Proper way to connect a solenoid

[Joe Ross]

Originally Posted by rkoripalli

In terms of code, I am using Java commandbase. I have "public static Relay cannon = new Relay(4);" in RobotMap. I also have a command setup to fire. In the initialize i'm doing "RobotMap.cannon.set(Relay.Value.kOn);" where cannon is the name of the Relay and RobotMap is the place where it is defined. I can verify that the command is running because I have a debug statement which is printing when I push the button to run it.

Using kOn is turning both sides of the relay on, which won't cause the solenoid to fire. You want to use kForward which sets the + side to 12v and the - side to ground.

Alternately, you can set the direction to forward in the constructor and then use kOn.