NCE POWER PRO DCC User manual

ProCab Wireless
Supplement
Versions 1.0and 1.1
Operate your cab without “plugging in”
Features:
‚True two way wireless capability to yourProCab
‚All features of your ProCab are available without plugging in
‚Uses ANY battery chemistry: Alkaline, NiCad, NiMH, Lithium, Lead Acid
‚40+ hours of operation (typical) with Alkaline batteries
‚Automatic switchover to bus power when plugged in
‚Graceful degradation of operation when approaching maximum range
No guarantees are made by NCE or authorized NCE dealers as to the suitability of this product for its intended
use. As with all radio products, communication integrity in the presence of interference can not be guaranteed.
This book, schematics, drawings and artwork copyright 2002
NCE Corporation Webster, NY 14580
POWER PRO DCC
Digital Command Control
TM

About your wireless Procab:
The Procab-R is designed to eliminate the need for tethered operation of an NCE ProCab. All
present and planned features of the cab are usable while untethered from the cab bus. The
adapter is battery powered and will supply power for both cab operation and the adapter itself.
Although the installed wireless adapter is designed to operate at any voltage from 2 to 16 volts we
recommend the use of 4 AAA cells. The ProCab has a built in battery chamber for 4 AAA battery
cells. The transmitter power of the Procab is .00035 Watts. By comparison your cell phone can put
out 3 Watts or about 10,000 times the power of the ProCab. For this reason a general discussion
of wireless communications follows.
Wireless communications:
We are continuously asked about the operating distance of the wireless cab. There are many
factors governing the useful range of wireless products. The Procab-R operates in the ISM
(Industrial, Scientific and Medical) radio band at 916.5 MegaHertz (Mhz). Many cordless phones,
wireless computer networks, home automation systems, and wireless security devices also operate
in this portion of the radio band and all contribute to radio interference. In any radio system,
propagation of the radio signal will suffer in the presence of ‘in band’ intererence. When devices
operate in the same frequency band they may contribute interference to the point where your cab
may not work at all. On the other hand your wireless cab may interfere with the operation of the
other devices you already own. Radio waves are like one big telephone ‘party line’ where everyone
is talking at once. A device using these radio waves must attempt to sort out what ‘voices’ are
relevant to its operation and which ones are ‘noise’. If there is too much noise it can’t do this
successfully and will operate poorly or not at all. This is especially prevalent in Arenas and
convention Centers due to multiple cell phone repeaters and security devices.
Indoor radio propagation is an issue for special consideration. The human body readily absorbs RF
energy in the frequency band used by the cab radio. Placement of the base station can mitigate
blocking of the radio signal due to human body absorption. In most indoor situations ‘dead spots’
can be found where reception is very difficult. These can occur even if there appears to be a direct
line of sight between the transmitter and receiver. These dead spots, or ‘nulls’, are the result of
multiple radio transmission paths between two points caused by reflections off metal objects such
as steel beams, screen wire, concrete rebar, metal door and window frames, ceiling tile frames,
model railroad track, etc. Nulls occur where the path lengths differ by an odd ½ wavelength (about
6 inches at 900 MHz). Deep nulls are usually very localized and can be avoided by moving slightly,
usually only a few inches. When performing complex tasks involving many messages displayed on
the ProCab, communications between the cab and command station may take longer than
expected thus slowing down your programming. In these instances you may find it more expedient
to plug in the cab while doing extensive programming or system setup.
Operation of the Cab:
To turn on the cab:
Press “EMERGENCY STOP”. The display will activate and show the ‘version message’ but the
backlight of the LCD display will not be on. The ‘version message’ will not disappear until the cab
successfully communicates with the RB01 base station. After the cab communicates with the base
station normal operations can begin just as if you were plugged in to the cab bus.
Description of LED activity:
The LED on top of the cab will flicker every time it communicates with the base station. A regular
‘pulse’ of this LED indicates good quality communications. The flickering will become erratic when
you are getting out of range from the base station. You can use this LED activity to ‘map out’ weak
signal areas and ‘nulls’ of the layout room.
Priority is placed on commands getting from the cab to the base station. As you approach the
maximum range of the cab, updates to the LCD display will lag behind the commands being sent to
the base. If the base station is not able to complete sending display updates it will try to re-send
them 16 times before giving up. The base station LEDs flash brightly when it is trying to send
display update information.
Updating the LCD:
If you turn the cab on and the “NCE WIRELESS 1.0” text is not replaced by the normal cab display
press “ENTER” to refresh the display on your cab with the ‘normal’ display information.
To turn off the cab:
Press “EXPN” and select option #1 (TURN CAB OFF).
Automatic shutdown:
As it comes from the factory, the cab will automatically shut itself off after 5 munites of inactivity.
This time can changed from 1 to 9 minutes by pressing “EXPN” and selecting option #2 (SETUP
**Last revised: 6 October 2003 Page 2 ProCab wireless supplement

RADIO). Press 1 through 9 to select the number of minutes before the cab automatically shuts off.
If you enter 0 the cab will never automatically shut off and you will have to manually shut i t off.
Press enter to skip setting/changing the Layout ID. The cab should return to normal operation.
Layout ID:
The layout ID is used in situations where multiple layouts using the NCE wireless are running in the
same area. When the ID is set to 0 all layout IDs are ignored by the cab and it will communicate
with any base station it hears. When set to 1,2 or 3 the layout ID must match between the cab and
base station. The layout ID is set by pressing “EXPN” and selecting option #2 (SETUP RADIO).
Press “ENTER” to skip setting/changing the automatic shutdown timer. Press 0 to 3 to set the
Layout ID. Only values of 0 to 3 are accepted. Press enter and the cab should return to normal
operation.
Turning on the LCD backlight:
The LCD backlight comes for 3 seconds on when you press any key which might require reading
the LCD display such as SEL LOCO, PROG/ESC, MACRO, etc. Each subsequent key press will
extend the time the light stays on by 3 seconds. Pressing the “SHIFT” key will also turn on the
backlight.
Tips:
When you press a button on the ProCab press and hold for about a second. You don’t have to
press harder than normal but pressing slightly longer results in better performance.
We recommend having several our UTP or DIN plug-in panels located around the layout where you
can plug in the cab in case the battery goes dead or conditions such as severe interference cause
loss of control via radio. We usually hang a short cab cable about 2 feet long from a small number
these panels to facilitate plugging in in an emergency.
You may find it more expedient to plug in the cab while doing extensive programming or system
setup. When performing complex tasks that require many messages to be displayed on the
ProCab, communications between the cab and command station may take longer than expected
thus slowing down your programming.
The LED on the cab flashes every time it sends a cab status update to the base station.
You can use this flashing to map out the dead spots in the layout room. The cab is communicating
best when the LED has a steady flicker. Move about the room noting where the spots wher the
flashing stops or becomes erratic. Then move the base station to a different location until you get
good reception at at the most important operating spots.
The cab may not operate when you get within 1 foot (300mm) of the base station (other cabs will
still operate normally). The LED on the cab will flicker but the will not seem to communicate with
the base station. This is due to ’overloading’ of the base station receiver. Due to the extreme low
power of the cab radios we’ve had to make the radio receivers in the base station very sensitive.
This can result in the receiver being overloaded when a cab is too close.
The ProCab seems to propogate the radio signal better to the sides of the cab than to the front or
rear. Turning the cab sideways to the base station will sometimes result in better communications.
The cab works much better with the antenna vertical.
In crowded layout rooms we’ve had good luck attaching the base station to the ceiling with the
antenna pointing down. See the diagram below for how the radio signal propagates from the
antenna.
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Side View Top View
Antenna Radiation Patterns
from RB01 Base Station

Legalese:
The RU01-Pro, RU01-4/5 and RB01 wireless adapters for NCE cabs are RF products and may only be used in
countries in which the units have been Type Approved or Certified for sale and operation. Use of these
products in countries where they are not certified may result in interference to other critical radio services and
legal penalties.
FCC ID: NC4RU01
This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC rules. Operation is subject to the following conditions (1) this
device may not cause harmful interference and (2) this device must accept any interference received, including
interference that may cause undesired operation.
Warranty
This product is fully factory tested and warranted against manufacturing defects for a period of 1 year. As the
circumstances under which this product is installed can not be controlled, failure of the product due to installation
problems can not be warranted. This includes misuse, miswiring, operation under conditions beyond the design
range of the product. No guarantees are expressed or implied as to the suitability of the product for its intended use
by the purchaser. No guarantees can be made as to the communications range or performance of this product in
the presence of radio or other electromagnetic interference. It is possible that interference can cause undesired
operation including loss of control of speed, direction etc. Damage to purchaser’s equipment due to loss of control
is not warranted or covered by NCE.
For warranty or non-warranty replacement send the decoder (and any payment, if required) to:
NCE Warranty Center
899 Ridge Road
Webster, New York 14580
Spare Parts:
Spare parts for your cab or RU01 wireless adapter may be ordered from the list below. $4 US
will be added to your order for US priority mail and packaging. Check or credit card will be
accepted.
Send parts orders to:
NCE Spare Parts
899 Ridge Road
Webster, New York 14580
**Last revised: 6 October 2003 Page 4 ProCab wireless supplement
$8.00Rubber keypad for Cab04/05
$1.50Cab04/05 battery holder
$2.00Cab04/05 screws (set of 4)
$7.00Cab04/05 rear cover w/battery door
$2.00Pro Cab screws (set of 9)
$8.00Antenna
$3.00ProCab battery clip set w/wires
$8.00Rubber keypad for ProCab
$10.00Procab top
$10.00ProCab bottom w/ battery door
Price (US $)Description