Stoker Technical Question

Depends on what layer of the stack you're asking about. It uses TCP/IP over ethernet and, as R2Egg2Q said, it will pick up an IP address via DHCP, if a available, otherwise you can assign a static IP address within the device's interface.

Higher up the stack, it is listening on port 23 for Telnet, port 80 for HTTP/Web and port 21 for upgrade file transfers. Applications like StokerLog will use port 23, while your web browser uses 80. This is all important if you're traversing a firewall.

You can log into your stoker via telnet with guest/guest or root/tini.

Less important, port 12346 is used for the Stoker's upgrade communication process.
 
That's a great question. I would guess RS-232, but I would call Rock's for a definitive answer.
 
Thought about buying one, but after Donnie's experiences, no thank you.

A company unwilling to repair its own malfunctions and insteads blames the user just ain't for me.
 
Found this in a virtual bullet forum thread:

" I'm pretty sure he is using Dallas Semiconductor 1-wire technology for the probes and the blower fans. 1-wire is a networking protocol that can run on a common bus. A very cool feature of the Stoker design in this respect is that the analog (thermocouple temperature sensor) to digital (the signal going to the Stoker itself) is done right in the connector for the temp probes. Therefore, you can safely extend the length of those cables without changing accuracy (the signal is digital at that point)."
 
As previously mentioned, it uses OneWire to talk to the sensors and blowers. OneWire is a Serial protocol, so that is part of it too. I don't think, I know:) I talk to the Stoker using its own proprietary TCP protocol.

dmp
 
Sammy_Shuford said:
Great answers but I meant between the stoker and the sensors and blowers.
Click to expand...

I suspect the heat sensors themocoupling will change its resistance in step with the amount of heat, and based on an EEPROM (electrically erasable read & write memory - I know some think ROM in this instance is read only memory- it is not - it's a legacy word - using an EEPROM allows for firmware updates) chip routine based on this reading, calculate the amount of on-time the fan will need to stay on, or off, to maintain the set temp.

That's how I suspect they work.
 
btcg said:
I suspect the heat sensors themocoupling will change its resistance in step with the amount of heat, and based on an EEPROM (electrically erasable read & write memory - I know some think ROM in this instance is read only memory- it is not - it's a legacy word - using an EEPROM allows for firmware updates) chip routine based on this reading, calculate the amount of on-time the fan will need to stay on, or off, to maintain the set temp.
Click to expand...

Thermocouples talk to a OneWire chip which speaks on the serial bus. The hardware in the unit is a custom TINI board which runs software (written in Java I believe) that calculates an "on" time for each blower using PID. Using the TCP interface you can write your own PID (or other) controller which reads the temp of each probe and turns the blowers off and on in your own intervals. On the one hand, the device does such a good job on its own, why bother, but on the other hand, you'd have better control of timing that way since the firmware has no timers and is based on cycles.

dmp
 
dmprantz said:
Thermocouples talk to a OneWire chip which speaks on the serial bus. The hardware in the unit is a custom TINI board which runs software (written in Java I believe) that calculates an "on" time for each blower using PID. Using the TCP interface you can write your own PID (or other) controller which reads the temp of each probe and turns the blowers off and on in your own intervals. On the one hand, the device does such a good job on its own, why bother, but on the other hand, you'd have better control of timing that way since the firmware has no timers and is based on cycles.

dmp
Click to expand...

Here's a good description of thermocouple and the resistance bridge (
Electrical Temperature Simulation):

http://www.nphheaters.com/technical/thermo_letter.htm

1 wire chips? In the Stoker?

Interesting read:

http://www.maxim-ic.com/app-notes/index.mvp/id/1796

delving down, we see they work with EEPROMs. No surprise, gotta have some way of updating firmware (you'd think).

Anyways, is this speculation, or do you have proprietary knowledge?
 
No proprietary knowledge....or at least no secret knowledge. I've spoken with Kenneth (The guy that wrote the software), and I know a thing or two about a thing or two. I just posted a thread (and you replied) with a picture of the guts of the probe connector, and there's a board soldered between the cable and the thermocouple. I looked at the chip on that board once and verified that it was a DS 1Wire chip. The public documentation for the TCP protocol clearly mentions the 1wire address of each device, and you can see them on the web interface. I would never risk voiding a warranty and opening up my non-user-servicable Stoker, but it is a custom board and does have a DS chip with a 1Wire controller, Ethernet, and SRAM (not EPROM) soldered onto it. There may also be a PROM on there somewhere. I'm more of a software and protocol kinda guy.

dmp
 
dmprantz said:
No proprietary knowledge....or at least no secret knowledge. I've spoken with Kenneth (The guy that wrote the software), and I know a thing or two about a thing or two. I just posted a thread (and you replied) with a picture of the guts of the probe connector, and there's a board soldered between the cable and the thermocouple. I looked at the chip on that board once and verified that it was a DS 1Wire chip. The public documentation for the TCP protocol clearly mentions the 1wire address of each device, and you can see them on the web interface. I would never risk voiding a warranty and opening up my non-user-servicable Stoker, but it is a custom board and does have a DS chip with a 1Wire controller, Ethernet, and SRAM (not EPROM) soldered onto it. There may also be a PROM on there somewhere. I'm more of a software and protocol kinda guy.

dmp
Click to expand...

I don't blame you, I wouldn't want to void it either. Donnie only experienced problems, and they did nothing to help him. Why give them a reason?

Never worked with thermocouples, just remember from electronics school (I have 2 electronics degrees).

Quit the electronics biz in 2000 when I moved to Maryland, and went into software writing. My CET license may never be used again, except for project building. But even in that, there's no Popular Electronics or Electronics Now magazines anymore. Just Nuts & Volts: I miss PE & EN.

</hijack>
 
I don't know much to say except that John's always been alright by me. I dunno when all that went down, but my Stoker and 25cfm blower came with a 6A ps. Just today in fact I explained a situation to him where I can't plug the 25CFM blower into a stereo extension cable. It takes the blower off the serial bus and has it always on. He says he thinks it's because of the thin wire of the extension cable and he's gonna work with me to try to resolve the issue. Maybe he's learned from the errors of his ways, or maybe I've just gotten lucky.

dmp
 
6 amps???? Holy cow. Guess the figured out that wasn't the problem.

So they still have this issue, eh? Let us know if they can resolve it.
 
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