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Hi Guys,

Im fairly new to electronics and think i might of bitten off more than i can chew but any advise will be good.

im looking at building a device that needs 14 digital outputs to control solenoids. these solenoids will open and close and act like a gate to start and stop bird seed. 1 of the digital outputs will control a motor for a determined amount of time.

so thats 15 digital outputs

then it also needs 5 analogue inputs. these inputs will be a weighting scale that will weight the seed to a determined weight.

to make this more understandable digital output 1 will open until analogue input 1 has reached a determined weight set by the user once at this weight analogue input one send a signal saying close digital ouput 1. once at weight close digital output 3 and open digital output 2. then start digital output 4 for a determind amount of time. when time has elapsed open digital output 5 before opening digtal output 3. this will fall onto analouge input 2 once at the weight open close digital output 6.

that is basically what im looking at doing was thinking of using a pic but if their are any other ways of doing it as much info would be greatful.
 
A PIC is a good way to start.

I strongly suggest pic18f family with a high count of I/O port (18f4550 is a good example but is not the only choice).

First, I sugest you begin by buying a programming device (pic kit 2 or pic kit 3 is nice), download mplab and find a classic light a LED tutorial. You will now have a basic idea on how to drive your solenoid. HOWEVER, be warned that PIC are ALERGIC to solenoids and care must be taken when using inductive charges with a PIC. What kind of solenoids do you plan to use? can you give a little bit of details?

For now you do not have specific question. If you can be more specific, I will be able to help you further. But, here is a couple of good example:

http://www.rentron.com/images/NPN-DRIVER1.GIF Relay + PIC protection classic schematic
Tutorial 4 – “Hello World” Program in C good pic18f tutorial in C for beginner.

Simon
 
Sounds like a simple project. The code will be relatively short. Any 40-pin PIC with A/D will be adequate. A 16F887 will be fine. There is no need for an 18F. Since it will be short, the program can be in assembly, Basic, or C. You will need drivers for the solenoids; the specific choice will depend on the current drawn by the solenoids. PICkit 2 is a good choice for a programmer.
 
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