Airsoft DOMINATOR - Button - Arduino + I2C LCD
Today's article will take a closer look at the DOMINATOR system for Airsoft sports, Paintball, which was created as the equivalent of RFID DOMINATOR, which I implemented in the past. DOMINATOR uses digital inputs via four buttons.
Button functions:
- Team (RED) - After pressing the button, the red LED lights up (the green team LED goes out), the time of the red team starts to count on the display
- Team (GREEN) - After pressing the button, the green LED lights up (the red team LED goes out), the time of the green team starts to count on the display
- Referee - After pressing the button, the time on the display stops
- Eraser - After pressing the button, the time on the display stops and the times are reset to 00:00:00
The individual buttons are connected by an internal resistor of 20kΩ value to a 5V Arduino, ie they are switched to ground. This is an Active low signal that the Arduino verifies. The system is designed on the millis() function, which returns the number of milliseconds since the processor was started. Thanks to this, it is possible to control the system on the basis of time-oriented actions and the possibility to operate different time actions - events in parallel.
The system stopwatch logic is performed every 100 milliseconds. A simple incrementer increases the number of tenths until it overflows into seconds, then overflows seconds into minutes and overflows minutes into hours. The maximum system time range is 99 hours, 59 minutes and 59 seconds.
It is therefore also suitable for several daily events, such as Fort Benning in the Czech Republic with a duration of 2 days and similar events, where this game mode can be interesting. As well as for sports facilities that can offer such a game mode in their portfolio. In addition to the logic of the system, it is possible to trigger other time-oriented events, such as verifying the length of a button press. Each team can occupy a point by holding the button for a period of time, for example 10 seconds.
The second team must hold the button for 20 seconds when the point is occupied, as the point will reach the neutral state in the first 10 seconds, and then holding the button for another 10 seconds will occupy the point by this team.
The stopwatch concept can also be used, for example, to calculate the number of points that the team has earned, for example, from the number of points occupied, the number of minutes / seconds of point occupancy. In my implementation, I decided on the simplest possible implementation without examining the length of time button presses. Thus, immediately after pressing the button, the system status changes (team indicator - LED diode, the timer is activated for the team).
More about DOMINATOR projects: https://martinius96.github.io/Airsoft-DOMINATOR-RFID/en/button-dominator.html
Wiring diagram for Airsoft DOMINATOR with push-button input:
