Hardware
LoDi-Con
Long awaited — finally released:
The LoDi-Con — born to make dreams come true!
For years we have been asked when we would present a handheld controller. After months of intensive and carefully considered development, we can finally introduce our LoDi-Con.
The handheld controller from Lokstoredigital. The model railway market teems with command stations, bus systems, protocols and operating philosophies, each wanting to be handled its own way — while all the modeller really wants is to run trains without trouble. That is exactly where the LoDi-Con comes in: thanks to its strong Wi-Fi antenna it can talk to and control every common command station. The protocol used is secondary at first; what matters is that the station is reachable at an IP address on the network.
Drive your locomotives comfortably from the throttle.
Set routes at the push of a button.
Play, or do whatever you like — the LoDi-Con takes care of the details.
Features and capabilities of the LoDi-Con
- Effortless operation through a capacitive touch screen and an incremental rotary knob
- Visual feedback through the knob for speed steps, short circuits and much more
- Full integration of the LoDi components
- Can be connected to several command stations at once over Wi-Fi
- Driving locomotives and managing them in a loco database
- Display of your own loco images
- Double and multiple heading
- Switching turnouts, signals and routes
- Model clock display
- CV programming in plain text on the programming track and on the main (PoM)
- Feedback monitor
- Locking functions behind a password
- Up to 68 loco functions
- Club mode
- Integration with the LoDi-ProgrammerFX
Supported command stations and protocols
Because the LoDi-Con has Wi-Fi and slots effortlessly into your home network — or even talks directly to command stations that have a Wi-Fi module of their own — there are plenty of ways to bring it in. You can be connected to up to five command stations at the same time.
A number of common protocols are already available, and we work daily on supporting further manufacturers.
So far the following devices can be connected to the LoDi-Con:
- LoDi-Rektor
- LoDi-Shift-Commander
- LoDi-S88-Commander
- z21 and every command station that supports the Z21 protocol
- Märklin CS2/3
- XpressNet
- ESU ECoS
- WiThrottle
- Loconet (in preparation)
Even now the LoDi-Con can talk to a wide range of model railway control software.
We continue to work closely with the manufacturers so that even more functionality can be built into the LoDi-Con.
The operating concept
The operating concept of the LoDi-Con is deliberately simple. We tried to put as little as possible, but as much as necessary, on the device itself. LoDi-OS grew out of that.
The LoDi-Con itself carries a high-quality capacitive touch display.
Clear menu structures and simple operation were one of our goals. The touch display is backed by a rotary control that is a pleasure to use and even signals different actions through LED feedback — the current speed step is shown by the LEDs in the knob, among other things.
Always one tap from where you want to be...
The menu bar takes you straight to each area:
- Switching turnouts and routes
- Home menu
- Back button
- Loco overview / direct control
Everything at a glance, thanks to filtering in the loco and accessory overview.
Because the screen would quickly get crowded and the right objects hard to find among the many you have created, we added a small pre-selection filter.
A text search is available too.
Whichever way you turn the LoDi-Con, the screen turns with it. A built-in orientation sensor lets the LoDi-Con work out how you are holding it. It learns your habits along the way and does not flip the display the moment you tilt the device.
Auto-rotation can of course also be switched off, or locked to one orientation.
Videos say more than a thousand words, but a short guide to the individual functions is of course included here as well. The deeper details are in the videos. In future we will gather all videos about the device under this link.
The LoDi-Con and its versions — important!
From 12 December 2024 the LoDi-Con B is no longer available; only the LoDi-Con A version is offered.
Since LoDi-Con B units are still in circulation, we continue to cover it here.
For the details of the different versions, click the LoDi-Con version below.
In brief: the LoDi-Con A (black knob) = the battery-pack version, with the rechargeable pack already built in. The LoDi-Con A has a USB-C connection for charging it.
The LoDi-Con B (grey knob) = the battery version, taking three AAA batteries or rechargeables in the back.
The LoDi-Con A
(click here or on the picture for the description)
The LoDi-Con B
(click here or on the picture for the description)
Operating the LoDi-Con
Contents
The LoDi-Con can do a great deal. We have therefore tried to describe everything as precisely as possible, and in as much detail as necessary, to explain its functions to you. Click the point you want to set up.
1. First power-up / connecting to Wi-Fi 2. Setting up command stations 3. Setting up and driving a locomotive 4. Multiple heading 5. Switching turnouts and signals 6. Creating routes 7. Showing feedback 8. Device settings 9. Building a track diagram 10. CV programming 11. Club mode 12. Online database 13. Firmware update 14. Technical data 15. Settings in the LoDi-ProgrammerFX
16. Creating your own loco images
17. LoDi-Con PDF download
Here you can download a summary of the LoDi-Con hardware and software as a PDF.