User Manual

Brick. There should never be both ʻSmartʼ and ʻDumbʼ Bricks in the same
card cage. Damage may result if there are.
A ʻSmartʼ Brick system is used when you need to synchronize any
number of ʻBricksʼ together on a ʻSmartʼ Brick Network under the control
of a single ʻSmartʼ Brick Brain. The Brain itself allows shows to be trig-
gered at specific times of the day using a real time clock and the Brainsʼ
365 day schedule, and locked (synchronized) to Smpte time code,
LaserDisks and DVDs, or the Brainsʼ own internal or external clock. A
single Brain and ʻSmartʼ Brick network can run a single time line at one
time.
This Br-ANA acts just like any other Playback-Only 'Smart' Brick, play-
ing animation data from Sd or SdHC flash cards. As a 'Smart' Brick, it re-
quires a 'Smart' Brick Brain to run. The 'Smart' Brick Brain tells all the
'Smart' Bricks attached to it (including the Br-ANA) where in the show it
is. The Br-ANA then uses this information to access the AutoDownload
file stored on the Sd or SdHC flash card and play back the show.
2) Br-ANA as a ʻSlaveʼ: In this mode the Br-ANA receives data from and ex-
ternal source and uses this data to update its outputs. Data can come from:
a) RealTime serial updates from a Pc•MACs programming system
through the RS-422 serial port. Up to sixteen eight-bit wide channels of
animation control data can be received through the serial port at 9600
baud. The Br-ANA can be addressed to use any address from 0 to 15
for RealTime serial data.
b) DMX-512 data from a Pc•MACs programming system (or any other
source of DMX-512). Up to 512 eight-bit wide channels of animation
control data can be received through the DMX-512 port. The Br-ANA
can be addressed to use any DMX-512 address from 0 to 511. The
DMX-512 input allows the Br-ANA to be used as a permanent ʻslaveʼ
as a part of a larger Control System. If the incoming DMX-512 contains
GilderChecksums, the Br-ANA will automatically update only on valid
data packets, and reject any frames with bad or missing checksums in
it.
The animation sequence which is to be used on the Br-ANA is generated on a
PC•MACs Animation Control System. During programming, the DMX-512 or serial port
RealTime updates can be used so that you can see the animation sequence as it is pro-
grammed. Once programming is completed and your show(s) are saved to disk, the
data is downloaded to the Sd/SdHC onboard the Br-ANA. If the shows are small, you
Gilderfluke & Co.• 205 South Flower Street • Burbank, California 91502 • 818/840-9484 • 800/776-5972 • fax [phone]
Br-ANA Manual / December 18, 2012 10:21 AM / page 8 of 60