UVic Rocketry's hybrid controls system is designed to actuate and monitor the states of stepper motor driven valves located on a high-pressure oxidizer feed system. The controls system includes the following components:
- Mission Control Board (MCB) : A physical panel with toggle switches, momentary buttons, indicator lights, and a buzzer
- Sends commands to Mission Control Computer based on user input through switches/buttons
- Mission Control Computer (MCC) : The main controller and communication method with the valve cart
- Manages commands from the MCB and forwards them to the valve cart
- Confirms valve status from the valve cart
- Also able to be used as an override in case the MCB stops working
- Valve Control Cart (VC) : Actuates all valves on the test stand
- Recieves command from Mission Control Computer
- Executes valve movements
- Obtains confirmation or error from limit switches
- sends confirmed valve states or error back to the Mission Control Computer
Note: If you get the draw.io extension for vs code you can edit this picture directly.
Possibly out of date and needs review!
The GUI for the Mission Control Computer is the brains of both the Valve Cart and the Mission Control Board, as well as the communication between them.
There are two options for installing the GUI and communication libraries: downloading a released compiled version, or downloading directly from source and running as a python script.
Releases of the GUI are bundled into a single file using PyInstaller, and built for x86_64 architecture only. If you need an x86 version, refer to the compiling from source instructions of this document.
-
To find the latest release, go to https://github.com/UVicRocketry/Hybrid-Controls-System/releases and download the executable for your system.
-
Once downloaded, you may need to enable execution of the executable (refer to your system's documentation). On Linux, this is
chmod +x HybridControlsGUI -
Finally, just run the GUI by either double-clicking or executing from the terminal.
Running from source is necessary if you want to be bleeding edge, or if there's no release for your system. This method is bit finicky, but if you follow the steps below, you'll be good to go
- Make sure you have the right Python version, you must have Python 3.9 or above for the libraries you need to work.
- Install pre-requisites: Use the following command to install all the pre-requisites you need for the GUI:
pip3 install betterconfigs pyserial PyQt5 - Download from Source: You can pull the bleeding commit from the git repo using
git pull https://github.com/UVicRocketry/Hybrid-Controls-System.git - Checkout the right branch: Make sure you're in the right branch by cd-ing into the git repo you just downloaded and using
git checkout *branchname*(replace branchname with the right branch name) - Run the GUI: If you've done everything right, you can run the GUI by cd'ing into
./src/MCC_GUI/and runningpython3 gui_valve.py. If you get an error, refer to the Common Errors section below
Command structure breakdown:
VC,Command,Modifier,Modifier,etc
EX:
VC,CTRL,MEV,OPEN - opens MEV valve
VC,CTRL,N2OF,CLOSE - closes N2OF valve
VC,STATUS - reports status of all valves
VC,ABORT - initiates abort seequence
If you can open the GUI, and you're having issues with communication, use the debug console to help troubleshoot
The GUI opened, but I can't see any serial devices to select
1. Is the device plugged in and receiving power? (It's okay I do it all the time too). Also, try hitting the refresh button.2. If you're getting power to the device, check the OS's device manager and see if it's showing up. If it is, you might have a permissions error with the applications. Linux especially has this issue (Your user might need to be added to the dialout group).