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DINAMO reference

DINAMO is a track driver system developed by VPEB (Van Perlo Elektronica en Besturingstechniek) in the Netherlands. It can control analog and digital (DCC) trains in mixed operation.

This appendix does not explain the DINAMO protocol itself. Instead, it documents how Traintastic implements and uses DINAMO and which protocol messages are recognized. It is intended for advanced users who are already familiar with the basics of the DINAMO protocol.

Note

DINAMO stands for Digital Interface Network for Analog Model Railways. The term analog refers to the original version of DINAMO, which could only be used to control analog trains.

Supported hardware

  • RM-C 1/1+/2 - USB interface for communicating with DINAMO
  • TM44 - Track driver module (4 blocks, 4 detectors per block)
  • OC32 - Output controller (32 outputs)

Message support

Traintastic only supports the DINAMO 3.x protocol, the legacy DINAMO 2.x protocol is not supported.

Supported protocol features:

  • Reading protocol version
  • Reading interface type and firmware version
  • Mixed analog and DCC train operation
  • Automatic TM44 block linking and polarity management
  • Occupancy detection and other input events
  • Block alarms (short circuit)
  • Control OC32 outputs using SetAspect commands

Debugging and monitoring

Traintastic provides two debug options for DINAMO:

  • Protocol message logging
    Logs all messages sent to and received from DINAMO. Messages are shown in hexadecimal format, and for many message types a human-readable description of the decoded content is included.

  • Track driver state logging
    Logs the internal track driver state. For each train, linked blocks and polarity information is logged.

These tools are useful for verifying correct communication and diagnosing unexpected behavior.

Acknowledgements

The development of DINAMO support in Traintastic was made possible with the help of:

Their support enabled the implementation and validation of DINAMO support with real hardware.