Using A.I. to Make your Model Railroad Better

[@steve87thpsap]

That is very interesting and informative. Programming is an area that I am not interested in which would keep me away from Arduino. But this makes life easier and less dependent on acquiring a new skill. Thanks Jimmy

[@peterfrancis7924]

Great video Jimmy I've used ChatGPT to write some Processing code for a display I'm planning to add to my N gauge railway I want to have a mimic display showing the state of all the ancillary lights (houses , street lights etc) as well as crossings etc Keep up the good work

[@christopherkelley1999]

SkyNet will become sentient next year on April 2nd…. Oddly, the network where I work used to be called SkyNet! It is very much not sentient…. What a great idea, Jimmy!

[@TannerTheGinger]

Okay this made me intrigued to start using arduinos for lighting effects on my layout, the coding is what was keeping me away from doing it

[@philiphillebrand2965]

Great little video explaining the use of ChatGPT, showing how helpful it can be. 👍👍 I have been using ChatGPT myself since the beginning of this year to do some stuff very similar to your video examples, also some code for a DCC servo motor decoder.

[@alantrains]

Thanks for opening up a new world of programming for me Jimmy. This is going to be a timesaver.

[@markdalton3834]

Terminator layout!

[@davidkoehler136]

and how did it work for the?....lol

[@21mozzie]

I had a go at getting it to make up activities and game ideas. It came up with some pretty good stuff.

[@effenbeezeetravel4474]

as soon as I figure out some objective to accomplish , I will try to use this for something ! Thanks !

[@acrranscaleandlifejourney4330]

Wow this is still game changing. It will hell a lot of us that are afraid of code. Thanks for sharing.

[@melkitson]

Wow! I have to try this out. This opens up so many possibilities.

[@ajkleipass]

While it can't (at least not yet) draw a track plan, ChatGPT does have some rudimentary abilities to guide one in planning a model railroad. As the AI's data core expands, it should be interesting to see how it improves at this task.

[@oldgrumpyhunter]

Interesting idea Jimmy. I don't know how I miss this video before now.

[@lpclassic60]

I'm currently in the midst of planning a new layout, and this may end up coming in handy since coding terrifies me. This was a genuinely inspired idea.

[@twitch1965]

Very cool idea, this might make my entry into Aurdino much softer!

[@thomasdecker7631]

Most of my experience with automated control has been strictly mechanical. As such, my ideas for layout animation involved things like progam drums to start and stop things at appropriate times. (I've done some CNC programming in the past, but sorting out the right M & G codes was never my favorite task) This time, however, I think I may have been unceremoniously yanked into the 21st century. This actually looks interesting. The possibilities are nearly endless with only minimal pain.

[@jeffherdz]

Taking this a littler further. You can write any of these scripts in either bash or Python code to do this as well.

[@skiperror]

When using neopixel leds strip (ws2812 or similar type sk6812), you can even make more realistic effects. Like a tv simulation or lightning ⚡ sunrice sunset rainbows 🌈 effects.

[@HumancityJunction]

Hmm, I have avoided arduinos because I didn't want to deal with writing the code from scratch. This might be a good way to get the basics written and then I only have to do edits.

[@saviorebello8430]

Great video Jimmy. Wish you could demonstrate more examples of AI in model railroading.

[@IMRROcom]

I used ChatGPT to write basic text based adventures games. ZORK from the late 70's. I have also used ChatGPT to filling parts of a story I was working on. Last I used it to help in design 3D masked I used for weathering ties. I use it for all sorts of stuff.

[@kend3900]

Wow pretty cool

[@LancesLens]

oooooh this is cool! Thanks for doing this video!

[@andrewl9191]

omg, chatgpt...I use it for D&D fine tuning and like a soundboard....I don't have any interesting in learning programming...I'm definitely paying attention now...

[@jenwright2577]

Skynet with model trains sounds terrifying!

[@chadportenga7858]

1:05 It was here and now that Jimmy realized he had opened the portal to Skynet and there was no closing it up. 😮 😉 Seriously, I've wondered just how good AI could program for various things. Thanks for the video!

[@muse7730]

So Cool. Great video as always. Thanks.

[@BriansModelTrains]

Heresy!! No coffee anywhere in the video? Otherwise; a great video as usual.

[@supremeleader1043]

instead of a detection zone. i have it set so when the sensor is triggered the blinking lights last for 30 seconds or whatever seems about right. just hope the train crosses before they stop

[@glm777]

Great Vid! Thank you. I'd like to get started in this so can you list the components and where to buy for this demonstration? Cheers!

[@4everdc302]

Holy eh 👨‍💻🚂 I'll be keeping my Broadway Ltd Lightning&Thunder, tho😊🇨🇦🇺🇲

[@PyroRob69]

Now add sound to the lightning and the crossing lights :)

[@patoconnor1743]

Great stuff, thank you for sharing!

[@kennedygauger4680]

I’m so glad you did this video. I would like to use this to display short messages on an an OLED. Specifically to simulate empty weights and loaded weights coming off a weigh scale track. Do you think this is doable?

[@jyvben1520]

almost there, if the train could flash infrared signals (unique id) then a camera high above the layout can detect them and AI could manage the scene (or just prevent accidents), long tunnels might be a problem but detectors at the tunnel entrance could copy the id and flash it at the expected exit. (just dreaming)

[@ericcoughlan]

I have been trying to help a friend program an arduino to control a set of signals based on a couple of detectors without doing the actual coding for him. If I tell him about this video, I may never be required for help 😀

[@chazco]

This is pretty cool

[@kurtludwig6962]

Thanks

[@craiglordable]

Way cool, thanks.

[@greatnorthernrailwaytother4711]

When does Skynet take over. 😂

[@etechia]

Wait?! Are we sure Jimmy is not an AI generated avatar?! I would think AI needs a hobby also. 😜

[@johnm8342]

Remember this date…. I’ll be back!

[@mikerroll]

No, not Skynet. In reality it will be more like the film “Her.” The AI will get fed up with working for us and leave 😂.

[@robjohnson1138]

3 weeks ago.

[@derailroad]

this is AWESOME!!!!!!!!

[@gbwdude]

Taking it one step further, have you tried to describe an object to ChatGPT and have it make an STL file?

[@etechia]

In using ChatGPT, we’re you successful in using it from the very start or did you have some trial and error on HOW to ask it to write the code?

[@WhiteRiverLine]

Hey, Jimmy, thanks for the sub! I wonder how AI might be helpful in operations.

[@edwardaudet8367]

Just amazing but can it brew coffee to a high standard? I've been hearing a lot about ChatGpt both good and bad. But I think it will enhance the human experience. Beam me up Scotty 😂😅

[@aaronl_trains_and_planes]

Great video! I'm drinking Death Wish Coffee this morning. I might have to go with Arduino now. I use to code HTML and some PHP for websites and I hated it. I've been using chatGPT for months now and never thought of using for this. I know it can spit out code, just never had a reason to ask it for any code.

[@AndrewJohnson-ur3lw]

If you are using 2 sensors they could be wired in series so that when either is triggered the circuit becomes active. I presume that a timer can be added into the code so that it works for x seconds after sensing. This could be handy for a light loco move as it might take say 5 seconds to pass from sensor A to B plus many crossing systems have a "wait until train passes next signal" before clearing the lights. That is interesting and potentially an easy way to learn the syntax. Not a trade secret but many of us in IT create programs by bolting together sections of code. It would be easy to do a UK crossing kzbin.info/www/bejne/ioisnqeji7d0adU

[@kurtludwig6962]

How can you programming round table using stepper motors

[@michaelostertag2839]

What program do you use to program the arduinos?

[@tonykane8866]

Dude stop making this look to easy! Lol

[@brettany_renee_blatchley]

Maybe we can get AI so enthralled with model railroading that it won't try to kill us. 🤷‍♀️

[@larrydee8859]

Sorry, I'm totally confused by this Ai programing. How do you know what words to use to ask the technical questions? Another words; just how big is this ai program vocabulary, and technical interpretation of your words, into Arduino language, and structural design? I would not know where to begin or end in trying to use this program to design an Arduino project. What am I missing here? Just my thoughts....

[@donrobinson9717]

Ask Elan Musk

[@modelrailroader5619]

The future is …now.😵‍💫

[@BrennerEraFan]

ChatGPT has answered so many questions I have had about model railroading ever since I recently learned about the hobby 2 months ago. However, I have noticed since the December and January versions, ChatGPT has seemed to become a lot dumber, and at times will say something completely opposite of what it said before. I think this could be because OpenAI could have moved more of its resources to the the GPT+ or GPT 4 version. Microsoft Bing AI is more powerful, and Google Bard is also starting to overtake ChatGPT in terms of lengthier conversations from what I have noticed.

[@RonStanek]

'Klaatu barada nikto'

[@ricksavaiano5640]

AI is a dangerous path to go down. While this seems benign as it's being used for modeling however in time across the board it will be bad, very bad.

[@bigizzysworld4253]

No thanks

[@rwissbaum9849]

"The marvelous thing about a dancing bear is not how well it dances, but that it dances at all." I have to present another side to this: while AI may well produce an acceptable sketch, there is simply no substitute for understanding how the sketch works. I notice that ChatGPT has - quite properly - defined a constant ledPin and used that value throughout the sketch, making it easy to change the value of ledPin to whichever pin is actually used. However, I noticed also that ChatGPT has assumed that all LEDs are wired with a common cathode (negative lead) which requires setting the pin output HIGH to turn on the LED, but many commercial devices are wired with a common anode (positive lead)(don't ask me why.) A skilled human programmer would have written, for example: #define CMN_CATHODE // comment this line out for common anode devices #ifdef CMN_CATHODE #define LED_ON HIGH #define LED_OFF LOW #else #define LED_ON LOW #define LED_OFF HIGH #endif and then later, used digitalWrite(ledPin,LED_ON); or digitalWrite(ledPin,LED_OFF); as appropriate. Google "The Feeling of Power" by Isaac Asimov. It was written in 1958, and it is a cautionary tale.