
Fig 7 Now we’re all set to take control. If you’ve not already done it, install the BeeStep14 software that came with the Mini-Bee. Full instructions are provided with the CD. Start-up the BeeStep software, either from the desktop shortcut, start menu or run mbee.exe from C:\Program Files\PC User\BeeStep14. Select Run. We’ve already connected the lamp to terminal 14 on the board, so that the one we want to control. It’s going to be a 3 step sequence. One; turn off all the terminals. Two; turn on terminal 14 for 20 seconds. Three; turn off all the terminals. Make sure none of the output controls are selected (green = not selected, red = selected). Also make sure that all the Hours, Min, Sec and msec options are set to 0. Hit Add under Append to end. For the second sequence we select output 14 and it turns red. Change the Sec option to 20. Hit Add under Append to end. The final sequence is just as the first. Make sure output 14 is no longer selected and Sec is back to 0. Again, hit the Add button. Check the boxes marked Mimic On and Use Mini PC-Bee. See Fig 7 for BeeStep14 software.
Fig 8 That’s it! We’re ready to control the light. Simply hit the Run button, sit back and watch the lamp light on for 20 second and switch off. See Fig 8. You can download the sequence file here. And use the BeeStep14 Restore function to load it if you’re having problems. Ok, so it may not seem like much just being able to turn a light on and off. But remember this is just a very simple introduction. Now we know how to do it, we can control pretty much anything we can think of! Enjoy!
