Start Guide: Digital Input + Output with 86EVA and ArduBlock

[QEC Tutorial]

This guide will show you how to use the EtherCAT Master QEC-M-01P and the Digital I/O Slave QEC-RXXDXX Series.

Notes: QEC’s PoE (Power over Ethernet)

In QEC product installations, users can easily distinguish between PoE and non-PoE: if the RJ45 house is red, it is PoE type, and if it is black, it is non-PoE type.

Non-PoE type	PoE type

PoE (Power over Ethernet) is a function that delivers power over the network. QEC can be equipped with an optional PoE function to reduce cabling. In practice, PoE is selected based on system equipment, so please pay attention to the following points while evaluating and testing:

1. The PoE function of QEC is different and incompatible with EtherCAT P, and the PoE function of QEC is based on PoE Type B, and the pin functions are as follows:
   
2. When connecting PoE and non-PoE devices, make sure to disconnect Ethernet cables at pins 4, 5, 7, and 8 (e.g., when a PoE-supported QEC EtherCAT master connects with a third-party EtherCAT slave).
3. QEC’s PoE power supply is up to 24V/3A.
   

1. Connection and wiring hardware

The following devices are used here:

1. QEC-M-01P (EtherCAT Master/PoE)
2. QEC-R11D88H-N (EtherCAT Slave 8-ch digital input and 8-ch digital output/PoE)
3. 24V power supply
4. 24V LED

1.1  QEC-M-01P

QEC EtherCAT master with PoE function.

1. Using the EtherCAT Out port (top side) connected to the EtherCAT In port of QEC-R11D88H via RJ45 cable (powered by PoE).
2. Connect to Vs+/Vs- and Vp+/Vp- power supplies via EU terminals for 24V power.

1.2  QEC-R11D88H-N

1. Connect from VP+ to Breadboard+, and connect from VP- to Breadboard-.
2. Connect from Breadboard+ to button; connect from button to DI 0+; connect from DI 0- back to Breadboard-.
3. Connect from breadboard+ to DO 0+.
4. Connect the 24V LED+ to DO 0-.
5. Connect the 24V LED- to the Breadboard-.

1.3  Wiring Diagram

2. Software/Development Environment: 86Duino IDE

Download 86duino IDE from https://www.qec.tw/software/.

After downloading, please unzip the downloaded zip file. No additional software installation is required; just double-click 86duino.exe to start the IDE.

86Duino Coding IDE 500+ looks like below.

3. Connect to your PC and set up the environment

Follow the steps below to set up the environment:

1. Connect the QEC-M-01P to your PC via a Micro USB to USB cable (86Duino IDE installed).
2. Turn on the QEC power.
3. Open “Device Manager” (select in the menu after pressing Win+X) ->” Ports (COM & LPT)” in your PC and expand the ports; you should see that the “Prolific PL2303GC USB Serial COM Port (COMx)” is detected; if not, you will need to install the required drivers.
   (For the Windows PL2303 driver, you can download it here)

4. Open the 86Duino IDE.
5. Select the correct board: In the IDE’s menu, select Tools> Board > QEC-M-01 (or the QEC-M master model you use).
6. Select Port: In the IDE’s menu, select Tools > Port and select the USB port to connect to the QEC-M master (in this case, COM3 (QEC)).

4.  Use 86EVA and ArduBlock

This example shows how to operate the QEC-M (EtherCAT Master) and QEC’s EtherCAT Slave Digital Input & Output Modules through the 86Duino IDE’s graphical low-code programming tools, 86EVA and ArduBlock. Read the pin 0 of Digital Input and judge its status. If it’s HIGH, then set the pin0 of Digital Output to HIGH; if it’s LOW, then set the pin0 of Digital Output to LOW. We connect an external button to DI pin0 and an external 24V LED to DO pin0.

Software Tools Description:

• 86EVA (EVA, EtherCAT-Based Virtual Arduino):
  is a graphical EtherCAT configuration tool based on the EtherCAT Library in the 86Duino IDE and is one of the development kits for 86Duino.
• ArduBlock:
  is a graphical interface for programming and IO control. It is third-party software that belongs to Arduino IDE, developed by David Li, a Shanghai-based creator, and must be attached to the IDE to operate. ArduBlock is a software that converts graphical blocks into code and eventually generates the main program to 86Duino Coding IDE, then compiles and uploads it.

Step 1: Turn on 86EVA and scan

The 86EVA tool can be opened via the following buttons.

Once you have confirmed that the correct COM port has been selected of QEC-M-01P, press the Connect button to start scanning the EtherCAT network.

The connected devices will be displayed after the EtherCAT network has been scanned.
Press the “View” button in the lower left corner to check the device’s status.

Step 2: Set the parameters

Press twice on the scanned device image to enter the corresponding parameter setting screen.

QEC-M-01

Press twice on the image of the QEC-M-01 to see the parameter settings.
If you are developing for the first time, please use the preset settings first and click “Back” in the upper left corner to return.

QEC-R11D88H-N

Press twice on the image of the QEC-R11D88H to see the parameter settings.

Go to the “Digital Input Pin Mapping” area. Among them, we select “Virtual Pin D0” in the drop-down box of DI00 in “Digital Input Pin Mapping”.

Continue down to the “Digital Output Pin Mapping” area. Among them, we select “Virtual Pin D1” in the drop-down box of DQ00 in “Digital Output Pin Mapping”.

After finishing, click “Back” in the upper left corner to return.

These actions are to set the QEC-R11D88H’s Digital Input Pin0 to the virtual D0 pin of EVA and Digital Output Pin0 to the virtual D1 pin of EVA.

Step 3: Generate the code

Once you’ve set your device’s parameters, go back to the home screen and press the “Code Generation” button in the bottom right corner.

When you’re done, double-click the OK button to turn off 86EVA, or it will close in 10 seconds.

The generated code and files are as follows:

• sketch_oct04a: Main Project (.ino, depending on your project name)
• ChatGPT.h: Parameters to provide to ChatGPT referred
• myeva.cpp: C++ program code of 86EVA
• myeva.h: Header file of 86EVA

Additional note: After 86EVA generates code, the following code will be automatically generated in the main program (.ino), and any of them missing will cause 86EVA not to work.

1. #include “myeva.h” : Include EVA Header file
2. EVA.begin(); in setup() : Initialize the EVA function

Step 4: Turn on ArduBlock and setup

Open ArduBlock.

We use the “if/else” block from the “Control” class to the program’s main loop to judge the EtherCAT Digital Input Pin.

Put under the “loop” area in the “program” block.

Then, we use the “digital Pin” block from the “EtherCAT : Pins” class.

And put in the “if/else” block test area.

The “if/else” will judge the “digital Pin D0” and execute the then or else program.
* Note: we configure the digital input pin in D0.

To execute the digital output action, we use the “set digital output” block from the “EtherCAT : Pins” class.

In the “then” area of “if/else”, it will execute if the “digital pin” is HIGH.

We let the digital output pin pull HIGH if the “digital pin” is HIGH.

In the “else” area of “if/else”, it will execute if the “digital pin” is LOW.

We let the digital output pin pull LOW if the “digital pin” is LOW.

After you finish, click the “Code Generation & Upload” button, and ArduBlock will automatically generate the program code and upload it to the QEC Master.

The program will run when the upload is complete. The digital output pin (LED) will pull HIGH or LOW, depending on the digital input pin (external button).

5. Troubleshooting

5.1 QEC-M-01 cannot successfully upload the code

When you are unable to successfully upload code, please open 86EVA to check if your QEC EtherCAT Master’s environment is abnormal. As shown in the figure below, please try updating your QEC EtherCAT Master’s environment, which will include the following three items: Bootloader, EtherCAT firmware, and EtherCAT tool.

Now, we will further explain how to proceed with the update:

Step 1: Setting up QEC-M

1. Download and install 86Duino IDE 500 (or a newer version): You can download it from Software.
2. Connect the QEC-M: Use a USB cable to connect the QEC-M to your computer.
3. Open 86Duino IDE: After the installation is complete, open the 86Duino IDE software.
4. Select Board: From the IDE menu, choose “Tools” > “Board” > “QEC-M-01” (or the specific model of QEC-M you are using).
5. Select Port: From the IDE menu, choose “Tools” > “Port” and select the USB port to which the QEC-M is connected.

Step 2: Click “Burn Bootloader” button

After connecting to your QEC-M product, go to “Tools”> “Burn Bootloader”. The currently selected QEC-M name will appear. Clicking on it will start the update process, which will take approximately 5-20 minutes.

• QEC-M-01:

Step 3: Complete the Update

After completing the above steps, your QEC-M has been successfully updated to the latest version of the development environment.

For more information and sample requests, please write to info@qec.tw, call your nearest ICOP branch, or contact our official global distributor.