Solenoid Trigger Workflows¶

CONFIRMED TRIGGERS BOTH

Summary¶

IR beam and photocell triggers can be used as external event inputs, but practical range and timing limits matter. The chat also distinguishes between trigger-box relay outputs for simple pneumatic/electrical events and stepper/QuadBox control for repeatable pour rigs.

Symptoms¶

You want to use an IR beam break or photocell to start a Flair move when an object crosses the beam, and need to know the practical range and timing delay.
The IR beam sensor cannot reach across the full distance of the set and you need to know the maximum reliable range.
You are wiring a solenoid valve to a Trigger Box relay output and need to know how to connect a four-wire solenoid safely.
You need to decide whether a pour rig should use a Trigger Box relay or a stepper motor and QuadBox for repeatable controlled pours.
You need to account for the input-trigger start delay when timing a robot move to a beam-break event.

Stable ID¶

ISSUE-TRIG-014

First Reported¶

2020-05-16 — IR Beam Trigger experience request.

Additional Reports¶

2021-05-18 — IR beam distance for milk/wave effect.
2023-01-31 — photocell/reflector to start a move.
2023-04-12 — products for practicing pours with trigger box.
2025-11-20 — solenoid valve wiring to trigger box relay.

Hardware¶

MRMC Trigger Box / Trigger Box Mk II
IR Beam Trigger / photocell and reflector
Solenoid valve
Stepper motor + QuadBox for motorized pour rigs

Community Solutions¶

[CONFIRMED] 2021-05-18 — User: Alex de Heus¶

For the discussed IR sensor, max distance is about 1-1.5 m between sensor and reflector, and it likely cannot be improved much. Consider intercepting liquid top-to-bottom instead of across a large tank, or use a mechanical switch nearer the action.

confidence_score: 0.78

[LIKELY] 2021-05-18 — User: Timothy Heys Cerchio¶

Input Trigger start has delay. Account for that delay in effect timing when a beam break starts a robot move.

confidence_score: 0.76

[CONFIRMED] 2023-01-31 — Community thread¶

A trigger box plus photocell/reflector can be used in principle to start a move when an object crosses the beam. Test timing locally and treat it as an input-trigger workflow.

confidence_score: 0.72

[CONFIRMED] 2023-04-12 — User: Timothy Smith¶

For pour practice: motorized pour rigs usually use a stepper motor and QuadBox; pneumatic or non-motorized rigs use the Trigger Box. External suppliers such as Performing Rigs were suggested.

confidence_score: 0.78

[LIKELY] 2025-11-20 — User: Peter Constan-Tatos¶

For a four-wire solenoid valve, assuming 12 V and within trigger-box current limits: join one clear/white wire with one black wire, then connect the remaining two to the output relay. For larger loads, use the trigger-box relay only to drive an external relay/SSR rated for the actual load.

confidence_score: 0.70

2020-05-16 05:14 - Dan Gottesman asked whether anyone had experience using the IR Beam Trigger and attached a photo of the unit: .

2025-11-20 04:20 - Jeffrey Larsen asked how to wire a four-wire solenoid valve into the Trigger Box and attached plus 00035227-VIDEO-2025-11-20-04-20-45.mp4.

Media Text / Description¶

Media 1: 2020-05-16 05:14 - Dan Gottesman asked whether anyone had experience using the IR Beam Trigger and attached a photo of the unit: .
Media 2: 2025-11-20 04:20 - Jeffrey Larsen asked how to wire a four-wire solenoid valve into the Trigger Box and attached plus 00035227-VIDEO-2025-11-20-04-20-45.mp4.
Media 3: 2025-11-20 04:20 - Jeffrey Larsen asked how to wire a four-wire solenoid valve into the Trigger Box and attached 00035226-PHOTO-2025-11-20-04-20-39.jpg plus .

WhatsApp Excerpts¶

2020-05-16 05:14 - Dan Gottesman asked whether anyone had experience using the IR Beam Trigger and attached a photo of the unit: 00000043-PHOTO-2020-05-16-05-14-36.jpg.
2020-05-16 05:18 - Hugo Nilsson reported using the IR trigger multiple times, including triggering Bolt before a car crash, and said it worked well. Dan then asked for documentation and wiring guidance; Niko replied that Flair only needed the appropriate input pin set up.
2021-05-18 20:03 - Tran Quang Duy described wanting to track a wave of milk hitting sugar and asked whether the beam-trigger distance could be improved across a large tank.
2021-05-18 20:09 - Alex de Heus replied that the sensor/reflector distance for that type was about 1-1.5 m and likely could not be improved.
2021-05-18 20:13 - Timothy Heys Cerchio suggested intercepting the liquid top-to-bottom rather than side-to-side, and later warned that rig moves have a delay when using an input trigger to start, so the effect timing must account for it.
2023-01-28 18:26 - Martin Hevel suggested using the Trigger Box with a photocell and reflector so that when chocolate crossed the beam the move would start.
2022-04-01 07:22 - Austin asked about sending a Flair trigger through the Trigger Box into a BFG Mantis remote-run/bloop input. Agustin Teisseire described assigning a normal Flair output trigger in Setups -> Output, using the Trigger Box relays, and letting the Mantis timeline run from that signal.
2025-11-20 04:20 - Jeffrey Larsen asked how to wire a four-wire solenoid valve into the Trigger Box and attached 00035226-PHOTO-2025-11-20-04-20-39.jpg plus 00035227-VIDEO-2025-11-20-04-20-45.mp4.
2025-11-20 04:24 - Peter Constan-Tatos said to assume the solenoid needs 12 V and must stay within the Trigger Box current limit. He first identified a 5 A limit from the box image, then corrected for the four-wire solenoid: join one clear/white wire to one black wire and put the other two wires on the output relay.