{"id":1218,"date":"2020-12-02T21:18:07","date_gmt":"2020-12-02T21:18:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mattzobricks.com\/?page_id=1218"},"modified":"2026-03-23T20:41:45","modified_gmt":"2026-03-23T19:41:45","slug":"mattzosensorcontroller","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/mattzobricks.com\/de\/automation\/mattzolayoutcontroller\/mattzosensorcontroller","title":{"rendered":"MattzoLayoutController with Sensors"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Please read the general section<\/a> first!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Reed
Reed sensor for LEGO trains<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Purpose<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The MattzoLayoutController is designed to receive input signals from digital sensors like reed switches and pass the information on to the Rocrail via the MQTT broker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Functional Description<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The MattzoLayoutController connects to MQTT as described in the “General” section.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When a connected sensor has contact with a vehicle, the controller instantly sends a sensor event to the MQTT broker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When a sensor looses contact for more than 0,1 seconds (configurable), the controller sends the “sensor disconnected” event to the MQTT broker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Up to nine reed sensors (or other digital sensors) can be connected directly to the controller. With port extenders, even hundreds of sensors can be connected to the controller.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For more information about reed sensors refer to the sensor section<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wiring<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The following wiring diagrams shows two options to attach sensors to the controller.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first diagram shows an example wiring of eight sensors and a status LED:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Wiring
Wiring Diagram MLC with 8 sensors and status LED<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The status LED indicates to WiFi connection status, the MQTT connection status and lights up when one or more sensors are triggered. The status LED is very handy in practice. Therefore, this wiring option is recommended<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next diagram displays the option of the MattzoSensorController with 9 sensors and no status LED.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Wiring
Wiring Diagram MLC with 9 sensors<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Instead of using pin D0 for the status LED, it is used for connecting a 9th reed sensor. The option should only be used if you want to connect all of the nine connectible sensors to the controller. As the ESP-8266 has no internal pull-up resistors for pin D0, a strong resistor (10 or 100 kOhm) is required to pull up the port when the reed sensor is released. All other ports are pulled up internally by the MattzoController-Firmware.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Please note for both options, that the reed sensor on pin D8 must be connected to 3V3, not to GND on the other end. This is because D8 is actually pulled down, not pulled up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One more thing: it is important to understand, that pins D3 and D4 must not be pulled down when you power the controller up, and that pin D8 must not be pulled up during boot. If you do that, the controller will not boot. That means, that the controller can not be successfully powered on when a train is on the sensors. The solution is easy: move the train a little bit away and reboot the controller. Or, even better, do not use D3, D4 and D8 for sensors if you don’t have to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Required Components<\/h2>\n\n\n\n