What is it?

Main features:

• 3.3V or 5V power supply from the rails
• DCC signal output for decoding (33k resistor)
• DCC-ACK encoding input to rails (60mA load)
• RailCom encoding input to rails (30mA current source)

Note: The circuit enables a bidrectional communication with DCC centrals and occupancy detectors. It does only provide the necessary electical signals extraction and injection to the DCC rails. All digital input and output processing has to be done within the microcontroller (Arduino, ESP32, etc).

• DCC: The recommended library is the "NmraDCC" from mrrwa.
• Marklin: The recommended library is the "Märklin Motorola" from LaserLight.

n.b.: for the RailCom part, there is not yet a public library - but maybe you will contribute to the NmraDcc library?

Why did you make it?

Learn about DCC and Railcom: This project was undertaken to gain a deeper understanding of the DCC protocol and its extensions like Railcom as well as DCC-ACK.

Develop a flexible interface: The goal was to create a decoder that could be easily adapted to various functions and be customizable for your specific needs.

Experiment with your Arduino to bring more options to railway control: This project aimed to explore the capabilities of Arduino microcontrollers in the context of model railway control systems.

What makes it special?

Open Source: The project is open-source, allowing for community contributions, modifications, and further development.